EVENING PUBLIC LEDGER-PHILADELPHIA, FRIDAY. APRIL 5, 101S. AMERICA'S FIRST YEAR AS A PARTICIPANT IN THE GREAT WAR LEADERS REVIEW WO 8 mi fif ?v F. FIRST YEAR OF WAR POINTS WAY TO ULTIMATE VICTORY Hemarkable Achievements of Army, Navy and Other Departments of Government Heartening- to American People , WaMiluicton, April S. TiflS American army and navy are Hying up to their highest traditions. This can be taken exactly as It Is written. Thero wilt be victory before the uniform are taken oft to be laid away. The fighting men who now are in the trenches, those In the camps who -r fetUnif ready to go there, the men who are coming up with the next draft and the next and the next If need be th 200,000 and odd fishers of the navy all will see to It that there Is no compromise peace that will simply bury tho sword for a few years That li the treat, all compelling and con vh.elnc fact that today stands out here In Washington, tho hub of the national war activities. When Germany forced war with the United States It found a nation un prepared, Thero Was no real war ma chine. The navy what there was of It mi ready It Is true. But the nav of Aprl; 6, 1917, and the navy of todio are two radically different bodies. Then half of our ships were In reserve Our building program was proceeding leisurely. The entire personnel was only 65,000 men. Today it Is nearly six times that. And as for the anny Well there naa no real arm. The regular branch was on the border. In Panama. Hawaii and the Philippines. What thero was of li was gooci But there wan not even enough of It for defensive purposes. Of artillery we had none Aircraft, such as there was, was a Joke Today tho army and, navy of the United States are a powerful potent factor to bo reckoned with In the struggle to save the world for democracy And every day adds to the. strength and power of this machine which will' make the Inlluenco of the United States all sotent at the council table where tho ne-tv map of the world will be drawn. Mistakes, But Vot Uepeittrd All this la encouraging, especially to In view of the general criticism of the war preparations In certain quarters There has been and Is much to criticize If on Is that way Inclined. Much has been done that should not have been done. Many things have been left undone that ought to have been done Nn w In official life will essay to deny this But right In this connection there Is one great truth which means much to the people of the country That Is this There In not known to newspaper cor respondents a single mUtnke Hint linn beeti repeated. In every Instance the Government tins taken ailinntute if Its' mistakes to Improve Its plni und tu hre I onI li.nl to he fed. but fuelc Sum! When war was de I ired on April 0 i that they did not orcur nicaln. iai' compelled to assume the InM; of 1017. the l'nlted States armv consisted I There Is distinctly .some satisfaction feeding a great part of tho world of 6791 ofllrers and IS1.797 men In the' In this. In every war heretofore In 'There has been tome decided differ- regulars ami 3731 ofllrers and 76,71.1 nun which this nation has engaged mistake Lcnce of opinion as to the work which In the national guard Todav the legu has been piled on mistake, and officials I Herbert ' Hoover, food administrator, lar army consists of about 1 1,000 officers havo refused to take heed to their error 'hap done" Because of the great dlllli ttlty , and 504,000 men . national guard, lO.pni) Today this Is changed Mistakes -ire! of kin task ho has nindo hitter inemles officers and 433 000 men, and about 020,. I a medium through which a eorre. ted Uml manv. very many enthusiastic sun- 000 men In the National Armv. program la prepared and theie Im not an official anywhere who does not frank ly admit a willingness to change hl mind If tihown that he was wrong General Cmnder'n ,rrl Work Of course, the greatest ulmclc achieve ment of the war has been the work ing out of the selective army plan. General Crowder's work In thlH connec tion has had far too little notice and generally Is overlooked for other thlncs 1 moro spectacular but of far les8 worth. For almost a year now this veteran soldier hail labored nlcht and daj per- i Jectlnt the machln.rv which feeds raw civ Hans Into one end of a hopper and "on na. a-'u... .-.