49-1Military AffairsInfantry Branch of the Army . [2358] Reduction not advised because of
"savage Sioux" still in the U.S ., etc.1886-3

Senate Report No. 103, 49th Congress, 1st Session (1886)

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49TH CONGRESS,} 1st Session. SENATE. • f REPORT t No. 103. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES. FEBRUARY 10, 1,86.-0rdered to be ptinteo. Mr. MANDEH~ON, from the Committee on Military A:tfairs, submitted the following REPOR'f: [To accompany bill S. 137. J The Committee on Jtiilitary Affairs, to which was submitted the bill (S. 137) to increase the efficiency of the infantry branch of the Army, respectfully submit the following report : -The object of this bill is to increase the efficiency of the infantry arm of the service, and thereby that of the entire Army of the United States. The change proposed is from the single battalion now composing a regiment to a regimental line of three battalions, placing an infantry regiment on the same footing with a regiment of cavalry or of artillery in the matter of its organization. The bill also provides that appointments to the original vacancies, above the grade of second lieutenants, which would be created by this bil1, shall be filled by seniority in the infantry branch. The effect of this would be to relieve the stagnation in promotion that now exists in the infantry arm,. which tends to ap;tthy and inefficiency. Promotion, however, would be mereJy an incident to the adoption of the ''system" contemplated, which has become an imperative military ne-cessity produced by the changed conditions in modern warfare. Fifty captains would. be made majors; _ one hundred first lieutenants would become captains ; one hundred and fifty second lieutenants would be made first lieutenants, and two hundred second lieutenants would be commissioned ; provided it should be -deemed best to fulJy officer the proposed third battalion of each regiment. · Your committee came to the cousideration of this bill (S. 137) under a full sense of its importance, and after a careful examination of its merits, the effect of promotion under it on the esprit de corps of the Army, with a jealous regard for the increased oxpense which its pro-visious would entail, it is constrained to conclude that the sound mili-. tary policy embodied in this measure should find favor at the hands of this Uongrers. The nation which prepares ·fur war in time of peace is no less saga-cious than prudent and economical. Your committee find it impossible to elaborate the reasons for the conclusion reached within the compass of an ordinary report, and hence present a line of general observation only, whicll will suggest itself to those who shall give the subject the attention it merits. / • 2 INFANTRY BRANCH OF THE ARMY. The policy of the country being to dispense with a large standing army; to maintain a force just sufficient to suppress Indian raios and internal local dissension, the regular military force of the nation is a mere skeleton of an army, valuable in any great emergency for leav-ening purposes, serving as a rallying point in such cases for an in-creased force. Under such circumstances it is important that the small force under arms should be brought to the very highest point of effi-ciency, and there maintained. ~ For twenty years the infantry branch of the service in this country has stood still so far as any effort may have been made by Co11gress to add to its strength by reorganization or by the substitution of a change of H system." The ten-company single-battalion organization adopted by this coun-try sixty-five years ago, discarded by all civilized European nations, retained: by China and Persia, is still maintained by this country! From a military standpoint, this alone is a commentary on, and it should be an incentive to, action on the part of Congress. When it is considered that in all armies the infantry takes the lead, being, according to an able writer on modern tactics, "the main-stay and backbone of all," its efficiency becomes a matter of the greatest importance. To the infantry branch, the action of all others is subordinated. The brunt of battle falls upon the infantry; it suffers most in action and on line of march, and upon its tactics the whole superstructure of mili-tary operations is built. It is the judgment of the most eminent military authorities that the army cannot attain a high degree of efficiency with the infantry branch organized on the present obsolete "system," besirles which, the rate of mortality in closed ranks of double file is greatly increased since the adoption of the breech-loading long-range weapons. This has caused the abandonment by foreign powers of the" system" in vogue here, which it is the object of this bill to reorganize. Among the first and most important recommendations in the report to Congress, made by the military commission sent abroad from this country, published in 1877, is the change of system cont,eruplated by this bill. A paragraph from that report (Upton's Armies of Asia and ·Europe) shows the organization of the infantry branch of the service abroad: The infantry of the German Empire consists, in time of peace, of one hundred and forty-eight regiments of three battalions each. (Page 192.) The influence of the Franco-Prnssian war in producing modification in military or-o-anization is nowhere more perceptible than in the French infantry. Pour companies ~ere substituted for six in the composition of a battalion, and a regiment was ordered to be made of four battalions. Since that time the three-battalion organization bas been adopted by France. (Page :!26.) In Russia the regiments of the three divisions of the guard and the six divisions of the army of the Caucasas