Evening star., 1932-05-26
ST|MSON MAY LOSE
HIS MILITARY AIDE.
Collins Amendment Forbids
Payment of Salary to Civil
Officers Helpers.
BY CONSTANTINE BROWN.

Unless the Senate decides to amend
provision in the Army bill Secretary
StlmSon Is likely to lose one of his VAL
liable Subordinates, Capt. Eugene Reg
nier, known at present as the military
aide" of the Secretary of State.
Representative Collins of Mississippi
introduced the amendment to the Army
appropriation bill which provides that
no part of this appropriation shall be
available to pay any officer detailed as
military aide to any civil officer Of the
partment, except the President.
There is no precedent in the history
of the United States of any Secretary
of State having a military aide. BY
definition. the Secretary Of State must
be a peace-seeking man and the pres
ence OF any sabered and spurred official
should make him shudder. The Secre-
tary Of State does not deal, officially,
with military matters.
Needs Military Advice.
In the last two years. when Mr.. Stim-
son had to discuss tonnage of subma-
rineS, gun elevation, trained reserves,
and so forth, he had to have a certain
amount OF military advice. but Capt
Regnier naturally could not render
highly technical advice, and Mr.. Stim-
son had to confer with the senior Army
and Navy experts. Capt. Regnier Is
however, useful to the Secretary in many
other ways. He handles certain matters
connected with the protocol division as
a liaison officer between the Secretary's
office and the head of the ceremonial
and protocol sections of the State De-
partment. But his principal role is that
OF liaison between the Secretary and
those who have to come in an unofi-
cial way In contact with Mr.. Stimson.
Capt. Regnier has been for a number
Of years very c.ose to the Secretary.
He was his aide in the Philippines and
has been in the State Department ever
since Mr.. Stimson has become the
head Of that department. He knows
the Secretary intimately and by his
close daily contact with him he is
able to interpret the Secretary's
thoughts better than most of Mr..
Stimson's collaborators.
.. Acted as Liaison Officer.
During his trips abroad Capt. Reg
nier has accompanied Mr. Stimson. In
1880 during the London Naval Con-
ference he acted as liaison officer be-
tween Mr.. Stimson and the other for
etgn delegates and handled the Secre-
tary's confidential correspondence.
During the financial conference of last
year in London Capt Regnier was Mr..
StimSon's secretary and his contact
man with the press. This year at
Geneva again he acted as liaison be-
tween the Secretary and the represent
ativeS of the other nations, was his
private secretary and helped him in his
relations with the American and the
foreign press.
His most important function in the
State Department is to prepare most Of
Mr.. Stimson's conferences with the
press~and talk with the correspondents
detailed to the department as frequent-
ly as they want to talk to him sbout
various matters, giving them the neces-
sary background to better understand
certain actions of Mr. StimSon. Be-
cause Capt. Regnier knows Mr. Stim-
sons way of thinking so well he ID
able to interpret the Secretary's
thoughts better than most of the per-
manent officials of the department.
Can Talk With Press.
1t happens frequently that Mr.. Stim-
son cannot lay bare before the press
representatives all his thoughts which
prompt him to take certain actions
This easily can be understood when II
is realized that at the State Depart
ment press conferences, besides the
American reporters, there are German
French, British and sometimes jap
anese journalists present
1t is natural that when a delicate
problem is under consideration it u
difficult for the Secretary of State tc
be very outspoken. 1t is in such cases
that Capt. Regnier becomes valuable
While speaking in no official capacity
he can talk to the American repre-.
sentatives of the press who see him in
his Office at the State Department ant
give them some valuable background ol
information which the Secretary some-
times is compelled to withhold from
the press.