Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-12-22
trucks. With Their
SkDedDr;vers, Played
Big Part IN Winning
the Waffle Call at
Chateau-Th;erry and
Ho,u 1t Was AnsUer-
ed-Enab1ed the Yam
KEGS to Enter Great
Battle Which Turned
Tide Of the War.

II N the days to come. when the his
tory of the greatest war of all
Il time shall be written. whether in
= prose or verse. there will be tales
of valor told of the time -honored
"Army mule" that faithful bearer of
so many burdens. But there Will be
other and more frequent stories told
Of a new species, 1.-THE gas hound.
because strong men give nicknames
only to things they like and respect
the "gas hound" is not an outcast from
respectable society, but. merely
member of one Of the newer and nee
essary branches of modernized war
fare. the Motor Transport Corps
The Army mule had his day. Even
railroad facilities, while still valu-
able, have ceased to be of such prl-
mary Importance as they once were
Both have been somewhat displaced
by. the powerful motor truck, when
knows not the need of tracks and has
greater carrying power than the mule.
Yesterday, as means of assisting III
the downfall of Germany, the motor
truck played a vital role, while to-
morrow, as a factor in rebuilding a
ruined world, its future is assured
X
Y X X
/. Although this country has to very
considerable extent demonstrated the
multiple uses to which motor truck
might be put. 1t was not alone due to
the participation Of America In the
war that that knowledge. was gained
In the early days of the conflict
France pressed motor cars and taxi
cabs into service to rush reinforce
ments to the battle of the Marine,
; which later developed into such ex-
tensive use of motor vehicles that
both France land England built up
motor. transport systems of great
value to their armies.
1t is also because of actual ex-
perience abroad that the United States
government developed the new Motor
Transport Corps. A few years ago each
branch of the service had it's own au-
tomobiles, trucks. motor cycles and
other motorized equipment, which, al
though in each instance relatively
small, led to unnecessary congestion
and waste. Even before our entrance
into the war the advantages of CEN
tralizlng this branch of the service
were seen. and in 1916, at the sugges-
ton Of Gen. Pershing, the procure
ment, operation and repair of all
motor equipment were brought under
the motor transport service as part
OF the Quartermaster Corps. His later
experience in Europe led Gen. PERISH
ing further to suggest the establish
ment Of distinct unit pertaining to
motor equipment, and 1t was this
which led to the creation Of the Motor
Transport Corps last August.
That the corps proved it's worth to
the American Army abroad is shown
in letter from Gen. Pershing to
Mai. Gen. James G. Hartford, COM
mander of the American supply serv-
ice. in which he said:
II want the officers and men of the
supply service under your command
to know how much the LIST Army ap-
preciates the prompt response made
on every demand for men, equipment,
supplies and transportation necessary,
to carry out recent operations. Please
extend to all our hearty congratula-
.tions and say that they share the
success with u.s."
The creation Of the Motor Trans
port Corps placed under a single head
the complete control, with few tech
meal exceptions, of all motor We
hicles used by the American Army,
the term motor vehicle" being con-
strued to include all bicycles, motor
cycles, automobiles, trailers, trucks,
etc, connected with all branches of
the service. One of the few exceptions
to this control Is in connection with
tanks and caterpillar tractors which
come under the ordnance department.
II
The magnitude of this new Army
organization and the Importance of
motor vehicles to the Army can best
be shown by stating that the even
.tual personnel of the Motor Trans
port Corps called for 100000 enlisted
men and $1,000 officers. the corps
eventually comprising IL per cent of
the Army. AS part of each Amer
lean field army the corps provides for
u motor transport unit, comprising
nearly $4,000 officers and men. All
rlf