1009 1009 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES i..^ Monograph No. 7 Prepared in the Historical Branch, War Plans Division General Staff June, 1921 WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1921 ^ior,r. Wae Pepabtment Document No. 1009 Office of The Adjutant GcmraJ LIBRARY Of O^NQHESS ^J'V?^ 1 DOCUMENTS DlViSlON ys I ■^0 ,7^ h' WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington, April 12, 1920. The following monograph, entitled *' Organization of the Services of Supply, American Expeditionary Forces," prepared in the His- torical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff, is approved and published for the information of all concerned. [322.06, A. Q. O.] By order of the Secretary of War : PEYTON C. MARCH, General, Vhief of Staff. Official : P. C. HARRIS, The Adjutant General. 8 GENERAL SCHEME OF MONOGRAPHS, HISTORICAL BRANCH. (Where a title is given witliout special mark, the monogi-aph is contemplated or in preparation ; a title with a single * indicates a monograph completed and awaiting publication ; a title with two ** indicates a published monograph.) I. Narratiae History of Military Operations. The Major Operations of the A. E. F. (G. O. 83, W. D., 1919.) *" Cambrai." H. B. Monograph No. 5, W. D. Doc. 1017, 1920. " Somme Defensive and Lys." " Aisne and Montdidier-Noyon." " Champague-Marne and Aisne-Marne." (a) " The 3d Division on the Marne." " Somme Offensive, Oise-Aisne, Ypres-Lys." **(c) "Operations 2d Corps in Somme Offensive." H. B. Monograph No. 10, W. D. Doc. 1016, 1920. " St. Mihiel." " rkleuse-Argonne." ** "Blanc Mont (Meuse-Argonne-Champague.) H. B. Monograph No. 9, W. D. Doc. 1010, 1920. " Vittorio-Veneto." / * " Operations in North Russia, 1918-1919.''^ " Operations in Siberia, 1917-1920," " Operations in Italy, 1917-1918." II. Studies of Services of Supply. ** " Organization of Services of Supply, A. E. F." H. B. Monograph No. 7, W. D. Doc. 1009, 1920. " Replacement of Personnel, A. E. F." H. B. Monograph No. 8. " Procurement of Supplies, A. E. F." " Initial Equipment and Supply, A. E. F." III. Special Tactical Studies. ** " A Survey of German Tactics, 1918." H. B. Monograph No. 1, W. D. Doc. No. 883, 1918. ** " A Study in Troop Frontage." H. B. Monograph No. 4, W. D. Doc. No. 992, 1919. ** " A Study in Battle Formation." H. B. Monograph No. 6, W. D. Doc. No. 1012, 1920. IV. Military AcTmTiES in the United States. ** " Economic aiobilization in the United States for the War of 1917." H. B. Monograph No. 2, W. D. Doc. No. 885, 1918. ** " A Handbook of Economic Agencies of the War of 1917." H. B. Mono- graph No. 3, W. D. Doc. No. 908, 1919. V. Histories of Troop Units. " Outline History of Divisions." ^ " Outline History of Regular Regiments. PREFACE. It is evident that within the limits of this monograph only a very small part of available material can be included. The difficulties have been those incident to selection rather than location of data. The object of this monograph is to present its subject in its broad- est aspect ; but at the same time, by means of references to available sources, to point out the direction for more exhaustive study. Other more detailed monographs covering the general subject of the Services of Supply are contemplated by the historical branch. Gen- eral Staff. General sources of information are referred to by number. The bibliography appearing at the end of the monograph contains the numbered references. Services and departments that functioned directly under General Headquarters are not discussed in this monograph. 5 CONTENTS. Page. I. Conditions Leading to the Selection of the Line of Communi- cations : Gen. Pershing's instructions from the War Department 9 French interest in Paris and British interest in channel ports_ 9 Report of the Military Railway Commission 10 Report of the Board on Ports 10 II. The Line of Communications Selected : Summary of Gen. Pershing's problem 11 Memorandum of Gen. Harbord 12 Definite selection of a line of communications 13 Chapter note 13 III. Geographical DrvisioN of France fob French Administrative Purposes 13 IV. Organization of the Line of Communications : Relation of the Services of Supply to the War Department 15 Relation of the Senuces of Supply to General Headquarters 15 The interior development of the Services of Supply 17 Designation of sections and services 17 Resum§ of advance section, intermediate section, sections No. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 20 Authority exercised by section commanders 24 Table of totals of personnel in sections, Nov. 11, 1918 25 V. Organization of Headquaktebs, Services of Supply : Chief of Staff 26 Deputy Chief of Staff 26 The General Staff (chart) 26 Assistant Chiefs of Staff 27 The Adjutant General 27 The Inspector General 30 The Judge Advocate 30 French and British Military Missions 30 VI. The Military Board of Allied Supply 31 VII. The General Purchasing Board 35 VIII. The Army SER\^CE Corps, American Expeditionary Forces 37 IX. Chemic-vl Warfare Service, American Expeditionary Forces 44 X, Chief Engineer, American Expeditionary Forces 49 XI. Medical Corps, American Expeditionary Forces 56 XII. Motor Transport Corps, American Expeditionary Forces 62 XIII. Ordnance Department, American Expeditionary Forces 69 XIV. Quartermaster Corps, American Expeditionary Forces 77 XV. Signal Corps, American Expeditionary Forces 84 XVI. Transportation Corps, American Expeditionary Forces 89 XVII. Renting, Requisition, and Claims Service, American Expedi- tionary Forces 101 Bibliography 105 Appendice's 111 7 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. [Figures in superior type C) refer to footnotes; figures in text type (1) refer to bibliograpliy.] I._CONDITIONS LEADING TO THE SELECTION OF THE LINE OF COMMUNICATIONS. Maj. Gen. Pershing arrived in France with* instructions — That tlie forces of the United States are a separate and distinct component of the combined forces, the identity of which must be preserved. (1) A study of the military situation in Europe "^ convinced the com- manding general, American Expeditionary Forces, that the plans of the United States must be based upon an American force several million strong. (1) CHOICE OF SECTOR. The above two conditions, namely, an American force of several million operating as a distinct component, necessitated a large front. But there were other considerations no less important. France was particularly interested in the safety of Paris, and would hold large masses of her troops under French command to protect all approaches to her capital. (21) The channel ports were vital to Great Britain,"" and she would undoubtedly exercise the same care for their safety. (21) These considerations pointed toward the selec- tion of an American sector well toward the eastern portion of the allied front. The French Government suggested Lorraine to the commanding general, American Expeditionary Forces, as a suitable region for our troops. (1) This region was not occupied in force and was a quiet sector, and therefore particularly suitable for the billeting and training of newly raised forces. (1) On June 21, 1917, staff officers were sent to study the Province of Lorraine with a view to its occupation as the American sector, having in mind that it was the intention of the American Army to act on the offensive. (1) This investigation showed that Lorraine offered all the neces- sary facilities for the care and training of our troops. (21) (1) As to its suitability for an army acting on the offensive, the Briey iron 1 Report of the Secretary of War for 1919, on file Historical Branch, General Staff, containing the entire letter of instructions to Gen. Pershing. ' Appendix A. « Paragraph 12, Part I, Final Report of Gen. Pershing to the Secretary of War, Septem- ber 1, 1919, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. 9 10 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. basin west of Metz, the coal region east of Metz, the vital railroad communications in this same region, and, finally, the fortress of Metz itself, offered important objectives for a strategic offensive launched from Lorraine/ (1) (21) (18) But the front selected for the American Armj must not only be suitable in itself — it must have a suitable and available line of com- munications. This line, based upon a sufficient number of French ports, must be able to maintain a constant flow of supplies from over- sea bases (ports) to the railheads, and must also meet the require- ments imposed by the movement of sick, wounded, and salvage from front to rear. Previous to the arrival of Gen. Pershing in France a (2) military railway commission had been sent by the War Department to investi- gate rail transportation. This commission was just (3) completing its task, and its report stated that the railroads in the north of France were already overburdened by the traffic imposed by the French and English Armies, and that the channel ports of France, which were the British bases, were used to their utmost capacity. (4) STUDY OF PORT CONDITIONS. While en route to France, Gen. Pershing had appointed a Board on Ports,** which upon arrival investigated port conditions in France. This board fully agreed with the Military Railway Commission, and recommended that the American Government gradually take over for permanent use the ports of St. Nazaire, La Pallice, and Bassens, and for emergency use, Nantes, Bordeaux, and Pauillac. (5) (21) French ports on the Mediterranean were not considered suitable at this time, owing to their greater distance and the large losses by sub- marine. (2) Marseille and Toulon were congested by the Salonika movements. It will thus be seen that the United States was limited in the selec- tion of ports in France to those on the Atlantic, and was unable to make use of the railroads in northern France. (18) NOTE TO PART I. Several months previous to Gen. Pershing's arrival in France an American military commission had been attached to the American embassy at Paris, and the correspondence of this commission refers to the earliest study made to locate a suitable front and line of communications for the American Expeditionary Forces. The fol- lowing are extracts from this correspondence: * Page 6, Chapter I, Report of the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-4, General Headquarters, to the commanding general. Expeditionary Forces, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. * Appendix B. OKGANIZATIOli^' OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 11 [Memorandum for Chief of Staff, dated May 19, 1917, from Chief, War College Division, General Staff.] This memorandum states that on May 14 a cable was sent to Maj. James A. Logan, jr., at Paris, as follows : " Consult with French authorities relative to points of debarkation and establishment of bases, camps, line of communica- tions, American forces. Inspect English and other bases and report results and recommendations without delay." In his cable reply Maj. Logan states that French General StafE is preparing complete study of all suitable ports, which information will be submitted to War Council. In a cable from Paris to the War Department, dated May 18, Maj. Logan states: French contemplate placing principal American advance center of instruction in Belfort zone in camp already partially installed for reception troops. Other centers of instruction echeloned at different- existing camps between Belfort and Bordeaux. * * * French Genpral Staff study contemplating American line of communications from Bordeaux to Belfort, utilizing, if necessary, three lines of railroad which are at present least congested. * * * French General Staft notified that all ports from Belgium, including Cherbourg, at disposal of British and Belgian troops. These ports and connecting railroads working at about full capacity. Brest considered very favorable by our naval representa- tive here, but French object on account of congested railroads this point and the fact that some railroads cross laterally all their own existing line of com- munications. * * * Marseille and Toulon good ports ; but I am informed by the French General Staff that these are very congested, due to the Salonika movements, and in addition hardly suitable on account of longer distance from United States and greater submarine danger. This correspondence on file with War College Division, General Staff. Chapter I, Report of the Fourth Section General Staff, General Headquarters, American Expeditionary Forces, gives a review of the transportation conditions that existed in France upon arrival of the commanding general, American Expeditionary Forces. II.— THE LINE OF COMMUNICATIONS SELECTED. The problem of the selection of a front and a line of communica- tions which confronted Gen. Pershing was thus reduced to the fol- lowing : (A) Selection of a front — (a) Suitable in size for an army of several million troops. (h) Located where conditions would be favorable to the exercise of American command. (c) Located in a region favorable to an offensive. (d) Located in a region with billeting facilities and favorable for training. 12 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. (B) Selection of a line of communications — (a) With railroads sufficient to reach the entire length of front. (b) With trunk lines from ports upon which Ameri- can traffic would be superimposed upon that of the French and passing through localities suitable for the location of depots. (c) Available and suitable ports. There was also presented the problem of flexibility in the line of communications ° adopted. If the American forces were called upon to operate along a portion of the front, other than the one selected, our means of supply must be able to reach these forces. (18) FINAL DECISIONS. It is both interesting and pertinent at this point to quote from a memorandum (6) prepared during May, 1919, by Maj. Gen. J. G. Harbord, who was Chief of Staff, General Headquarters, at the time a line of communications was selected. Relative to conditions, as Gen. Pershing found them in France upon his arrival. Gen. Harbord states, as follows: The channel ports and the railroads of northern France were congested by British and French traffic. The Mediterranean ports were 900 miles further from our shores than the other ports of France and submarine activity \va» greater and under less control in the Mediterranean than in the open Atlantic. This limited our selection to the Atlantic ports south of Brest, which port itself was unsuited for the discharge of supplies and at that time was reserved for naval use. * * * From the ports of western France there were available railroad lines to the northeast, including the double-track lines from Bordeaux and St. Nazaire forming a junction near Bourges, thence running east and north toward Dijon with radiations toward Epinal and Nancy. It was esti- mated that these lines, assisted by collateral lines which were available, could handle a traffic for American use of 50,000 tons per day. (21) These considera- tions, with the probability that pressure from the French would dictate the employment of our forces well toward the east, led to the selection of the ports of St. Nazaire, La Pallice, and Bassens for permanent use, with Nantes, Bor- deaux, and Pauillac for emergency use. * * * The probability that our forces would be employed well toward the eastern end of the western front indicated the line of communications from the Atlantic to our front of perhaps an average length of 500 miles. * * * ^he immediate location of the in- termediate and advance storage depended upon the courtesy of the French. The whole country w-as more or less given to installations for their own armies^ The great majority of all available institutions were in use by the French or British, and the facilities which adequately served the population in time of peace were totally inadequate to the added strain imposed by our army of from two to four million men. * * * Certain railroad lines were not avail- « See letter from the commanding general, American Expeditionary Forces, to the com- manding general, Service of Supply, dated 23 May, 1918, quoted on pp. 10-11 in the Report of the Assistant Chief of Staff, G— 4, General Headquarters, to the commandingL general, American Expeditionary Forces, filed in the Historical Branch, General Staff. OEGA]SriZATIO]Sr OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 13 able to us; certain lines running parallel to the front must not be crossed by more than a certain number of trains each 24 hours because needed for the rapid movement of troops from flank to flank. The solution of this problem is contained in confidential cable No. 24, received July 2, 1917, by The Adjutant General, from Gen. Pershing. (7) This cable gives in outline the decision as to the front, the line of communications, and oversea bases. The cable states that the only ports then available were those on the Loire and Gironde Rivers, and La Pallice, and La Rochelle. The main railroad line running northeast from these ports passed through districts favorable for the location of supply depots embraced by Orleans, Bourges, Montargis and Nevers. The general area selected for training was included by Neufchateau, Nancy and Epinal. The First Division would be billeted in the vicinity of Gondrecourt (Meuse) and its artillery would go to Valdahon (Doubs). The cable stated further that the use of the ports mentioned would avoid in- terference with the British bases, and the rail routes indicated avoided routes used by French and British armies. The location •of proposed depots was such as to facilitate supply, and the area to be used for billeting and training was unoccupied and included villages with ample billets. The cable stated, finally, that American troops would probably enter the lines north of Nancy.'' (21) III— THE GEOGRAPHICAL DIVISION OF FRANCE FOR FRENCH ADMINISTRATIVE PURPOSES. For their administrative purposes, the French divided the coun- try primarily into two zones — the Zone of the Interior (Zone de I'Interieur) , and Zone of the Armies (Zone des Armees). The former was under the direction of the Council of Ministers, and the latter under military control. The Zone of the Armies was fur- ther divided into two parts, Army Advance Zone (Zone de I'Avant) and the Army Service Zone (Zone d'Etapes). (18) ZONE SYSTEM. When the American military administrative system was created in France and superimposed upon the French, we followed to a great degree the French system. The French had a supply and transportation organization for the Zone of the Armies distinct from that of the Zone of the Interior. This system we adopted by creat- ing regulating stations, having control of distribution of all supplies to the troops in the advance, acting under direction of General Head- quarters. The responsibility of the Services of Supply ceased when ' Also report of Gen. Pershing to the Secretary of War, November 20, 1918, quoted In JuU in Report of Secretary of War, 1918. 14 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. the advance supply depots were filled, and troops from the interior reached these regulating stations. On October 1, 1918, there was transmitted by General Headquar- ters to Headquarters, Services of Supply, a draft of a proposed gen- eral order modifying General Orders, Nos. 31 and 44, General Head- quarters, Expeditionary Forces, series 1918. It is desirable to refer to the main features of these proposed general orders, as they repre- sented the opinion of General Headquarters in a matter of reorgani- zation based upon actual experience.^ The main features were : (18) It divided territorially the American Expeditionary Forces into two general zones — a zone of supply, and a zone of the armies. The zone of supply would contain the primary services of supply and, territorially, would comprise the irrtermediate and base sections as they then existed. The zone of the armies would coincide with the French zone of the armies. It was proposed to subdivide the zone of the armies into an army combat zone, the limits of which would be subject to readjustment from time to time, and an Army service zone which would contain such agencies and establishments as were necessary to tlie immediate and direct service of combat troops. A director of the Army service zone was created who was vested with the command of all service troops in the Army service zone, and he served directly under the Army commander. Whether or not this proposed reorganization was in the interest of good administration it is impossible to determine, as the armistice of November 11 terminated further consideration of the question. It is well to consider in this connection that there was a constant pressure from the French Government to influence us to adopt their military administrative system, and to create zones and geographical divisions corresponding to theirs. Our administrative sections, at the request of the French, were drawn to conform generally to the lines of French military regions. In any study of the Services of Supply it should be kept constantly in mind, when considering our system created in France, that the French Government was always very much concerned that we conform to their already established system, and this we usually did, and thereby prevented many compli- cations. Our supply system in France had to be superimposed upon that of the French, and with the least derangement of the French system. 8 Two boards of officers were appointed in the American Expeditionary Forces to con- sider questions of reorganization of the American Expeditionary Forces. One board was appointed at General Headquarters on March 14, 1919. Its report is on file with the rec- ords of General Headquarters, American Expeditionary Forces. The second board was appointed per S. O. No. 141. Service of Supply, May 1, 1919. The report is on file In the Historical Branch, General Staff. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 15 IV.— ORGANIZATION OF THE LINE OF COMMUNICATIONS (SERVICES OF SUPPLY). (A) Relation of the Services of Supply to the War Department. (B) Relation of the Services of Supply to General Headquarters. (C) The interior development of the Services of Supply. A. Relation of the Services of Supply to the War Department. — Until August 6, 1918, there were no direct relations between the Services of Supply and the War Department. On that date, how- ever, the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, authorized the commanding general, Services of Supply, to communicate direct with the War Department on all questions of supply and on mat- ters relating to Services of Supply troops, provided no matters of policy were involved.® (21) B. Relation of the Services of Supply to General Headquarters. — General Orders, No. 8, General Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, July 5, 1917, created the Line of Communications of the American Expeditionary Forces, placing the commanding general of the Line of Communications in a relation to the commanding general, Ameri- can Expeditionary Forces, similar to that of the chiefs of services. This organization imposed upon the commanding general. Expedi- tionary Forces, the duty of coordinating directly all the services and the Line of Communications; but as the American Expedi- tionary Forces increased in size it became evident that the General Headquarters thereof must free itself from a portion of these ad- ministrative duties/" ORGANIZATION OF SUPPLY SYSTEM. On February 16, 1918, General Orders, No. 31, General Headquar- ters, Expeditionary Forces,^^ were issued which changed the designa- tion of the Line of Communications to Services of Supply, and charged the commanding general of these services with the coordina- tion of all services and departments except the Adjutant General, Inspector General, and Judge Advocate, To facilitate this coordina- tion, all service headquarters, excepting those particularly mentioned above, were moved to Tours, where the headquarters of the Services » General Order No. 130, General Headquarters, Aug. 6, 1918. Also cable No. 1,562 from Pershing to The Adjutant General, Aug. 6, 191S. On file Historical Branch, Gen- eral Staff. >" A board of officers was appointed per letter Chief of Staff, General Headquarters, Feb. 8, 1918, to investigate and report upon what changes should, be made in the organi- zation of the American Expeditionary Forces. Report of board on file in Historical Branch, General Staff. i» Two General Orders No. 31, General Headquarters, 1918, were issued, both dated Feb. 16. The first changed the designation of the Line of Communications to the Service of the Rear. The second General Order No. 31, or corrected copy, was issued one month later but bore the same date (Feb. 16) and this second order designated the old Line of Communications as the Services of Supply. 16 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. of Supply were located. The chiefs of the administrative and tech- nical staff services were directed by this order to exercise all of their functions in the matter of procurement, supplies, transporta- tion, and construction under the direction of the commanding gen- eral, Services of Supply. Each chief of service was authorized to designate an officer of his service to represent him with each section of the General Staff, at General Headquarters. A chief of utilities was created who, under the commanding general. Services of Sup- ply, coordinated the Transportation Department, the Motor Trans- port Service, and the Director of Construction and Forestry. This Service of Utilities was abolished by General Orders, No. 114, Gen- eral Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, July 11, 1918. The Di- rector of Construction and Forestry was placed under the Chief of Engineers, and the Motor Transport Corps was created a separate service. General Orders, No. 44, General Headquarters, March 23, 1918, enunciated very fully the duties under General Orders, No. 31 of the commanding general. Services of Supply, and those of the chiefs of services. The commanding general. Services of Supply, was re- sponsible for the procurement of all supplies both from the United States and from European sources. He was charged with the dis- tribution of these supplies to the various depots ; with the unloading of the troops and freight, and their transportation ; the construction, maintenance, and operation of railroads. In these duties he was assisted by a technical staff consisting of the chiefs of the several supply and technical services. Each chief of service was directed to exercise a close personal control over all establishments of his de- partment throughout the theater of operation, and he was responsible that the necessary supplies were delivered and maintained in depots. He was charged with the duty of seeing that the supplies pertaining to his service were replaced. Commanding officers of supply depots were responsible that the supplies shipped by them were delivered, either to the consignee or, if destined for a zone served by a regulating station,^^ to the regulat- ing officer. Regulating officers were responsible for the proper trans- portation and distribution of supplies in their zone. The responsi- bility of the commanding general. Services of Supply, in the matter of supplies ^^ ceased when shipments were delivered at advance depots. (18) " " A regulating station is a large railway yard where cars from the supply depots and from the rear are received and made up into trains for the divisions." General Orders No. 44, General Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. " Chapter III, Report of the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-4, General Headquarters, to the commanding general. Expeditionary Forces, contains detailed statement of the functions of base, intermediate, and advance storage ; regulating stations. Army depots, and rail heads. On file Historical Branch, General Staff. