I have the honor to submit the following report of the operations of this Department for the past year. The expenditures for the year ending June 30, 1894, the appropriations for the current year, and the estimates for the year beginning July 1, 1895, are shown in the following comparative statement: The reports of the officers in command of the several geographical departments corroborate the opinion, expressed in my last annual report that Indian warfare is virtually at an end in the United States, and that beyond occasional calls for police duty in the neighborhood of Indian reservations, the Army will henceforth be relieved to a greater degree each year of the labor of armed surveillance over the tribes of the West. There have been no serious infractions of the neutrality laws on the Mexican frontier during the year, but the presence of a regular force there for some time to come is clearly prescribed by the conditions of civilization in that region. It was found necessary during the period beginning with March and extending through July of the current year, in various sections of the country, to employ a considerable part of the Army to execute the orders of the United States courts, otherwise successfully defied and resisted, to protect the dispatch of the United States mails, to remove restraints to travel and commerce, and to guard the property of the Government. The movement of troops thus necessitated was the largest which has taken place since the close of the civil war. The difficult and extraordinary tasks imposed upon the officers and men of the Army were discharged promptly, firmly, and judiciously, in a manner which attested to the courage, intelligence, and loyalty of those called into active duty, and the thorough efficiency of every branch of the service. The militia of the States wherever employed also proved generally to be composed of qualified and reliable soldiers. The authorized strength of the Army is now: Cavalry officers.... Artillery officers Infantry officers Total officers of the line.... General officers and in staff departments... Total officers Enlisted men of cavalry. Enlisted men of artillery. Enlisted men of infantry.. Enlisted men of engineers. Total enlisted men in companies and regiments.. Enlisted men in detachments and unassigned to regiments.. Total authorized under act June 18, 1874 Enlisted men, hospital corps, act March 1, 1887 Total all enlisted men.. 430 280 875 1,585 551 2, 136 6, 050 3,975 12, 925 500 309 23, 759 1,241 25,000 772 25, 772 The number of enlisted men in service on October 31 was 25,516. Deducting the sick, those in confinement, recruits not yet joined, those absent on furlough, and others employed in staff departments or on detached service, the effective field strength on the same date was 20,114 of all arms. BATTALION FORMATION. I earnestly recommend that Congress enact the legislation necessary to establish in the Army the battalion formation, now adopted by the armies of every other civilized nation. As necessary to effect that change I recommend the removal of the limit of 25,000 men fixed by the act of June 18, 1874, and a return to the limit fixed by the act of July 15, 1870. Legislative approval of these two propositions will restore to the effective force about 4,000 enlisted men, bringing the actual strength of the Army up to the nominal strength now fixed by law. By these changes the Army will be increased in efficiency 20 per cent, in numbers about 16 per cent, and in cost of maintenance only about 6 per cent. In brief, it is proposed that two companies be added to each of the twenty-five infantry regiments, so that each shall consist of three battalions of four companies, and that two foot batteries be added to each of the five artillery regiments. No increase in the cavalry is proposed. The organization of the line of the Army has undergone no material change since the close of the civil war. During this period of thirty years every large foreign army has been completely reorganized. Changes and improvements in arms, ammunition, and equipments have forced upon the leading strategists and tacticians of the great armies of the world the necessity of a broad departure from the old systems. All have adopted the battalion as the tactical unit for infantry and artillery serving as infantry, and nearly all the equivalent of the squadron as the cavalry unit. The light artillery battalion has a similar composition. Should our Army ever be brought into collision with disciplined foreign troops, our present formation would prove so defective as to turn the scale against us in a conflict on terms otherwise equal. For some years the Secretaries of War, the generals commanding the Army, and the most eminent authorities in military science in this country have urged the adoption of the battalion formation, and our most progressive and best informed officers believe that the organiza tion of our small Army should embody this universally approved result of modern military thought. Four companies are as large a body as it is now possible for one officer to lead and control in action. Formerly, and down to a recent date, the colonel could see and direct the movements of all the men of his regiment who marched and fought in double rank with touch of elbows. Under such conditions a regiment of 1,000 men occupied a front on the battle line no greater than would now be covered by a small battalion of one-third that number. A few years ago small-arms fire was ineffective at distances greater than 600 or 800 yards, while now it will be deadly at ranges of 2,000 yards, or at even greater distances. In modern warfare the men will act in small groups or singly, and the advance will be made in successive lines in open order. Perfect organization and perfect control by the commander of each unit will be absolutely essential to efficiency and success in the field. The National Guard of several of the States, more progressive than the General Government, already has the battalion organization, and our own Army is being instructed as thoroughly as our defective system will permit, battalions of from two to five companies being improvised in the different garrisons. By restoring to the military establishment the strength allowed up to 1874, and providing for the battalion formation, with a few minor changes, the organization of the Army will be: Cavalry: Ten regiments of 3 squadrons each; 1 colonel, 1 lieutenant-colonel, 2 extra captains for adjutant and quartermaster, 5 noncommissioned staff; each squadron, 1 major or lieutenant-colonel, and 4 troops; cach troop, 1 captain, 2 lieutenants, and 50 enlisted men. Artillery: Five regiments of 3 foot battalions and 1 field artillery battalion each; 1 colonel, 1 lieutenant-colonel, 2 extra captains for adjutant and quartermaster, and 5 non-commissioned staff; each foot battalion, 1 major or lieutenant-colonel and 4 batteries; the field artillery battalion, 1 major and 2 field batteries; each foot battery, 1 captain, 2 lieutenants, and 65 enlisted men; each field battery, 1 captain, 3 lieutenants, and 75 enlisted men. Infantry: Twenty-five regiments of 3 battalions each; 1 colonel, 1 lieutenant-colonel, 2 extra captains for adjutant and quartermaster, 5 non-commissioned staff; each battalion, 1 major or lieutenant-colonel and 4 companies; each company, 1 captain, 2 lieutenants, and 55 enlisted men. |