Evening star., 1950-07-19


liteering. =
Staff to keep our military man.
power needs under constant study
in order that further increases
may be made as required. There
are now statutory limits on the
sizes of the armed forces, anC
since we may need to exceed these
limits, I recommend that they be
removed.
To increase the level of oul
military strength will also require
additional supplies and equipment
Procurement of many items has
already been accelerated, in some
cases for use in Korea, in others
to replace reserve stocks which
are now being sent to Korea, and
in still others to add to our gen.
eral level of preparedness. Fur
ther increases in procurement
resulting in a higher rate of pro-
duction of military equipment and
supplies, will be necessary.
The increases in the sizes OF
the armed forces, and the addi-
tional supplies and equipment
which will be needed, will require
additional appropriations. Within
the next few days, will transmit
to the Congress specific requests
for appropriations in the amount
Of approximately $40 billion.
These requests for appropria-
tions will be addressed to the
needs of our own military forces
Earlier I referred to the fact that
we must also assist other free
nations in the strengthening OF
our common defenses. The action
we must take to accomplish this
is just as important as the meas
ures required to strengthen our
own forces
More Arms Aid Funds Needed.
The authorization bill for the
mutual defense assistance pro-
gram for 1851, now before the
House of Representatives. is an
important immediate step toward
the strengthening of our collective
security. It should be enacted
without delay.
But 1t is now clear that the
free nations of the world must
step up their common security
program. The other nations as
sociated with us in the mutual
defense assistance program, like
ourselves. will need to divert ad-
ditional economic resources to de-
tense purposes. In order to en-
able the nations associated with
us to make their maximum con-
tribution to our common defense,
further assistance on our part
will be required Additional as
sistance may also be needed to
increase the strength of certain
other free nations whose security
is vital to our own.
In the case Of the North At
lantic area these requirements
will reflect the consultations now
going on with the other nations
associated with us in the North
Atlantic treaty. AS soon as it
is possible to determine what
each nation will need to do, ]
shall lay before the Congress a
request for such funds as are
shown to be necessary to the at
tainment and maintenance of
cur common strength at an ade-
quate level.
The steps which we must take
to support the United Nations
action in Korea, and to increase
our own strength and the common
defense of the free world, will
necessarily have repercussions
upon our domestic economy.
Not in Military Terms Alone.
Many of our young men are
in battle now, or soon will be.
Others must be trained. The
equipment and supplies they need,
and those required for adequate
emergency reserves, must be pro-
duced. They must be made avail
able promptly, at reasonable cost,
and without disrupting the eff
cient functioning of the economy
We must continue to recognize
that our strength is not to be
measured in military terms alone.
Our power to join in common
defense of peace rests funda-
mentally on the productive capac-
ity and energies of our people.
In all that we do, therefore, we
must make sure that the eco
nomic strength which is at the
base of our security is not i'm
paired, but continues to grow.
Our economy has tremendous
productive power. Our total out
put of goods and services is now
running at an annual rate OF
nearly $270 billion-over 500
billion higher than in 1899. The
rate is now about $13 billion
higher than a year ago, and about
So billion higher than the previ-
Gus record rate reached in 1913
All the foregoing figures have
been adjusted for price changes,
and are therefore measure of
actual output. The index of in
dustrial production, now at 1877,
is IL per cent higher than the
average for last year. and 81 per
cent higher than in 1889.
Production at Record High.
We now have 611a million peo-
pie in civilian employment. There
are Is million more people in
productive jobs than there were
in 1899. We are now producing
II million more tons of steel a
year than in the peak war year
1914. Electric power output has
risen from 1913 billion kilowatt
hours in 1899, to 228 billion hours
in 1914, to BIT billion hours now
Food production is about a third
higher than it ever was before the
war, and is practically as high as
it was during the war years, when
we were sending far more food
abroad than we are now.