The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1919-06-14
SECRETARY BAKER
WANTS TO RETIRE
Desires to Complete Certain
Duties Before Dropping
the Work, However
PRAISES UNITED
STATES SOLDIERS
Education Since the Armistice Has Fit
ted Them for Better Jobs-UncorTupt-
ed by Their Military Experiences and
I. Ready to Help Themselves.

heaOYA W -11Sip 1utulS0lNGS.
NEW YORK, June 14-Sec of War
Baker said at a luncheon in the Hotel
Biltmore yesterday, given by Grosvenor
Clarkson of the Council of National De-
fence. that he was anxious to retire to
private life. but that he feels there are
certain duties incumbent upon his trust
as a cabinet officer which he wishes to
see fulfilled before he drops the burdens
of the war department
Mr.. Baker told of the unusual elias
ticity of mind of the American soldier,
which had enabled him to be fitted for
his task in an unusually short time and
which after the cessation of hostilities
| enabled him to turn to study which will
+ fit him to fill much higher place in in
/ dustrv when he returns than he had
when he left. 1t is this which Mr.. Baker
| believes will eomplicate the labor ques-
| tion when the men all get home.
| lie spoke of how Marshal .Toffre urged
that this country send a division abroad
as soon as possible and how the marshal
made great point of saying:
,"When your great army comes You
will have 100000, perhaps as many as
: 100000 men. and You VIII have to have
more port facilities for them
And when the armiStice did come. -
said Mr. Baker. ''we had 100000 men
in France. and our casualties on the
western front are pretty nearly rs great
as the maximum expectation Of the
! marshal for our entire army.
THE problem which the general com
mand over there faced then was som,
sort of occupation which would kecr
the idle soldier from being q discomfort
. ed soldier At the very outset the reac
tion of the military man was highly alb
surd. The answer of practically ever,
commanding general on the western
front was to drill his men until the,
were so tired they couldn t think o
:, anything else. And finally the boy
!. themselves gave the answer They SAT-
! We don Z want to drill The war
:. cror. We Standardization
The result was fhe formation of tn
ESpeditionary Force University, j
which were eleven colleges, teachin
many subjects and where private
: might be found giving lectures on la,
y or astronomy or integral calculus TO
= class in which were privates, lieuter
= ants captains and majors
Mr. Baker emphasized the need of IL
war department to withdraw from il
abnormal dominance Of the affairs Of II
! country, and said that it had practical
" done so. He spoke of the kind of ma
t ne American soldier is, and added:
''They are The same American 10,
- we sent away. They are interrupted L
:, their military experience. They have /
= fancy that the United States must pic
: them M, and hold them in the hollow
its hand and protect them from The o
dinarv responsibilities of men in Il
world. They expect to work for the
livings. They want if they can to fiji
higher mode of usefulness and a he
as ter mode of life than what seems sui
cient to them before they got this m
turing and educating experience.
o. fAnd if we accept the American 81
9 dier as a better educated man than
ed sent away. If we realize that the sta
lis dards of education in this country we
lie, rapidly decreasing and have by this G
a periencc been suddenly advanced, if
II. will recognize that what sometin
ISIS seems The dissatisfaction of the sold
tn is merely a striving for someth hing b.
a ter, think it is possible for us to be
in help TO the soldier in his readiustme
nd to Inc normal life Of the community
~. which he has returned.
il 'tThere is shortage of labor in (
of United States-manv kinds of labor
A that shortage is increased by the fl
W that many men who went abroad co
to back to 90 into the higher realms
ore occupation. As a consequence l thi
he there is going to be & very great Iii
ich cultv in the United States for a sh,
err while in getting the world 8 work don
me cit may be that this will have t
Mhnlesome effect: that we VIII adnnt