Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1920-03-19

New YORK. Marcn LITTLE Unlt-
ed States destroyer Mason, which
was placed In commission . few
days ago, should have had . crew
of eight officers and 40 men Is its
full complement. Because Of the
scarcity Of men in the navy it,
crew in reality consists Of three
officers and one man.
Between three and four hundred
officers have left the navy since the
war and q thousand more have
made applications for discharge.
These are all men in the regular
service, not just the wartime vol
unteers. And thousands Of sailors
are leaving. The army personnel
is dwindling at the same alarming
rate.
Recently a captain, a regular in
the army, who was mentioned for
distinguished service in France,
gave as his reason for resigning
from the service that 1T was the
only manly thing to do"
To explain this rather surprising
statement, he continued: Il have
no income aside from my army pay,
and it is impossible for me to sup
port my family in ordinary comfort
upon that at the present cost Of
living. I regret having to leave the
service, but / owe it to my wife and
children
The other day commission
ed officer apologized to his COM
manding officer for the shabbiness
of his uniform. saying that he SIM
ply could not afford presentable
clothes on his present salary.
Well" said his captain, with a
wry smile, you had better look at
my uniform before you apologize. !"
The uniform in question was lit
orally a thing of shreds and patch
es. It was shiny with long wear,
there was neat but obvious patch
on one elbow, and the four strips
Of gold braid on each sleeve were
worn threadbare. Yet this ofiicer
had given 80 years of loyal service
to his country. he was recommend.
ed for special award during the
late war, and he recently refused
an offer of $4,000 a year job in
civil life because of his devotion to
the navy. Nevertheless he finds it
impossible to send his two chill
dren to college and at the same
time live with the comfort end dig
nifty which his position calls for
and his ability deserves.
Anyone who is often thrown in
contact with men in the regular
service cannot but realize the
change in their attitude since the
war. They are rather in the mood
of Kipling's Tommy Atkins who
cited the ingratitude of the British
public. The sudden slump from
the wartime glory to the hard facts
Of living on inadequate pay, while
they see the stay-at homes they de-
Tended reaping all the benefits OF
their fighting, is making most OF
the men feel little as if they had
been the goats" in this war. One
sees groups of officers discussing
means of further economy, such as
trying to get outside work to sup
plement their salaries, or even the
trivial economy of wearing cellu.
loid collars, with a good humor
that seems a little strained.
The one important subject among
the enlisted men is the pay bill
This is particularly true of the new
recruits. 1t was given out in such
an authoritative way from Wash.
ington that the bill for increased
pay for officers and men would pass
that many men were induced to en-.
list by the prospect. In fact, un.
officially, they were promised the
increase in pay as a Christmas gift
It is the feeling Of some OF then
that they were practically induced
to enlist under false pretenses.
Many prominent Americans are
actually working for the passage
of the bills increasing the pay o,
the army and navy. 1t is their be-
lief that storm Of protest would
sweep the country if the true state