APPENDIX B The Numbers, Grades, and Assignments of the Officers and Enlisted Men of the Army, and the Numbers, Kinds, and Strength of Organizations Pertaining to Each Branch of the Service (Par. 4c, National Defense Act, 41 Stat. L. 762) 49 APPENDIX B The following statistical data are furnished in compliance with the provisions of the last sentence of section 4 (c) of the act of Congress approved June 4, 1920 (41 Stat. L. 762), reading as follows: The Secretary of War shall annually report to Congress the numbers, grades, and assignments of the officers and enlisted men of the Army, and the number, kinds, and strength of organizations pertaining to each branch of the service. In addition to the data called for by the act, the losses of the Army during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1937, in detail, are also shown. AUTHORIZED STRENGTH OF THE ARMY The authorized commissioned strength of the Regular Army for the fiscal year 1937 was 12,713, an increase of 125 over that of the preceding year. This increase represents (1) the first increment authorized by the Thomason Act, which provides for the appointment annually, for a period of 10 years beginning July 1, 1936, of 50 Reserve officers of the combatant arms and the Chemical Warfare Service as second lieutenants in the Regular Army, and (2) increases of 50 officers in the Medical Corps and 25 in the Dental Corps, as provided by the War Department Appropriation Act for the fiscal year 1937. The following summary sets forth briefly the legislative authority upon which is based the total of 12,713 officers: Basic strength under the National Defense Act, as amended by the acts of June 30, 1922, and Sept. 14, 1922___ Increases authorized by: 12, 000 Act of July 2, 1926 (44 Stat. L., pt. 2, 783), 5 increments in the Air 403 185 50 75 Act of June 26, 1936 (49 Stat. L., 1974), Corps of Engineers- War Department Appropriation Act of May 15, 1936 (49 Stat. L., Total. 12, 713 Appropriations for the pay of the Army for the fiscal year 1937, however, provided funds for not to exceed an average of 12,125 officers, and appropriations for rivers and harbors improvements provided for the pay of 62 of the 185 additional officers in the Corps of Engineers, authorized by the act of June 26, 1936. In this connection it is contemplated to procure these 185 Engineer officers in three approximately equal annual increments, the first increment being obtained this year by means of new appointments of graduates of the United States Military Academy and of candidates from civil life, and by transfers from other arms. The apportionment for the year to the promotion-list arms and services and nonpromotion-list services was made on a basis of 12,187 officers, as shown in the following table: 51 1 Detailed from other arms or services and included in the figures for those arms or services. Includes officers of the Philippine Scouts. No legislative change was made in the authorized strength of warrant officers during the fiscal year 1937. At the beginning of the year there were 784 warrant officers of all classes in active service, and during the year 85 appointments were made, including 2 in the Army Mine Planter Service, 6 band leaders, and 77 others, while 75 separations occurred. This left a total of 794 in active service on June 30, 1937, of which 198 were of classes exempt from the provisions of the act of June 30, 1922, limiting the strength to 600. As the result of an examination held in June 1936 a total of 744 candidates qualified for appointment and their names were placed on an eligible list from which to make appointments to fill current and future vacancies. War Department appropriations for the fiscal year 1937 provided for increasing the enlisted strength of the Army, exclusive of the Philippine Scouts, from approximately 147,000 existing at the close of the preceding fiscal year, to an average of 165,000 men. Further details relative to procurement activities incident to this authorization are covered elsewhere in this report under "Recruiting." Funds appropriated for the pay of enlisted men of the Philippine Scouts provided for an allotment of 6,415 men for the year. ACTUAL STRENGTH OF THE ARMY The actual strength of the Army on June 30, 1936, and on June 30, 1937, by arms and services, is shown in the following table, including retired personnel on active duty: 1 Exclusive of 47 officers on duty with but not detailed in the General Staff. The geographical distribution of the 1937, is shown in the following table. personnel on active duty. Regular Army on June 30, 2 Includes the military adviser to the Commonwealth Government of the Philippine Islands and 8 officers on duty with him (act of May 14, 1935, Public, No. 56, 74th Cong.). Includes 10 officers of the Philippine Scouts on duty or on leave in continental United States. 4 Includes military attachés, students abroad, and personnel on leave and en route to and from overseas garrisons, also 7 retired officers (including 1 Philippine Scout officer) on active duty. |