-., u. ... , ... brlnra out at the other end the "army I tafk of suppljlns the many IhousundH of democracy," trained soldiers' vvho.of farm workers who will be needed act aa though they had never known to carry to frulttou the elaborate plant, anything but the ride and the khaki lof the lf partment of ARrtculturo MILLIONS SAVED OF WAR BY COUNCIL OF DEFENSE - , Oversight by National Body operation- Women's Committee Valuable Adjunct. Correlation of Capital By WALTER S. GIFFORD Plrtstor of the Cnunrll of N'stioiial Defenie and of th Advisory Commluslon THE Council of National -Jefense, the advisory commission and the agencies under both bodle-j were not permanently organized for business until March 3, 1917. Three of the council b chief contri butions to America's part In the war have been Flrut, the enlistment of the Industrial, engineering and scientific leaders of tho country for tho nation's defense,; second, the elimination of prof. Hrtrtng to a iery considerable extent In the war making of the United States: third, ltd function as a crucible for the development of new Ideas and new methods of administration demanded by modern war. More specifically, Home of the accom plishments of the council for the last twelve months may be Instanced ag fol lows r , The procurement of raw materials for the use of military and naval forces of the United States at prices groitly below? the current market price, this being made possible by enlisting the patriotic co-operation of industrial lead er. The completion of tho Inventory, for military purposes, of American man ufacturing plants Th saving to the Government of millions of dollars by the proper co- minions ot oouars oy ine proper co- ordlnatlon of purchases through tho ' agency of the general munitions board ARMY, READY TO DO BIDDING, RENEWS PLEDGE TO PRESIDENT By PEYTON C. MARCH Xltlor General, General HUB. Actlns Chief of 6uff. ,Tlie year Just closed has been for uh a period of preparation i Wo have been building up our fighting forces. Tho nucleus of a great army lias been transported safely overseas; toy arm Of picked men la being trained and made ready to embark. Klght JjUiiared and eighty thousand new men will be called to tho colom during theCyear, Creditable though our achievement has been, wo who ore In the fermy know that our soldiers In tho trenches and those In training are but the vanguard. .- -Tiia captain ot Industry, the skilled mechanic, the man at the plow Uttf tmian, who saves constitute the backbone of our belligerent strength. A aolemn 'responsibility is placed aenenaa not oniy tne success or our armies in battle, but the it of, an honorable and enduring peace. tfcvt freehold of Ihis pew ytar of war the anny, standing ready i.e ih mandate antrusted to It, saluted tho flag and renews Km if hU sasrlBce to JU fpmnwpder-ln-cblef, the standard bearer With no prtvlou experience to guide him. General Crowdrr cohcd a gen eral plan which experts say Is the Mm- plest In the world, hut which places at , the disposal of the nation lO.OA'.OOO men iiuallflwl for military service. The questionnaire Plan, which listed all of these cllglbles by ocetipitlon. makes It poiilbte for the Provost Mnrshal Oen- k eral to call Into tho service on twent four hours' notice any desired number of men trained In any special line of Industry which the needs of the army may require nt that particular moment. The National Army, now passing over t-eas to Its destiny. Is the work of this American ofllcer In other countries lie would be rewarded with patents of no bility, purses of gold and major decora tlons But here in America hi work Is accepted a "all In tho day1 work," and his reward simply a knowledge of 'duty well performed." More to rrnle Than to Crlllclre J tn tin npfuni unr conduct there I much that run be praised ; far more than cm be criticized In this cvetv department of tho Government ha en operated Tho stnrv of the activities of the War and Navv IVpmimnH h.i been unrolled each day before the nf iim ne.mlc. r...eentlnc where mtl'tnrv Heoesxitv has prevented, the aohlpvo- ments of the men who hair worked i under the direction of Newton P Baker unit JoU)hus Paniels have been passi-u on to the people- at large And it Is record of which nil may be proud But there are other departments of internment whirh also have dono much and without whoo active Mipport and co-operation disaster might liave been cneount-cri.l lintimlul Triumphs Take the work of Secretary of the I'n.icio.J v. . i Treasury William G. McAdoo and his assistants Not content with financing the war and floating bond Issues, he has , made the nntlotiBl railroad sslems n. real adjun.t of the Govemmen" Tlu torj of tin- dllllctiltles overcome in this i connection would 1111 pagen of newspaper space Hut there Is no need of thlF The) have been overcome and today tho ' railroads are working harder than ever before In their hlstorj. I Another "side line" which Secretary , McAdoo hat. under liu direction Is the SrX 'blUlonf1 dfoS w of insurance now Is In force in 4hU de-' partment reeding Our Army 'I he country and Its dcleiuh rs not nurtrrs But thero has been no fault i found with tin work of s.e.Titnr nf Agriculture Uavld Pranklln Houston, his ' chief assistant. Carl Vrooman, and their aids Their tnsk lias been to bring pro duction up to the topmost notch and they are accomplishing II without uny I unusual blare of trumpets. Under their leadership the farmers of the nation will .,., ... i .h. Ke....ni vr.ie of Amer- 1.,, ,Mrtcltlon In the world war cpry )It ot ground for which they can , ,h lat,r h , , , , .,.. ,, -,. Sevretary of Labor William U. Ill- IN FIRST YFAR Insures Economy and Co-; and Labor Promoted . of the Council of National Defonse, this board being later absorbed by tho war Industrial board. The mobilization of tho 2H2,000 miles of railroads of tho country for tho Gov ernment defense, nt tho Instance of Daniel Wlllard chairman of tho ad vlsoty commission. The close-knit oignnlzatlou or the telephone and telegraph companies of America to lneure to the Government tho most rapid and cfllrlent wire com munications, headed by Theodoro Jf. Vail, reporting to Mr. AVillard. Tho creation, under the medical tee Hon of the council, of .a general med- It,... Vw.1,.,1 iiii.i.ii. e .