Evening star., 1939-04-16
Naval Academy
Candidates Face
Tests This Week
ITO Reservists
Seek Appointments 10
Annapolis School


Seek Appointment 10
Annapolis School
One hundred and ten naval re.
servists this week will face examina.
tions which will determine whether
they will be among the group which
Will enter the United States Naval
Academy on July !, as the contin-
gent from the Naval Reserve Of the
country. There are only so points
available, and this Is twice the num-
Der that was available up until the
time the new act was passed last
year.
While there are ITO OF the young
men here, attached to the lst Bat
talon Of the Organized Reserve,
there are scores Of others attached
to other divisions throughout the
country.
1t is understood the local battalion
has the largest number Of candidates
for the appointments, and II it fol.
lows the precedent set by 1t for the
past few years, 1t will capture most
Of the appointments. Many who en-
list in the local organization for the
purpose Of gaining the privilege to
take the examinations, come here
from other parts of the country be-
cause OF the advantages for study
here in the preparatory schools. So,
while the local battalion gets the
credit for training them, only a few
OF them are District residents,
The tests which they will take
Wednesday will be conducted by the
United States Civil Service Com
mission. The examinations, in ad-
dition to being competitive, In that
the highest so will get the appoint
ments, but they will be the regular
entrance examinations. Any one
selected will not have to take any
other mental tests, although all of
the successful candidates will have
to take another physical examina-
ton.
The Naval Reservists are not con-
fined strictly to the so appointments
for the Reserve. The regular Navy
has 100 appointments each year,
open to enlisted men of the regular
establishment. Any untitled va
cancies in this group are passed on
to the Reserve, and last year there
were 80 more vacancies. Further
more, many Of the men who take the
examinations as Reservists also arm
themselves with congressional ap-
pointments, which give them an
other chance at the Academy in the
event that they fall behind the
Naval Reserve limit, although they
might have made passing marks on
the examinations.
There appears to be some differ
ences Of opinion over the proposal
To take number Of men from the
Naval Communication Reserve and
assign them to the divisions Of the
Organized Reserve. which consist of
the actively drilling units. AL
though the plan has been discussed,
and even announced in some sources
1t Is now understood that 1t has not
been finally approved.
Generally, it provides that certain
men. particularly radio men, be
transferred to the active divisions
so that they can be trained in their
particular work along with the other
branches. Each division of the Or
ganized Reserve. according to the
present plans, forms the nucleus Of
an emergency necessitating the
calling Of the men into active serv.
ice. Therefore. it was pointed out,
radio men would be important to
handle the communications facili-
ties Of the vessels.
| The local Reservists, in the or.
ganized branch, 1t is understood,
would welcome the assignment Of
such men to them, but the question
uppermost in their minds is whether
these assignments. particularly the
ofhcers, would be extra numbers or
whether some officer Of the line
would have to be displaced, espe.
cially in view of the fact that the
limitations now on the size and
character of the divisions is fixed
by the amount Of appropriations
with which to pay drill money and
for the annual cruises, as each ON
Ger and man receives a days pay Of
his rank and grade for each nights
drill and the pay Of his rank and
grade while on the annual training
cruise.
AS to the enlisted men. the divi-
sions now have vacancies in the
radio specialist field, which would be
well filled by taking the men from
the communications branch. where
they have been under a strenuous
course of training for several years.
They feel that these men should be
regularly drilling with the divi-
sions to which they most assuredly
would be assigned In the event Of a
mobilization.
The technique Of naval communi-
cations procedure is so stringent, 1t
was asserted. that the best way to
build up trained force is to give
the officers and men instruction In
actual practice. While men Of the
Organized Reserve are required to
put In at least two weeks year on
board cruising vessel Of the fleet.
those in the communications reserve
are not required to take the cruise,
and little opportunity is given them
to get this training aboard ships.
This, it was added. is another argu-
ment for assigning certain per-
centage Of them to the active divi-
sion where they would get this sea
training.
Drill work aboard the United
States destroyer Roper, assigned here
for instruction Of the divisions Of the
local battalion are said by 1t. James
E. Sullivan, commanding the local
battalion, to be progressing rapidly.
One of the three divisions Is assigned
each week to have its drill aboard
this vessel, which is of the type on
which the officers and men will take
their annual sea training this sum-
mer. 1t Is expected that this service
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