Evening star., 1942-11-17

This is the last in q series of
three articles repieDing the
course OF the qlobal Dar, pre-
pared By the Washington bureau
OF the st. Louis Post Dispatch.
BY RICHARD L. STOKES.
Since Pearl Harbor the American
titan has been f1exing the muscles
that for so many years had been
soft and unexercised. The Army
has almost trebled in stature, from
1888 500 to 4,250, 900 men under arms.
The Nays increase has been on a
similar scale, from 1874 to $780,
600. including the Marine Corps and
Coast Guard. The total armed per-
sonnel is $3.50, 900. Gen. Marshall
has announced that 100000 Amer
tcan troops are already overseas.
The period beheld far-reaching
reforms in Army and Navy organi-
cations. The former was regrouped
into three basic commands, the
ground and air forces and services
of supply. Aviation rose from a
small and servile status to equality
with the older arms and airmen
took over half the personnel of the
general staff. A flying man, Maj.
Gen. Joseph T. McNarney, became
deputy chief Of staff and the Army's
No. 2 man after Gen. Marshall.
The Navy's two-headed rule was
ended by combining in one man the
ofIices Of Chief of Naval Operations
and Commander in Chief of the
United States Fleet. To this su-
preme post, for the first time in the
departments annals, was elevated
flying man, Admiral King. In
him power was vested also to gov
ern the Navy bureaus which pre-
viouSly had been autonomous and
fiercely competitive for appropria-
tions and prestige. ..
A chart of munitions output, is
sued by the War Production Board.
shows that In April, 1910, the index
stood at Is. 1t rose to 100 just be-
fore Pearl Harbor At the end of
last July it was $50 and for Sep
tember stood at 38l, with the level
ing of not yet in sight. WPB
Chairman Nelson reported Septem-
ber production registered the fol-
lowing increases over August: Ton
mage Of merchant vessels delivered,
"a per cent; Navy and Army ship
building, % per cent; airplanes, 10
per cent; ordnance, per cent, and
tanks, 3 per cent. During the month
II major combat vessels were
launched and 90 cargo ships were
placed in service.
Monthly Outlays Trebled.
Monthly war expenditures by the
Treasury have more than trebled,
from 81 ,527 ,001 ,476 in October, 1941,
to 5,480, ,796,157 for October of this
year. The size of the latter figure
may be realized from the fact that
the total assessed valuation of all
taxable wealth in the State of
Missouri, representing an. accumula-
tion OF decades or genera tions, is
s., 1894 ,591 ,199.
There has been phenomenal ex-
OF the United States Army
from its pre- emergency status of
$4,000 officers and 175,00O men. The
growth has been accompanied by a
training program which has proved
IN battle its superiority over the
system of "a years ago. There are
schools for specialized tactical units,
who are instructed variousuly in
street, city. mountain, jungle,
smphibian and -fortiication
combat A mammouth university"
has been set up for training military
in airplanes, internal
combustion engines, radio, all forms
Of communication equipment, and
the like.
Candidate schools have made it
possible to multiply the officer corps
IN two years from $4,000 to 100000.
Aspirants are selected from the best
material in the ranks. After three
months of training at replacement
centers, they are sent to speciality
schools for rigorous course of the
same duration. Severe weeding-out
processes at such schools are thought
10 assure a quality of line officers
in any previous Amer
can war.
Despite slow start, military
ordnance is now we'll on it's way in
every particular except ammunition
The new MA medium tanks are
distinguishing themselves on the
battlefield. and the muzzle velocity
Of their 75-mm cannon has been
stepped up" considerably. The
heavy tank, of which only
one experimental moodel existed last
May, mas started in production.
Artillery Powerful.
For anti-tank artillery, on self
propelled mounts, the Army is using
its old 3-inch anti-aircraft guns,
which had too short vertical range
for eh-altitude planes. They pos