Organization of War Dept....

May 1

Recruiting Results at City Stations, Nov., 1923
Recruiting Results at City Stations, Dec., 1923
Recruiting Results at City Stations, Jan., 1924
Recruiting Results at City Stations, Feb., 1924
Recruiting Results by Districts, Mar., 1924
Recruiting Results by Districts, Apr., 1924
Recruiting Results by Districts, May, 1924
Recruiting Results by Districts, June, 1924
Recruiting Results by Districts, July, 1924
Special Service Schools for Reserve Officers
Standing of City Stations, Mar. to Nov., 1923.
Strength of U. S. Army, Aug. 31, 1924..

Jan. 15

[Reprinted by Permission of New York World]

IEUTENANT A. J. WILLIAMS of the Navy, it will be remembered, after winning the Pulitzer Trophy Contest with a speed of 243.67 miles an hour, a mark which he afterwards far surpassed, stated that he had become unconscious at the turns, or in his own words, "I went out cold as I turned the pylons."

It will perhaps interest the readers to know why he became unconscious and what the possible chances are of serious trouble ensuing from such dazzling speed. First of all, our blood is distributed by means of our heart and blood vessels all over the body. Our blood vessels are

controlled by a system of nerves that cause the vessels of one part of the body to become larger or smaller, depending on the amount of blood needed by that particular part of the body.

For example, after we have eaten we need more blood in our digestive apparatus to aid in digestion. Consequently, considerable blood is diverted to the organs in the abdomen. When we are studying we need more blood in our brain, so more blood is diverted there, and so on.

We have a system of blood vessels in our abdomen that technically are known as splanchnic vessels. These vessels act as a blood reservoir and are easily dilated to hold more blood. When we are lying down our circulation is adjusted for that position. When we stand up our circulation rapidly adjusts

is acting in a direction away from the flier's head, or toward his feet. So that we have two factors: 1, centrifugal force, and 2, the change in position of the flier's body. Instead of leaning to one side as you might do in the train, the flier has to bank his ship to prevent acciIdent, just as a railroad track or automobile speedway is banked higher on one side.

The flier is strapped into his machine so that centrifugal force cannot pull him out of his seat, but centrifugal force does pull on his body and as a result everything in his body that can move does so in the direction of the pull. This means that his blood, which is, of course, fluid, is carried away from his head into the easily enlarged splanchnic vessels already mentioned, and even into his legs.

This means that he has a lack of blood in his brain or what medical men call anemia. When we have anemia of the brain we become unconscious. Hence the flier becomes unconscious when making a turn at terrific speed.

When a man is flying at the rate of four miles a minute it will be seen that making a turn occupies but a moment. Anemia of the brain causes faintness and unconsciousness immediately. The flier quickly recovers because the circulation rapidly adjusts itself to the new position of the body and the action of the centrifugal force quickly changes to the direction of the new line of travel. At slower speeds the pilot does not become unconscious because the centrifugal action being less, no anemia of the brain is produced, and furthermore, the circulation is more readily adapted to the change of the position of the body.

itself to the new position. Have you ever jumped quickly out of bed and felt dizzy, everything in front of your eyes becoming blurred? If so, your circulation, which was adjusted to the horizontal position in bed, did not adjust itself quickly enough to the upright position. As a result you had insufficient blood in your brain, causing temporary dizziness and faintness.

This will give you, perhaps, some idea of how Lieutenant Williams felt as he turned the pylons. However, there is another most important factor which was chiefly responsible for his symptoms. You are all familiar with the sensation of riding in fast trains of cars, particularly if

is practically horizontal; that is, the wings are parallel to the ground. Look at the diagram and note the position of plane No. 1. When a flier makes a sharp turn, say to the left, he not only turns to the left, but also banks the ship so that the wings are now vertical. The position of the flier's body is therefore horizontal, or parallel with the ground. (See plane No. 2 in the diagram.) The straight arrow shows the direction of the plane, the dotted arrow, that of the direction in which he was originally flying before making the turn, and, therefore, the direction of the pull of centrifugal force.

