Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1917-11-02
ARMY INSIGNIA.

Natc 10 COiuiNlutlns SeHeful--Sp Hutu
so. in fact, that 1t is often difficult to
recognize a mans place in the service
at first glance. But a closer view will
tell the whole story to any experienced
observer.
"Insignia" is the term used to in
clude all the badges, buttons. braids.
bat cords. and other devices which in
d.cate these three things:
/. The rank of each officer or sol
der.
.. His branch of the service or his
special duties.
3. His personal experience or record.
An ordinary private's uniform car
rieS no insignia Of rank. When a man
becomes first-class private. however,
in the engineer corps. hospital corps,
ordinance department. quartermaster
corps. or signal corps. he is entitled to
wear on the sleeves of his coat ana
shirt the design of the department to
which he belongs.
lance corporal wears on his sleeve
an inverted V-shaped bar. A corporal
has two bars. and sergeant three
bars. Below the Sergeant's three v
shaped GnverteD bars may appear a
number of additional marks. indica.-
ing his duties. For example, hrst
sergeant has n dian.Ond-Shaped marx
the stable sergeant has device repre-
Senting horses head; the color ser
geant has star; the battalion quar-
termaSter sergeant has three horizon
tai bars; the chief trumpeter has one
bar and q device representing bugle;
and so on. All the cloth designs. such
rs those just described, which are
sewn on the sleeves. are known as
"chevrOnS."
Above the noncommiSsioned officers,
rank is shown by various insignia on
the shoulder loops of coats. on the
sleeves of coats and oyercOats, on the
collars of shirts. and by hat cords.
4 The most important are those mace OF
metal and sewed on shoulder loops and
shirt collars. A major general has two
silver stars; brigadier general, one
silver star; a colonel. Il silver eagle;
| lieutenant colonel, silver oak leaf;
major. q gold oak leaf; captain.
two silver bars; and first lieutenant,
one silver bar. A second lieutenant
has no shoulder insignia. You can
readily tell the rank of any officer by
CHANGING at these metal insignia.
1t is often quite necessary, however.
to recognize that some one at little
distance Is commissioned officer in
order that you may treat him with the
courtesy due to all officers; in this
case you look for the marks indicat-
ing that q man holds commission
without waiting to observe his exact
rank. Until recently commissioned Of
ficers cuStOmarily wore leather leg
gings, while all enlisted men wore cam
vas leggings. However, leather leg
gings may now be worn by mounted
men. The hat cord is another mark of
rank which is easily observed; the hat
cords of generals are gold; those OF
other officers are of gold and black.
Another mark of an officer is bani
of brown braid about three inches
from the end Of the coat sleeve. OH
GERS of the general staff corps wear
black braid instead of brown. o..
ovcrcOatS the braid is sewn on IA
loops except that of general officers
who wear two black bands of braid
Every branch Of the service has its
special color which appears on the
hat cords of enlisted men, on tht
choyrous Of noncommiSsioned officers
and in many other places. These
colorS are:
Infantry, light blue; cavalry. yellow
, artillery. scarlet; adjutant generals
inspector generals, and judge adyO
cate generals departments, dark blue
engineer corps. scarlet intertwinec
with white: signal corps, orange. inter
twined with white; medical depart
ment, maroon; Quartermaster cor1s
buff; ordnance department, black in
tertwined with scarlet.
BY remembering these cOlors yOl
. will often be abb" easily to recognize
men and troops. In addition to thes
colors. every branch Of the service ha
; its own device with all of which yO'
will soon become familiar.
The number of the regiment TO whicl
= each man belongs is on the collar o
:. his coat. All regimental numbers vii
run in three different series, shown
whether each regiment was original
n part of the regular army, of the Ma
tional Guard, or of the new Nations
army. The numbers of regiments fOi
: merly of the regular army will begi
: with the figure l and run up 70 tn
" figure 100; those of regiments former
" in the National Guard will beg
I with figure 1O1 and run up TO 300
those of regiments in the new Nations
" army will begin with figure 3O1. TIL
:, former National Guard regiments wi
!. show also their former state design;
lions. as, for example, Qst Me), q
-" PAL. etc. The device of regiments ,
- the new National army in IL
. same way will show the state frol
which each organization, or the bul
of II. was drawn, as, for exampl
l' (W. Va.D, (Nlinn.), etc. Thus yO
= will easily be able to recognize n,
= only the mans regiment but also ii
y section of the country from which I
&c comes and how he got into the ser
30 ice.
u Your insignia should have-and wi
!, have-a big and deep meaning for 70
VI You will come to respect them and