Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-08-31
Top Legion, Group
Prepares Plea for
Universal Training
By John A. Giles

A top-level American Legion
committee prepared today to
urge q new appeal for universal
military training in the wake
OF President Eisenhower.s dec
laration yesterday that q strong.
ready military reserve" is his
No. ] legislative objective.
The UNIT resolution, which
will hit the Legion's convention
floor tomorrow, was being con-
sidered by members Of security
committees.
Legion officials, at first puz-
zled by Gen. Eisenhower's re-
marks about the reserves, soon
concluded that basically he has
in mind a UNIT program they
have advocated for IS years.
II think the Presidents re-
marks highly significant \ zen
coupled with our briefinga by
top military planners last week,
in which almost all Of them
said UNIT was a necessity" said
Judge Bruce p. Henderson Of
Warren, Ohio.
Navy View Cited.
why even the Navy is for
UNIT now" added the judge. who
was elected chairman of the
convention Military Security
Committee. Admiral Carney
(Chief of Naval Operations) told
us no reserve program would be
successful without it,"
This was the same view ex-
pressed by Erie c. Cooke, jr., of
Dawson, Ga, q former national
commander.
mo adequate reserve program
has been advocated since 1886,
which did not include UNIT" he
declared. 1.-THE whole reserve
program is predicated on it, and
I certainly favor it more than
ever before.
1T is a program of survival
and would abolish the inequities
of the draft in which a few are
called to service while millions
OF other young men are never
required to serve"
Mr.. Cooke was among those
who set about last night to draft
a resolution on the subject. to be
considered by the committee in
a Hotel Statler session today.
Cool to Selective Training.
The top policy makers were
for universal training. They shy
away from "selective" training
as comes under the draft.
The plan, advanced by some
administration officials, which
requires the redrafting of vet
Grams who refuse to join reserve
outfits, left them cold.
"The-inequities of such a pro-
gram are self-evident," Mr..
Cooke said. Training should be
universal. 1t is training for sur
vival in the atom age and no
one should fear it."
The Henderson committee also
elected chairman of Subcommit-
tees. They are Floyd F. Helmik
OF San Francisco, security-civil
defense; Ernest Lehman of Seat
tie, WASH. naval affairs; Charles
Booth Of Los Angeles, merchant
marine: Edward j. Zoble, Casper,
Wyo.. military affairs, and Will
liam G. Doyle. aeronautics.
In all, the committees con-
sidering 70-odd resolutions on
defense matters, which have
been forwarded by Legion de-
partments.
The President told the Legion
the United States must start
building a big, ready-for action
military reserve within year to
meet the threat of a Communist
dictatorship determined to es-
tablish it's sway over all the
world"
"Wishful thinking and politi-
cal timidity must no longer bar
a program so absolutely essen
tial to our Defense" he declared.
For Foreign Policy Unity.
Fifteen times the convention
applauded the Presidents speech.
in which he also appealed for
foreign policy unity and-in eff
fect-threw cold water on the
efforts OF some Republicans to
link past Democratic administra-
tons with alleged treason against
the United States. Senator Nc
Carthy, Republican of Wisconsin,
in particular, has labeled the
Roosevelt and Truman regimes
as 80 years Of treason"
No responsible element in this
country wants to damage Ameri-
ca, Gen. Eisenhowr said. Then.
departing from his prepared
text. he added: 1.-THE only trea-
sonable party we have Is the
Communist conspiracy--happily
very small"