The evening leader. (Tarpon Springs, Fla.) 191?-19??, 1917-04-17
WOULD NOT INTERFERE WITH
UNIVERSAL SERVICE PLAN
OF ADMINISTRATION

Washington, April 16.-Col. Roose-
welt in letters today to Senator Cham
berlain and Representative, Dent,
lchairmen of the congressional military
committees, detailed his plans for rails
ing and accompanying a volunteer ex-
petition to join the allies on the west
iern European battlefront. He heartily
approved the administration compul-
sorry service program for providing a
war army, but insited that volunteers
could be put on the firing line in four
months and that the American flag
should be there at the earliest possible
moment.
When he was here last week, Colonel
Roosevelt saw the military committee
Ichairnen after his conference with
President Wilson, and they asked him
to submit his views of the situation in
writing.
II most earnestly and heartily sup
port the administration bill for provid-
ing an army raised on the principle Of
universal obligatory military training
and service" said his letter. I cannot
too strongly emphasize my support of
the administration in the matter, and
my appreciation of the need of intro
|ducing this principle as permanent
feature of our national policy; it is
the really democratic principle. 1t is
along the lines proposed by the admin
istration that we should inaugurate
our permanent military policy. Bur
many months, probably at least year
or over, must elapse before the army
thus raised would be available for use
in Europe, in the hard, aggressive
fighting campaigns, which it is honor
ably incumbent on us to undertake
now that we have entered into the
war.
Meanwhile let us use volunteer
forces in connection with a portion of
the regular army, in order, at the ear
Hest possible moment, within a few
months, to put our flag on the firing
line We owe this to humanity. We
owe it to the small nations who have
suffered such dreadful wrong from
Germany. Most of all, we owe it to
ourselves, to our national honor and
self-respect. For the sake of our own
souls, for the sake of the memories
of the great Americans of the past,
we must show that we do not intend
to make this merely dollar war;"
Plan Would Not Interfere.
The Colonel said he did not seek to
have the volunteer system interfere
in any way with or substitute for the
obligatory plan, but that, except in
certain cases, the volunteers should be
composed of men who would not be
taken under obligatory service. He
proposed an amendment to the act of
March 2, 1899, providing for the rails
ing of $4,000 volunteers so as to au-
thorize the president to raise a force
of not more than 100000 Cor 100000
to 100000 laterl for three years, or
the duration of the war.
"Under this act" the letter contin-
ued, I should ask leave to raise for i'm
mediate service overseas with the first
expeditionary force an infantry divis-
ion of three Encouragement brigades
and one divisional brigade of cavalry,
together with an artillery brigade, a
regiment Of engineers, a motorcycle
machine gun regiment, an aero squad
ron, a signal corps, the supply service,
etc. I should request the war depart
ment for the detail of say two officers
for every thousand men. | believe that,