1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/United States, The/Army
IX.—Army
The regular army has always been small, and in time of war reliance has been upon volunteer forces (see Army). This was truer of the Civil War than of the War of Independence or the war with Mexico. In the last the numbers of militia and volunteers was but little more than twice, and in the second little more than equal to the number of regulars engaged; while in the Civil War the proportion was as one to twenty. Again, the number of regular troops engaged in the War of Independence (namely, 130,711 men enlisted) was greater, absolutely, than that engaged in the Civil War (126,587). Finally, it is interesting to note that in 1799, when war seemed probable with France, the army was organized with a force of 52,766 men, and during the second war with Great Britain the number was made 57,351 in 1813 and 62,674 in 1814; while the organized strength under the law of 1861, which was in force throughout the Civil War, was only 39,273 men. Small as the regular force has always been, its organization has been altered some two score of times in all.
The law for its organization in force in 1910 provides that the total enlisted strength shall not at any one time exceed 100,000. The full active force of the present organization is as follows: 15 regiments of cavalry, with 765 officers and 13,155 enlisted men; 6 regiments of field artillery, with 236 officers and 5220 enlisted men; 30 regiments of infantry, with 1530 officers and 26,731 enlisted men; 3 battalions of engineers, with 2002 enlisted men, commanded by officers detailed from the corps of engineers; a special regiment of infantry for Porto Rico, with 31 officers and 576 enlisted men; a provisional force of 50 companies of native scouts in the Philippines, with 178 officers and 5731 enlisted men; staff men, service school detachments, the military academy at West Point, Indian scouts, &c., totalling 11,777 enlisted men. The total number of commissioned officers, staff and line, on the active list, is 4209 (including 219 first lieutenants of the medical reserve corps on active duty). The total enlisted strength, staff and line, is 78,782, exclusive of the hospital corps and the provisional force. (See also Navy and Navies.)