u c 63 IC-NRLF GIFT OF STUDY ON PLACES OF ORIGIN AND ABILITY TO PROCURE SUPPLIES NEEDED IN VAST QUANTITIES IN TIME OF WAR PREPARED BY THE WAR COLLEGE DIVISION, GENERAL STAFF CORPS AS A SUPPLEMENT TO THE STATEMENT OF A PROPER MILITARY POLICY FOR THE UNITED STATES WCD 8121-39 ARMY WAR COLLEGE : WASHINGTON NOVEMBER, 1915 WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1916 /- ^ WAR DEPARTMENT, Document No. 527. of the Chief of Staff . v o STUDY ON PLACES OF ORIGIN AND ABILITY TO PROCURE SUPPLIES NEEDED IN VAST QUANTITIES IN TIME OF WAR. 1. The supplies needed for our armies in the event of mobilization include supplies which can be purchased in quantity at any time, and also those which can not be turned out except after weeks or months of delay. This delay would be due, first, to the fact that the article is not a standard article used in quantity by the civilian com- munity; second, that the manufacture of some of the articles re- quires special dies and machinery not generally used by our manu- facturers. 2. The principles which should be adopted therefore are (a) To standardize all articles of clothing and equipment as far as possible, using designs that are ordinarily used by the civilian or which can be turned out in quantity from hundreds of existing factories. (b) To store up dies, machinery, and samples of special munitions, so that in the event of mobilization hundreds of factories could be given the special additional equipment which would enable them to begin at once the manufacture of these special munitions. 3. In order to obtain certain data from the chiefs of the five supply departments, each of them on September 14, 1915, was furnished a copy of the paragraphs below quoted, and also of paragraphs 50 and 52 to 62, inclusive, of the Statement of a Proper Military Policy for the United States, prepared by the War College Division of the General Staff Corps, in compliance with instructions of the Secretary of War, March, 1915, and submitted to him September 11, 1915. The paragraphs are as follows: IV. Has any study ever been made of the places of origin and ability to procure the various things which would be needed by us in vast quantities in time of war? If no such study has been made, ought it not to be made? In other words, does the Quartermaster General and the Chief or Ordnance, and the other heads of bureaus and departments, know in a general way what the need would be for an army of a million men, and where they could get all the things, and an assurance that in time of war they could get them? This should be considered, of course, in the light of the possibility that one or both oceans are closed to us ; so that there should not only be a survey and accurate knowl- edge of what could be procured here and where it could be procured and how long it would take to procure it, but of what we would lack here and whether we could supply that lack and whence and how long it would take, etc. 30669 No. 52716 (3) 667384 V. Have we reports In hand of what materiel should be asked for, particularly ammunition, small arms, small-arm ammunition, field guns, Artillery, Field Artillery, Coast Artillery, etc.? If not, let the suggestions be made as soon as possible, so that they can be submitted and revised and some idea obtained of totals. The same thing should be done with respect to all other materiel which must be kept on hand. In this connection I think it would be extremely ad- visable for us to omit asking for anything as a reserve which we undoubtedly could get speedily if needed, and confine ourselves to making a reserve of those things which require periods of time. 50. For the purpose of storage, military supplies may be divided into four classes (a) Supplies that can be obtained in great quantities in the open market at any time. (&) Those that can be obtained in sufficient quantities on 15 days' notice. (c) Those that can be obtained on three months' notice. (d) Those that can not be obtained within three months. 52. A fully trained force, to be effective during the critical period when war is imminent and during the first few weeks of a war, must not be hampered by lack of necessary supplies and equipment. For this reason supplies of all kinds which can not be obtained in the open market at any time must be kept on hand, in use and in store, at home and oversea, sufficient to equip without delay all troops whose training warrants sending them promptly into the field. 53. It is probable that as soon as war becomes imminent the partially trained citizen soldiery 500,000 mobile troops will also be called out. As this par- tially trained force can not be expected to take the field within three months' time, it is practicable to refrain, after the third year, from keeping on hand or in store for it any articles of equipment except those necessary to complete its training and those which can not be procured within three months. 