Evening star., 1924-06-10
18TH DIVISION FACES
INVADING ALLIED FOE
National Guard Troops Plan
Defense in Msneuvers at
Virginia Beach.
MANY PROBLEMS STUDIED
Military Forces Work Out Means
of Repelling Enemy Force.

BY a STAR Correspondent
TWENTY-NINTH NATIONAL GUARD
DIVISION HEADQUARTERS, VIR-
GINA BEACH. Va, June 1O.-Facing
a gigantic force of a coalition Of Red
Orange. Crimson and Green armies
representing countries now existing,
and which by allying would make one
OF the most powerful military move
ments against the United States, a
division of the United States Blue
Army. under the command Of Mai Gen,
Anton stephan, set out to prevent
an invasion on the sandy beaches of
this section of the Atlantic coast. The
fleet conveying them is reported at
Nassau, and the force contains four
divisions of $4,000 men each.
This mobilization point of the 2sth
Nation Guard Division is the head
quarters. The commanding general
has been furnished with the present
location OF the troops and those that
WIil be available to him for the front
line and supporting troops. The
troops represent every arm Of the
service and use every means of de-
structive warfare, however, as these
are the same forces that would be
used in actual combat and are taken
from situations already worked out
by the War Depa rtment. their desig-
nation for obvious reasons. cannot be
made public.
Lay Plans for Defense.
Gen. stephan. with his staff, went up
the sandy beach for about ten miles
to observe the terrain and to mark
on the covering points for various
organizations under his command.
The directions Of Gen. Stephan not
only provided for the destruction of
the force In its attempt to land. but
Tor the evacuation of the wounded
The 12lst Regiment of Engineers, Ma
tional Guard of the District of Colum-
hla: represented by Col. A. w. Och
mann. commanding officer, is deal
ing with the engineering problems
incidental to the movement of troops
and supplies. and the sandy terrain
here furnishes many of them.
Supporting troops are theoretically
encamped at Washington and at
Mount Gretna, Pa.
The officers were required to make
a complete survey of the situation in
conjunction with the commanding
general and to locate a system of land
defenses in this subsector
Inxpects Camp.
Officers of the District National
Guard point out that the 29th Divis-
ion, of which it is part. is par
ticularly fortunate in having the di-
visions territory an excellent mob
ilization point which it can use in
time of peace and under substantially
the same conditions it would meet in
time Of war. Problems which the
officers now are working out are vir-
tually the same as they would have
to contend with in a period of i'm
pending invasion. The voluminous
material which they gather in camps
here will furnish excellent bases for
armory exercises and study during
the winter.
volved in the combat exercise, many
officers schools are going on in vari-
Gus parts of the camp. 1t is a camp
of intensive instruction. during the
four days of which officers and men
will have crowded into their studies
work that ordinarily passes through
a two-week camp.
Gen. Stephan, in company with Col.
Townsend, L. S. A, senior instructor
here, today made complete 1nspec-
that were in session. Following the
inspection he expressed himself as
highly elated at the manner in which
the work is progressing and was
complimentary OF those directing the
schools.
Will Return Friday.
While the command were out on
the beach yesterday dealing with the
theoretical hostile invasion by for
eign navy and army, a United States
destroyer steamed at full speed down
the coast close to the beach. hove to
and anchored off the town, followed
closely by a naval mine sweeper,
which also anchored close in to the
shore. They had come to rescue a
naval seaplane which had gotten into
trouble and was forced to make a
landing on the heavy seas that were
running at the time. The plane was
taken aboard the mine sweeper and
the rescue furnished many minutes
of interest to the troops as well as
the hundreds of civilians who lined
the beach.
Capt c. v. Sayer. for many years
an officer in the National Guard OF
the District of Columbia, Is here rep
resenting the Howitzer Company of
the 1st Maryland Infantry, located
at Kensingt Md. He has with him
Lieut.. Lucien Ernest, also former
officer in the District Guard.
After spending all of tomorrow in
camp, the forces will be demobilized
and the District detachment, headed
by Gen. Stephan, will leave for Nor
folk. where it will take the Thursday
night boat for Washington. arriving
early Friday morning.