The Pensacola journal., 1920-03-22
'MONDELL URGES
RAISE NAVY PAY.
Contentious of Officers Cause
Increase to Inferior Ratings
to Be Held Up.
ARMY ALSO AFFECTED
Private Industry Is Claiming
Most Skillful Officers and
Men in the Service.
By GEORGE 4. MANNING.

By GEORGE n. MANNING.
Washington ID. G. Mar. 21.-In-
grasses in the pay of the warrant and
petty officers of the navy and nom
commissioned officers of the army are
being held up in Congress because the
commissioned officers of the army and
navy, many of them now receiving
high salaries, insist that their pay be
increased at the same time, Congress
man Mondell, Republican floor leader
charged in the House yesterday
The condition of the treasury will
not permit of giving the increases all
along the line which would cost sew
eral hundred million dollars a year,
Mr.. Mondell asserted, so the pay in
creases to the commissioned Of
ficers must be postponed until the
commissioned officers cease their in
sistence to be included.
Congressman Richard Olney of
Massachusetts, Republican, had called
attention to the large numbers of
designations and desertions from the
army and navy owing to failure to
pass the Wadsworth- Cargo bill giving
increased pay to the enlisted men and
officers of the army, navy, marine
corps and health service, and charged
that the army and navy are demoral
lied on that account.
Il urge the Steering Committee to
take speedy action in the near future
to have this bill granting pay in
creases passed so that private indus
try will not reach out and take our
best officers, who are resigning daily
on account of insufficient pay" said
Mr.. Olney.
Republican Floor Leader Mondell,
VIII is ais oh of Staariro
Committee, in reply said:
THE navy is not disintegrating; it
is not facing ruin; it is not going TO
pieces, as charged. All is not lost but
honor. There have not even been
designations by the wholesale, though
we have often been told there would
be.
.SsSow, the situation is this. The
House was OF the opinion the House
Committee and the House members
generally who took an interest in the
matter-that there was a situation in
the navy that demanded an increase
OF pay of the warrant and petty Off
GERS. That necessity largely grew out
of the fact that these men are skilled
mechanics, electricians, and machinists,
who can secure employment at high
wages in private industries. 1t seemed,
the OIL the navy OIL
cials, to be necessary to increase the
pay of these men.
There are many in the House, and
I think some in the Senate, who do
not believe that just at this time we
can increase the pay OF all officers
of the army and navy, the coast guard
and the public health service. In
creases of that kind, including the
military and civil branches involve
expenditure of several hundred million
dollars annually. 1t is a very serious
question at this time. We all realize
that if the pay of the officers of the
army and navy was not excessive be-
fore the war it is possibly not ade-
quate now, nor as much as they ought
to get. But the country is full of
people not now receiving pay or income
in excess of what they received be-
fore the war in proportion to the cost
of living.
The officers of the army and navy
received more pay during the war than
before the war because of increased
rank and additional allowances and
because of their overseas pay They
have certainly had no real ground for
| recently when with demotion their pay
may have been decreased
Il think it is not unreasonable to
suggest that the army and navy Off
GERS. secure in their positions are
about the only people under the Amer
/ lean flag who know they will never
| suffer want whatever happens@ do
not think it unreasonable to suggest
| to them that they wait a bit, that they
be somewhat patient, that they econo-
mize also with the great majority of
| their fellow countrymen until we know
where we stand in the matter of reve-
Enue, what the state of the treasury
| is. and how the national balance sheet
| is to stand.
| The only reason why the pay of
| the navy warrant and petty officers
has not been increased is that the COM
missioned officers of the army and
navy, many of them receiving pay run
ming high into the thousands, seem TO
be increased unless their pay also is
increased: at least that is the attitude
of those who plead their cause
/ IF there could be an understanding
that the. pay of these petty and war
rant officers could be increased with
out increasing the pay of the colonels.
brigadier generals, and admirals at the
Esame time the matter could be easily
settled"
4