have four battalions of four companies each. All other reg-iments have three battalions of :five companies each. (Page 149.) The Austrian infantry is organized into ret-!iments composed of five field battalions of four companies each and one depot battalion of five companies. In case of wa.r the six battalions are organized into two regiments of three battalions each, the fifth . company of the depot battalion remaining as a common depot for both regiments. (Page 162.) . In Italy a battalion consists of four companies and a regiment of three battalions and a depot. The riflemen regiments are composed of four battalions each. (Page 102.) How completely the army of Japan has been Europeanized may be inferred from the organization of the infantry. A regiment consists of three battalions of four companies each. (Page 9.) INFANTRY BRANCH OP THE ARMY. 3 As long ago as in 1869 General W. T. Sherman, then in command, suggested a change in our "system," which received the approval of the Secretary of War. In 1874-'75 General Sherman said: Inasmuch as the Regular Army will naturally form the standard of organization for any increase or for new regiments of volunteers, it becomes important to study this subject in the light of past experience and to select that form which is best for peace as well as war. A. cavalry regiment is now composed of twelve companies, usually di-vided into six squadrons of two companies each, or better, subdivided into three bat-talions of four companies each. This is an excellen t form, easily admitting of sub-division as well a.s union into larger masses. The ten-company organization is awkward in practice, and I am satisfied that the infantry regiment should have the same identical organization as exiRts for the cav-alry and artillery, namely, t.welve companies, so as to be susceptible of division into three battalions offourcompanies each. These companies should habitually be about one hundred men strong, giving twelve hundred to a regiment, which in practice would settle down to about one thousand men. Three such regiments would com-pose a brigade, three brigades a division, and three divisions a corps. Then by allow-ing to an infantry corps a brigade of cavalry and six batteries of field artillery, we would have an efficient co1ps d'm·mee of thirty thousand men, whose organization wonld be simple and most efficient, and whose strength should never be allowed to fall below twenty-five thousand men. In 18RO, and again in 1882, was this proposed change adverted to by the General of the Army ; and again in 1883 he said : On the tlth of February, 181:54, I will attain the limit of age fixed by Congress for military service in the Army, and I purposely asked of the President the privilege of anticipating this date to enable my successor to make such recommendations as he may deem necessary; bnt before leaving I beg to record an expression of opinion that it will be found wise to provide a common organization for all arms of the serv-ice, namely: That each regiment of infantry be composed of twelve companies, the same as now with the artillery and cavalry, making three battalions, each of four companies in • time of peace, and of eight in time of war; that each company shall have a hundred men; and that in time of peace two of these battalions (eight companies) shall be . maintained on a perfect war footing, while the other battalion (four companies) may be a mere skeleton with its complement of officers, and used as a nucleus for recruits. In this battalion can be placed the officers and soldiers invalided by hard service or sickness, and such as are not weaned of home influence or family importunity. Were such an organization to be sanctioned by Congress, the military peace estab-lishment could, I believe, be maintained on the present estimates, and would possess the inestimable advantage of admitting of an increase without "disorder or confu-sion" to 6,000 artillery, 12,000 cavalry, and 30,000 infantry by the mere scratch of a pen and the-magic wand of money; and afterward by doubling the enlisted strength of each company without the further addition of a single officer we should have the respect-able force of 9t:,OOO men, a force large enough for any probable necessity during the remainder of this century. The militia and volunteers of the States would soon follow suit, and we should have throughout the country t.hese small handy battalions of four companies, in-stead of the large cumbersome regiments of ten•companies-a bad tactical unit, and in practice always scattered. Jn 1884, General Sheridan, who had come to the command, said: Were I called upon to recommend any change whatever, it would besimply to make a uniform organization for the three arms of the service by adding two companies and the corresponding majors to each regiment, of infantry. In this the Secretary of War concurred. And in the report of the Lieutenant-General of 1885 be says he would '•increase the number of men in the companies, add two more companies and two majors to each regiment of infantry." In this recommendation Secretary Endicott concurred, saying he hoped it might be done. and "the three arms of the service made uni-form." • 4 INFANTRY BRANCH OF THE ARMY. Your committee do not feel that any language of their own could em-phasize this long line of suggestion, amounting almost to a supplication, on the part of some of the ablest a-nd most practical military men ot modern times. Emanating as these words do from those who have emerged auccessful from one of the most stupendous conflicts recorded in history, their advice, if not admonitory, is entitled to the most seri-ous attention. Your committee, while not considering cumulative testimony neces-sary, beg leave to add the following t('Stimony