The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1915-12-04
A WEAK LINK IN THE
NATIONAL CHAIN

1t has been left to the far sighted
ness of Colonel D. E. Mccarthy, chief
quartermaster of the central depart
ment of the United States Army, TO
bring to the fore at this time one of
the weakest links in our chain of ma
tional defense, and that is the wholly
inadequate provision that is made for
an enlarged quartermaster corps in
time of war.
Colonel Mccarthy has recommended
to the war department that a quarter
master reserve corps of the bright
est executive minds in the country be
organized in time of peace sufficient
in size to supply the requirements Of
an army of a million men, which
would be the smallest force this coun-
try could expect to put into the field
in time of war. These men could be
commissioned by the president as cap
tains and ~lieutenants in the quarter
master reserve corps of the federal
army, but without pay until called
into active service, as is now the case
with the medical reserve corps.
To the average layman this may
not appear to be of supreme import
ance, but to the trained man it is il
Eliminating, and for several reasons.
An army, however efficient and val
orous in other respects, is almost
wholly dependent upon the prompt
and thorough execution of the duties
pertaining to the qu-artermaster corps.
If that corps is weak the usefulness
of the whole army is seriously i'm
paired, is dangerously near to being
destroyed.
A fighting unit of an army al be
trained for reasonable service in from
four to six months. But it is useless
without its corps of trained quarter
masters. 1t can accomplish little
without them.
The office of quartermaster requires
a man of a high order of intelligence,
quick discernment, iron determine
ton and unquestioned integrity. He
must be cool headed, energetic and
persistent-a mar who rides over all
obstacles and "gets there on time
with the goods"
The duties of the position are so
numerous, so varied and so intricate
as to require years of training to
produce even a moderately successful
ouartermaster. The civilian without
training or theoretical knowledge who
is made an officer of the quartermas-
ter corps over night and sent to the
front is nothing but a handicap and
a detriment. If appointed in large
numbers, as has been done in all of
our past vars, they eve constitute
a serious menace to the successful
execution of movements of vital I'M
portance to an army in the field.
The quartermaster corps of an
army clothes, feeds, shelters and
transports the troops; it provides
horses, mules, and the forage and
equipment for them; it furnishes
stoves, fuel and light; constructs
roads. bridges, railroads, barracks,
warehouses, docks and wharves; char
tiers ships, tugs and other mean of
water carriage; pays officers, men and
other employees; furnishes transpor-
tation for all material of war; sup
plies tentage, cots, bedding, inciner-
ators, and in fact everything for the
upkeep of an army, with the eX-
ception of arms, ammunition, med
zeal supplies, engineer and signal
property. And of these manifold du-
ties none is of more vital Importance
than that of SubSlStlng the troops.
The congress will take up this win
ter the problem of strengthening the
national defenses by an increase in
the regular army and navy and by
the raising of a force of volunteer re-
serve troops.
If we are to provide for the rails
ing of a great army to be used in
emergency, by all mean let US heed
the advice of Colonel Mccarthy and
make provision for a corps of quar-
termasters who are trained to theil
duties, and not send u young man.
hood forth to suffer from the gross
ineficiency of a horde of political ap-
pointees who are dumped onto the
quartermaster corps at the last min
ute because they want to be captains
and majors and haven't the courage
to shoulder a rifle on the firing line.
One weak link will destroy The
mightiest chain, and an inefficient