-... ., tv,,u .u,ia,ot(iif, u. ...ally ui me I most highly qualified surgeons and I physicians of tho country n'lie selection l.v thM .nm. lu...m - i thousands of doctors speelliLallv .mall- tied for membership in the midlc.il i oftlcers' reserve corps, and the stutidat dUatlon, far on its way to com pletion, ot surgical instruments and supplies. The creation by tho council ot tho aircraft production board Tho results obtained by the council's committee on coal production In the procurement and expeditious shipment of coal, both In the civilian and Pcderal interests Unite Labor und Capital The very genera) acceptance by labor and capital of the suggestion of the I 7r ., . . ""'""" ' . mcii "lat existing labor standards Continued on Pate Nine, Column Two upon the nation, on the fulfilment i'Jftii'ifi) t ."'A War Record of Country Is Greatest in History By CLAUDE KITCHIN Democratic Pleor t,ajlr of the Houie "Undoubtedly sonic mistakes havo been made In our pr partitions dur ing Hio Ilrit jear of the war. Hut taking ii broad view, considering tho mistakes In thotr relation tu tho nchlevctnents of tho first twelve months, tho errors are Insignificant and tho achievements ery area' "In my Judgment tho l"nlt I States Iihh done moro In the first jour of the war than uny natl-m has ever before achieved In so short a space of time. In the hlstorv of the win Id. Congress iniisf in n measure, be credited tor our show ing, for without tho cooperation and Mippoit of the togMntive branch the President ami his ml V Iscrs could hale iifoomph nri icry little " BY U.S. FIGHTERS Army Jumps From lir,000 to 1,700,000 Men Sim-c Conflict Started , oUO.UOO NOW IN I'KANCK .. 1, ("00,000 SeleeUul Force Mip loi'cd Into Service Within Ninety Unys fi a Staff fnrfripona- in W afclilngtnn, April lVom ti partially trained armv of I . rtn . -'v ..mi, u up oi iw uuu regulars and 76,000 national guardsmen, when wur wful declared on Germanv a ur . .... ,,,. ae- "ir l nlt "'' '""' ha be.,, recruited from totallv tintrultieil mi n until todu It consinth of appnlniatvl Jf700.000 men trained and equipped to ......., m1i, ' ' ' ' " ,hp "'C'15" P""" f efficiency in modern warfare About 300 000 of these men have finished the last plwc of their war 1 -' - "7 -" Potions of ,,,, Mern buttlcline In France The other million and a half have about com- picim mcir irainirig in this country and are amiltlng Fhlps to carry them to th'i I front line to face the German firm) While milltaty tmessllv mnk. , n in.. advisable to recite the actlvlth of the American forces In Pinnee. it i nn a matter or hlMorv that (ieneuil TerehinK and his staff arrived In J'arij. on June 14 1017. Jut peventv dac after the declaration of war The prut American troop" Unri'd In Kvancp twelve da later, and on Jills I American tro.ip, uunibeilittr about SMOh paraded the' streets of Paris and were greeted ah the forerunnern of the nri.i thr fulled Mates would nend over to acstst l'mn..e. 'Kncland, HelRlum and tlic othi t allies In 1 deft ut inx Merminv n I lrlnK Line (i.'lol.er l Within lx months after war waf declared, on October in to be exact the 'first Unite, Mate -oldiers took th li placet, on the rlrlnc line and In Janu- an uf this jear Amerlenn unltt tuoli 1 over a part of the line permanent! us the Amerli nn se. tor This lln- ban bun :? prer 1 t,.n continually lengthened i-inec Hack of the tiKhtlng line in Ktane. American force have gcienttflcnllv prepared camps, liue of lummunlca ilon Ktipply banes and defensive works i tun rwwij un-n forVcrscpia"rV0 r,., the ariiVHl of larLret defend In- tcrriiorv I nealnet the Gertn.in. Itailiouds, hos pitals, ordnance uaeti and u.h kh nave sTJctedlmmUbarrt.cur. S r mills, reclaimed ngrliMjIlural land and carried forward manv In. identnl opera- tlonu InUdmlallj- n j25.nno.cioo ord. nance base is being . otistructed in Krauce. When war iu declared there weVe no organizations for raising an urmv of tho proportions ueitssarv to tight ier many. except bj voluntary enlistment 1'tperlence, of ("iieat llrttnln und the other waring nations had demonstrated that tho best results were obtainable py unlveisal convcrlptlon. It then be came uecessa to pass legislation and form an organization to draft o-s many millions of men from among the 10. 