The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-12-25
RECONSTRUCTION OF
 NATIONAL GUARD
 NECESSARY
Discharged Men Will Return to Civilian Life With No Obligation toAFederal or
 State Governments
By the Associated Press

" aSlllngton, December "A. If Congress determines to con 'tlnue the national guard as the army reserve of the nation, Secretary Baker said today, the guard service will have to De reconstructed from the ground up.
 liberalization of the guard for war service. the war department has held. on the opinion of Brig. Gen Samuel T. Ansell, acting judge advocate general. will wipe out of existence the federalized regiments. When the men are discharged they will return to civilian life without any obligation either to the federal or state governments to continue in National Guard service.
 MT. Baker expressed 4elief that the problem of the National Guard is bound up closely with the question of what Congress may do later in framing legis- lation to establish a permanent military policy. Existing law provides for the regulars and the National Guard Should some system of universal military train ing be worked out, however, some offi- cers said. 1t Is possibleS that the Ma tional Guard would cease to exist The war department has not as vet made any recommendations on the subject. having contented itself thus far with seeking appropriations only for the reg ular army in the coming fiscal year
 MANY NEW UNITS
 There are many National Guard units organized since the war by the various states which are not affected by the recognition has been obtained. bringing the units under the liberalization sec- tions of the act of 1916.
 The great mass of tl== sssard however. was merged into temporary forces of the army of the United StatAs for the war, thereby completely losing lts ideati- ty These regiments, including every historic military organization in the country, some of them with records dat ing back to the Revolutionary war and many of them surviyals of the Civil war volunteer organizations, under the ruling must be reconstructed, recruited to neces- sary strength and again presented to the federal government for recognition be- fore it can take the place in the federal ized National Guard.
 Another element of uncertainty in the guard situation. it was said toda-, is the question of the extent to which di- visions which saw service In France have been diluted by replacements from the national army troops. In the case of regiments like some of the New York or New England units in the divisions which took part in the fighting almost from the first. officers said. now proba- bly contain less than 50 per cent of their original personnel. Losses were made good with men from various parts of the country and who have no National Guard status whatever. Officers were assigned from training camps at home or abroad and the returning divisions or regiments. while being the interiors of the traditions of the old National Guard units, which composed men and which have flavoring of the officers and men in their ranks who came from the old state service. probably will bear very little resemblance to the units that entrained for camp after the guard was drafted in July. 1917.
 IMMEDIATE ACTION UNLIKELY
 Mir, Baker said he anticipated that state generally would not attempt to reconstitute any of the old regiments of National Guard until after the diviss sions into which they had been merged returned from France. It would seem desirable. he thought, that men to be discharged from these divisions be given a chance to re-enlist In the guard. This would enable the reconstituted regiments. he said. to be in fact as well as in name a continuation of the old organization with every right to carry the names of the historic battles in France-of Cha teau Thierry. the second Marne. Ourcq the vesle. St efihiei. Argonne forest. Sedan. Cote Chatinion and other places the divisions made famous. on their ban