Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-12-28


circles. The case of Capt Thomas t.
Clark of the pay department. who tender
ed his resignation as an officer in the
National Guard because of a ruling by
Assistant Secretary John Shelton VIII
lams OF the Treasury Department that
military leave In addition to the thirty
days annual leave initiated against ms
record for promotion, attracted great
amount Of attention.
The National Defense League. of which
Representative julius Kahn of California
a member of the House military AFFAIRS
committee is chairman, has taken an
active part in the case. This case VIII
be used. according to Winfield Jones
secretary Of the league, as pasis LOT
getting an official statement from the ad-
minstration as to its attitude toward the
National Guard of the District OF Column
bia.
Representative Kahn proposes to take
the case I'D with Brig. Gen. Albert l..
Mills. chief of the division of militia af-
fairs of the War Department.
It is known that some government of1l-
Gals do not look with favor upon the
employees under them joining militia or
ganizations. The officers of the National
Guard do not encourage men to join the
guard simply to get the additional leave
from the government. The time spent
by employees with the National Guard is
spent in hard work getting training
which will give the nation set OF men
competent to be placed in the first line
of defense in time of war.
The action of National Guard officers
this year in concentrating men Tor
non-attendance at drills gives evidence
that no national guardsmen may use the
militia simply as an excuse to obtain
extra time off from his civil employment
in the government.
Efforts are to be made by Winfield Jones
1:..r tf.y,
take action similar to that of the New
York Chamber of Commerce, which.
some time ago. appointed committee on
the National Guard and the Naval Mill
tia to consider the question of allowing
employees time off for National Guard
duties The committee recommended
that all employers should encourage their
employees to join either the National
Guard or the Naval Militia and should
allow them time off each year for mill
tary duty with the provision that it
should not be deducted from their regular
vacation.
Mr. Jones declared that ne would pre-
sent the case to the Washington Cham
Der of Commerce III January and would
make every effort not only TO have the
Chamber of Commerce to take action
similar TO that OF the New York body,
but also would seek to have other local
commercial organizations follow out the
New York action.
Secretary Garrison has a proposal for
taking National Guard officers into the
regular service in time of need as officers
of the organizations which they COM
Inanded in the National Guard. In let
ter to Senator Chamberlain. chairman of
the Senate military affairs committee, he
tells of numerous requests for such 4
provision and includes an amendment
which he believes would carry out his
ideas.
Il have recently been visited by many
representatives of the National Guard
concerning the pending volunteer BILL
said the letter of the Secretary of War
They are DESTROYS of having the law
provide that their" organiZa lions. if they
volunteer. shall be taken In in their en-
tirety officers and all, the officers to he
commissioned by the President as officers
IN the volunteer army and assigned TO
their respective organizations thus taken
In.
II was present at a hearing in the
military committee of the House the
other day and took occasion to speak 10
Mr.. Hay about this matter. He suggest
ed that it would perhaps be unconstitu-
tional to provide that the President must
commission these officers in the organiza
tons as they came in Without giving
this matter the concentrated study it de-