000.000 in tho L'nlted Mates between the agei of twenty-one end lltlrtj-one TIiIh organization vvnb formed with remark able expedition and within ninety dajH after war had been declared the first draft of l.BOO.000 men had been mustered Into the ranks. Tho organization for conscripting tho ,nAn onniKiini? or inu lucui anil in.. ri.ut H.-! tm.trrls. Is now in existence and ready to draw any number of men that ' ma be rtqtiired to defeat Germany. I S7.34I New Olli.ers To procure oftlcers to command the army of approximately 2.0UO.OOO men, sixteen otllcers" training camps vcrc opened at advantageously snuatul poln's throughout the country and opened on Mry 15 Of 10,203 candidates, 27,431 qualified for commissions. Flvo months later, on August 27, ap projilmately 23,000 moro candidates for oltlccrs' commissions were assembled nt tho training camps and about ls.OOO of them were later commissioned. The ma- Jority of those who failed to obtain com- ".; ,.pr Elven nlnces as noncom- " n w"e " P'"" - I missioned oftlcers. A third seritB oi oiucers training camps, to vvhlcb onl enlisted men we're admitted, was opened on January 5, 1618. It la expected approximately 18, 000 officers will bo obtained from this series of camps. Hundred Billions Cost of Four Years' War Washington, April 4. The groat war thus fur linn cost moro than $100.000.0,00,000, Jtepre suntatlve Hull (Tcnn.), Ilnmiclal au thority In Congress, estimated to. day. "Despite the predictions of ex perts four years ago that It would be utterly Imposslblo for the most Important commercial nations to finance a war of this magnitude, except for a very brief time," Hull said, "the grpat expenditures have plied up In excess of 1100,000.000.000 a cost to every man, woman and child on the globe of more than ISO eacls,'.' V i. THE PRESIDENT AS jwwMtyliwwB8sawsMVi Thi- i-. tin- t-i i,ur l ilii i ,.1 ,ph I !'' -nil nl Wil on, jmU shows the . I. int'.'s wiuiixhi mi tho ippc irtitii'f it ihf nal inn's flnef Kcutii(liy tin- hi'tivj ifspontliilitifs und (irolilenis of ti full jcar of war. Tho pii-turt- -hows "ttn l'li'Mtlptit siiritiuntled by nn iid vi'ory lommitttiol rfpri'-.ftiluiie puiilticers of fnim 'prgductn und hvc.-'tofl.. NOT. I ULE DA TICS IN WA It RECORD OF U. S. CONGRESS 1017 I'n -in" in pm sua nt is "ii-is Al.irth . Apt II 2 Airll 2 Aril J April 6 1 I'liiCillllllllllHI t onsre-.s . nn t I 'i -.id. nt a. Idi Sinati ulopts vv.ir i' '.lutinn HoiW' cunrurs in war l. ".dutlou nml ptoclnlms war April 24 -President signs bill authorizing first Libert) ltonds and loan'to the Allien .Muv Mnv I rreni'li Sliiioii received by IIoui 3 Mcnntf n-iflvcN t-'rench Mission Mi. v .".- -tlrltlsli Mission received by llousr .Mnv S H.tiiit. ie.'t'lfs Ilrltlsh AIIlon Muy .Inn. IX- President sign .Iratt law. 1'. 1'renlili nt sIbus splnnuKP hill Jiinc 11 -President signj t.2i,ooo,Ouu urgvni derictonoy bill, up to that ilm. iln largtsl uppropilutlon bill In Ihc world, .lulv 24 ITesidint sIriim l4.000,000 Hlrcraft bill. August 1 U- - President signs NhmI surve.v and food control bills October 0 Prmldent signs trading with the enemy act. October ti I Tt shir nt signs rei ordhreuklng S,O00.00O.0QO urgont deficiency bill October --C'ongrf.ss udjourns until Uecembcr S DecemrH r .1- fotigrcMS reeonxeneii. December 4- lrenldcnt oddreskes Congress uigmg war on Austiia l).M-'mlitr 7 IJtiil.ued vvur on Vu-iriu 1DU Januuo 4 Pii-i.lcnl .vlun vi niiKri -s n, ..jveriunent control of tho lalltoa.l- duilnu the vv it , , .I.inu.u S Pr sidi nt addti-i t'onprcs outlinini.' tetnis of p. .ice l.liniirv II Pi. -id. lit iid.hts-c -, uiin-s, ti slatlns wnr objectives SPECULATION IN FOOD HOOVUI' S mllllllllSU ilium uitto Price to Production CoSt UU elqjJT Corrraponrtrii' tViililiiicti. April Most Importuni uf the food adminis tration's uicumpllsluiK-iifs. us the uf feet only th people at home, lias twen tho elimination of profiteering and specu la! on In food m essltles The big accomplishment, of course, ha be. n that It has niulnlnlned the food supply of tho Allies Hut at the same lime th. Vnerleuii people have been sav. d iiiIIIMih upon millions of dollurs In almost every food com .....a. f.r ii.., nrMMei.t nuruhusv prl. rep- lesents aotual vost of production, vvlth L. Ruu..,nlilu inodt for the furnu r, plus nnlv actual cost of distribution, with no more ihnii a reasonable prutil to t nose ...... n,.rrnr.n ii necessary function In the flow of food along the shortest pos sible routo to the table Flour provides a Kood exainnle l.arly in August it Fold at tho mill for li GO a barrel, while tho fanner was ic. celvlnc about tl.43 ti bushel for his wheat. Within a month after tlo food administration had power to act. tho farmer was receiving a little more than f a bushel for his wheat and Hour had krtirtu MuM. l-rl-e of f 10 50 at tin m'"ugar shows again that the profiteer Hd simulator have been east aside In the fate of an actual shoiltige that under nornial conditions would have run the Price to thirty or thirty-five, maybe even Iftv cents a pound., sugar has remained stable at from to 10', cents l standardising the constituents of bread and the slzo of the loaf, and by e.nfering competition on price, the food "dmtn "tratlon has effected substantial savings to consumers without working fniusttee upon tho baking Industry Its bread regulations have n!o resulted In contention of wheat, fats and sugar vrmsr and navy wheat necessities have been met. with provisions for an aSdUlona oniem m-y hippJ). by pur- ilv voluntarv agreement a fa r pi ce , i,.., iixnt on poik, ussurlng the has bien i "".''"L "... .i..r.