Evening star., 1939-01-08
New Militia Units Here
furnish Housing Problem
Quarters Of Some Old Units Being
Shifted to Make Room for Artillery

SUtbtSO ~ NlOkS NOO
Increases in the strength Of the
District National Guard. which have
been authorised by the National
Guard Bureau Of the War Depart
ment. have confronted the local
omcals with q real problem Of hous-
Ing. With two complete regiments
here, In addition to the separate
units, and most Of them quartered
In the Pennsylvania Avenue Armory,
considerable reshifting and doubling
up Of units has been found neces-
sary. The District will have two
complete regiments Of troops Just
as soon as the recruiting Of the per-
sonnel can be effected.
The increases are in the 260th
Regiment Of Coast Artillery, a mo-
bile anti-aircraft unit, and when
completed, will give the entire local
Guard q strength Of ll2 officers, 2
warrant officers and 1857 enlisted
men. The Coast Artillery regiment
will be the larger Of the two, accord
Ing to otdciaN.
The Coast Artillery regiment long
ago outgrew its quarters in the old
Naval Militia Armory on the water
front, and some Of the batteries have
been quartered with the engineers in
the Pennsylvania avenue building.
1t was said that the new units to be
organized will be quartered in the
old building there which serves un-
der the name of an armory.
The organization Of the new units
will force some Of the workshops Of
the Guard, such as the ordnance
repair shop, to the cellar, and part
Of the present large room which
serves to some extent as q drill hall
will have to be given over to locker
space and equipment storage for the
new units. This In turn will necessi-
tate that more Of the unit drilling
will have to be done outdoors when
the weather is favorable; otherwise
the work will have to be confined
to the classroom instruction. In the
reshaping Of tho quarters some Of
the units, 1t was said, will have to
double up until such a time az new
quarters can be found or Congress
makes provision for the erection of
. building especially for use as an
armory.
The new organizations will add
IL officers and 264 enlisted men to
the local outfit. Active recruiting
has been inaugurated, and as fast
as the units are prepared, they will
be reported for muster for Federal
recognition. It is anticipated that
all Of the new units will come into
being within the next few weeks.
The units to be organized and the
compliments of each are: Head
quarters Battery, officers and sc
men; Service Battery. 3 officers, 60
men and / warrant ofiicer, the latter
to be the leader Of the band; the
Headquarters Machine Gun Bat
talon, ofilcer; Battery G, officers
and 66 men, and Battery H, with Z
similar number Of onicers and men
While the increases will give q
substantial boost to the size of the
Guard, there are still other units
which have been allocated to thi,
area but which have not been au.
thorized for formation. They are
the Ordnance Company, the Head
quarters Company and the Medica
Department Detachment, l04tt
Quartermaster Regiment, one bat.
talon Of which has already beer
organized here, and the remainde,
of the battalion Of the 372d In.
fantry, only one company Of which
is in existence now.
National Guard officers whe
have civilian jobs which tend K
promote obesity will have to gel
themselves more exercise to keer
themselves primed for active serv.
ice. They have been informed thai
in addition to carrying on theil
military education and keeping w
with the developments Of moderr
warfare they must also, at the same
time, keep down to certain specified
weights.
In approving the commissioning
Of a new ofncer in the Guard, thu
War Department called attention
to his medical record, as to hi.
weight for his age and height
They informed the local militis
headquarters that the officer wa.
l pound overweight. according t<
these new standards, and that h.
would be given three months from
the time of his appointment ir
which to work himself within thu
limits.
While the notation only referred
to this one officer, nevertheless thu
word has gone through the barracks
and omcers approaching the regular
annual physical examinations, and
particularly those headed for pro-
motion, are examining their frame.
to ascertain where q few pounds
can be taken OF here and there.
Second 1t. Wendell Scott Holme,
has been appointed to the Nationa,
Guard Of the United States. HI
holds the same rank In the Quarter
master Corps of the State stan.
First 1t. Robert Amos Erwin