The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1941-09-04
Economic . L. .
National and International Problems
1nseparable from Local Welfare

| According to a number of response
BILE authorities, there is definite
morale problem in the American
Army. Magazines have sent qualified
reporters into Army camps and they
have returned to write that a sub
stantial percentage of the conscripts
now under arms don't like the Army
and are eager to get out of it.
1t is inevitable that when hun
!dreds of thousands of men are draft
led, portion of them will remain
permanently dissatisfied. However, the
reporters state that at the present
time there is a comparatively low
state OF morale among many men
who entered the service in the expec-
tation of benefting from it and en-
joying it. The principal causes of un-
rest are these:
l. There is a lack of martial spirit,
due to the fact that we are not at
war, and our emotions have not been
stirred to the boiling point. AS Ern-
est Lindley puts it, "It is like trying
to infuse morale into football team
that has no games scheduled" Un-
less we actually go to war, this phase
Iof the morale problem will probably
remain unsolved.
2. Many conscript soldiers lack
confidence in their officers. The Army
has on its roles many officers who
have no concept of modern warfare,
and who have little capacity for
Leadership or for instilling respect
and admiration in the men they COM
mand. The General Staff, headed by
energetic General Marshall, is said to
recognize this, and is gradually weed
ling out incompetents in the commits
Isioned personnel.
3. Lack of adequate weapons and
other materials has been a sore point.
lConscripts couldn't make sense out of
lmaneuvers in which broomsticks were
used for cannons, cans for shells, and
/ IN which ancient trucks were painted,
l''Tank." Now, however, this de-
lficlency is being corrected as arms
output increases. Troops are getting
more and better equipment and by
next year many divisions should pos
sess everything that is needed for
modern battle.
A. Most general cause of com
plant, say many, is the pay given the
soldiers. Conscripts get $21 month
for the first three months, and $50
thereafter. Under a new congress
,sional bill, pay at the end of years
service will advance to $40. That
I; diers must pay for haircuts, razor
blades, clothes pressing, etc. By the
time necessary expenses are met,
there is little lsft for recreation or
even the simplest luxuries of life. AS
a result, soldiers have an extremely
difficult time finding amusement. The
cost of giving the privates a fair
|wage-$50 to $75 a month-would
amount to relatively little, in the light
of the gigantic costs the defense pro-
gram involves. 1t is probable that
laws to substantially raise the Army's
wages will be introduced in Congress.
5. Tied in with inadequate pay is
the lack of organized recreational
facilities. Many major Army camps
are located in areas where there are
few communities. The United Service
Organizations (USO) has raised con-
siderable money through public sub
scription, but the total produced is
far from being sufficient to provide
amusement on anything near the de-
sired scale. All the reporters who
have investigated Army conditions,
tell of finding groups of soldiers
lettering on street corners on their
evenings off, broke, and with nothing
! to do.
1t should be emphasized, in the in
tereSt of fairness, that high pro-
portion of the Armys enlisted per-
sonnel has excellent morale. Further,
in the Navy, air corps and marine
corps there is, no morale problem
Whatsoever, as these branches of the
fighting forces have no conscripts.
Most of the conscripts have gone into
the infantry, and it is there that the
morale problem exists. Progress IS
being made in bettcring the lot of the
men, but it looks as if good deal
more must be done if the largest
peace-time American Army in our
history is to have the morale that is
essential to an Al fighting force.
| X X
A short time ago, in the beautiful,
historic French town of Fountain
bleau, squads Of workmen went to
work on a wrccking job. That job in
volved the tearing down of two huge
statues. One statue was of great
Frenchman who had fought for de-
mocracy-MarShal Lafayette. The
other statue was of great American
who led a victorious democratic army
l-General John j. Pershing.
There is tragic symbolism in this.
For it indicates how completely
France has deserted the democratic
lway of life, and embraced the doc