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Show WAR CHIEF SAYS U. S. REQUIRES 11 MILLION MEN TO WHIP AXIS; HOME FRONTMUST BE ADJUSTED Patterson Claims Nazis Have 13 Million Men at Their Command; Jap Also Strong in Pacific Area. By ROBERT P. PATTERSON, Undersecretary of War liA if $ . .'rrss-l. - , J American troops land in North Africa. They are the vanward of a proposed force of 8,200,000 men who uill be needed to defeat the Axis, war official says. Questions raised in recent weeks as to whether America shall have the army of 8,200,-000 8,200,-000 men which its military-leadership military-leadership has determined to be the minimum with which we can expect to defeat our enemies have not, it seems to me, given due consideration to military necessity. We are out to win this war. The nation has entrusted the responsibility for this victory to its military leaders. This leadership the joint chiefs of staff of the army and navy, after the most careful analysis analy-sis of our enemies' strength, has decided that we must build an armed force of approximately ap-proximately 11,000,000, which includes an army of 8,200,000 for 1943-44. Our own men have been in contact only with the smallest of the Axis armies a part of its Tunisian force of less than a quarter of a million men. But the striking force of this powerful foe has already been felt by our troops. The German field armies are assisted by more than one million men in semi-military organizations, such as the military police, engineers, and supply depots, which in our army are included among service troops. Reliable sources Indicate that the combined number of those in the German and Italian armed forces and those directly assisting them runs well over 13 million. It Is evident evi-dent at this point that the superiority superiori-ty of our enemies in the European theater is of ominous proportions. A similar analysis in the Pacific area does not brighten the picture. The Japanese army exceeds by many divisions the forces that the United Nations have been able to equip and place in opposition. Yet the United Nations, and particularly par-ticularly this country, have the potential po-tential power to overcome this numerical nu-merical superiority. These potentialities potenti-alities must be converted to actuality. actuali-ty. They must be harnessed and driven toward a single goal, the defeat de-feat of our enemies. In that drive our country, the" latest of the major ma-jor powers to enter the war, must play the most important part. agriculture to produce the supplies needed by our forces, by our Allies and by our civilian economy. Full account has also been taken of the ability of our rapidly expanding merchant marine to deliver soldiers and supplies overseas. The conclusion conclu-sion reached was that it was a hard Job, but that it could and must be done. But there are critics of the army program who ask, "Why should we fight? Why not give more supplies to the British, the Chinese and the Russians and let them fight for us?" The British, with the smallest available manpower and subject to savage aerial attacks, have come nearer than any other of the United frh TS M 1 lmP ' , $1 -n irfTtili In" ' i n'i mi v ii lii jfiTiiil and reverses on the battle front, and for more arduous labors and sacrifices sacri-fices on the home front. Realism must extend from the foxholes fox-holes and pill-boxes on the firing line to the factories and homes of America. When our country is at war, none of us can escape the responsibility of viewing the routine, rou-tine, as well as the emergency duties du-ties of life, in the light of their bearing upon the final result unconditional uncon-ditional surrender by our enemies. This nation has done a magnificent magnifi-cent job in production for war. But there is an even heavier task ahead. We will have serious problems because be-cause of the increasing drain on our manpower. But similar problems prob-lems have been solved in England, Russia, Germany and Japan. Nonessential Non-essential activities are out for the duration and these countries are fully mobilized to a much greater extent than we. On every one rests the equal obligation to give service either in the armed forces or on the home front. Why should we suppose that we can wage war successfully without mobilizing our human resources re-sources with a thoroughness at least approaching that of our enemies and of our principal allies? Army Requirements Come First; Nation Must Get Into Industry The needs of the armed forces must come first. The problems of turnover and absenteeism must and can be solved. Each of us must work to the utmost of his capability. We must also tackle our farm labor la-bor problem with vigor. There are white collar workers in non-essential industries who can go back to the farms from which they came. There are victory gardens to be encouraged. en-couraged. More work can be done by women. Farm machinery can be pooled. Many steps can be taken tak-en to increase production on the farms. We cannot solve our manpower problems by whittling down the size of our armed forces. The problem must be tackled at its source. Every one wants to do his or her share to help win the war and must serve where he or she can render the best service. The decision cannot be based upon personal desire. With vast territories and resources at their disposal, the Axis cannot be defeated by a blockade. Victory will come from decisive military action, ac-tion, backed by an armed force and ability so overwhelmingly superior that the enemy's further action will be futile. In World War I, It was our American Ameri-can Expeditionary force of 2,000,000 added to the strength of our Allies, that made the enemy surrender. On November 11, 1918, the Allies had 32 fresh divisions in reserve. The Germans only had two. The Allies had a total of 213 divisions. The Germans had 185. The Germans were aware of these figures. Their ability to reason from figures is well known. They decided that they could not win, and they quit. Now, as then, the enemy must be made to realize that they cannot win. Now, as then, we must make them see that we are going to see the job through. Army Determines Size After Careful Study of Its Needs Offensive action requires superiority superi-ority in numbers. This is the reason we need an army of 8,200,000 including includ-ing officers by the end of this year. The navy, the marines and the coast guard need 2,600,000 this year. That makes a total of 10,800,000 men and women that must be in the armed forces by the end of this year. This will be less than ZVi per cent of our total population. Thirteen and a half per cent of the German population popula-tion is in the armed forces. Ten million, eight hundred thousand thou-sand is not a figure pulled out of a hat. It is the requirement determined deter-mined by those charged with the heavy responsibility of winning this war. General Marshall says that we need so many planes and so many tanks to win the war. Is there anyone any-one in America who would question his judgment? Admiral King says that we need so many escort ships and destroyers to beat the Axis. Is there anyone in America who would question his judgment? The expert views of our military leaders are accepted ac-cepted on our needs for guns and ships. Why should anyone question their judgment as to the number of men that they need to use these weapons and man these ships? The staffs of the army and the navy under General Marshall and Admiral King, in full possession of the facts, have made the military decision that a force this size is necessary to win the war. Our Commander-in-Chief, the President of the United States, has approved this program. It is America's answer to the Axis. The Axis, I assure you, does not like that answer. In making this decision full account ac-count has been taken of the ability of American industry and labor and ROBERT P. PATTERSON Undersecretary of war. Nations to the full-time war employment employ-ment of every man, woman and child. The Chinese have been heroically he-roically fighting for 5'A years. The Russians, by brilliant tactics and i with indomitable courage, have killed more Nazis than all the other United Nations combined. We should give tribute to their dead, for they have sacrificed countless lives. But their manpower is not inexhaustible. We're In the War, Too, ttad It Will Be Won the Hard Way This is our war just as much as It is the war of the British, the Russians Rus-sians and the Chinese. We are sending send-ing supplies to the utmost of our ability to these and the other United Nations. We will continue to do so. But it will be our soldiers and sailors, sail-ors, and those of our Allies, that will win the final victory. Elemental truths are often the most difficult to grasp. Throughout all ages people have tried to avoid facing up to the reality that war is grim business; have longed for an easy war; and have hoped that somehow, some way, victory could be gained without risking too much or without experiencing the stark unpleasantness of the conflict. But all the wishing In the world does not change the nature of war and its Impact on all peoples engaged in it, whether in the battle lines or at home. The hour for realism has arrived for every American. We must brace ourselves for mounting casualty lists |
