Show I Let us have faith that right m makes es might and andI l I I in that faith let ns to the end dare to do our duty LU las as we understand it it- Li it-Li Lincoln coln Green AI Men en in Battle Eattle of oC Wisconsin is raising some S SENATOR commotion in the war department nt by demanding an investigation o of th the sacrifice of 01 the lives li of American soldiers who were sent into tle bai-tle without sufficient 4 tr training ning even to load and fire their rifles How many American youths were sent to certain in death in this manner murder manner murder Senator I calls it it is is not known That there were several eral hundred ab absolutely ab- ab l untrained and in uniform less than three weeks has been established 3 One of the aims nims of the investigation demanded would be bo to fix fb the responsibility for a certain army order which which allowed men without t target practice to be sent into battle Secretary r of War Baker admits the tho order b but t states it ol in involved d but four d divisions visions The text of I S the order in reference was as follows S All men selected for infantry field artillery and cavalry alry will be men with wili th the usual overseas o qualification tion and if possible who have e had target practice and at least two months' months training Senator Lenroot takes exception to this order in in that ill it allowed in the tho words if possible a discretion tw d di division i commanders of poor judgment or imma- imma ur ure experience took nd an advantage of to send me men nien to the who had bad never cr received ed an tr'S training while trained m men n in abundance were kept in camps in this country try Subordinate army officers in actual command are arc striving si to prove proc their alibis as 5 for example Col Gol Benson W. W Hough of the infantry who testifies th that t untrained replacements were assigned to his is regiment nt by bj a a. division commander and not until after a n. large number of them theta had been sent t to the front line did he- he IC learn rn that thc they had not been een in uniform uniformS three threeS S weeks before leaving the United States He Uc says the corporals h had d. d to tea teach h these men how bow to load their rifles and fire firo a shot And another Colonel Donavan DOnaY ln whose regiment is not stated said that of the replacements replacements replace replace- ments sent him after 1 the le battle of where we left 50 per cent of the combat battalion 00 no per cent b bud il never opened the bolt of their rifles and had n never er had hadon on a t as ns mask Although Senator t insists upon a 1 mav tint for the offending commanders Secretary Baker Daker has declined to institute any on the ground that all that ever could be known about Me the matter is known now and that occurrences of this nature were most rare While in operations of the magnitude that were bein bein being be be- in ing co conducted ducted at the time there were bound to be some miscarriages of plans the tIte parents of the boys bors who were needlessly sacrificed will ill scarcely be content with the i indifferent diff attitude of Secretary Baker Ber In esl Investigation on o ot ot the fa facts ts will pot restore the boys boos to families S but t it it might night go a long way in the direction of meting 0 out justice to those who were really responsible for needless waste of American an lives and a repetition repetition tion flea of it if ever we should be so unfortunate as to engage engage en en- gage Sage in another war |