Evening star., 1937-06-13
ARMY SCHOOL
POLICY STUDIED
Objection Registered to
Having Field Officers Study
Company Duties.

Opposition developed in the HOUSE
Committee on Appropriations to the
practice Of sending National Guard
officers of field rank. such as ma jors
and above, to the service schools, and
then having them taught such ele-
mentary stuff AS newly enlisted mer
are given. Army officers were told, in
the course of the hearing on the mill
tary appropriation bill, that congress
men could not understand the wisdom
OF policy that will take a major, o,
lieutenant colonel, or colonel ir
the National Guard who, in times oi
emergency, must deal with the tactics
and strategy and that sort of thing in
the handling of battalion or regi-
mcnt, and putting them in a school
and teaching them the elementary
stuff that recruit would get.
The Army officers attempted to de-
fend the practice on the ground they
would be used as teachers in their
units upon completion of the service
school course, but members of Con-
gress said that was the duty of the
company officers. and contended that
II they insisted on sending field officers
TO take such subjects, he is not going
TO be worth anything in tactics and
strategy. They called it giving a cor
poral the training that is given a field
officer.
IL was explained to the committee
that Que to reduced appropriations
there was gradual reduction in the
number of National Guard officers
sent to service schools for training 29C
IN 1881 reduced to 50 in 1884. In 1895
the number was increased to l58, OF
which 49 were sent to the ChemicaI
Warfare School to provide a trained
chemlcal warfare officer in each State
AS result of the study made in
1888, 1t was asserted, it was determined
the National Guard needed $3.50
graduates at service schools to fill the
important command and staff posi-
tons. After deducting graduates al
ready available and expected losses
1t was determined that the objective
could be attained in IS years by send
ing annually about 800 National Guard
offlcers to the service schools This
number was increased in 1886 and
1887 to meet the need of trained motor
and tank officers resulting from the
nlotorlzation and mechanization of the
National Guard.
Prior to 1884 the National Guard
Bureau sent about 30 field officers an.
nually to the special service schools
From 1884 to 1886 only three were
sent. To make up the shortage and tc
meet the l5-year objective, the policy
OF sending field officers to the specia
service schools of the arms has beer
re-estabhshed, This year II field offic.
ers are being sent to special service
schools which had temporarily sus.
pended the field officers course. This
accounts for the increase in average
cost per officer, which will be nearer
per cent instead of 10 per cent, due
TO the subsequent reduction in the
number Of officers to be sent.
The old company and field officers
courses have been consolidated into 6
single course for the National Guard
as was done in 1885 for the Regular
Army. In order to meet the l5-yeal
objective the National Guard Bureau
has adopted policy of sending al
officer only once to a special service
school. No field officer over As year
of age is sent
With respect to the Chemical War.
fare School, the policy now is to senc
20 National Guard officers each year
This quota, 1t was pointed out, vii
provide unit gas officers for every Ma.
tlonal Guard regiment and separate
battalion and also for the division staff