Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1919-06-17
OUR NEW ARMY RESERVE-ByF Frederic j. Haskin

yKTASHINGTON, D. c., June 9.The first
| wv American citizen reserve officers
W educated in the Reserve Officers
Training corps, will be commissioned this
summer.
This event will mark the beginning of a
citizen army for this country, which will
make large standing army unnecessary, and
will also make it impossible for an emergency
again to find the United States without an
adequate supply of men with military train
ing.
There are now nearly q hundred thousand
young men in the r. o. T. C. units at leading
colleges and universities. At six OF the prin-
cpal environments some of them will gather
this summer for a course of six weeks inten-
sive military training, with special attention
to craftsmanship.
This Reserve Officers Training corps seems
to be confused in the minds OF most persons
with various temporary war organizations.
AS matter of fact, it is a permanent sys-
tenn for the training of American citizens as
army officers in order to form a reserve that
can be called out in emergency. 1t was Gre
ated by the National Defense act of 1916
During the war it was temporarily, superseded
by the Reserve Officers Training camps,
which were designed to produce trained Off
GERS in short time. Now that the emergency
is past the department is returning to
the r. o. T. c., as one of it's most important
peace-time projects.
training of the general staff is charged with
| the conduct of the R. o. T. G. The work OF
| this committee is already beginning to show
results as the reports from the various r. o
T. G. units throughout the country at the
beginning of the present month showed a
| total enrolment of 99,695 students in 321
educational institutions, as compared with &c.
| 243 etuderlts in 116 institutions year ago
This total is expected to increase rapidly as
a large number of schools have filed applica-
I4s -,
proved.
The R. o, T. G. is designed to give young
men, who desire to become reserve officers, a
| four years course Of military training in con-
nection with their regular school work. 1t is
a plan of military training which does not in
terfere with the preparation of young men for
civil life. An institution, to secure a unit
| must agree to maintain not less than 100
| physically fit students of not less than IA
| years of age.
The R. o. T. G. is divided into senior and
junior divisions. The senior units are estab-
lished at institutions which require four
| year course for degree, and at few essen
| TALLY military schools. The course of train
| ing in senior units is divided into the basic
and advanced courses, each of two years
duration. Students sign up for the four
| years, and completion of the military course
| is made a prerequisite to graduation in their
| academic work. Failure of ana institution to
see that it's students fulfill the conditions
agreed to on becoming members OF the X. y
| T. G. would result in the withdrawal OF the
! unit from the school.
A student who has successfully completed
the basic course and has been recommended
| for the advanced course, signs an agreement
| with the government to complete the adj
vanced course, and attend such summer train
| ing camps of approximately six weeks dura-
| ton as the secretary of war may prescribe
In return for his services, the student is given
Communication of rations by the government
all the year round, with the exception of the
time he might be called upon to spend in
camp, when his food is furnished him. Al
| the present time communication of irations
amounts to about forty cents a day. This