The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1921-11-04
new M|[ITARYPOLICY
Late Efforts On the Part<of
War Department
TAX BURDENS
War Modification Without vio-
Iating Traditions Is
The Aim
ASSOCIATED PRESS Dispatch.l

| ASSOCIATED PRESS Dispatch.I
Washington. October 30.-Two les
sons of the world war, learned al
heavy cost, are sharply emphasized
In war department bulletin soon tc
be issued giving the first official pic.
ture sof the new national defense
structure projected in the reorganIz
ed army of the United States.
One lesson comes direct from the
battlefelds of France. 1t is that ef-
ficient staff work is vital to modern
military operations, and with 1t goes
the correlory that staff functions can
not be learned over night.
The other comes from the war
| time din and confusion of the CEN
| traliZed training caps at home. 1t Is
that efficient mobilization OF the ma
tons fighting strength can >be car
ried out only as decentralized pro-
cess through agencies set up IN
Realization that these lessons must
be worked into the new military
policy If perilous delay and costly
Confusion which preceded past mobi.,
lizations werS to be avoided has
marked the effort of the war depart
ment The bulletin shows that It has
attempted to write regulations under
the revised national defense act .hat
would furnish a clean cut scheme
for war mobilization without Violat-
ing national traditions against mill.
tarism or creating machinery that
would impose heavy burdens IN
peace times upon the taxpayers.
Far Reaching Project
The project undertaken probaDlS
is the most far reaching military ef-
fort the nation has ever attempted IN
peace times.
The foundation work has been
done. All over the country decen,
capable, its designers believe Of get
ting the nation on a war footing with
little delay and confusion. Yet 1t 1s
felt that the. nation at large ana
even the most important links In the
new. defense chain, the regular army,
the National Guard and the Officers
Reserve Corps do not appreciate
fully what is being done. - .,o
Colonel John MICA. Palmer the
officer assigned to aid congress In
all possible and who has devoted
himself to a study OF the subject
was called uron to furnish the docu-
ment and his work Is to go TO aAi
parts of the new army as means OF
preventing misunderstanding.
Colonel Palmer points out that at
the conclusion Of previous wars, the
| United States scrapped all It mad
| learned in battle and demobiized
generations for their protection ana
civil war. schooled In soldier craft,
skilled in staff work and the banking
Iof mighty forces with minimum. con-
| fusion in movement and minimum
losses in battle, went back to civil
life, he says, and lost all touch with
military matters When the war with
Spain came, their knowledge was
DIST to the men of 1898. 1t was nee
sssary to build again from the
ground up, and 1917 saw this waste
repeated, the bulletin asserts.
New Scheme Defined.
The purpose of the new scheme OF
| welding the regulars, the national
guard and the organized reserves into
the army of the United States in
! peace times is defined by Colonel
palmer as follows: ct Is primarily
the object OF our new law to perpe-
tuate the framework Of the ,organiza-
ton developed in the world war so
| that its tremendous cost can be fund
ed as a permanent investment for all
time" :,
erected after the civil war, the Off :
Ger adds, ain 1898 more divisions
than were needed for the War with
Spain could have begun their ex-
pansion within twenty four hours
after the declaration Of hostilities."
Mobilization in 1917" Colonel
Palmer continues. "would have pro;
ceeded as a decentralized process and
not as a great centralized process up
setting the economic hfe OF tie ma
ton. It would not have been neces.
| centrated training camps or to over
| burden the railroads with unclassifled
personnel and material in order to
organize, and train, and equip, and
provide officers all at the same time.
Such a national organization must
have saved months in time and mil
lions In money"
Colonel Palmer points out that
Stcnewall Jackson alone OF leaders
on either side in the civil war en-.
tered the contest with knowledge OF
what staff work meant. He had
studied Napoleon's troop orders and
in the first battle of the war, Colo
mel Palmer says, showed that even
raw troops can stand like stone
wall IL the prevalent rawness does
not extend to the craftsmanship Of
the commander"
To meet such situation, the new
military policy imposes on the regu-
lar army the duty of training in peace
times the men on whom must OF nee
essity fall the burden OF command
and direction of great forces in/war.
From this arises the present distri-
button OF the regulars into divisional
areas which underlay the corps and
army area structure: It Is not ex-
pected, officers say. that more than
a division ever will be brought to-
gether in peace times. but through
practice in handling a divisional unit
| Of 10000 or SO men, training can be
impaired, 1t Is felt, to let future lead
ers to handle corps or armies In bat
tie.
From its.role as staff college, also,
comes the demand Of the army for
a larger proportion OF officers than
the actual enlisted strength of any
probable regular force would require.
These extra officers would play
little part in the actual peace time
employment Of the army as such or
even In q small emergency that re-
duired only the regulars to meet
the nations needs. They would be
under training in star functions and