Imperial Valley press., 1945-02-26
By HAL MILLS


Swinging into action Immediately
after hearing two United States
army officers outline the purposes
of and the possible urgent need for
a full quota of state guards fer I'M
perial county, group OF represen-
| tative business men of Ell Centre on
Saturday at luncheon held at the
Elks Club, appointed Herb Fawcett
as chairman of a committee, the
purpose of which will be to arouse
countrywide interest in the guard
! and to bring the unit up to the de-
sired quota. Bob Hatton was named
e-chairman and w. G. Outlook,
secretary of the local
chamber of commerce was appoint
! ed secretary CT the committee.
The chairman was authorized to
choose a number OF others to serve
on a citizens committee. The meet
ing was presided over by Major
Elmer Heald, battalion commander
of the state guard in Imperial
county.
SPEAK AT MEETING
The speakers were Captain w. A.
LangdCn, U. S. army, permanent in
structor of the state guard in this
area, and Lieut.. Col. Faulkes, pub
lie relations officer from the Cali
fornia adjutant generals office.
Present, too, was Major Albert w.
Eggen, regional instructor of the
adjutant generals office.
So far as the program for in
creasing the strength of the state
guard is concerned, the organization
long ago was given the green light
by the Ell Centro City Council,
which not only indorsed the guard
but pledged fullest cooperation.
In his talk, Captain Langdon de-
clared that there is greater need
new for a strong state guard than
there was after Pearl Harbor, point
ing out that a vast number of serv-
icemen are now overseas. The Off
Ger explained that the state guard
is now well equipped, provides uni
forms and personal equipment, no
longer has shotguns but modern
lifles, machine guns, army trucks,
reconnaissance cars and armored
cars. Funds for training and other
purposes have been supplied by the
federal government, the speaker
stated, and army officer instructors
have been assigned to help train the
state guard. a,
Major Heald introduced both
Captain Landon and Lieut.
Faulkes. The latter pointed out that
the possibility CT the community
is to protect itself. There was moth
ing suggestive of the alarmist in
either the address of Captain Lang
don or the colonel, but rather state
ments of facts and which clearly
impressed their listeners.
The state guard, said Colonel
Faulkec, is community protective
force, rendering assistance Wnen 1t
is needed but not necessarily mean
ing martial law The state, he de-
clared, can train and equip the
members of the state guard but 1t
is up to the community to provide
the men. The officer also stated that
the men recruited here will not be
called upon to serve outside the
county, in fact, they cannot serve
outside the county without volun-
teering to do so. State guard train
ing also would prove beneficial to
Young men who would later enter
the army, Col. Faules said.
The officer further said
To-day the army is engaged IN
an offensive wariare-all trained
troops are needed ON foreign battle
fronts. We on the home front can
not honestly think that the army
engaged in an all-out offensive-is
also assuming those individual prob
lens of local cecurity that right
fully and necessarily are problems CT
local authorities.
The fact that each unit OF the
state guard is designed to act as
local force makes it. obvious that
each community must provide its
own measure Of military protection
through active support OF its own
state guard unit. ..s... 81.
AS the PROBABILITY OF enemy at
tack in force upon the coast lessons,
we must realize and fully appreciate
that local disaster is still a con-
slant menace-regardless OF Wheth-
er it is created by natural causes,
industrial accident or subversive
action On the other hand, the