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 17 Previous to August 6, 1918, the General Stajff, General Head- quarters, Expeditionary Forces, was charged with all matters of supply and all cables relating to this subject were sent from General Headquarters. A similar course was followed in regard to all cable- grams relating to troop arrivals and replacements. However, on that date, General Orders, No. 130, General Headquarters, Expedi- tionary Forces, was issued, which charged the commanding general, Services of Supply, with all questions of supply under approved policies. This order directed that all cables to the War Department relating to supply matters not involving policy should be sent di- rectly by the commanding general, Services of Supply, and charged him with many details previously handled by General Headquarters. The above constituted the relation between General Headquarters and the Services of Supply as they existed on November 11, 1918. C. The interior development op the Services of Sv/pply.^^ — A de- scription of the Services of Supply as they existed on November 11, 1918, would give only a very imperfect conception. The Services of Supply, as they existed on the date of the armistice, were a devel- opment, always in process of evolution; the direction of this evo- lution being toward decentralization. This decentralization appeared in the form of creating new and independent services for activities that before the war did not exist in our Army, or that were pre- viously dependent upon or formed a pari of the other services. Important instances are: The creation of the Motor Transport Corps, previously a part of the Quartermaster Corps; the Air Ser- vice, broken from the Signal Corps; also the creation of the Army Service Corps and the Renting, Requisition and Claim Service. There was only one effort to centralize activities. This consisted in combining the Transportation Corps, Construction and Forestry, and the Motor Transport Service under one head, directed by the Chief of Utilities. Th*^ Service of Utilities was, however, abolished after a short trial. The following is a resume of the salient facts in the interior de- velopment of the Services of Supply, arranged chronologically : DEVELOPMENT OF SERVICES OF SUPPLY. When the first American convoy landed at St. Nazaire the com- manding general. Expeditionary Forces, by verbal order, designated that port as " Base Port No. 1," operating directly under his author- ity. On July 4, 1917, an advance section was created with head- >* Paragraphs 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 32, and 33, Report of the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-4, General Headquarters, to the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, on file Historical Branch, General Staff, quotes two important letters from the commanding general. Ex- peditionary Forces, to the commanding general, Services of Supply, stating the policy of the development of the Services of Supply. 178841°— 20 2 18 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. quarters at Nevers, functioning also directly under the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces. The next step is found in General Orders, No. 8, General Headquarters, July 5, which designated a com- manding general. Line of Communications, with territorial com- mand, charged with supply, sanitary and telegraph service, and the facilities relating thereto. He was also charged with all construc- tion work in the Line of Communications. A Transportation De- partment was created to operate, maintain, and construct all railways and canals under American control, also to construct and maintain roads, wharves, shops, and other buildings for railroad purposes; however, all construction work was continued under the commanding general, Line of Communications, as the Transportation Depart- ment at that time had no labor. LINE OF COMMUNICATIONS. On August 13, 1917, General Orders, No. 20, General Headquarters, Expeditionarj'^ Forces, defined the geographical limits of the Line of Communications as extending from the sea to points where delivery of supplies is made to the field transportation of the combat field forces, less such area as might from time to time be excepted. Paris was designated as the headquarters of the Line of Communications. This order designated the following railroad lines for American use : {a) The line of St. Nazaire-Nantes-Angers-Tours-Bourges-Ne- vers-Dijon-Is-sur-Tille (regulating station), and points to the front. (h) The line Bordeaux-Perigueux, Limoges-Bourges-Nevers- Dijon-Is-sur-Tille (regulating station), and points to the front. (c) The railroad lines connected with the lines (a) and (h) from any ports at which our troops or materials may be landed, and all railway connections with the various depots and camps established in the vicinity of the same lines of railroad." SERVICE OF MILITARY RAILWAYS. The Service of Military Railways was created, charged with the operation, maintenance, and construction of such railways as might be turned over to our forces while in France, and with the supervision of all movement of troops and supplies over lines operated by the French authorities. This supervision included all railways, both permanent and temporary, except those in the "Zone des Armees." GENERAL PURCHASING BOARD. General Orders, No. 23, General Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, August 20, 1917, created a General Purchasing Board, estab- lished at Paris, with a General Purchasing Agent at its head. Each supply service had a representative on this board for the purpose of making such purchases in Europe as the service required. The » Note to Part IV. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 19 General Purchasing Agent coordinated and supervised the purchases, thereby preventing competition. TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT. General Orders, No. 37, General Headquarters, September 14, 1917, established a Transportation Department as one of the separate tech- nical services of the Expeditionary Forces, providing for a Director General of Transportation and giving a general outline of organiza- tion. REMOUNT SERVICE. The Remount Service was organized by General Orders, No. 39, General Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, September 18, 1917, and was attached to the Quartermaster Corps. General Orders, No. 122, General Headquarters, July 26, 1918, reorganized this service and created a Chief of the Veterinary Service, who operated under the Eemount Service. On August 24, 1918. however. General Orders, No. 139, General Headquarters, placed the Veterinary Service under the Chief Surgeon, Expeditionary Forces. MOTOR TRANSPORT SERVICE. On December 8, 1917, General Orders, No. 70, General Headquar- ters, Expeditionary Forces, created the Motor Transport Service as a branch of the Quartermaster Corps. ARMY TRANSPORT SERVICE. The Army Transport Service was transferred from the Quarter- master Corps to the Transportation Department on December 18, 1917, by General Orders, No, 78, Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces. GENERAL PURCHASING AGENT. On January 13, 1918, the headquarters of the Line of Commu- nications were moved from Paris to Tours. On March 4, 1918, General Orders, No. 5, Service of the Eear, charged the General Purchasing Agent with procuring civilian labor in Europe. He was directed to organize a Labor Bureau, which bureau was later trans- ferred to the Army Service Corps, created by General Orders, No. 38, Headquarters, Services of Supply, 1918. The city of Paris and the Arrondissement of Tours were exempted from the jurisdiction of the intermediate section on March 20 by General Orders, No. 2, Headquarters, Services of Supply, 1918. RENTS, REQUISITIONS, AND CLAIMS SERVICE. A Eenting, Requisitions, and Claims Service, functioning under the commanding general. Services of Supply, was created by Gen- eral Orders, No. 50, General Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, March 30, 1918. This service was charged with the renting and requisitioning, of land and facilities in France, with billeting, and 20 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. with the settlement of certain claims. On July 11, 1918 (General Orders, No. 114, General Headquarters), the Service of Utilities was abolished. ARMY SERVICE CORPS. The Army Service Corps was created August 22, 1918, by Gen- eral Orders, No. 34, Headquarters, Services of Supply. TERRITORIAL SECTIONS. Territorial administrative sections were created and adjusted from time to time as the necessity demanded.^*^ These geographical sec- tions may be roughly divided into two classes — those built around ports (or base sections), and the interior sections. The interior sections included the advance and intermediate sections. ADVANCE SECTION. The Advance Section was organized to extend the service of terri- torial command of the commanding general, Service of Supply, up to the point where delivery of supplies was made to the field trans- portation of combat forces. It should be noted, however, that when supplies from intermediate and base depots reached regulating stations further distribution was under the regulating officer, an agent of General Headquarters. The authority of the section com- mander would cease where it came into contact with that of the com- manders in the field. The Advance Section included the two impor- tant regulating sections, LifFol-le-Grand (Vosges), and Is-sur-Tille (Cote d'Or) ;^^ also the following activities: x\ir Service : 6 depots, 27 airdromes, 2 schools. Quartermaster: 3 depots, 7 remount depots, 10 veterinary hospitals. Ordnance: 9 supply depots. Medical : 63 hospitals. Motor Transport Corps: 4 overhaul parks, 1 depot, 1 recep- tion park, 2 service parks, 21 centers. Engineers : 1 depot, 1 light railway shop, 4 forestry districts. Chemical Warfare Service: 1 depot. Signal : 1 depot, telegraph and telephone lines. INTERMEDIATE SECTION. Tlic Intermediate Section was the largest section in France. It included the great intermediate storage depot at Gievres (Loir-et- Cher)j where a large part of the supplies of the Expeditionary 18 (21) Part I, paragraphs 15-16, and Part III, paragraph 1 of Final Report of Gen. Pershing to Secretary of War, Sept. 1, 1919, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. »7 These two regulating stations were the only ones actually constructed by us. The fol- lowing French regulating stations were used by us at various times: Creil (Oise), Mantes (Selne-ot-Oise), Le Bourget (Seine), Noisy-lc-Sec (Seine), St. Dizier (Hautc-Marne), Gray (Haute-Sa6ne), Connantre (Marnc), Dunkerque (Nord). For a complete description of the functions of regulating stations see (18) Chapter III, also (21) Part III, par. 2-6. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 21 Forces was stored. There was also another large intermediate storage depot under construction at Montierchaume (Indre)/® but this depot was only 50 per cent complete at the time of the armistice. Mehun-sur-Yevre (Cher) was an important point where the ordnance repair shops and the intermediate Ordnance Depot No. 4 were located. The first replacement depot was located at St. Aignan (Loir-et- Cher).^^ At Blois there was a depot for the classification and distri- bution of casual officers and soldiers arriving from the United States. Officers found physically or otherwise unfit for duty with combat troops were classified here.^*' The Intermediate Section was the main section for the training activities of the Air Service, which established at Issoudun (Indre) the Third Aviation Instruction Center, where the majority of the American pilots received advance training. The Air Service Production Center No. 2, the Supply Depot No. 3, and an acceptance park were located at Romorantin (Loir-et-Cher), one of the largest American aviation projects in France. The Seventh Aviation Instruction Center was at Clermont- Ferrand (Puy-de-D6me), which was also a center for the training of mobile heavy artillery. Important hospital centers were located in this section, the largest of these being at Mars and Mesves (Nievre), Allerey (Saone-et-Loire), Chateauroux (Indre), and Orleans. The headquarters of the section, Nevers, was the center for several hospital trains, the location of an important railroad center and of intermediate Quartermaster Depot No. 1, also a loco- motive repair shop of the American Expeditionary Forces. The Motor Transport repair shops were located at Verneuil (Nievre), 30 miles east of Nevers. The Central Records Office of the Expedi- tionary Forces was located at Bourges (Cher).'-'^ BASE SECTION NO. 1. The sections built around ports were as follows: Base Section No. 1, with headquarters at St. Nazaire, which developed into the greatest freight port of the Expeditionary Forces. The storage depot at Montoir was built near St. Nazaire. Another important port of this base section was Nantes, on the Loire River. Angers (Maine-et- Loire), Savenay (Loire-Inferieure) , Meucon and Coetquidan (Mor- bihan), and Saumur were important installations of American activ- ity within this section. At Angers was located the principal training base for engineer officers. Base Hospital No. 27 was also located "See (IS) pages 10, 11, 12, for a statement of the functions of Gi&vres and Montier- chaume. " See monograpli on Replacements, Historical Branch. There is on file in the Histori- cal Branch a complete detailed report on the Replacement System prepared by the D. C. of S., Services of Supply. =" See (3) pages 74-91 for a description of the Reclassiflcation System. See also (21) I'art III, par. 10. , '^Central R'ecords Office operated directly under the Adjutant General, General Head- quarters. 22 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. at Angers, which was in addition a replacement depot for transporta- tion troops. Meucon was an artillery training camp and the loca- tion of an aerial observation school. Savenay (25 kilometers east of St. Nazaire) was an important hospital center of particular value as an evacuation point for sick and wounded. Coetquidan was an artillery training camp and an aerial observation school. Saumur was an important railroad junction and the location of a school of instruction for field artillery officers. BASE SECTION NO. 2. Base Section No. 2 included the ports on the Kiver Gironde and the port of La Pallice (Charente-Inferieure). Later, La Pallice became part of Base Section No. 7. The headquarters was at Bor- deaux, which was a terminus of one of the main lines of communi- cation. There were assigned to the Americans and constructed by them at Bassens (Gironde) large dock facilities. Grouped around these were classification and storage warehouses. There was a large depot at St. Sulpice (Gironde) and a small depot was established at Coutras (Gironde). Ammunition storage facilities were con- structed at St. Loubes (Gironde) and artillery training camps were at Souge and Le Courneau (Gironde) ; remount stations were at Carbon-Blanc and Merignac (Gironde), Bayonne, Biarritz, and Hendaye (Basses Pyrenees) ; a stevedore camp at Bassens; rest and embarkation camps at Grange-Neuve and Genicart (Gironde). Thirteen base hospitals and 13 sawmills were located within this section. BASE SECTION NO. 3. Base Section No. 3 was established primarily for the care of Ameri- can troops passing through England to France. Rest camps for American troops were established along the route, Liverpool- Southampton. A large number of American air personnel were trained in this section and a number of base hospitals constructed. The headquarters were located at London. BASE SECTION NO. 4. Base Section No. 4 was established as an agency for receiving American troops and supplies arriving in France from England. The important points of American activities were Le Havre and Rouen (Seine Inferieure), Calais and Boulogne (Pas-de-Calais). BASE SECTION NO. 5. Base Section No. 6 was built around the port of Brest. Outside of this port was a debarkation port at Cherbourg (Manche), a loco- motive terminal and repair shop at Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine), and a coal port at Granville (Manche). The port of Brest was the most ^mDortant port of debarkation for personnel in France, as it was ORGANIZATION" OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 23 the only deep-water port available to the American forces. Head- quarters were located at Brest. BASE SECTION NO. 6. Base Section No. 6 was established June 28, 1918, with headquar- ters at Marseille. This port was not used previously by the Expedi- tionary Forces on account of excessive submarine danger in the Mediterranean. No American troops were brought to France through this port and it was used only for freight. It was later used, however, as an embarking port for troops returning to the United States. A Motor Transport bark and a labor camp were maintained at Marseille and a storage depot was under construc- tion at Miramas (Bouches-du-Ehone). BASE SECTION NO. 7. The first headquarters of this section were at La Pallice (Charente- Inferieure), but later moved to La Eochelle. At this point was received a large part of the coal of the Expeditionary Forces and here was the principal depot for the storage of oil and gasoline. A remount depot and car erection center were within this section. Important American activities were: La Eochelle, location of Camp Pullman, a car erection plant; La Pallice, port of entry and loca- tion of oil and gasoline storage; Aigrefeuille (Charente-Inferieure), the location of storage and classification yards; Eocliefort (Charente- Inferieure), port of entry for coal and general cargo; Tonnay- Charente and Marens (Charente-Inferieure), Talmont (Charente- Inferieure), an approved site for a deep-water port; Monta<>'r»o (Charente-Inferieure), a cement plant. BASE SECTION NO. 8. Base Section No. 8 consisted geographically of all Italy, with head- quarters at Padua. This section was established to provide control over the various American activities in Italy. These activities con- sisted of a regiment of Infantry, aviation school at Foggia, hospital and ambulance units. Motor Transport Corps companies, and a de- tachment of aviators in training and on combat duty with the Italian Army. A quartermaster depot was located at Alessandria. BASE SECTION NO. 9. Base Section No. 9 was established to meet the requiremexits of the American Army of Occupation on the Ehine. The plan contemplated using the Ehine and Scheldt as a line of communications with Eot- terdam and Antwerp as ports for the handling of suprlies. Head- quarters were at Antwerp.^^ =" For details concerning the sections, see the history of every section of the Services of ■Supply, on file in- the Historical Branch, General Staff. 24 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. SECTION COMMANDERS. The commanders of sections were usually generally officers ap- pointed by the commanding general, Services of Supply. The section commander bore the same relation to the representative of the vari- ous services in his section as the conunanding general, Services of Supply, bore to the chiefs of the services at Tours. Section commanders were responsible for discipline, supply, and sanitation. From time to time questions arose in sections between the commanders and the representatives of services. These ques- tions usually had reference to various projects carried on by the services in the section. Questions also arose regarding personnel pertaining to the various services serving in the section. Chiefs of services at Tours considered that their representatives in sections were the proper channel through which to give instructions. Sec- tion commanders considered that they, as the direct representatives of the commanding general, Services of Supply, were the proper channel. The approved policy covering these difficulties was that the section commander, in addition to his responsibility for atten- tion to duty, discipline, supply, and sanitation, of all personnel in his section, was the proper channel for all communications between chiefs of services and their representatives in the section, excepting those of a purely routine and technical class. On the other hand, section commanders were not authorized to change projects which had been approved at Headquarters, Services of Supply, nor were they authorized to give priority in large matters. Section com- manders were informed by Headquarters, Services of Supply, of all policies, and acting upon these policies they commanded the sec- tions. The tendency of growth was toward increasing the authority of section commanders, transmitting to them policies, and holding them responsible for carrying them out. The Services of Supply was so large territorially, contained such a large personnel, and involved so many different activities, that decentralization was neces- sary. Section commanders pooled all motor transportation in their sections, and controlled the distribution of all labor, including cas- uals, combat and non-combat. When questions arose in sections re- lating to large questions of priority, they were referred to Head- quarters, Services of Supply, where, after consultation with the chief of services involved, a decision was made. STRENGTH OF SERVICES OF SUPPLY. As an indication of the magnitude of its activities in regard to the number of personnel stationed in the Services of Supply, the following table shows the number of troops in the various sections on November 11. 1918 : (3) ORGANIZATION^ OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 25 Officers. Men. Nurses. Total. Advance Section 4,924 6,365 1,936 4,628 3,801 1,505 219 718 380 375 2,379 101,271 117,214 17,639 93,119 90,301 27,580 3,944 15,211 8,870 11,. 559 16,544 1,728 1,938 584 502 671 107,923 Intermediate Section 12.5,517 Paris 20,159 Base Section No. 1 98, 249 Base Section No. 2 94,773 29,085 4,163 15,929 Base Section No. 6. . 9,250 11,934 Headquarters. S, 0. S 134 19,057 5, 451 Casual ofTicers' depot 3,029 334 94,886 4,772 29 97,944 5, 106 Total 30,593 602,910 5, 586 644,540 There were also 23,772 civilians employed in the Services of Supply and carried on the strength returns of the American Expeditionary Forces, making a grand total on this date of 668,312, NOTE TO PART IV. The railroads mentioned in General Orders, No. 20, General Head- quarters, 1917, were known as the " first line." The regulating station Liffol-le-Grand was the objective of the second line, which left the first at St. Germain-du-Puy (several miles east of Bourges) and followed the Est Kailway to its objective point by way of Cosne, Etais, Poingon, Chatillon-sur-Seine, and Chaumont. The third line left the first at Tours and ran over the Paris- Orleans system by way of Blois and Orleans, thence over the Est Railway, through Mont'argis, Sens, and Troyes to Chaumont, where it joined the second line to Liffol-le-Grand. The fourth line left the third at Orleans and ran over the Est Eailway by way of Malesherbes and Romilly to Troyes, where it joined the third line. v.— ORGANIZATION OF HEADQUARTERS, SERVICES OF SUPPLY. THE COMMANDING GENERAL, SERVICES OF SUPPLY. As previously stated, the functions of the commanding general. Services of Supply, were finally defined by General Orders, No. 31, General Headquarters, February 16, 1918; General Orders, No. 44, General Headquarters,^^ March 23, 1918. General Orders, No. 31, General Headquarters, created five sections of the General Staff, assigned to each its functions, and directed that subordinate commands should conform in principle to General Staff organization. (21) This permitted sufficient elasticity in the organization, of the General Staff at Headquarters, Services of Sup- 23 Appendixes F, G. H, I, J. 26 ORGANIZATIOISr OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. ply, and authorized such changes and reorganization as were from time to time found necessary. (18) General Orders. No. 1, Head- quarters, Service of the Rear, February 16, 1918, organized the General Staff, Headquarters, Services of Supply, which was then known as the Service of the Rear. Special functions and duties not foreseen at the time General Orders, No. 31, were published were later assigned to the most suitable General Staff section, when the neces- sity arose. The original General Staff of the Services of the Rear consisted of a first, second, third, and fourth sections (G-1, 2, 3, and 4). No fifth section (G-5) was ever established, as training and in- struction were supervised directly by General Headquarters. The Operations Section (G-3) was established and functioned until July 12, 1918, when it was absorbed by G-4. CHIEF OF STAFF AND DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF. There was a Chief of Staff and a deputy chief of staff. The duties of the former corresponded to those usually exercised by that office. The deputy chief of staff was at first the channel through which papers passed intended for the Chief of Staff, and final action of the commanding general, Services of Supply, but as these papers in- creased in volume this sj-stem was changed and the deputy chief of staff was engaged chiefly in questions of classification and assign- ment of personnel with special reference to reclassified personnel from Blois.