Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1916-12-21
THURSDAY, DECEMBER II, 1915.
Guard Declared Unfit.
Generals Scott And Wood Call
Recent Mobilization a TRACED Y.

Recent Mobilization a TRACED Y.
Washington, Dec. Is. The mobiliza-
ton of the National Guard for border
service was described as military fail
ure, emphasizing the urgent necessity OF
abandoning the volunteer system as the
nations reliance for defense, in state
ments today by Major-General Hugh l..
Scott, chief of staff of the army, and
Maior-General Leonard Wood, command
ing the Eastern Department, before the
Chamberlain Universal Military Training
bill.
Both of the generals advocated uni
versal traing. General Wood declared
that the country was now utterly de-
fenseless against a well-organized foe;
that the mobilization was tragedy, and
that if the guardsmen had met good
troops "they would never have known
what hit them"
General Scott told the committee that
lessons drawn from the present war
proved that in case of war with first
class power the United States would
need Immediately a trained force OF
1900, 900 men, with another l.5OO,OOO
available within 80 days.
On the other side of the question the
committee heard Walter L. Fisher, OF
Chicago. former Secretary of the Inter-
ior, who opposed universal service, al
though he stood for adequate defense
measures and suggested regular army
of $780, 900. He thought if the pay of
privates were raised to $50 a month the
service would be more attractive to re-
cruits.
Genaral Wood, from whose department
went $4,000 of the guardsmen sent to
the border, said of the men enrolled when
the call came an average of 80 per cent.
of each company had to be dropped for
physical defects and the organizations
went to the border filled up with green
men.
"It's been a tragedy" he said, but
worth all it cost if we only profit by it.
1t was not the fault of the officers or
men, but of defective system. If we
had been compelled to meet good troops
down there, it would have been scene
of carnage. The guardsmen would never
have known what hit them"
"What should we do with the National
Guard, General?" Senator Brady asked.
1T should be replaced as rapidly as
possible with men trained under a uni
versal service SYSTEM" General Wood
replied. when the system has been
we'll started l would drop the National
Guard entirely from any scheme of ma
tional defense, although we want every
officer and man of them in the new plan,
but it must be straight out Federal
force"
General Wood outlined his own plans
for universal service, which, in effect,
would be combination of the Chamber
lain bill itself and an adoption of the
Australian system and the French Cen
eral Staff plan. His scheme would pro-
vide that all practically fit men be given
six months training during their nine
teenth and twentieth years, passing then
into the organized reserve, to be avail
able for first line duty only between the
ages of q and 20, after which they
would be passed into the unorganized re-
serve until 20. The result would be a
constant force of trained men with full
equipment of more than 1000, 900, he
said, in addition to standing army of
25O,OOO composed of men who were pro-
fessional soldiers by personal inclination.
II do not think any nation would at
tack u.s." he remarked.