It will be seen that centrifugal force

Now-how high a speed can the human being stand and still live? Is it possible to attain a speed so great that the anemia produced will be so marked and so prolonged that recovery will not take place? The answer is probably yes. We cannot say how great this speed will be. Experiment only will show. However, we have another factor, not yet mentioned, on which we shall have to figure. Dr. Garsaux of France did some experiments with dogs. He rotated them (Continued on Page Fifteen)

T

HERE is a prevalent tendency, in the consideration of governmental costs, to isolate Federal expenditures as though the Federal Government were an independent institution, instead of being merely an agency to which the small share of their authority that is exerted for purely national purposes. No Federal activity can be properly considered unless it is studied in relation to similar activities of the State, the city, or county, and, finally, of the family itself, the latter being the true foundation of any system of government. Much confusion of thought would be avoided if the average citizen could be brought to realize that most of the principles which apply to the distribution of his own income, or of the income of a business, apply also to Federal expenditures. He should realize particularly that the Federal, State, city, and county budgets and his own family income are all one great resource which is employed through his direct or delegated authority, for his own protection and happiness. Unfortunately, an individual who spends his money willingly for personal weapons, burglar insurance, and local police, sometimes feels that Federal expenditures for national defense are entirely out of his control and not even related to his personal affairs. The result is an unreasoning resentment against public expenditures, which can be dissolved only through correct understanding.

During the past year I have heard a few criticisms of our defensive measures, on the basis of their cost. It is apparently a matter of astonishment for some of our citizens to discover that national defense consumes an appreciable part of the Federal Budget. I believe that many of these are lacking in full understanding of the governmental principles which were adopted by our founders and which have led to our present successful development as a Nation. One of the chief reasons for the adoption of the Federal Union lay in the pressing need for the common defense. The Constitution leaves no doubt that the Federal Government is devised largely to insure cooperation in defense, and community in the protection of our external interests. Discussing this principle, Alexander Hamilton repeatedly expressed the opinion, to the prospective signers of the Constitution, that the bulk of Federal

Ratio to Federal Budget Steadily Decreasing, States Secretary of

War in Annual Report

expenditures would always be, properly, for the provision of common defense.

In the past fiscal year $599,750,232 was appropriated for the departments concerned with national defense-$340,884,122 was appropriated for the War Department, and of this amount $257,415,470 was for military purposes. These are tremendous sums, but ours is a great

Nation.

HON. JOHN W. WEEKS Secretary of War

The total Federal Budget for this period was over $4,000,000,000. The War and Navy Departments consumed, roughly, 14 per cent of the total Federal Budget, and purely military activities 6 per cent. It is apparent that our military expenditures have not assumed the proportions that the founders predicted. Moreover, one should not forget that this 6 per cent of Federal costs by no means represents 6 per cent of our governmental expenditures. If one includes in this study of Government costs, State and city budgets (all of which are governmental in their purposes), only 22 per cent of the total is consumed by

the War Department and its activities.

Since these budgets are relatively but a small part of the total national income, the percentage of our gross income which is spent for the common defense is obviously an extremely small one. I might say that if each taxpayer purchased each year for his own protection an army automatic pistol, the total expenditure would be more than the cost of the Army. The per capita cost is slightly more than $2 annually. It is grossly improper to picture our costs as a great military burden upon a civilian population. Those who occasionally urge that what we spend

for protection should be spent for education should remember that our expenses for education which appear chiefly in State and local budgets are really far in excess of our expenditures for defense.

The average per capita cost of government, Federal State, and municipal, for citizens of the 21 largest United States of which $5.45, or 5.95 per cent, was for national defense and $2.34, or 2.55 per cent, was for Army purposes. Thus of each dollar which the average citizen pays for governmental purposes, approximately six cents is for national defense and approximately 22 cents for Army purposes. There are a few individuals who have from time to time expressed alarm because of the increase in our cost of national defense. They point, for example, to the fact that in 1913, before the World War, our military establishment cost but slightly more than half of its cost today. It is indeed true that in the past 10 years the cost of national defense has doubled. On the other hand, during the same period our country has expanded in importance and in earning capacity. Our national wealth, which we are planning to defend against aggression in any form, has doubled. Leaving out of consideration the accompanying increase in the cost of all things and in the complex nature of a modern army, it is apparent that the doubling of of defense costs is quite to be expected. When one does consider that the absolute cost is affected by such elements as the decrease in puhchasing power of the dollar one realizes that the increase in our defense costs is not in the least disproportionate. It is interesting to ob(Continued on Page Twelve)