-* G-1, SERVICES OF SUPPLY. G-1 was chiefly concerned with : (a) Supervision and direction of the replacing of troops through depot divisions, regional replacement battal- ions, and other agencies designated to handle this class of personnel. (h) Disposition of casual officers and soldiers. (c) Determining the number and kind of Services of Supply troops needed from the United States within the num- ber allotted by higher authority and determining the priority in which said troops should be sent. (d) Preparation of tonnage statistics and designation of priority for all tonnage from the United States. (e) Matters pertaining to the supplies and equiiJment of Services of Supply troops. (/) General control of leave areas, athletics, and entertain- ment. (g) Preparation of graphics and charts showing Services of Supply activities in operation. ** For a description of the reclassification system, casual officers' depot at Blois, see re- port of commanding general, Services of Supply, to commanding general, General Head- quarters, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. OKGANIZATIOlSr OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 27 In addition to the above, general supervision was maintained over all welfare activities and militarized societies. ITpon the signing of the armistice all matters in connection with the embarkation of troops for repatriation were placed under G-1 and an embarkation section was formed in that section to handle them. A detailed discussion of the functions of this section is contained in the report of the commanding general, Services of Supply, to the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces. (3) (8) ■O § .3 ■« >> ■e S. ^ g o o £ 1 b 1 a> a o •o < 1 a § o 2 1 S a> s r3 d s cd 1 1-5 8 ■< s tf 's K 55 O tH S5 < g Eh t3 1 >-» Q o <; s "S 6 1 > s "s a a 1 > S 00 B 08 1^ 1 s •S b i p< •? s CO hi « •O u. o ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 29 (6) Troop-movement section: Furnished information covering lo- cation of organizations in the Services of Supply with their shipping, telegraphic, and postal addresses. A semimonthly station list of the troops in the Services of Supply was compiled and published. (c) Keturns section: Organized to compile and consolidate monthly returns of all troops in the Services of Supply. {d) Tours section: A statistical section charged with keeping a card file of every enlisted man in Tours. (e) Officers' qualification card section: This branch provided and procured officers on requisition for special services, selected through information covered by their qualification card. (/) Soldiers' qualification card section : From the soldiers' qualifi- cation cards men were selected with special civil vocational qualifi- ■cations for assignment where their special qualifications could be used to the best interests of the service. These cards were also used to select men with particular military qualifications as a result of specialized training at Army training schools. Records Division. — This division had charge of Adjutant General records. Cable and Code Division. — All cablegrams were indexed and filed in the form of a permanent record. On August 6, 1918, the com- manding general. Services of Supply, was authorized to send cables direct to the War Department where they involved matters other than questions of policy. Orders Division. — Organized to prepare general orders, special orders, and bulletins issued from Headquarters, Services of Supply. Personnel Division. — Formed to carry on correspondence pertain- ing to individual officers and soldiers of the Services of Supply. Chief Cleric's Division. — Organized to receive mail. Identification Cards and Information Division. — Organized to issue identification cards to officers and to report and index same. Mailing and Courier Division. — Charged with the duty of ad- dressing and forwarding all official mail. Headquarters., Printing Division. — Organized a plant for printing at Headquarters, Services of Supply. Supply Division. — (Blank forms and Adjutant General's Office property.) Furnished the necessary supply of blank forms of the Adjutant General's Office for the Services of Supply. This division supplied officers and men with such post cards as were authorized. Censor Division. — Organized to censor mail. Miscellaneous Division. — To this division was referred, in addi- tion to miscellaneous matter, all translating done in headquar- ters. (3) 30 ORGAN^IZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. INSPECTOR GENERAL'S DEPARTMENT. This department performed the usual duties assigned to the Inspector General. (3) Organization chart, Inspector General's Department, Services of Supply. INSPECTOR GENERAL. Inspection S. 0. S. Units. Embarkation inspection. Verification of money accounts. Inspectors in base, intermedi- ate, and advance sections. JUDGE ADVOCATE'S DEPARTMENT. General court-martial jurisdiction was granted the commanding general, Services of Supply, by the President under the special pro- visions of the eighth article of \\'ar on September 4, 1917. It was also granted to the commanding generals of Base Sections Nos. 1, 2, and 5, the advance section and intermediate section, on April 7, 1918, to the commanding general, District of Paris, on December 23, 1918, and to the commanding general, Base Section No. 8, on November 8, 1918. The general plan of organization in the Services of Supply called for a judge advocate and an assistant judge advocate for each section. Trial judge advocates were secured from line officers. Acting judge advocates were stationed in all sections. The following special matters outside of the duties actually per- taining to his department were referred to the judge advocate: (3) (a) Eecomniendations concerning the immunity of members of the American Expeditionary Forces from French criminal jurisdiction. {h) Immunity of members of the American Expeditionary Forces and its agents from French civil jurisdiction. (c) The establishment of the Rents. Requisitions, and Claims Service. ALLIED MILITARY MISSIONS AT HEADQUARTERS, SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Two militar}' missions were established at Headquarters, Services of Supply, French and British. The French mission was originally under the direction of the Orsane Central des Relations Franco- ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 31. Americaines. Questions of a purely military nature were, however, referred by the mission directly to the French general staff,^^ Organization chart, Judge Advocate's DcjMrtnifMt, Services of Supply. JUDGE ADVOCATE. Assistant judge ad\'ocato and executive officer. Reviewing board, court martial cases. Trial judge advocate. War Risk Insurance Section. Admiralty Section. Interpretation, statutory and military law. International and Frencli law. Railway Transportation Section. French liaison oflicer. French officers, constituting a part of the personnel of the mis- sion, were attached to the various technical and supply services at Tours and to headquarters of the various sections to facilitate the settlement of Franco-American matters. The British mission at Headquarters, Services of Supply, repre- sented the^^ British Quartermaster General. It rendered valuable service by assisting the various supply services to obtain supplies and labor in Great Britain, VI.— MILITARY BOARD OF ALLIED SUPPLY. On April 19, 1918, Gen. Pershing addressed a letter to M. Cle- menceau suggesting that there be vested in a central authority the =s There is on file in the Historical Branch, General Staflf, a report by the French mission at Tours, dated April 16, 1919, prepared at the request of Headqutirters, Services of Sup- ply, giving a summary of their duties aoA a r(5sum6 of important questions settled through them. «« See memorandum on file in Historical Branch, General Staff, prepared by British mis- sion. Headquarters, Services of Supply, giving a rfisum^ of duties. 32 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. power to study questions of supply and adopt measures for the co- ordination of allied resources and utilities. On the same date he sent a cable to The Adjutant General relative to his suggestion. On May 3, Gen. Pershing addressed a second letter to the French Pre- mier on the above subject. On May 6, 1918, a conference was held in Paris to consider the unification of the supply service of the Allies. Representatives were present from France, Great Britain, Italy, and the United States, At this conference the coordination of the Allies' supply activities was approved in principle, but certain opposition developed as to matters of detail. On May 14 a second conference was held at Paris. British representatives did not appear, but filed a statement of their attitude. As a result of this conference the French and Americans entered into an agreement that provided for an interallied board whose decisions, if unanimous, would have force of law, provided (a) they concerned matters clearly defined; (6) each member had previously received from his government special power to agree to them. The constitution of the Military Board of Allied Supply, after- wards ratified by the French, English, Belgian, Italian, and Ameri- can Governments, was as follows: (11) It is hereby aiiret^d amous the allied goverunieuts subscribing hereto : (1) That the principle of unifioatiou of military supplies and utllitios for the use of the allied armies is adopted. (2) That in order to apply this principle and as far as possble coordinate the use of utilities and the distribution of supplies among the allied armies, a board consisting of representatives of each of the allied armies is to be con- stituted at once. (3) That the unanimous decision of the board regarding the allotment of material and supplies shall have the force of orders and be carried out by the respective supply agencies. (4) That further details of the organization by whidi the above plan is to be carried out shall be left to the board, subject to such approval by the re- spective governments as may at any time seem advisable. We agree to the above and wish it to be submitted to the British and Italian Governments. ( 11 ) The field of activity of the board was the rear of the British Army in France, the rear of the American Army in France, and the rear of the French Army only in the zone of the advance. The French zone of the interior, as distinguished from the French rear in the zone of the advance, was under French governmental civil authority. The headquarters of the Military Board of Allied Sup- ply was established at Coubert (Seine-et-Marne), The following General Orders authorized American representa- tion on the allied board: (11) ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 33 " Geneual Heauquauteks, American ExrEuinoNARY Forces, •General Orders,^ France, June 20, 11)18. No. 100. I Sec. 3, Par. 1. In order to unify, as far as possible, the supply of the allied forces, the principle of closer cooperation in the distribution of supplies in common use among the armies has been unanimously adopted by the allied governments. For the purpose of putting this principle into operation, the appointment of a Military Board of Allied Supply, consisting of one repre- sentative of each of the allied armies, has been agreed ui)on. In its capacity as the representative body of the several supply departments of the respective armies, this board is expected to study questions of supply, and adopt all proper measures for the coordination of allied resources and utilities. Par. 2. The services of the Board of Allied Supply thus created will be fully utilized by officers of the various supply departments of the American Expeditionary Forces, who are enjoined to seelv through this agency the equitable allotment of such supplies, and, in cooperating with corresponding supply officers of the allied armies, to take the most liberal attitude, to the end that every economy in the management and unification of allied supply systems may be accomplished. Par. 3. Col. Charles G. Dawes, E. C, N. A., is designated as the representa- tive of the American Expeditionary Forces on the Military Board of Allied Supply. • •••••» By command of Gen. Pershing. James W. McAndrew, Chief of Staff, The following communication from Gen. Pershing to Col. Charles G. Dawes, American representative on the Military Board of Allied Supply, relates to American participation on this board: (11) From : Commander in Chief. To: Col. Charles G. Dawes, American Expeditionary Forces representative, Military Board of Allied Supply. Subject : Establishment of staff, etc. 1. As the American member of the Military Board of tlie Allied Supply, you are authorized to establish a permanent stafC at the headquarters of the board, to enable you to carry out tlie instructions contained in Section III, G. O. 100 c. s., these headquarters. This stalf will consist of one or more representatives to be designated by the Commander in Chief and by the commanding general. Services of Supply, and such other personnel as you may consider necessary. 2. You are authorized to direct such travel by members of your staff as may be necessary in the performance of their duties, using this letter as your authority for issuing the necessary orders. 3. Under the provisions of Section III, General Orders, No. 100 c. s., these neadquarters, which authorizes the Military Board of Allied Supply to make decisions, it has been directed that such decisions as you make with reference to supplies be comumnicated to general headquarters for execution. 178841°— 20 3 34 organizatiojS" of the services of supplt 4. Such information as may be required from time to time by the board will be furnished by the supply departments or other agencies of the American Expeditionary Forces, upon your request. 5. The mail address of the permanent headquarters of the board is " Section Franklin, Secteur Postal 141, via American Post Othce 702." The telephone and telegraphic address is " Franklin." By direction LeRoy Eltinge, Deputtj Chief of Staff. The following is a general summary of the principal activities of the Military Board of Allied Supply : (11) (1) To enable the empty -warehouse capacity of all the Allies to be used in common, should it be found necessary, there was prepared by this board a map showing the complete installations in rear of the three armies with details as to capacity. (2) When the shortage in motor transport in the allied armies became acute, necessitating interallied use of the motor transport of any army, the board studied the question of a mobile motor- transportation reserve for the use of the marshal, commander in chief. The original plan was to create a potential motor reserve of 24,000 truclcs. At the date of the armistice this potential reserve consisted of an equivalent of 11,000 3-ton automobile trucks. (3) To enable such motor transport reserve to function, a special stud}' of the question of the circulation of traffic in rear of the allied armies was considered. Interallied regulations governing road traffic in the zone of operations, governing troop movements, and the haul- ing of material by mechanical transport, were prepared. These regulations were approved by the general in command of each allied army and by ^Marshal Foch. (•4) The board established a school at Eozoy (Seine-et-Marne) for the instruction of motor transport and staff officers in comiection with the interallied regulations governing motor transport in the rear of the allied armies. (5) To form a link between the railhead and the motor transport and to release the motor transport for other uses, there was organized an interallied reserve of narrow-gauge railway (CO c. m.) materiel. For the training of officers in the use of this reserve, a school was established at Xangis (Seine-et-Marne). (6) Through the efforts of the board the ammunition at the front was pooled by the French and American Armies. (7) The board established a school for railroad regulating officers of the allied armies at St. Dizier. (8) It provided regulations for the distribution of gasoline in the zone of the armies and the pooling of gasoline cans. (9) ^Mien the shortage in forage became acute, particularly in the supply of hay, a composite study was made of the forage situation OEGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 35 in all the allied armies, as a result of which a uniform foraffe ration for these armies was adopted. (10) To enable communication to be maintained by the headquar- ters of the marshal, commander in chief, and the various general headquarters durinc; the contemplated advances, there was provided by the board an allied agreement providing for interallied construc- tion and maintenance of second-line telephone and telegraph system. With the signing of the armistice this agreement provided the channel by which telephonic and telegraphic communication was secured in the occupied territories. (11) The board investigated the labor situation in France and the allied armies, and demonstrated the impracticability of pooling the same. (12) Had the war continued it was foreseen that a transport crisis would develop. The board therefore prepared a stud}- setting forth the ration and other demands of the various armies which would have enabled a reduction in tonnage to the absolute minimum to be made. (18) Advantage was taken of the existence of this board at the date of the armistice to secure from each of the allied armies a statistical statement of all troops, supplies, and means of transport existent as of date October 31, 1918. (14) The last work of this interallied board was the securing of a coordinate statement and comparative study of the supply systems of the allied armies in France for future military study in the va- rious arm.ies. As a general principle, the Military Board of Allied Supply han- dled policies of supply whenever there was an existing or prospective shortage of any type of supply in any of the allied armies. VII.— THE GENERAL PURCHASING BOARD AND THE GENERAL PURCHASING AGENT. The General Purchasing Board was created by General Orders, No. 23, General Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, August 20, 1917, and consisted of representatives of the following services, pre- sided over by the general purchasing agent : Quartermaster Corps. Medical Corps.. Engineer Corps. Air Service. Signal Corps. Ordnance Department. Chemical Warfare Service. Motor Transport Corps. 36 ORGAlSriZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Each of these services disbursed its own appropriations, and it was the service representatives on the board who actually accom- plished the purchasing. The general purchasing agent possessed no authority to make purchases under the law, but exercised control and veto of purchase. All orders for purchases were submitted for the general purchasing agent's approval. Organization chart of Department of General Purchasing Agent. GENERAL PURCHASING AGENT. GENERAL PURCHASING BOARD. Q.M. C. Purchasing Agent. Engineer Purcnasing Agent. Ordnance Purchasing Agent. Signal Corps Purchasing Agent. Air Sendee Purchasing Agent. Medical Purchasing Agent. M. T. C. Purchasing Agent. C. W. S. Purchasing Agent. Navy Purchasing Agent. Red Cross Purcliasing Agent. Y. M. C. A. ' Foreign P urchas i ng P urchasing Agent, j Agents. Liaison for purchase in France. Bureau of Foreign Agencies. Statistical Bureau. ^^^^^ i Supply category. forecasts. Bureau of j Purchase 1 Program and I Classification. Technical Board. Reciprocal Supply. Control Bureau. Financial I Requisition Officer. Bureau of Accounts. Wood Control. Metal Control. Representatives of the General Purchasing Board were main- tained in France, Great Britain, Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Switzer- land, and through these agents passed all orders for purchases in ORGANIZATION^ OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 37 tlieir respective territories. They were expected to locate available supplies and report same to the board. These agents worked in close cooperation with the purchasing officers of allied countries, with our diplomatic agents and with the representatives of the War Trade Board. Purchases were made by the General Purchasing Board only on order from the chiefs of the various services. In allied countries, the local purchasing agent worked through the Gov- ernment representative; in neutral countries, purchases were made from individuals and firms. When two or more services desired the same class of article only one service was authorized to make the purchase, after which the articles were equitably distributed. Approximately 10,000,000 ship tons 2" of supplies were purchased in Europe through the General Purchasing Board, from June, 1917, to November 11, 1918. Minor activities of the general purchasing agent were varied. A statistical bureau was established which collected and compiled data relating to material procurable in Europe. Supply forecasts of the Expeditionary Forces were prepared which consisted of estimates of future requirements. There was a control bureau through which passed for approval orders and requisitions upon allied governments, the object of which was to prevent competition. Wood and metal bureaus were organized to allocate and control the above material. Civilian labor was first obtained by the general purchasing agent, who, for this purpose, organized a labor bureau,-* wliich was later transferred to the Army Service Corps.-" (17) VIII.— ARMY SERVICE CORPS, AMERICAN EXPEDI- TIONARY FORCES. PURPOSE OF ARMY SERVICE CORPS. The Army Service Corps furnished personnel for a number of special and widely diversified activities which grew up in the Expe- ditionary Forces that were vitally necessary but did not pertain to any of the established staff corps and had not reached the size and importance of a corps and never did. " The officers and men on duty with these services were on a detached service status, constituting a material loss to their organizations, and they Avere often composed of personnel suitable for service at the front. The officers and men of these detachments suffered a distinct loss of morale because their promotion and recognition of service were undul}^ delaj-ed. It was 2' A ship ton Is 40 cubic feet. =* Page 31 and paragraphs 86 and 87, Report of the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-4, Gen- eral Headquarters to the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, on jQle Historical Branch, General Staflf. =* Paragraph 7, Part III, Final Report of General Pershing to the Secretary of War, September 1, 1919, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. 38 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. an administrative necessit}^ to group these in one service." (3) The outstanding facts about it were : SEm^CES FURNISHED WITH OFFICERS AND MEN. Headquarters Battalion, Services of Supply. Headquarters detachment, rents, requisitions, and claims. Headquarters detachment, central prisoner of war inclosure. Rents, Requisitions, and Claims Service companies. Cement mills companies. Administrative labor companies. Labor Bureau. War Risk Insurance Bureau. Guard companies. Mails Division. Leave Area Bureau. Bordeaux embarkation detachment. Intermediate section headquarters detachment. Depot labor companies. Garden service companies. Headquarters printing company, Services of Supply. Salvage and laundry units. Organized August 22, 1918, by General Orders, Xo. 38, Head- quarters, Services of Supply. Initial strength, 233 officers and 4,577 enlisted men. Authorized strength, 1,500 officers and 100,000 enlisted men. Strength November 11, 929 officers and 19,494 enlisted men. Maximum strength, 1,170 officers and 25,943 men, March 20, 1919. ORGANIZATION. The need of some organization to furnish these special activities with personnel became so pressing in ^lay, 1918, that it was brought to the attention of the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, by the commanding general, Services of Supply. On May 25, 1918, the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, made a dual proposal to the War Department to accomplish the desired result. He urged that all officers of such miscellaneous services as tlie Provost Mar- shal's Department, the Post Office, the War Risk Bureau, and the like be commissioned in the National Army, and not in any partic- ular branch of the line nor in any staff ^° corps. He asked also that a new service of enlisted men only, to be known as the Army Service Corps, be created. The outcome of this was an interchange of ** Cable 1189, commandiug general, Americau Expeditionary Forces, to Adjutant Gen- eral. Subparagraphs I-D and E. ORGAlS"^IZATIO]Sr OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 39 cables which culminated in the authorization of the corps by cable ^^ July 23, 1918. The War Department, replying to the initial cable, suggested the impracticability of issuing commissions at large, and then the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, asked that the corps be authorized, with 4,000 officers and 100,000 enlisted men; the officers to be in the ratio of 1 major to 4 captains to 6 first lieu- tenants to 6 second lieutenants, and the enlisted men of such grades provided by law for the Army at large as might be ordered by the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, in addition to organi- zations transferred to the corps. The request for 100,000 enlisted men. as above outlined, was approved, but the number of officers was reduced to 1,500 in the ratio of 1 major to 2 captains to 5 first lieu- tenants to 5 second lieutenants. Pursuant to authority in the cable authorizing the corps, the Army Service Corps was ordered in General Orders, No. 38, Headquarters, Services of Supply, August 22, 1918. (11) In this general order creating the corps certain of the organizations mentioned above were transferred to it and provision was made whereby the others were added later. The duties of the corps were defined as follows: (a) The function of the Army Service Corps is to furnish the several de- tachments of the Services of Supply such commissioned, enlisted, and civilian personnel required, in addition to that otherwise provided, for general and specific administration and labor purposes. (&) The duties of the Army Service Corps are to submit requisitions for the authorized commissioned and enlisted personnel of units under its control. To procure civilian employees and laborers. To organize the personnel in ac- cordance with approved tables of organization. To keep the necessary records of personnel. To regulate the employment of civilian laborers employed by all branches of the Expeditionary Forces and contractors therefor. To per- form such other duties necessary incident to the effective discharge of those specified above. To obtain records and minister to the personnel under its jurisdiction. (c) The Army Service Corps organizations for administration and disci- pline are under the control of the commanding general of the section in which they are located ; the chief of the technical service to which they are furnished, or his representative, assigns and directs their work. It is the duty of the Army Service Corps to maintain its organizations in condition to perform efficiently the duties required of them by the services to which they are assigned. INTERNAL ORGANIZATION. The internal organization was in two groups. The first was the Labor Bureau, with its several divisions, under a bureau chief, who was also deputy director of the corps. This bureau antedated the Army Service Corps a little over five months, and its incorporation into the corps made very little difference in its work. The other « Cable 1598, Adjutant General to commanding general, American Expeditionary Forces, paragraphs 1-C and 1-D. Cable 1426, Commanding General, American Expedi- tionary Forces, to Adjutant General, subparagraphs 1-D, B, 1-F, and 1-G, on file His- torical Branch, General StafiE. 40 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. group, under an executive officer, maintained relations with all the other services using the personnel of the corps. An examination of the accompanying organization chart will show there was no coordinating officer of these two departments except the director of the Army Service Corps himself, and that the routine distribu- tion of papers and correspondence had to be done in the director's own office. THE LABOR BUREAU. At the very outset of the American Expeditionary Forces it was evident that much of the labor necessary for the American forces would have to be done by European civilians. At first this labor was procured locally by the American commander concerned through the nearest French regional commander. Needless to say that this labor was entirely French. But it became apparent soon that other labor would have to be found and that all this civilian labor would have to be organized before it could be handled efficiently. To this end, by General Orders, No. 5, Services of the Rear, March 4, 1918, the general purchasing agent was charged with the procurement of civilian manual labor in Europe, other than labor procurable locally through the French regional commanders, and he thereupon or- ganized the Labor Bureau in the form that obtained throughout its career. Properly to organize the supply of labor, the following divisions were created : Procurement and transportation, medical, administra- tive labor companies and labor depots, contract and foreign relations^ accounts and records, women's, and medical. Including those who had been in the employ of the United States and those actually in the employ, the Labor Bureau had procured, up to November 11, 1918, 82,700 workers. Those actually in em- ploy on the day of the armistice were as follows : Men 30, 800 Women 11.004 Total employed November 11, 1918 41, 804 French (women) 11,004 French and mixed (men) 17,104 Chinese 7, 476 Italians 3, 297 Spanish 898 Moroccans 683 Annamites 461 Tunisians 350 Algerians 286 Portuguese 245 Total 41,804 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 41 The task of the Labor Bureau, speaking generally, was to feed, house, and care for laborers which it employed from Europe or through European agencies. In carrying out this work the first and most important division was that of procurement and transportation. The duties of this division summarized were : To keep agents in all of the principal emploj'^ment agencies and in all countries from which suitable labor might be obtained; to seek out reliable French con- tractors; to have suitable contracts executed in the hiring of labor; to arrange transportation of labor from points of procurement to point of final destination and handle all details of such transpor- tation. (11) The Division of Labor Depots and Administrative Labor Com- panies took charge of laborers and organized them properly for mili- tary supervision, receiving them from the Procurement Division; made arrangement whereby labor was paid in accordance with con- tract ; kept the Quartermaster Corps notified of what food, clothing, and other supplies would be needed and when and where; created depots for the receipt and organization of labor at St. Denis, Nantes, Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, the labor from the north, west, and center of France being gathered at St. Denis and that from Lyon, Marseille, and from Italy and Spain and Portugal at Toulouse, while all from southwestern France assembled at Nantes. (11) The commanding officer of the labor depots sorted arriving labor into groups by nationalities and trades and sent it out upon requisition. The Bureau of Accounts and Records kept account of all expendi- tures and receipts of the bureau, filed reports from the various di- visions, and tabulated and submitted weekly a summarized statement of the reports of the chiefs of divisions. By arrangement with the Medical Department, Expeditionary Forces, the Medical Division insured medical attention for civilian labor, provided sufficient hospital facilities, and took care of sani- tation. (11) The Division of Contracts and Foreign Relations made all con- tracts for labor, delivered copies of the contracts to the proper officials, kept a file of all labor requirements for the Expeditionary Forces, and notified the other divisions of the same, acted upon claims, acted as intermediary with the French and other govern- ments in regard to labor, and kept in close touch with the French bureaus having to do with employment of labor. (11) The Women's Division was just what its name implies, and all questions having to do with the administration of this class of labor were handled through it. SPECIAL SERVICES. The executive officer supervised all activities of the corps other than the Labor Bureau, and he was the corps adjutant in addition. 