The Washington herald., 1913-11-30
WOOD ADVOCATES
RESERVE
Chief Of Staff Gives Views on
Higher Efficiency Of
Army.
MEN MUST BE OBTAINED
Available and Effective Force May Be
Secured Without Interference
with Industrial Careers.

The statement by Mai. Gen. Leonard
Wood, chief OF stan, that the military
strength of the United States is insuffi-
cient ito meet the demands of the coun-
try in the first stages OF a war with a
first-class power is a preface to
description of the plans Of the War De-
partment for raising the effectiveness OF
the army that will appear in the Decem-
ber edition OF the Spanish War Review.
The organization of bodies of reserves
throughout the country, composed OF men
who have had some experience in mill
tary training. is the basis of the plan.
II is the opinion of Maj. Gen. Wood that
these reserve bodies should be placed on
a pay basis. He says ii is part of the
plan to place the graduates OF the $50
called" military schools OF the country
IN the army under provisional commits
sions. that they may gain the experience
to train the less experienced Of the re-
serves. He says:
Forces Widely Separated.
Our army Of 100000 men. of which
We maintain about $1,000 Ccombatants)
with the colors. is scattered all over
the word-some in China, some in the
Philippines, other portions of IT in the
Hawaiian Islands, Alaska, Panama, and
Porto Rico. In the United States We
have about $4,000 mobile troops, and
about $4,000 Coast Artillery, and some
auxiliary troops. This force filled up.
plus the efficient militia, will give US
in the first stages OF war not more
than 10000 or 10000 effective troops
at the most.
LAS our first mobilization would require
about 100000 men, We should have to pro-
vide something like $4,000. The time for
securing these men would be very short
in all probability not more than five
weeks: perhaps even less-so that unless
we take advantage of the time of peace
to build up a reserve OF instructed men,
by instructed men mean men who have
had long enough service in the army.
marine corps, or militia to be capable Of
efficiently discharging their duties as SOL
diers-we shall be caught unprepared:
so unprepared that effectual resistance
will be impossible until We have assem-
bled, organized, and trained volunteers,
a matter of months under the most IA
vorable conditions. Not only would we
have to train men, but We would have to
develop the officers, for the men who
have had experience in the civil war
are gone, or are too old to be available
for field service today.
Plan Set Forth.
I'VE could, under a proper form of
enlistment, make much greater use OF
the regular army as a means OF training
men to be efficient soldiers than we
ever have before. The same is true OF
the militia. Both should have not only
their ranks at full peace strength in
time of peace, but should have behind
them sufficient reserves to bring them to
full statutory strength at once, and pro-
vide for the losses of the first few months
of war, during which period We should be
busily engaged developing volunteers.
THE reservist must be paid. We can
not expect service as reservist with
out pay. The pay need not be large 1t
will be a simple matter to keep track of
the men. and have them assigned to
stationed in the section OF
in which they live.
Oficers may be developed by availing
ourselves of the graduates of the So
called military schools Of the country.
The department is now considering plan
for attaching under q temporary OF pro-
commission selected graduates
Of these institutions to organizations OF
the regular army In order to give them
year Of practical service.
Reserve Is Necessary.
II we are successful In carrying out the
idea of a reserve and the plan OF building
UP a body of reserve officers, We shall
have in a few years an available, fairly
strong and effective force. It Is believed
that as soon as the reservist is placed
upon a pay status. even IL the pay be
small, very many Of the men who served
in the Spanish-American war, as well as
men who have had service in the regular
army and are now In civil life, viii en-
roll themselves as reservists. II We can
bring this about we shall add very great
" TO the military preparedness of the
and shall do it on lines which,
/ think, should govern in this country,
viz. the instruction of the greatest num-
Der OF men possible through the means
at hand with the minimum of interfer-
ence with their Industrial careers We
do not desire to keep men In the service
beyond a period necessary to instruct
them. except the officers and noncom-
missioned officers who are teachers