The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-11-01

! Secretary OF War Baker to-day issued
statement defending his administra'
! ton of the affairs of the War Depart
ment from charges of inefficiency. waste
fand extravagance that have been made
in many quarters.
! 1.-THE War Department has saved over
| $4,675.342,SS1 to the taxpayers of this
country through the sale of surplus wal
supplies and settlements of claims" Mr.
Baker states in opening the Admins
tration's defence. He also points out
that to have proper understand OF
| the situation it must be remembered
that the Department made it's purchases
at time when a field force of 100000
men was contemplated.
The enormous supplies on hand, he de-
clared. would have been totally made
quate had the war lasted another year,
Mr.. Baker also asserted that France
had purchased goods overseas for
1892, 100000, and in addition waived
customs duties estimated at S150,00O,0 900,
and assumed payment of 10000 claims
arising out of the American occupation
and use of installation and lands.
Points to Saving I'm Europe.
"As a result therefore, of the work of
the United States Liquidation Commits
sion," the statement declares. "the War
Department saved to the taxpayers from
the sale of surplus of war materials in
Europe $972,213,225.82 plus the claims
for damages which would have been
entered against the Government. Thus
the claim that the property which had
cost this country 1880, 9S9.302 was dis
posed of to the French Government for
4,000.0 900, payable in ten years. is en-
tirely erroneous"
q
plant at Nitro. w. Va, which cost
S7O,1OO, 900, produced no powder for the
war, and was recently sold for SS.551,-
600; nor the Old Hickory powder plant
at Nashville, Tenn. which cost $50 ,060,-
900. produced nothing, and was sold re-
Gently for SO 03D,000 nor of the army
camps and environments costing $1,2OO,-
600 900.
The department dismisses the aircraft
fiasco with the statement that at the
beginning of the war the United States
did not seek to build up large aircraft
manufacturing industry 1t was neces-
sary to furnish planes in the shortest
possible time, consequently most of the
planes used by the American aviators
were purchased abroad" Thus is de-
scrbed an aviation programme that cost
81, 051,511,9SS, but despite extravagant
and dangerous promises did not deliver
at the front prior to the armistice a
single American built fighting plane.
wastage Of Automobiles.
The Secretary of War processes to be
indignant because some one charged
that 1 900 automobiles Of n certain high
priced make were parked out in the
open for eleven months after the arms-
tice. when the Government only bought
seventy-one of that particular make Of
car. He does not deny that acres upon
| acres Of automobiles of all kinds pur-
chased by the War Department stood
exposed to the weather for much more
than eleven months after the arrnis-
tice at the various automobile con-
centration camps. Camp Holabird. near
Baltimore, being a single notable in
stance of the kind.
! Not until this last summer and after
| the hottest kind of a fire had been
built under the department by members
of Congress was the distribution of
these cars to the various State high
way commissions. as provided by law,
completed. some of the machines hav-
ing stood in the open for two winters.
while all the time the State authorities
had been clamoring for them.
In this connection the Secretary
makes no mention of the fact that the
| Department permitted the auto COM
panies to continue to fill their contracts
to the extent of delivering 74,017 ma
chimes following the armstice, 1928 in
! November. 1857 in December 1903 in
January, 9.504 in February. dwindling
| down gradually TO 554 In July. 1919.
when deliveries were completed: nor
does he recall that 39.993 new motor
vehicles were shipped to France after
the armistice up to as late as the fol-
/ lowing June for an army that was no
/ longer there.
or the long list OF articles charged as
purchased I'm amounts vastly in excess
OF army needs the Departments de
\ fence" in the item Of branding irons is
taken as typical. The admission is made
that 1860 were purchased as charged,
/ but that one iron is serviceable for less
/ than 300 animals, and that animals
must be branded once every two months.
Both these claims are ridiculed by ex-
7 pcrencod rnnchmen, but even on the De-
+ partments statement they had enough
irons to brand 59.000.000 animals once,
and the total number OF horses and mules
possessed by the Government at all
times during the war. not counting those
that died or Woo otherwise disposed Of,
was only 573,i
Work of Liquidation Commission.
Secretary Bakers defence is In part
as follows:
When the armistice was signed and
the fighting terminated IL was necessary
20 take steps not only to curtail the war
output of our factories In America. but
also to dispose Of the surplus stock on
hand. To dispose Of the stocks on hand
in Europe. the United States liquida-
ton commission was appointed for the
purpose Of. first, disposing of United
States surplus war stocks in Europe,
and. second, to settle ali claims and ac-
counts between allied governments and
their nationals on the one part and the
United States War Den rtment on the
other. The sales conducted by this COM
mission returned to the United States
$S22.92S.225. supplies and equipment to
the value Of s672 100000 were returned
10 the United States and, pursuant to an
act Of Congress passed in July. 1919. the
Secretary of War. acting through the
commission, delivered to the American
Red Cross without cost, supplies to the
y.lt. NJ Qct