-n.. in coumr) u - -- - . . , en ngulns u uunK--""" " produition. ;;, other commodities. oroTectnB the Consumer against specula, mo proflU and at the' tame (hue assur ing the producer a fair return for his '"mucIi has been done to meet the needs of Kurop" by chang ng the eating habits SJ thi .American people That the fond Snmhilswatlon has secured the active co. oneratln " : th. average housevvlfe s frMlcated bV !" '"tent to which wnste hf, been ehmlnated It U lmpolble ?o estimate with accuracy the total saving" but garbage utilization figure, Voriton waste of fiodnuffs had dropped stoosl to-tK tKnuinjtn ;-;,i t HE LOOKS TODAY i mirm etui -"'siuii to President's summons ullltiit fur war on fiertnan President nlgnit it immcdlutcij U. S. SHIPPING BOARD MEETS BIG PROBLEM Must Produce Toiinnjre Apace With Inroads of Teuton Submarines O.j a Staff ('orrr.po.irfi.if W ii'.liiiicti.ii, April o Sli,c war was dcclaitd a year ago. the United suites shipping board has had on its hands the most gigantic ship building task ever contemplated for such n short tlmo in the hlstorj of tho world With Germany sinking ,u,ci, mtr. i hunt ships at the rule of 1.000,000 tons u year, the Alllis faced starvation unices the L'nlted States could produce, bhlps In sufficient numbers and fast enough to take tho pmco of those being sunk und maintain tho shipment of foodstuffs frnin this country. Up to March 1 last the shipping board had let contracts for 70 sttcl vessels ot D.lfiC.400 dead weight tons. jvnc of this number has ju been completed but eeventeen had been launched by April 1. ' In addition to tho $50,000,000 which was authorized by Congress to bo unent by the shipping board it. lyjc? Congress has authorized tho board to snend $2 031.000.000 for construction S slllon i and purchasing of shl p7. inJS J sttuctlon of yards nml the erection of housing facilities for slilpjaidnpTores fp to March 1 ast the thl.mi. 3 . had spent J7I.500.51U or v0od'n X jn.MS.17S for steel ship, 8 DTI for tteel ships requisitioned and $3o 7'l7 . 402 for plants. '"'"',' L'nder the powers of seizure, the shin. Ping hoard has taken over li oee,L " ami An.i.i.n .!,. .-.''- tjerman ijrs'iZ'&i of 788.000 renalred ami nr r,nu. ... " . f uce The shipping board has contracted roe 490 wooden vessel, aggregating, f0 hnately 1.715.000 dwd'weljh S SmSh,' of which have been launched adSr tienrlng completion. It Is e"tma?"? ,?r1 270 of thws wooden ships "mbnJ'ftt , pleted this year ' L co"1- Tho shipping board Is carrilne out it program ut 1S1 plants. elA "y.,?."1 ltH, whl.h are engaged on wooden" hi .V'"! i s xtjr.su on steel. Of the ti "Pums I elghty-ono nro classified as new. S been constructed especially o, 1 '"" tracts wltli the board since Mar ?T ' declared, and the seventy remaining he Ing old plants, although many of f,, wtro erected to accommodate the boom In shipbuilding which developed hereT i the early days of the European war I To speed up ship construction. , "he I shipping board has advanced financial assistance to sixtthreo plants to as suit them In construction of shlnvvsvl. ' planu and tho Installment of Diane iqulpmens.- VAUi . r. i A'ouy's Record for Year Rcmarhablc Achievement Ry REP. LEMUEL P. PADGETT Chlrmt.n of the Iloure Nsvsl Affslr'a Cemmltt'e "Tho navy's record for tho flt twelve months of tho war. as shown by tho report of the subcommittee which investigated Its aetlvltleo, Ic one of the moM rrmarltablc urlilovenicnts of the war. In no way was tho navy found wantliiR Although tho personnel was multiplied by fit. every man who enlisted was most carefully c.irrd for; our destroyer force In the next twelvo months will be tho largest In the world, and the sta fighters nro well supplied with all i.mds of equipment. I cannot do ijeter than to quote Admiral Mayo, tthn wild- 'All Is well with the lUer NAVAL STRENGTH TRIPLED IN YEAR 350,000 Men Now in Sea Service of United States MARRING ON SUI1MARINES Nay Quick to Co-operate j With Allied Fleets in Pro tecting Shippinc V i a ttnff CorrttfOiit f VrBliliiK!iHi. April S. hi twelve monlhi the navy has In creased Its pertonne! strength to moro than three tlmea what it was on April G, 1M7, the increase In ofllcera -ind men In Ing from 52,000 to SS0.000. , goodly portion of tho American navy has worked In close co-operation with the nritlsh and Trench fleet j in sealing up the Clerman nav) and com bating the r-boats, while navy gunnfrs and suns are on every