Evening star., 1926-10-10

his acceptance Of the Office carries
with it the acceptance Of these added
responsibilities, which require more
time and energy than can be devoted
| to them in the one and one-half hours
allotted for armory drill each week.
Promotion to a higher grade Is given
as an acknowledgment that person
! in the military service has faithfully
and efficiently performed duties to
| which he has been assigned and has
accepted all of the responsibilities
which his office entailed. BY his pro-
motion additional responsibilities are
placed on the individual, and when he
| accepts such promotion he accepts
those responsibilities.
when q private is promoted to the
grade Of corporal he is selected be-
cause some one believes in his ability
as q leader for seven other men. He
is made responsible for their home, a
squad room in a barracks or tent In
the field, and Is responsible that 1t Is
kept In good condition. clean, heated,
etc. He is the man they look to for
guidance in combat. In the National
Guard service he is the man to whom
the company commander. the platoon
commander and the section leader
He is responsible for their drill at
tendance; he is responsible that their
property is properly stored in their
lockers, that 1t Is kept in good condi.
tion and replaced when necessary, and
in many similar matters he Is respon.
sible for their welfare. This responsi-
bility, while not something that has
been actually accepted In writing, Is
no less an actual one, for which the
individual must hold himself account
able and for which his superior COM
manders must hold him responsible.
| SO on, a sergeant Is responsible for
| squads, in the same way, and lieu
tenant Is responsible for his platoon
in like manner, and SO on.
I'VE now come to the specialists,
each with his individual added respon.
sibilities. The adjutant and the COM
pany clerk has similar responsible
ties, except, of course, the adjutant' s
responsibilities are on a much larger
scale. Each is responsible for the
preparation, promptness and accuracy
| Of returns, reports. correspondence
payrolls, etc: for the maintenance Of
records and similar things. The sup
ply officer and the supply sergeant
| have like responsibilities, differing
! only in size, and SO with all specialists.
Each has his own work and his
own responsibilities, and he must
properly care for them in order that
the entire machine will function. A
breakdown by any Of tho member
parts Of the machine places an added
strain and responsibility on the other
members. and 1t is only question Of
time then before the entire machine
Is wrecked and worthless.
"The responsibility is yours and
mine. We have accepted 1t. Results
| is the unit Of measurement which
Will show how well we have fulfilled
| our obligation"
While the percentages at drills of
the local Guard as a whole arc com
paratively small. taken in connection
with the reports just previous to the
encampment, nevertheless the tabula.
tion shows only one unit, that Of the
| 29th Military Police Company, actu-
| ally below the required strength. For
| instance, one outfit which consistently
maintained q 100 per cent attendance
prior to the encampment now shows
| only $3.50. That is the Headquarter
Detachment. Special Troops. 29th Di-
vision.
Battery A. 26oth Coast Artillery,
heads the list in percentage Of at