navy that the National Guard does to the regular army,
and is therefore wholly under State control; but it is subject to
call, of course, by the federal government.

The organization of the Naval Militia has been a growth of the last
eight years, and is due in large measure to the reconstruction of the
navy and the revival of activity and interest in naval affairs in the
United States.

It was seen that the new vessels of modern and intricate construction
and appliances should, in case of war, be manned by men skilled in
the use of these appliances. The apprentice system brought to the navy
a supply of apprentices, but the number would be totally inadequate in
a naval war. A naval reserve force was an urgent necessity.

The first step toward meeting this necessity was made in 1887 by
Senator Whitthorne, of Tennessee, who in that year introduced a bill
"to create a naval reserve of auxiliary cruisers, officers, and men,
from the mercantile marine of the United States." The measure did not
pass, and the next year another was introduced by Senator Whitthorne,
providing for the enrolment of a Naval Militia and the organization of
naval reserve forces. According to this bill, it was to be lawful for
States and Territories bordering on sea and lake coasts and navigable
rivers to enroll and designate as the Naval Militia all seafaring men
of whatever calling or occupation, and all men engaged in the
navigation of the rivers, lakes, and other waters, or in the
construction or management of ships and craft, together with
ship-owners and their employees, yacht-owners, members of yacht clubs
and other associations for aquatic sports, and all ex-officers and
former enlisted men of the navy.

The bill contemplated a naval reserve artillery and a naval reserve
torpedo corps. It did not become a law, but formed a basis for
legislation in several of the States shortly afterward, although the
original plan, as shown in the proposed measure, was modified to the
extent of making the Naval Militia a State organization and forming it
of volunteers irrespective of occupation.

Massachusetts was the pioneer among the States in the organization of
the Naval Militia. In May, 1888, the legislature passed a bill
authorizing the formation of "a naval battalion to be attached to the
volunteer militia." This measure was prepared, with the assistance of
others, by Lieutenant John C. Soley, a retired officer of the United
States navy, and he was