42 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. His department "vvas divided into five parts: Officers' Division, Or- ders Division, Division of Statistics and Personnel, Division of Records, and the representatives in the base sections. The Officers' Division Iiad charge of promotions and replacements and all other correspondence relating to officers, and also handled the discharge of enlisted men. The Orders Division was just what its name im- plies and the same was true of the Divisions of Records and of Statistics and Personnel. The duties of the representatives in the several base sections were to keep generally acquainted with the condition and needs of the Army Service Corps organization in their own sections and make the necessary reports and recommenda- tions to the Army Service Corps headquarters. (11) PERSONNEL. The personnel of the Army Service Corps was in two general groups, military and civilian, the civilian being much the larger. This personnel was drawn from three sources, drafts from the United States and replacements from the Expeditionary Forces for the military, and the labor market of Europe, Asia, and Africa, for the civilians. Because of the very nature of the corps, the growth of personnel was fitful. Calls on the corps were not uniform and the supply from the United States and from replacement depended upon so many things over which the corps had no control that at no time was it possible to make any arrangement for a fair relation of the supply to the demand. The military personnel from the United States was recruited as needed to supply particular demands. That from replacement, both officers and men, was made up of class B and C men. The supply from America was satisfactory generally, but it was felt, especially in the case of class B men, that personnel from replacement was not to be depended upon as a constant source of suppl}' because of the liability of class B men to recall to com- batant service as they regained their physical vigor. Had the war continued, men from the second draft in the United States would have been available and these men, especially those between 31 and 45 years old, would have given the Army Service Corps a personnel that it would have been reasonably sure of retaining. The supply of civilian labor was fairly constant and generally in something like sufficient quantity. France alone could not have furnished all that was needed. The labor troops spared from Italy and the civilians recruited in Spain and Portugal and those recruited through the French in China, French Indo-China and in Northern Africa prevented anything like a serious shortage. Nevertheless, it was not possible, at the time of the armistice, to tell how well the supply would have kept pace with the demand if the war had lasted six months lonffer. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 43 The requirements made by the European, Asiatic, and African people upon the United States were many and very specitic. The rate of pay, the kind of clothing, and the kind of rations, which varied with the countries drawn from, were set forth in detail in the agreements and had to be adhered to strictly. (11) In France labor was recruited through the government agencies and through well-known and reliable contractors. Often, however, contractors could not find the labor to do the work they had under- taken and at such times it was necessary for the Labor Bureau to come to their rescue and furnish the workmen required. Organization chart, Army Service Corps, A. E. F. DIRECTOR. Executive Officer. Orders Division. Officers' Division. Base Section Representatives. Statistics and personnel. Records Division. Chief Labor Bureau. Medical. Procurement and Transportation. Administrative Labor Companies and Labor Depots. Contracts and Foreign Relations. Women's Di\nsion. Accounts and Records. In importing labor from Spain and Portugal care had to be taken to prevent persons of pro-German leanings from entering American service. In these two countries much difficulty was encountered in recruiting. This was due partly to apathy for the allied cause in Spain and to the desire oi' both countries to keep their laborers at home. Italy had a large number of refugees and the flow of this personnel was constant. The North African labor was good and that from China, especially from Annam, was efficient on lighter work but not adapted to heavy construction. 4-i OKGAXIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Female labor came from France and Great Britain. Very little attempt was made to organize that obtained in France, but the Brit- ish women were militarized and came over in regularly organized units. Thej' were a part of the AA' omen's Army Auxiliary Corps^ commonly known as '' W. A. A. C's.'- The British women were especially efficient, nearly 200 of them being used in clerical work, headquarters. Services of Supply, and about 300 in the Central Rec- ords office at Bourges. IX.— CHEMICAL WARFARE SERVICE, AMERICAN EXPEDI- TIONARY FORCES. The Chemical Warfare Service in the Expeditionary Forces had to do with gas warfare, both offensive and defensive. Authorized strength, l,ol5 otBcers. 17.205 enlisted men. (3) Strength at armistice, 1,114 officers, 12,414 enlisted men. Supplies on hand November 11. 191S : Box respirators 1. 850, 000 Protective gloves pairs 184, 794 M-2 masks 75, 623 Canisters 903, 345 Sag paste tubes__ 2, 228. 092 Chloride of lime tons— 1, 39G Liveus projectors 4, 095 Liveus drums, tilleil 36,468 Stokes mortar bombs, smoke 5,022 Stokes mortar bombs, filled 39, 105 ORGANIZATION. The preliminary' organization of a Gas Service was provided in General Orders, Xo. S, General Headquarters. Expeditionary Forces, 1917. The Chief of Gas Service was charged with the conduct of the entire Gas and Flame Service- The Corps of Engineers, under this order, was to supply personnel and materiel for gas offense, and Medical Corps for gas defense. All gas. shell, and similar material was to be supplied by the Ordnance Department. (3) The Gas Ser^dce was definitely authorized by General Orders. Xo. 31, Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, 1917. Its duties under this order were the organization of personnel, supply of materiel, and the conduct of offensive and defensive measures. The headquarters of the service were organized to include the following sections: Ad- ministrative, Intelligence. Offensive. Defensive. Supply, Ordnance, Medical Director, and Laboratory. The Tables of Organization for the Gas Regiment call for one headquarters company, two Stokes com- panies, four cylinder and Livens companies. Personnel was proposed for army, corps, and division headquarters, and line of communica- tion, including depots, filling stations, and training units. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 45 When the Services of Supply were established, Gas Service head- quarters were transferred to Tours, but a representative of the Chief of Gas Service was left at general headquarters. This time the service was reorganized into three main divisions — Military, Technical, and Production and Supply. The Military Division was to take care of all problems of gas offense and defense, and procured and dissemi- nated gas intelligence. The Technical Division was to do all labora- tory and field experimenting. The Procurement and Supply Division was to furnish all supplies for the service. The Offense and Defense branches of the Military Division were made separate divisions on May 1, 1918, and the Intelligence Branch was made a part of the Technical Division. By General Orders, No. 62, War Department, June 28, 1918, the Chemical Warfare Service was authorized, and in carrying out the details of this organization administrative divisions were created and their duties defined as follow^s: (19) Defense Division was responsible for training all troops and de- fensive measures against gas. Its duties included the selection, in- struction, and supervision of all gas officers in the field, the super- vision of all gas-defense schools, and the training of isolated units in gas defense. 0-ffense Division was responsible for all offensive operation, includ- ing not only the operation of gas troops, but also the use of chemical warfare materials by the artillery and infantry, etc. It determined the gas, smoke, and incendiary materials in artillery shells, projector drums, trench mortars, bombs, and infantry grenades. Production and Supply Division was responsible for procuring all supplies needed by the Chemical Warfare Service in the American Expeditionary Forces and for maintaining sufficient stocks. Technical Division maintained supervision over the Chemical Warfare Service laboratory and the experimental field. Intelligence Division procured and disseminated all gas intelli- gence received from the front and scientific data from the Chemical Warfare Service laboratory and the experimental field from the United States and from the Allies. Personnel Office was responsible for procurement and distribution of Chemical Warfare Service personnel, established and controlled Chemical Warfare Service camps, and operated and controlled Chemical Warfare Service schools for training newly arrived per- sonnel. Medical director was the advisor to the Chief of Chemical War- fare Service on all medical questions connected with Chemical War- fare, and studied diagnoses and treatment of gas casualties, and issued pamphlets on these subjects for distribution to medical offi- cers. (19) 46 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. PERSONNEL. The personnel of the Chemical "Warfare Service had a wide ranire as to scientific education, technical training, and mechanical skill. Many of the officers and men were experts in their several lines, others were of mediocre ability, and the rest vrere Tvithont any special training or skill whatever. The majority of both officers and men coming from civil life had had no military training, and none of them had ever applied their scientific and technical skill to the needs of vrarfare.'"- To furnish this training, an officers' school was established at Han- Ion Field near Chaimiont in the fall of 1918. At this school the officers were given an intensive military course which covered briefly a wide range of military subjects. Upon completion of this course the officers were sent to the Gas Defense School and then were given a week's training in the offensive use of gas. At the Army school and at the two corps schools, Langres and Gondrecourt. officers and noncommissioned officers from combat and pioneer units were trained in gas offense and defense and then returned to their units as gas officers and gas noncommissioned officers. In turn, these men instructed tlie off.cers and men of their organizations. Chemical Warfare Service officers and men were stationed also at the base ports from September, 1918. on and instructed troops as they arrived from the United States. The pei-sonnel for the Chemical "Warfare Service was drawn from scientific schools of America, from the several learned societies, from specialists in the business world, and from the ranks of employees of chemical and related concerns. A large part of the enlisted per- sonnel was unskilled labor, and as such was draAvn from the draft and from the ordinary volunteer lists. MATERIAL. The Chemical "Warfare Service in France had very little to do with the manufacture of gas. It was concerned with the use of the finislied product, whether offensive or defensive appliances, al- though it did have to look after the making of many masks in Europe, the repairing of masks, and the use and care of other apparatus. The first material need was defensive, especially masks. In 1917 this presented son\e difficulty, because production of this kind in th(^ United States had not progressed beyond the small factory stage, and so far the output was negligible. England and France had been making masks on a large scale for a long time. In the fall of 1917 " See page 12. C. W. S. Section, Part I, Appendix A — Report of board convened by paragraph 79. S. O. 141. Headqujirters, Services of Supply, May 21, 1919. On file His torioal Branch. General Staflf. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 47 only 20,000 respirators were received from the United States, so an order for 400,000 was placed with the British for delivery be- tween December, 1917, and March, 1918. American masks began to arrive in quantity in April, 1918. In production, the Chemical Warfare Service was in close rela- tion with the Ordnance Department. On September 30, 1918, the Chemical "Warfare Service material was divided into four classes, with the responsibility of the two services shown as follows : ^^ Class A included all offense gas supplies not used by gas troops. All tracer, illuminating, and signaling shells, and illuminating grenades were handled by the Ordnance Department exclusively. In the case of other shells and hand grenades the Chemical War- fare Service investigated the need for such materials, procured au- thorization from the General Staff, approved designs submitted by the Ordnance Department, and filled or inspected the grenades pro- cured by that department. These were transported and issued b}"- the Ordnance Department. Class B included all gas supplies issued only to gas troops ; all of which was handled by the Chemical Warfare Service. Class C included all aviation, smoke, and incendiary materials. The Chemical Warfare Service suggested the use, procured the au- thority, approved the Ordnance Department designs, and filled and inspected these materials, and the rest of the work for this class was placed in the hands of the Ordnance Department. Class D included all defensive gas material issued to troops and was handled entirely by the Chemical Warfare Service. In November, 1917, authority was given to fill 10 per cent of all shells with gas. On June 24, 1918, the program was increased to include 15 per cent of all artillery projectiles up to and including 9.5 inches, inclusive. On September 27, 1918, the War Department was asked by cable for authority for program beginning November 1, 1918, which provided that 20 per cent of all projectiles produced be filled with gas for all calibers up to and including 9.2 inches. Be- ginning January 1, 1919, this was to be increased to 25 per cent and the production capacity for gas to be increased 35 per cent. About this time also it was decided that programs for gas-filled grenades should be handled by the Chemical Warfare Service and that 10 per cent of all hand grenades should be filled with gas. After the first few months the greater part of the American Ex- peditionar}^ Forces gas material came from the United States, al- though approximately 2,000 cylinders were filled with gas at Pont- s3 Page 13, C. W. S. Section, Part L, Appendix A — Report of board convened by para- graph 70, S. O. No. 141, S. O. S., May 21, 1919, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. 48 OKGANIZATIOX OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. de-Claix (Isere). One hundred thousand emerirenoy tikers "were made and fitted on canistei's. 200.000 Conuells canisters, and a num- ber of other defensive appliances -were produced in Enirhmd. FACILITIES. The location of the Chemical Warfare Service facilities in France were as follows : Oas gichooJ. — Hanlon Field, near Chaumont. Corps schooJ^. — Gondrecourt (Meuse), Lan^rres (Haute-Marne). Ga^ equipment ami iiWing staf'wns. — Is-sur-Tille (Cote-d'Or). St. Dizier (Haute-Marne). Dunkerque (Xord). Experimental field. — Hanlon Fiehl. near Paris. ChernicaJ Warfare Service iahoratort/. — Puteaux, near Paris. CTtetnieal Warfare Serriec storai/e depots. — Montoir (Loire- Inferieure). St. Sulpice (Gironde). Gievres (Loir-et-Cher). Poingon (Seine-Inferieure). Clefc}- (Vosjres). Armi/ depots. First Armi/. — Landrecourt (Meuse). Marcq (Ar- dennes), Les Monthftirons (Meuse). Armi/ depots. Second Amu/. — Leval (Belfort). Belleville (Meurthe-et-Moselle), Woinville (Mense), Toul. Chemical Warfare Service f acton/. — Pont-de-Claix (Isere). Organization chart. Chemical War/art Sen-ict, A. E. F. CHIEF, CHEMICAL WARFARE SERVICE. Assistant Chief, C. W. S. Adjutant. C. W. S. represent- ative at G.H.Q. Personnel Oaicer. IntelUfODCS Di\-isxoa. Liaison Services. Production and Supply Section. Medit^l Diavlor. Tivhnical Division. r>efons« Pivisica. Offense Division. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 49 X.— THE CHIEF ENGINEER, AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES. The activities of the Chief Engineer came under two general head- ings : First ^ those of a technical nature relating to organization, per- sonnel, equipment, training, and distribution of Engineer combat units; and, second^ those relating to construction and supply. Con- stru'^tion included vrharves, warehouses, depots, shelters for troops, and rail facilities. The design of port and rail facilities, however, was a function of the Transportation Corps, the Engineers simply carrying out the design. Supply included the procurement, storage and distribution of tech^iical engineers' supplies for combat troops wherever located, and the provision of everything needed in the way of materials and machinery for construction in the Services of Supply. Strength at armistice :'* With armies 86, 400 Construction 43,000 Forestry 18,500 Supply 7,600 Miscellaneous 18,500 Total 174, 000 Construction : Docks, 15 berths, total length G,360 feet. Hospitalization, 280,000 beds. Standard-gauge railroad, 1,026 miles. Engine terminals, 10. Railroad cut-off, 5.9 miles near Nevers. Troop shelters, 16,000 barracks. Covered storage, 22,415,000 square feet. Remount stations, space for 27,700 animals. Veterinary hospitals, space for 16,500 animals. Cold storage, capacity for 14,200 tons. Ice plants, capacity 500 tons a day. Bakeries, capacity 1,250,000 tons a day. Forestry output: Lumber, 218,211,000 feet B. M. Standard-gauge ties, 3,051,137. Small ties, 954,667. Piling, 39,095 pieces. Fuel wood, 340,000 cords. Miscellaneous round products, 1,926,603 pieces. V «* Page 2, Engr. Sfection, Part I, Appendix A — Report of board appointed by paragraph 79, S. O. 141, S. 0. S., May 21, 1919, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. 178841°— 20 4 50 OBGANIZATION OF THE SEEVICES OF STTPPLT. S5 1 -S I ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 51 Engineer supplies procured, 3,314,662 short tons. Light railways operated, 1,388.8 miles. \ Freight handled on above, 860,652 tons. ORGANIZATION. Although the activities under the Chief Engineer later became well defined between those in the Services of Supply and those in combat areas, at first all these activities were administered from general headquarters. The large division came in March, 1918, when the headquarters, line of communication, which ultimately became Services of Supply, were moved from Paris to Tours and the general headquarters went from Paris to Chaumont. The first line of w^ork to be detached from the Engineers and made a separate service was transportation. By General Orders, No. 37, Headquarters, Expedi- tionary Forces, 1917, the Transportation Service was put under a Director General of Transportation and was made an independent technical service of general headquarters. Later Engineer personnel was transferred to such other services as the Motor Transport Corps and the Chemical Warfare Service, which were made independent services. AVhen headquarters were moved to Tours a Service of LTtilities was created, and in that service was put the Transportation Service, the INIotor Transport Service, the Department of Light Railways and Eoads, and the Department of Construction and ^o^estr5^ Previous to this time light railways and roads had been two separate departments under the Director General of Transpor- tation. But by July 11, 1918, it was found that the Service of LTtilities was not satisfactory, and it was done away with, the Motor Transport Corps and the Transportation Corps again becoming independent services and the Department of Light Raihvays and Roads and the Department of Construction and Forestry remaining with the Engineers. This change then left the Engineer organiza- tion in the Expeditionarj'^ Forces with four main branches, which arrangement continued until some time after the armistice. The headquarters of the Chief Engineer Officer were at Tours, the head- quarters of the Services of Supply. These four branches were : (1) Assistant to Chief Engineer, Expeditionary Forces, at general headquarters. (2) Department of Construction and Forestry. (3) Department of Military Engineering and Military Supplies. (4) Division of Light Railways and Roads. The chief engineer officer maintained an office at general head- quarters with an assistant chief engineer officer in charge. This assistant at general headquarters was concerned entirely with mat- ters pertaining to the Engineer Service in the Zone of the Armies. 52 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. He had a Supply Section, and also controlled the Geologic, Camou- flage, Searchlight, Engineer, Intelligence, Flash and Sound Ranging, and Bridge Sections. The Division of Military Engineering and Engineer Supplies was divided into five sections, as follows : (1) Supph' Section. (2) Water Supply Section. (3) Electric and Mechanical Section. (4) Office Service Section. (5) Accounts and Contracts Section. The main function of this division was procurement, storage, and distribution of engineering materiel. Tlie procurement of supplies in Europe was done through a representative of the division in the office of the general purchasing agent in Paris. This officer had two functions. He was the representative of the division and was also the engineer purchasing agent of the Expeditionary Forces. The other function of this officer had to do strictly with military en- gineering. (15) The Department of Construction and Forestry was created by General Orders, No. 8, Services of the Rear, 1918. It was charged with all construction work in the Services of Supply. The depart- ment was organized into divisions of Administrations, General Con- struction, Construction of Railroads and Docks, and Forestry. The several classes of general construction were: Storage, Air Service facilities. Ordnance facilities, Veterinary hospitals, refrigerating plants, shelter for troops, prisoner-of-war inclosures, Army schools and base, camp, convalescent, evacuation, and Red Cross hospitals, and the like. Port construction included docks and the warehouses thereon, railroad connections and lighters. The phases of railroad construction were engineer terminals, regulating stations, multiple tracking at congested points, cut-offs, connections with the ports and receiving, classification, and departure j'^ards and tracks in storage depots. The lack of ocean transportation made it necessary to obtain most of the lumber and other forestry products from European sources. Furthermore, the American Expeditionary Forces had to be self- sustaining in this kind of supplies, i. e., it had to arrange for pur- chase of the wood on the stump, and then do its own cutting and sawing. This forestr}' work was so closely related to nearly all kinds of construction that it was made a part of the Construction De- partment. The Department of Light Railways and Roads, as noted above, originally formed two separate departments, under the director gen- eral of transportation, Avhich were consolidated when the Service of ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 53 Utilities was created. It operated entirel}^ in the Zone of the Armies, being concerned with the construction of 60-centimeter gauge rail- road, the erection and repair of the rolling stock necessary for the same and the repair of French roads within its sphere of activities. It had nothing to do with the maintenance of roads in the Services of Supply, that duty being charged to the Department of Construc- tion and Forestry. It had nothing to do with any standard gauge road. At the time of the armistice it had 1G5 narrow gauge loco- motives and 1,695 cars and operated over a «ystem of 1.388.8 miles of track. PERSONNEL. The commissioned personnel came from the Corps of Engineers of the Regular Army and from the vast body of engineering gradu- ates in the United States. The several societies of civil, mechanical, mining, and structural engineers were largely responsible for the designation of the best men in their ranks as available for commis- sions. Engineer schools in the United States contributed much to the work of training men for commissions. The enlisted personnel was recruited in the ordinary way from selective draft and by trans- fer from other units. The commissioned personnel Avas already effi- cient in the lines of standard engineering and the enlisted personnel Avas in a like position. The technical work Avas already familiar to men recruited in the technical units and the rest of the duties of enlisted men was straight labor which Avas not hard to find. The AA'ar in France, lioweA'er, had developed many technical specialties such as flash and sound ranging, map-making from aerial photographs, camouflage, and the use of searchlight in antiaircraft operations Avith AA'hich the American officers and men were in a measure unfamiliar. It AA'as through the medium of schools that the necessary instruction in these specialties, as Avell as in sound tactical principles, was given. In addition to these schools much instruction Avas given through assignment to duty Avith British and French organizations. A practice was made of sending a certain number of neAvly arrived officers to the front on trips of inspection and study under allied guidance. Provision was made also for the attendance of a small number of American engineers at the British and French schools. On October 8, 1917, Engineer Corps and Army schools were authorized by General Orders, No. 45, Headquarters, Expedi- tionary Forces. Two days later by General Orders. Xo. 46. general headquarters, the Engineer School and the Gas School at Langres were created. Corps schools Avere autliorized soon after at Gondre- court and Chatillon-sur-Seine. (15) While these schools drew their instructors and personnel from the Engineer establishment, the con- trol of the instruction Avas, by authoritA' of General Orders. No. 130, 54 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Headquarters. Expeditionary Forces, 1918, under the general head- quarters. The primary function of the corps schools was to fit officers of incoming divisions as promptly as possible to train their own men. The intention was later to make the mission of the schools the production of a high degree of skill among selected officers and noncommissioned officers and the instruction of officers in the duties of the next higher command. From the earliest days of the schools more attention was given to strictly pioneer and combat work and less to heavy construction than had been the practice in the British schools. This belief of the Americans that open warfare would pre- vail ultimately was amply justified in the summer of 1918. Heavy construction was taken care of by officers who had specialized in that kind of work in civil life. The training of engineer replace- ments was done at the School of ^Vngers. Replacements fresh from America were handled here and after they had taken the course of instruction they were classified, rated, and sent to regiments. (15) MATl&RIEL. Engineer supplies procured for the Expeditionary Forces opera- tion amounted to 3,314,662 tons, the cost involved being approxi- mately $450,000,000. As already noted the procurement, storage, and distribution of this materiel was a function of the Department of Military Engineering and Engineer Supplies. Like every other service, supplies for the Engineers were procured through shipment from the United States and by purchase in Europe. (15) From the United States 1,496,489 tons were received and from Europe, 1,818,173 tons. Of the Engineer tonnage from the United States 963,816 were turned over to the Transportation Corps, and the bal- ance distributed by the Engineers. Of the supplies procured in Europe 1,705,115 tons were bought from the allied governments and 113,058 in open market or by contract. The supplies bought in Europe consisted mainly in wooden barracks, hospitals and other buildings, heavy building material which could not be transported from America economically, also standing timber. The supplies from the United States were of the following general classes : General machinery. Iron and steel pnxliicts. Hardware and hand tools. Railway rolling stock. Railway motive power. Track material and fastenings. Automotive transportation. Horse-drawu transportation. Lumber. Building material and supplies. Liquids. Explosives and accessories. Unit accountability. Office supplies. Floating equipment and accessories. Material and tools for locomotive and car repair and erection shops. