The Owosso times., 1918-10-18
MICHIGAN LEADER
AMONG STATES
MEN ON STATES WAR ADMINS.
TRATION BOARD CAUSE OF
ITS RENOWN.
WAR BOARD HANDLES $4,272,233
Whole Country Impressed With Mlchi.
gan's Action. State Leaders De-
serve Great Credit.

Every Michigan resident Is pleased
when he hears 1t stated that Michi-
gan is leader among all the states
of the union In carrying on war work
Every Michigan resident feels thrill
of pride when he learns that official
recognition of his states leadership
in nearly all lines of war endeavor
has been had. But how many Michi-
gan residents know why their state
has won this eminence?
In the rush of war work and in the
universal interest in the latest news
from the war zone, scant attention
has been paid by the average man
and woman to the details of what
has been happening in their own
midst. The sum total of those de-
tails, accomplished by the men who
make up the war administration o.
Michigan, is the cause of the state
war renown.
Much hard work, much careful
planning, much efficiency in dozen
different fields of endeavor have con-
tributed to the result The work IS
still in progress. 1t is increasing in
scope. 1t will continue until the war
is won and the aftermath of war dis
posed Of. At this time, though, when
the war governor of the state, AL
bert E. Sleeper and the other elective
state officers, who have shared in the
enormous work that Is being done,
are to come before the people for re-
election on the Republican ticket, it
is we'll to review their accomplish
ments to date 1t is their splendid and
energetic labors that have won for
the state its leadership. 1t Is their
record on which they stand renoml.
mated by their party and on which
they should be reelected in Novem.
ber.
When the United States entered
the world war in April, 1917, the
Michigan legislature, a Republican
body, was in session. 1t voted prompt
ly to back up the federal government
IN every possible may. 1t appropriat-
ed five million dollars for state war
work in order to be sure that the
state would not be retarded for lack
of funds 1t created the war prepared
ness board, to be composed of the
governor of the state and the elec-
tive state officials except the lieute-
nant governor. 1t gave this board COM
plete power to do anything and
everything that time would show was
needed towards winning the war. The
whole country was impressed with
Michigan's action and it soon had
many imitators in other states.
Since the first days of the war,
Michigan officials, from governor
down, not only have done the regu-
lar work of their respective positions,
but also have directed all Of the
states war work. 1t would require
columns of space to tell In detail
about all the varied war activities.
The following summary will give an
idea Of the larger accomplishments:
Soldiers and sailors have been aid
ed; officers have been equipped with
uniforms; dependents of soldiers and
sailors aided; farmers have been as
sisted to get increased acreage and
larger crops; government boards
have been assisted in their work;
county boards and draft boards have
been helped; highways have been i'm
proved and constructed, where mill
tary necessity called for them; mill
tary organizations have been assist
ed: health and social work of the
highest calibre and efficiency have
been done at Camp Custer; patriotic
movements have been helped; the
state has been policed and law en-
forcement had to a degree hitherto
unknown; a bureau has been opened
In New York to give aid to Michigan
soldiers and sailors returning from
the front, especially the wounded; and
numerous other projects forwarded
It sounds like frenzied finance 20
say that out of s2,50O,OOO, the war
preparedness board expended up to
October /, 1918, the sum of $4,272,233
and had better than 100000 left, yet
that is what happened. Much of the
money expended has come back to
the board and been used a second
and third time, enabling 1t to SEEM