Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1919-03-06

I
This is the reply Of the ordnance
I department to criticism OF its work
! in the war, as shown in a state
ment prepared by General ". s
Pierce, Washington, and submitted
| to the tri-city press by Colonel
! Harry B. Jordan. comnandant al
Rock Island arsenal.
| Colonel Jordan believes that be-
/ cause Of the presence here OF the
natior's largest arsenal. citizens Of
! the community will be interested
/ in knowing what the ordnance de-
partment has accomplished. The
appended statement by General
! Pierce tells how the ordnance de-
partment grew IN its capacity
from a situation in which II was
unable to provide for the pre-war
regular army to a point where II
had equipped 1000 900 men IN
france and 100000 IN this coun-
/ try.
Appended is General Pierce's
story of ordnance departments
work:
This IA the story OF the big work
done by the army ordnance de-
partment in the great war, writ
ten by one who believes that II Ia
time for tho American public 20
know the whole truth about a sub
tect that until now has not been
fairly presented. The articles that
have been hitherto published have
usually dealt with only such por-
lions of the work es tho writer's
thought offered chance for sen-
sational criticism. They have con-
tanned 80 many partial truths, so
much Of false emphasis, special
pleading and actual nisrepresenta-
ton OF facts. that the public has
been led to bellows that the great
ordnance department OF the army
failed miserahly in its task. That
in ression Is false. The ordnance
department did not fail: on the
contrary its performances Of it's al
I0eted portion OF the gigantic ma
tional effort Is record OF which
every American can be justly
proud, Every ordnance officer.
Who, smarting under the misin-
formed and undeservsd criticism OF
the past year, hHs/steadily kept on
his work believes that tho Amer
lean people are essentially Just
and need only to have the trutf.
about ordnance presented TO them
to give the credit ard praise that
the work really deserves,
What then was tho ordnance de-
partment's job7 Briefly. 1t was to
furnish the American army with
tho fighting equipment that 1t
needed and to maintain and re-
pair the equipment IN the field.
Next, how successfully was that
Job accomplished? That question
is cOnVlnclngly answered In a let
ter from Lieutenant General Liz
gett, commanding the First Amer
lean army In France who said that
tho American troops were well
and thoroughly equipped an that
no military operation was pre-
vented or delayed by lack Of sup
plies OF any sort, So the ordnance
department performed It's job TO
thu satisfaction of the lighting
troopa and It believea that thu
American people. once they know
that fact, will accept the verdict
OF that Jury against any other.
Where 1t got the needed equipment.
whether 1t was from France, Eng
land or this country matters little.
The big outstanding fact is that 1t
got it and delivered IL as fast as
tho men really required it. 1t Is
true there wore some close shaVes
and some sharp cornerb around
which the machine sktdded danger
ously, but 1t never overturned, The
work Ia now done, the record
made. Now the only reply that the
need make to those !
swivel chair critics who charge It !
with failure in this or thar particu.
lar is, Ask the A. z. F."
1t is not claimed that the de- !
partment made no errors. II had !
a tremendous task to perform with !
\ hastily assembled personnel I
feverishiy against tine. /
half of tho total |
appropriation for the war depart
nent we're for ordnance. 1t had |
to plan and place orders for equip
nent costing in round numbers
for enlargement Of old plants and |
the building OF new ones. costing
$500, 100000. No other business In !;
the world ever approached such
figures. or course errors were
made. II was inevitable that errors
should he made II action and prog
-ess were to be had. But errors
made were corrected or overcome
so that they did not prevent the
issue OF the Jobs as a
whole.
AT the beginning OF the war the
ordnance department hat less than
100 officers and approximately $50
men. or the fighting equip
neat which It provides there was
IN hand not more than 100000 in
antry rifles, less than 500 field
guns, with only small amount of
ammunition. not enough infantry
]ack carriers for the regular army
nd national guard, less than 1000
machine guns, no tanks, no large
ed suns. such as had been devel-
ped and used abroad. and wha.
ras ALMOST as bad. no adequate
ABILITIES for the manufacture OF