ARMY PAY (H. R. 9204) TESTIMONY SHOWING NECESSITY FOR READJUSTMENT A BILL TO REORGANIZE AND INCREASE THE EFFICIENCY OF H. R. 8068 A BILL TO PROVIDE FOR UNIVERSAL MILITARY, NAVAL, AND NATIONAL EMERGENCY H. R. 7925 A BILL TO ESTABLISH THE DEPARTMENT OF AERONAUTICS, H. R. 8870 A BILL TO AMEND AN ACT ENTITLED "AN ACT FOR MAKING H. R. 9204 A BILL TO INCREASE THE PAY OF THE COMMISSIONED AND EN- 1 ARMY REORGANIZATION. COMMITTEE ON MILITARY AFFAIRS, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, The committee met at 10.30 o'clock a. m., Hon. Julius Kahn (chairman), presiding. The CHAIRMAN. The committee will now take up the bill introduced by Mr. Stiness, H. R. 9204, to increase the pay of the commissioned and enlisted personnel of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Public Health Services. Col. Munson, we will be pleased to hear you. STATEMENTS OF COL. E. L. MUNSON, WAR PLANS DIVISION, GENERAL STAFF CORPS, AND COL. ROBERT C. RICHARDSON, GENERAL STAFF CORPS. Mr. CALDWELL. Mr. Chairman, may I ask one question? The CHAIRMAN. Yes. Mr. CALDWELL. How much gross will this mean in increase in pay of the present establishment?" Col. MUNSON. It will be about $61,000,000. Mr. CALDWELL. For the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Public Health Services? Col. MUNSON. I am only giving you figures for the Army. I do not know the other figures. Mr. CALDWELL. And with a 50 per cent increase for the enlisted men, altogether you say it will amount to how much? Col. MUNSON. $61,000,000. Mr. CALDWELL. You mean by that the pay of the Army is not more than Col. MUNSON. I have the exact figures, which I will produce in just a moment. The CHAIRMAN. Do you not think we had better let Col. Munson proceed with his statement? Mr. CALDWELL. Yes; I have to leave, and I wanted to get that information. Mr. GREENE. Colonel, in order that the record may show, will you identify yourself by stating your name, rank, and present status of duty. 1277 200 Col. MUNSON. E. L. Munson; colonel, General Staff, War Plans Division. The War Department has directed me to present for your consideration certain facts which have been apparent during a study of the present situation in the Army. The present situation, gentlemen, is one of very serious distress. This distress is expressed by certain acts which are perhaps best exhibited in this chart (chart depicting resignations). Since the armistice there have resigned from the United States Army 1,932 officers. This represents more than one in every six. The reasons for resignation, as given by the great majority, an analysis of which I will give you briefly, is one of inability to make both ends meet. The situation is one which shows no prospect of diminishing. The resignations which come in now are coming in at nearly the same ratio that occurred several months ago and depend chiefly on the financial stringency in civil life which is constantly exacting its toll from the Army. Gentlemen, the men who are thus leaving the Army are the men who represent its best force, its best blood, its initiative, its selfreliance; and it is not only impairing the Army of the present, but it has very serious effects upon the Army of the future, because this type of man who is not afraid to go out and compete is the desirable type of man that the Army should have for its management in the future. This table, which will be passed around, shows you exactly where these resignations lie, and these resignations do not fully represent the true state of affairs because, for example, in the Medical Corps the Surgeon General, as a mater of routine, disapproves every resignation sent in, by reason of the fact that a large number of sick in the hospitals still require treatment, and he can not go beyond a point of safety in reducing the medical personnel, and he does not deem it advisable to discharge regular officers at the time when reserve officers are being kept in, perhaps against their desire. The situation as we see it to-day, briefly, is that 26 per cent of the officers of the Coast Artillery have resigned in 11 months; 25 per cent of the officers of the Field Artillery have resigned; 19 per cent of the Infantry, and 19 per cent of the Cavalry. Mr. SANFORD. And those resignations have been accepted? Col. MUNSON. Yes, sir; those officers are out of the service. Mr. SANFORD. Was it discretionary with the Chief of Coast Artillery to accept or reject them? Col. MUNSON. The policy has been, as I understand it, to accept all of them. Mr. SANFORD. It was discretionary with him, was it not? Col. MUNSON. I imagine it was discretionary, but after the armistice the pressure was so great that the policy was adopted by which, so far as I am aware, every resignation, except in a very few instances, as in the Medical Corps, has been accepted. Mr. SANFORD. At the same time it has been the policy of the War Department to refuse to furlough to the reserve the Regular Army private who in time of peace would be absolutely entitled to a fur lough. I can not understand the difference in the policy with reference to the officer and the enlisted personnel. Mr. HULL. Is not that brought about in this way: In the case of officers you have plenty of officers anxious to be retained. Col. MUNSON. I will take up in a moment an analysis of that. Mr. HULL. That is the truth, and in the case of privates, they can not get them, don't you see. Mr. SANFORD. I do not see. I know they can get them. I know there is absolutely no excuse and can be no excuse for retaining a man in the service now who has already been in the service over three years and is entitled to a furlough and can be furloughed to the reserve; that is, in my judgment. Mr. HULL. I did not know that they were doing that. Mr. GREENE. You take into consideration, probably, Mr. Sanford, I suppose, the fact that an officer is presumably in the service for life with no opportunity to get out except by presentation of his resignation, whereas an enlisted man, perhaps, if the times are a little hard, with a little patience, may get out at the expiration of the period of his enlistment. Col. MUNSON. He has a contract with the Government. Mr. SANFORD. He has a contract that entitles him to be furloughed to the reserve in three years, in times of peace, but the War Department treats this as war times and refuses to let him out, and will not let him out unless he proves he has dependents, and I wish to go on record as saying that I think that is a very unfair policy. Mr. HULL. I do, too, but I did not think they were doing that except in certain cases down on the border. Mr. SANFORD. That is their general policy. They refuse to furlough any man to the reserve who, in times of peace, would be absolutely entitled to it. Mr. HULL. Then that is absolutely different from the policy of the Navy? Mr. SANFORD. Absolutely. Mr. HULL. In the Navy they are letting them out and I supposed the War Department was doing the same thing except on the border. Mr. SANFORD. It is their policy not to furlough to the reserve the Regular Army privates. Mr. HULL. They have only 30,000 of those all told. Mr. SANFORD. That is all. I should not have interrupted you with that statement, but I wanted to show the contrast in the treatment of the Regular Army officer and the enlisted personnel of the Regular Army. Col. MUNSON. By rank the resignations so far have been, 3 lieutenant colonels of the Regular Army-and I happen to know of others whose resignations will be effective shortly who have put them in there are 17 majors, there are 129 permanent captains, and 21 provisional; 172 permanent first lieutenants and 819 provisional first lieutenants; 27 permanent second lieutenants and 744 provisional second lieutenants. This makes a total of 348 permanent |