Evening star., 1949-08-02
End 10 Expense A|ibis
Seen With Passage
OF 'Unification' Bill
Survey Of Arms Budget
Gives Some Idea Of Waste
In Service DupIieotions
By David Laurence

There Is one good reason Tor
welcoming the passage Of the So
called "unification" legislation
this week. 1t may end. for a
while at. least, the raising OF
alibis that military expenses can
not be reduced because there is
lack of coordination.
1t may also do away with the
alibi that the interservice rival
ries have been f1ourishing just
because the Secretary of Defense
did not have adequate power to
abolish duplication and put an
end to the pickering.
The real truth about the
enormous size of the armament
budget is that each of the three
services is saddled with an over
head and with a civilian person
mel which has its roots in con-
gressional politics.
Every member of Congress is
importuned to maintain military
establishments in his district ano
to fight any curtailment thereof
1t is this tendency which has KEPT
in many places the wartime mill
tary installations which are now
obsolete.
Survey Gives Idea of Waste.
Some idea of the waste in arms
spending can be derived from q
survey of the division OF the
s14 900 900 900 armament budget
which has just been made oy
United States News & World Re-
port and is published in its cur
rent issue.
The magazine points out that
of the total supply OF ooilars
going to all three armed services
onlv about 6,3OO.ooo.ooo are ac-
tually spent for military purposes
It says:
Nearly s,oOo,ooo.ooo is to be
spent for overhead and for t-i.nes
only remotely or indirectly con-
nected with military functions.
There are big outlays for educa-
tion civilian salaries. housing
projects, printing, a world-Wioe
air line. rent, research, and multi
million-dollar telephone bills.
1.-The ratio of civilians to mill
tarv men now is more than l 70
2. In the Navy, about 40 per cent
of the total strength is in civilian
employees at shore establishments
and in fleet headquarters.
"Air Force, with a strength OF
100000 men in uniform, has only
5000 flying personnel, including
pilots, navigators, bombardiers ano
.gunners. Number OF men in COM
bat units s-including mechanics
cooks. clerks and supply person
nel-totals about 100000 men.
The other 100000 are service.
headquarters; school or training
troops: -"
sof 100000 men now in The reg
u1ar Navy about '246, 1000 are as
signed to sea duty and less than
half that number are on combat
ships. The other 10000 sailors
are on permanent shore duty,
most Of them manning the 5s5
Navy installations within the
United States.
Army troops show an even
larger proportion of noncombat-
functions. With $4,000 men in
uniform. the Army is able to main
tain the equivalent of only II di-
visions. That means about 1872
D00 Army men in combat units, in
cluding troops who feed, supply
pay and transport the fighting
men in those units. Another $685.
600 Army men are engaged In
service functions, training. supply
and headquarters duties. Most are
stationed at 1863 Army posts and
camps within the United States.
"In all, the United States Is
maintaining about 100000 OF it,
100000 military men OF the
Army, Navy and Air Force within
this country, with most of then
assigned to noncombat units. To-
tai strength of all combat units
is about $4,000 men,"
Other Projects Cited.
But even assuming that there
must be a certain amount of thi.
expense to support the actual com
blatant personnel. there are othel
projects which have little to de
with actual fighting strength but
which are under way in all three
services.
Thus, construction alone, mostly
for housing families of service
men, is costing more than $780,
100000. "A new radio communi-
cations scheme is slated to cost
IAN additional $1,000. 100000. The
bill for college subsidies. scholar
ships, research and mobilization
planning comes to s700,000,000
Likewise, the armed forces are
spending more than a third OF a
billion for moving civilians and
freight around the country.
: The trend of costs is steadily
upward and something more than
"a mere piece of legislation, Or
daining that there shall be uni
f1cation or economy, is going to
be needed. The trouble lies largely
in political influence and the
whole thing may really be placed
on the doorstep of Congress. which
thus far has failed to come tt
grips with the real problem Of
economy not only in military es.
Establishments but in other depart.
,ments of the Government.
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