The Washington herald., 1921-05-14
Says 10000 Leaves Only
10000 for Duty in
United States.
SELECTS PERSHING
AS CHIEF OF STAFF
Harbord to Aid Comman-
der of A. E. F. as Head
OF Fighting Force.

with powers to organize the army
for instant war service, Secretary
Of War Weeks appeared at the
Capitol yesterday to plead with
Congress for an army adequate for
ordinary emergencies
Tho Senate Military Affairs Com
mittee appeared to be SO impressed
by his representations that it prob
ably will recommend the maximum
of l75,000 men asked by the Sec
retary in place of the 100000 hxed
by the House
Secretary Weeks informed the
Senate committee that il would be
necessary to cut the army down to
1875 900 men in order to achieve the
average of 100000 provided in the
House bill.
Secs No saving.
The present strength of the
army is 100000 men and $4,000 Of
ficers," said the Secretary. The
number of establishments is large,
due to hard times. We cannot
make the reductions called for by
the House bill without utterly de-
moraIizing the army. 1t would
mean that we would have to re-
duce the force below the strength
of 100000 in order to get the aver
age. After that we would have to
re-enlist il up to the required
strength. II costs 800 per man for
recruiting under our present sys-
tenn, so .that in the long run we
would save very little.
We should not be put to the ex-
pense and Inconvenience Of dis
charging our trained men and then
recruiting to bring ii up to the
size of the army proposed"
Takes Trained Men.
Senator Robinson, of Arkansas.
Democrat, interrupted to say that
the army thus would be losing
| trained men and getting in un-
! trained men.
The reductions continued Mr..
! Weeks. would have to be in the
infantry. the field artillery and the
cavalry. which total now about
l31, 900 men. In the infantry, for
instance, it would leave only 500
men to a regiment. or about forty
men in a company. II would cut
the cavalry in two. II would leave
us in the United States only about
10000 men Of our actual fighting
force.
Uses for Army.
Tn that connection / wish TO say
that special uses arise from time
| to time. Only recently we had a
call for troops at Galveston, Texas
to suppress disorders there.
Yesterday, as you know, We had
| call from the governor of West
Virginia. calling attention to the
warfar there. both in Kentucky and
| West Virginia, in which-one or two
men had been killed.
There has been a large division
of men kept in hand-in case devel-
opments In Cuba might have re-
quired their presence.
I'VE arc living in troublous times
we do not know what will happen
in the next few months and we
ought not to cut our army below the
safety point"
Troops on Rhine.
Return of the American troops or
the Rhine is altogether proble-
matical." says Secretary Weeks.
Senator Hitchcock pressed the
Secretary for more definite infor.
nation. Cant you bring then
home or get along with small
force over there?' he asked.
ct prefer not to enter into a
discussion Of the matter" Secretar,
Weeks responded.
War Leaders nited.
In the appointment of Gen. Per.
shing as Chief of STAFF, effective
July I. and the appointment of Mai
Gen. James G. Harbord as his execu.
tive assistant. Secretary of wa,
Weeks is bringing together the tive
real leaders of the army during the
world war.
Their relations will be PRACTICAL,
the same as during the war wher
Pershing was the field commander
and Harbord the administrative
genius of the A. e. F. Gen. Har.
bord was Pershing's chief of stan
during the early months of Ameri.
can participation in the European
fighting. Later Harbord took com.
mand Of the Marines and directed
the fighting at Belleau Woods. A
month later. as commander Of tn,
second division, he directed the ia
nous attack of that division south
OF scissors in the allied offensiv,
OF July Is. which resulted in tn,
German retreat from the Marne.
Career Of Pershinx.
| Gen. Pershing, born in Missouri
september 13. 1850, graduated from
West Point in 1886. commissioned as
second lieutenant of cavalry. He
fought in Indian campaigns against
the Apaches In 1886. and in the
neld against the Sioux in 1891. Per-
shing served in the Cuban war as
nrst lieutenant of cavalry, being
promoted to captain in 1901. In the
early part of this century he saw
active service in the Philippines. In
1905 heserved as military attache tc
the Embassy at Japan.
Gen. Pershing is so years old. He
was given an emergency rank as
general of the army October 6, 1917.
and on September 8. 1919, he was
appointed to the full rank of general
for life, a position held in recent
years only by the late Gen. Nelson
A. Miles. Under the resolution OF
Congress giving him the full rank
OF general, Gen. .Pershing can re-
tire voluntarily from active service
at any time, and will continue to
| Yerafva onNr@-sp.,t>ly nm