The Hawaiian gazette., 1912-02-27
AINSW0RTH AND
CHIEF OF STAFF
Former Adiutant General caustic
in His. Remarks About
Superior Officers.


WASHINGTON, February 2.-Mili.
tary circles are discussing with inter
est the highly caustic arraignment of
Secretary Stimson and Major Leonard
Wood, chief of staff, contained in the
report of the house committee on mill
tary affairs in explanation of the new
provisions of the army appropriation
bill. Interest mainly centers on the
probable course to be followed by those
Officials in the matter. The fact that
the bill as submitted embodies the
principal suggestions made to the COM
mittee by Adjutant-General Ainsworth
and rejects as. unworthy Of serious con-
sideration those of the secretary Of
war and the chief of staff, is generally
regarded as accentuating the strained
relations already existing between the
officials mentioned Many officers
of the army regard the committee Is
action as great triumph for the adj.
ljutant general. Some of them even as
sert that he and not Representative
Hay is the real author of the previs-
ions increasing the term of enlistment
to FIVE years and consolidating the adj
jutant general S and inspector-general IS
departments with the general staff
corps and making the adjutant general
and inspeetor-general permanent mem
bers of new ''bureau of the general
staff
Personalities INDUCED.
The Hay report admittedly is based
ON data supplied by the adjutant-
generals Office, and the military critics
of General Ainsworth broadly intimate
that he inspired if he actually did not
write, those portions of the report at
lacking the various statements made
by Secretary Stimson and General
Wood, in their hearings before the
military committee. Personalities of
the most uncomplimentary character
abound in the report. Seldom has a
high official been subjected to a more
severe criticism than is contained in
:, the following extract from the report
\ in its argument in favor of the FIVE
a year term of enlistment:
q "This committee has no hesita-
!, ton in adopting the safe and
!. sane views Of the overwhelming
{ majority of this great number of Off
Q GERS of ripe judgment and long expert
n ence, both as company and field officers
1 of the line, as against the theoretical
and revolutionary views champioined
n by an officer who has had no expert
J. ence whatever as a company officer
n and whose entire experience as a field
d officer was limited to the few days il
@ 1898 when he commanded volunteer
o regiment that had been hastily raised
10 and organized for service during the
war with Spain. 81 - ...a.asss 4 G
It such limited experience, even though
y they be echoed by small following
ii of both superiors and subordinate
h whom his present high position has en-
h abled him to attract or to influence
l. are entitled to but little weight in thi
1T particular matter, as against the in
dependent and expert judgment of ;
o. multitude of other officers whose opin
st ions are based upon a long and prac
Il. tical experience, that he has not had
~ in immediate touch with and in com
ut mand of enlisted men of the line of tn
h army"
Extravagant Statements Alleged.
., Again referring to the arguments o
Z Secretary Stimson and General Woo
a in favor of the creation of reserv
4 military force through shorter terms o
10 enlistment, the report says: "The flu
~ tility of any attempt to create a re
- serve through any use that can be mad
~ of our little army and the grossly mis-
q leading character of the loose and eS
~ travagant statements that have bee
40 made as to the number of men avail
q able for a reserve who will return
a civil life from the army each year wi
~ become apparent when a true state
r. ment of the facts in the case is made.
az On the same subject the report says
10 cit is astonishing that the chief o
Gu staff should have made such stat,
~ ment as that which he published in til
'h hopeless effort to show that his schem
would be less expensive than the fv,
y year term of enlistments proposed
ca the pending bill. And it is still MOI
IN astonishing that the secretary of wa
as should have forwarded the stateme1
as in question to a committee of congres
US with approving comment, as he did
o., a letter dated January 4, 1912.
eu Surely the creation and maintI
1n nance of any such reserve as that herr
~ inbefore outlined, or any such resery
y as it is possible to create with OF
20 small army as the source of its suppl
sn of men, is not worth its cost in none
'e- alone, to say nothing of the grave il
Z jury that 1t would inevitably in1it
no upon the standing army. No one VII
gives the matter careful thought ca
M fail to see what the extent and natni
W of that injury would be, or can be mi
.. led or confused by the unsupporte
nu assertions and arguments of a fe
,a theorists, who, deriving all their ides
or from the enormous armies of cont
nc mental Europe, where compulsory an
OF universal military service prevail
=, would have us believe that improv
Oh ment rather than injury would /
ne brought to our army by depriving
us of most if not all Of its seasoned, di
DC ciplined and highly trained private so
:. diers, and the filling up the ranl
~ with unframed or half trained men, a
y, of whom would be relegated to civ
y, life by the time that, in the ordinal
'n' course. any of them could become fai
lly efficient soldiers.
OF Impossible to Utilize Army.