The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1917-10-27
n. {. REGIMENTS
FORM A RESERVE
Those at Westfield Will
Have Chance to Serve
| at Front
SECRETARY BAKER
ASSURES GOVERNORS
No Chance That Roosevelt Will Be Put
in Charge of National Guard Divi-
-vermonters Affected by New
Plan of War Department.

WASHINGTON, Oct 27.-Al officers
and men remaining in National Guard
regiments which have been heavily drawn
upon to fill up other organizations will
have their chance at the front. The war
department intends to use all these skel
etonized units to form a reserve in France
from which General Pershng may draw
to keep his fighting forces always at full
strength.
Secretary Baker gave this assurance
yesterday to the New England governors
who called on him in the interest of the
depleted regiments. The governors who
visited the secretary of war were Nc
Call of Massachusetts, Millckn of Maine,
Graham of Vermont, Reyes of New
Hampshire. and Holcomb of Connecticut.
General Bliss, the chief of the army gen
eral stall, was present at the conference
Part of the mission of some of the gov
ernors was understood to be to ascertain
from the secretary of war whether Iheo-
dore Roosevelt could be assigned to re-
cruit the skcletonized National Guard
units to war strength There has been
considerable agitation among New Eng
land National Guard officers III this direc-
tion. They felt chat through Colonel
Roosevelt the disintcgrated New England
military units would be augmented to the
point where they would be organized into
new division which would be certain of
service in France.
But the hopes of the New England
Guard officers to have Colonel Roosevelt
lead them on the battlefields of Europe
are not to be realized. The explanation
of the war department plans satisfied
those of the governors who were inter
estcd in the Roosevelt suggestion, and it
was said afterward that his name was
not mentioned at the conference.
! Most of the New England state troops
! were organized into a division at full war
strength. and the necessity of drawing on
some regiments to increase the ranks OF
others caused a very general disOrganlza-
| ton of educational Guard. For example,
1 only about 400 men are lett OF what was
the Fifth Massachusetts, one of the oldest
militia regiments III the country. The
h-1lasSachusetlS- which WAS attacked
i'm the streets of Baltimore in 1851, i
another famous regiment of which only
a remnant remains.
/ The governors first proposed to Secre
/ tarv Baker and General Bliss that instead
OF blotting out the identity of the re-
naming New England troops. by scatter
ing them among other commands or dis
banding them. their ranks be filled by
men taken from the draft selectives at
] Camp DevenS When this was not ac-
Icepted the governors asked if they could
not fill the depleted ranks OF the guard
Regiments by voluntary enlistments.
Secretary Baker and General Bliss cX-
planned that it was intended to organize
the remaining skeleton units into corps
i troops that is, troops which would fur
nish men to fill the gaps caused by cas-
ualtieS among the New England forces in
France All the additional officers will be
retained il efficient, and will be sent to
France as vacancies occur in the New
England National Guard division organ
lied for the fighting line.
How the gaps caused by sending men
t. Europe from the corps troops would
be filled was not fully explained, but il
was made clear that additional mcI
; would be provided. and the impression
was given that these would be obtained
from drafted units The whole scheme 81
the war department, il was pointed out
was not To depend on voluntary enlist
ments. but on the draft, and furt hcrmorc
to give an opportunity for service to al
! national pllardsmen who would retain
their identity in this country and be sen
, abroad as fast as necessary to fill gaps il
the ranks OF guard organizations iron
4 the same section.
The remnants of national guard regi
:. mcnts i'll whose behalf the governors say
: the secretary Of war are tire First Main
,. Heavy Artillery. the Sixth Massachusetts
: Infantry, the Eighth Massachusetts In
!: fantry the First New Hampshire lnfan
/ try, the First Vermont Infantry, the FRS
: Separate Company of Massachusetts, col
Il ored troops, the First Separate Compan
of Massachusetts colored medical troop
!. Company \, Connecticut Signal Corp
and Company Five. New Hampshire Sis
= nal Corps at Westlield, Mass: the FIT
Va Massachusetts Infantry at Framinghan
q Mass, and the First Connecticut lnfantr
n at New Haven.