Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-03-12
YANKS DEPENDED
ON AUTOTRUCKS
in Big ADVANCES
Allied Success i'm War Due
to Strategic Use of Mo- b
tors, Says Baker
TANKS PART VITAL,
War Department Expended
Huge Sum to Speed Up
Transport Service

MOTOR equipment, which. according
10 General Pershing and such sen-
erais OF the Allied armies as Foch Ja,g
ana retain. played such a vital ma ~ IN
n'ahihg successful various strategic an
sakeihehts during the great war. thu,
o,,'a1s ihal victory possible, is dis
tb, ',..' az Iehgth in the annual report OF
'ne secretary of war to the Congress- n
connection with the orpanization 80 -
.NIt! or the motor TRANSPORT corns I'll.
ivPort or the secretary goes into an
uses put into effect as to purchase.
80 "'or equipment, the abandonment
,t III, vi" bureau system of buying n nd
,,, M other changes which followed ~.
''uussed General Pershing's request thai
"'o.or transport service be orga nizefI
,a,..1p S.eps leading up TO the same. the
mept ~ 'he functions of the depart-
Inc whole article emphasizes tbs to-
portahee of the automotive industri..
:" ~. v"e world today as follows.
'aIue OF the automotiye eouin-
,n,a carried over from the fiscal wear
I'ls amounted TO s353.O 900. 900 .rh.
.ppIoprlation for motor TRANSFORMATIONS
io' tne nscal year ending June 80. 1915
Sooo'oVV'ooo. of this amount there
mas peeh' or will have to be expended
$3.50 O0O. 900. 'eeieu'
further Expenditures Necessary
For me repair shop and equipment
program further expenditure of son
100000 will be necessary. and addi-
tional and liquidation of the Vehicles
Slt on hand are estimated at s6O0O-
ooo, equipment estimated to be car
rIeu over to the next fiscal year. 1920.
IEpreseh's ooo an expenditure of $1,000
wv the present value of which is not
Known. but large part Of the s35O..
100000 expended out OF the 1919 annro.
priation should be of continued use n
me army or salable without loss,
Inc trucks completed to date, travel.
ing az the rate Of twenty miles an hour.
would consume almost six days in pass
ing given point, and If placed end TO
END would reach distance of 275O
miles or from New York almost to San
francisco. The average truck travels
about thirty miles a day. This means
mat all the trucks completed to date
would cover distance each day equal
10 100 times the circumference OF the
earth.
Thousands Employed by Army
To date there have been completed
for the army $1,000 trucks standardlzed
and commercial types; 10000 motor
o. -''"oo motorcycles 22,000 bicycles
ana great number Of trailers to be
attached to the trucks
There are on hand overseas more thar
10000 motor vehicles, and in the month
or October alone 1880 were shipped to
the American expeditionary forces.
while there We're available for Shipment
overseas ON November /. 1918. 1000
additional motor vehicles.
The convoy services of the United
states, although formed primarily for
training purposes has since it's organi.
zation taken overland more than $4,000
trucks. the greater part OF which car
ried freight in the shape of spare parts
and motor equipment.
strength and Activity OF Corps
The motor transport corps, under the
present plan, is merely an operating
corps, the procurement and the supply
or moter equipment being attended 10
by "a division of the quartermaster
corps. During the period of the war,
however, everything connected with the
motorization of the army was at some
time handled by the motor transport
corps, and its strength and activities are
shown in the following table:
Strength and activities of the motor
corps: