Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-01-07
UNITED STATES TO RUSH
REGULARS TO FRANCE
PershinS is To- Receive Best Military
Men Available at
Once.
ARMY POLICY is NGED
Young Blood Also Is to BE Injected
In the Ofncial STAFF, Who VIII Re
Trained at High Speed for I'm
portant Task.

I WASHINGTON, January s.-Re:ular
army divisions still in the United states
are likely 10 see service in France
ahead OF the National Guard and Ma
tional Army organizations here. 1t is
inc undcrsta ndin. in military circles
that the War Department has under
consideration tho utilization OF the resu-
lars in preference to other units. a pro-
gram which. IL adopted, would mean a
certain change in policy
The extent to which an alteration
in tho order Of the dispatch of troops
To Europe has already been made cf-
fcctiec is not known, and information
OF this character is naturally not a
subject for discussion, except in a most
general way. 1t IS intcrcStin, chiefly
. as bcinS indicative Of the governments
first OF all effective and efficient. no,
merely with respect 10 the commits.
stoned personnel, but as 10 the rank
and file
This is being accomplished. upon the
recommendation Of General rershin..
by the ''scrapp!ns" OF tho older oni-
GERS. who arc being supplantcd by
younger men. d policy which is designed
TO hrins the lighting blood of the youth
OF the nation to the top. To get as
I inan% regulars to France as quickly
as possible now appears TO be a part
oil q carefully thought out general plan
Regular divisions in the United
/ states arc in more advanced state OF
preparedness than the National Guard
although when mobilization took place.
this was not necessarily so. Under or
dinary conditions, before the war the
regular army was far superior 10 the
National Guard IN training and equip
mcnt. Eut regular regiments AZ tho
outbreaks OF the war were materially
eSpan nded. existing units being reduced
10 skcicton formation. and tho racan-
cies h!lcd by recruits. Al this time
when the Ma tional Guard was first
called TO the colors. tho State troops
were probably superior in many re-
spccts TO tho regiments that wcrc rc:u-
lar in little more than name.
Some National Guard divisions were
maintained in their existing states. bu,
many of them were expanded by tho
addition of mon taken from tho draf.
army, so that their ranks were ihinncd
ont as tho regulars had been. Rut for
this expansion it is probable tha. a
great many National Guard commits
stoned officers would have been 'Scrap.
ped as there were too many OF them
state pride and pressure brought to
bear in various ways contributed to
the adoption OF a policy whereby Ma
tional Guard units were expanded and
jobs made for state officers who other
wise would have gone into tho dis
card.
If tho National Guard units had been
Maintained intact there would be fewer
Of these divisions to-day. hut they
readiness for active duty. Whether on
the whole that policy would not have
been better than tho one id, ptcd is
y matter OF opinion.
The rcorEanized regular divisions
are now superior to tho ational Guard
divisions and therefore. more avail
ablc for immc diatc duty with the cx-
peditionary army in France. Although
their ranks were filed with recruits
as tho National Guard regiments were
also. they had the advantage OF a het-
tor trained nucleus OF regular soldiers
Of better commissioned and noncom-
missioncd officers and moro effective
discipline and organization.
The additional officers required for
tho regular divisions have been OBJ
taincd by n system somewhat diffcrcn.
from that under which officers were
supplied % the National Guard and
Continued on Fourth Pase.J