Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-03-15
Unsung Men
In Americas
Arms Effort
They Do Excellent Jobs,
Rarely Get PIoudits
1.-THE opinions exprsssed by
General Johnson are not nsess-
sarily those of The Detroit
Times.)
BY HUGH S. JOHNSON

IN ALL the criticism that is
i going on about unsatisfactory
performances in our defense eff
forts, men who are doing good
jobs are apt to be forgotten. Yet
there is some reason not to men,
ton those an individual happens
to know about because there are
so many that necessarily escape
the narrow orbit of his observa-
ton.
In so massive an effort, in
volving SO many eager young
Americans of great ability, it is
a cinch that there are dozens OF
bang-up performances that may
never be mentioned until the ex-
element is all overland then
in the general amnesty and era
of good feeling it usually hap
pens that the d. S. M. is con-
ferred wholesale upon the just
and the unjust without much
discrimination.
One of the best jobs to which
my attention has been drawn
has been that of Col. Brehon
Somerville. This young regular
army engineer has shown that
he can be depended upon con-
sistently for such performances.
AS faithful armor-bearer of
his boss. he early moved down
on the Florida ship canal and.
by an unbelievable performance.
had the disputed ditch half
ripped open before legislative
opposition could stop it.
HIS next big splash was as
II WPA administrator in New
York City. 1t was originally
organized on a sort of fourth
alarm fire house basis of study
and preparation.
After few weeks il had the
10000 people it was told TO
employ at work" but as a
great smoothly run engineering
protector collection of projects
it just didn't rate. Its relative
construction costs and speed of
production were shocking.
Somerville took il over after
an interval and. when he left,
it had the respect as an excel
lent engineering administration
wherever that was possible,
which it wasn't with such prof.
ects as adagio-dancing and pup
peteering) of many of New
York's best construction COM
panies.
His last exploit was upon the
almost complete collapse of the
quartermaster's construction d.
vision under the sudden and
tremendous load of the biggest
war-building job ever unexpect-
eddy suffered by any organiza-
ton.
He was moved into il as an
emergency savior and he is doing
the job magnificently. II is a
matter of pride to me to see the
original WPA army staff now
acting as Somerville's wheel
horses - including Lieutenant
Gottschalk. who resigned as New
York administrator to join the
old crew.
A MOTHER army engineer who.
"A in a less spectacular way.
but just as consistently. has
shown a similar brilliance quite
as often. is Philip Fleming. wage
and hours administrator
Such was the submerged fate
of Howard Hunter, recently APP
pointed TO Harry Hopkins old
job in WPA. A year ago that
advancement would have caused
comment for week. Now there
is none so poor to do him rev.
erence." That mans work has
been the sanest and best in
WPA. He is the cream of that
crop"
This column was not too kind
about the appointment of Slim
son and Knox as secretaries Of
war and navy. In performance
these secretaries of both war
and navy should be graded with
our greatest. The assistant Sec
rotary of war, Judge Patterson,
challenges everybody's common
dation.
Other selections who have
clicked remarkably are George
Marshall, of whom much is
heard as chief of staff, and Brig.
Gen. Louis Hershey, who has
been in practice, highly sue
cessful director of selective SER
vice since Mr.. Dykstra has so
frequently to be absent.
The way war efficiency has
been reached in both this gov
eminent and the British, and l
suppose in all governments, is
Immediately to seize upon and
to press forward men who have
reacted brilliantly under Cruel
ling tests. You can rarely judge
a man accurately in peace.
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