Ameitcau mar chant thlp to protect It from attack bv the guns and torpedoes of tho Uirman undersea monsters. On April 6, 1317, when war wan de clared, the navy and marine corps con sisted of 4702 ofllcer!, and 77.S4S en listed men. Today there are 20.604 ofll cers tn the regular navj, naval rebcrve force, marine cotps national naval vol unteers and co.itt guaid and 329,322 tnllsted men. In less than thirty days after the dec Htatton of war. American destrojets arrived in Ungland to assist In patrolling Kurorcan waters. The following day Admiral fchns, In charge of the Ameri can fleet In ntiiope, attended an Allied war conference at t'arts. The Ilrit contingent of tho expedition ary forces, trantpoited and convoyed by tho navy, had been landed In Trance on July 2. The navj's task of protecting Ameri can Uvea and property on the high teas from attack by German submarines be gan thiee weeks before 'var was de clared, when, on Mnrch 12, the Admin istration announced that American mer chantmen would be armed with naval Suhd and gunners against submarine at tack?. American naval gun crewa cn bervlng on merchant ships; In tho war zone before war was declared, and the first enlisted man lost In service, John lispoluccl, had been killed on April 1, when the Artec was sunk. The navy continued to Increano tho iticngth of the fleets a-j rapidly as the thlps could be constructed. When war was declared the navy had under con struction llfteen balllrihips, six battle cruisers, eseven ncout ciulscra, twent) s.even destioycrs. tflty-one submarine? and several auxiliary dilps. Since, then conttacts have been placid lor 960 ves sels. Including 100 submarine chasers for tho navy of one of our Allien. Moro than 700 prlvntel) owned vctsela have been purchased or chartered and fitted up for naval use. The navy has made marked progicss In developing Its aviation service. Largo orders have been given for seaplanes, tljing boats, dirigibles and balloons. In addition, many aircraft arc being con structed at tho Naval Aircraft Factory In Philadelphia, authorized by Congress on July 27, 1917. The navy has en larged Its schools for aviators, and now has several thousand officers! and men training for tho flying service. It Is not a generally known fact, but tt Is true neveithelesa that the; American battleships are the largest In tho world Tho Arlrona and 1'ennajl vunla aro of 31, COO tons; tho Idaho. Mississippi and New Mexico, 3Z.O0O tons; California and Tennessee, 32,300; Color ado, Mar.vlaiid, Washington Rnd- West Virginia, 32 60a tons, while six new battleships authorized are designed to be 12,000 tons. Compared with these veisels, the largest British battleship Is of only 27,500 tons; the largest Ger man, 28,500 tons, and the largest Japa nese vessel about 31,000 tons. Some Idea of the activity of the navy can he obtained from the comparative expenditures of the )ear preceding the war, when the cost of the navy's upkeep was $20 000,000 and that of the next fiscal year, which Is estimated to bo over 000,000. The marine corps, which comes under the auperv Islon of the Navy Department, has grown since war was declared from a total of 13,366 enlisted men and 426 olllcers to Its pretent strength of 1389 olTtccrs and 36.029 enlisted men. The strength of the marine corps has been lncreasid by loluntary enlistment, serv Ico In this branch being considered so desirable that there Is a waiting list ot applicants for the service. LONG AND HARD WAR, GENERAL WOOD PREDICTS Juf.t Returned Fiom Front, He Bo- lioves II Wicked to Mislead Peo- plo by Fulse Hopes Now York, April 5. -General Leonard Wood, Just returned from the battle front, believes the war will be long and hartf. ."It Is wicked to mislead our people Into believing that It will be an easy M'ar," he declared here, "It Is going to be war that will try our very souls." He said that Inefficiency tn connect ing with making war Is treason, and means that Americans will Ile In heaps among the unnecessary dead. Denounc ing profiteers. trlDers and politicians, Wood asserted; 'OUT AMca want men not wordq. CONGRESS COMPLETES MOST EVENTFUL YEAl j Two Declarations of War, Appropriations oh $23,000,000,000, Big-Army Authorized, Draft! and Many Other tTathlnrton. April 6. TII.D Congress of the United Stales will tomorrow round out tho mort eventful jear In Its history. It has broken so many records that they defy complete) enumeration. It hai established for the past year n place unenualed In historic Import ance In all American parliamentary annaU It has appropriated money by the bil lions. It haB levied taxes by the hun dreds of millions. It has enacted meas ures of the most revolutionary and drastic elinraeler In American hls,tor It has chattered precedents by the score and laid out new courses reach ing far Into the futuro of American civilization The laM jear In Congress may properly be divided Into two distinct part first, that of prompt and un questioning, acquiescence In tho Ad ministration's conduct of the war. and. second that of earnest and vigorous criticism of the war management The former period occupied the large part of the special session beginning on April 2, 1817, and ending on October C. 1317. The lattor period began Im mediately on the reconvening of Con gress In December and hasn't ended J'et, By a strange rcvcrtal of the situa tion, tho pacifists who raised their voices against the war and war meas ures during the first reriod of the Con gress have virtually dropped out of sight In tho second part, at least as antl.