Evening star., 1940-06-11

once and for all, we are more likely
to escape future wars than to be
involved in them, and we can sleep
at night knowing our country will
be safe.
If we learn this lesson only
temporarily, until the present
emergency passes, and then forget
it, some future emergency will
catch us in the same deporable
state in which we find ourselves
today.
We have a splendid Navy. Fortu-
nately that has been kept up. How
ever. its entire air force needs rapid
modernization in equipment and in
enlargement of personnel.
Army WoefulIy Weak.
Our Army, unfortunately, is one
of the smallest on the face of the
earth, and while its personnel is
good, it is woefully weak in modern
war equipment and auxiliary imple-
ments.
The Army staff is charged with
the primary responsibility of having
an Army adequate to defend these
shores against any possible foe. The
present size and equipment of our
national Army is far below the
margin of safety.
The chief of staff of the United
States Army. Gen. George c. Mar
shall, is asking Congress to provide
a Regular Army of 375 900 in place
of an Army of 100000 men. This
is a most modest request. The chief
of staff feels that with such an Army,
efficiently trained and equipped
with modern weapons, together with
the 235,000 men of the National
Guard, likewise better trained and
splendidly equipped, which will give
us a combined Army strength of
$4,000 men, the national defense
of this country will be provided for
sufficiently.
Of the 375,000 men in the enlarged
Regular Army, 2SO,OOO will be in the
ground forces and $4,000 will be
placed in the Air Corps. This new
Regular Army would have 80 per
cent of its men in mobile combat
forces within the United States.
There would be nine infantry di-
visions, two armored divisions and
one cavalry division, making IL di-
visions in all in the United States
proper These II divisions would
be arranged in two full Army corps
supported by auxiliary troops. There
would be about 125, 1000 men in all
A quarter of the new Regular
Army would be allocated to the Air
Corps, composed of 81 pursuit squad
rons, SO bombardment squadrons, 40
reconnaissance squadrons and %
transport squadrons, or a total of
1873 squadrons.
$4,000 Stationed Outside.
The new plan provides that one
fifth of our Regular Army be sta
toned throughout our overseas pos
sessions, in the Philippines. Guam,
Hawaii, Alaska, the Panama Canal
Zone and Puerto Rico. Thus IS
900 Regular Army troops would be
stationed outside of the continental
United States. About $500 men will
be stationed at our harbor defense
garrisons and at our coast defense
batteries.
The remaining men of the new
Regular Army between 10000 and
100000 would be stationed in Army
depots, arsenals, hospitals, military
schools and general service agencies.
This is the minimum Regular
Army needed at this very moment.
Even after the present emergency
passes, it should not be reduced too
quickly and perhaps not at all, lest
again we be caught in the same
situation in which we find ourselves
today.
The new Regular Army, besides
placing $4,000 men in the Army Air
Corps, would have $4,000 armored
units There would be $4,000 men
in the infantry, 4100O men in the
field artillery and 21,00O in the anti
aircraft service; $4,000 would be as
signed to the Army engineers, signal
corps and coast artillery. About
$4,000 would be used in supply and
auxiliary services and schools. OF
those assigned to the Air Corps,
5000 would be pilots who would fly
the Warplanes. Personnel and facili-
ties would be set up to train new
Army pilots at the rate of 1000 per
year.
Supplementing this new Regular
Army would be the 1000 men in
the National Guard. Its entire
equipment must be overhauled and
modernized and filled out. Much
additional training, particularly field
maneuvers on large scale, must
be provided for the training of the
National Guard in the future.
Many Months Required.
1t is regrettable that it is going
to take many months and in some
cases many years, before all of the
men in the Army and National
Guard are fully equipped with mod
ern weapons and auxiliary devices,
which good army must have to-
day to be able to resist attack sue
cessfullv.
Why has not all this been done
before, you ask? Perhaps the big