Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XI.djvu/559

Rh period of service which the militia might be compelled to perform under such call to three months, but by act of July 29, 1861, when called out to suppress insurrection or assist in enforcement of the laws, it was provided that their continuance in service should not extend beyond 60 days after the commencement of the next regular session of congress, unless congress should expressly by law provide therefor. And the act of July 17, 1862, provided that whenever the president should call forth the militia he might himself fix the period of service, not exceeding nine months. All these acts contemplate that the officering and disciplining of the militia shall be by state authority, and the states have assumed this duty, and made provisions for its discharge. The exemptions from military service under state laws are few, and are confined in the main to members of the executive and legislative departments of the government, judges and clerks of courts, clergymen, teachers, regular physicians and surgeons, superintendents of hospitals, &c., justices of the peace, and active firemen. The state constitutions will be found in general to recognize the value of a well regulated militia in a free government, and to require the passage of laws for organizing, arming, equipping, and disciplining the freemen of the state who are subject to military duty. Every state has laws for that purpose. The governor is the commander-in-chief, and under him are the usual officers, chosen by different modes in different states; in some by the governor alone, in some by the governor with consent of the senate, in some by the legislature, and in some by the persons liable to military duty. For many years it was customary to have annual drill or training days for the whole body of the militia in the several states, and they were called out for the purpose and compelled to attend under penalty; but for 30 years or more the conviction has been spreading that these annual trainings were of little value, and that they accomplished almost nothing in fitting men for active military duty. The consequence has been that the laws providing for them have generally been either repealed or allowed to fall into disuse, and in their place have been substituted provisions under which voluntary organizations are formed, which select their own uniforms and the branch of service to which they will attach themselves, and which are encouraged by small state bounties to perfect their drill and keep themselves in readiness at all times for prompt and effective action. These organizations compose but a small part of the whole body of the militia, but they are ample for all the needs of government in ordinary times, and in extraordinary emergencies they serve as the nucleus of an army until the unorganized militia, or such portion thereof as may be called for, can be put into the field. The militia of the United States at the present time therefore consists of these voluntary organizations, fully officered, armed, equipped, and drilled, and also all other able-bodied male citizens of the age of 18 and under 45, with the exceptions provided by national and state laws, all of whom are subject to be summoned to perform military duty according to the laws of congress or of their respective states. The militia has sometimes performed a conspicuous part in the military history of the country, though not always to the satisfaction of those who are disposed to rely upon it as the chief protection of the government. During the revolution the militia of the several states was often called out, but the want of discipline, which could not be adequately supplied during the short periods of their service, rendered them an unsatisfactory reliance. The “whiskey insurrection,” as it was called, of 1794, was put down by a levy of militia from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia. During the war with Great Britain of 1812-'15, the inefficiency of the militia was increased by disputes between the national and state authorities regarding the right of the president to determine finally whether an emergency had arisen which authorized his calling them out, the right to place them under officers of the president's appointment, and the right to march them beyond the limits of the state. The militia of Massachusetts and Connecticut, when called out, were refused payment by the general government because they had not been placed under the orders of the federal officer, and the militia of Vermont were at one time summoned home by the governor because in his opinion no cause existed which justified the president in demanding their services. The judicial decisions were in favor of the right of the president to decide finally and conclusively whether the militia should be summoned (Martin v. Mott, 12 Wheaton, 19); and his right to place them under the command of a federal officer ranking their own officers is now undisputed. On the breaking out of the civil war in 1861, the militia organizations of some of the states proved of the very highest importance, as they enabled a formidable force to be placed in the field much earlier than would otherwise have been possible. The first call of the president for 75,000 men was mainly filled from this source. Afterward volunteers were relied upon in the main, and when the supply from this source proved insufficient, conscription was ordered. As the laws now are, the great majority of all the persons liable to perform military duty in the United States are unlikely to be summoned for discipline, or even to organize for the purpose, unless the military needs shall require a heavy force in the field, in which case, if summoned at all, it will be by conscription.  MILK, the liquid secreted by the mammary glands of female mammals. Its color is generally yellowish white, but sometimes bluish white, and it is quite opaque. Its specific gravity, according to Scherer, varies from 1.018 to