Evening star., 1925-05-29
WEEKS IN CONFLICT
ON ARMY ECONOMY
War Secretary and Director
Lord in Fight on Slash
Of Appropriation.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

Behind the instruction of President
Coolidge to the Army and Navy De-
partments to make a survey as to
further economies lies a story of con-
hict between the budget director and
the Secretary Of War. 1t is the first
serious difference between the advice
Of a cabinet of1cer and that OF the
budget director, the one looking at it
from the viewpoint of what experts
consider military efficiency and the
other regarding it as a question of
economy.
The present Secretary of War, John
w. Weeks, threatened resignation il
his viewpoint was not accepted. Mr..
Coolidge acceded to Mr.. Weeks
wishes and the items in the proposed
estimate last Winter were retained.
Now Mr.. Weeks is In Ill health and
probably will resign before another
budget is sent to Congress. The new
Secretary of War, whoever he is, will
have to fall in with the Presidents s
economy program, for the same issue
Is now involved in the requested sur
vey for further economics
Weeks Had Support.
But behind NJ. Weeks was the
general staff, including Gen. Pershing.
all of whom thought the cuts in the
military establishment were beyond
public safety in this era OF interna
tional uncertainty. The War Depart
ment has looked askance at the Presi
dents economy program. fearing that
it might be carried too far. Mr.. Weeks
did not carry his controversy to the
public prints, but waged il in private.
If the budget directors viewpoint
Is to be accepted on what constitutes
an efficient Army" Mr.. Weeks is re-
ported to have said to the President,
then you do not need a Secretary of
War"
The general staff is, of course, re-
strained from differing with the Presi-
dent or the budget director in the
press. There is also a strict rule by
which all officials Of the Government
are bound, namely, that they must
not seek higher appropriations when
testifying before congressional COM
mittees, though they are permitted to
answer questions from which legis-
lators may draw their own opinions
as to whether the budgets proposed
are safe from the viewpoint of ma
tfonal defense.
Coolidge for Preparedness.
l..
differing with the argument of those
who think the objective should be
efficient national defense. but he has
been insistent that economy should
be practiced wherever possible and
he naturally leans on the judgment of
the budget director. Gen. Lord, who
knows something about Army mat
ters and also Is interested in Gov
ernment economy.
II will be several months before
the whole thing will be threshed out
in Congress, but already the order
to look for further cuts is causing un-
easiness in the Army particularly.
The Army incidentally has sought
to do everything in it's power to in
terest public opinion in national de-
fense and hopes that the youths who
go to the training camps this Sum-
mer Will come back impressed with
the necessities of citizen army. For
without the officers and personnel of
the regular Army an expanded mill
| tary establishment in time OF war
would be of doubtful value.
Army in Public Eye.
The significant debate between the
Army and the White House on the
subject of a defense test for Armi-
stice day is but one of the outcrop-
pings of the Army's desire to i'm
| press on the public the Importance
| of studying national defense, and
though Mr.. Coolidge has given per-
mission for such q test to be held
on the 4th of July, the Army officers
think the purpose is more or less
defeated because there isn't time
enough TO make arrangements for a
mobiliZa ton on that day.
The Army is fighting for a peace
time strength that can be converted
| into wartime strength quickly. The
economy champions are reverting to
the ideas of pre-war days, namely,
that with no war in the offlng the
expenditure of funds for future war
| might well be lessened.
Copyright. 1ee5D