Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1920-01-02
SENATOR SMITH TO
FIGHT FOR GORDON
ON SENATE FLOOR
Inspects Cantonnent and
Declares He VIII Whip
House Bill 10 Scrap $12
100000 Plant


Senator Hoke, Smith, leaving for
Washington Thursday after spend
ing the Christmas recess in Georgia
goes back to the capital with the in-
tention Of whipping in the senate
| the bill passed. by the house to- scrap
Camp Gordon. -
Senator Smith on Wedfesdas~ aft
ternoon made personal inspection
of the environment and the hospital
He found the buildings constructed
of the best. grade of heart pine, set
on cypress Sunderpinnings, each bar
+ racks house with a kitchen and dining
room and hot and cold baths. the
hospital buildings marvelously eauipr
ped and up-to-date in every parties
ular. with steam heat throughout and
miles of covered and screened walk 4
4 ways connecting them together the y
warehouses built as well as It is
possible to build warehouses out of
wood -
1T would be a horrible waste
public money to scrap this inves TIM
of more THAN $4,000, 0OO,p the Sc
ator declared ITO duplicate the ca
torment would cost the ,goyernmeI
at least S1G,oOo.OOO under preser
costs. Somewhere between the PoV
tomac and Rio Grande there IS
obliged to be a cantonment for a di-
vision of troops. Camp Gordon is the
logical place to put them. 1t is the
only existing place where they can
be put, If they are put elsewhere, q
new cantonment will have to be built
No criticism put aupon the war dc
partment has been half so severe as
the criticism congress- would put upon
itself for scrapping Camp Gordon.
am going to whip the house bill when
lit comes to the senate, because no
man can stand up and defend such a.
waste of the public money as the
I scrapping of Camp Gordon would in-s
4 volve.p
Studicg Material
4 Senator smith gave particular at
tcntion to The class of materials and
4 the kind OF workmanship that went
into the construction of Camp Cor.
Rdon, Cor the purpose Of answering
A recent assertion BY a certain captain
kof ia e Qllal terra ter eorRs tsst -
a sffigy 8ie as eof h e8si 0nai invest5E
eating committee, that both we're
poor. He satisfied himself beyond
question that the facts do not sup
port any such assertion, but on the
contrary that the buildings are good
for fifty years iii protected by paint
The senator gave out the follow
in gst aten1ent concerning his plans
for defeating the attempt to scrap
Che cantonment.
Atlanta was selected by Geaerall
Wood in 1916 as the place in the
southeastern states where there,
should be located large amp II
fort, where in time of peaSe therH
would be stationed a division o
troops, troops to the an 4 & on
between thirty and forty thousand
The cor struction of Camp GordonI
was partly due to this decision Of
General Woods and partly to mee.
the eTnergency5s caused Hby our en-
tering the walk
az am advised that he work ar
Camp Gordon is heariy all of q
permanent e3naracter. The city ce
Atlanta spent ailarge sum to carry
water to Camp Gordon Water
works, were completed by the gov
eminent all over the camp Hot and
ct1d water can 4he' furnished to each
one Of the buildings. The sewerage
is all 0ullt for permanent service
The disposal plant was constructed
at large expense and the sanitation
of Camp Gordon is equal to thaa o.
the best city IN the country.
!
don wilt acconnoda over fifteen
hundred men. 1t is constructed with
u f9odern appliances and for d rinan
: emf service. The cenValsscehe hos
| rital Will Z understand, accomno-
date more than fifteen hundred men
l+EVerything about the camp am
4 advised, is built upon the theory IN
= l4pernlancnt use. A small amount for
fpairt will be- sufficient to pre-
y sserye% the buildings now on tire
Jgrounds. for many years,
. Even with an army Of two hun
i dred and fifty or three hundred
thousand men, there must be dlvi-
sion located in the southeasterh
states. Atlanta is the point from
which the soldiers can be distribu
ed to al parts Of the southeast and
event 20 the north and the Mexican
line with quick TRANSFORM q ana
minimum expense There S no 9TH
er point in the entire section frors
the Potomac to the Mississippi
which has the permanent buildings
and the perfect preparation 10 take
care of a division of soldiers.
Cost s12, oco,cno
1.-THE government has spel. about
twelve millions of dollars on Camp
Gordon 1t could not be reproduced
today for a sum anything like what.
lit has, cost.
IT am sureS the war department
and the general staff desire the re-
, tention of Camp Gordon. 1T would
, be horrible waste of public. money
, to scrap it. I have arranged for a
hearing before the. senate committee
on military affairs, and am conf
dent of the result.
81 succeeded in placing upon the
military BIZ, N the winter of 1916
f6 a provision for vocational train.
ing for privates in the army during
peace. The vast military bill car
ried an appropriation for four n1il-
lions of dollars for this purpose. 3
! earnestly pray THAT many Years NAV
pass before our soldiers will be again
required upon the battlefield, and
: Dur pan OF mi lCdrS organization
only require two years service v
the colors and then THEE years
the reserve IN Hyil life.
; "It is ray fopdk the. 80
!. don thsre5ay BID nj
! who toip arm
erns SEQ IN
r inf, -. -