The sun., 1917-09-09
NEW YORK HOME GUARD FIT FOR ANY CRISl
BY PARKE F. HANLEY.

II one neighbor or another q
4 youth steps forth to take his
place in the National Army; AZ the
number OF men who proudly bear the
olive drab fades from our streets,
there. are timid persons who see the
daily decrease and wonder what Is to
become Of us. They fear that now
will descend upon us those imiginary
hosts whose spectral presence was
conjured out of the minds Of calamity
howlers soon after war was declared.
Obsession Of peril that cannot be
conibatted seizes the mind Of these
worrisome persons. Should our alien
enemies arise in their might, they
foresee in the absence OF our drafted
men and the maturer trained forces
4 necessity for immediate yielding.
Were the malcontents to organize.
we're the anti-militarists suddenly to
take on courage, doom would fall upon
us. according to their envisagement.
Let us impart to these message
of cheer: New York city and New
York State-and the same fact applies
throughout the country-have poten-
tial protection sufiicient to meet all
emergencies. Conscription may drain
US for millions, every man Of the mill
tia may depart to France and still we
have with us enough men to cope
with possible uprisings and revolts.
In a word, we are close to the mill
tary basis that led Wilhelm Hoben-
zollern to bring on his war. We have
universal compulsory service the
power to call to the colors for internal
disorder every man between the ages
Of is and As. There Is vested with
the Governor of this State. and this
same fact holds true in other States
an autocratic control over every able
bodied individual between these limits
Fortunately the demonstrated patriot
ism of our people has made unneces-
sary the exercise Of this power.
All In the state Militia.
Every man now is in the State
militia, whether he likes It or not.
You may be a Stacker or shirker,
you may conscientiously object, you
back to the days of William Penn. you
may be a pacifist OF the thinnest blood.
you may hate war in all its aspects,
buff the Governor tomorrow de-
cides that you, or you, or you, must
take up arms and go into a trouble
some section Of the State you must go.
You must go or suffer the conse-
Quences that a military court may fix.
OF course. this possibility is extreme.
There is nothing that can be imagined
In the spirit of our people that will
compel a Governor to this arbitrary
action. 1t Is inconceivable that there
can spring up a situation which would
induce him to take unframed men from
their ordinary pursuits to send them
out with lethal weapons to meet enc.
mics Of the Government. The pros
pect becomes the more remote every
new day as men alive to their obliga.
tons as citizens are training them
selves to be the Governors force.
On the premise that one man skilled
in arms. amenable to discipline and
trained in the school of the soldier. 1.
equal to a score of men unqualified ir
these respects. Governor Whitman
with the cooperation Of his new Ad'
tutant-General, Charles H. Sheriff.
will let the States bulwark be a forct
of $4,000 men. It Is this body tina,
will meet whatever contingency mus
he dealt with by military force.
As soon as tho last body Of oul
militiamen entrains for Spartanburg
or whatever camp Is assigned for ths
rounding out Of their drill. there viii
spring up overnight a new NationA
Guard to meet emergency. riot or in
surrection anywhere in the State.
Times before when the men whe
in peace formed our National 0uart
were called into the Federal service
the State went through certain futile
motions to meet tho constitutional re-
quirement that the Governor alwayi
shall have at his disposition an armet
force Of 10000 men. The Spanish.
American War and tho border sum.
mona Of last summer brought about
tho liberalization Of our National
Guard and there Immediately was be
gun the formation Of depot units II
al regiments. 1t must be recorded
that in both these instances the forma
ton fell far below the required 10000
In q word. the efforts resulted In fall
ure.
The purpose Of having depot units Il
two fold: to afford home protection ant
to have ready sufficient men to fill gap
made in the original regiment. Re
cruiting was the sole means at hand.
Home Defenders IN Plenty.
However, since we have entered int
the war changes In our military sys
tenn have made unnecessary at leas
one Of these functions-that Of fllini
up depleted regiments. The wave o
Preparedness that swept over tn
country before our entry into the wa
practically has broken down the othe
function. Long before our Nations
Guard took the Federal oath ther
were in every community organization
OF men that stood ready to take thei
places as home defence forces.
Although this has not been an
nounced officially yet. II Is probabl
nat the old method OF making up de
~ ..hs mas gone forever. Of tn
G67 900 men called into the nationa
army, 1t is anticipated that $4,000 @
them will go into the old militia outnt
TO bring them to war strength. An
back of this first $4,000 are million
more of young men subject to the cal
What need, therefore, Of further re
cruiting OF men fit for fighting abroa
when the material 10 availabl
through draft methods?
Meeting these depleti0ns throug
the medium OF the ccnscript arm
does not mean that recruiting has bee