2 BILLS FOR THE REORGANIZATION OF THE ARMY AND Printed for the use of the Committee on Military Affairs PART 13 MR. WILLIAM BARCLAY PARSONS WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 8.0.214/17/17 PREPAREDNESS FOR NATIONAL DEFENSE. SATURDAY, JANUARY 29, 1916. UNITED STATES SENATE, COMMITTEE ON MILITARY AFFAIRS, Washington, D. C. The committee met at the expiration of the recess, at 3 o'clock p. m., Senator Geo. E. Chamberlain (chairman) presiding. STATEMENT OF MR. WILLIAM BARCLAY PARSONS, OF NEW YORK CITY. The CHAIRMAN. Please state your name, address, and your present business. Mr. PARSONS. William Barclay Parsons; address, 60 Wall Street, New York; business, engineer. The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Parsons, we have had under consideration bills for the reorganization of the Army, and we understand that you desire to make some statements or suggestions to us with reference to a reserve engineer corps, or something of that kind. Mr. PARSONS. Yes, sir. The CHAIRMAN. The committee would be very glad to hear you make such statements as you desire to, in your own way, and whatever questions we want to ask you will be in the course of your statement or afterwards. Mr. PARSONS. Last winter, Mr. Chairman, it was suggested to the engineer societies that an engineer reserve could well be organized as part of the Army on lines similar to the existing medical reserve. The five national engineering societies, representing the civil engineers, the mining engineers, the mechanical engineers, the electrical engineers, and the consulting engineers, bodies which have a gross membership of something over 26,000 members, appointed five committees to take up this question and study it. In order to simplify the work, to unify it, there was appointed a joint committee consisting of the chairmen of those five committees, and I was made chairman of such joint committee, and represent that committee here to-day. I regret very much that I could not get any of my associates here. I got your telegram only late last night, and the others were all out of town. The other members of the committee consist of Henry S. Drinker, president of Lehigh University, who represents the mining engineers; Maj. William H. Wiley, publisher, who represents the mechanical engineers; Mr. Bion J. Arnold, of 23380-PT 13-16 677 |