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Why Defend the Nation?

by his ability, experience, and proved fitness to take charge of vast manufacturing and supply problems and operations; and this official, assisted usually by members of an Advisory Board (the members of which will ordinarily be selected and appointed by himself), will, in the event of a major emergency, co-ordinate and distribute the entire production in his district of all supplies of the class with which he is charged, on quantity and destination calls from the central office.

Manpower.—The third essential of National Defense is divided primarily as follows:

First Line.—Combat and supply units of the Regular Army and the National Guard. These are regularly maintained, are fully equipped and trained, and can be quickly mobilized at any designated points by the issuance of the necessary orders. Before the National Guard can be called into the Federal service the existence of a national emergency must have been duly declared by Congress. On proper declaration of the existence of such an emergency the National Guard is available for duty beyond the limits of its own State, wherever ordered by the President.

Second Line.—The Reserves. These units are more or less completely organized on paper, are wholly or in part officered and have some additional personnel of non-commissioned officers in the more important grades. All of the personnel enrolled can be immediately mobilized, on the declaration by Congress of the existence of a major emergency, at local or other designated centers, for the receiving, clothing, equipping, and training of the existing and all additional personnel required and assigned for the completion of the units to full war strength.

Practically all of the officers of the Reserve Corps have had war experience and training and many are receiving additional training at the summer training camps, at designated posts or headquarters, and through the pursuing of correspondence courses in training in the essential duties of their arm or branch, for their grade. This corps is recruited, as are the National Guard and the Regular Army, by officers appointed from the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, which is the name given to the aggregate of all the students receiving military instruction at our universities, colleges, and certain designated schools,