Evening star., 1936-08-02
NAVAL RESERVES
SOON TO RETURN
D. c. Group Will Reach Cap.
itaI Friday After Training
Period.
FTER snendinp this vee

~ Battalion, United States Ma
4 a val Reserves of the District
of Columbia. distributed among three
destroyers of the AtlfAtic Scouting
Fleet, will be heading in the general
direction of the Chesapeake capes this
| week. being scheduled to conclude
their training cruise here when the
ships dock at the Washington Navy
Yard Friday morning.
The greater part of the time of last
| weeks cruising was spent in prepara-
ton for the short-range battle prac-
| tice, when the destroyer's guns will
be fired by picked crews from each di-
vision. This practice will be held
during the current week, and mas
much as one fleet division of 66 men
is assigned to each destroyer. the fir
ing will be more ship by ship COM
petition.
1t is perhaps the largest f1otilla OF
destroyers which the local reservlsts
have ever witnessed while at sea on
training cruise. as the three Destroy
ers which carried the Washington
contingent we're joined by others car
rying the Baltimore and other re-
servists from this area of the East
coast.
The flagship of the destroyer divi-
sion, the u S. S. Ellis, carried the
Sd Fleet Division, under the COM
mand of Lieut.. u. CD F. S. Kirk.
The U. S. s. Tarbell carried the
lst Fleet Division under the COM
mand of Lieut.. u. g. w. c. Jennings,
while the I'd Fleet Division was
aboard the Upshur. The I'd Fleet Di-
vision is commanded by Lieut.. John
Cleland. The battalion commander,
Lieut.. James E. Sullivan, is aboard
/ the TaTbell, while the officers of his
staff were distributed equally between
the Ellis and the Upshur. Cruising
with the 1st Battalion this year is
Capt. H. G. Copeland, one of the
officers assigned to the Reserve section
of the Navy Department. Capt. Cope
land is aboard the Tarbell.
Officers Of the local battalion are
looking forward to receiving on their
return from the cruise copies Of the
relative efficiency charts for the feet
divisions and Naval Reserve battal-
ions throughout the United States.
Each division in the United States,
as well as each battalion, is as
signed a relative position annually
on completion of the annual inspec-
tions by the Naval Reserve Inspection
Board. This year, it was said, the
local divisions and battalion are hope
full that the Washington standing will
be higher than that Of last year.
The Washington chapter OF the
Naval Reserve officers Association is
expected to hold a meeting when the
fleet officers now cruising return to
Washington. The chapter this year
is headed by Lieut.. o. G. w. c.
Jennings, commanding officer of the
treasurer of the organization is Ensign
F. w. Lemly. engineering officer of
the same division.
The officers Of the battalion have
been so busy during the early part of
the year that they have had little
time to follow through their program
to have an armory erected here to
house the local reservists. The early
part Of the year was taken up In max
ing preparations for the annual in
spection in order that they might
raise their relative standing, and after
that duty was completed it became
necessary to start training for the
annual cruise.
The armory and ship are the
greatest needs Of the local battalion
at this time, according to the officers.
They believe that an adequate armory
with proper training facilities. would
do more than anything else to raise
the efficiency marks of the battalion
ter of fact, the various inspectors
have criticized the conditions under
which the local reservists must re-
ceive their training.
The building is on the edge of the
Navy Yard reservation and was Or
| iginally built for commercial build
ing. When the reservists were forced
to give up their armory at Water and
o streets, which they used as a loan
from the National Guard, the old store
building was the only thing available.
The building proper, of brick, has only
four rooms, and what serves as a drill
hall is a frame lean-to added to two
sides of the building during the war,
when it was used as a Red Cross
recreation center. 1t Is almost i'm
possible to drill full division prop
erly in it, and with the increase in
the division compliments to 66 men,
maneuvering in Infantry drill is prac-
tically out of the question so far as
effective training is concerned. When
the entire battalion Is lined up for
muster the hall is SO crowded that
it is difficult for the officers to get
among their men. In addition the
drill hall has to be used for much of
the equipment which the sailors use in
thn training Tn nY1e corner liz a