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Show TO FORM STRQWG 1 DEF0GE RESERVE Secretary Garrison Urges Senate Committee to Approve Plan COAST DEFENSES GOOD Fortifications Said to Be Best in World, Men Needed WASHINGTON Jan 12 War de part ment bills to strengthen the armv and errata a reserve corps were taken p today by tho senate military com nltteo In open session with Secretary Garrison and his aides present to ex plain the anoua projects. Members of tha committee indicated by their questions their ceneral approval of the measures. Senator Du Pont however objeets to the bill providing for tho addition of 1000 officers to the mobile arny con tending tht it would create nearly a thousand vaease os in the grade of second sec-ond lieutenants and provided for a dis proportion of colonels and lieutenant colonels Secretary Garr son sa d the bills had been prepared in the war college by h s direction and that be hat instructed that the efficiency of the present ar ny should be the end sought, lie said statements of tbe reasons for tbe ap portionment selected would be drafted at once for the committee. Would Create Resenes. D seussiaj; the b 11 prov d ng for the creation of a reserve corps by grant nf? power to the secretary to discharge competent men from the regular army nto the reserve at the end of one year of service Hi Garr son said the pres ent reserve svatem w hich bad produced a force of onlv s xteen men in two years was a vacuum His plan he believed wonld bring to the army a class of recruits not now available. The secretary stronglv urged the en actment of the b 11 prov d ng for the officers reserve corps. Even with the other bills enacted be said the depart ment would be faced in time of war with the problem of providing officers for a force of S50 000 men and it now had no list of graduates of mil tary schools or other civilians competent to take these positions The secretary said the enactment of the coast artillery bill would bring that arm of the service up to 50 (er cent of the strength it would have in war He said he considered this the most urgent n atter because the isolated position of tbe TJn ted btates made ts coast de fensee of greatest importance, A s ngle shot from a b g gun be said wo Id nk a tl 000 000 battlesh p but no foe would take chances against the coast defenses m order to drop a few random shells into cities. Lauds Defenses General Weaver chief of tbe coast artillery, told the committee that the tnited btates had expended 17j000 000 on ts coast defense e 188S and that in material they were the best n the world. He submitted tables of tbe number of guns and the present regular forces in charge of them to show that more men and omcers were urgently needed. Senator Du Pont asked Secretary Garrison what might be done to place the uniform of the Lnited States army in greater respect among c lzens Mr Garnson aid he d d not bel eve that could be reached by legislation t mnt come through a change n popular senti ment with greater popular knowledge of the army I think the people for the first t me are beginning seriously to cons der th question of eommoa defense Mr Gar rison added and I hope that there will grow out of that greater respect for the armv Assistant "ecretary Breckenr dge General McCa ne adjutant general, and General A. lshire, quartermaster general participated in the d scuss on |