The Daily Alaska empire., 1945-04-28

production It is the opinion of the men at the front apparently, that they will get the new tank in numbers when it is longer needed, i when the war is over Judging from the news, their mis- givings or hopes depending upon the approach are not unwarranted But be that it may, an nyestiga
 ton is thoroughly in order. It should take up the reasons for the long delay in getting the Pershing into production It should likewise find out why our tanks are inferior to the enemy's. The investigation Is needed for the purpose of assessing responsibility This would be no idle quest the information is sary so that our military establishment shall be adjusted to the lesson.
 The situation with regard to our tanks may be easily stated When this began the Allies had the best tank in the world the 24ton British Matilda and the Germans when they met 1t during the Blifzkreo in France are said to have so described the Matilda Alas there were only 28 of them. From then on the Germans leaped into first place, though as result of mammoth industrial establishment the Germans could not match numbers with quality IL is our good fortune that got and vastly increased the quantitative edge the Germans Of course the qualitative edge should have been retained and inn proved as we'll That this has not been the case IS the overwhelming testimony of the men who have been in tank actions It is their view that the Germans In the last two years of this have been increasing the distance between their best and best in tank production.
 Specifically the Panther and the Tiger tanks, according to the fighting men, far superior to our Shermans It is said that it takes three of our Shermans to knock out Tiger. Little IS known apout
 the Russian tank but this is said to be better than ours better even than the German, which has been improved to such extent that, as the Baltic tests proved it is virtually battleship on wheels It is scandalous that this lag should have been al lowed This country brides itself on it's lncomparaple industrial and engineering genius Yet it has con ssently fallen behind both Russian ally and the Nazi enemy in arming the ground forces with their basic weapon.
 Where the responsibility lies do not profess to know When We first began to criticize tank performance July 4. 1922 we felt that the problem was one of laison Close liason is required between the Ordnance Department and industry Just as close should he the iaison between the Ordnance Depart ment and the using arm the field AS to the former requirement. we are constantly assured that the rela- tion has been a constantly developing one; lndus- traists in the automotive business were given gen. erals commissions and the Ordnance Department was decentralized under their control It may be, as Hanson w Baldwin says in the New York Times, that industry itself has not been amenabe to suggestions from the ordnance experts Or it may be that the Ordnance Department has been hanstrung not rom industry but from the Army hierarchy
 Whatever the or our deficiency, the facts should be revealed All that know for sure is that the ofrepeated claim of General Somerve and other Army hierarchs that equipment is the best In the world is not the verdict of the men who use that equipment The myth has blown up in their faces. Gripng of course is the special privilege of sodlers But the gripping about the American tank in particular has become so widespread and is fortified by such detail that the criticism longer be ignored 1t seems to go the heart of the military organza-
 on which the Nation needs to see perfected Tor the responsibilities ahead.
 The lesson as we see it, is that the using arm should be the decisive element in our Ordnance De- partment Even this emphasis would not, of course, be foolproof The using arm which is the Army itself must always keep in mind that modern war IS a constant race in the technoogcal improvement of weapons An inquiry would show whether this has been the actuating consideration of our own com manders in this most technological of wars.