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 55 FACILITIES. The principal Engineer facilities and their locations in the Expe- ditionary Forces were as follows: Laboratories for water supply : Paris (Seine). St. Nazaire (Loire-Inferieure). Bordeaux (Gironde). La Roctielle (Charente-Infgrieure) . Dijon (Cote-d'Or). Neuf chateau ( Vosges) . Brest (Finist^re). Nevers (Nigvre). Le Mans (Sarthe). London. Camouflage shops : Dijon (Cote-d'Or). Paris (Seine). Nancy (Meurthe-et-Moselle). Mobile Sliops with Armies. Searchliglit stations : Gievres (Loir-et-Clier). Colombey- Ics-Belles (Meurthe-et- Moselle). Pont-sur-Seine (Aube). Fort Mont Valerien (Seine-et- Oise). Langres ( Haute-Marne ) . With the Armies. Map-making and reproduction plants : Langres (Haute-Marne). Mobile plants with Armies and Corps. Light railway activities : Abainville (Meuse). Toul ( Meurthe-et-Moselle ) . Rattentout (Meuse). Baccarat (Meurthe-et-Moselle). Meuse-Argonne Sector. Sand and gravel supply : Deposits in Cher River at Vierzon. Deposits in Moselle near Nancy. La Baule (Loire-Inferieure). Engineer schools : Langres (Haute-Marne). Engineer scliools — Continued. Chfi tillon-sur-Seine ( Cote-d'Or ) . Gondrecourt ( Meuse ) . Angers ( Maine-et-Loire ) . Engineer supply depots: Langres (Haute-Marne). Neuf chateau (Vosges). Liffol-le-Grand (Vosges). Pacy-sur-Armangon (Yonne). Chatillon-sur-Seine (Cote d'Or). Demange-aux-Eaux ( Meuse ) . Barisey-la-Cote (Meurthe-et-Mo- selle). Nevers (Ni6vre). Etais (Cote-d'Or). Clermont - Ferrand ( P u y - d e - Dome). St. Amand (Cher). Le Mans (Sarthe). Orly (Seine). Gi&vres ( Loir-et-Cher ) . Saumur ( Maine-et-Loire ) . Nantes ( Loire-Inferieure ) . St. Nazaire (Loire-Inf6rieure). Bordeaux (Gironde). Le Havre (Seine-Inf6rieure). Rouen ( Seine-Inf erieure ) . Brest (Finist&re). Landerneau (Finist^re). Marseille (Bouches-du-RhOne). Algrefeuille (Loire-Inferieure). La Guerche (Cher). Cement mills : Montagne (Gironde). Le Teil (Ard^che). Cruas ( Ardeche ) . Couvrot (Marue). Beaumont (Seine-et-Oise). Guerville (Seine-et-Oise). La Souys (Gironde). Ob ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. XI.— MEDICAL CORPS, AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES. Medical Corps units were in France before the arrival of the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, and were among the last to leave. The most important figures in connection with the corps in Europe follow: Maximum strength, January 11, 1919: 17,330 officers, 10,008 nurses, and 145,386 enlisted men. Strength at armistice : 14,499 officers, 8,587 nurses, and 140,98() enlisted men. Base hospitals, 60. Major camp hospitals, 45. Hospital centers, 27. American Red Cross military hospitals, 7. Convalescent hospitals, 2. Convalescent camps, 13. Medical supply depots, 7. Medical laboratories, 6. Medical supplies from United States, 108,753 tons. Medical supplies from Europe, 99,487 tons. Death rate of wounded, 5 per cent. Wounded returned to duty, 75 per cent. Deaths from diseases, 45 men per 1,000. Venereal disease, 35.9 new cases per 1,000.^^ Veterinary hospitals, exclusive of those with armies, 21. Capacity of above, 27,614 animals. ORGANIZATION. The first Medical Corps personnel, that of Army Base Hospital No. 5, arrived in France ^® May 25, 1917, and went to duty with the British Expeditionary Forces at Dannes (Pas-de-Calais) and Camiers (Pas-de-Calais). On September 4, during an airplane attack on the hospital there, one officer and three enlisted men of this unit were killed and three officers and six enlisted men were wounded. These were probably the first American casualties in the war. The first medical headquarters personnel arrived in Paris June 13, 1917, with Gen. Pershing's party. The office of the chief surgeon. Expe- ditionary Forces, remained in Paris until September 1, 1917, when it was moved to Chaumont with the other departments of general headquarters. It was removed to Tours, March 21, 1918. The first work of the chief surgeon and his assistants was an in- spection to determine the location of hospitals at base ports and *2 Source, Bureau of Statistics, G. S. tables compiled from M. C. reports, w Page 3, report of Capt. E. 0. Foster as of Nov. 11, 1918, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 57 OJ c m _^ Z s c •< « t> « CO S fe w o 58 OKGANIZATIOiSr OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY, along the line of communications. As soon as these locations had been determined, in cooperation Avitli the French and the construc- tion services of the American Army, building was pushed and many of these base hospitals were completed in record time. Wherever possible existing buildings or partly constructed buildings were made use of. The Medical Corps in the Line of Communications was made a separate department on July 18, 1917, when the office of Chief Sur- geon of Base Groups and Line of Communications was created. Until March 21, 1918, this officer had charge of all hospitals, supplies, and personnel in his territory. By General Orders, No. 31, Head- quarters, Expeditionary Forces, 1918, the duties of the chief surgeon. Line of Communications, were merged with those of the chief sur- geon. Expeditionary Forces. By July 28, 1917, the divisions of the chief surgeon's office were as follows: Hospitalization.-^ln charge of the location, construction, and re- pair of all hospitals, hospital trains and care of sick and wounded. Sanitation and Statistics. — In charge of camps, quarters, disin- fection and delousing, collection and evacuation of sick, health of commands, report of sick and wounded, statistics, and sanitary reports. Personnel. — In charge of personnel of Medical, Dental, and Veteri- nary Corps, civilian employees and schools of instruction. Supplies. — In charge of hospital equipment, medical, dental, and veterinary supplies, settlement of accounts and all ambulances and motor transportation. Records and C orrespondence. — Name describes its duties. Gas Service. — This work was early taken over by the Chemical War- fare Service and is described in the section devoted to that service. This division of duties remained until the office of the chief sur- geon was moved from Chaumont to Tours. When this occurred a representative of the chief surgeon was assigned to general head- quarters with an assistant on duty with each of the several General Staff groups. The work of the chief surgeon, after the removal to Tours, was divided into the following groups: (1) Hospitalization, evacuation, and hospital administration. (2) Sanitation, sanitarj'^ inspection, and medical accounting. (3) Personnel. (4) Medical supplies. (6) Finance and accounting. (6) Veterinary. T\Tien war was declared the Army Nurse Corps contained only 400 nurses scattered over the United States and its possessions. The reserve had been organized under the American Eed Cross. This ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 59 agency, therefore, under a former superintendent of Army nurses, had plans ready and had enrolled several thousand reserve nurses. The character, qualifications, and antecedents of each were care- fully investigated before enrollment, the result being that the 10,008 nurses sent to the Expeditionary Forces formed a body of remark- ably trained women who gave a service the standard of which was exceptionally high. When the first call was made only graduate nurses who had registered in accordance with the laws of their re- siDGctive States were accepted. Later this requirement was waived and graduate nurses were accepted with the understanding that they would register within a year after they left active service. Ex- perience showed that units definitely organized by a head nurse in civil hospitals and colleges, among women accustomed to work together, were more efficient. MATERIAL. There were over 3,000 items in the supply table of the Medical Corps. These varied all the way from delicate and expensive scien- tific instruments and hospital equipment to soap, gauze, and medi- cines. The Expeditionary Forces received 208,240 tons of these sup- plies, about 95 per cent coming from the United States and the bal- ance from European markets.^" The first medical supplies arrived with the first convoy which reached St. Nazaire June 26, 1917, and from this time on there was a steady flow. Storage facilities at ports governed the method of handling medi- cines and accessories at each port. At St. Nazaire, Bordeaux, and Marseille, where storage facilities were more extensive, medical offi- cers were stationed to supervise the segregation of their supplies from those of other services. Generally all supplies for the corps were loaded into cars and shipped to base storage as rapidly as might be where they were divided into two classes. One class was placed in storage at the base ports and was known as " controlled stores." The other class, consisting of miscellaneous supplies in mixed boxes of small volume, was shipped directly to the intermediate depots. The base storage depots entered all " controlled stores " on warehouse re- ceipts and copies of these receipts were forwarded daily to the Chief Surgeon at Tours, where stock records of all storage stations were kept. Medical stores were received from time to time at Brest, Le Havre, Cherbourg, Les Sables-d'Olonne, La Pallice, La Rochelle, and Eochefort, where the Medical Corps had no storage facilities. At these ports the supplies were shipped directly to Gievres regard- less of class. ^ Page 116 of "Some Achievements of the Services of Supply" on file Historical Branch, General Staff. 60 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY, Purchases in Europe were made by the medical member of the General Purchasing Board at Paris under the direction of the chief surgeon. Such supplies were shipped at times directly from the place of purchase to the hospital or depot requiring them, but generally all purchases in England or France were shipped to inter- mediate depots and distributed like supplies from the United States. The stores for combat troops were controlled by the armies and were independent of the chief surgeon, who was concerned only with keeping a proper reserve for the armies' needs. All requisitions were disposed of according to the quantities re- quired. When items were large enough to make carload lots thej'' were extracted to "Shipping notices" and sent to base storage depots for direct shipment. When less than carload lots or miscellaneous items of less than original packages were called for, the requisition was forwarded to the nearest issue depot. Eequisitions from small hospitals were forwarded to nearest issue depot after modification and approval by the chief surgeon. The locations of Medical Corps facilities were as follows : Base hospitals: Vichy (Allier). Vicq (Allier). Vauclaire ( Dordogne) . Boulogne (Pas-de-Calais). Tours (Indre-ct-Loire). Chateauroux (Indre). Nantes ( Loire-Inf 6rieure ) . Limoges ( Haute- Vienne ) . Dijon (Cote-d'Or). Chatelguyon (Puy-de-Dome). Beau Desert (Gironde). Allerey (Saone-et-Loire). Tottenham ( England ) . Portsmouth (England). Dartford (England). Salisbury (England). Horsley Park (England). Pougues-les-Eaux ( Nifivre ) . Toul (Meurthe-et-Moselle). Mesves (Ni§vre). Langres (Haute-Marne). Caen (Calvados). Neuf chateau ( Vosges ) . Etretat (Seine-Inf6rieure), Rouen ( Seine-Inf grieure ) . Bordeaux ( Gironde ) . Savenay ( Loire-Inf grieure ) . Treport ( Seine-Inf grieure ) . Dannes (Pas-de-Calais). Camiers (Pas-de-Calais). Mars (Nievre). Base hospitals — Continued. Chaumont (Haute-Marne). Bazoilles (Vosges). Vittel (Vosges). Angers ( Maine-et-Loire ) . Royat (Puy-de-D6me). Contrex^ville (Vosges). Hendecou r t ( Pas-de-Calais ) . St. Denis (Seine). Romorantin ( Loir-et-Cher) . Blois (Loir-et-Cher). Beaune (Cote-d'Or). Riniaucourt ( Haute-Marne ) . Paris (Seine). Kerhornou (Finistfere). Pau (Basses-Pyr6n§es), Revigny (Meuse). Commercy (Meuse). Pr uniers ( Loir-et-Cher ) . St. Nazaire (Loire-Inf4rieure). Clermont-Ferrand ( Puy-de-D6me ) . Vannes (Morbihan). Autun (Saone-et-Loire). Quiberon (Morbihan). Perigueux (Dordogne). Mout-Dore (Puy-de-D6me). Hygres (Var). Brest (Finist&re). Laf auche ( Haute-Marne ) . Orleans (Loiret). Poitiers (Vienne). Vincenza (Italy). ORGANIZATIOX OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 61 1 71 S g Si 1 s >>s ~-'3 > «fi fl o ? a [>. a ^ o > 3 ^^ o K s tf^ a a ft (5 o 2 a 5. 3 o 03 « o •3 o r1 t; 5 5a a "3*3 .Si C3 CL( rt w pi H a) 0} Jii'S ■n?-^ c c'"" s°:i •s^" Iss ■2 -a 2 gScJ S --s co-r) ■gac C S^' 03T) ( i inaint ities an quipme c3_a « •sr^ a "S's t:fc<^. •^^H c " . E £;::- C3 2iag T3 o "<1 -(2 > SO and nfor- rou- divi- di visions all the i erformed f all the __ C CO v-^ a o i^ ~ a ° A.) the s distri acter moil M^vu wo ecor eral for ■a 1- c 2 ^ o -^.S oii'-Soa ^•s 2 a o §a-:3« OEGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 71 rectly to the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, and was also later a stajff officer of the commanding general, Services of Sup- ply, He had his headquarters in Paris until March, 1918, when he moved to Tours with the other supply services. Properly and efficiently to conduct his department, the chief ord- nance officer distributed the work among six divisions. These were, Administration, Supply, Construction and Maintenance, Personnel, Engineering and Requirements. The Administration Division coordinated the work of the other divisions and collected for record or distribution all information of general character. The Supply Division was just what its name im- plies, and had charge of all depots and of the distribution of ma- teriel to forces in the field. The Division of Construction and Main- tenance provided and maintained ordnance buildings and their fa- cilities ; was responsible for the installation of the necessary machin- ery, tools and other equipment and their upkeep ; operated the gen- eral ordnance repair shops; supervised the operation of all other ordnance repair shops, cooperated in the assignment of the personnel therefor, and cooperated with the salvage service in the repair and disposition of ordnance materiel. The Personnel Division secured, assigned, instructed, and moved personnel, and had general supervision of all personnel in the Ord- nance Department, and maintained a record of all. The Engineering Division was charged with everything pertain- ing to the design, experiment, and determination of types ; prepared all technical pamphlets, drawings, charts, and specifications pertain- ing to ordnance and ordnance stores that it was necessary to prepare in France; investigated defects in ordnance materiel and prescribed corrective measures; operated proving grounds and laboratories; advised and instructed other divisions in technical matters; main- tained technical relations with allied forces and other American Expeditionary Forces services ; and established, maintained, and ad- ministered courses of instruction in all ordnance activities. The Eequirements Division established and maintained tables of requirements of all ordnance materiel; prepared priority schedules for procurement and shipping of materiel from the United States and in Europe and made estimate of tonnage requirements; sub- mitted all requisitions to the Ordnance Department in the United States; cooperated with the salvage service in matters pertaining to salvage as a source of ordnance supply ; and maintained such records and statistics as were necessary for the performance of its duties. PERSONNEL. Like all other services in the Expeditionary Forces, the Ordnance Department was handicapped by a shortage of personnel, but plans were well under way when hostilities ended for the acquisition 72 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. of sufficient force to take care of the program already mapped out and to allow for a reasonable expansion. Ordnance personnel was supplied from officers and men in the military service before the declaration of war who were familiar with ordnance work, from civilians in the United States with technical and scientific train- ing, and from Class B and Class C officers and men from combat units. Those from the first source were found efficient in nearly every case ; those from the second became fairly efficient when prop- erly trained, but courses of instruction were always necessary ; while those from the third class were generally found unsatisfactory, a condition that prevailed in all services of supply. The first call for ordnance personnel was for 351 officers and 9,798 men to take care of 20 combat divisions and 10 replacement and training divisions which were to be organized into 5 corps. This estimate was forwarded to the United States by the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, on July 6, 1917. He asked at the same time for 11,000 laborers, expecting that this labor could be sup- plied partly from the United States and partly from Europe.*^ Soon it was found that this estimate was too small and that the proper kind of labor could not be had, and accordingly the work had to be done by skilled enlisted ordnance personnel. The estimate for personnel went through various changes until June 27, 1918, when a project was submitted calling for 10,819 officers and enlisted men. On July 18, 1918, the War Department was asked to ship 27,600 men be- tween October, 1918, and July, 1919, and on July 21 of the same year a project was forwarded for 2,398 officers to be in France by July 1, 1919. This latter project was approved but subsequent changes were made in the personnel program until 4,471 officers and 100,084 en- listed men were authorized. It was contemplated that these forces should be organized into companies of 250 men, each one to have two officers for military administration. But in August, 1918, the Ord- nance Department was ordered to take over the Ammunition Supply Service, which had been operated previously by the French. To carry on this work it was necessary to take away much of the ord- nance personnel from the Services of Supply depots and many skilled mechanics. To replace these men, the commanding general, Ex- peditionary Forces, forwarded a cable calling for 21 officers and 1,641 men for Ammunition Supply for the First Army and a like number for the Second Army. It was intended to transfer the men thus procured to the units which had lost because of the assumption of the supply work; but the Services of Supply never regained the men taken away from it. Properly to handle ammunition supply, one company was planned to accompany each division from the ** Vol. V, page 30, History of Ordnance Department, American Expeditionary Forces, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. ORGANIZATION OF THE SEEVICES OF SUPPLY. 73 United States. Each company was to consist of 6 officers and 216 enlisted men. (13) There was confusion over the control of ordnance officers on duty with divisions. Whether they should be controlled by the chief ordnance officer or by the division commanders, never was definitely decided. Much confusion resulted over this dual claim to control and finally a check was made whereby it was found that some ordnance officers were claimed by two divisions and some were claimed by none. (13) Steps were being taken to remedy this situation when the armistice intervened. On August 1, 1918, a classification of the personnel was completed which showed approximately the following results: Per cent. One year at college 3. 2 Two years at college 3.6 Three years at college 2.6 College graduates 5. 7 Post graduates (two degrees) 0.9 College, no length stated 3.0 Total college men 19. High school 24. Business special schools 6. 8 Grammar schools and nondeclai'ants 50. 2 Total 100.0 The ordnance personnel sent overseas w^as divided into seven classes as follows : (a) Personnel attached to line organizations. (b) Automatic replacement troops. (c) Mobile ordnance repair shops. (d) Heavy mobile ordnance repair shops. (e) Provisional ordnance depot companies and battalions. (/) Casual officers. (g) Casual enlisted men. The movement of Class A men was automatic. They were assigned to line organizations in the United States and kept with them in France. Class B personnel was also sent overseas without special request and ordered to the concentration barracks at Mehun and then to ordnance schools before being distributed. Class C personnel was sent automatically also, one unit for each division, the units being given intensive training at Is-sur-Tille before joining divisions. Class D men were included in the original troop projects and went to or- ganization and training centers before entering the Army area. Class E personnel was sent overseas upon request from headquarters, American Expeditionary Forces, and went to the concentration bar- racks at Mehun, whence the men were distributed to stations in the Services of Supply. Class F officers were ordered automatically 74 ORGAIsriZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. from the base ports to Tours for a one-day conference before assign- ment to duty. Class G personnel was ordered automatically to Mehun for classification and assignment. For a time it was thought that many of the ordnance activities could be carried on by reclassified officers and men, but time proved that personnel, from combat divisions, classed physically as B or C, could not be used successfully except on very light duty. These men were geaerally returned to combat divisions when they got well. However, reports on reclassification finally showed that about 2,000 officers and men were on the lists who could be used in ordnance work, and on October 16, 1918, request was made for 1,000 of these officers. (13) On July 17, 1918, the educational section of the Development Division was established for personnel instruction. This was made a function of the Engineering Division, which replaced the Develop- ment Division, and it was transferred to the Personnel Division when that division was created November 11, 1918. It was the duty of the educational section to establish, maintain, and administer courses of instruction for ordnance personnel in all branches of ordnance work and to provide such military instruction as might be necessary, and to cooperate with and assist the Personnel Division in the classifica- tion and assignment of personnel.*'' The.se schools were served by instructors picked from the commissioned personnel with special care ; and from the outset the improvement in the men was so marked that the courses were constantly elaborated so that every phase of ordnance work was included finally. The location of these schools is given in the list of ordnance facilities below. MATERIEL. The greater part of the materiel for the Ordnance Department of the Expeditionary Forces was bought in Europe, this being especially true in the case of the heavier items. Broadly, Europe and the United States were the two sources of supply.^'* The principal reason for this was that the need for materiel became serious even before anybody could outline the requirements. Artillery, artillery ammunition, fire control instruments, and trench warfare materiel, were practically all furnished by France and England. Until the summer of 1918 machine guns and automatic rifles were supplied largely by the Allies and up to the same period much personnel and horse equipment had to be provided for by commercial substitutes purchased in the European markets. Requirements were handled through estimates based on initial equipment, wastage, consumption ** History of Ordnance Department, American Expeditionary Forces, Vol. I, pages 51 to 240 ; on file Historical Branch, General Staff. ^ History of Ordnance Department, American Expeditionary Forces, Vol. I, pages 133, 137, 138, and 139 ; on file Historical Branch, General Staff. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. < D and reserves, which estimates were filled from foreign availabilities and fi'om the United States through automatic and exceptional supply.^^ Spare parts, accessories, etc., were procured on schedules by individual items and by sets; but changes finally settled the sys- tem down to schedules of so man}' spare parts for each 25,000 men in France, thus making the supply automatic. A resume of the combat materiel supplied through the Ordnance Department ^^ is given : From France. From United States. From England Total. Guns: 75 mm. guns 1,862 796 160 2 71 26 74 2,022 798 71 26 74 233 233 88 120 40 208 40 S-inch S C guns 6 15 18 6 15 66 84 Total 2,957 460 160 3,577 Caissons: 75 mm. gun. 1,862 796 4,948 1,198 219 6,810 1,944 4 7-inch gun 219 Total . 2,658 6,365 9,023 Trench mortars: 843 914 1,757 136 136 6-inch Newtons . . 48 513 561 101 101 Total 237 891 1,427 2,555 Automatic machine and 37 mm. guns: 30,089 10,411 30,089 10,411 5,255 5,255 43,368 43,368 19,241 15,988 641 19,241 15,988 60 701 41,125 83,928 125,053 Tanks: 227 10 12 14 237 12 14 24 Mark V and Mark VI 28 Total 227 36 26 289 Tractors: 5 i,ei8 933 226 83 5 1,018 933 225 451 83 28 104 28 104 132 2,265 225 2,622 » History of Ordnance Department, American Expeditionary Forces, Vol. I, pages 133, 137, 138, and 139 ; on file Historical Branch, General Stafif. ^History of 'Ordnance Department, American Expeditionary Forces, Vol. I, page 205; on file Historical Branch, General Staff. 76 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Shells: From France From United States. From England 1,983,500 6,972,300 427, 100 Total. 9,382,900 Small arms and ammunition: From France rounds.. 