Show III BILLIONS FOR ARMI PRESIDENT ASKS CONGRESS TO appropriate VAST SUM TO INCREASE FIGHTING FORCE also request requests blanket authority for increasing numerical strength of army being proposed to raise an army of men washington president 11 ilson tl it rough secretary of war baker on may 2 requested congress to appropriate for expenses and blanket authority for increasing the numerical strength of the united states army it was officially proposed to limit the size of the lighting fighting force only to tile facilities of the war department fer for assembling the soldiers aud bud transporting them to the battle fronts of europe this Is the administration program adelel by the president and the cabinet at a mung on tuesday lues day it came as a it surprise to the house military affairs committee when presented by secretary baker although the estimates were ere expected to be large army of men the appropriation Is intended to cover the initial cost of a minimum army of men it Is proposed to raise the additional forces feces sary to iret get this total immediately that means according to the experts not less than another must ke u obtained through the draft during tle e nest next fe months the outstanding feature of this schedule Is that it n hlll III give the united baates a greater army available for foreign service than Is represented by the tile total military strength of the cen aral empires on the Ni western estern front secretary baker told the committee h ii nt t detre de tre ire to etti estimate mate the num ber her of men it might become ne cesary to for the reason that any number implies a limit and the only possible limit Is our ability to equip and transport men which Is 18 constant I 1 ly y on the increase |