Year: 1876

The debate on the Military Academy bill
in the House yesterday served to develop
something of the tactics and policy OF the
Democrats. 1t was made clear that their
boosted economy is all pretense and sham.
Under the pretense of lowering the taxes of
the people they propose to 50 reduce the pay
of the young cadets that many of those who
have nothing but their pay to subsist upon
will be obliged to resign from the service,
and leave the military field to the scions of
the rich. They propose to debar the sons
of the poor men from the benefits of good,
scientific military education, and compel
those of them who have passion or taste
for military science andservice in the field
TO crafty them by entering the ranks as an
enlisted man. The Military Academy was
organized as nursery of army officers,
whose students should be supplied from all
classes Of citizens of good reputation, re-
gardless OF wealth or politics. The policy
proposed by Messrs. Cox and R indall tends
to exclude all who have no means of SUBJ
sistence outside of their pay and rations.


But we have said that this yaunted econ
omy is a pretense and sham. These
demagogues who are now so loudly clam
orilg FOR retrenchment have no idea that
their policy will be adopted. They design
TO make q cheap record as Democrats ia
the House upon which they may go to the
country, and trust to the Republican SEN
ate to restore the pay and emoluments Of
the cadets TO a respectable living point,
and compel the House TO agree to that
proposition in conference committee. Hav-
ing done this they propose to go before the
country in the approaching campaign, and
tell the ''dear people" how much they
offered to cut down the expenses of the
Government, but were prevented by those
rascallY Republicans.


These are the old.time tactics of the
Democrats, and served their purpose very
telegraphic reports of Congressional de-
bates, and but few newspapers within reach
Of the masses, but they will fail in these
days of more general intelligence. Least
of all will they answer as applied to the
Military Academy, where the effect will
bear with such unequal force, as we have
shown. The masses cherish with the
greatest jealousy our Military and Naval
Academies, where poor and rich alike may
obtain entrance for their sons who aspire to
become their nations defenders. They
cannot fail to see thai this blow is aimed
at the poor mems sons. They will not fail
to see that the policy is step in the direc-
ton Of that which governs aristocrahc
Britain. There commissions in the army
are only obtainable by wealth and influence.
A poor British lad who enters the military
service sees no hope of advancement
through personal merit. He must have
wealth and power to back him.


In the United States we have always
Claimed the superiority of our policy in
this respect as designed to secure for the
service the best physical and intellectual
ability in the land. regardless of birth or
pecupiary independence. But the dema-
gogues who now control the House would
for mcrc partisan effect, strike down this
admirable system, and in so doing bang the
doors of the Military and Naval Academies
in the faces of all the sons of "poor but
honest and respectable parents" As we
said, they have overshot the mark. They
have begun at the wrong end of the Treas
ury with their stinginess. They must be-
gin with their own pay if they would in
spire confidence in their homilies and pre-
lenses about economy. When they put
back their own salaries TO point ten per
cent. lower than they were in 1860, as
they propose to razee those of the poorer
classes of Government employees in the
Executive Departments, they may find
sympathy among the masses. Economy,
like charity, begins at home when it is
effective