Evening star., 1940-05-19

THE ancient world was conquered and
= ruled for six centuries by means of
the Roman legion, unit of heavy in
fantry, rigidly disciplined and highly
trained with a combination, then resist
less, of flexibility and striking force.
Poland's collapse, England's headlong
debacle in Norway and the German drive
into Belgium and France suggest that the
Third Reich may have fashioned mod
ern equivalent from howitzer, machine
gun, combat car and airplane. This is the
mechanical division, an instrument
welding mobility and fire power hith-
erto unknown to man. OF such divisions
Hitler's army possesses at least H. Their
personnel of 10000 or more represents
the last word in skill, equipment and
morale.
By contrast, the United States can
muster today exactly single mechanical
unit. This is nothing so impressive as a
division but merely the third part of one
namely, brigade. It's two regiments
OF former cavalry consist of 2,865 officers
and men. They are supplied with 1873
Springfelds, so automatic rifles, 1858
pistols, 1186 machine and submachine
guns, II mortars, Is howitzers, 240
wheeled trucks, 40 half-trucks, 46 pas
senger cars, 112 tanks, 100 armored and
scout cars, planes, l60 motorcycles and
2 ambulances. There are plans on paper
for expanding the unit to two brigades
In the opinion of Army authorities the
chance is growing that the Americas may
sooner or later be put to their military
defense against invasion. The armor of
geographic isolation, once invincible, is
thought to be disintegrating rapidly be-
fore the range, speed and deadliness of
the air arm.
Fleet Falling Behind.
Owing to Japan's secret construction of
capital ships, the American Navy, it is
said may no longer constitute even a
one ocean fleet. Latin America, to whose
defense against invasion we are COM
mitted by the Monroe Doctrine, and the
United States itself are regarded as
acutely vulnerable to the Trojan horse.
Allied loss of the war; in this view, might
plausibly enough bring the American
hemisphere face to face with a coalition
OF Germany, Italy, Japan and perhaps
Russia-all of them fiercely predatory
and murderously hostile to the demo-
cratic idea.
With such arguments in mind, as we'll
as the penalties of unpreparedness which
have shrieked almost daily from Euro
pean news dispatches during the last
eight months, a factual survey of the
military establishment of the United
States may be welcomed as timely and
valuable. For present purposes, the Navy
Is lett out OF account. The report is
based on conversations with responsible
Army officers and members of the Senate
Committee on Military Affairs; upon
testimony of Army leaders before the
House Appropriations Committee, and
upon standard reference books such as
Maj. r. Ernest Dupuy's world in Arms"
Certain highlights of the situation leap
to the eye.
The total trained and partly trained
military manpower Of the United States
is estimated at 607,000. Corresponding
figures for some other countries are
given thus: Holland, $4,000; switzer-
land, 100000: Australia, 687, 900; Turkey,
100000; Belgium, 10000; Rumania, l.
100000 and Yugoslavia, 100000.
Equipment Sadly Needed.
Because Of lack of equipment, only
75,000 of these 607,000 men could he
placed in the field tomorrow with fair
chance of coping with the latest develop
ments of military warfare. It is the
dream of Army chieftains to be able to
call up at the declaration of hostilities
an initial force Of 100000 men, fully
trained and armed; and to have at hand,
stored in arsenals, complete equipment
for an additional $4,000 who would be
recruited by enlistment within 80 days
afterward under the so-called Protective
Mobilization Plan.
The proposed initial force is still $76,-
100000 short Of full equipment, accord