ÆäÀÌÁö À̹ÌÁö
PDF
ePub

there would be probably an amount of twelve or fourteen million dollars that. we would not move. These are the facts in the case. It is an estimate only.

Mr. SHERLEY. You originally asked for this purpose $148,780,000? Capt. DALY. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. And at your per capita estimated expense of movement of $86.50 that would figure on the movement of about 1,700,000 men?

Capt. DALY. Yes.

Mr. SHERLEY. And the $31,865,000 that you are now estimating is to enable you to move something like 300,000 additional men? Capt. DALY. Yes.

Mr. SHERLEY. Now, have you changed your estimates of the cost of movement from what it was in the first instance, or did you change your figure of $86.50?

Capt. DALY. We figured on $86.50. That is not the transportation alone of the man, but it includes the baggage and impedimenta and everything which goes with him.

Mr. SHERLEY. I understand; but that is actual transportation?
Capt. DALY. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. In what form-largely railroad?

Capt. DALY. Largely railroad.

Mr. SHERLEY. That would constitute what percentage of the total? Capt. DALY. The railroad end of it would constitute probably 90 per cent, or perhaps more.

Mr. SHERLEY. What arrangement have you, if any, in regard to the transportation of troops? What do you pay the railroads? Have you got any special contract or understanding or agreement with them?

Capt. DALY. For passenger transportation we get, under a contract with the railroads, a 5 per cent reduction in the passenger tariffs. For the impedimenta and baggage there is no reduction. We pay the tariff rates on carload lots, or less than carload lots when shipments are less than carload lots.

Mr. SHERLEY. Has any action been had looking to any different arrangement touching transportation cost, or do you know, General? Gen. SHARPE. No, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. Does not that represent, when you are moving such large numbers of troops, rather high compensation to the railroads?

Gen. SHARPE. I do not think it represents high compensation for the average traveled distance all over the country.

NOTE.-Under the present arrangement in effect between the office of the Quartermaster General and the various passenger associations, and the military committes thereunder, the Government is securing the benefit of a horizontal reduction of 5 per cent less than net land-grant rates. This reduction of 5 per cent does not apply on fares of less than $5 per capita, and the 5 per cent reduction is restricted to a maximum deduct'on per capita of $2.50. The above arrangement does not apply on noncompetitive business, but in all cases the Government still retains the benefit of the authorized land-grant reduction. As a consideration for the above-described horizontal reduction of 5 per cent all passenger business is equitably divided between the interested lines where the conditions of service are substantially equal and sat'sfactory.

This agreement is considered advantageous to the Government for the following reasons: (a) It will result in a saving of Government funds. (b)

It will procure cooperation on the part of the railroads. (c) It will facilitate the settlement of accounts.

The Government has not been granted any reduction other than the authorized land-grant reduction in connection with the shipment of impedimenta with troops and miscellaneous freight.

Mr. SHERLEY. But that is not what I am speaking of. You are practically paying what the individual would pay. You get a 5 per cent reduction upon the rate for passenger traffic, but manifestly when trains are carrying large numbers of men the per capita cost of moving those men is very much less than the per capita cost of moving passengers under ordinary conditions, and I was inquiring whether the matter had ever been taken up with the railroads in connection with the pay they should receive.

Maj. DRAKE. Col. Baker, who has charge of the transportation division, has taken this matter up a number of times with the railroad committees, and the best he could do was to get this 5 per cent reduction from the usual commercial rates.

Mr. SHERLEY. You get some reduction on railroads that are landgrant roads?

Maj. DRAKE. Yes; that is taken out and the reduction of 5 per cent is made upon the rate accruing after those deductions have been made.

Mr. SHERLEY. Are those land-grant roads used to their maximum efficient capacity in preference to other roads where you do not get that reduction?

Maj. DRAKE. Yes, sir; they are; and in lots of cases the railroads operating between points over the same established lines give us the same rate.

Gen. SHARPE. That is, they equalize the rate?

Mr. SHERLEY. In other words, roads that are not land-grant roads, in order to be upon a competitive basis with the land-grant roads, make you the same rate as the land-grant roads?