-aarrtors. They have been swal lowed up In a general determination in both houict, to back the war lo the furthermost limit of America's poweni. f'tltlcs of policy have given way to critics of method Cries for peace at nny price h.io been drowned out by demands- for winning the war at all COst. tpproprlatlotM KS.OOO.OOO.OOO . Terhrips the most Impressive thing about the year's record in Congres-i has been the outlav of monev. The giand total of outright appropriation'!, con tracts authorized and loans made to America's allies now reaches beyond the $22,000.nno 000 mark Of this stu pendojs amount, more than 121,000,000, 000 was appropriated and authorized e. Pnded In the first cist months of the war. Seven billions went In loans to the Allies. The remainder went largely to four main sources: Ship?, aircraft the army and the nav;- The genroslty of Con eTe "eeeded the. Administration's spending ability, and since Congress re convened in IJeeamber, appropriations have been of a minor nature compared to the previous eight months Two declarations of war within a. year that against Germany on April 6 and that against Austria-Hungary on De cember 7 also lonttltutc a record breaker In congressional history. In the matter of foreign affairs, the jear In Congress was also made remarkable b the reception of the special inl"s!otis t. ui .o me i nutu niaics ironi einie to tlrio by the Allied Governments No other Congress has ever received so many personal visits from the Presi dent Five fines President Wilson has gone before Congress assembled In Joint eesslon tn address I' upfn war policy and legislation Heglnnlng vvlth his first DRAFT LAW SUCCESS AS SEEN 1 9 m Y t-x t -v rs rwn jm - 15Y FKUVUbl iiJilNJiKALUKUVVUM Vaunted German Efficiency Offers Nothing to Comj pare with Mobilization of 687,000 Men for Na tional Army, Director Declares One of the greatest acAfei'emenfs during America's first ytar in the great world tear icas the creation of the .Vatfonaf Army. The man who has largely teen responsible or the cre ation of this great fighting machine is Major General Enoch It, Croudcr, provost marshal general of tho army, who tells the atory in the following words; OK MAT 17, 1017, no advocate of preparedness could with confidence havo forecasted the success of a com. pulsory bervlce law. Thera existed no mechanism for tho enrollment or se lection of Individuals. There wero many who feared the total failure of the selective service law which was enacted by Congress on May 18, 1917. Tho law was unequivocal in Its terms It boldly recited tho military obligations of citizenship. It vested the President with the most plenary power of prescribing regulations which should strike a balance between the Industrial, agricultural and economic needs of the nation on the one hand and the military need on the other, and should summon men for service in the place In which It should best suit the common good to call them. It was a measure of unguessed sig nificance and power. It flung a fair challenga at the feet of the doubters and the refutation of their assertion was nothtng less than spectacular. Between dawn and dark of one single day virtually the male population of the United States within the age limits fix ed by law for registration presented themselves at the enrollment booths with a registered result of nearly 10.000,000 PREDICTS GREATER U. S. ARMY ACHIEVEMENTS THIS YEAlt By S. HUBERT DENT, JR. ' Chairman Bout Military Affairs Commute .Much of Mhat has been accomplished by tho military brancii uurlnffl tho first year must of necessity remain secret. However, tho American' people may rest assured that tho achievements have far surpassed tbV fondest hopes entertained by tho most optimistic official in Washington a year ago. " Tho people know with what uccess tho draft wascarrlod out and hoi the cantonments rose almost overnight to house our soldiers In training! ?ut.rmJSat """I' f0w,u, "ltl9 u generally Known and not much c&tf be told. Tho people mu.t havo faith In the assurances of their selected leaders that tho military program Is being carried forwaard with astound; Ine succeos. 1 While tho War Department has been busy during tho last year wltl? practical problems, at tha i,m. ttm. t v.. .. ..... .. ... t7 .. " " rt that tr. ..imn YfT.,1. .1 w. ...w ,w. V w.,u. ,Ui mo reaojustmentB that havo been tnado I lot 1U ,. .vvci .uLcvemenu aunng; the past. Laws Enacted war address In April, ho appeared .....1 on December 4 to urge a deelarttlfill wi ar asainsi usina-iiungary; a tilt on January to advocate the new r,t? road legislation, and on January 8 acj" Cut.,,,,-... 