The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1916-01-20
OCEAN NO SAFEGUARD
AGAINST ATTACK
Major General Leonard Wood Tells Sen
ate Military Committee That United
States Coast Line Is Open to Attack
by Any Organized
Foreign Army.

Washington, d. c., Jan. 2O.-MaJo
General Leonard Wood told the Senate
military committee yesterday the coast
line of the United States was open tc
attack by any well organized foreign
army, despite its equipment of forts
mines and submarines, and that the
oceans formed no serious barrier to in
yasion. He declared that in the coun-
try's present state of utter unprepared-
ness for war trained force of 10000
men could inaict incalculable damage be-
| fore an army could be assembled to
meet il.
Events Of the European war clearly
demonstrated. the general said. that the
sea was the best medium for the move
ment of troops and he pointed out that
force of 10000 men fully equipped
had been landed at Gallipoli from sim
gle expedition of 9S ships, against sub
marines, mines and an underwater screen
of barbed wire that fringed every avail
able landing place.
Emphasizing his conviction that troops
cannot be improvised to meet regulars,
General Wood declared the fundamental
basis of any policy Of adequate national
defense must be the principle that with
suffrage goes an obligation for military
service. Such policy had been advo-
Gated by George Washington, he said,
and if it had been adopted Canada would
have become part of the United States in
the war of 1912.
"0nly once in our history have we been
prepared for war" he added. "That
was Immediately after the Civil war,
when we had million and half trained
soldiers. Our diplomatic correspondence
with France concerning Mexico was very
brief. 1t required only one note because
Of our preparedness. They were told to
get out and they got out.
"There isn't going to be any weakness
abroad after this war is over. You will !
find that more male children will have I
been born than have been killed or in |
iured. You will have all the gold, per-
haps, but it will not do you much good
unless you stiffen it with iron"
As to the immediate needs of the reg
ilar army. General Wood expressed the
opinion that the force of regulars should
De maintained at 100000 OF these, he
aid 10000 equipped and supplied for
year's time should be kept in the Philip
Zines, another 10000 in Hawaii and 49,
100 at Panama. He urged that the reg
liars should lave a reserve system un
Ter which, in a six-year enlistment, men
would be discharged whenever their COM
any commanders reported them as eff
lent, into reserve to be definitely as
igned to war stations. Equipment for
nembers of the reserve would be kept
t their stations and once every two
ears they would be required to join the {
olors for 10 days training to keep them
p to date.
General Wood said that if universal
Military service was not to be obtained {
e favored continental army scheme :
1bstantially as proposed by the war
apartment. provided sit is absolutely
ivoreed from the organized militia The S
lcrease for the regular army proposed
Y Secretary Garrison, however, he char \
cterized as "absurdly inadequate and l
ldicating failure to appreciate the
ssons of the European war" particular
I as to the proportion of field artillery.
e recommended that the proportion of K
sld guns be fixed at five to every 1000
fies or sabers The present army stand
d is 80 per 1000. although in actual
Iuipment the regulars are nearer two
IT thousand. The board recently Great
in the war department has fixed on b.
, per 1000 as the number necessary. o,
Reverting to the condition of the coun- -
v to face war with a first class power.
e general said the United States was 10
terly unprepared and knew nothing of OF
e problems il would have 20 meet. At Is
lst 100000 men would be needed. he Va
clared, and they could be obtained, he "
lieyed. only by compulsory service. At
esent there were only 100000 modern
les and 100000 oldmodel weapons in
vernment arsenals, he said. and up to
e days ago the capacity of all Ameri- n
n plants to produce rifles was only 80
0 a day. England alone, he said.
nted $4,000 a day. while France called
/ two rifles in reserve for every man in IN
: field da
General Wood was positive in declar- mi
7 the militia was composed OF a fine r..
rsonnel. but cursed by hopeless sys- $
n-unless il could be taken over bv =
government and absolutely severed OF
I'M any connection with the states. He on
4 il should be abandoned 70 the states m
tirely, and not a dollar Of government m
'ney wasted upon it. 10
We should terminate the intolorable -
'tem," he declared. "The soldier eIe- ~
ut Of the militia all want federaliza- r.
n No man who refuses to come into
continental army is TO be depended ms
Dn" =. =.
OF