The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1917-03-27

"D-Central department, to en-
brace the States of Kentucky, Ohio.
Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wiscon
sin, Minnesota, North Dakota. South
Dakota, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas. Ne
braska, Wyoming and Colorado.
Headquarters at Chicago.
"E-Southern department, to en-
brace the States of Louisiana lex
cept the coast defenses at New Or
leans), Texas Except the coast de-
fenses at Galveston), Arkansas
Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arizona.
Headquarters at Fort Sam Houston.
Texas.
"F--Western department, to en-
brace the States of Washington. Ore
gon, Idaho, Montana, California. Ne
Vada, Utah and the territory of Alas
ka. Headquarters at San Francisco
MAJ. Gen. Leonard Wood will
command the Southeastern depart
ment and Maj. Gen. j. Franklin Bell
will command the Eastern depart
ment. Maj. Gen. Hunter Liggett
will command the Western depart
ment and Brig. Gen. Clarence r. Ed
wards will command the Northeas-
tern department. Brig. Gen. Edward
IL. Plummer will command the
troops in the Panama canal zone.
Other department commanders will
remain as at present"
Congress must determine the sys-
tenn under which an army is to be
raised. Today's action provides more
elastic machinery found necessary as
result OF the recent border mo
nlization, for the enrolling and train
ing OF great army, whether raised
as volunteers, by conscription or
through a universal service bill.
The object of the creation of the
new departments of the Northeast
and Southeast was to distribute
among three central commanders the
work OF mobilization in the States
most thickly populated and from
which the greatest number Of SOL
diers must come. The present East
ern department directed the mobi-
lization OF approximately 80 per cent
of the 10000 guardsmen sent to
the border.
With 100000 men, the maximum
authorized strength of the National
Guard in addition to whatever vol
unteers might be summoned, the task
would be too great for a single de-
partmental organization because OF
the vastness of the supply problems
involved
Instructions to National Guard Of
ficers issued more than a month ago
to cover any future mobilizations
showed plainly that the war depart
ment had learned its lesson and
proposed to decentralize its mobiliza-
tion problems as far as possible. De-
partmental commanders completely
will supervise the assembling of
State troops in their districts here
after and will take over the task of
recruiting.
Army Officers Surprised.
The transfer of Gen. Wood from
the Eastern to the Southeastern de-
partment caused considerable specu-
lation among army officers. No ex-
planation was given and Secretary
Baker declined to comment. The
Eastern department, even as it will
he after the new organization goes
into effect. is regarded as the most
important of the six because of its
great economic development. As
general rule that department falls to
the command OF the senior major
general OF the army available for
such duty.
Gen. Wood is the ranking officer
OF his grade, Gen. Bell. who now
takes command of the Eastern de-
partment being his immediate jun.
ior. In some quarters it was sug-
gested that the new Southeastern
department might prove to he the
center of interest should the present
international situation develop for
military operations to the South.
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