The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1918-02-02
BIG ARMY NEEDED
FOR AIR SERVICE
FORTY TO FIFTY MEN REQUIRED
FOR EACH ACTIVE PLANE AT
THE FIGHTING FRONT.
FIGURES BY HOWARD COFFIN
Veterinary Corps and Remount serv-
Ice Growing Rspidly-lnformation
About the Pay Received by Uncle
Sans Enlisted Men.

CFrom Committee on Public I~nformation.)
WashingtOn.-ln a statement issued
by Howard +. Coffin, chairman of the
aircraft production board, is the fol-
lowing:
"ln discussing the accomplishments
OF the air service in the contamination
of the army program, it will be well to
point out the lmpossibility Of certain
proposals enthusiastically and persist
emily put forward by word of mouth
and In h press. We have seen and
heard much Of the proposed 100000
airplanes to be provided by the United
States within the next year. In q u
try where one great industry produces
100000 motOrcars per year, the fab
rication Of 100000 planes might seem
easy, but actual figures based upon
three years of practical experience in
the war shows that there are now be-
tween 40 and so men of the auxiliary
services required for each active ma
chine at the front. If this same ratio
should be adhered to in our service, It
would mean that some 4,OOO.O 600 men
would be required In our a~erOnautical
department on foreign soil between
ports of debarkation and the fight
ing front.
Even though this number Of men
could be reduced by so per cent by in
creased efficiency and Standardization,
the number required is still agger-
Ing. Consider, also, the overseas
transportation problem as related to
material only and without reference
to personnel and its maintenance. The
transportation of finished planes, prop
erly Grated, with the necessary spares.
accessories, and equipment is in itself
a serious problem, in view of the stu
alton in ship tonnage"
When war was declared the strength
of the United States army in animals
was 66,145; it is now 344,OOO. The
remount service April 6 consisted Of
n officer and four clerks in Washing
ton, five remount depots where horses
were received, and a personnel and
purchasing organization in the field in
proportion. The veterinary corps. re-
spOnsible for the treatment of animals.
consisted Of GA officers and no enlisted
personnel when the United States en-
tered the war.
The veterinary corps faced the job
Of building an organization of about
1000 officers and 1900 men. The
1000 officers have been secured and
enlisted men are being transferred at
a rate which will soon bring it up to
its full authorized strength.
The remOunt service had q similar
task In securing personnel. Its pres
ent strength Is about 800 officers and
1000 enlisted men. In place of ;
remount depots it has "a. for which
plans had to be drawn. sites chosen.
and construction of shelter, hospitals.
storage buildings. and unloading ia
cilities In short time.
The greater proportion of deaths Of
animals in the army results from inlu-
enza, popularity known as shipping
fever" and its complications. British
losses on horses purchased in the
United States during the war have
been about 10 per cent, counting only
deaths occurring in this country.
French and Italian losses have been
higher.
The rank of commissioned officers of
the United States army is shown by
Insignia on the shoulder loops.
The shoulder loops of a general bear
the coat of arms of the United States
and two silver stars lieutenant gen
eral, one large and two small silver
%'stars major general, two silver stars;
~brigadier general, one silver star:
colonel, silver spread-eagle; lieutenant.
colonel, silver leaf; major, gold leaf;
captain, two silver bars first lieuten-
ant, one silver bar; second lieutenant,
gold bar.
The shoulder loop of a chaplain
bears a Latin cross.
A recent comparison of health re-
ports from troops in the United States
and the expeditionary forces shows the
admission rate to hospitals to be great
er among the men in France.
Admissions to hospitals in one week
In the expeditionary forces, figured on
a basis of 1000 men, were 1872; In the
United States the rate was 1877 per
1000 men. In the overseas forces the
noneffective rate (the total number of
men excused from duty for any injury
or ailment, whether or not ordered to
hospital) was BAL per 1000 men; In
the troops in the United States it was
46.4.
The sale of "smilage" books, contain
ing coupons good for admission to the
aters and entertainment tents In all
army camps and cantOnments, is ham
died in the smaller cities n towns
throughout the country by chautau-
qua and lyceum organizations.
The books come in two sizes, for sale
Qt 81 and 81 INhnn Snnt g.