RECRUITING

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RECRUITING.

BY MAJOR

GEORGE H. MORGAN, AD~orrlnr GBNERAL. OTWITHSTANDING the continuous study of the prob- N lem of recruiting an army, as presented in its various aspects to all officers, it is remarkable how varying are the opinions as to the details necesary to eliminate or reduce even the evils incident to the present system in our army. I personally think that the evils of our present system, its impracticability in war, its almost utter breakdown in the last few months under very slight stress of peace conditions, call for some radical legislation. The system of voluntary enlistments produced good results under the circumstances prevalent immediately after the Civil War, when the conditions of the country were such as to cultivate the martial virtues to a considerable degree, especially in the South and West. Even then there were evils, such as desertion, inability at times to get a sufficient number of good men, etc., and which now under the present 3tate of society have reached an almost unsupportable stage. The word conscription may not have a pleasant sound to a free man ; neither have several others connected with public duty, such as taxes, jury duty, etc.; however, it may be shown to be a necessity in Far and even in peace, and will be carried out cheerfully by some and obediently by the majority if made a law. Theoretically and democratically there can be no question as to the advisability of filling the depleted ranks of the national force by the system based upon a theory of con. scription, imposing upon the different States, according to population, the burden of service in the army, and theoreti. cally requiring the rich man to bear his part of the public duty equally with his poorer brother. If a practical method

RECRUITING.

699 a n be invented whereby the system can be developed in peace. it should be done, so that the method of recruiting map be made familiar to the people and to the officials who are intrusted with its details. The system must be in charge of the national government. as the army is a national force, but, so far as practical, the details may be in the hands of the States interested. As a natural result of such a scheme and necessary to its successful issue, the regiments of the national army should be localized €or recruiting purposes ; assigning regiments to sections in proportiqn to the population, and also in accordance with probable aptitude of the people of a section for any special arm. The army would be made familiar to the people. and thus popularized; the crime of desertion would be looked at from a local rather than from the vague general view now held, and would probably be almost eliminated. A regiment of volunteers, with whose history I am familiar. passed through its four years of service without a desertion. Its record is the proudest memory of a proud State. The regiments would be given a station for its home battalion, and the entire problem of keeping the strength of a regiment in the field would be a scientific work-a-day proposition, the details of which when worked out properly might spell victory and honor. when under the present system the reverse might be possible. Thoughtful people all over the world are studyingand observing the great experiment we are making in popular government. There is no doubt but that great minds. lovers of mankind. generally have the kindest, most helpful attitude towards us, our mistakes, defeats, our victories. One of them, commenting upon our obsolete system of volunteering, as he designates it, says, remembering the great disgster to Germany at Jena, that "the United States probably must be compelled. to adopt the conscription system only after some such great disaster." Fools learn only by experience; what shall we be designated when we do not even learn that way. When the perpetuity of human liberty and even our national life may be dependent upon our patnotism and intelligence, should we not &e seriously a lesson from the experience of other $tat- when it has been itlustrated by our own, and especially when the present method is a failure, and worse? Them is little local sentiment at present towards the upholding of the soldierly idea of honor, which is the foun. dation of discipline; see the disrespect shown to the flag, the uniform, and, when it dares, by a mob towards the individual soldier. Bot the highest reason for the substitution of conscrip. tion for volunteering, and the localizing of regiments, is that it rnvs: br resorted to in war. and can be made to work in peace, as the object to be accomplished must be obtained. It would be only sanity to abandon the old method proven to be inoperative. The present system is unscientific. barbarous, expensive and does not accomplish the object. The voluntary system, if persisted in, must be amended by making it an object for young men to devote their lives to the work; the periods of enlistment must be lengthened to at least the old five years term; in other words, the weak. ness of the conscription system of short term enlistments mast not be grafted on the poorer volunteer system; soldiers must Se relieved from all unmilitary labor; the uniform should be made sacred to the service; in short, the military esprit must be fostered in a11 legitimate ways, so that the young men of the country who have inclinations towards a military life may feel no degradation in enlisting, but will havepn the contrary a pride in belonging to the strong arm of the Republic. The details necessary to thoroughly carry out a complete system of reserves for an army in active service are properly to be considered when the system has been announced. They .are numerous, although well known, and have been commented upon, and to some extent in a haphazard manner have been tied. In a few localities, the suggestion of General Schofield in regard to the introduction of the preliminary drills in the high schools have been c a m d out. Next to the regular military academies at West Point and Annapolis, probably the best field for the education of officers for . ~ RfiCRUITING. 703 the war army is to be found in the &at State d v e r s i t b . The total of cadets now undergoing instruction in the practi-1 handling of troops in these great battalions is upwards of 30,000. When it is remembered that these are of the elite of the people, educated men, and when they graduate are practically all over twenty-one years of age, it would appear that this is the system to encourage. as the education is far in advance of that of a young man in the ranks, and has not its disadvantages. To sum up, in my opinion it is either conscription or a matter of money to keep the regular army in working order. If the enlistment in a locality drop off, it is because the working man in that place gets more for his product than the government offers. The government must then do what a private employer of labor is required to do; that is, it must compete in the labor market for the men. The non-commissioned officers and old soldiers forming the mainstay of the army in its operations, must be recognized by pay commensurate with their value. They are not ordinary laborers. It is true that we might take advantage of the patriotism of the people at the outbreak of a war. When moved by the causes that have brought it about, the masses rush to the ranks; all should be accepted that are physically equipped, even though they may present themselves to the extent of a million, and although the country we may have a disagreement with be Venezuela. They should be enlisted for the war; when their services can be spared they may easily be mustered out, although it might be impossible to get them to enlist when the horrors of a long and costly war have been fully advertised.