47,559,000 From Umted States do 1,475,549,000 Total do.... 1,523,108,000 FACILITIES. The facilities of the department in the Expeditionary Forces con- sisted of ammunition depots, general storage depots, ordnance repair shops, schools of instruction, organization and training centers, and proving grounds and laboratories. The locations of these several fa- cilities, as shown by the History of the Ordnance Department, Ameri- can Expeditionary Forces, are as follows: Ammunition depots : St. Loubes (Giroiide). Foecy (Cher). Issoudun (Indre). Jonchery (Haute-Marne). Donges (Loire-Inf^rieure). General storage depots : Calais (Pas-de-Calais). Deniange-au.x-Eaux (jNIeuse). Gievres ( Loir-et-Cher ) . Is-.sui--Tille (Cote-d'Or). Mehun (Cher). Miramas ( Bouches-du-Rhone) . Montoir ( Loirc-Inf 6rieure ) . Nevers (Ni^vre). St. Sulpice (Gironde). Ordnance repair shops: Angers (Maine-et-Loire). AngoulGme (Charente). Bourg (Gironde). Bourges (Cher). Chalindrey (Haute-Marne). Clermont-Ferrand (Puy-de-Dome). Coetquidan ( Morbihan ) . Colombey-les-Belles ( Meurthe-et- Moselle). Courbevoie (Seine). Demange-aux-Eaux (Meuse). Doulaincourt (Haute-Marne). Foecy (Cher). GiSvres ( Loir-et-Cher ) . Haussimont (Marne). Is-sur-Tille (Cote-d'Or). La Courtine (Creuse). Langres ( Haute-Marne ) . Ordnance repair shops — Continued. Le Blanc (Indre). Le Corneau (Gironde). Libourne (Gironde). Limoges ( Haute-Vieune ) . Mehun (Cher). Meucon ( Morbihan ) . Neuvy-Pailloux (Indre), Orly Field (Seine). Romorantin (Loir-et-Cher). St. Jean-de-Monts (Vendee). Saumur (Maine-et-Loire). Souge (Gironde). Valdahon (Doubs). Void (Meuse). Schools of instruction : Bourges (Cher). Foecy (Cher). Is-sur-Tille (Cote-d'Or). St. Jean-de-Monts (Vendee). St. Aignan (Loir-et-Cher). Jonchery (Haute-Marne). Organization and training centers : Angers ( Maine-et-Loire ) . Angouleme (Charente). Clermont-Ferrand (Puy-de-DSme), Libourne (Gironde). Limoges (Haute-Vienne). Proving grounds and laboratories : Bourges (Cher). Gavre et Quiberon (Morbihan). Montlugon (Allier). Mehun (Cher). Versailles (Seine-et-Oise). ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 77 XIV.— QUARTERMASTER CORPS, AMERICAN EXPEDI- TIONARY FORCES. The chief duties of the Quartermaster Corps in the Expeditionary Forces were to feed, clothe, and pay the Army, although it was charged with many others, including the supply of fuel and forage, salvage, grave registration, and, at one time, dock operation and motor transportation. It had to perform these varied functions for an Army of 2,000,000 men and, at the same time, prepare for an Army twice that size. JMaximmn strength, 4,229 officers, 96,451 men, and 42 field clerks on December 15, 1918. Strength at armistice, 4,027 officers, 96,006 men, and 38 field clerks. Forage received, 824,410 tons; from United States, 391,215, and from Europe, 30,122. Animals received, all sources, 243,560. Remount depots, 35. Mechanical bakeries, 4 ; field bakeries, 61 ; coffee-roasting plants, 3. Ice-making plants, 7 ; cold-storage plants, 21. Main gasoline-storage depots, 6; gasoline-storage and distributing stations, 28. Motor gasoline consumed, 87,663,056 gallons; aviation gasoline consumed, 5,627,572 gallons. Coal receipts to May 1, 1919, 1,953,777 tons. Salvage depots, 4; salvage shops, 17. Decreasing and rendering plants, 4. Clothing received, 119,461 tons ; from United States, 107,429 ; from Europe, 12,032. Food, from United States, 1,313,525 tons; from Europe, 248,150; total, 1,561,675, in the following commodities: Tons. Meat 421, 322 Sugar 74, 4.55 Tobacco 24, 9S6 Butter 21, 907 Flour 412, 050 Beans 58, 767 Milk 39, 756 Pepper 871 Reserve of above on hand November 11, 1918, 93.75 days. Tons. Fruits 88, 300 Vinegar 15, 961 Rice 29, 974 Coffee 40, 972 Cinnamon 424 Salt 21, 249 Potatoes 309, 478 Tea 203 83 Some achievements of the Services of Supply Section, table " Subsistence in Depots Nov. 11, 1918." Salt 0. 0477 Vinegar . 0332 Candy . 0228 Soap . 0228 Baking powder . 0051 Pepper . 0019 Flavoring . 0013 Cinnamon . 0009 Total 4.2887 78 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Food consumption, pounds per man per day : ®* Potatoes 1. 1770 Meat 1. 0729 Flour . 8527 Sugar . 2409 Fruit . 2302 Beans . 1793 Milk . 0976 Coffee . 0794 Rice and hominy . 0734 Butter .0686 Tobacco . 0576 ORGANIZATION. Under General Orders, No. 8, July 5, 1917, the Quartermaster Corps in the Expeditionary Forces was charged with " the trans- portation of personnel and supplies; the supply of quartermaster transportation ; repairs to all vehicles of all services, except artillery vehicles; clothing, quartermaster equipment; subsistence; fuel; forage; lights; water; camp sites; quarters and offices and equip- ment therefor ; pay of personnel and general disbursements, laundries and baths ; remounts ; claims ; salvage ; quartermaster workshops and storehouses; burials; cemeteries; labor; quartermaster personnel; and coal storage and refrigerating plants. The same order that established the Transportation Department of the Expeditionary Forces determined the duties of the Quartermaster Corps.'^^ This order charged each with the transportation of supplies and personnel, but the function of the Quartermaster Corps was confined by prac- tice and not by order to the issue of transportation requests for the Expeditionary Forces. Later this function also passed to the Trans- portation Corps. By General Orders, No. 20, Headquarters, Expedi- tionary Forces, August 13, 1917, the Service of Military Eailways was established and it was charged with the transportation of per- sonnel and supplies in the place of the Quartermaster Corps, but the latter continued operating the ports through its Army Transport Service. On September 14, 1917, the Service of Military Railways became the Transportation Service, and on December 18, 1917, by General Orders, No. 78, Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, the Army Transport Service was transferred to the Transportation Serv- ice with its equipment and personnel. On February 16, 1918, there was a reorganization, under General Orders, No. 31, Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, whereby the Quartermaster Corps became one of the services of the Service of the Rear, later the Services of Sup- ply. In this order the corps was charged with pay of personnel and " Some achievements of the Services of Supply Section, table " Food — Total Issues and Rate of Consumption." ^ General Orders, No. 8, General Headquarters, July 5, 1917, all on file Historical Branch, General Staff. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 79 general disbursements; quartermaster materiel, including clothing, subsistence, fuel, and forage; transportation of water beyond the water point; remount service; laundries and baths; disinfection of clothing; salvage service; quartermaster shops, depots, and store- house ; cold storage and refrigeration ; grave registration and inspec- tion of Quartermaster Corps activities. To these later were added sales stores and rolling sales stores, effects depots, and garden service. The initial work of the chief quartermaster, Expeditionary Forces, was to take care of the troops already in France and those coming with the first convoy, which arrived at St. Nazaire June 26, 1917, before the chief quartermaster had had time to organize his office on anything like a permanent basis. St. Nazaire had been se- lected as one of the French ports for American use and by the time the first convoy reached there officers and men were on hand to take care of it. Unloading the first convoy was done by French labor. It was at this port that the Army Transport Service began oper- ations. It branched out to the other ports as they became available and its work was not interrupted by the transfer to the Transporta- tion Department. The chief quartermaster moved from Paris to Chaumont with the commanding general, and then removed to Tours on March 11, 1918. The office of the chief quartermaster, line of conmiunications, was absorbed by the office of chief of quartermas- ter when the latter moved to Tours. In the final plan of organiza- tion the chief quartermaster was assisted by a deputy chief quar- termaster and assistants to the chief quartermaster and the follow- ing divisions : ^'^ Administrative Division^ which handled all records, mail, tele- grams, and cablegrams, messenger service, precedent and research and administrative action on contracts. Supplies Division^ the work of which was distributed among 15 branches, viz, clothing, subsistence, bakeries, animal-drawn transpor- tation, traffic, traveling officers, supplies and stationery, fuel, forage, cold storage and refrigeration, administration, storage and warehous- ing, garden service, gasoline and oil, and miscellaneous. Personnel Division handled all quartermaster personnel in the Expeditionary Forces, preparation of priority schedules of quarter- master troops in the United States for shipment overseas, organiza- tion of new units in the Expeditionary Forces, and distribution of all quartermaster personnel, including labor organizations. Finance Division handled supply of disbursing officers and funds for their disbursements, instruction of finance officers, and adjust- ment of certain classes of claims. 6« Quartermaster Section, Part II, Appendix A — Report board convened by paragraph 79, Special Order No. 141, 1919, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. 80 OKGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Inspection Division, through traveling ofTicers, inspected and re- ported on the several activities of the Quartermaster Corps. Accounting Division examined and analyzed the accounts, both property and funds, and audited subsistence returns of all quarter- masters in the Expeditionary Forces. Salvage Service operated salvage depots and shops, rendering plants for the recovery of fats, kitchen economic activities, and laundries and disinfectors and police of the battle fields. Remount Division acquired by purchase in Europe and shipment from United States all animals of the Expeditionary Forces. Construction and Repair Division designed equipment, chevrons, and other insignia, made maps and organization charts, and did quartermaster illustrating. This division had no construction or repair function. Graves Registration Service acquired, maintained, and controlled cemeteries, identified the dead, registered burials, and corresponded with relatives of deceased soldiers. PERSONNEL. The quartermaster personnel accompanying Gen. Pershing to France consisted of IG oflicers, 10 enlisted men, and 12 field clerks. By November 11, 1918, there were 4,027 officers, 96,006 enlisted men, and 38 field clerks. The maximum was 4,229 officers, 96,451 enlisted men, and 42 field clerks. Besides these the Quartermaster Corps had transferred 600 officers and 18,000 enlisted men to the Motor Trans- port Corps and 300 officers and 13,000 enlisted men to the Trans- portation Corps. The commissioned personnel was drawn from the line of the Eegular Army, from former quartermaster non- commissioned personnel of the Army, and from men with wide experience in commercial life. The enlisted men came from the usual sources — the selective draft and voluntary enlistments. Quar- termaster personnel was slow in arriving. Although troops began to arrive in the latter part of May, 1917, there were less than 2,500 quartermaster officers and men in France by October 6 of the same year. Labor organizations did not appear in any appreciable amount until the middle of December, 1917, despite repeated representations of the commanding general. Expeditionary Forces. During January and February, 1918, the corps began to catch up with its quota, but in March and April the demand for combat troops became pressing, and priority schedules were changed so radically that Quartermaster Corps troop arrivals fell off seriously, and the shortage began to grow again. By the middle of April general headquarters had to take up this question and numerous cablegrams were sent urging an increase in the shipment of Quartermaster OKGANIZATIOST OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 81 Corps troops. In May, June, and July these shipments increased and the shortage became less serious, although it never did disappear. MATERIEL. The aim of the American Expeditionary Forces was to have always 90 days' reserve of supplies based upon the entire number of Ameri- can troops in Europe. This decision was arrived at after a series of conferences with the chiefs of several services and the War Depart- ment was notified by cable September 7, 1917. It was told that this reserve was to be based on authorized issues where such issues were regular and on actual periodic consumption of other articles based on British and French experience. It was the aim of the Quartermaster Corps to keep the reserve at that figure, but it was able to do so only in the matter of subsistence. Other articles fell short just as in other services. The flow of tonnage was always worked out as nearly as possible so as not to interfere with the flow of troops. At no time was there as much ship tonnage available as was needed. This forced the purchase of many quartermaster supplies in Europe, as it did in other services. The principal base storage depots were at Montoir (Loire-In- ferieure), St. Sulpice (Gironde) and Miramas (Bouches-du-Rhone). The intermediate depots were at Gievres (Loir-et-Cher) and Mon- tierchaume (Indre) , with an auxiliary depot at Paris. The advance depots were at Is-sur-Tille (Cote-d'Or) and Liffol-le-Grand (Vos- ges). Gievres had the largest depot in the Expeditionary Forces and one of the largest storage places in the world. The American soldier in France consumed 4.2887 pounds of food a day. The Quartermaster Corps managed to keep ahead of him all the time in subsistence, but was often behind in clothing. The daily production of bread increased from the first baking of 11,378 pounds on August 3, 1917, to 1,830,000 pounds on November 30, 1918. At the time of the armistice bakeries were being operated in practically every section of France. The largest bakery was at Is-sur-Tille, which was put into operation on December 1, 1918. This bakery had a capacity of 550,000 pounds a day, which could be increased to 750,000 in case of emergency. When hostilities ended plans were under way for two additional mechanical bakeries there. The Garden Service was started in the spring of 1918 and dur- ing the period of its operation it produced 75,000,000 pounds of vegetables at cost, not including the pay and subsistence of en- listed men, about one-third the prices prevailing in the open markets. Four cold storage plants were added after the armistice. On November 11 there were 17 in operation, with a capacity of 10,374 178841°— 20 6 82 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. tons, and 15 more were projected, with an additional capacity of 15,065 tons. The largest plant was at Gievres. It had a capacity of 5,200 tons.^^ Forage was always a serious problem in France because of the scarcity of ship tonnage. In all, the receipts were 824,410 tons, the bulk of which came from the United States. At one time the French refused to permit the American forces to buy in the open market, but offered to turn over certain monthly credits of hay from their reserve on condition that it be replaced pound for pound from America. At the signing of the armistice, the French had delivered only about 30 per cent of their contract, but in spite of this the American Forces had built up a 21-day reserve. Organization chart, Quartermaster Corps, A. E. F. c o ,. ■ Assistant to C. Q. M. Deputy C. Q. M. Inspection Division. Administrative Division. Finance Division. Personnel Division. Accounting Division. Supplies Division. Salvage Service. Remount Division. Construction and Repair Division. Graves Registration Service. Coal for the Expeditionary Forces came from England, and gaso- line, oils, and other greases from the United States. Wood was pro- cured from French forests and cut by American Forestry troops. FACILITIES. The facilities of the Quartermaster Corps were found in nearly every section of France. They were located with a view to the needs of the troops thej^ were to serve or the sources of supply they were to draw from. The storehouse locations were governed by the line of communications and those of other activities depended *'' Quartermaster Section, Part II, Appendix A — Report board convened by paragraph 79, Special Order No. 141, 1919 ; on file Historical Branch, General Stafif. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 83 upon climatic, geographical or agricultural conditions, tions of these facilities were as follows : The loca- CofEee roasting plants: Le Havre (Seine-Infgrieure). Bordeaux (Gironde). Corbeil (Seine-et-Oise). Mechanical bakeries : Bordeaux (Gironde). St Nazaire (Loire-Inferieure). Is-sur-Tille ( Cote-d'Or ) . Field bakeries: Brest (Finistere). St. Nazaire (Loire-Inffirieure). Savenay ( Loire-Inferieure ) . Nantes (Loire-Inf6rieure). Montierchaume (Indre). Issoudun (Indre). Gi^vres (Loir-et-Clier). St. Aignan (Loir-et-Cher). Orleans (Loiret). St. Maixent (Dordogne). Montmorillon (Vienna). Angouleme (Charente). Pons (Charente-Infgrieure). Genicart (Gironde). Beautiran (Gironde). Le Corneau (Gfironde). Marseille (Bouches-du-RMne). Clermont-Ferrand (Puy-de-D6me). St. Amand (Cher). Verneuil (NiSvre). Bourges (Cher). St. Florent (Cher). Beaune (Cote-d'Or). Dijon (C6te-d'0r). Chfitillon Cote-d'Or). Paris (Seine). Meucon (Morbihan). Coetquidan ( Morbihan ) . Angers ( Maine-et-Loire ) . Saumur (Maine-et-Loire). Le Mans (Sarthe). Chateau-du-Loire (Sarthe). Tours ( Indre-et-Loire) . Blois (Loire-et-Cher). Cour-Cheverny (Loir-et-Cher). La Pallice (Charente- Infgri- eure) : Limoges (Haute- Vienna ). La Courtine (Creuse). Neuvic (Dordogne). Souge (Gironde). St. Sulpice (Gironde). Field bakeries — Continued. Pontens-les-Forges (Landes). Valbonne ( Alpes-Maritimes ) . Vichy (AUier). Mars (Nievre). Nevers (NiSvre). Mesves (Nievre). Mehun (Cher). Allerey (Cote-d'Or). Is-sur-Tille ( Cote-d'Or) . Langres (Haute-Marne). Chaumont (Haute-Marne). Mailly (SaSne et-Loire). Vittel (Vosges). Neufchateau (Vosges). Gondrecourt (Meuse). Montigny-le-Roi ( Haute-Marne ) . Rimaucourt (Vosges), Liffol-le-Grand (Vosges). Toul ( Meurthe-et-Moselle ) . Cold storage plants: Brest (Finistere). Grand Blotterau (Loire-Inferi- eure). La Pallice (Charente-Inf^rieure). Arcachon (Gironde). Tours (Indre-et-Loire). Orleans (Loiret). ViclTj- (Allier). Rimaucourt (Vosges). Bazoilles-sur-Meuse (Vosges). Bendorf (Germany). Savenay (Loire-Inferieure), Angers (Maine-et-Loire), Bassens (Gironde), Le Havre (Seine-Inf6rieure), Blois (Loir-et-Cher). Gievres ( Loir-et-Cher ) . Beaune (Cote-d'Or). Vittel (Vosges). Toul ( Meurthe-et-Moselle) . Hook of Holland (Holland). Ice-making plants : Savenay (Loire-Inf6rieure). Allerey ( Saone-et-Loire ) , Bazoilles-sur-Meuse ( Vosges ) , Gievres (Loir-et-Cher), Rimaucourt (Vosges). Grand Blotterau (Loire-Inferi- eure). Beaune (Cote-d'Or). 84 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Main gasoline storage depots: La Pallice (Charente-Infgrieure). P"'urt (Gironde). Gievres ( Loir-et-Clier ) . Blaye (Gironde). St. Loubes (Gironde). Gasoline and oil distributing stations: St. Nazaire (Loire-Infgrieure). Angers ( Maine-et-Loire ) . Tours ( Indre-et-Loire ) . Limoges ( Haute- Vienne ) . St. Aignan (Loir-et-Cher). Romorantin (Loir-et-Cber). Orly Field (Seine). Sens (Yonne). Nevers (Nifivre). Clermont-Ferrand (Puy-de-D6me). Toul ( Meurthe-et-Moselle ) . Neuf cbateau ( Vosges ) . Gasoline and oil distributing sta- tions — Continued. Langres (Haute-Marne). Is-sur-Tille (Cote-d'Or). Miramas (Bouches-du-RhSne). Chatenay ( Loire-Inf erieure ) . Le Mans (Sartbe). Bordeaux ( Gironde ) . Chateauroux (Indre). Issoudun (Indre). St. Amand (Cher). Silly-le-Poterie (Aisne). Coincy (Aisne). Verneuil (Nievre). Clermont-en-Argonne (Meuse) . Gondrecourt (Meuse). Rimaiicourt (Vosges). Chavelot (Vosges). Marseille (Boucbes-du-RliGne) . XV.— SIGNAL CORPS, AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES. The Signal Corps installed, leased, maintained, and operated the general service telephone and telegraph for the American Expedi- tionary Forces in tlie Services of Supply as well as in the Zone of the Advance. It maintained radio, press, and intercept stations and, on the formation of the Third Army, provided a network in that area as an auxiliary to the wire telegraph system. (14) (3) Initial strength, 13 officers and 286 enlisted men. Maximum strength, 1,665 officers and 34,206 enlisted men. Strength November 11, 1,462 officers and 33,038 enlisted men. Pole lines constructed, 1,742 miles. Wire run on above, 20,708 miles; wire run on other than S. C. pole lines, 1,984 miles. Leased wire maintained by the French and operated by S. C, 12,333 miles; leased wire both maintained and operated by S. C, 3,019 miles. Stations served from 260 telephone offices, 8,152. Number of local calls, 25,184,000; number of long-distance calls, 870,000. Telegraph offices in operation, 102. Messages handled to January 1, 1919, 8,685,960. Still pictures taken, 40,344; moving picture film taken, nearly 2,000,000 feet. Covered storage, 350,000 square feet; open storage, 1,500,000 square feet. Miles of lines in combat area, 38,750. ORGANIZATIOlNr OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 85 ORGANIZATION. This corps had the same experience as all other services in that it went through several reorganizations. By the terms of General Orders, No. 8, Headquarters, Expeditionary Forces, July 5, 1917, the chief signal officer was made a member of the Administrative and Technical Section of the staff of the commanding general, Expedi- tionary Forces, and was charged with the control of Signal Corps personnel and material and wire communication; message receipt and transmission; radio telephone and telegraph services; pigeon service; pyrotechnics; American codes and ciphers; photography; meteorology; technical inspection of signal organizations and estab- lishments, and dispatch riders. The definition of these functions was elaborated somewhat but not changed in General Orders, No. 25^ General Headquarters, August 12, 1917. (14) When the Service of the Rear, which became the Services of Supply, was created, the chief signal officer exercised his functions as a member of the tech- nical staff of the commanding general. Expeditionary Forces, through the commanding general. Services of Suppl}^, although re- taining his status as a member of the staff of the former, through a representative at general headquarters. The work of the corps was separated broadly into that done in the Services of Supply and that in the Zone of the Armies. The former was accomplished through departments or divisions, and the latter through the corps, divisional or regimental signal officers. The headquarters of the chief signal officers were located first at Paris and then at Tours, moving to the latter place when the general headquarters were moved to Chaumont in March, 1918. Originally the Air Service was a function of the Signal Corps, but this service was made a separate corps early in the history of the American Expeditionary Forces, and was so recognized in General Orders, No. 8, July 5, 1917, the first general order dealing with organization in the Expeditionary Forces. The administration of the corps' affairs was distributed among nine divisions. These were Personnel, Telephone and Telegraph, Supply, Engineering, Photographic, Research and Inspection, Radio, Records, and Special Services. The Personnel Division had the functions usually charged to the personnel office of any corps. It handled, in addition to supply and distribution of personnel, much of its sjDecial training, and it also was responsible for matters relating to the supply of officers and men from the United States. The Telephone and Telegraph Division handled all wire commu- nication for the American Army. It was one of the first divisions 86 ORGANIZATION" OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. of the Signal Corps' activities to begin functioning. What it accom- plished can be seen in the second paragraph of this chapter. (14) The Supply Division began to function coincidentally with the Telephone and Telegraph Division. It had to organize so that it could expand as the number of troops in the Expeditionary Forces increased, and after hostilities it contracted in the same ratio. Its first depot was at Nevers, but soon it became necessary to have larger establishments, and the depot at Gievres was the first one of the more extensive program. It had branches at the base ports and at all the base storage depots.** Its depot for supplying the Photo- graphic Section was opened at Paris in August, 1918, and after that all the supplies for that section were shipped there directly from the base ports. The division had to take care of purchases in Europe, as well as requisitions on the United States for material. The Engineering Division had charge of all Signal Corps con- struction in France. This duty carried its members to every sec- tion of the country, and over to England and into the occupation area after the armistice." The Photographic Di^dsion was just what its name implies. It had representatives with each division and units in the Services of Supply. It paralleled every activity of the Army, but was handi- capped seriously because of a lack of photographers with sufficient familiarity with military affairs. Often views of actions and of activities in the Services of Supply which would have been of inesti- mable value were missed, and many views, both still and motion, that were taken could have been left out and the material used to better advantage.^® The Research and Inspection Division grew out of the necessity for laboratories for the development of ideas at the battle front, and for the study of ideas to meet new needs in signaling as demonstrated by modern warfare. The inspection feature was the result of the necessity for testing signal apparatus arriving from the United States and from European factories, it having been found that fac- tory inspection was not a safe guide because of the hard usage scien- tific instruments often had in transit. (14) Their names best describe the functions of the Radio and the Rec- ords Divisions. The Special Service Division looked after the work of such services as were not taken care of by the divisions already mentioned. The Pigeon Service, Meteorology, Codes and Ciphers, and Visual Signaling were its most important branches. The divi- sion was created purely for organization purposes. ** Volume I, page 67, History of Signal Corps, American Expeditionary Forces ; on file Historical Branch, General Staff. ^ Volume I, pages 16 and 19. History of Signal Corps, American Expeditionary Forces : on file Historical Branch, General Staff. ORGANIZATION" OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 87 PERSONNEL. Suitable personnel was hard to get and, moreover,*" had to be specially trained in signal work after it had been acquired. In the rank and file of the National Guard, Signal Corps, there was a grati- fying percentage of very fine types of young manhood, but there was a lack of organic strength and a disconcerting range in efficiency. Steps had been taken to organize the Signal Corps Reserve with the active cooperation of the officials of telephone, telegraph, and electric companies. These officials had helped in enrolling the men of their companies, and had even specified those of more advanced positions capable of becoming officers. From this source the most desirable recruits were had. Organization chart, Signal Corps, A. E. F. CHIEF SIGNAL OFFICER. Executive Officer. Assistant Executive Officer. Personnel Division. Director of Supply Service. Photo- graphic Di- vision. Radio Division. Records Division. Director Telephone and Telegraph Services. Engineer Division. Research and Inspection Division. Special Service Division. Because of the nature of the work, the Signal Corps had been dis- tributed over vast territory in more or less small detachments en- gaged on telegraph, telephone, and kindred lines of work, including wireless and cable operation and maintaining communication be- tween temporary field forces. When the Regular Army was ex- panded to full strength to meet war needs the National Guard units were also placed on a war footing. With the Signal Corps Reserve, these formed the nuclei for Signal Corps units of the Expeditionary Forces. Chambers of commerce, brokers' offices, public utilities com- 8« Summary S. C. activities during period of preparation in United States ; on file in the Historical Branch, General Staff. 