The Washington herald., 1916-03-03
The Heralds Army and Navy
Department
Latest and Nest Complete News Of
Service and Personnel Published
in Washington.
BY Il. b. JOHNS.


Something entirely new in the discus
sion of national defense is found In a
book entitled AN Army of the People, :"
BY Maj. John McA. Palmer, u. s. A., an
advance copy of which has been received
by the War Department In his treat
ment Of the subject Maj. Palmer gives
picture Of completely organized ma
tional force composed of American young
men fully organized, equipped and pre-
pared for war.
By adopting the fiction that his ma
tional citizenry army has already been
organized and that he is simply writing
a popular history OF an existing institu-
tion' Maj. Palmer avoids all OF the tech
meal details which are usually Greek to
the popular reader He describes how
the recruits were trained and how they
gradually developed into divisions and
finally into field armies. In an interest
ing way 1t is related how the army was
officered by officers from the National
Guard graduates OF military schools and
colleges and other citizen soldiers who
had qualified themselves for command
and how its training and organization
were supervised and made uniform by
selected officers Of the regular army.
While Maj. Palmer describes a ma
uonal army, and demonstrates most
clearly that such an army cannot be
formed from our present organized mi
litia, there is nothing in his book that
can be offensive or discouraging to the
patriotic young men in the National
Guard. On the contrary, he recognizes
them as constituting one Of our greatest
military assets. But he points out that
their greatest field OF usefulness is to
lie in the great work of training and or
ganizing a national army Of the people,
organized not under the restrictive mi
litia clauses of the constitution, but I'M
der the unrestricted power Ito raise and
support armies"
In formulating its personnel bill the
Roosevelt board followed the five-year
naval program of the administration
The board endcavors to make the in
crease in the number OF officers CORES
pond with the increase in the mum Der
of ships and the strength of the navy In
five years II the boards recommended
ton is followed there will be twelve ad-
dittonal rear admirals. An annual in
crease for five years following the ap-
nroval of the Act of six captains is con-
tained in the bill as submitted The
annual increase for the other grades pro-
Nides for seventeen commanders and
forty lieutenant commanders while Junior
heutenants are to be advanced to lieu
tenants after eight years service from
graduation. This increase will provide
flow Of promotion from Annapolis to
take care OF the additional midshpmen
that have been authorized by a bill that
has already been enacted by Congress.
The departments naval personnel bill
as submitted to Congress recognizes the
necessity eff encouraging expert training
in the navy. While an elaborate system
of examination to develop well rounded
commanders for the fleet is provided for.
provision is made by which officers will
be advanced by applying themselves
along special lines.
On this subject the board says: Be
lieving the navy will be benefited as a
whole. IL a few officers are made avail
able for research work and for duty as
instructors or leaders in their particular
line and that officers will not be willing
to so fit themselves IL they thereby sacri-
flee their chances for Advancement, the
bill provides that the examinations and
tests for promotion be confined to the
line of work on which they have been en-
gagged"
The board has left TO the discretion of
the President the number Of officers TO
be detailed to permanent duty in any
one line Of work so that the number
thus employed can be made to fit chang
ing conditions. The growing Importance
of aviation, the increased use Of cleo
trical appliances on board a ship and
other Improvements Of machinery makes
IT impOSsihl" at this date to forsep the
needs Of a navy in the lines OF spccili-
zatiun.
Cant. George +. Connolly c. A. C..
Capt. NJ. 9. Kerth. Thirtieth Infantry:
Lieut.. Haines Houston. Twenty-eighth
Infantry, and George +. Maurer. NJ. R.
C. reported at the War Department yes
terday.
Ensign J. NJ McMiller. Naval Hospital
at Norfolk. reported at the Navy De
partment yestarday