THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 2s!2 The most of these 113,000 men might be considered to be rather possible material for making soldiers than anything else. The reportsof regular inspecting officers on some of the regimentsreveal an almost incredible lack of discipline and training. Of one regiment the official report ran: "Guard duty was verypoorly performed. Sentinels sitting down, smoking, eating,and leaning against trees while on post, was a common sight. Sentinels using their carbines as walking-sticks seemed to be the favourite mode of carrying them." And again of another regiment:" Several captains were absent at inspection, and no excuseswere offered orcalled for. There was not a company Civil War. Their regiments wereusually of good quality. Inmany regiments there was a leavening of soldiers who had served in the United States regular army or in European armies. Then the western States could supply a large number of men who could form a body of efficient irregular cavalry, scouts, hunters, cowboys and the like, good shots and first-rate horsemen. But to make anarmy out of all this material would be a long business, and those who talked of an invasion of Cuba within a week of the proclamation of war did not understand the first elements of the problem that had to be solved.

For peace purposes the United States were commander who could give thenecessary orders to preparehis company for inspection. One company had three commissioned officers and six enlisted men in camp. They had neither arms nor equipments. Another company did not turn out for inspection, as some of the men were sick, and others tired.''

It wouldbe easy to multiply such extracts. Theyare referred to here, not to suggest in the least degree that the people of the United States are deficient in militaryspirit, or wantingin the qualitiesthat make a soldier.

organised into districts known as the Department of the East (including all the Atlantic States and the Gulf Statesup to the border of Texas),the Department 01 Texas, the Departments of the Missouri, the Colorado, thePlatteandthe Columbia, and the Department of California. On the approach of the war the States of South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, were detached from the Department of the East, and were included with Texas in a new military district, which was to be afterwards known as the GENERAL NELSON A. MILES,COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE U.S. ARMY.

But it is important to understandthat, exceptin the regular army and a few really goodbattalions of the Volunteers, the United States had no land forces available whenthe war began. The very regiments that behaved so badly in their training-camps probably failed chiefly because they did not take the business of volunteer soldiering seriously. They never expected to be called out for realservice. Their inspection camp was a picnic. If they had looked forward to a real fight, they would have set' themselves to prepare for it in a thoroughly practical spirit.

General Miles and his colleagues had thus to improvise an army out of>materials of most unequal value. In the volunteer organisation of the States, in the higher commands, there were many good officer- who had seen service in the Department of the South.

General Graham, who had till then been in command of the Department of Texas, was given the new command, and established his headquarters at Atlanta, a railway centre from which lines ran to the southern ports likely to be used for the embarkation of troops for Cuba, Tampa, Savannah, Mobile, and New Orleans. While Congress was still debating the war resolutions the movement of regular troops began, and the greater part of the United States army was soon concentrated in the Department of the South. Chiekamauga on the border of Tennessee, about 120 miles from Atlanta, was chosen as the concentration camp for the State militia when they were called out t< >r senice.