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that authority and it would not give you the right if we made the appropriation.

Mr. BYRNS. There is no limitation as to time in that act, is there? Maj. DALY. No; just to bring them back.

Mr. BYRNS. Suppose a soldier does not elect to come back now; four or five years from now he may be married and have two or three more children, and under this act he could then ask to be transported to the United States, together with his wife and children?

Col. SMITH. I think there is a terminating date.

Mr. BYRNS. A termination so far as this appropriation is concerned?

TERMINATION OF ACT.

The CHAIRMAN. This act authorizes the Secretary of War to fix regulations, and I suppose he would fix regulations so that the time would not be too greatly extended.

Col. SMITH. The act prescribes, in section 3:

That the authority conferred by this act shall cease and determine six months after the approval thereof.

Mr. BYRNS. That is all right.

The CHAIRMAN. Then it has already ceased and terminated.
Mr. BYRNS. And it would be necessary to extend it.

The CHAIRMAN. It terminated on December 30, 1921. I think I called the attention of the Secretary of War to this act some time ago. He wrote me a letter about it; I looked it up then and wrote him fully and told him the act had expired by limitation and that we had nothing before us, so that we could not consider this question. You will have to go to the Committee on Military Affairs and have this act extended.

Mr. BYRNS. As it stands in this bill it would clearly be subject to a point of order.

The CHAIRMAN. If you want the act extended you will have to get it extended through the legislative Committee on Military Affairs of the House. Then you could come to us after you have it extended.

Maj. DALY. There are probably 400 who come under the provisions of the law as it now stands.

The CHAIRMAN. There is no law now.

Maj. DALY. Well, I mean under the original law. You asked me how many there would be outside of the deserters, and I have roughly estimated about 400; and it would cost about $47,200, the cost being about $118 per person.

The CHAIRMAN. We will have to ask you gentlemen to go to the Military Affairs Committee of the House and have this law renewed before we can take any jurisdiction, so we will just pass this item.

INCIDENTAL EXPENSES OF THE ARMY.

We will take up the next item, incidental expenses of the Army. Postage, cost of telegrams on official business received and sent by officers of the Army, etc.

You are asking a deficiency appropriation of $132,500. What is it that creates this situation?

APPREHENSION OF DESERTERS AND DRAFT EVADERS.

Maj. DALY. That is not for postage or any of the items mentioned in the committee print, but it is for the apprehension of deserters and draft evaders.

The CHAIRMAN. How do you get that into this item?

Maj. DALY. The appropriation act itself provides for a reward of $50 for the apprehension of deserters.

The CHAIRMAN. You mean this particular item?

Maj. DALY. Yes.

The CHAIRMAN. Incidental expenses of the Army would include that?

Maj. DALY. Yes, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. The apprehension of criminals?

Maj. DALY. The apprehension of deserters or escaped prisoners. The CHAIRMAN. That is not specified in the language.

Maj. DALY. It is when you take the bill as a whole.

Col. SMITH. The President's message transmitting the estimates states what it is for.

The CHAIRMAN. I know what his message states, but the expenditures here are authorized for postage, the cost of telegrams on official business received and sent by officers of the Army, etc., including the same objects specified under this head in the Army Appropriation Act for the fiscal year 1922.

Maj. DALY. That, of course, is only a part of the text of the appropriation act. Further on it provides for the apprehension of deserters at not to exceed $50 each.

The CHAIRMAN. How many of these people are out and which you think will be apprehended?

Maj. DALY. Maj. Colladay, from The Adjutant General's Office, is here to give you testimony about that, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. Is this a deficiency?

Maj. DALY. Yes, sir; it is required to carry on the work. $67,500 was set aside out of the appropriation for this year for the apprehension of deserters, and that has all been expended.

The CHAIRMAN. How much of an unexpended balance have you in the appropriation?

Maj. DALY. There is practically none, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. In any part of the appropriation?

Maj. DALY. No, sir. The appropriation for incidental expenses was very limited and the amount has been or will be used up for the purposes for which appropriated.

The CHAIRMAN. It was $5,500,000?

Maj. DALY. Yes, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. Do you call that a limited appropriation for incidental expenses?

Maj. DALY. There are a great many items that come out of that appropriation; most all of the employees of the Quartermaster Department are paid from that appropriation, and that in itself runs up to $4,000,000 or $5,000,000.

The CHAIRMAN. Here is the language of the item:

Postage; cost of telegrams on official business received and sent by officers of the Army, including members of the Officers' Reserve Corps, when ordered 91019-22-31

to active duty; for expenses of expresses to and from frontier posts and armies in the field; hire of laborers in the Quartermaster Corps, including the care of officers' mounts when the same are furnished by the Government; compensation of clerks and other employees of the Quartermaster Corps, and clerks, foremen, watchmen, and organist for the United States Disciplinary Barracks, and incidental expenses of recruiting; for the apprehension, securing, and delivering of deserters, including escaped military prisoners, and the expenses incident to their pursuit.

Mr. BYRNS. When was it that your funds for this particular purpose run out?

Maj. DALY. Early in December, sir.

Mr. BYRNS. Do you think you will need twice as much for the last six months as you used during the first six months?

Maj. DALY. The original funds covered only deserters; it did not include draft evaders, at least, very few of them, but now they have a program of gathering in these draft evaders. So we require this additional amount for the rest of the year and Maj. Colladay, of The Adjutant General's office, is better qualified to give you the details than I am.

Mr. SISSON. Is this entirely for that purpose?

Maj. DALY. The $132,500; yes, sir; for draft evaders and de

serters.

Mr. BYRNS. As I understand, the previous allotment of $67,500 was used wholly for the apprehension of deserters.

Maj. DALY. There may have been some draft evaders; I do not know about that, sir; but I think Maj. Colladay can tell you about that.

BASIS OF ESTIMATE.

Mr. SISSON. How do you arrive at this $132,500 as being the necessary amount?

Maj. COLLADAY. We arrive at that, sir, by taking the total number of desertions that occurred-I mean the apprehension of desertersduring the last fiscal year as reported by months, and determining from the rate they came in what number of apprehensions we may expect from the number of desertions that actually occurred during that month or during any given period; upon that basis we worked out a system from which we are able to estimate the number of desertions that occurred each month, based on the number of reports received. When a deserter is apprehended he is turned over to the nearest military post; the commanding officer investigates the case, and if he finds he is a bona fide deserter he then advises the quartermaster, a reward of $50 is paid, and a report is made to The Adjutant General. Those reports, of course, are delayed in coming in. especially from great distances away from Washington, so that the actual report of the money spent by the quartermaster is determined by the number sent in.

Mr. SISSON. Is this money largely spent for desertions occurring in the Army now?

Maj. COLLADAY. It is spent for the apprehension of deserters which take place during the current fiscal year.

Mr. SISSON. Or are you going back and apprehending draft

evaders?

Maj. COLLADAY. No; in the fiscal year only.

Mr. SISSON. It does seem to me that there ought to be some statute of limitations on the World War draft evaders. Mr. Lincoln, immediately after he saw hostilities were over, issued a general amnesty to all war criminals, as he called them, and wound the thing up, but it seems we pursue them.

Maj. COLLADAY. Not with this money, sir; the vast majority of this money is to be used for the apprehension of current deserters.

NUMBER OF DESERTIONS AND APPREHENSIONS DURING CURRENT FISCAL YEAR,

Mr. SISSON. Your desertions are very much less now than they were some time ago, are they not?

Maj. COLLADAY. Yes, they are; the size of the Army has had an effect.

Mr. SISSON. Are not business conditions such that men are more likely to remain in the Army now than they are when business conditions are very good?

Maj. COLLADAY. I have the figures for each month and can give them to you.

