Mr. PRINCE. Have you made your detailed statement to the Secretary of War or to some officer of the Government outside of your own department? General WHIPPLE. I have furnished it in the annual report of the Paymaster-General? Mr. STEVENS. Is it not true that some of the officers in the Army throughout the country have more than one duty to perform? Has not an officer detailed at headquarters or on a reservation more or less of another kind of duty to perform? General WHIPPLE. It frequently happens so. Mr. STEVENS. It occurs because there are not enough officers at the post to do all kinds of work. General WHIPPLE. That is the reason. Mr. STEVENS. Would there not be more travel by officers having different kinds of service to perform? General WHIPPLE. That I am not prepared to answer, but I should think not. I do not think it would increase the amount of travel greatly. Mr. STEVENS. It would not make much difference? General WHIPPLE. No, sir. In reference to the disbursement of this mileage fund, the Secretary of War allots for the year the amount that shall be expended in any one quarter. For instance, of the $550,000 appropriated for this year there was allotted for the first quarter, $175,000; for the second quarter, December 31, $160,000; for the third quarter, $115,000; for the fourth quarter, $100,000, making $550,000. On the 20th of December all the mileage was exhausted and the paymasters were instructed not to make any more payments. The vouchers which had accumulated were taken out of the third quarter on the 1st of January. Mr. STEVENS. Do you know whether or not the War Department or the department commander is allowed a certain amount to expend within their discretion? General WHIPPLE. There is no limitation. It is governed by the amount of travel necessary. The travel is larger for the first quarter from July until the 30th of September than any other quarter. That is the reason that such a large amount was allotted for the first quarter, $175,000. Mr. STEVENS. Is there anything to prevent the Department from using a large amount of money for mileage during any one of those quarters if it should desire to do so, or if it be necessary? General WHIPPLE. I have no means of knowing what their restrictions are. I presume certain instructions are given them. Mr. HOLLIDAY. Does this mileage include mileage paid to the officers of the Engineer Corps who are required to inspect rivers and harbors? General WHIPPLE. No, sir. Mr. STEVENS. It does when they are engaged on fortification work. General WHIPPLE. On strictly military duties. The CHAIRMAN. I see you increased the items to enlisted men on foreign service, page 24. Mr. PRINCE. Will you be kind enough to tell us on what page of your report appears the statement you made as to mileage? General WHIPPLE. Pages 9 and 10. Mileage disbursements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1907. Treasurer and professors Military Academy (academy duty) Instructions of Secretary of War (confidential duty). Target practice, inspection target ranges and rifle teams. Total for recruiting.. 5,090.87 Payment of troops.. Officers of the line ordered to express offices to obtain money for pay- 96.82 1,235. 68 18, 031.30 206. 24 Line officers on business for Quartermaster's and Subsistence depart- Board of Ordnance and Fortification.. 15. 12 1, 133. 49 144.29 1,087.68 13,517.59 231.11 36, 247.38 2,778. 47 Board to revise the report of the Endicott Board Board on church claims, Philippine Islands. 322.36 Board on testing revolvers... 490.91 Board on selection of military sites. 229.36 Board for considering questions pertaining to the protection of sea- Attending American Medical Association. Attending national association for study and prevention of tuber- 23.68 10.91 1, 140. 21 60.60 1,883.30 923.86 1,190.94 135.46 Attending dedication ceremonies School of Applied Engineering, 19.18 Attending National Dental Association.. 39.48 Mileage disbursements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1907-Continued. Army maneuvers. Relief of sufferers from earthquake and conflagration on the Pacific coast.. Pikes Peak Centennial Celebration. War Department exhibit at Cincinnati Fall Festival. Joint Army and Navy Board. Departments' field day. Joint Army and Militia Coast Defense Exercises. Duty at Jamestown Tercentennial Exposition Accompanying representatives of foreign countries to the James town Tercentennial Exposition.. Artillery instruction at Indian Head and navy-yard gun factory Panama Canal. Orders fail to show specific duty enjoined. Amounts.. Total Pay Department disbursements during fiscal year 1907.. Paid by Auditor for War Department, on Treasury settlements and chargeable to mileage appropriations.. Aggregate, Pay Department and Auditor for War Department. 43, 155. 05 480.38 593, 976. 16 211. 36 1,025. 96 22. 18 595, 235.66 Comparative statement of the principal items showing increase in mileage for 1907 over The CHAIRMAN. As to the item of foreign service, I thought you would spend more than that. General WHIPPLE. That included short payment for the previous year. The CHAIRMAN. You have some of that left over. General WHIPPLE. It is a mere matter of estimating the foreignservice pay. The CHAIRMAN. It depends upon the number of troops abroad?