ARMY OF THE UNITED STATES. 



53 



manner. The demands for the service of United 

 States troops have been increased, aud have been 



aivu for Indian and other service, ever since 



the adjournment of Congress, and serioua conse- 



isily have attended the manii'. -st 



want" lo reliable force. There was 



.L'ies, such as have arisen in 



Mtli Indian affairs and the troubles in 



.tli. I was opposed to the reduction at the 

 iiia.li', ana huve since had no reason to 

 opinion then formed. The reduced ar>- 



.ti'ins to runny purposes have been too heavily 

 ssity ot movement of troops ; for, 



ibliged to bo scattered at points on sudden 

 -, they have bqen moved from other 



.vlu-ru their presence was needed, and had to 



irned at the earliest possible moment. The 



>n proposed and insisted on by Congress 



would, when it was accomplished, save alone the 



ibsistonee, and clothing, of five thousand 



ut this amount cannot all be considered as 

 having been saved, for, when troops were needed at 

 where the force was found, in consequence of 

 the reduction, to be too small for real service, other 

 troops from other points were required to be trans- 

 ported at an expense almost large enough to equal 

 in amount the saving from the sources named. J3e- 



the number of posts was not reduced : the ne- 

 '.'s of the service required that they should be 

 garrisoned, and, although they were occupied by 

 very small forces, yet the expense incident to the re- 

 tention and operation of the posts existed to almost 

 as great an extent as it would have done had the 

 number on duty been larger. In my judgment, if a 

 reduction of the army is to be made, it can only be 

 made by reducing the number of officers and men ; 

 in other words, by reducing the number of regi- 

 ments. How that can be done in the present inter- 

 ests of the service, with the condition of affairs 

 which requires the retention of the posts now in 

 existence, and indeed the establishment of others, 

 is a problem which must be determined if the reduc- 

 tion is insisted on. Reflection aa to the amount ne- 

 cessary to be appropriated for the ensuing fiscal 

 year satisfies me that the appropriation for cloth- 

 ing, pay, and subsistence, should be made for the 



upon a basis of 30,000 men. This would most 

 certainly prevent any deficiency, and. should appro- 

 priations to that extent be made, whatever surplus 

 might remain on hand would be, under existing 

 laws, turned into the Treasury. 



The most important of the military divisions 

 is that of the Missouri, commanded by Lieu- 

 tenant-General Sheridan, which embraces sub- 

 stantially all the territory east of the Kocky 

 Mountains to the Mississippi River, and in- 

 cludes the States of Illinois and Minnesota. 

 Within this immense area are grouped most of 

 the Indian tribes who are in a transition state 

 from that of savages to a condition of com- 

 parative civilization. Here, the contact be- 

 tween the frontier settler and the aboriginal 

 savage has resulted in chronic hostilities. 

 General Sherman reports that " during the 

 past year, by the extraordinary activity of the 

 troops, and the good sense of our military offi- 

 cers, the frontier has been comparatively safe. 

 On the northern line of Texas and southern 

 line of Kansas, the untamed savages Kiowas, 

 Coraanehes, Oheyennes, and Arapahoes be- 

 gan this season their usual raids, and, as the 

 Indian agents confessed their utter inability to 

 manage their respective tribes by the usual 

 humane and Christian treatment, the whole 



subject was turned over to tho War Depart- 

 in. m, and committed to the management of 

 Lieutenant-General Sheridan, who has laid 

 hold of it with his accustomed energy. He is 

 at this moment down in the Indian country 

 near Fort Sill, giving his personal attention to 

 the subject, and I have no doubt before the 

 winter is over these Indians will learn a lesson 

 which will enable the civil agents to bring 

 them within the sphere of Immunization, if 

 not of civilization." 



Within the limits of the Military Division of 

 the Missouri are 76 established posts and camps 

 garrisoned by 8 regiments of cavalry, 17 regi- 

 ments of infantry, and a small detachment of 

 engineer troops, aggregating, at the last offi- 

 cial report, 17,819 commissioned officers and 

 enlisted men. 



Notwithstanding the occurrence of a few 

 cases of yellow fever at Forts Jefferson and 

 Barrancas during the summer of 1874, the 

 army enjoyed unusually good health during 

 the year. There has, however, been a large 

 death-rate from accidental causes. The ratio 

 of deaths and discharges from wounds, acci- 

 dents, and injuries, is more than twice as great 

 as in the British Army. Thus, in the past six 

 years, it has averaged about 5 per 1,000 of 

 strength in the American Army, while in the 

 British Army the average has been 2.37 per 

 1,000 of strength. The mortality statistics of 

 the army during the year are thus reported by 

 the Surgeon-General : 



White troops on sick-list 45,911 



Average per 1,000 of strength 1,790 



Entries per man on sick-list 2 



Sick of disease 38,837 



Average number of cases per 1,000 of strength. . . 1,514 



Sick of wounds, accidents, etc 7,084 



Average per 1,000 of strength 276 



Average number constantly on sick-list 1,190 



Average per 1,000 of strength 46 



Constantly under treatment for disease 988 



Average per 1,000 of strength 86 



Constantly under treatment for wounds, accidents, 



etc...... 258 



Average per 1,000 of strength 10 



Whole number of death* 841 



Average per 1,000 of strength IS 



Died of disease 829 



Average per 1,000 of strength 



Died of wounds, accidents, etc 118 



Average per 1,000 of strength 4 



Proportion of deaths from all causes to cases 



treated 1 in 185 



White soldiers discharged for disability 874 



Number of cases among colored troops 4,535 



Average per 1,000 of strength 1,816 



Cases of disease 8,848 



Average per 1,000 of strength 1,58U 



Cases of accidents, wounds, etc 602 



Average per 1,000 of strength 277 



Average number constantly on tick-lUt 180 



Average per 1,000 of strength 52 



Constantly under treatment for disease 101 



Average per 1,009 of strength 40 



Constantly under treatment for wounds, accidents, 



etc 89 



Average per 1,000 of strength 12 



Number of deaths from all causes 87 



Average per 1,000 of strength 15 



Died of disease 85 



Average per 1,000 of strength ... 10 



Died of wounds, accidents, etc 18 



Average per 1,000 of strength 5 



Total number of colored soldiers discharged for 



disability 59 



Average per 1,000 of strength 84 



