OCR Text |
Show President Wilson Maps Out Army Programme Based on Determination Determina-tion of the United States to Defeat Huns. BAKER TO ADVISE i HOUSE COMMITTEE! Secretary Believes His Department Can Take Care of Double the Existing Ex-isting Force Under Arms During the Year. WASHINGTON, May 1. Secretary Baker will carry to congress tomorrow the army increase programme mapped out by President Wilson and his advisers, ad-visers, and based on the determination to win the war, if it takes the whole man power of the nation to do it. There are indications that he will ask that all restrictions on the number of troops be raised be removed, and the government govern-ment authorized to mobilize as many men as it can equip, train and send to the battle front in France. When the war secretary appears before be-fore the house military committee with supplemental estimates for the army, he is expected to disclose that the department de-partment has reason to believe it can handle during the present year at least double the existing force under arms of approximately 1,600,000 men. That would mean a total of 3,200,000 soldiers for whom clothing, equipment and transportation are now in sight. Should additional facilities become available, however, it is indicated that President Wilson wishes to be able to call out more men without the delay of seeking authority. PROPOSE TO MAKE VICTORY CERTAIN. Evidence came today in various ways of the tremendous effort that now is being made to send American armies into the fight in such numbers and in such times as to make victory certain. In the morning the heads of the shipping ship-ping board and the war industries board met with tho war council, composed com-posed of army officials. Details of additional ad-ditional ships and supplies were gone into, it is understood, on the basis of the recent surveys of the situation. Later the president 's war cabinet-met cabinet-met with him at the White house and went over the ground thoroughly. Secretary Baker remained more than an hour with tho president after the other members of the war cabinet had left. In the house, Chairman Dent of the military committee introduced a bill that, would authorize the mobilization and organization of 4,000,000 selective service men, instead of the 1.000,000 to which tho government is limited by the existing act. Mr. Dent said the measure mea-sure was his own and ho had not consulted con-sulted the war department on it. MANY MEN ARE NOW AVAILABLE. Under the new classification scheme, there are understood to be 1,800.000 men immediately available for active military service lr- class 1. That estimate esti-mate is baed on the returns of numerous numer-ous states and the law or averages. It excludes all men rated as fit orjy tor limited special service, all delinquents WILL ASK CONGRESS TP THROW OFF LIMIT (Continued from Page One.) slated for immediate induction into class 1 when apprehended, and all of the so-called remedial cases, the men who will be fit for active service after operations or medical treatment to correct cor-rect minor physical defects. Behind that, also, stand the men who have reached 21 years since the draft act was passed and who will be brought in under pending amendments. Probably Prob-ably the total effectiveness in class 1 will prove to be 2,500,000 men when the definite figures are available. EXPECTS CLASS 1 TO BE EXHAUSTED. This is the first reservoir from which men will be drawn to fill up the new armies. It is conceivable that class 1 will be exhausted in time, but not that it will fail to furnish all the men who can be shipped to France before congress con-gress meets again. For this reason it is regarded as probable that the question of increasing age limits of the draft act or of drawing upon class 2 can be deferred until congress again convenes. Military precautions forbid disclosure disclos-ure of the rate at which the army is being sent to the front, but Mr. Baker will be able to give the house committee commit-tee tomorrow some interesting figures in this regard. In pressing forward the troops, the war department, it is learned, has abandoned aban-doned its previous policy of completing organization of a unit before it goes over. Under the new plan regiments or larger units go forward on schedule, even if they are short a considerable part of their full enlisted strength. They will be filled up on the other side. The number of men scheduled to be called to the colors this month under the selective service act has been raised to 250,000 men. Last month 1 50,000 were mobilized. At this rate half of the 800,000 which the department, before be-fore the German drive was launched, -had planned to call during the present year, will have been called out in two months' time. Will Not Accept Guards. WASHINGTON", May 1. Indication that the war department has decided not to accept any additional national pruard units In the forces sent abroad was seen today to-day in an order telegraphed to the governor gov-ernor of Minnesota, instructing- him to disband the Second Minnesota artillery. The. Minnesota authorities were anxious to have the unit in service as concrete evidence of the loyalty of the districts in which it was formed. All national guard units In existence at the outbreak of the war were taken into the federal service. Many units have been formed since and some have offered their services to the government for the war. War department officials hold there is no available sprvice for them in the military mili-tary machine, even if It was not the consensus con-sensus of expert opinion that better material ma-terial could be obtained through the draft. Tnits such as the Minnesota artillery, therefore, could be used only If broken up. |