from that distinguished military chieftain, who has but recently expired, Major-General Han-cock; under date of January 25, 1886, he says: The subject is one of which I have long thought favorably, and ,<;bould the bill be-come a law I believe it would add qnite materially to the efficiency of the service. Major-General Schofield, under date of February 2, 1886, says of this bill: I indorse it most cordially. I have not heretofore urged the proposed change in in-fantry organization because the wisdom of it has seemed to me self-evident, and has been sufficiently dwelt upon by others; and because the necessity of some increase in the present effective strength of the Army has seemed t,o me more urgent than any-thing else. · Your committee assume that the desire for the proposed change has become apparent, and the necessity therefor demonstrated as fully as it can be in an ordinary report. It remains to consider briefly the effect, so far as an increase of the .Army, promotions therein, and cost thereof, are concerned. The increase proposed by this bill, according to a recent statement made by Lieutenant-General Sheridan, would be twenty-five hundred enlisted men and two hundred second lieutenants . .A considPration worthy of remark on the point of promotion concerns the disposition to be made of the West Point class of '78, about to graduate. There will be thirty-nine vacancies for them to fill, and the other thirty-nine will probably be added to the Army as second lieu-tenants. In other respects the promotions under this bill would be fifty cap-tains, of tweQty years' service, to be majors; of the one hundred first lieutenauts who would be promoted to captains, seventy-two have seen over twenty .vears' service, twenty-three have had fifteen years and upwards of service, and five ten years and over; of the one hundred and fifty second Heutenants who would be promoted to first lieutenants, two have over twenty years, eight over fifteen years, forty-six ten years and over, ·eighty-seven over five years, and seven less than five years of service. • The increase of pay which these promotions would involve amounts to $104,120 per annum, and the aggregate pay of the two hundred ad-ditional second lieutenants contemplated by this bill would amount to $280,000, a total of $384,120, while the a~nual cost of fifty additional companies of fifty men each would be $679,176, making a grand total of $1,063,296. If the fifty companies of enlisted men were kept at forty men each, the cost would be reduced to $93:3,246. But from this latter snm, the pay of thirty-nine second lieutenants who would fill vacancies, and of thirty-nine who would be added to the Army from the West Point class, should be deducted, $109,200, which would reduce the increased cost to $823,046. .And if deemed advisable only one hundred of the twohun-drecl second lieutenants need be commissioned, which would leave the INJ<,ANTRY BRANCH OF THE ARMY. 5 two additional companies without that Aubaltern officer, in which event a further saving of $140,000 would occur, reducing the increased cost to $783,046. 'l'his expenditure .would not only give the country an efficient "system" or organization of the infantry branch'of the service, but it would cause the entire Army to become efficient, and the country would then realize something from an annual expenditure of over $15,000,000, and it could feel that the excess of cost had been authorized simply that both life and money would be saved, and full value received by the inauguration of a line of policy and the adoption of a ~~ ~ystem" which had for its basis true economy rather than parsimony. If an army is necessary at all, it should, like every other necessary thing, be made efficient. There is no true economy in a policy of ill-judged parsimony. The epoch of peace, with which this country is at preRent happily blessed, cannot last forever. Until human nature shall rise above its present weaknesses, the selfish aggressions of one people will occasionally clash with those of some other. and war is the result where diplomacy fails. Regard being bad for· the great increase of population, especially in our largest cities, containing disturbing ele-ments; considering the rapid development of our valuable domestic in-terests, needing, no one can say when nor how much protection, at un-certain junctures; with the unsettled Mormon problem on our bands; with 25,000 savage Sioux within the borders of settlement and civiliza-tion, and thousands of other savages scattered over the sparsely set-tled portions of the public domain; with the interoceanic canal conten-tion open; with the territorial aggrandizement of Ouba, and perhaps of other islands near us, involving a violation perchance of our foreign policy; with millions of money invested by our citize!J.S in Mexico, your committee feel impelled to regard this bill as eminently deserving of favorable action by Congress. Recognizing the fact that there are many deserving en listed men in the Army worthy of promotion, your committee have deemed it proper, in several aspects, to recognize this fact, and have accordingly amended the bill by adding, at the end thereof the following: ''Provided further, That of the number of second lieutenants, in ex-cess of the graduates of the Military Academy, appointed to the infantry . . arm of the service, one-half of such number shall be appointed from the enlisted men of the Army of the United States, after proper examina-tion." . And with this amendment, your committee respectfully report the bill favorably and ask its passage. S. Rep. 103--2 c 

Infantry Branch of the Army

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Infantry Branch of the Army

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