The Washington times., 1919-03-29

military standpoint Today the war
has demonstrated the truck as a
carrier for long and short distances,
, in huge fleets, as a rival of the rail
! transportation, a dangerous rival for
short haul work.
In the human side OF the revolu-
| tion, is the return TO the industry OF
men trained in the broad field OF the
motor truck as seen in the war. q
veritable army of trained automo-
bile experts coming back to operate
( trucks, and garages, men who really
know the machine they drive as no
one in ordinary civil life can come
to know the heart and soul OF his
vehicle
One Of the greatest things in Amer
ica's prosecution of the war was the
manner in which the country was
searched for fit men for Motor Trans
port service. The universities, the
farms. the oil fields, the cities alike
were canveSsed for volunteers for
this service. Rich mems sons were
educated with the boys of the poor,
and then sent across to drive trucks
hundreds Of miles with big cargoes OF
supplies, to convoy troops under fire
along the front of the fighting armies,
and these are the men who are com
ing back to make highway transport
the biggest thing in the American
transportation world. When Ameri-
ca entered the war. the entire army
was only about 100000 men. When
the war ended, there were nearly
twice that number in the Motor
Transport Corps alone
Country COmbed for Chauffeurs.
At first the men for this corps were
taken from garages. from taxi COM
panies, taken wherever there were
men to be found who knew motor We
hicles. The supply Of trained chauf-
feurS who could enter the army was
soon short of the needs. Then the
American universities came into the
field. Among the first was Purdue
University, at Valparaiso. Ind. A mo-
tor school was opened there. Various
technical motor schools, as at Kansas
City and Pittsburgh. threw their re-
sources into training men for the
service, and when the srmistice came
there were nine great centers for pre-
liminary training Of men for this
corps ready for establishment west
Of the Mississippi alone.
Meanwhile, the training progressing
in some thirty cantonments and army
camps, was being standardized by the
Motor Transport Corps headquarters
at washington, where Brig. Gen.
Charles B. Drake, had been named as
chief of the corps. On the other
side, Colonel Pope, one OF the early
advocates OF extensive motor mill
tary transportation. like General
Drake. was operating the motor fleet
on the lines OF the French transport
system. In America. General Drake
V,1
cialists in motor transportation, and
prepared for the establishment of
training schools for officers and men.
On the other side. such schools were
being conducted for men already
with the A. Z. F.
A wonderful schedule of education
was worked out, with a vehicle
school at Camp Joseph +. Johnston,
Florida. and an administrative school
at Camp Meigs, Washington, d. C..
half a dozen sectional schools, and
Chautauqua circuit to spread the gOs-
pei OF standardized motor transporta-
tion into the cantonments.
Trained for Convoy Work.
The Standardization of the Ameri-
can methods with those of the A. e.
F. and French transport was work
ed out with a fleet OF about 300 We
hicIes at Camp Johnston, where men
were trained in convoy work on the
lines of the French transport, which
proved it's value at the Marine. then
at Verdun. and finally in the great
rush which broke the last stand Of
the Germans and caused their alb
ject acceptance OF the armisticc
terms.
And the hundred thousand Amer
ican trained soldier-chauffeuTs com
ing back to enter. thousands of them,
the new field of highway transport,
were thus being welded together in
the standardized methods of hand
ling trucks in great fleets as used
by the French. British and American
armies. To appreciate the volume of
the truck movement in the army, it!
can be said that in the British Of
fensive Of 1917 on the Aisne, there
were more than 5000 trucks in
single formation.
How there men were trained IS
another story. They are back. to
get their share in the prosperity and
progress to be found in the motor
truck operation field, for large fleet
owners. as well as for the man who
runs but a single vehicle.