54. The total number of harbor-defense troops necessary is about 50,000. Due to conditions of service, it is believed that ultimately supplies of all kinds for 60,000 should be kept on hand. 55. In any great war volunteers must be called out in addition to the troops above enumerated. 56. It would be unwise to have on hand at the beginning of a war merely the supplies sufficient to place in the field our first contingent of troops and to complete the training of the partially trained citizen soldiery, and to be un- prepared to supply to even a limited extent the volunteer army we should have to raise, not to mention replacements of arms, ammunition, clothing, and equip- ment of all kinds for those already in the field, but on account of the great sum of money which will be necessary in entering upon a program for collect- ing and storing military supplies it is believed that the subject of equipment for a volunteer army and replacements for the Regular Army and partially trained citizen soldiery should be provided for by obtaining options with domes- tic manufacturers to furnish the required supplies, all of domestic manufac- ture, in accordance with tentative contracts to be made by the supply depart- ments with such manufacturers in time of peace. By so doing we will be taking the initial steps toward organizing the industrial and economic resources of the country as well as its resources in fighting men, 527 57. Referring to " reserves," approximately the following troops will be avail- able at the close of the successive years : Fully trained mobile troops. Partially trained continen- tal army. Harbor- defense troops. Total. First year 160 000 185 000 30 000 375 000 Second year 219 000 351 ' 000 40 000 610 000 Third year 320 000 500 000 50 000 870'000 Fourth year 383,000 500,000 52 000 935 000 Fifth year . . 439 000 500 000 54 000 993*000 Sixth year 489 000 500 000 56 000 1 045 000 Seventh year 534,000 500 000 58*000 1*092* 000 Eighth year. . 574 000 500 000 60 000 1 134*000 A study of these figures and of the difficulties we have experienced in the past in the matter of supplies leads to the conclusion that the program adopted for procuring reserve supplies should be such that at the close of each year we should have in use and in store, at home and oversea, supplies of all kinds necessary to equip : Infantry divisions. Cavalry divisions of nine regiments. Harbor- defense troops. First year 13 3 30 000 Second year . . . 22 5 40 000 Third year... . 32 g 50* 000 Fourth year 34 7 52 000 Fifth year 36 g 54 COO Sixth year 37 56*000 Seventh year 38 10 58* 000 Eighth year 40 10 60*000 The supplies acquired during the first three years should include all articles which can not be obtained in sufficient quantities on fifteen days' notice, those acquired during the last five years to include only those articles which can not be obtained on three months' notice. After the eighth year the program should be extended to provide for the storing of such additional machine guns, rifles, field guns, ammunition, etc., as may be considered advisable. 58. In order that vast supplies pertaining to one supply bureau should not be secured and relatively nothing be done by other supply bureaus, supplies should be obtained progressively in complete division units. 59. In order that the efforts of the various supply bureaus may be properly coordinated by the Chief of Staff, reserve supplies should be collected in general supply depots located in accordance with the general principle below enumerated. Each general supply depot should be considered a place of issue in time of peace for all articles of field equipment, so that the stock on hand will be continually turned over and the machinery for the issuing and forward- ing of supplies will be in operation at the outbreak of war. The commander of each general supply depot should be either a line or a staff officer specially selected by and reporting direct to the Chief of Staff or to the- department com- mander and independent of the control of any one particular staff department, but keeping in touch with all. The commander of each general supply depot should be assisted by the necessary commissioned, enlisted, and civilian per- 627 6 sonnel. Supplies for not more than three division units should be stored at any one locality. Each place selected for a reserve storehouse should be one that will be at all times under adequate military protection, where ground is available and where abundant railroad facilities exist. 60. As a general military principle, no supply depot, arsenal, nor manufac- turing plant of any considerable size, supported by War Department appro- priations for military purposes should be established or maintained east of the Appalachian Mountains, west of Cascade or Sierra Nevada Mountains, nor within two hundred miles of our Canadian or Mexican borders, and steps should be taken gradually to cause to be moved, depots and manufacturing plants already established in violation of this military principle. 