Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-03-22

on this side of the water we know
what has been done by the Govern
ment and the manufacturers to
meet the huge requirements of the
American EXpeditionary Forces for
motor trucks for army transport, but
lack intimate knowledge of the tre-
mendous service rendered by the
thousands of trucks shipped over
seas, the varied character of the
work performed by them, the man.
ner in which they met great emer-
gencies, the success of the system
organized by the Motor Transport
Corps for handling them and making
repairs in short, all the details from
! first-hand knowledge of the actual
| performance of the military trans
port service in the fighting area.
Depended on Trucks
We know, of course, that for the
first time in history practically all
the supplies of food, clothing and
ammunition required by the fighting
| forces were hauled in motor trucks
from the supply depots on the rail-
roads to the front line, that troops
were frequently shifted in trains of
motor trucks as the most expeditions
method, that American reinforce
ments reached Chateau Thierry in
motor trucks at the most critical
period of the advance on the Huns
last July and turned the tide of
battle that in less than four months
resulted in victory for the Allies and
the United States.
Earl CurZon, of the British War
Cabinet, recently remarked in an
address in London that the Allies
tioated to victory on a wave of oil
and the war could not have been
won if it had not been for the great
fleets of motor trucks" This is high
tribute to the motor truck and was
no doubt justified.
The Allies and the Central Pow
ers, of course, used many thousand
motor trucks before the United
States entered the war. A large
proportion of those used by the En-
tent came from this country. The
exact number has not been reported
officially. but is reflected in the fig
ures of exports published by the
Bureau of Foreign and Domestic
Commerce. The total for the four
years of the war was 1916, of an
aggregate wholesale value of $751;
669,9SS. 1t is evident that nearly
all of these were bought on order
of the Allied governments for mill
tary use, since the imports of these
countries from the United States
during the two fiscal years preced-
ing the war aggregated only 400
trucks, valued at $324,309, and also
because England and France pro-
hibitcd the importation of motor ve-
hicles for civilian use. During the
war there was also a notable in
lease of shipments of trucks to
Canada, Scotland, Greece, Japan
Australia, New Zealand and British
/ India, and while this increase was
due in large part to the inability OF
England, France and Italy to ex-
port trucks to these countries, there
is no doubt that some of the trucks
exported to them from this country
! found their way into the war area
while many more were used directly
| and indirectly in war work in the
countries to which they were ship
! ped.
Big Orders Placed
From the time the United States
entered the confiict-April 6, 1917
to the cessation of hostilities, No
vember II. 1918. the War and Navy
Department placed contracts and
orders for 204.76O motor trucks, of
which 90,727 had been produced TO
December / 1918 and 36.227 were
still due on orders that had not been
cancelled. A statement by the sta
tistics branch of the general staff
shows that by November IL there
had been produced on War Depart
ment contracts a total of $3.50
motor trucks, including SOL two
wheel drive trucks, 16,934 four
wheel-drive trucks. and 10.S93 am
balances. OF these there had been
shipped overseas 30,417 two-wheel-
drive and 9.420 wheel drive
trucks and 6.9S1 ambulances, total
of 46,S1S. A considerable number
have been shipped overseas since
the middle of November.
In the neighborhood of 5000 or
10000 trucks are in use by the mill