Evening star., 1941-06-22

A number of youthful enlisted men
of the 1st Battalion, District Naval
Reserves, who were left behind when
the Regular units went into the Fed
eral service, are expected to form the
nucleus of the new class to be Or
ganized here to try for appointments
to the United States Naval Academy,
through the medium of the Reserve.
The Naval Reserve is allowed 100
appointments year from It's ranks
to the naval school.
The men, who are expected to re-
turn for another try, are those who
either failed to pass the competitive
examinations, or who, although re-
ceiving passing marks, were too far
down the list for appointments. The
personnel which is to return for an
other try at still within the age
limits. the maximum of which is 81
years after April l, next. Others
who are beyond this limit will not
get another try at the examinations,
but will receive their orders to active
duty within short time.
The men who are still eligible to
take the tests next year will also be
ordered to active duty and will be
sent to a naval training station for
a period of eight weeks after which
they will be given the option of re-
turning to the inactive list at their
home stations.
Candidates Being Enlisted.
Men now are being enlisted here
for the Naval Academy classes. They
must be in the service before June
30 in order to comply with the year
of service requirement before July
!, next. the date on which they
would enter the naval school if they
are successful in the examinations.
Recruiting for this class is being
done by the regular naval recruiting
station here. and the Reserve head
quarters notified of men enlisted for
the purpose of taking the Naval
Academy tests. AS soon as they COM
plete their training at the station
they are expected to be returned
here to attend school.
Men who enlist to take the naval
school examinations must be pre-
pared to serve in the ranks of the
Navy in the event that they are
not successful. except, OF course, if
they are within the age limits, are
considered good officer material and
can pass the physical examination
for officers they will be permitted to
try as long as they remain within
the age period. The physical exam
ination for officers, it was explained,
is much more rigid than that for the
enlisted personnel, and particu-
larly is this so for the eyes, for
which refractory tests are required.
These have been required for en-
trantS to the Naval Academy for
several years, as it has been found
that many young men who entered
the academy after the ordinary
sight tests have failed in the final
physicals, on eyes alone, and from
causes which might have been dis
covered at entrance by refraction
tests, in the opinion of the doctors.
So great is the demand for Of
ficer material for the naval air serv-
ice. it was learned, that the rigid
requirements for appointment as
Reserve midshipmen for the surface
vessels are not maintained. In or
der to get into the line for surface
duty the Navy requires that the
men must have college degrees, but
it still is accepting men for the
air service courses If they have only
two years of college work. Those
who desire Reserve commissions in
other branches of the line must have
college degrees, and preference is
being given to men with engineer
ing degrees. In any event those
with arts degrees must have year
of college mathematics, because it
was explained that it had been
found that men with only two years
of college who were accepted last
year did Sot have sufficient mathe-
matical background to be able to
master the celestial navigation
work.
Air Course Longer.
Those for the air service get a
longer period in school than the
men for the other branches of the
line, the latter only getting three
months of schooling at the Naval
Academy, aboard the u. S. S. Prairie
State or at Northwestern Univer-
sity, to whichever they might be
assigned. Furthermore, it was
pointed out that the men for the
air corps officer ships are wanted
at a younger age because OF the de-
mands of the aviation service for
youth. Every available man who
applies for the aviation cadet course
is being taken Immediately, pro-
sided that he passes the physical
tests.
But in the case of the men want
ed for the surface ships schools to
become Reserve midshipmen after
they have passed month of train
ing to determine whether they
would make good officers for the
naval service, it was said that the
engineering field from which the
Navy hoped to draw most of its
young men is getting very limited.
1t was indicated that other branches
of the naval service had literally
MIXED the engineering field. 1t was
said that the ordnance depart
ment, aviation, the bureau of ships,
which consists of the old bureaus
of construction, Of repair and steam