Show INCREASE THE FIGHTING FORCE I How General Otis Proposes to Add to His Army I Washington June 14 Pursuing a policy determined upon some months I ago General Otis is organizing three regiments in the Philippines composed of officers and men of the state volunteers volun-teers who desire to remain in the service serv-ice The army bill authorized this kind of enlistment in the Philippines If the full complement cannot be made up from these discharged volunteers in the Phlpplne the regiments will be organized or-ganized and ollicered in skeleton fon until recruits can be sent from the United States to fill them General Otis and the volunteer officers in the Philippines have been consulting to see how many men will enlist The number has not been very large as there seems to be a desIre on the part of the volunteers to return to the lTnited States with their organizations These three proposed regiments with three regiments of regulars to sail from San Francisco on the 22nd and 24th and those under orders for Manila will give General Otis 33000 fighting men gvc I is stated positively at the war department de-partment that the report that i was Intended to reduce the cavalry troops and artillery batteries in this country to ninetyfive men each in order to increase in-crease the companies in the Philippines to ISO men each Is absolutely without foundation The approved plan for the reinforcement of the army operating in the Philippines is briefly stated by a high officials of the war department as follows The increase of the size of the companies com-panies with General Otis with 12S men to the company was made from 3100 men heretofore the hospital corps which the controller has decided maybe may-be enlisted over and above the 65000 men provided by law In addition the Twentyfourth and Twentyfifth regiments regi-ments of infantry have been ordered to Manila and General Otis has been ordered to organize three skeleton volunteer vol-unteer regiments in Manila officered from volunteers in the Philippines from the rgular army General Otis has Informed the department de-partment that he can organize these regiments I is proposed to send him recruits from here to fill them to their maximum limit The arrangements referred re-ferred to will give General Otis a fighting fight-ing force of over 330CO men of the line These plans have been approved by the president and will be put into execution ex-ecution with the least possible defai The field and staff officers and captains cap-tains of these three regiments will be selected from the volunteer and leg la officers who have demonstrated their special fitness to command anu who have distinguished themselves inaction in-action I is expected also that the first lieutenants will be chosen from second lieutenants in the service in the Philippines who may be especially commended by General Otis The volunteer vol-unteer second lieutenants probably will go out from the United States with the recruiting squads I |