The National Guard.—But the military forces of the United States do not consist of the regular army alone. Each state maintains a militia in which every able-bodied citizen between the ages of eighteen and forty-five is under obligation to serve when called upon. The effective portion of this militia, however, consists of organized units known as the national guard. In time of peace the national guard is under the control of the states, the governor in each state being its commander-in-chief; but Congress has authority to provide for the arming and disciplining of this force so that it may be serviceable in time of war. The present regulations relating to the size, organization, arming, and disciplining of the national guard were framed by Congress in 1916. Its officers, in time of peace, are appointed in each state by the governor; but the national government furnishes the arms and equipment besides giving an annual money grant to each state. The national guard, like the regular army, is recruited by voluntary enlistment. In time of war or other emergency it may be called into the service of the federal government and then becomes, for all practical purposes, an integral part of the United States army.[[273]]
The Volunteers.—During practically all the wars in which the United States was engaged prior to 1917 a call was made for volunteers. In the Civil War more than a million soldiers were brought to the colors in response to the six successive calls which President Lincoln issued. But recruits did not always come readily and it was necessary on occasions to offer bounties or money grants to all who would volunteer. During the war with Spain in 1898 volunteers were again called for, and many regiments were raised in this way, notably the First Volunteer Cavalry, better known as the Rough Riders.[[274]] The serious defect of an army raised in this way is that no one can foretell the number of men who will respond. The volunteer system, moreover, rests upon the idea that military service is an optional, not a universal duty, on the part of citizens.
The draft in 1917-1918.
The National Army.—When the United States entered the World War in 1917 it was realized that a sufficient military force could not be obtained by using the regular army, by ordering out the national guard, or by calling for volunteers. So, on May 18, 1917, Congress passed the Selective Service Act which authorized the President to summon all male citizens between the ages of twenty-one and thirty-one to be registered. It further provided that the President should call into service (subject to certain exemptions made in the act and in accordance with regulations which he might frame) a sufficient number of men to form a national army. |How the draft was applied.| The first registration took place in June, 1917, and immediately thereafter the local draft boards, under the supervision of the Provost-Marshal-General, selected the persons who were called into service. In due course it was found advisable to classify all the registrants and to summon, first of all, unmarried men without dependents who were not engaged in any essential occupation. In the summer of 1918 an extension of the age limit was authorized by Congress, to include all men between the ages of eighteen and forty-five; but it did not prove necessary to call into service any considerable number of men from among these later registrants. The classification of the men, the physical examinations, and the order in which men were called to the colors were all provided for in the body of rules known as the Selective Service Regulations.
The men drafted under these regulations were sent to military camps or cantonments located in different parts of the country. There they were organized into military units, equipped, and trained. As soon as each division had completed its preliminary training it was sent to Europe. Forty divisions of the national army, mobilized in this way, were in Europe before the armistice was signed. These, with the non-combatant troops, made up a total of about two million men. |The American army in the war.| In the spring of 1918, when the last great German drive against the French and British armies took place, there were only half a million American troops in Europe. The need for more was urgent and America was asked to hurry. By almost superhuman effort great bodies of troops were rushed from the camps to the Atlantic ports and sent across the water during the summer at the rate of more than two hundred thousand men a month. When the final united assault of the Allied armies carried them through the German lines in the autumn the strength of the American forces contributed decisively to the ultimate victory. The speed with which America drew a great army from the ranks of her citizenship, trained it, sent it overseas, used it to turn the scale, and brought it home again—these things made a profound impression upon the whole world.
The President as commander-in-chief.
The Control of the Army in War.—According to the constitution of the United States the power to declare war rests with Congress. The usual method of declaring war is the passage of a resolution by both houses of Congress, signed by the President. War may begin, however, without a formal declaration on either side. It may begin by an act of war, an attack by one nation upon another, or by one section of a country upon another. The Civil War began with the firing upon Fort Sumter; there was no declaration of war by either side. Once war is declared the movements of the army depend upon the discretion of the President. He appoints the officers who command it and has the final decision as regards the course of military operations. Congress votes the money for carrying on a war, but the President directs the spending of it. Congress determines the size and character of the army, but as commander-in-chief the President controls all its operations in the field.[[275]] This division of functions might possibly lead to friction and even to disaster if Congress and the President did not work in harmony, but on the whole the two branches of the government have always shown a spirit of co-operation in war-time.
The army as an aid to the civil power.
The Use of Armed Forces in Time of Peace.—In time of peace the regular army and the national guard may be used under certain conditions to put down riot or disorder. The President has the right to use United States troops within the limits of any state in order to enforce the national laws, to facilitate the carrying of the mails, or to maintain any other function of the national government. This he may do without the invitation or permission of the state government, or even against the wishes of the state authorities. In 1894 when a railway strike in Chicago interfered with the free passage of mails, President Cleveland sent a detachment of regular troops to the state of Illinois and cleared the way. The Supreme Court held that he was within his rights. If a state is invaded, the President may also act on his own volition; but when internal disorders occur, it is the primary function of the state authorities to suppress them. The governor is vested with authority to call out the national guard for this purpose. Federal troops cannot be sent in such cases except upon the request of the state authorities, unless, of course, the disorders reach a point where they obstruct the national government in the performance of its functions. In any event, troops are not called out for active service in time of peace save under conditions of serious emergency. Soldiers are not well qualified to handle ordinary disturbances; they have not been trained for that purpose and their presence is likely to make mild disturbances more serious. Bodies of state constabulary, like those maintained in New York, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts, are better adapted to use in such situations.
The articles of war.