88 0RGA3'IZATI02T OF THE SEEVICES OF SUPPLY. panies. and like concerns kept the needs of the corps to the fore and aided materiallv in recruiting. Skilled men mustered into other arms of the service were transferred and the balance were obtained through the selective draft. A course of standard instruction prepared by the chief signal officer was issued to signal units, through the general staff, in the form of training circulars. Divisional signal officers supervised the schools and field exercises of the field signal battalions. Practically all the Signal Corps officers were commissioned directly from civil life." Men from telephone and telegraph companies found their way naturally iuto Signal Corps units and were valuable men. But other young men were needed, and it was necessary to instruct these in the elementary principles of electricity and their application to modern means of rapid communication. For this work facilities were provided at several colleges in the United States, and the work was continued after the units arrived in France. aiATEKLlL. Signal Corps material came from the United States on requisi- tion and from the markets of Europe. In many cases it was neces- sary to install special machinery in French shops to turn out new instruments that were made especially to meet peculiar needs that had developed at the front. The call upon the American market made lUecessary the expansion on broad lines of many of the factories in the United States, and the conversion of other plants into estab- lishments for the manufacture of signal supplies for the Army. From the standpoint of production the following broad classifica- tion ^- of Signal Corps material may be made : (14) 1) Telephone and telegraph apparatus. [2) Eadio apparatus. [3) Line construction material. [4) Electrical supplies. [5) Wire and cable. f6) Wire reels and carts. ') Photographic supplies. [S) Tool chests and kits, mechanical signals, meteorological apparatus and pigeons. (9) Field glasses, wrist watches, etc. (10) Signal equipment common to all branches of the service, such as pyrotechnics, flags, smoke signals, cloth panels, and panel lights. (11) Xew devices growing out of the present war. •'Monograph on S. C. in file of Historical Branch, General Staff. ■Appendices to Vol. I, History of Signal Corps In American Expeditionary Forces, on file BUstorical Branch, General Staff. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 89 The principal Signal Corps facilities were located as follows: Supply depots : Army parks : Gievres (Loir-et-Cher). Toul (Meurthe-et-Moselle). Is-sur-Tille (Cote-d'Or). Lieusaint (Seine-et-Marne). Montierchaume (Indre). Parois (Meuse). Montoir (Loire-Inferieure). St. Sulpice (Gii'onde). Paris (Seine). Orly Field (Seine). XVI.— TRANSPORTATION CORPS, AMERICAN EXPEDI- TIONARY FORCES. This corps landed troops and supplies at 31 ports on the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of France and carried them to the front or to points in the interior, over 5,831 miles of railway, with an aver- age haul of 580 miles. The facts about it between June 1, 1917, and June 1, 1919, are : Authorized strength, 6,000 officers and 200',000 enlisted men to take care of an army of 4,000,000. Maximum strength, 1,935 officers, 58,353 enlisted men, January 1, 1919. Strength at armistice, 1,810 officers and 46,976 enlisted men. Cargo landed, 9,577,945 tons. Animals landed, 64,918. Troops debarked, 1,967,267. Troops embarked, 1,275,251. Locomotives erected, 1,610. Cars erected, 18,664. French cars repaired, 57,533. French locomotives repaired, 1,947. Shops built and equipped, car erecting shops at La Rochelle. locomotive erecting shops at St. Nazaire, and car and loco- motive repair shops at Nevers. Railroads made use of, Paris-Orleans, Etat, Est, Midi, Nord, and the Paris-Lyon-Mediterranean. CONDITION OF FRENCH RAILROADS IN 1917. The railroad situation in France was first studied by a commission sent over by the Secretary of War in May, 1917. It found that the French had to tear up a great deal of second track from double-track lines in order to get the necessary rails, and that the railroad systems were 1,200 locomotives short of normal because none had been bought to replace those seized or destroyed by the enemy and none of the bad order locomotives had been repaired. The shortage of freight cars was even greater in proportion. The French, therefore, had 90 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Organization chart, Transportation Corps, A. E. F. DIRECTOR GENERAL OF TRANSPORTATION Deputy D. G. T., French Ministry. Business Manager. Adjutant. Deputy D. G. T., Zone of Advance. Deputy D. G. T., s. o. s. Railroad Operation. Deputy Director General, General Affairs. Deputy D. G. T., Britisli Ministry. Supt. Army Trans- port Serv. Port Operation. Director of Military Affairs. Engineer of Con- struction. Hist. OIT. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 91 been compelled to call on the British to furnish additional rolling stock and assume a greater share of British transportation in North- ern France. It was seen that similar demands would have to be made on the Americans. (2) (4) At the beginning transportation was a function of the Corps of Engineers and was under the chief Engineer officer of the Expedition- ary Forces. The service had to be organized in this way tentatively to meet immediate conditions. A permanent and satisfactory organi- zation was not authorized until June 25, 1918, and not finally ^" accomplished until November 12, 1918. The location of the ports immediately available for the American Forces fixed the lines of communication and determined the transportation problem and, in the final analysis, affected to a great degree the selection of the field of American operation. UNDER THE COMMANDING GENERAL, LINE OF COMMUNICATIONS. In the absence of any organization, transportation was put in charge of the chief Engineer officer, and was first known as the " Transportation Department " by General Orders, No. 8, Headquar- ters, Expeditionary Forces, July 5, 1917. This arrangement was only intended to hold while the commanding general. Expeditionary Forces, and his staff were making a study of the general problem of supply. The Line of Communications became an established fact by General Orders, No. 20, general headquarters, August 13, 1917, whereby transportation was made a Department of Military Kail- ways with a director who was a staff officer of the commanding gen- eral. Line of Cummunications. The Department of Military Rail- ways was charged with the operation, maintenance, and construc- tion of such railways as might be turned over by the French and the supervision of all movements of American troops and supplies over lines operated by the French. Construction was retained tem- porarily by the Engineers, until such time as enough transportation construction troops had arrived overseas to take care of the work. This arrangement was never changed and the Engineers always constructed transportation facilities, although transportation offi- cials designed them. TECHNICAL SERVICE OF GENERAL HEADQUARTERS. Further study led the commanding general, Expeditionary Forces, to the conclusion that " rail transportation should be organized as a separate department of army field headquarters and coordinate with existing administrative and supply departments, since it occupies in this war a function apart from the Quartermaster and Engineer «3 Chapter III, History of Transportation Corps, American Expeditionary Forces, con- taining General Orders, No. 52, Services of Supply, 1918, and General Orders, No. 35, Transportation Department, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. 92 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Corps." °* Acting on this conclusion, the commanding general ap- pointed a director general of transportation by General Orders, No, 37, general headquarters, September 14, 1917, wherein the "Trans- portation Service" was created as a technical service of general headquarters. PART OF THE SERVICE OF UTILITIES. Soon the burden on general headquarters became so heavy that it was determined to create a general supply service. This was done in General Orders, No, 31, general headquarters, February 16, 1918, wherein the Transportation Service was made a part of the Service of the Rear, the first name for the Services of Supply. A few weeks later it was thought best, however, to coordinate the rail and motor transportation services and construction, and General Orders, No. 31, corrected, were issued March 12, 1918, whereby the name " Service of the Rear " became " Services of Supply " and a Service of Utilities was created, the component parts of which were the Transportation Service, the Motor Transport Service, the Department of Light Rail- ways and Roads, and the Department of Construction and Forestry. The Army Transport Service had been made a department of the Transportation Service on December 8, 1917, the transfer being made by General Orders, No, 78, general headquarters. The Service of Utilities, however, was ended July 11, 1918, by General Orders, No. 114, Headquarters, Services of Supply. By the redistribution of the services under this order the Department of Light Railways and Roads and the Department of Construction and Forestry were charged to the chief engineer, Expeditionary Forces, and the Trans- portation Service and the Motor Transport Service were made separate departments of the Services of Supply. The railroad and dock organization continued in this relation to the commanding general. Services of Suppl}^, even after the Transportation Corps was organized by General Orders, No. 52, Headquarters, Services of Supply, November 12, 1918. A glance at the railroad map of France will show that the princi- pal roads of France radiate from Paris like spokes from the hub of a wheel. With this condition, it is obvious that the bulk of traffic is always north and south and that Paris is the general receiving and distributing point for all of France, This peace-time situation was not adequate during the war, especiall}' after the Americans arrived. With the theater of American operations almost directly east of the ports the American Army was to use, it was necessary that supplies be carried over the most direct route and over the route least likely to interfere with the densest flow of railway traffic. This «* Cable 171, paragraph 12, commanding general, American Expeditionary Forces, to The Adjutant General, Sept. 21, 1917, on file Historical Branch, General Staff. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 93 was the east and west route through Tours, Nevers, and Dijon. The line of communications as set forth in General Orders, No. 20, general headquarters, 1917, took in a route covered mostly by the Paris-Orleans Eailroad and by a small part each of the Est and Paris-Lj'on-Mediterranean systems. This line took care of opera- tion from the South Atlantic ports, beginning at St. Nazaire. But early in November, 1917, it was seen that Brest would have to be used by the American Army, and it became eventually the principal troop port. This necessitated the use of the Etat railway from Brest to Tours by way of Le Mans. When Marseille w^« opened, after the submarine situation in the Mediterranean was under con- trol, the main line of the Paris-Lyon-Mediterranean Eailroad on the east side of the Rhone was put into use. The second line of communication used portions of the Est-Paris- Lyon-Mediterranean Railways, while the third and fourth lines of communication ran entirely over the Est system. INTERNAL ORGANIZATION. The internal organization of the Transportation Corps remained fairly constant at headquarters, but the general field organization was evolved only after many months of study and experiment. The director general of transportation was assisted by a deputy director general for general affairs, a deputy director general for the Services of Supply, a deputy director general for the Zone of the Advance, and deputy directors general with the British and French ministries, a business manager, an engineer of construction, a director of the Army Transport Service, and a director of military affairs. The deputy director general, Services of Supply, had charge of railroad operation within the Services of Supply; the deputy for the Zone of Advance had similar functions within that zone, and the deputies with the British and French ministries were the representatives of the director general with those two governments. The business manager had charge of requisitions, contracts, claims, accounts, and statistics. The engineer of construction designed all railroad and port facilities, and the director of the Army Transport Service had charge of X)ort operations, and the director of military affairs of personnel. The rail lines of communication were divided into grand divisions with a general superintendent at the head of each. Each of the principal ports was made a grand division and similar disposition was made of the inland water transport and the transportation serv- ice in England. (22) At first the transportation field organization was by regiments on the engineer regimental table. It was soon found, however, that an engineer regimental table would not furnish enough troops for a 94 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY, grand division to operate with efficiency and it was decided that organization on the basis of an infantry regiment would meet the needs better. But before a reorganization on this basis had gone very far the transportation problem had grown so that a more fluid organization was thought necessary. In the first place the regiment would have to be scattered if made up of entirely one kind of trans- portation specialist, and if made up of all kinds needed, there would not be enough of any kind. The same thing would hold true of a battalion. Then, too, the needs were not the same in any two grand divisions because of relations with the French. Finally it became evident that the unit of organization for transportation purposes should be a company of 250 men with 6 officers, 1 of whom, a lieuten- ant, should be the military administrator. The number of troops needed to operate a grand division was reckoned in multiples of 250. (2) This plan of organization was put into effect November 12, 1918, by General Orders, No. 52, Headquarters, Services of Supply, and General Orders, No. 35, Transportation Corps, and may be considered as the result of our experience in France. PERSONNEL. The Transportation Corps had to train most of its enlisted per- sonnel and the greater portion of its junior officers. (2) Out of the draft it should have had all the stevedores, engineers, firemen, con- ductors, brakemen, yardmasters, and switchmen. Many of these men got away, however, to combatant units, and it was only possible to find enough of them in the Expeditionary Forces for five trans- portation battalions. The recruiting officers in the United States had to accept volunteers at the valuation placed on them by the rail- road officials of America and these railroad officials frequently classi- fied switchmen as yardmasters, firemen as engineers, and traffic men as railroad operators. The laborers supplied for the docks knew nothing about stevedoring and had to be trained. The Transporta- tion Corps made hundreds of railroad men and stevedores out of green material. All the time taken to train these men could have been used to much better advantage if the right kind of men had been selected through some S5^stem whereby their qualifications could have been checked adequately. The commissioned personnel in the junior grades was in as bad shape. Men were commissioned as stevedores who had no experience. Former Army noncommissioned officers were given the higher grades because they showed up better in camps before the troops went overseas than the technical officers did. The result was that when technical operations began the technical officers did not have sufficient rank to enforce their orders and no promotion was possible for many months. OKGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 95 Another source from which commissioned and enlisted personnel was supplied for transportation was from reclassified men from the front or who had been disabled. Generally the former class failed just as badly in transportation and the latter class was equally un- able to work along the railroads or at the docks. Promotions served in the end to give the technical men the neces- sary rank, and time and teaching made the unskilled labor and un- skilled commissioned personnel fairly skillful. The higher transportation officials, both on the railroads and on the docks, were especially selected men and men of mark in their lines in civil life. These officers were efficient, and it was owing to this efficiency that the Transportation Corps was able to discharge its duties and deliver supplies promptly and in sufficient volume. MATERIAL. The first major projects for transportation were designed by en- gineer officers, but these were men who had been commissioned for railway work. They were recommissioned later in the Transporta- tion Corps. After the ports and lines of communication had been selected, the necessity became obvious for the construction of such facilities as the new docks at Bassens, near Bordeaux, much double tracking, storage yards, and the like. Two officers drew up what was known as Requisition No. 6. This was the initial order for transportation material. The requisition was so drawn that prac- tically everything that would be needed for transportation in France was listed, although the quantities were for initial work only. Everything from locomotives and freight cars to nails and screws, including all the necessary machinery for locomotive and car erection and repair, was mentioned. As the months went by it was found, generally, that it was only necessary to order in multiples of the items of Requisition No. 6. (12) Although transportation was a separate service in the Expedition- ary Forces, it was a function of the Corps of Engineers in America, and all material was ordered through the Chief of Engineers and shipped to France and distributed by the Engineer Supply Depot. This was logical because the service which did the designing naturally should do the ordering, while the distribution of the material should go to the service which was to use it in construction. FACILITIES. The facilities constructed for transportation were of the following general classes : Locomotive and car erection and repair shops. Inland waterway barge docks. Piers and lighterage wharves. Ammunition docks. Port equipment and facilities. Multiple tracking and cut-offs. Wj'e connections. 96 ORGANIZATION" OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. Passing sidings. Forestry sidings. Hospital sidings. Camp spurs. Water facilities. Coal-storage yards. General shop and factory spurs. Many of these facilities were too numerous, too small, and too much a matter of routine to list here ; such as sidings, spurs, multiple tracking, etc. The major facilities, however, were: Troop foi'warding facilties. Gasoline station spurs. Artillery unloading spurs. Storage depots. Regulating stations. Engine terminals. (During in the Regulating stations: Is-sur-Tille (Cote-d'Or). Liffol-le-Grand ( Vosges ) . St. Dizier (Haute-Marne) Gi^vres ( Loir-et-Cher ) . the German offensive spring of 1918.) Railheads : Neuf chateau (Vosges). Epinal (Vosges). Toul (Meurthe-et-Moselle) Locomotive and car repair Nevers (Ni6vre). Locomotive erecting shops : Parc-de-Mean (St. Nazaire). Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine). Car erecting shops, La Rochelle (Cha rente-Infgrieure) . shops, General storage depots: jNIontoir ( Loire-Inf erieure ) . GiSvres (Loir-et-Cher). St. Sulpice (Gironde). Montierchaume (Indre). Is-sur-Tille (Cote-d'Or). Ammunition storage depots : St. Loubes, near Bordeaux. Foecy (Cher) in the Intermediate Section. Issoudun (Indre). Jonchery (Haute-Marne) in the Advance Section. Donges, on the Loire River near Nantes. Engine terminals : Saumur (Maine-et-Loire). Perigueux (Dordogne). La March (Ni&vre). At each general storage depot. The ports at which Americans operated and the kind of freight handled were : Debarkation: Brest and Cherbourg, St. Nazaire. Heavy lifts and general cargo: St. Nazaire, Bassens, Nantes, La Pallice, Marseille, Bordeaux, Caen (Calvados), Honfleur (Calvados). General cargo: Le Havre, Rouen, Montoir, Pauillac, French Bassens, Cette (Herault). Explosives: St. Loubes, St. Pardon (Gironde), Donges. Coal: Rochefort, Baj^onne, Les Sables-d'Olonne (Vendee), La Rochelle, St. Malo (Ille-et-Vilaine), St. Brieuc (Cotes- du-Nord), Lorient, Granville, Marens (Charente-In- ferieure), Surrol (Gironde), and Tonnay-Charente (Cha- rente-Inf erieure) . Oil: Furt (Gironde) and Blaye (Gironde). Troop debarkation: Liverpool and Glasgow. Troop embarkation: Southampton. Coal: Cardiff, Barry, Penarth, Newport, Newcastle. ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 97 General cargo: London, Swansea, and Portsmouth. Lumber : Hull and West Hartlepool, Potatoes : Belfast. General cargo, slightly : Leith, Blythe, Sunderland. The rolling stock used by the American Army was of the Ameri- can type for locomotives and both American and French type for cars. The corps received from America consolidation locomotives with a tractive effort of 36,000 pounds. They were shipped over knocked down and were erected at the St. Nazaire and Rennes shops. The American cars were shipped over the same way and were erected at the shops at La Rochelle. These cars were of 60,000 pounds capacity and included box cars, low and high side gondolas, and flat cars. In addition, as many French freight cars as could be spared were used by the American Forces. These cars were of the same classification but the range of their capacity was only from 10,000 to 20,000 pounds. As the track facilities at the ports and other points along the lines of communication were improved to allow switching other than b}^ small turntables, as in the French practice, the use of French cars for other than shuttle service decreased until, at the time of the armistice, the greater part of freight of the Amer- ican Expeditionary Forces was being transported in American cars. The Transportation Corps did not operate the French railroads; it operated on them subject to French regulation. The reason for this was obvious. The French railroad traffic was a large part of the business of the roads and only French methods of operation, of which the Americans knew comparatively little, was necessary as long as French personnel was employed. The Americans ran their own trains, but under French regulation. Yard operation for Amer- icans was wholly and entirely American, however. Just before the armistice the French requested the Transportation Corps to take over the Paris-Orleans Railroad entirely and operate it both for the French and the Americans after American methods. Had the war continued this transfer of entire control of this railroad was to have been effected January 1, 1919. 178841°— 20 7 98 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. ^ as tDCO COCO ^^ O ^ A .KW ft i-i35t cs lO r^cD r^ c> t5 K •2 ;- H 2 S 5o w^rt 'O a) |3 >toeMC^o rH-J t^ CS CO C^ C^ »-< 'J«'«J"^«0 Ig-M ; PT3 o n > o> -H 00 QC c< r* 3 cOC^ CO "^ ^ '^ >COC OCO ^CO '8X61 'TI 'AOX 0} JOUd paiun^oa sdooj; jaquinu i«;ox ^Jj --05 OOOMi-40»0 C* .-H -^ ^ U« -^ -t< ,^,-,^,-HC^co'^cocor*t^C5 o>oit>.'*j«coc 55- w H 5:; I iS 2 Eh« P! O o gc « C-« S-g 3 S*o cog's eg C-rt ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 9a S5, 01 t*> C 03 1^ I* ^H OJ C<1 -l GO CC' O rH 00 CM Oi O oo ^ 05 "0 COO Oujlrr Irt ^ t^ c^ Ol lO — 1 30 00 ■* c5 :^-?_; . = fe £; -c >. C-^ IS C.C5 5 oj °2 rs; ?52;:5; c^ C5 coco o CC 2C t^ CNI ^ IC O ^- *0 '"' O CM t-i O »o t^ -* cocoon 2 c3 ^3 5 OS C£3 O CC o ^r -^ o c> 2 C3 o - H3 fiS; t^S too -* o OS t^ 100 ORGANIZATIOI^ OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. >f50 . . . o 1 L^ t> lOOO ; ; ; 3 1 <1 09 cn gcS i i i i w ^-o CO 03 ■ • • Ci O P . oiosj CO o < a. 00 -.Jc^- 1 ■< si. ig 2; H-O oi 0>M • -* C CO . CS-* to W305 00 a Ph 03 h3 ?5S e^ta^ 00 l-t l-H l-( t* o m fe gg SS5 § s «J SS O (3 El "3 g?5 Cl C7S lOlOCO ^ ?5coco 00 M CO 0^0 IN rt -* ■* Cq -^CO OS B ,d a : : : -3 a h^ ^ ; : ; ... Eh a S .S- c ea 1 1^ i2 p. 1 16.90 15.45 9. 01 8.24 9.48 CO E^T) .-1 C) ■* CO CO i <3 JQCC ^ COOi r^ t^ 1 u « •< jffiS • 06 -a! 9 CD 3 e. E-IT3 ifSS t~ ca •coco IN i > < ;ci 500 .'oOr-" ocj E-i-o ■Ci iss 1< 1 jc VCON 1^ p 1 03 1 < ss CO It E-i-a S§S i < S?3 (N Tl>I-l CO « (SCO s d q 1 03 too s 06 P E- (M CO 1 P5 COrH s d ?3S s°° t^ 1 fa 1— CO ■.J. 1 j i a p~. t- a c 3< Eh ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 101 XVII.