Evening star., 1915-11-21
WASHINGTON MANS VOLUME
ON ARMY IS THE STANDARD
F. L. Huidekoper's Work on
u. S. Unpreparedness Re-
qarded as Authoritative.
Book Is Highly Commended in
Preface Written by Maj. Gen.
- Leonard Wood.


military subjects has written and com
piled monumental book, entitled
1.-The Military Unpreparedness OF the
United States" which students of tina,
subject believe will do more than any
other recent publication to direct the
attention of the public to the preca-
rious position, as they call it,, OF the
country because of the lack of military
policy and the lack of a United States
army worthy of the name
Mai Gen. Leonard Wood, former chief
of staff of the army. has written a
preface for Mr.. .Huidekoper's book. in
which he places it upon the very high
est plane comparable to If not more
valuable than the authoritative military
work, The Military Policy Of the
United States by Gen. Emory Upton,
because Mr.. Huidekoper's book Is
brought down to June. 1915.
Cost of other Wars.
The book. Gen. Wood points out. con-
tains compilation of data not here
tofore presented and he makes this
comment:
Our people have forgotten in the
rush and turmoil incident to the devel-
opment of our national resources and
the industries of our great country the
unnecessary cost, both in blood and
treasure, of our past wars. and remem-
ber only that somehow or other we
emerged from them successfully.
Ignorance concerning our military
history is universal and profound. Our
school histories. whatever their In
tent, do not give correct impression
of our military history and say little
or nothing about the methods emploseaa q
in the building up and maintenance OF
our armies in peace and war.
Gen. Wood also adds:
Our people must remember that
there is nothing in the experience OF
the past or in the conditions OF to-
day which in any way justffies the as
sumption that wars are past. While we
shuold strive for world peace and en-
deavor to settle our international DIFF
hculties by arbitration, we cannot, un-
less we are unworthy of the trust
handed down to US. fail to make ade-
ouate preparation to defend our heri-
tage,
Studied Conditions in Europe.
Mr. Huidekoper recently returned
from trip under war conditions in
France, England, Holland and Ger
many. Part of his preparation for
writing The Military Unpreparedness
searches begun as long ago as 1887 in
the archives of the war Offices at Paris.
Vienna and ST.. Petersburg. and IN
Washington he has had the assistance
of a long and notable list OF American
military men, all of them authorities.
In his preface he states that he has
personally verified every reference used
in his book. which Is volume of 1856
pages. indexed and profusely annotated.
Mr.. Huidekoper is the founder of the
90 nf he frS
contributor to the Journal Of the Mill
9ary Service Institution and the author
Of 4 number of military articles. He
resides at 1914 18th street northwest.
After analyzing the military situation
of the United States from colonial times
down to the present, Mr.. Huidekoper
declares in his book that "the various
wars waged by the United States from
the revolution down to and including
the Philippine war have been charac-
terized by certain conspicuous blunders
from a military standpoint"
Military Blunders Of United States.
Mr.. Huidekoper finds:
First. The regular army has inva-
riably been too small to cope with the
situation in such a manner as to give a
reasonable assurance of success
Second. Never once has the army
been properly organized. nor has 1t
been SO constituted that, when war
was recognized to be inevitable 1t could
be automatically expanded to the
requisite strength.
Third No proper reserves have ever
existed from which could be drawn the
trained men necessary to raise the reg
ular army to war strength.
Fourth. In consequence of total
lack of such reserves. the army has
been compelled almost invariably to
accept such recruits as offered them
selves. The recruits have. as a rule.
been deficient In training, and there
fore below the standard of the SOL
diers already in the regular service.
Not only has the requisite number been
rarely obtained. but in proportion az
they have been incorporated into the
army their inferiority has necessarily
diminished in value of the army as a
fighting force until sufficient training
could be given them to bring them
up to the standard of the professional
soldier.
Terms Of Enlistments.
Fifth. The policy of the United
States with respect to the length OF
enIistments has uniformly been the
very incarnation of folly. Rare indeed
have been the occasions when they have
not been for too short a term of serv-
ice. and so seldom has Congress dis
played the wisdom of taking advan-
tage Of the enthusiasm at the beginning
of hostiiities to prescribe that all en-
lfstments shall be for the war; that
the instances are conspicuously unique
AS a result of this failure, troops which
after long periods of training have de-
veioped into dependa BILE forces have had
90 be discharged: generals in the field
have been forced to act in opposition
10 military sense. or been greatly en-
barrassed in their operations: the War
Department has had to resort to in
Vulnerable shifts to extricate itself from
the difficulties into which IL was
plunged by approaching or actual ex-
pira1fon of enlistments; and more than
once our national destinies have been
fmperiled by the depletion of armies
from this cause at the very time when
troops were most innperatively needed
The whole question WAS admirably sum
married. by Washington in a letter
hitherto unpublished addressed to
Fielding Lewis. esq, and dated Peaks.
kill. June rs. 1881, in which he said:
Il lament most sincerely the system
of policy which has been but too gen.
orally adopted in all the states, to wit
that OF temporary expedfence; which
like quack medicines. are so far from
removing the causes of complaint tina,
they only serve to increase tine disorder
This has in a most remarkable manner
been the case with respect to short en-.
liStments. which has been the primar,
cause of all our misfortunes-all ou,
expenses (Which may, through a thou,
sand different channels. be traced up Il
this sOurce)-and of all the calamitie,
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