Evening star., 1939-05-16
Young Officers
Held Needed 10
Guard Americas
High-Ronk Personnel
Weakest Army Link,
Woodring Testifies
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
Secretary of War Woodring told
the House Military Affairs Commits
tee today the Army needs younger
officers in its higher ranks, because
it must be ready, if necessary, to
defend the Western Hemisphere.
Testifying on legislation designed
to "vitalize" the officer strength of
the service by forcing the retirement
Of overage officers, Secretary Wood
ring said an existing hump" in the
promotion system made the Arny's
officer personnel the weakest link in
the Nations defenses.
Our mission remains the same
the defense of our country" the Sec
retary declared, "but the great re-
duction of the elements of time and
space made possible by modern SCI
ence has broadened our field of &C.
ton so as to embrace, if need be,
the Western Hemisphere.
Would Force Retirements.
Under the bill recommended by
Mr.. Woodring. officers of specified
ages and ranks would be forced to
retire whenever the total separa-
tlons OF officers from the service in
any year failed to reach 4.35 per
cent OF the entire officer strength.
Officials estimated 1900 would be
affected Immediately.
Brig. Gen. L. D. Gasser. assistant
chief of staff, told the committee
that without the proposed legisla-
ton it would take % years to rid
the Army Of the so-called World
War hump" and that in the mean
time another would have been ere.
ated.
Meanwhile. the Senate Military
Committee, in majority report,
described bill to draft capital in
the event of war as "a deterrent to
war in the sense that it makes war
less profitable to those who finance
war"
War, the committee added, can
be made less likely by removing the
profit incentive"
Inc measure, approved last week
by l2-to-2 committee vote, would
require citizens to purchase l per
cent, 50-year Government bonds in
the event of any emergency which
required the drafting of manpower.
The amounts to be purchased would
vary according to met wealth" of
individual citizens, and wealth would
be determined in a census ordered
by the President.
To Offer Minority Report.
Senator Bridges, Republican. Of
New Hampshire, who opposed the
Dill in committee, said he was pre-.
pairing minority report on it.
The ma ajority report said the pur.
pose OF the bill is to provide tho
machinery for supporting an army
which will be as mandatory as the
machinery that will be used for
raising the army"
1t added: =
When the voluntary system of
financing war breaks down. as it
always does when the future outlook
Is dark, governments have turned
to the printing presses for money
Win the disastrous results that al.
ways follow. =.
This measure offers a plan for
utilizing the full amount of wealth
in the Nation, including all of the
non-liquid assets, without issuing
one dollar of money that is not Sc
cured by more than a dollars worth
OF property"
Discussing the bill to retire over.
age officers, Secretary Woodring re-
Gently declared the action was nee
essary to relieve overcrowding in the
grades from captain to colonel by
some 1000 officers who entered the
service in the World War.
The forced retirement would be
spread over several years. Secre-
tary Woodring estimated the cost of
three-fourths pay for the retired
officers at about s5OO,0OO a year.
There were signs of opposition in
both House and Senate from legis-
lators who called the measure too
drastic.