— RENTING, REQUISITIONS, AND CLAIMS SERVICE, AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES. The Renting, Requisition and Claims Service in the American Ex- peditionary Forces provided the billeting, leased all lands and build- ings, and passed on all questions arising out of those functions. Maximum strength, 561 officers, 1,400 enlisted men, 45 field clerks, and 55 civilian'^;. Claims disposed of to March 15, 1919, 12,324. Rental of billets used, 42,000,000 francs. The service was organized on March 30, 1918, by General Orders, No. 50, general headquarters. It was made one of the Services of Supply and by this order its duties were : (a) To rent all lands and buildings required for all departments of the United States military forces in France other than those ob- tained as provided in paragraph I, section II, General Orders, No. 29, 1918, general headquarters. (5) To requisition all lands and buildings for all departments of the United States military forces in France, possession of which can not be acquired on reasonable terms by amicable agreement. (c) To provide and supervise the billeting and quartering of the United States forces in France under General Orders. No. 18, general headquarters, 1918, and amendments thereto. (d) To investigate, assess, and settle claims arising out of the ex- ercise of the foregoing functions. (e) To investigate all claims for injuries to persons and damages to property resulting from the acts or omissions of members of the military forces in France. After April 18, 1918, the date on which the President of the United States signed the necessary enabling act, the claims department as- sessed and settled, in accordance with the law and practice of the country in question, all the claims " of inhabitants of France or any other European country not an enemy or ally of an enemy " for in- juries or damages by the military forces. The headquarters of the Renting, Requisitions, and Claims Service were at Tours and were under a director, who was responsible to the commanding general, Services of Supply. The director was also always judge advocate. Services of Supply, of the Expeditionary Forces, but the two services had no relation other than that the same officer was the head of each. The service, under the director, was in charge of three officials — the chief billeting officer, the chief renting and requisitions officer, and the chief claims officer. On the staff of every section commander was a section officer of the Rents, Requisi- tion, and Claims Service and under him were district rents, requisi- tion, and claims officers, zone majors, and town majors. Under 102 GRGAinZATIOX OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. «0 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 103 authority of General Orders, No. 78, general headquarters, 1918, the commanding general, Services of Supply, designated an officer for each tactical division as a division rent's, requisition, and claims officer. This officer could be sent to the division or could be such offi- cer of a division as the division commander might recommend. These officers were attached to the staff of the division commander, but they had the same jurisdiction as zone majors and were regarded as zone majors serving with troops. After the armistice, officers of the Rents, Requisition, and Claims Service were stationed in Belgium, Holland, and Luxemburg. For the proper administration of billeting areas there was assigned to each area a company of the Rents, Requisition, and Claims Serv- ice troops of the Army Service Corps, with a total personnel of 45. This personnel was composed of 5 commissioned officers, to be used as zone and town majors, 11 noncommissioned officers, 10 privates first class, and 19 privates. The noncommissioned officers were inter- preters, billet wardens, and clerks. The privates were billet wardens. The principal function of the billeting department was to pro- vide for and to supervise the billeting and quartering of American forces under the French law and to exercise the right to billet and quarter troops upon the inhabitants in France in the same manner as the French Army. The department organized all billeting areas. It first made a careful survey of the area, sent officers actually to secure the billets and billet troops upon their arrival, kept accounts of all billets occupied, prepared the billet distribution list, which it forwarded to the proper disbursing officers for settlement, and when the area was desired no longer, settled all claims. There were 127 areas at the disposal of the American forces in France, but 37 of these never were organized. The size of an area depended upon the kind of troops to occupy it. The area required for an infantry division was the largest and generally comprised about 30 communes to accommodate 1,200 officers and 30,000 men. The renting and requisitions department was in charge of the acquisition of all American installations in France, and it endeavored to regulate the rental of properties acquired before the organization of the department. It drew up a form of lease that was acceptable to the French Government and French people and at the same time adequately protected the United States Government. The claims department was authorized under the act of Congress approved April 18, 1918. Claims growing out of the acquisition and occupation of leased properties were not payable under this act and consequently were not handled by the claims department, but by the renting and requisitions department. The claims department, however, adjusted all other claims for damages against the Ameri- 104 ORGANIZATION OF THE SEimCES OF SUPPLY. can military forces except claims growing out of breach of contract. The claims adjusted by the department were divisible usually into the following classes : Damage to billets. Damage caused by fires and explosions. Claims arising out of wrongful taking of property. Claims for personal injury caused by negligence of American Expeditionary Forces personnel, of which by far the largest number were due to A. E. F. automobile accidents. Admiralty claims except such as arose on the high seas. By virtue of a decision of the Assistant Comptroller of the Treasury of the United States in France and an arrangement with the Navy officials, the claims department investigated and settled many claims against the Navy. A naval liaison officer was attached to the department. The decisions of the claims department were final, no machinery for appeals from such decisions having been provided. The personnel for the service came from many sources. The offi- cers assigned to the service were commissioned in the Army Service Corps, and the same corps also supplied the enlisted personnel. By far the greater number of commissioned officers were not assigned but attached, and these came from every branch of the Army. Among the officers were some of the best legal talent the Army pro- duced. These men had had wide experience in civil life both in the legal settlement and in the investigation of claims, in realty trans- actions, and in admiralty. The enlisted personnel, which came from the Army Service Corps, was picked with a view of selecting men with qualifications for the peculiar service they were to render. Often it was hard to get enough men who possessed these peculiar qualifications, and it was necessary to take men most nearly meeting them and then put the men so selected through a course of training. BIBLIOGRAPHY. 105 BIBLIOGRAPHY. GENERAL SOURCES. (1) " Report of Assistant Chief of StafE, G-3, G. H. Q., to C. G., A. E. F." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General StafE. This report deals with operations in the A. E. F. (2) "History of Transportation Corps, A. E. F." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General StafE. Detailed study of organization, personnel, railroad and port operation, and engineering activity, supported by copies of original documents from D. G. T. files. (3) "Report of C. G., S. O. S., to C. G., A. E. F., Tours, May 25, 1918." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General StafE. Review of activities of S O. S., supported by special reports from chiefs of supply services. (4) "Report of Military Railway Commission to England and France." Sub- mitted June 13, 1917, to C. G., A. E. F. On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Deals with rail conditions in France, the needs of the French railroads, the ports available for A. E. F., and the kind of equipment necessary. (5) " Report of Board on Ports appointed by C. G., A. E. F., en route to France." In files of G. H. Q., and copy on file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General StafE. Report recommends the use of Atlantic ports of France, specifying those immediately available and the troops and equipment necessary. (6) "Memorandum from Maj. Gen. J. G. Harbord to C, G., A. E. F., May, 1919." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Refers to conditions when C. G., A. E. F., and staff arrived in France in June, 1917. Specific reference deals with the railroad situation and the rail lines of communication then available. This memorandum was dictated personally by Gen. Harbord while he was C. G., S. O. S. (7) "Confidential cable No. 24 to W. D., July 2, 1917." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. This cable embodies the decision of Gen. Pershing as to the front to be occupied by the A. E. F., the line of communications, and the available ports. (8) "History of G-1, S. O. S." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Divi- sion, General Staff. This is a history of the various activities by G-1, S. O. S., prepared by that section for the Historical Section, General Staff, S. O. S. (9) "History of G-2, S. O. S." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Divi- sion, General Staff. This is a history of the various activities by G-2, S. O. S., prepared by that section for the Historical Section, S. O. S. (10) "G-4, S. O. S., Files." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General .Staff. 107 / 108 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. (11) "Report of American Member of the Militaiy Board of Allied Supply" to C. G.,' A. E. F., March 27, 1919. On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Methods of dealing with shortage, in particular, supplies among the Allies. (12) "Memorandum by Col. W. J. Wilgus," formerly Deputy Director Gen- eral of Transportation, dated October 11, 1919. On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General StafE, Deals with practicability of ordering and requisitioning railroad material for use in foreign countries and makes observations on system of getting advanced railroad information. vl3) "History of Ordnance Department, A. E. F." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. (14) "History of Signal Corps, A. E. F." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. (15) "History of Corps of Engineers, A. E. F." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. (16) "History of Army Service Corps." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. (17) "Report of General Purchasing Agent, A. E. F." Written and submitted to C. G., A. E. F. On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. (IS) "Report of A. C. S., G^, G. H. Q., to C. G., A. E. F., June 1, 1919. On file Historical Branch, General Staff. (19) "History of Chemical Warfare Service, May, 1919." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Shows particularly the C. W. S. activities in the Army Zone and the plans of organization in the S. O. S. (20) "History of Motor Transport Corps." On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Deals particularly with S. O. S. activities and general corps organization, personnel and materiel. (21) " Final Report of Gen. John J. Pershing to the Secretary of War." Sept. 1, 1919. (22) " Comparison of Operating Methods of American and French Railroads," by Lieut. Col. M. Andriot, of the French Army. On file Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. SPECIAL SOURCES. Army Service Corps. Cable 11S9, C. G., A. E. F., to A. G. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Outlines qualifications for A. S. C. per- sonnel. Cable 1598, A. G., to C. G., A. E. F. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Authority for the Army Service Corps. Cable 1426, C. G., A. E. F., to A. G. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Suggests numerical strength of Corps. Chemical W\4LEi-Ar.E Service. Report of Board convened by par. 79, S. O. No. 141, S. O. S., May 21, 1919. to recommend S. O. S. organization and the relation of S. O. S. to G. H. Q. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. This board was commonly known as the "Booth Board." The appen- dices are reports from chiefs of services containing suggestions and de- scriptions called for by the Board. Chief Engineer, A. E. F. Engineer Section Booth Board Report. ORGANIZATION' OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 109 Medical Coeps. Bureau of Statistics, G. S., data on file from Medical Corps reports. In files of Bureau, State, War, and Navy Building. Report Capt. E. O. Foster, M. C. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. This report is a history of the Medical Corps compiled on order of and approved by the Chief Surgeon, A. E. F. Letter of Chief Surgeon to C. G., A. E. F., August 11, 1917. In flies of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff, and Office of the Surgeon General. Cable 1037, C. G., A. E. F., to A. G., par. I. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Booth Board Report, Medical Section. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff, and in files of G. H. Q. Letter Chief Surgeon to C. G., A. E. F., May 17, 1918. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. " Some Achievements of the S. O. S.," compiled by Statistical Branch, Gen- eral Staff, S. O. S. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Motor Transport Corps. Booth Board Report, M, T. C. Section. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Quartermaster Corps. G. O. No. 8, G. H. Q., 1917. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Divi- sion, General Staff. Signal Corps, A. E. F. Monograph on Signal Corps, by Lieut. Col. R. H. Fletcher, jr. In files of Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. Transportation Corps. G. O. No. 52, S. O. S., 1918, and G. O. No. 35, T. C, 1918. In files of His- torical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff, There is a further source of information relating to the activities of the various services. This consists in the collection of histories of each geographi- cal section of the S. O. S., except Base Section No. 9. These histories were prepared by section historians, under the supervision of the section commanders, for the Historical Section, General Staff, S. O. S. They include a description of the section and the activities therein of the various services as well as nontechnical descriptions of the important projects. Section organization charts and maps are attached ; also photographs illustrating the subject matter. These histories are on file in the Historical Branch, War Plans Division, General Staff. The histories of the services, which consfttute an important source for this monograph, consist not only of accounts of the activities of the several services, but also have many original documents appended. These documents are so numerous that it has been found necessary to refer to the histories in general and not to specific documents. The Medical Department, A. E. F., prepared no history, but there is being prepared in the Office of the Surgeon General a complete medical history of the war. The Air Service is not referred to in this monograph, as it functioned directly under G. H. Q. (G. O. 81, G. H. Q., 1918). However, this service pre- pared a complete history of its activities in the A. E. F., which is now filed in the office of this service in the War Department. The activities of the Provost Marshal General are omitted, as this service was directly supervised by G. H. Q. APPENDICES. Ill Appendix A. EXTRACT FROM REPORT OF ASSISTANT CHIEF OF STAFF, G-3, TO THE COMMANDING GENERAL, AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES. EVENTUAL AMERICAN SECTOR. Before the commander in chief left Washington certain features as to the part of the western battle front on which the American forces should be employed had been discussed. But no decision other than that our troops wei'e to be employed in closer relation to the French than to the British front had been reached. Naturally, the selection of the region in which the American Expeditionary Forces should be built up and operate, and the choice of lines of communica- tion as well, was largely dependent upon the plans as to the size of those forces and as to whether or not they should be developed under their own flag, A small force could be employed anywhere along the front, and no distinctly American zone was necessary if our troops were, as they arrived, to be turned over to our allies. The commander in chiefs original instructions had directed him to keep in view " That the forces of the United States are a separate and distinct component of the combined forces, the identity of which must be preserved." Before arriving in France the commander in chief had decided that a very large American force would be required, and his first observations after landing confirmed his view that all plans must be based upon the employ- ment of several million Americans in France. The primary considerations in the choice of the region in which we should operate were then that we should be able to develop and employ a force numbered by millions and that conditions should favor the retention of the Identity of our forces. Now, the course of the war, as fixed by the operations of 1914, had kept the masses of both sides in northern France and Belgium. Paris was all important to the French as were the channel ports to the British. It was manifest that our Allies must keep their masses in northern France and Belgium as long as the German chose to keep his masses in those regions. It was equally clear that the French must command the armies which covered the approaches to Paris and that the British must command the armies covering the channel ports. Both on account of the masses already there and because of the difficulties which it was evident must be encountered in preserving our identity, it appeared undesirable, therefore, to consider organizing and employing our forces in northern France. On the other hand, Lorraine was occupied by comparatively few troops. This had long been a quiet sector and was, therefore, favorable for under- taking the training and development of a new army. The French had proposed that our first troops go to Lorraine for training and it was desirable that we agree at once to that proposal. But it was not likely that the French had made their proposals in view of tlie employment of millions of Americans as a dis- tinctive American force. The commander in chief, therefore, at once (June 21) sent staff oflicers to Lorraine and studied the suitability of this as a region 178841°— 20 8 113 114 OKGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. in which not only to develop but to employ a great American army in a de- cisive offensive. From this visit and these studies tlie commander in chief decided that Lorraine satisfied both conditions. So far as concerned tlie possi- bilities of an offensive in this region it is sufficient to point out that the Briey iron basin to the west of Metz, the coal regions to the east of Metz, the vital railway communications in the same regions, and the fortress itself were at least as important to the Germans as were Paris and the channel ports to the French and British. Such were the considerations on which the commander in chief decided, prior to July 1, to choose Lorraine for the development and employment of the American forces. But the studies undertaken led to the further conclusion that the first oper- ation to be undertaken by the first American Army to be formed should be the reduction of the Saint Mihiel salient. In the face of difficulties of all kinds this plan was ultimately realized. It is certain that the early decision upon the general region in which our troops were to operate, and, above all, the con- stant determination of the commander in chief to unite all American troops under their own flag, were indispensable factors in the realization of the allied victory. LINES OF COMMUNICATION. But while the considerations outlined in the preceding paragraph pointed to Lorraine as our eventual sector, the possibilities of supplying in that region forces of the size contemplated wei'e dependent upon the availability and suit- ability of ports, railroads, and other facilities. Thus the choice of the imme- diate theater of operations and that of lines of communication were inseparable. The necessary studies were, therefore, carried on concurrently, and these studies required the closest cooperation between the various sections of the commander in chiefs staff as well as with the French. So far as ports were concerned, the question was simple, since the only ports which could be developed to meet the necessities of an army of several millions were those of southwestern France — Brest, St. Nazaire, La Pallice, and Bordeaux. The choice of a region within which interior depots and other facilities could be located was more complicated. Existing rail facilities had to be considered. It was necessary to avoid crossing important supply lines used by our allies. Finally, while the region of interior depots must be primarily located \Aith a view to supplying our troops in Lorraine, our depots must allow considerable latitude in the location of our troops, since eventualities of battle might require changes in plans. The region around Tours, Bourges, and Nevers satisfied these conditions. In short all considerations pointed to the development and employment of our forces in Lorraine, the use of the ports of southwestern France, and the utilization of the rail lines leading from those ports through Tours, Bourges, Nevers toward Epinal and Toul. After having personally discussed the questions involved with Gen. Petain, the commander in chief cabled, on July 1, 1917, the basic plan for the em- ployment of our troops and that on which the Services of Supply developed. No material change was made in this plan, and when the armistice was signed the Services of Supply projects had materialized to meet the needs of nearly 2,000,000 men, while further expansions for an additional 2,000,000 men were possible and were under way. OKGAinZATIOlSr OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 115- LOCATION OF TRAINING AREAS. The same studies which pointed to the reduction of the Saint Mihiel salient as the first operation to be undertaken by a purely American Army also pointed to the desirability of grouping our training areas around Chaumont. To secure this, the cooperation of the French was necessary, and conversa- tions were at once begun. Relations between headquarters, A. E. F., and both Gen. Foch's and Gen. Petain's headquarters were necessary. Gen. Foch, as chief of staff in the Ministry of War, controlled many matters in the Zone of the Interior. Gen. Petain, as commander in chief of the Armies of the North and Northeast, was supreme in the French Zone of the Armies. The ultimate result was the acquisition by the American Expeditionary Forces of the training areas * * *. With but few exceptions each of these areas were capable of accommodating a division. But these training areas were not suitable, on account of the number of villages, for extensive firing for field artillery, and this fact had been recognized by officers of the opera- tions section who visited the region In June, 1917. Consequently officers of the operations section undertook to secure suitable artillery ranges from the French, with the result that during June and July the camps of Le Valdahon, Coetquidan, Meucon, and Souge were placed at our disposal. Later additional camps were secured at La Courtine, Le Corneau, Clermont-Ferrand, Montmo- rillon and, for railroad artillery, at Mailly. Appendix B. American Espeditioxaey Forces, On Board Steamship Baltic, May SI, 1917. Trom : The Adjutant General. To: Col. D. E. McCarthy, Chief Quartermaster. Subject : Selection of base for American Expeditionary Forces. 1. It is the intention on arrival in France to detail a board, of which you are to be the senior member, to consider the advantages and disadvantages of such ports as may be indicated at that time as possible bases for the American Ex- peditionary Forces. These should include the adequacy of the suggested ports in space for anchorage, depth of water, protection from sea and submarines, docking and disembarking facilities, mean ordinary tide, climate, switching and entraining facilities, railways, rolling stock, etc., auto roads, dust, rain and other violent storms, shelter for troops or space, if necessary to erect the same, space for remount accommodations, storehouses or go-downs or space to erect them, ice plant and cold storage facilities, etc., etc. ; in short the informa- tion necessary to enable the commanding general to reach a conclusion. 2. As the information referred to- will be needed at the earliest moment practicable after a tentative port or ports are suggested, it is desired that your board meet informally on the Baltic, formulate its plan for making this study, and submit the same to the chief of staff. 3. The other members of the board, to wliom copies of this letter have been furnished, are Col. Harry Taylor, Corps of Engineers ; Col. ]MeiTitte W. Ireland, Medical Corps; Maj. Hugh A, Drum, General Staff, and Capt. Hugh B. Moore, quartermaster, O. R. C. Adjutant General. MEMORANDUM FOR THE ADJUTANT GENERAL: HeADQUABTEBS, AilERICAN EXPEDITION-VBY FOBCES, Savoy Hotel, London, England, June S, 1917. Subject: Travel. 1. The commanding general directs that the board to investigate the matter of a base, of which Col. D. E. McCarthy is the senior member, proceed not later than Sunday, June 10, 1917, to the following places in France: Saint Nazaire, La PaUice, Bordeaux and the Gironde ports, Nantes, Nevers, and Marseille, visiting Marseille as the last port. The travel to Xevers should be to inspect the possibilities for a depot 2. Attention of Col. :McCarthy and his board should be invited to inclosed copies of telegrams, furnished by the American Military Mission in Paris, at- tention being particularly invited to Nos. 19 and 21. A telegraphic report, in cipher, of the recommendation of the board should be sent to the Adjutant General, American Expeditionary Forces, Paris, France, and may be sent before the port of Marseille is visited. 3. Capt Gustav Porges, Quartermaster Corps, U. S. R., and John K. Manock, Quartermaster Corps, will accompany the board as interpreter and stenog- rapher, respectively. J. G. Habbobd, Lieut. Colonel, Cavalry, Chief of Staff. 116 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. 117 REPORT OF BOARD ON PORTS. June 20, 1917. PROCEDURE OF THE BOARD: The board, consisting of Col. D. E. McCarthy, Col. Harry Taylor, Eng., Col. Merritte W. Ireland, M. C, Maj. H. A. Drum, G. S., convened informally oa board the steamship Baltic and studied the project of bases preliminary to ar- rival in France. The board left Loudon on June 10 and arrived at Paris- June 11. After consultation with the American Mission and French officials,, the board, accompanied by two French officers, visited the following Frenclii ports in the order named : Nantes, St. Nazaire, La Pallice, Bordeaux, Basseasv Pauillac, and Verdun. Every courtesy was shown the board. The results of the board's investigations are given below. FRENCH PLAN FOR HANDLING TROOPS AND SUPPLIES OF THE AMERICAN FORCES. Succinctly the French plan for handling troops and supplies of the American forces is as follows : 1. The ports of the western coast of France are to be grouped into two zones. From each port zone a main line of railroad runs to the east, enter- ing the zone of the armies in the vicinity of where the American forces are to be trained. The scheme contemplates the landing of troops and supplies in these two port zones and immediately reshipping them either to depots located in the interior of France or directly to the training areas of the American forces. In other words, the ports are not to be used as bases, but as reshipping points. 2. The northern zone of ports includes the main port of Saint Nazaire and Nantes, located on the Loire River, and the naval port of Brest. Brest is to be used if necessary. The railroad line of communications for this port zone runs through Saint Nazaire-Nantes-Tours-Orleans-Troye, with a line con- necting from- Tours to Nevers via Bourges. 3. The southern zone of ports included the ports on the Gironde River, which are especially the ports of Bassens and Pauillac. The port La Pallice is to be used as an annex to the ports of the Gironde. The railroad line of com- munications for this port zone, except for La Pallice, runs through Bordeaux— Limoges-Bourges-Nevers-Dijon. Due to railroad condition, the line of Lo" PaUice is given as joining the Saint Nazaire-Tours line at Saumur. 4. The French contemplate turning over gradually and as needed to th& American forces the magazine (depot) at Nevers. This depot, it is claimed,, handles broad and all supplies for 200,000 men. The two railroad lines men>- tioned above reach Nevers. In order to provide for large forces, the French expect us to start at once the construction of several other depots on the two main lines. The location of these depots has not been definitely settled to date. The French plan also contemplates the landing of our troops anc8 supplies in the following ratio at the various ports mentioned above r Two- fifths to be handled by the ports on the Gironde River, one-flfth at La Pal- lice, and two-fifths in the ports of the Loire River. GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS. 1. Labor. — At every port that the board visited it was impressed by tile- great scarcity and poor quality of the labor used in discharging vessels. Due- to the scarcity of labor and the prevailing practice of piecework payment, the cost of discharging cargoes is extremely high. But the scarcity of labor is of even greater importance than its high cost, as all available labor is now occu- pied in commercial work and none could be diverted to work of discharging: 118 ORGANIZATION OF THE SERVICES OF SUPPLY. our vessels without seriously crippling the present commercial facilities. Every- where the board was met by statements from the local authorities that addi- tional labor was of the greatest importance and that labor for doing all of our construction work and work of operation should be given first consideration. In addition to the foregoing the commercial labor that we would have to use would not be subject to the necessary control in discharging ships, either in the conduct of the work or the efficiency and time in w'hich the work was done, as they will not work overtime or nights except as it may suit their pleasure. The board is of the opinion that the labor question should receive immediate consideration and is of immediate importance, and also that the only solution is the supply of labor regularly enlisted in the military forces of the United States. The board feels that this question should be taken up at once and definitely settled. In connection with the question of scarcity of labor it became apparent to the aboard that the American forces in France would have to provide the necessary man-power to cut and deliver the timber for use not only in connection with the