61. The estimated cost of the field equipment of one Infantry division, Tables of Organization; 1914, is as follows : Kind of supplies. Can be ob- tained in the open market in great quan- tities at any time. Can be ob- tained on 15 days' notice. Can be ob- tained on three months' notice. Can not be obtained on three months* notice. Signal supplies 1722. 12 $1 688.51 $6 030 46 1285 310 26 51 983 35 54 054 45 3 177 083 47 Engineer supplies* * .. 1,835.26 471.59 7 703.97 8 428 95 Ordnance supplies . . 5, 779. 67 7, 730. 96 257 489 89 4 164 770 68 Medical supplies 10 997.95 10 189 63 88 861 51 And the estimated cost of one cavalry division of nine regiments is approxi- mately as follows: Can be ob- Kind of supplies. tained in the open market in great quan- tities at Can be ob- tained on 15 days' notice. Can be ob- tained on three months' notice. Can not be obtained on three months' notice. any time. Signal supplies $370 80 $1 638 53 $4 290 61 $277 156.43 Quartermaster supplies. 55, 102. 48 76,143.40 4,584,628.93 Engineer supplies 1,769.59 416.53 10, 885. 20 3, 999. 45 Ordnance supplies 31 862.02 8 630.56 311 056.68 3,541 004.68 Medical supplies 13 454.99 13 060 57 108 630 36 62. While the amount of money involved is large, practically all of it will remain at home, especially if every effort be made by the supply bureaus to eliminate from supply tables all articles not of domestic manufacture. It must also be kept in mind that it is cheaper to buy war supplies in time of peace than in time of war. 4. The salient points mentioned in the reports received are as follows : Chief of Engineers. No adequate study made, but one should be made; work of the several bureaus ought to be supervised and co- ordinated so that they may be working to the same end and avoid getting confused and overlapping letters from the manufacturers and commercial firms who would supply articles to more than one bureau. 527 Chief Signal Officer. Steps have been taken to procure estimates as to the quantity of material the principal manufacturers of the country can furnish and the probable length of time necessary for deliveries. Chief of Ordnance. A study has been made of the probable out- put of ordnance materiel of establishments in this country; the de- gree of preparedness of these plants in any future year can not be predicted ; practically none of the ordnance materiel can be procured in less than three months, and a much longer time will be required for the procurement in quantity of any of the articles, even in case of plants that are thoroughly equipped at the time the orders are placed. Surgeon General. It is known where the necessary supplies can be purchased under usual conditions; a very large number of medici- nal products are imported and could not be procured within our borders, but none are absolutely indispensable except quinine, opium, and cocaine; a large proportion of surgical instruments are im- ported; a fair amount of soft-metal goods can be obtained, but a pinch would be manifested in the lines of hand-forged steel instru- ments, such as knives, hemostatic forceps, and scissors. Quartermaster General. A study has been made of the places of origin and ability to procure supplies needed for an army of a mil- lion men; all the necessary articles are of domestic manufacture and can be readily obtained on reasonable notice. 5. The War College Division can find nothing in the reports re- ceived which indicates the advisability of changing its recommenda- tions contained in paragraphs 46 to 62, inclusive, of the Statement of a Proper Military Policy for the United States, submitted Sep- tember 11, 1915. The War College Division is of the opinion, how- ever, that before anything can be accomplished looking toward co- ordinated action in the matter of storing reserve materiel a com- mittee of the General Staff Corps must be charged, under the au- thority contained in section 2 of the act of Congress approved Feb- ruary 14, 1903, with the duty of supervising and coordinating the entire work of preparing each year the estimates for all amounts which the War Department recommends that Congress appropriate. 527 o RETURN TO: CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT 198 Main Stacks LOAN PERIOD 1 Home Use 2 3 4 5 6 ALL BOOKS MAY BE RECALLED AFTER 7 DAYS. Renewals and Recharges may be made 4 days prior to the due date. Books may be renewed by calling 642-3405. DUE AS STAMPED BELOW. IviAY 5 ulJ4 FORM NO. DD6 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY 50M 5-03 Berkeley, California 94720-6000 Makers Stockton, Calif. PAT. JAN. 21, 1908 667364 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY