Evening star., 1926-02-02

| William Mitchell, private citizen, has
resumed his fight against War and
navy management Of the national de.
| fense
| The former air officer took up the
cudgel just five hours after he received
! official notification yesterday that his
commission as colonel, United States
Army, had been vacated at his request
: bv direction Of President Coolidge He
recalled his efforts to better condi-
tlons from within the service" and de-
cIared his intention as citizen to
keep up the struggle for a national de-
| tense "organized in a single depart
ment"
Mitchell's statement, the first of the
Kind issued since he attacked the War
and Navy Departments in the cele-
Drated statements he made public In
| San Antonio last September. which led
TO his conviction and sentence by a
court martial for insubordination, was
a br1stlfng denunciation of existing
defense policies. Striking out against
military bureaucracy" he declared,
our Government has become one of
bureaucratic domination"
To Tour Country.
AT the same time he announced that
| he would tour the country for the
| next three months to carry Straight
! to the people" a picture Of "the true
condition of our national defense"
This, he said, he could do better as a
citizen than "by remaining muZzled
| in the Army"
Army and Navy bureaucracies, he
charged, have consistently and pur-
! posely misled Congress and the peo-
| pie; have manipulated the laws
| so they can control the armed forces
even against the action of the Presi-
| dent himself d" have coerced,
| atf M tn
triotic officers" and have shaken the
land and sea forces in their concep-
| ton of duty.
| Characterizing "the military bu-
| reaucracy" as "one OF the greatest
menaces to our free institutions" he
asserted that the bureaucratic party"
! was more powerful than the Demo
Gratis and Republicans. more powerful
than the influence OF any creed or
! sect or religious order"
The statement failed to disclose
! MitchelIS future plans. He explained,
however. that he intended to visit his
| old home in Wisconsin upon the ex-
piration of his lecture travels. and
! within year or 50 intended to leave
the United States for q hunting ex-
pedition into Africa.
Began as Private.
| The full text of the Mitchell state
ment follows:
MY resignation from the Army, eff
| fectfve today. concludes q service of
! nearly IS years.
| Wisconsin Infantry in 1898 and has
been followed through the Spanish
War and Cuba. the Philippine Insur-
! rection, in Alaska while bull ling the
. first telegraph lines and opening up
! the country, in the San Francisco
catastrophe and along the Mexican
border. The first wireless telegraph
and the first automobiles in our Army
| were developed in my organization.
My travels and studies have included
| the military and political systems in
| the nations of Asia and Europe.
| Command Of our air forces in the
World War and the privilege of d.
recting the greatest concentration of
allied air power ever participating in
| actual combat was entrusted to me.
| "The sinking of batt'eships by air
craft projected and completed under
my direction has revised and changed
all systems Of national defense. Hos
! tile navies are no menace to our Coun-
| try If there is adequate air power.
Instituted Long Flight.
! The flights TO Alaska and later
around the world. the airplane tests
( across the continent, which led to the
I establishment of the air mail; our
methods Of fighting in the air and the
kinds of aircraft to meet our special
! American conditions were also ini-
( tiated under my direction.
! Il look back on this record with the
| greatest pride and with the satisfac-
! ton that l have done everything pos
| sible for my country. After all these
/ years of service not one dark spot can
! be found on my record and not one
| act which does not rebound 10 the
! credit of the United States.
THE United States remains today
! unorganiZed for modern defense. In
| spite of the expenditure of nearly
/ $500, ,00o, 900 for aviation since the war
and the loss of scores of our airmen.
| we have no real military air force for
the protection of our great country.
! We are left hopelessly behind in our
civil and commercial aviation and we
/ have no plan or system whatever for
furthering and developing this most
important agency.