1 I .. .- .. '. cuiumy ii iiu djiuko on terms of tttutl Tho most Important of tho war lertl latlon enacted by tho Congrets may A sumtneri lie. wilt, II, a nil...... . A - - " vi.ving lawjfl ...o uniu mw, mo espionago law, tif food-control law, tho revenue law Um tradlng-wlth.the.cnemv net i. ..n....-' bill and tho war flnanco bill ' Drsfl Lw rirst Big Act ' ' The draft law was tho first big ple ot legislation following the declaration of Van After weeks of hard flghtW opposition led by advocates of voluntarj military service, re-enforced by u; pacifist, was worn down and the draft law was passed by both houses by rAv stantlal majorities On May IS Pree). dent Wilson signed the bill making 10J 000,000 Americans liable to militant bervlce J The espionage law wae an omnlbiaj measure Including a dosen or to of Im-1 portant acts extending to ho Admlnln) tratlon the broadest powers to deal wltiu Ssedltlon, pro-Gcrmanlsm. espionage am), various other obstructions to the tuJ cessful conduct of the war It was haraj fought becauso It Included a provln'n . granting the Administration the moitj cirasuc powers to censor the press. TWii provision was stricken from tha killi after weeks of stubborn contest and lie? Din was placed on the statute books oj June IS. The food control bill and lli revjtwj u.i.s iiepi i ongres or rainer the Sent ate. busy throughout tho summer, t'eiu-l tor Heed, of Missouil, led a detcrmlml fight against the food control bill which established Herbert C. Hoover and Dr. Harry A. Oarfjeld as the food and fuel administrators of the l'nlted btattii 1 Utcr going through various processes tdj ainenqinriu, me dim was linallv p&iir : by the Senate and was .gned by th . I'rcs'dcnt on August 10. The Itevenue Bill The revenue bill, calculated to ralsu J2. 500.000.000 lo defray the war H-l penses. and reaching to the po'ket Ml every man, woman and . hlld In lfc! country, met with bitter opposition from! Senators, who demanded the conscription! of wealth lo pay for the war Weeki of) animated dcbite finally rculted In Itujj par-sage of tho bill with consldcraMtj amendments J The trading with the enemv act, omJ ot the most Important of the war mtiS ures. la) Ing down many principles tol I guide the relations of the I nited Sutiifj with Its enemies during thr period of the! war. was passed without nrolonsred ttfS bate Just before Congress adjourned W October. m Alde from the declaration of vti against Austria the mot miportaatlt acts of Congrers slnco reconvening ir, December have been the passage of lliff, railroed bill, the adoption of the recoliray Hon submitting tho national prohibition ouestlon to the States and the series ctJ Investigations mto tho condii t of tM! war The investigations, i Untaxed tjj; I President Wll'on s historic bnult wltW Senator cbambeilom, eliatrnian of tJifX Kenato Military Affairs Committee, furtf tilslied the most sperta.ulnr "spec! Off (tho entlro session J Si - t n 1 r rfl TV r-v WT t srv IVW names. The project had been to sys'.ji m.ltUerl fs.nl i Ifhlw fnrt v.Mi-hl iiotlfl , . .. ." " . . 1 iiriuauy complete registration return; had been assembled . . ... . i.". uy teiegrapn ip Washington. (af The remaining preliminary task Van to determine the order In which. tA 10,000,000 registrants were to be called to determine their availability for mill tary nervlce. This was accomplished Ml July1 20 by a great central lottery tfl call for tho whole $10,000,000 namei This order determined, tho boards proj ceeded promptly to call, to examtay physically and to consider claims for eifj emptlon of a BUfllclent number of pij to fill the first national quota of 6S?.0t men. At the President's call all ranks a the nation, reluctantly entering the wirl nevertheless Instantly resnonded to tut first call of the nation with a VlgopoO- and unselfish co-operation that iJ merged all individual Interest In a iu gle endeavor toward the consummation or tne national task. I take It that no irreal patlorJO project was ever attempted with so rosuv plete a reliance on the voluntary cp-oi3 eratlon of citizens for Its execution- R This law has been administered Dtt civilians whose ofilclnl relation lie? onlflf In the necessary powers with which th'i. were -vested by the Presldent'o desiring Hon of them to perform the dut'es ttitfy are laid upon them They have accoNJi pllshed tho task They have made soral mistakes. Tho system offers room fJf Improvement. But the great thing tnS were called upon to do they have done.V The vaunted efficiency of Gerniaajjfl oners noiuing to compare witn u " k ' luunuaiiono lor ino ww. ... . .- ma next twelve months than thoso . . 'J I ' i' ' J- -i .,"'' f 7 '$& H-Nsp,i vftv . ; r,... i :... 4" ) A 31 4i 6
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers