November Index for the Official U. S. Bulletin in This Issue PUBLISHED DAILY ander order of THE PRESIDENT of THE UNITED .TATES by COM.MITTEE on PUBLIC INFORMATION GEORGE CREEL, Chairman * COIPL/ETE Record of U. S. GOVERNMENT Activities VoL. 2 WASHINGTON, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 13, 1918. No. 487 ARMY'J RAW MATERIALS WILL Permanent Control of Radio in U. S. NOT BE RELEASED INMANNER By Navy Urged by Secretary Daniels THAT WOULD BREAK MARKET At Hearing Before House Committee STATEMENT BY SECRETARY BAKER REVIEWS Department Will Dispose of Mate- WAR RECORD rials in Conjunction with Those President Wilson Remarkable Story of Wire- Who Know Most About Them. Arrives at Brest less Achievements by Navy Pay of Sick and Wounded. The State Department Department Revealed for Press interview by the Secretary of has been advised that the First Time by Secretary in War, December 12, 1918: " The War Department, so far as it S. S. George Washington, Urging Passage of Bill Now possesses stocks of raw materials of one Before Congress. sort and another, is not going to dump bearing the President of the them in the markets in such a way as to United States, arrived at The Navy Department authorizes the break the market and cause disruption following: of the industries that produce those ma- Brest, France, at 9.27 a. m. The Secretary of the Navy, Capt. D. W. a method terials, but is going to work out (Washington time) to-day. Todd, Director of Naval Communications, of disposing of them in conjunction with and others appeared yesterday before the those who know most about the various House Committee on Merchant Marine materials, so as to allow the production and Fisheries and advocated the passage of raw materials to be continued nor- of House bill 13159, providing for the per- mally. That means that our stocks will manent Government ownership of all com- be sold from time to time so as not to ACROBATICS BY ARMY AIRMEN mercial shore radio stations, control of the cause a sudden break in the market, and ISSTOPPED stations to be delegated to the Secretary it does not mean that our stocks are AT CELEBRATIONS of the Navy. Provision is made in this going to be withheld in such a way as bill for experimental stations and ama- artificially to either enhance the market An increase in the flying accidents on teur stations, and the the training fields in this country since inspection and li- or maintain an improper basis of price." censing of such stations, formerly under the signing of the armistice has caused the supervision Pay of Sick and Wounded Men. order from the Division of the Department of the issuance of an Commerce, is delegated to the Commenting on a statement that there of Military Aeronautics to be sent to all Secretary are a number of sick and wounded sol- of the Navy. As the Navy already owns fields to put a stop to the low flying and all but 16 of the commercial shore sta- diers at a hospital in West Baden, Ind., acrobatics that have been carried on dur- who have not received their pay for some tions, the passage of this bill will secure ing celebrations in the vicinity of cities, for all time to the Navy Department the months, the Secretary said: towns, and buildings. Commanding " During peace times, in the Army control of radio in the United States officers have been instructed to take the and will enable the Navy to continue when a man is sick his pay is made out most stringent methods in carrying the by his company commander. When a the splendid work it has carried on dur- order out. Pilots who fail to comply will ing the war. man's company commander is marching not only be "grounded" but restricted to in the Argonne Forest and the man has the limits of the reservation. In the case Outlines Naval Radio Work. been wounded and carried first to one of Regular Army officers court-martial is In his testimony in favor of the legisla- hospital and then another until lie gets recommended; in the case of all other tion, Secretary Daniels gave an outline 500 or 600 miles away, there is no way officers proceedings with a view to their of the radio work done by the Navy for the company commander to know discharge from the service. The order since its control by the Navy Depart- wxhether the man is still liing or where adds that the recent increase in acci- ment. His story telling of the important he is. Because of this fact the peace-time dents must have been the result of in- service the Navy had performed in this pay system broke down in the matter of discriminate flying and failure to observe connection, never before made public, is paying men who were in hospitals. A even the common rules of flying. All as follows: plan was started of having an imdividual acrobatic flying hereafter must, according " The cessation of hostilities mqkes book for each soldier which ie carried to this order, be finished at an altitude possible the publication of the remark- in his pocket made for the purpose, show- not lower than 1,500 feet. able story of the handling of radio- ing when lie was paid and how much lie telegraphy by the Navy during the period was paid, and on the first page of that CHAIN SECTION DISBANDED. of the war. The public has been deeply book was a record of his allotments and intezested in the story of the part played obligations of various kinds, and any pay The chain section of the War Indus- by the Navy in the transportation of our officer anywhere could tell exactly when tries Board has been disbanded, having Army of 2,000,000 men to Europe and lie was last paid and how much was due completed its work. John C. Schmidt, of the monumental achievement of lay- him. The making of these books and chief of the section, was, at the time ing a mine barrage across the North Sea entering on the first pages the informa- of his appointment, April 11, 1918, presi- to bottle up the German submarines. tion for 2,000.000 million men is a pretty dent of the Schmidt & Ault Paper Co. of The work of the Navy is not confined to large task, and a substantial number of York, Pa., and of the Standard Chain the sea. Already the story of the huge (Continued on page 3.) Co. of Pittsburgh, Pa. mobile batteries manned by bluejackets 2 THE OFICIAL U. S. BULLETIN: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 13, 1918. REVIEWS RADIOTELEGRAPHY WORK OF THE NA VY has been told, and the part played by cruisers Dreaden and Karlsruhe. To pre- evidence is at hand that enemy influences the heroic land forces of the Navy, the vent repetition it was necessary to sta- were responsible. Fortunately this was Marine Corps, is now part of the imper- tion naval operators at this station with the extent of the damage, and radiote- ishable history of our country. At this a naval officer as censor. legraphy was not called upon to assume time, then, it is very appropriate that the " The loss of the Titanic and the publi- the whole burden of the cable traffic, story of radiotelegraphy in the Navy be cation of results obtained by amateur often 200,000 words per day in each di- told. For a proper conception of the mag- operators in intercepting messages con- rection. However, a large amount of nitude of the task, and the perfection of cerning this disaster proved a tremendous press and of routine official business was the system evolved, it is necessary to real- stimulus to the amateurs, and such sta- transmitted by radio, thus materially re- ize how chaotic was the state of affairs tions began to multiply rapidly. Even ducing the load on the cables. At no at the beginning of the art. when such stations complied strictly with time was it necessary for the trans- the law it was found that a large amount Atlantic radio service to be worked to its Regarded as New Curiosity. of interference with naval and com- full capacity. "When Marconi first began his epoch- mercial work resulted, particularly in "Communication with the United States making experiments with radiotelegraphy, congested centers such as New York. was a matter of much concern to Gen. it was regarded by the public largely as Control Taken By Navy. Pershing. At his urgent recommendation a new curiosity. In certain quarters the that the radio stations be prepared to true possibilities of the results accom- "Immediately after the United States take over the work of the cables, plans plished were realized, but the crudeness declared war against Germany the pro- were made for the erection of the most of the apparatus, and the apparent er- visions of the law of 1912 were invoked, powerful radio station in'the world at ratic nature of the results, prevented a and an Executive proclamation was Bordeaux, France, which will be known true realiastion of Its possibilities. The issued closing all stations not necessary as the 'Lafayette' station. The site, use of radio by the lussian and Japanese for naval communications and delegat- the transportation facilities in France, fleets in the Russo-Japanese war was its ing the control of all other stations, ex- and the foundations for the towers, were first ftipplication to the use which was cept Government, to the Secretary of the provided by France; the United States eventually to overshadow all others.