Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-01-26
Army and Navy News

vision of finance was before the COM
mittee. telling that he had been in
strGcted to prepare arbitrary estf-
mates for subsisting an Army of
100000 men, when the chairman in
terposed in his extremely quiet but
positive way, saying: THE commit
tee will listen to this statement with
the distinct understanding that by
appropriating subsistence for 100000
men it is not committing itself to
the raising of an Army of any such
number. 1t will be solely for the
purpose of providing for the keep of
that number of men returned from
service abroad and while they are in
the process of rehabilitation"
Gen. Lord had been explaining that
such provision would be the logical
way of subsisting the returning men.
and gave the information that he had
based his estimates upon the demob-
ilization of the whole Army at such
a rate that there would be less than
million men to be cared for SUBJ
priation would become available.
There is considerable balance to
the credit of the War Department on
account of subsistence, but the Sec
rotary of War has decided that it is
not quite the proper thing to apply
any other = purpose. even the sub
sistence of the Army after peace has
been declared.
The War Department is asking for
an appropriation of a few hundred
Thousand dollars
Plans to Breed to be applied to
~
Cavalry Horses. suitable riaine
horses for the cavalry, artillery and
engineer branches of the Army; and,
the statement, in view of the large
number of korses now belonging to
the Army, caused some little amaze
ment until it was brought out that
the sum was for the purchase Of
was intended for the encourage
ment of breeders and the develop
ment of type rather than for the
immediate needs of the Army.
The great expense Of transporting
animals and the fact that vessels
used for that purpose at the present
time are taken from the more inn
portant movement of men and ma
terial are reasons for the course de-
termined upon OF selling A. =. r.
animals in Europe, where they are
commanding good prices; but the re-
suit will be a reduction of the ma
tional supply of horses and mules.
The prices of horsefesh, as the de-
mands of war increased, became al
most prohibitive, those for Army
horses ranging from s265 to 1917,
while mules brought as high as $500.
In Germany it was reported that army
horses cost as high as $500 apiece.
The military policy of the Navy
remains predetermined The declara-
ton of the
Policy of the Navy Secretary that
Remains Problem. made the
greatest in the world has not received
the approval of Congress or. as far
as known. the President. Since the
Army never has had a military policy,
it's present backing and filing cannot
be taken as any indication OF the
attitude Of the administration toward
any degree of military preparedness.
Admittedly the Army bill is a mere
stop gap, perhaps never offered in
serious belief that it would meet
approval to such an extent that 1t
could receive legislative sanction. But
the case Of the Navy is different.
The Navy, independent of the
has always sought to
observe this one fundamental: always
to be as well, prepared as Congress
and the administration will allow.
The term navy as used in this sense
refers to the officers of the Navy.
the men who for the most part
have been in it's service since they
were seventeen years Of age. who
received from it their education and
their traditions. = The Navy it is
that has in the heart Of each
composing it the love and
devotion coming from faith and
loyalty. 1t was for the Navy" that
the officers of the Atlantic fleet. in
the early days of 1917, put themselves
under a mighty strain to supply the
trained personnel without which no
ravy can be efficient.
This is what the Navy" found fac
ing it at the first part of the war.
The demands upon the fleet for offl-
GERS to man destroyers and chasers'
and for men-especially gunners-
for the armed merchantmen had re-
duced the trained personnel below the
safety mark; and the Navy" knew
that, alone, it could not cope with
the German fleet, if it should by some
re mote pOSSlDlllty dufIlHllSlci OH
overwhelming defeat upon the Brit
ish. Hence it was the duty Of the
Navy" to build up the personnel; and
without here going into the trials and
hardships that they had to bear. they
did it and eventually had a fleet that
was well Differed and manned. But
the process took months and all dur
ing that period the fleet was liable to
defeat IL it had been attacked by a
force of equal strength with per-
fectly trained personnel.
The Navy" through Capt. Harris
Laning, who, as acting chief of the
bureau of navigation. boldly raised
his voice for officers and men, says
that $4,000 men are needed for fully
manning and maintaining the fleet
that we have. With the end of the
the Navy will fall short
of that number. The Secretary says
that $4,000 will be enough for his
purpose. He was in error before the
war, when Sims and Fletcher and
knight and Mayo said that more men
were indispensable. 1t is more than
probable that Laning, who was
speaking for the whole Navy. is right
now. The committee has reduced the
proposed number to 225.000. The
Navy" does not contend for the big
building program: but it says that
the old principle, that the Navy must
be kept at the top notch of efficiency
IL it is worth keeping at all is true
today as 1t was in 1917; and the spirit
10 the same az that of 1912 1S61-5 and