Evening star., 1939-08-25
Tension in Europe
Puts Added Zeal
In Maneuvers
War at PIottsburg
Shows Horse and Motor
Cavalry Essential
BY JOSEPH S. EDGERTON,
Star Stafi Correspondent.

StaT otau Correspondent.
FIELD HEADQUARTERS, 1st,
Army, Plattsburg, N. Y, Aug. 25.-
The threat of another world war
lent a grim purpose today to the
closing phase of Americas S greatest
peacetime Army maneuvers as ST.
600 officers and men of the National
Guard and Regular Army fought
through the final hours of a mock
war to test the arms, military Or
ganization and tactical methods
upon which this country is about
to stake its national security under
the military expansion program.
Even in the most remote salients
OF the long battlefront which swung
through the foothills of the Adiron-
dacks west of Lake Champlain, ON
GERS and men were asking observers
for the latest European news and
were specializing on the possibility
OF an American mobilization, which
would turn the present exercises into
the preliminary for real battle
training.
With the knowledge that the re-
suits Of their efforts were crystal
lizing official opinion as to the
merits of mechanical cavalry, va
rious type of tanks, armored cars,
scout cars, anti-tank weapons, auto
matte weapons and other arms, as
well as the best method of employ
Ing these new devices of war, troops
on both sides were sparing no efforts
to make the best possible showing.
Each Cavalry Vital.
Opinion in the Army is divided
over the relative worth of horse
cavalry against mechanical cavalry,
with a growing concensus that the
Army must in the future place re-
lance on both types, carefully work.
ing out the proper field of employ
ment for them so that the old may
supplement the new. This thought
undoubtedly was in the minds of
most OF the officers and men of the
7th Cavalry Brigade, wholly mecha-
nized, when late yesterday they
completed one of the most brilliant
moves OF the maneuvers, a 75-mile
night movement around the rear of
the entire battlefield with an attack
on the flank and rear of the oppos-
ing Black National Guard line en-
masse as a climax.
New Anti-Tank Gun Needed.
The 1st Army maneuvers OF the
past three weeks here and in Vir-
glnia also have demonstrated the
urgent need for new type of highly
mobile anti-tank gun which can be
set up and used as easily as a ma
chine gun but which will have
greater fire power than even the
present 37-millimeter infantry How
ltzer. Where the terrain Is suit
able, tanks and armored cars can
attack with almost the surprise of
aircraft, these exercises have re-
vealed. A gun which requires any
sort of emplacement or time to set
it up is of little advantage as an
anti-tank weapon.
There still is some question as to
the proper use of the mechanical
weapons. The field commanders of
tanks and iron cavalry" are at
tempting to show realistically what
they consider to be the proper tao
tics. The mechanical cavalry, ac-
cordingly, has been used for long
END plays" swinging far outside
the battle area to dash in against
flank positions or rear echelons, with
hammerlike, stupefying blows.
Throughout these maneuvers a
standard practice for the 75-milli-
meter gun batteries of the field ar
tlllery has been to place guns at
each critical position to command
likely approaches for the tanks and
mechanical cavalry from the fanks
and rear.
The inevitable question which
follows such maneuvers as those of
the 1st Army at Plattsburg and
Manassas is, who won the WARP"
Lit. Gen. Hugh A. Drum, supreme
held commander of all the forces
engaged, has the answer: Both
sides won, but the American people
were the real winners"
Gen. Drum expressed satisfaction
in the improvement to be seen in
the troops and their officers.