* General WHIPPLE. Yes, sir. Mr. STEVENS. Suppose the troops were to be withdrawn from Cuba? General WHIPPLE. That would make considerable difference. The CHAIRMAN. The next is the item for the payment of the 10 per cent. General WHIPPLE. That is for the same reason. The CHAIRMAN. There is a little proposed change in the law. It is contained in the proviso. In one item they pay from the time they leave and in the other item they pay from the time they get there. General WHIPPLE. You refer to a former law. The present law is now from the date of their departure to the date of their landing in the United States. The CHAIRMAN. Wherein does the first proviso change the existing law? Mr. HAY. It does not change the existing law. The Chief Signal Officer proposes the change. The CHAIRMAN. The Chief Signal Officer, General Allen, is here and he can tell us about it. General ALLEN. That is extra-duty pay. The proviso says, "to enlisted men in the foreign service." It does not come from the Chief Signal Officer. It came from the War Department. The CHAIRMAN. Does the Paymaster-General wish to submit anything further? General WHIPPLE. There is one question that I promised to answer Mr. Prince about, viz, the amount of money covered into the Treasury June 30, 1907. The amount is shown in the Paymaster-General's report, and it is about $670,000. That is added to the amount of money that remains in the Treasury which we have not drawn out, so that at the present time there is $1,182,791.62 remaining in the Treasury available for expenditure until the 30th of June, 1909, when it lapses; but of that amount about $670,000 was covered in by the various paymasters in the fiscal year 1907. Mr. PRINCE. From what source did that come--from the pay of the Army, or from what source? As I understand it, the statute says that the money herein appropriated, excepting that appropriated for mileage, shall be disbursed for pay of the Army, and for that purpose shall constitute one fund. There could not be a division of the fund. From what fund did that come? General WHIPPLE. The general law embraces all the various appropriations with the exception of mileage. Mr. PRINCE. That is all right. General WHIPPLE. No mileage was deposited. I doubt very much whether we have any of that on hand. Mr. PRINCE. Have you any data as to the amount covered into the Treasury for 1906? General WHIPPLE. Yes, sir; it is $235,351.72. Mr. PRINCE. Have you any data as to the amount covered into the Treasury in 1905? General WHIPPLE. That year it was very close, being only $8,011.35. STATEMENT OF BRIG. GEN. ARTHUR M. MURRAY, CHIEF OF ARTILLERY, ACCOMPANIED BY CAPT. JOHNSON HAGOOD, ASSISTANT CHIEF. The CHAIRMAN. I see that you have put in some new legislation. You have simply divided it up. General MURRAY. Before I go into that I want to call attention to the fact that under the heading relating to the Chief of Artillery occur the words "Coast Defense School of Fort Monroe." At the time the estimate was put in it was intended to consolidate the two coast artillery schools, the School of Submarine Defense at Fort Totten and the artillery school at Fort Monroe. The consolidated school at Fort Monroe has, since the estimate was submitted, been designated as the "Coast Artillery School;" so that I would like to have the word "defense" changed to "artillery," so that it would read "Coast Artillery School at Fort Monroe." In regard to this school at Fort Monroe, it was decided last year by the Secretary of War, on the recommendation of the Chief of Staff, to consolidate the two schools. Heretofore we have had the School of Submarine Defense at Fort Totten, N. Y., and the other, the artillery school, at Fort Monroe, and it was decided to consolidate them at one place, Fort Monroe. The item as submitted is with the view to this consolidation, this being of course intended to be in the interest of the school or of instruction in coast artillery. The estimate is given in the Book of Estimates, page 184, and in the accompanying note explanation is made in regard to the consolidation of the two schools. Mr. HAY. How do the appropriations for the two schools compare? General MURRAY. I was coming to that. Last year the allotment for the Artillery School was from the appropriation for the general service schools and was $8,000, while the appropriation for the School of Submarine Defense was $16,000, the sum of the allotment and appropriation being $24,000. This estimate as given here is an increase of $4,000 over the amount given for the two schools last year and is explained in the same note. The increase is on account of setting up the apparatus and of supplying such apparatus and material as will be necessary in the equipment to get it in working order. There is a small increase over the combined amount and it is considered necessary. Mr. SLAYDEN. Will it effect economy when the schools are joined? General MURRAY. It will undoubtedly effect an improvement in the coast artillery instruction, and there should be a slight economy. If they are combined it will result in a decrease in the number of instructors Mr. CAPRON. Is there anything in the way of school facilities, buildings, etc., now left at Fort Totten? General MURRAY. It is all to be moved to Fort Monroe. The buildings vacated will be used for other purposes. No special building for school purposes has been erected at Fort Totten, and none will be left unoccupied after the transfer. Mr. CAPRON. The premises vacated at Fort Totten will be used. for other purposes? General MURRAY. Yes. On account of the increase of the Coast Artillery, Fort Totten is to be enlarged from a five-company post to an eight-company post and all the buildings vacated by the removal of the school will be used in the enlargement of the post. |