Mr. SISSON. What are your figures for last month or the last month for which you have figures?

Maj. COLLADAY. In the month of January there had been reported to date 165 apprehensions.

Mr. SISSON. How many desertions?

Maj. COLLADAY. I have not the figures as to the actual number of desertions.

Mr. SISSON. Can you put in the record the number of actual desertions?

NOTE.—Desertions reported for the current fiscal year, July, 1921, to February, 1922 July, 978; August, 727; September, 513; October, 469; November, 427; December, 424; January, 322; February to date, 50. Total reported to date, 3,910.

Maj. COLLADAY. I can get them; yes, sir. We estimate that there actually occurred 243 during that month. These reports will be coming in from time to time.

Mr. BYRNS. How about some of the previous months?

Maj. COLLADAY. I have the figures here for the current fiscal year from July.

Mr. SISSON. Just give them to us.

Maj. COLLADAY. For the month of July, 1921, we estimated that there had occurred 297 actual apprehensions.

Mr. SISSON. The apprehensions ought not to be estimated; you ought to know.

Maj. COLLADAY. I was giving what we estimated, and then I was going to tell you what had actually occurred to date, February 20, 1922. To date there have been reported 276 in that month.

Mr. BYRNS. That is, apprehensions?

Maj. COLLADAY. Yes.

Mr. BYRNS. How about your desertions?

Maj. COLLADAY. I have not the figures as to desertions, but I will furnish those figures later. These are the actual apprehensions where the reward of $50 will be paid. In August, 1921, we estimated that there had occurred 276 apprehensions; to date there have been re

ported 274 apprehensions for which the reward of $50 is to be paid: for the month of September, 1921, there were estimated 327 apprehensions, and to date there have been reported 249.

NOTE. See figures inserted above.

For the month of October, 1921, there was estimated that there had occurred 233 apprehensions and to date there have been reported for the month 206. For the month of November, 1921, there was estimated that there had occurred 249 apprehensions, and to date there have actually been reported 187. In December, 1921, there was estimated that there had occurred 323 apprehensions, and to date there have been reported 217. In January, 1922, there was estimated that there had occurred 243 apprehensions, and to date there have been reported 165. For the month of February, 1922, there was estimated that there had occurred 283 apprehensions, but there have been reported to date 31. You will notice as you get down to the recent dates that the difference is considerable and as we go along from month to month those differences are reduced. This last amount is simply in desertions that have occurred and have been reported. Two months from now all the other desertions which have occurred in the last two months will have been received and we will have a better check.

Mr. SISSON. Do you not call a man a deserter as soon as he deserts? Maj. COLLADAY. He is reported locally, but the apprehension does not get to the War Department until we get further information. That is the last information we have.

Mr. SISSON. Of these desertions that have been reported, what proportion of them are draft evaders?

Maj. COLLADAY. About 400.

Mr. SISSON. In all?

Maj. COLLADAY. Approximately; current fiscal year.

Mr. SISSON. Can you let the record show the number of draft evaders and the number of desertions from the Army, let the record show that?

Col. SMITH. I have a report that indicates the state of affairs as of December 3, 1921.

Mr. SISSON. Please put that in the record.

Col. SMITH. Yes, sir. The aforementioned report of December 3 indicates that, up to that time, a total of 371 draft evaders had been apprehended this fiscal year, but inasmuch as all reports had not been received it is estimated that approximately 400 have been apprehended.

Mr. SISSON. You can get the exact record?

Col. SMITH. Yes, sir; I will try to obtain that from the Adjutant General's Office.

NOTE. Four hundred and thirty-three were apprehended during the perio! from July 1, 1921, to December 31, 1921.

The CHAIRMAN. Is this properly considered a deficiency?

Maj. COLLADAY. We have not the money to pay for it. The War Department provides for the payment of $50 reward. Civilians are apprehending these men and bringing them in at some expense, and they expect this reward to be paid. The War Department

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