Maj. DRAKE. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. Have you gentlemen considered how much of this $180,000,000 you are likely to spend over a given period of time? In other words, it is an estimate for the fiscal year 1918, but manifestly you are not going to have some of your heaviest charges until considerably later on, although you will have those that are incident to mobilizing the troops at these training camps. What I am trying to get at is this: You are asking very large estimates now. Congress will certainly be in session in December, and it looks as if it might be in session until December, and the committee might desire to know what sums of money would carry you along to January or February, 1918, instead of figuring on what would carry you until July, 1918.

Gen. SHARPE. Mr. Chairman, we have given the figures which we estimate will be the cost of this transportation. Of course, that money will not all be paid out within the fiscal year, because it will be impossible to get the transportation vouchers in such shape that they can be settled. What proportion will not be paid, it would be rather difficult to arrive at.

Mr. SHERLEY. You not only will not have to pay it out, but you will not even have contracted to pay a great deal of it, except from month to month. You are not going to have to have all of this

money now. What do you figure your monthly expenditure will be, or have you any conception of that?

Capt. DALY. It would be pretty hard to calculate that now, Mr. Sherley.

Mr. SHERLEY. You do not now recall how much you have spent for this purpose out of this $118,000,000 that is obligated?

Capt. DALY. No, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. Do you recall approximately?

Capt. DALY. I would say that perhaps we have paid out about $6,000,000; not any more. I am not prepared to state how much we have obligated for this purpose. Of course, so far as the actual need of having this money in the fiscal year is concerned, we do not need all of it because in the first place the railroad companies are extremely slow in submitting their bills. For their services in July we perhaps will not get the railroad accounts for that service until some time in September, and then it has to go through the process of being checked up and examined and corrected and all that sort of thing, and the settling officer will probably not get to it until October or November.

Mr. SHERLEY. Then you are always three or four months behind? Capt. DALY. As a matter of fact, assuming that we got all of this money and that we obligated all of it in the fiscal year 1918, we probably would not finish payments until maybe a year and a half. Mr. SHERLEY. What besides railroad transportation goes into this particular item-truckage?

Capt. DALY. No; we have another item for drayage.

Mr. SHERLEY. Does anything else enter into this?

Capt. DALY. Nothing but railroad transportation and possibly some water transportation of the troops and their impedimenta. Mr. SHERLEY. It is either rail or water transportation for men and freight?

Capt. DALY. Yes, sir.

Mr. CANNON. This is for the transportation of 2,000,000 men plus during the fiscal year?

Capt. DALY. Yes, sir.

Mr. CANNON. And that anticipates the handling complete, ready to embark, of pretty well up to a million men that are not now in the service and have not as yet been called for?

Capt. DALY. Yes.

Mr. CANNON. Now, that would not be expended, much of it, until six months after the expiration of this fiscal year?

Capt. DALY. No, sir.

Mr. CANNON. If we had a statement of what would be expended during the fiscal year and what proportion of these people would be enlisted and moved in the next fiscal year, we could tell pretty well what amount to appropriate now.

TRANSPORTATION OF RECRUITS AND RECRUITING PARTIES.

Mr. SHERLEY. What is your next item?

Capt. DALY. Transportation of recruits and recruiting parties, applicants for enlistment between recruiting stations and recruiting depots, $1,600,000. In our previous estimate we allotted $5,600,000,

having figured on 700,000 recruits and applicants at $8 per capita. $5,600,000.

Mr. GILLETT. That is the applicant clause alone?

Capt. DALY. That is for recruits and recruiting parties.

Mr. SHERLEY. That was the allotment which you made out of the previous appropriation?

Capt. DALY. No. The total requirement is $4,000,000, which leaves $1,600,000 included in this estimate.

Mr. SHERLEY. That was based on how many?

Capt. DALY. On the movement of 700,000 recruits and applicants. Mr. SHERLEY. You are going to have a limited number of recruits in the old sense now. This means volunteer enlistments.

Gen. SHARPE. All the men called into the service whom we have to transport.

