The Waterbury Democrat., 1940-02-03
1910 VIII See An,y's Most Widespread
War Games Played With New Realism
COVER NATION
AND POSTS IN
TROPIC SEAS
BY THOMAS M. JOHNSON
NEA Service Military Writer

NEA service Mantary writer
The war games played on our At
lantic and Pacific coasts and in the
South are practical efforts to find,
in peacettme, some Of wars grim
answers.
Today's workmanlike planning Of
our national defense contrasts
strongly with the situation Is years
ago, when our stats were forbidden
even to guess at the consequences
Of Americas involvement in war.
Then they had to camouflage a
National Guard shake-down as de
tense Of the Mexican border" and
to hide Pershing's trench-warfare
training Of his Villa expedition.
Today we admit frankly that, willy
nilly, we must rehearSe our defense
and with both army and navy.
NO. l OUTPOST
NOW PUERTO RICO
So lately, though Pacific surf have
thrust longboats bearing from trans
ports an invading force-8,000 troops,
guns, tanks, trucks, even chicken
wire to give them grip on the sand
when, under the fleets heavy fire,
the Invaders" landed and advanced.
Advance they did, four miles in
Ian, capturing Monterey, Calf, and
threatening San Francisco.
These, first such exercises we ever
held, showed how vital 1t is that no
enemy stab through the Alaska
Hawaii-Panama outpost line. When
sifted, the exercises will also show
whether the present army-navy
board Is board-or a broken reed.
Also, an army chief of staff for
the first time flew across the coun-
/ try nonstop, in IS hours. This flight
Of General George G. Marshall
searchlighted the rising importance
to our defense Of air power.
Air power also dominated another
war game just ended-a game which
was q laborator experiment in pre-
venting an airminded enemy from
establishing, in the Caribbean area,
bases to attack the Panama canal or
our southern Atlantic coastline.
FULL-SCALE MANEUVERS
PLANNED FOR SUMMER
Until air power winged over the
horizon, our naval base at Guam
tanamo, Cuba, seemed enough. But
now 1t Is too remote from the
southeasterly Antilles passages to
"our" Caribbean. A sentinel was
needed at Puerto Rico and the Vir-
gin Islands, which were fortified
mainly by Sponish carronades and
rum. Supplanting these with bases
for air and sea patrol really began
when the Blitzkreig struck Poland.
Like lightning, army and navy hit
their jobs, until today Puerto Rico
could make shift to repel an attack
on the canal. But more work re-
mains.
The defensive nub will be naval
patrol and air bases at San Juan
and an army bombing base at Punta
Borinquen, plus naval air bases in
the Virgin Islands. The defense OF
them all requires 10000 troops, anti
aircraft and coast defense guns. To
establish this, our strongest Atlantic
outpost, will cost $27,00000O.
GAMES SPOTLIGHT
VITAL DEFENSE
To ascertain more fully this out
posts strategic value was the pur-
pose OF the army and navy's Carib-
bean war games. They included the
whole Atlantic squadron: four bat
tleships, cruisers, destroyerS, nine
skeepers, submarines, air forces and
1000 marine to "play enemy" and
try landing at various points. To re-
pulse their attacks the Pureto Rican
National Guard Joined $4,000 reg
ulars. Result: A complete strategical
chart Of this vital area.
Repeatedly, too, the invaders"
who attacked Puerto Rico w land,
sea and air were defeated, even
though they did succeed in landing
on the island. The hills rising be-
hind every artillery emplacement
provided observation posts that en-
HANGED tremendously the efficiency
OF the big guns. u. 8. army experts
are more than ever impressed with
the belief that Pperto Dico can be-
come an American Gibraltar.
War games are being played and
will be played In 1910 as in no
year Ia American peacetime history.
Today, aside from the Pacific and
Atlantic joint maneuvers, most of
the regular army's mobile force is
hard at 1t on the playing fields of
Dixie, and will continue to be I'M
til summer when most Of them will
60 north for full maneuvers OF all
regulars, National Guard and some
reserves-not ir one army area, but
IN all four-not for two weeks, but
for three.
War games may be rough games,
but we are living just now in a very
rough world.
EVE CnDCTrNCDc