Evening star., 1929-10-06
d. G.. Naval Reserve

Plans are being made by members
of the 1st Battalion. United States
Naval Reserves of the District of Col
umbia, for presenting one of the biggest
displays in its history on Navy day,
the latter part of this month, according
of Lieut.. Comdr. Finney Bascom Smith,
commander of the local organization.
Friends and relatives of the citizen
sailors, as we'll as the general public,
will be invited to come to the armorY
of the outfit on the Eleventh street
side of the Washington Navy Yard,
where they will be shown scme very
interesting naval activities and will get
a glimpse of the kind of training re-
ceived by these men during the year.
Gun crews are being trained for a
loading drill. at which will be displayed
the teamwork necessary to quickly serve
gun with ammunition To show that
the Marines are as much at home on
the beach as they are at sea, there will
be a period of Snappy infantry drill.
There also will be displays of signalling,
knot splicing and other naval activities.
The athletic training received by the
men to keep them fit to fight also will
be shown, and part of this display
will be a series of boxting bouts by the
best talent in the organization.
In connection with the more formal
exercises there will be an address by
a prominent speaker. whose name the
Reservists are not yet ready to an
nounce.
During the day activities in the
Washington Navy Yard, the United
States Destroyer Abel P. Upshur, train
ing ship of the local battalion, will be
dressed in the yari-colored signal flags,
and sailors will be aboard to escort
visitors over the ship, one of the latest
fiush-deck type of sea hounds.
Lieut.. Samuel w. Stinemetz, recently
appointed executive officer of the local
battalion to succeed Lieut.. Comdr.
Harry j. Nichols. relieved because of
the fact that he left the city, has issued
his first drill schedule. It provides a
comprehensive scheme of instruction,
and is destined to bring the local bat
talon to the top of the list among the
other organizations in various parts of
given in work this year to remedying
defects picked in the organization by
the regular naval inspection board.
Examinations for the promotion of
enlisted personnel are provided for, and
special attention is to be given to the
uniforms. The inspection board, it was
said, found fault with the manner in
Wnlcn some OF Cne sailors nao the white
braid trimming sewed on their uni
FORMS and to make certain that there
will be no cause for finding fault OH
this ground next year, Comdr. Smith
has made arrangements to have tailor
at the armory to sew the stripes on in
regulation style.
Special attention is also being given
to personnel turnover. In the opinion
of the inspection board, the local outfit
had too large turnover last year and
marked the local battalion low. Efforts
now are being made to get into the
organization only those men who will
remain with the outfit and take an
interest in their work.
1t was said also that the board
marked the local organization low on
its mobilization efficiency. This fact
the officers are unable to understand
maintaining that they should have re-
ceived 100 per cent for this. as they
are organized to leave Immediately on
their own ship in the case of trouble.
They are one of very few organiza-
tions in the country prepared to do
this, it was said.
The commissioned ranks of the local
battalion are expected to have added
to it another ensign. Raymond B. Sui
livan. Ensign Sullivan, it was said, is
a graduate of the United States Naval
Academy in the class of 1927, and