Mr. SHERLEY. This, as I understand it, was intended to take care of volunteer enlistments that took place at the recruiting stations. not having in contemplation the draft law?

Capt. DALY. That is true.

Mr. SHERLEY. That is the fact?

Capt. DALY. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. You figured on 700,000 recruits?

Capt. DALY. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. In point of fact, how many recruits have you had? Capt. DALY. We are not able to tell you exactly. I do not think that we can even state it approximately.

Mr. SHERLEY. Of course, it has been nothing like 700,000?

Capt. DALY. No, sir. We have approximately 250,000 recruits and applicants.

Mr. SHERLEY. At an average of $8, that would mean $2,000,000. Capt. DALY. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. In the future this will be practically a negligible item?

Capt. DALY. Well, I hardly think we can say that, because the volunteer enlistments will still continue. The recruiting stations will be just as active and will make every endeavor which they have made in the past to secure recruits from volunteer enlistments. They will continue to have applicants for enlistment and will continue the recruiting stations. Even now we have a great many more recruiting tsations than ever before.

Mr. SHERLEY. In view of the fact that you are drafting men-you have an eligible list, so far as ages are concerned, of something over 10,000,000 men-why are you going to make an effort that entails any expense to recruit men by voluntary enlistments?

Capt. DALY. I do not think that we are prepared to answer that question.

Mr. SHERLEY. Are you not basing your argument upon the activity of the department at a time previous to the actual going into effect of the draft law?

Capt. DALY. Yes, sir. I am basing it on what obtains now.

Mr. CANNON. Which, I understand, is larger than before the draft?

Capt. DALY. Yes, sir. I am not prepared to say what the result will be after we get the men through the draft.

Mr. SHERLEY. In view of the fact that you have already allotted $4,000,000 for this purpose, which would take care of approximately 500,000 recruits, is there any reason now for estimating for this additional sum, $1,600,000?

Capt. DALY. There is no need of the actual money. In other words, we will not probably use the money. We may not use all of the $4,000,000.

Mr. SHERLEY. Assuming that in the future you practically get all of your men through the draft, the expense that has heretofore been borne out of this item would practically disappear?

Capt. DALY. Practically; yes, sir.

Mr. CANNON. Without regard to the amount of money, you will continue your recruiting; you have full authority to continue the recruiting?

Capt. DALY. Yes, sir.

TRANSPORTATION OF AGENTS AND OTHER EMPLOYEES.

Mr. SHERLEY. Your next item is for transportation of the necessary agents and other employees and authorized allowance of baggage, for which you are estimating $22,800. How much did you allot out of the appropriation heretofore made for that purpose?

Capt. DALY. We estimated that there would be required as a total $150,000. We allotted $127,200.

Mr. SHERLEY. What do you mean by that language; what character of transportation?

Capt. DALY. Transportation by rail or water of employees that are ordered on temporary duty or changing stations-civilian employees. Mr. SHERLEY. They are authorized to have paid at Government expense a certain weight allowance of personal baggage? Capt. DALY. Yes, sir; 3,000 pounds.

Mr. SHERLEY. How much of this have you had to pay out? Capt. DALY. I can not tell you. We can only answer that question and the others along the same line

REIMBURSEMENT OF ACTUAL TRAVELING EXPENSES FOR CIVILIAN EMPLOYEES.

Mr. SHERLEY. For the reimbursement of actual traveling expenses for civilian employees not to exceed the maximum amount fixed by law, $30,000. How much did you allot for that purpose?

Capt. DALY. We estimated the total requirement at $180,000 and allotted $150,000.

Mr. SHERLEY. You say that you estimated the total requirement at $180,000 and allotted $150,000. That is your present estimate on the basis of the number you are now figuring on-two million and odd men?

Capt. DALY. 2,033,000 men.

Mr. SHERLEY. At the time you submitted your original estimate, you were not estimating on the number of men, but, in point of fact, in each instance you seem to have made an allotment that represents very much more than one-half of your present estimated cost?

Capt. DALY. For the reason that the largest movement of civilian employees will obtain, we expect, and that is being borne out in the early part of the year.

« ÀÌÀü°è¼Ó »