Evening star., 1937-10-24
SPECIAL LECTURES
|. OFFERED OFFICERS
All Groups Urged to Attend
Professional Series SChed-
uIed Here.

WV ~ 'et
officers of the United States Naval
Reserve in the District of Columbia
are being urged to attend a series
of instructive and professional lectures
on the Navy and the Naval Reserve
which will be inaugurated here this
week, according to an announcement
by 1t. Comdr. Charles B. McVay, Sd,
U. S. Navy, officer in charge of all
naval reserve activities in this area.
The first lecture will be held at the
Naval Reserve Armory in the Wash
ington Navy Yard next Thursday
night. 1t will be an off night for
the drilling section of the reserve, so
that all officers will have an oppor-
tunitv to attend. Officers of the
volunteer reserve, who are not re-
ouired to attend drills. are particu-
larly urged to attend the lectures,
and it was pointed out that credit
will be given them on their fitness
reports.
The first lecture will be on the
organization and administration OF
the naval reserve.
Many of the volunteer officers, 1t
was said. are attending drills with
the feet reserve, and are participat-
ing in all the activities. A number
of them have been assigned places
instructing the many classes of en-
listed men. who are studying the
various courses laid out by the Bureau
of Navigation for improving the Ell
fciency Of the naval reservists. This
class room instruction was inaugural
ed last Tuesday evening as part OF
the regular drill training period. and
they will be kept up in intensive way
I'D to the time of the annual in
spection by a board of officers from
the Navy Department. The purpose
is to so train each enlisted man SO
that he can take a written exami-
nation offered by the board.
Capt. Felix Gygax, U. S. Navy, di-
rector Of the naval reserve division
Of the Navy Department, made a
surprise visit last week during the
drill period Of the local battalion.
1t was the beginning of a series OF
visits which he proposes 70 make TO
naval reserve units throughout the
country. to familiarize himself with
the work they are doing in prepar-
ing themselves for service with the
feet in time of an emergency.
Capt. Gygax has just assumed his
new assignment here. He was for-
merly in command of the United
States cruiser Augusta, which is with
the Asiatic Fleet.
Glasses of instruction for the large
number of enlisted men who are cam
didates for appointment to the Unlted
States Naval Academy also are tunc-
tioning at the battalion and the OH
GERS are hoping that they will obtain
as many if not more of the appoint
ments as they did last year, when
they captured Is of the 25 allotments.
They will have to take their COM
petitive examinations on April /. the
25 men who obtain the highest marks
are selected for the appointments.
Members of the Naval Communica-
ton Reserve Division made an in
spection of the Nays newest sub
marine. the U. S. S. Perch, last week
while she was moored at the local
Navy Yard. They particularly studied
the wireless installation aboard this
vessel.
Naval reserve officers are hoping
that Congress at the coming session
will take up the McAdoo bill which
provides tor the provision of armories
for the Naval Reserve throughout
the country In that bill they see
now the only hope of getting their
training conditions here materially
improved. as they have met with OBJ
stacles in every previous effort dur
ing the past several years to have
Congress or the Public Works Admin
istration provide them with building
Naval reserve and regular officers
at conference on the armory situ-
alton pointed out that the armoiy
situation requires considerable atten-
ton. 1t was strongly recommended
that in providing new armories that
it be the policy of the Navy Depart
ment to insist on ownership of the
structures and that they be controlled
by the department. This would obvi-
ate the possibility of the, units being
dispossesed suddenly for some other
Government activity.
This was the situation here several
years ago. The Reserve unit occu-
pied a building on the Washington
Channel water front which was con-
structed for the naval militia when
it was a part of the National Guard
prior to the war However, when the
Guards armory situation became
acute the local Reservists were ordered
out and they we're provided with their
present unsatisfactory structure in
the Washington Navy Yard Because
of the increase in the size of the di-
visions as to personnel and the vast
increase in activities. including the
installation of considerable heavy
equipment needed in the training OF
the units, serious condition has