The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1918-02-01
500, 900 Men Avail
able, Says Baker
CONTINUED from Page One)


hat every day he revamped and
hanged his weapons of attacks and
lis methods of defense; that the sto-
lies they were telling us were true
khen they left England and France,
|ut an entirely different thing was
robobly taking place there now,
Ind they told US of large supplies of
keapons of one, kind and another
Ehich they had developed in France
Ind England, and which, even before
hey got them in sufficient quantity
Manufactured to take them from the
Industrial plants to the front were
uperseded by new ideas and had to
e thrown into the scrap heap.
"They said to US: This is moving
icture; it is something that nobody
an paint and give you an idea Of; it
not statistical thlng.
Sent Pershins.
"Therefore it became necessary for
3 to have eyes there, instant and
Immediate communication with us,
nd we sent over to France Gen.
kershing, and. we sent with him not
hereby a division Of troops-to that
shall refer in q moment-but we
snt with, perhaps the major part Of
be trained, expert personnel of the
rmy. You know the size of the Of
eiai corps Of the regular army in
his country when the war broke
hut. It was pitiful handful of
Eained men, and yet it was necessary
B divide them up and send over to
rance officers Of the highest quality,
B that they would be at the front
nd see in the workshops and in the
actories and in the war Offices and
the armies, where consultations
Fould take place Immediately back
Z the front-so that they could see
he thing with their own eyes, and
.nd Us back the details by cable
y Il r
very day Of the changing character
this war. g...
Using Eyes of Army.
Seen, Pershing's staff of experts
I'D officers over there runs into the
thousands, and they are busy every
hiaute, and every day that the sun
kses I get cablegrams + rom Gen.
|ershing from ten to sixteen and
.enty pages long, filled with meas
rements and formulas and changes
q miimeter in size, great long
becifcations Of changes in details
things which were agreed upon
Ist week and changed this week,
I'D need to be changed again next
eek, 50 that what we are doing at
lis end is attempting, by using the
res Of the army there, to keep up
what they want us to do"
Of Transient Value.
ALREADY you will find in your fur
dr examination into some Of the
lreau work Of the department, some
the. divisions, when they come
bwn, you will find schedules which
ERE agreed upon, weapons which
ere selected and which we had
arted to manufacture, have been
far discarded ttissat people have for
btten the names of them almost,
ID new things substituted in their
ace. and those forgotten and new
ings in their places.
$50 if one gets the idea that this
the sort of war we used to have,
if he gets the idea that this is a
atic thing 1t is an entirely erron-
us idea, and when you remember
at we had to divide this little hand
Of officers that we had and send
large part of them to France and
bn think Of those who remained at
me and you will realize, I am sure,
ht those who remained here had
double duty, insufficient for either
pect of it, in numbers-snd they
gll have this double duty-they
d to 60 forward with manufactur-
work out industry, and industrial
ations. They had to see about
pplies Of raw materials and manu-
.f,,rA finished products and make