Evening star., 1926-03-14
COUNCIL TO STUDY
DEFENSE PLANS
War Department Business
Group Civilians Meet With
MacNider.

In line with the general plans of the
war Department for military pre-
paredneSS for the national defense, AS
sistant Secretary MacNider and other
officials of the War Department con-
ferred with the civilian members Of
the newly organized War Department
Business Council. at it's first meeting
at the Metropolitan Club yesterday.
Col. MacNider made a brief address Of
welcome in which he explained the
operations of the War Department
purchasing and supply agencies and
the necessity of having the co-opera-
tion of the directors Of those indus.
tries particularly allied with the cur.
rent supply problems of the military
establishment.
I'VE are charged" said Col. Mac
Nider. with responsibility for a bust.
nesslike administration of the military
establishment, and it is our job to
make every dollar appropriated for de-
fense do its full duty.
Seek to Learn Facts.
1.-THE council is to determine whether
the Assistant Secretary of War has an
organization, procedure and control
which will insure efficient supervision
of procurement and proper utilization
OF the consolidated buying power of
the Army: also whether the supply
branches have an organization, pro-
cedure and control which will insure
efficient procurement by their purchas.
ing agents. efficient supervision of pro-
curement by their chiefs as well as
proper utilization Of the consolidated
buying power Of their branch. :,
I'VE want your reaction to our
present procedure. We ask for con-
structive criticism. We assure you
that we will give due weight to your
suggestions and decisions"
Business Leaders Present.
Civilian members of the council in
attendance are: Col. Leonard F.
Ayres. vice president. Cleveland
Trust Co. Cleveland, Ohio: James
3. Bonner, manager Of sales. United
States Steel Corporation; Brig. Gen.
John j. Carly. vice president. Amer
lean Telephone and Telegraph Co.,
New York City; Howard Coonley.
president, Walworth Co., Bos-
ton. Mass: Lieut.. Col. +. s. Dickin-
son. president. Becton. Dickinson q
Co, surgical instrument manufac-
turers. Rutherford, n. j.: George B.
Dryden, president. Dryden Rubber
Co, Chicago. Ill; Brig. Gen. Clinton
G. Edgar. president, Continental
Sugar Co. director. Wabash Railroad
Co, Detroit. Mich; Col. S. NJ. FELTON,.
hartman, board of directors, Great
Western Railway. Chicago. Ill; &.
w. Nash, president. Nash Motors Co,
Kenosha, Wis; Lieut.. Col. Oscar w.
Smith, president, Parke. Davis & Co,
Detroit, Mich; Col; William G.
Spruanco, vice president, du Pont
de Nemours Co. Wilmington. Del;
~ol. William A. Starrett, vice presi-
dent, Starret Brothers, contractors.
New York City; Gerald Swope, pres
ident, General Electric Co, New York
City; Ralph Van NeChten, vice pres
ident, Continental Commercial Bank,
Chicago ILL.,, and Brig. Gen. Herbert
s. Wolfe, consulting actuary, New
York City.
Urging industrial preparedness as
the best form of insurance against fu-
ure wars. Col. MacNider, in an ad-
iress at national defense meeting of
The Washington section Of the Ameri.
can Society of Mechanical Engineers
It the Cosmos Club Friday night. COM
jared the professional pacitist who op.
poses preparedness to the man who re-
uses to install automotic sprinklers in
his place Of business for fear of en-
fires. Representatives of the
Army Ordnance Association, the So
ciety of American Military Engineers
and the American society OF Naval
Engineers attended the meeting.
Col. MacNider described the con-
fusion that reigned through lack of
preparedness in this country with out
entry into the World War. However,
we had the allied armies to protect us
then, he added. something we cannot
hope for in the future.
There is a plan now being cons1d-
cred by the War Department, he said.
which, If adopted, would do away with
all unpreparedness. This plan would
divide the country into a number OF
industrial procurement" districts,
with an Industrial leader in each dis
trict with the status CT Reserve
Army officer without pay in charge.
AS an assistant he would have Ii Reg
ular Army officer.
Tentative contracts for war mate
rials would be let and signed, and then
in the event of war all that would
be necessary to start the defense ma
chinery working would be telegraph
orders to each Of the district leaders
Col. w. H. Tshappot. chief OF tech
nical staff, Ordinance Department,
u. S. A., spoke on the interior bal.
lis+ics Of a 9-inch Howitzer. He de-
scribed the efforts that have been
made on various proving grounds to
tighten the weight Of this gun to ia
cilitate it's transportation.
Arthur Adelman, acting chairman,