FED AND CLOTHED MILLIONS.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 16464, 17 June 1919, Page 3

FED AND CLOTHED MILLIONS.

A GREAT QUARTERMASTERtr Ei\ ERAL. SIR JOHN COWANS RETIRES. One of the most brilliant chapters of the war was closed recently when, with the consent of the Secretary of State, General Sir John S. Cowans, relinquished the post of (Quartermastergeneral to the Forces in order to join, tor the purpose of development, one of the group of companies connected with the production of oil (writes a correspondent of the London Observer). Sir John Cowans was appointed Quartermaster-general in 1912, whilst this scheme was being worked out. Though it may bo true in one sense that we were very unprepared for war, this was not the only scheme that was practically ready for the supreme emergency. All the “Old Contemptibles,” that magnificent original army of 150,000 men, were secretly, silently, and swiftly transported to France under a scheme most carefully worked out in every detail beforehand, and everyone will recall with what immense satisfaction the announcement was greeted of their safe arrival in France.

THE GREAT TASK. Thus Sir John Cowans’ great task began. The Government had wisely safeguarded the Mowatt reserve—a reserve equipment laid down for the Expeditionary Force of 150,000 men, but the difficulty that had to bo overcome —and, like every other, was overcome with a success which was x'emarkable—was to land both troops and supplies almost simultaneously on the coast of France without any existing bases and without any repair shop arrangements. During the retreat from Mens practically the whole of the reserve disappeared, and had to be built up again on a vastly extended scale. The task of the Quartermastergeneral at this time was to find food, equipment, and a reserve not only for the Expeditionary Force, but also for the armies that were being raised in England. To add to the anxieties the base, as everyone knows, had to be transferred to the West Coast of Prance, which increased the length of line of communications and emphasised the difficulties of supply. Moreover, the volume of the new armies' that were being raised was so great that, as Lord Kitchener himself said, the War Office organisation was likely to be carried away by the avalanche of the recruits who were responding to his appeal to the nation.

The expansion of the armies made a perfectly amazing difference to the requirements. Before the war the normal average production was, to mention but a few things taken haphazard, about 250,000 jackets, 900,000 pairs of socks, 200,000 caps, and 250,000 pairs of boots. In the first year of the'war these figures were so multiplied that the number of jackets provided became 14,000,000, of pairs of socks 50,000,000, and caps 11,000,000, and of pairs of boots 10,000,000. As the years went on those figures grow more enormous still, bub the expansion was now based on the soundest of schemes and was practically automatic.

85,000 COOKS. At no time were the vast armies we raised ever short of food, though in the early period of tho war difficulties wore experienced in finding a sufficient number of trained men to cook it. To begin with there was only the small nucleus of army cooks available who were in tho service in tho days of peace. As speedily as possible a number of men were trained under the chief inspectors of the Quartermaster-general’s service at tho army cookery schools at homo and abroad, and from 1914 to 1918 as many as 85,000 cooks were provided. So rapid was tho early growth of the new armies that owing to inexperience the waste of foodstuffs became a serious problem. In April, 1915, the Quar-termaster-general appointed an inspector in each command, and tho economies effected in consequence of the introduction of a sound system have saved the country some millions. About the same time the Quartermas-ter-general introduced a salvage department for the purpose of turning to profitable use bones, grease, and other oddments. In 1916 £400,000 was saved by this means, and in subsequent years this sum has been doubled.