Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1918-01-14
Declaration of War Found
the Country Wholly Un-
prepared Says Chairman
of Industries Board.
War Department Did Not
Even Have Information
on Resources of Country
Work Done by Defense
Council Commission.

Washington, Jan. 14.-America's en-
trance to the world war found mo
government department yet organized
to handle the task thrust upon this
country Chairman Daniel Willard of
the war industries board testified to
senate military probes today. No
one in the war department. he added,
knew even the resources of the coun-
try at that time.
The national defense council ad-
visory commission of which Willard
was chairman, didn't begin to study
war problems, he said, until March,
when 1t appeared war was imminent"
From December. 1916. to March, 1917,
it was peace organization"
Willard said the commission, as soon
as war developed. look ed into the war
department and found that nobody had
attempted to list or inventory the pro-
ductive capacity of munitions factor
les.
SECURED INFORMATION.
Howard Coffin" he said, had
listed 10000 industrial plants in con-
nection with the work of the naval
consulting board. That. however, was
wholly outside the war department.
Our department at once went to work
to get this much needed information
for the army
Willard limited at reluctance on the
part of the war department bureau
heads to give the advisory commission
full information on the situation.
To meet conditions now. Willard ad-
vocated one man control of all pur-
chacAs for the army. navy and ship
ping board and the allies.
II would not have him take over
whole purchasing machinery at once"
said Willard, he'd be there to get
things others people had failed to get
WOULD REMEDY WEAKNESS.
His authority, coming from the
president. would remedy the only
weakness in the new plan adopted by
the war department of co-ordinating
purchases of five departments under
one head. This plan involve: the vol
untary cooperation of the war and
navy departments and the war indus
tries board of the council of national
defense.
That's the weakness Of 1t. 1t will
work as well as any ministry of mu-
nitions If everybody voluntarily CO.
operates.
"If cooperation is lacking. II will
not work. That's why some real au-
thority should be given some one man
to make 1t work.
TN common with many persons. I
thought when we entered the war that
the first thing we ought to do was to
provide ministry OF munitions.
still held that view when / became
chairman OF the war industries board.
. in November.
AGAINST MINISTRY.
81 felt certain that the plan proposed
by the war department would not work.
have spent six weeks studying that
plan and l now do not favor the plan
Of creating a munitions ministry"
"It is not necessary to put a man
in the cabinet to do this work. 1t Is
clear. however. that II we are not to
have some central. outside purchasing
agency like munitions ministry. we
must make the best use Of those we
already have I have every reason to
believe that II one man is put in SUI
preme control under authority granted
the president, the plan will work
splendidly.
III that Is done, we will have the
army, the navy. the shipping board
and the allies as the four great pur-
chasing agencies"
APPROVES PLAN.
Bernard Baruch, member Of the war
Industries board. re-echoed WIZARDS
idea. a central agency, headed by one
man to deal with supplies In which
1 a