U.S. REGULAR ARMY

Grey River Argus, 1 February 1946, Page 5

U.S. REGULAR ARMY

Set at One Million LARGEST IN AMERICAN HISTORY. (Rec. 9.30). WASHINGTON, Jan. 31. The New York “Times” correspondent says that the Administration has tentatively approved a plan for stabilising the strength of the regular army at one million, including four hundred thousand airmen, by July, 1947. Military experts argue that such a peacetime army—the largest in American history—must be maintained for at least the period of the occupation .of Germany and Japan. The War Department’s major problem is where to obtain the men. It is feared a pool of volunteers would prove insufficient, since the Navy is depending on volunteers for an announced goal of 558,000 to man the post-war Navy. Therefore the War Department must fall back on a draft. Secretary Patterson pointed out the vital necessity for the continuation of the Selective Service Act, now scheduled to expire by the middle of May.