Evening star., 1937-11-14


from the Navy Department a letter
which has been sent to all ships and
stations in the regular establishment,
admonishing the regular personnel
that clear understanding of the
Naval Reserve audits purpose is the
duty OF every Regular officer.
Rear Admiral Adolphus Andrews,
chief Of the Bureau of Navigation of
the Navy Department, author of the
communication, pointed out it is of
utmost importance that organized
units Of the Naval Reserve and in
dividual reservists of all classes be so
trained during peace time that upon
mobilization they can perform their
assigned duties with minimum of
further training. This matter, he
added, merits the personal attention
Of the commanding officer of the YES
sci Of station where such training Is
performed. Moreover, he asserted, the
commanding officer and all officers on
board should take special interest in
the Naval Reserves during their Pc
riod Of training, not only setting for
them high standard of officer-like
bearing and efficiency, but intoxicating
in them the spirit and ways of the
service.
While, it was explained, some
officers Of the service are generally
familiar with the Naval Reserve, its
various claSsifications and missions,
there are many officers and men who
are not so informed. Commanding
officers Of ships and stations are di-
rected to take such steps as may be
necessary fully to acquaint all per-
sonnel under their command regard
ing the Naval Reserve. Contact with
the Regular Navy, he continued, is
essential to indoctrinate a naval
reservist in the standards and ideals
OF the service, to give him an under
standing Of the Navy and its needs,
and to fit him to take an active part
In its work. Routine opportunity for
such contact, especially in cose of the
volunteer and merchant marine Naval
Reserve, is said to be lacking. All of
ficers, especially those in command
positions, should encourage and pro-
mote contacts between the Regular
service and the Naval Reserve in every
practicable way.
During the period that vessels are
given the task assignment of train
ing naval reserves, this duty should
be considered as paramount, and rou-
tine exercises should be planned and
carried out accordingly. Careful prep
arations should be made in advance,
and schedules of drills, evolutions and
lectures should be prepared to the
end that the greatest amount of prof.
liable instruction and training may
be impaired during the limited period
the reservistS are on board.
He added that in so far as their
capabilities and experience will per-
nit, reseryists should be assigned to
duties of authority and responsibility
commensurate with their rank. and
rating and their speciality classifica-
ton. They should be trained by
doing, rather than by observing others.
Individual reservists should be given
training and instruction with a view
to qualifying each for the particular
kind of duties indicated by his CLASH
f1cation or for the specific duties con-
templated in his mobilization assign
ment.
Admiral Andrews said because of the
limited opportunities for training duty
1t is inadvisable to undertake to train
reservlsts in duties outside the scope
indicated by their classification. In
this connection he pointed out that
an officer classed for engineering duty
should not be instructed in deck
duties, because he would not be as
signed to such duties in time of war.
Whenever individual reservists are
performing training duty on board.
without affecting the task assignment
of the vessel, special attention should
be given to their training, under a
carefully prearranged schedule. He
said an officer Of the vessel should be
detailed as naval reserve training off,
Ger, and he must familiarize himself
with the various classif1cations of the
reserve