The Detroit times., 1910-10-13
THE GOVERNMENT AT WORK
THE WAR DEPARTMENT
By FREDERIC J. HASKIM

under its supervision private contract
ors do the work required In improving
the rivers and harbors. More than
$S0.OO0,000 year Is expended In river
and harbor improvements and mainte.
nance. II the program of the River
and Harbor Congress Is carried out
the engineer corps will be the busiest
set OF men In the government service.
The work OF the quartermaster's de-
partment. carrying with IL the task Of
quartering and equipping the regular
army at all times, and the national
guard during encampment seasons, re-
quires the expenditure Of from $685.
000.0 to $40.000.000 per year II has
eighteen ocean-going steamers. or
transports. number OF mine plant
ers, and enough other vessels OF var
ious descriptions to equip small
navy. II spends about $4,000 a year
for newspapers and magazines for the
troops In the army II has superyis-
ION or the "a national cemeteries In
the United States. where $4,000 SOL
diers lie buried
The commissary department issues
3O.OOO,0O0 rations year. costing ap-
proximately 81 cents each. II has x
full equipment OF fireless cookers. and
has established school for bakers
and cooks. Here the men who are to
prepare the food OF the army are in
itiated into the mysteries of the arts.
OF baking and cooking. For an army
or 100000 men there In required for
each days rations 90 tons of meat. so
tons OF bread, so tons OF potatoes and
40 tons OF other food. SO that the task
or the commissary-generai Is not
small one Experience has taught that
the feeding OF an army Is one OF the
first essentials TO its efficiency In the
Held. and the war department Is striv-
Ing to be prepared to furnish the best
OF commissary service In case Of war.
The office OF the adjutant-genera
| Is one OF the busiest In the depart
ment. Although recent legislation has
shorn the Acknowledgement of the mill
tary duties formerly pertaining to his
ONCE, IL has left him much to do. He
has charge Of the recruiting service.
Last year there were 126 recruiting
stations open for business. and $4,000
applications for enlistment In the
army Were received. or these about
10000 were accepted. or the $4,000
applicants, 125.000 were attracted by
advertising in one form or another.
The Acknowledgement also keeps a card
index system In which Is recorded full
data about the army service and the
men who constitute It, That this da-
Ia Is complete Is shown by the fact
that there are $4,000, 900 military cards
/ and 100000 medical cards. These
are being added TO at the rate of
more than 100000 a year.
The signal corps OF the army makes
use OF every possible advance In
science and invention In its efforts to
render efficient service In case OF war.
II employs wireless telegraphy, wire
less telephony and aeronautics. Il IL
a great believer in the adaptability Of
airships In the solution of the prob
lens of war. They can be used to
gain information about harbors and
Notifications of other countries, to pa
troll and guard the frontiers, for pur.
poses OF reconnaissance, for carrying
dispatches, signaling to wireless sta
tons, directing the fire of friendly ar
tillery and drawing that OF hostile
guns, attacking enemy's base line, de-
stroying stores, railways and other
communications. making night attacks
with bombs, destroying submarines,
and locating mines. Experiments are
now being made looking to the mount
Ing OF light artillery in automobiles
for the purpose of repelling attacks
OF aerial fleets.
The medical department OF the
| army Is one Of the most useful OF the
war departments activities In time OF
peace. Many OF the most valuable
! lessons learned by medical science in
the past 20 years have come from 1t.
Maj. Walter Reed, to whom the world
owes an inestimable debt for his dem
onstration OF the mosquito theory Of
| yellow fever, made that discoverN
while connected with the service. The
| rise OF vaccination for the prevention
OF typhoid fever Is to be credited to
the army surgeon. so thoroughly
have the theories OF sanitation been
mastered that there are now less than
one-thirteenth as many admissions to
the army and navy hospitals on ac-
count Of malaria as there were Is
years ago.
The division Of militia affairs has
charge of the organization OF the ma
tional guard OF the United States. II
is the present plan OF the government
to divide the country into eight militia
districts. with central army post In
each district and smaller posts In each
state. These districts will have both
the regular and militia forces In them
SO organized as to correspond to eight
army corps. These troops will be 30
equipped as to be ready to answer
the call for troops at the shortest pos
sible notice, and will furnish the nu-
cleus around which will be built up
eight full strength corps in the event
of war. Through system of annual
maneuvers II Is the intention Of the
department to convert the militia in
to thoroughly organized lighting
force.