Gen. Wood's Plan For Army Reserve.

New York Times 100 years ago today, November 6, 1912:
Calls for Mobilization of 600,000 Men in Case of War with Great Power.
TO EMPLOY RESERVE SYSTEM
With Short Active Enlistments, Men May Be Trained In Regular Army and Held for Service.
    In a public address at Los Angeles some days ago, Major Gen. Leonard Wood, Chief of Staff, expressed a strong belief that a National policy should be put into immediate operation, which in a reasonable time should provide an army of 600,000 men, in active service and in reserve. He announced at the time that he had a plan which was practical and could be put into effect at a minimum expenditure to the Government. In response to a telegram from The Times, which reached him at San Antonio, Texas. Gen. Wood fully explains below the plan he had in mind.

By Major Gen. LEONARD WOOD, Chief of Staff.
By Telegraph to the Editor of The New York Times.
    SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Nov. 5.— Army organization plans call for mobilization of about 600,000 in case of war with a first-class power. The total regular mobile force available and organized militia fit for service (field) do not exceed 150,000. More are required — 450,000. Where shall we get them? No instructed men are available. We must have a reserve of instructed men to draw from. Hence the department recommendation for a reserve from which to fill up the regular army to full strength and to create a new organization. No officers are available for the latter except those drawn from the regular army for higher commands. This number is limited, whereas 15,000 officers will be required, and modern war permits no delay sufficient for this work.
    The work must be done in advance. How? By using the regular army as a school for training in time of peace as many men as can be passed through it. Such a plan is consistent with thorough training. Instead of holding one man thirty years and retiring him on large pay, is it not better to train ten different men for three years each? Let the men so trained be kept as a reserve as long as they are fit for service. Twelve men can be held in reserve for the cost of one man with the colors. The same general plan should apply to the militia. I believe that one excellent source from which to draw officers is the graduate list of military schools where regular officers are on duty. Commission, from those graduates recommended, several hundred each year for one year, making them Second Lieutenants in the regular army, and on the completion of their service give them certificates of fitness as volunteer or reserve officers. During their year's service they should receive the full pay and allowances of Second Lieutenants. From the young men so serving many of the vacancies in the army could be filled, subject to prescribed examinations. This would, in a few years, give a reasonable reserve from this source,
    The country does not want a large standing army, but it does need an effective one, with a large number of instructed men and officers who, while not with the colors, are ready for service. This gives military preparation with the minimum of interference with the economic career of those affected. The reservists should have occasional brief periods of training, say ten days every other year, and should be assured that they will not be disturbed by being called to service except in case of war and for the brief instruction periods mentioned. Each reservist will be assigned to an organization, and both he and the organization commander will know who the man is and where he is to go.
    The other questions are only matters of detail, easy to arrange. Look at Switzerland, with 230,000 effective troops and 300,000 more behind them, all provided at a cost of less than $6,000,000 per year. We can get much better returns for the money Congress gives the army under a reserve system than under the present. We can give a much greater degree of preparations. We are not advocating militarism, but common sense preparedness. Recent legislation establishes the reserve policy through making a part of the enlistment period service in the status of a reserve and permits enlistments in that reserve. It is the greatest advance step in years in that it recognizes the reserve idea. The present law will doubtless require change, but the vital need has been recognized and the first steps taken to meet it.
                (Signed) LEONARD WOOD.