Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-01-20
One General Too Many
BY Frederic ]. HAskin

Washington, d. c., Jan. IA qrcs-
/ tion which just now is causing much
| perturbation in high army and admins
| tration circles is that of properly nssign-
ing general commanding the armies
, OF the United States
by grnce OF All apprecintive Congress
this nation now has an official Of Lhat
rank and title, but neither Congress nor
the army has any work for hirn to do.
General Pershing is the highest mill
tary dignitary in the United States today.
He has back OF him such a military ex-
perienee as has come To no other man.
, But peace-tin1e organization provides
no work for him to do. He il q general
without an army, which is good deal
like being carpenter without tools or
cowboy without pony.
And general IL some pumpkins in this
country. In the recent war there were
three Americans who ranked as general
for the emergency-Pershing, March and
Bliss. OF these three Congress has made
the rank of ono permanent Pershing
alone emergcs as general for life. In the
Civil War three men attained this coveted
rank. They were Grant, Sherman and
Sheridan. Before that but one man in the
nation had ever ranked as general and
that man was George Washington.
CAUSES EMBARRASSMENT.
When Congress conferred the per-
rnsnent rank of general commanding the
armies of the United States on Pershing,
it seems % have done so without taking
thought Of the situation it would create.
Ii is not the first time that ranks con-
ferreh by Congress have created en-
bnrrassment There was Major General
William l.. Sibert, for instance, who had a
long career of usefulness back Of him as an
engineer officer He built tho Gatun
Dam. Mt Panama, and Congress, m ap-
probation, made him major general II
happened that the Engineer Corps of the
nrmy was no Organized that there was no
provision In il for an officer who ranked
high So sibert profession 'yas taken
from him and situation GRATED that
made the utilization Of his services diff cult
until the war presen.ei the task Of or
gan'zing the chemical warfare service
Congrees mnde Rear Admiral Dgpey,
OF the days of the Spanish American war,
the admiral of the navy Thu was a
special post created in his honor. Yet "a
admiral Of the navy this popular hero
found his occupation gone, and the Navy
Department was ut lo3s to know what
tn do with the doughty fighter The final
solution was TO make him chief Of the
general board OF the navy m agency which
happily, came into being at about that
time
When General Pershing oarne back from
France he opened up Offices IN Washing
ton and there held court for few days,
completing the denfoh;liza-
ton Then he went on long def-rred
vacation, md shot deer in the Adiron-
diaolB. Returning 10 Washington ne
went, or was Eerf, on trip Of inspection
Of AL the poets in the nation. Most Of
these posts had been GRATED since that
date in 1917 when be sailed away 70 com
rnand tho American Expeditionary Force
Pcrahing was TO see what he could Of the
work done at home in making his army.
II Is not known that there Il any Other Oh
,ec. IN this trip than 10 give the general
trip. Il waa 8 temporary solution Of the /
question OF what TO do with thin The /.
trip Ia drawing toward a ciose and the I
will again be thrust 70 the fore +
The problem erlses chiefly because Of !
The present organization Of the army. Il /
here were field army, the general might |
)e placed IN command of il, and there
he matter would rest- But there is no /.
leid army. The army rB divided into de-
,artfnents. The commanders OF the dir
erent depertrsenfs arc Of equal rank
here Is no individual who exercises au-
ho-ity over them al. The departments !
Ire directed from Washington by the
commander IN chief, who IS President Of
he United States. He works through d
ecretary OF war. The secretary of war has
chief OF staff appointed by the President.
lie Is the immediate advisor Of the secre-
ary Of war On all matters relating TO the