The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1918-05-01
BAKER WILL ASK
BLANKET POWER
TO RAISE ALL THE
TROOPS NEEDED
IB elieyed That At Least 81
O00,O 600 Can Be Han
died This Year
NEW MEN TO BE
MOSTLY Fl aHTERS
con1batant Units VIII
Not Need To Be Great
" Increased H..
Ers,s tIE
DRAFT AGES WILL
NOT BE CH NGED
,.All The Men Needed Be
lieved To Be Available
In Glass One j
DRAFT AGES WILL
NOT BE CHANGED
tBy Assoelated press.Y

Washington May 1s--Secretary
EBaker will appear before the house
military COMMITTEES tomorrow morn
ang to present the administration
program for increasing the army to
Imeet the German drive. The exact
form of his recommends Is not
known. but tl1ers are indications that
4 he will not conf1na himself to specific
ihgures, asking for blanket authority
/ to raise all the troops 1t Is possible to
clothe, equip and ship to France
It is known that war department
lofficials, through the survey OF ships
lDiug and Huppli en- recent lN eQplp leked,
have been convinced that IL VIII be
luossibia 10 handle at least {, S,009. 900
lmlen this year and that this number
win be considerably increased by
tstrafning resources It is therefore
Ebeiieved that MFR. Baker viii 3ndt-
scate to the house committee to-
morrow that an additional million
i men will be mobilized If authority rs
granted.
The bulk of the additional forces
would be organized as lighting pn3
Tits, it is assumed, as the forces al
iready assembled have provided the
major part OF the nom combatant
troops necessary for q largely in-
fcreased army.
Will Not Extend Limits.
There is nothing to indicate that
the war department sees at tbs
itime any necessity for extending the
draft ages. There Is every reason
ITO believe that there are enough men
| in class OF the draft rated as fight
ing material to I'LL any domand that
I possibly can be made up&n the se-
/ lective service for 9. year or more. In
addition, extension OF the draft to
lmen who have reached the minimum
Iage OF 81 since the act was passed
will add another three quarters OF
Ia million to the list Of ayatlables.
I None OF the officials present at to-
tday's meeting OF the war council
would say what figures had been dis
cussed. 1t Isl known however. that
iChairYnan Hurley, of this shipping.
hoard, was asked for estimates OF the
maximum shipping that could be OBJ
tained from all sources to accelerate
! troop movements.
| In connection with the increase OF
4 the army, the war department is IN
Iclined to expand existing canton
lmentg and the pick OF the national
1 guard camps to accommodate addi-
| tioY1al troops, rather than to the con-
struction OF new cantonments.
No More Guard Units.
Indications that the war depart
lment has decided not to accept any,
additional national guard units In
the forces sent abroad, WAS seen to-
day in an order telegTaphed to the
| governor OF Minnesota. instructing
him to disband the second Mime
| sofa, artillery. The Minnesota auth
/ critics were anxious to have the unit
| IN service as concrete evidence Of the
loyalty OF the districts In which it
was formed.
All national guard units IN eyis-
tence at the outbreak Of war were
taken into the federal service. Many
units have been formed since and
lgonle have been offered their SER
vices to the government for the war.
War department. officials hold there
iB no available service for them in
the military machine, even Il 1t was
not the consensus OF expert opinion
that better material could be obtain
+ ed through the draft. Units such a.s.
the second Minnesota, therefore,
could be used 0mIy liz broken Ip.
Provost Marshal General Crowder
JwilI accompany 1dr. Baker before the
| cbnn1ittea and the two viii discuss
Legislation now pending to change
the draft quota. to the basis OF the
number of men in class
al call for 1885 additional draft
men was Issued today by the provost
RllarsIlal general. They are to be-
tsent To ~ institutions scattered
throughout the country for 81 two
months course Of training In various
mechanical studies.