Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1918-12-02
DEFENSE BODY
OF The NATION
MAKES REPORT
Council Shows How Its Work
Has Been Well Done and
Productive of Good
Results.

Washington, Dec. 2,-The second
annual report of the Council of Ma
tional Defense tells the story of a
very large part of the governments
activities in the war of a nonmilitary
character. The report is made by
w. S. Clifford, director of the
council.
At the end of the period covered
by the report,-Mr. Clifford points
out, the work of initial mobilization,
the main task which the council un-
dertook in the emergency, was large
ly completed. The council set out
to act as a connecting link between
the nation i'll its normal state and
the nation as machine for making
war. This transition period past, the
councils role as main link in the
war government naturally became
less active, though it continued to
perform functions of most vital
and necessary nature, especially
through the great council of defense
system, made up of state, county,
municipal and community organiza-
tons, reaching practically every
hamlet in the country.
Many Ramihcations.
A perusal of the report shows that
the council served as a nucleus for
innumerable new functions and rela-
tons which the war made necessary
and for which no administrative
agency existed at the outbreak of
the conflict, Some of these, after be-
ing initiated and partially developed
by the council, were passed on to
existing executive departments; for
some the council created new agen-
cies. either acting under its juris-
diction or given separate jurisdic-
ton, by executive order, or congress
sional act.
Perhaps the best example of the
latter case was the War Industries
board, whose work was begun by
and developed by the council and
was separated from it only on May
q, last. Other tasks which received
their initial impulse from the coun-
Gil we're: the food conservation pro-
gram. aircraft prgram, war labor ad-
ministration, housing, and many
functions supplementary to those of
the regular departments such as
those involved in the storage, ship
ping, transportation, fuel and medi-
cal problems.
In saying that the date of the for
NAL separation ofthe War Industries
board from the Council of National
Defense marked the virtual end of
the councils task in planning emer-
gency machinery to meet new war
functions, the director points out
that this in no way diminishes the
usefulness of the work which re-
mains under the councils organiza-
ton.
National Spirit.
The report emphasizes that in
mobilizing Americas material re-
sources for the government, the
council has at the same time been
vitality concerned in the mobilization
Of the national spirit. In the effort
the council has been aided particu-
larly by the organizations under the
state councils section with its state.
county, municipal and community
councils numbering we'll over 100,-
900 at the date OF the report,
Through these local agencies, acting
with the local agencies of the wo-
mans committee of the council, the
government has been able to bring
home to every section of the country
in way possible only to local agen-
cies the meaning of its policies and
the opportunities for individual serv-
ice in the war.
The other branches of the council
still active at the date of the report
were the committee of labor, COM
mittee on engineering and education,
medical section and general medical
board, highways transport commit
tee. national research council acting
as the department of science and re-
search of the council, and the naval
consulting board, acting as a COM
mittee on inventions.