Evening star., 1941-04-22
Tremendous Army
Developing, Marshall
Tells Investigators
War Department Over
Hump Chief Of Stuff
Says at Senate Hearing
By the Associated Press.

Gen. George c. Marshall, Army
chief of staff, told the Senate De-
fense Investigating Committee today
the War Department had gotten
over the hump after two years of
difficulties in assembling a fighting
force and "a tremendous Army Is
developing"
Gen. Marshall said he was highly
pleased with the organization which
had been developed.
The Army has the highest morale
that have ever SEEN" he declared.
In applying lessons learned from
German tactics in overrunning
France. Gen. Marshall said. the War
Department has developed four
training schools for men of the
mechanical forces.
These schools soon will be turning
out 10000 trained men at each camp
every three months, he said.
They will be assigned to the four
armored divisions, which Gen. Mar
shall described as quite impressive"
in their military efficiency despite
the fact that two of them had had
to be "emasculated' to furnish men
to train recruits.
Fall Of France Brought Change.
Outlining the difficulties under
which the War Department had
worked, the chief of staff said the
Army had only 10000 men on duty
July l, 1899 This now has grown to
a force of 1250,o0O men, he added.
It took from October. 1899, to
May, 1910. to obtain the motor equip
ment necessary for maneuvers of
10000 men in Louisiana in the latter
month, he said, adding that at that
time the Army still did not have
transportation for its heavy artil-
lery.
Asserting that "the fundamental
trouble was that the people were
not appreciative of the possibilities
of the situation" Gen. Marshall
said it was not until after the fall
OF France that the Army began to
get the money for necessary equip
ment.
Industrialists More Willing.
There also was a tremendous
change of sentiment on the part
of inoustrialists at that time, he
said, resulting in many of them
agreeing to accept orders which
few weeks earlier they didn't feel
they could fill"
This attitude, Gen. Marshall said,
apparently resulted because there
was a general feeling that we had
passed from period of dividends
to one of patriotism"
Gen. Marshall was one of the last
of the key defense officials called
by the committee for background
evidence before it undertakes an in
vestigation of specific details in the
defense program. Chairman Tru-
man said that Edward r. Stettinius,
jr., of the Defense Commission
might also be asked to testify tomor-
row on general aspects of the
program.
Mr.. StettiniuS, Senator Truman
said, had prepared at the commit
tees request a confidential report
recommending changes in the de-
fense administration.
Meade to Be Investigated.
Senator Truman said the first
Army camp to be subjected to COM
mittee study would be Fort Meade,
in Maryland, with a half-dozen to
be investigated in all. Camp Bland
ing. in Florida, was high on the list.
with Camp Leonard Wood, near
Rolla, Mo-, also to be the subject of
an inquiry.
Asserting that there was mo ques-
ton" that the cost of Fort Meade
had been excessive" Senator Tru-
man said the committee would seek
to determine, probably next week,
whether the cost was result OF
the location chosen.
Senator Truman declared that
Camp Leonard Wood "cost about
s24, 900 900 when it was supposed to
cost $11 ,o00, ,O00."
HilIman Testifies.
The committee heard Sidney Hill
man, associate director of the Office
of Production Management, testify
yesterday in favor of the Govern
ment taking over strike-bound de-
fense plants "if it becomes neces-
sary." Mr.. Hillman said, however,
that he was opposed to such course
unless all other means failed. He
declared that a spirit of co-opera-
ton prevailed at present between
labor and manapennent
Best results, he contended, could
be obtained from continuation of a
policy of voluntary cooperation
rather than compulsion.
I