The St. Charles herald. [volume] (Hahnville, La.) 1873-1993, 1918-06-29

| peaceful industry, making researches
and tests and utilizing all the refine
ments Of invention and design to keep
| pace with competitors In war equip
ment, and secure every advantage pos
sible.
Have Capable Experts.
In peaceful industries the public Is
| satisfied to judge by the quality of the
| final product. When the history Of the
| present war Is written, 1t will proba-
| bly, be found that this was the proper
| measure Of our fighting industry, the
results secured on the battle front.
| Those results Will be secured by the
American military officer trained to
| design the equipment Of an army, and
the weight Of expert opinion both from
military men OF other nations and
capable business men In this country
| who are working with the war depart
ment Is to the effect that we have rs
good a system of development as ex.
lists.
In ordinary times our requirements
they can be supplied as an incident 10
peaceful industry. The American mil
itary expert was able to center upon
the design Of rifles, guns and ammuni-
ton, turning his blue prints and Speci-
iicationS over TO manufacturers who
were waiting 70 bid upon contracts.
When the design was finished he sim
ply advertised for bids and secured de-
liverieS through tn" penalty clause in
government contracts, and saw that
quality was maintained by careful in
Spection of material delivered.
For several months after war was
declared the ordnance department
found its whole scheme Of organization
fairly satisfactory, and for a reason
which will be apparent to everyone
when 1t IS stated
Regardless of the magnitude Of our
war task and the urgency which has
not been lost sight of our new army
and our war preparations had to be
arranged on an orderly program Of
growth. Soldiers for the army had 70
be drafted and trained. This was work
which would consume months of time
no matter how we'll the plans We're
laid. And while the men We're being
modified and instructed, the ordnance
department could arrange for their
fighting tools. There was even time
to spend on thorough tests to deter
miEe which type of rifle, machine gun,
etc, would give the best results on
the fighting front. The peace-time
plan Of organization was therefore
adhered to, but with full provision for
growth as the new army was trained
and sent to France. It was possible to
plot the requirements for each bureau, |
increase the organization by drawing
in more technical men from civil life
for each specific task and provide
new bureaus to deal with new tasks. /,
A bureau of supplies became neces-
sary, for instance, and was started last |
May, with two men in a single room,
who proceeded to map out that bu- |
reau's functions for IS months, taking |
into account the delivery Of supplies
to every army camp in the United |
States, as required by the army's de- |
velopments in this country, and final |
ly taking care Of its requirements |
when 1t reached the western front. !
This bureau of supplies today has :
about 5000 workers, and more are be-
ing added daily according to orderly
growth Of work. and by the end of this
year there will be fully 10000.
War Engineers In Charge.
The ordnance department is now ar.
ranged in a way that makes 1t an eff
f1cient. self-contained agency for the
performance of its particular work on
the largest scale, and with the most
careful attention to all details for the
period Of the war. At the head of the
department today is the chief Of ord
nance, which position Is still held by
Maj. Gen. William Crozier. General
Crozier, however, is at present in
France, applying his ability and ex
perience to the study Of the army's re-
quirements in the field. Brig. Gen.
SudlISS ID w hcclci' as hIliAI6 NhACl VI
staff, is in charge in this country. Gen.
eral Wheeler Is West Pointer, thor
oughly familiar with the requirements
Of the army, and Is assisted by three
other regular army officers. each at
the head Of bureau carrying part OF
the detail work.
The engineering bureau. under Col,
John II. Rice, conducts researches and
deals with inventions and
designs, determines types Of military
equipment, conducts tests and draws
up specifications.
The control bureau, under Col
Tracy c. Dickson, attends to esti
mates and schedules Of requirements.
,o-ordinates and superviseS the vari-
lus operating divisions, deals with
methods, organization, industrial rela-
lions, transportation and the ADJUST
nent Of complaints and disputes.
The general administration bureau,
lnder Col William S. Pierce, looks af-
er arsenal administration, finance,
legal and advisory details,
he personnel of the army, both mill.
airy and civilian, attends to the de-
,artment's mail, records, publications.,
library and Information generally.
In addition. the chief of ordnance Is