Evening star., 1939-09-24

kuSh 10 JOIN
ID. T.. Naval Reserve
War Situation
Sends Lorge Number
Seeking Enlistment
Scores Of young men during the
last few weeks have been focking to
the armory Of the 1st Battalion,
United States Naval Reserve, in the
District, seeking to enlist in that
organization, according to officers of
that command. The recruiting ofii-
GERS and the medical departments
examining section have been
crowded with applicants, but many
OF them are being turned down.
While the officers are pleased with
the influx because 1t gives them a
larger group from which to select
the best, they point out that there
are no vacancies in the organized
or actively drilling branches. Such
men as are acceptable to the re-
cruiting ofilcer and who also pass
the physical tests are placed on the
Volunteer Reserve, where they are
not required to attend regular weekly
drills. However, they are permitted
to participate in the activities of
the active divisions, without drill
pay, and those who do are given
the preference to the organized divi-
sions If and when vacancies occur.
Officers attribute the abnormal in
crease in the applications for en-
listment to the European situation,
the young men desiring to get into
an organization of their own selec-
ton instead of waiting to be selected
for an organization in event of an
emergency.
The Organized Reserve, which is
composed of three divisions here,
each organized to form the nucleus
OF a crew of destroyer in time OF
war, Is limited in numbers for each
division by the amount Of appro-
priations made by Congress for drill
pay. However, the volunteer branch
Is not limited, and many of the
members of the Volunteer Reserve
here, and even officers on the volun-
teer list, take an active part in the
drills and exercises Of the local Or
| ganization
With the great influx of recruits,
officers here believe the divisions
will have sufficient personnel to man
completely destroyer should the
Government find it necessary to call
them into active service.
The newly overhauled training
ship Of the local battalion will be
completed at the Norfolk Navy Yard
October 90 A crew of 2 officers
and 10 enlisted men will be selected
from among the Reserve personnel
and will be sent to Norfolk by train
to put the vessel in commission and
bring her to Washington.
Officers say that she will be i'm
mediately put into training service,
and plans already have been COM
pleted for her to make her first
training cruise with members of the
local battalion on October %. With
a selected crew of officers and men
the vessel will be taken down the
Potomac, perhaps as far as Point
Lookout. for a brief training cruise,
during which the ship will be given
a thOroII0h shokedou,p
The vessel now is in the Norfolk
Navy Yard on second overhaul
period within six months. She was
originally fitted out at the Charles
ton IS. c. Navy Yard, but when
delivered to the local Reservists and
brought to Washington they found
out that much of the work which
was supposed to have been done on
her had not been completed. She
was thoroughly examined by the
Navy Yard force here, and, when
the list of recommended repairs was
completed, 1t was found that she
would have to go to the Norfolk
Navy Yard. Two of the principal
Jobs left undone were completion of
the heating plant and installation
OF her wireless equipment, including
code and voice equipment, which
will enable the ship to keep in con-
tact with both the Navy Yard and
the Naval Reserve radio station here
while she is out on cruise. The
heating plant, it was said, has been
completed and will be used on the
trip North and on the cruise which
Is planned after she arrives here.
Because the vessel is propelled by
two gasoline engines, a special OIL
burning furnace had to be installed,
with a hot-water heating system.
This was desirable because the Re-
servists plan to use the vessel
throughout the winter months for
training cruise work on the Potomac
River and Chesapeake Bay. Be-
cause of the lack of heating facili-
ties. the cabin launch which former
ly served as training vessel here
had to be laid up each winter and
the officers and men had to conf1ne
their training and instruction to that
provided within the armory.
1t. w. Croft Jennings, commander
of the local battalion, has taken
steps to formulate complete
change in the educational system for
members of the local organization.
1t was said that as a result of a
study of the reports of the last
annual inspection, it had been found
that there were certain defects in
the present system which should be
corrected. One of the principal
ones, it was said, was that the in
struction system in each division for
the lower ratings among the en-
listed personnel was not uniform.
Two boards of officers are to make a
thorough canvass of the situation
and make a report with recommen-