Evening star., 1918-08-04
Made Million Men Possible.

II should be understood by the public
that it is only owing to this accomplish
more th~n 100000 men in France. #
the ports had been inadequate and rail
facilities and camps and supplies had
been inadequate these men could not be
here Too much credit cannot be given
the men who so far-sightedly planned
and SO energetically laid down this es-
/ sential material foundation for our
Army. / know whereof 1 speak, for
have just returned from a tour Of the
I ports
Rumors had reached me at the front
/ of the progress of the work in the rear,
but all was vague and unsatisfactory.
knowing from long experience the vital
importance of adequate rear organiza-
self have seen. The facts are not
less but greater than the rumors. With
out attempting in any respect to sum-
marie all the work accomplished I win
ticularly struck me. The achievements
described concern not merely one or two
places, but a dozen. There is scarcely
a French port today from Belgium to
Spain where traces Of American organi-
zation may not be perceived. Several
large ports seem to be exclusively
American. Our engineers and tall, pow
erful negroes, and our splendid working
battalions swarm everywhere We have
established our own machine shops, our
i
;6hops
Tho work is directed under Army
tetaffs according to regular American
business methods. The Offices at our
| bases look exactly like the big busi-
ness offices in New York and Chicago
except that they are less luxuriously
furnished and the clerks and stenog-
raphers, instead of being pretty girls
or new young civilians, are keeneyed
lads in khaki Efficiency is the key
nd n a
general told me that the rule of his
office was that every letter received
1nust be answered the same day and
every telegram within the same hour.
We have built our own tanks for stor-
ing oil and our own cold storage
plants for meat.
Hospital With e5, GOO Beds.
We have organized our own base
hospitals Near one port is a hospital
now In course Of construction, which
will have $4,000 beds. The head doc
tors speak Of another which will have
10000 beds There are smaller hos
pitfalls everywhere> Our boys even for
the slightest ailments are promptly
placed under tho care Of trained
midst OF great rest camp where
there Is room for moro than 10000
men saw . modest barrack labeled.
S-No MANS land
who lives theref. I asked,
Oh was the answer, that Is where
the nurses Of our camp hospital are
More than 100000 rations were
served In this camp in ono month,
when tho average stay of the contin-
gents Of men passing through was
four days There are similar rest
camps for the newly landed men at
nearly every port. One of these ports
had been handling since June q num-
Der Of troops ten times greater than
the star estimate last March. There
seems to be no limit to the ingenuity
of our organizers They are able ap-
parentfy to double, triple or even
quadrup1e the available facilities on
p few days notice. The word impos-
sible does not exist for them.
It is only owing to this Adaptable
3ty that we have been able to receive
has been sending ever since March.
In one single day $4,000 men landed
at one port and $4,000 moro landed
the next morning. All these men had
to be quartered and fed almost with
out notice. The men landed at the
ports are sent by train within three
or four days to the great training
ramps In the interior to make room
Ror the thousands mors due on the
Spext convoy.
Water Pumped for Miles.
Several ports which were suitable
Hak our purposes IN most respects