When we were considering legislation in the Spring of 1917, it was
thought that our largest task would be getting men. Experience has
shown that this is easy of accomplishment, made so by reason of the
fact that we have left open the door for a reasonable amount of
volunteers in the National Guard and regular army and passed a draft
law under which all men of military age may readily be mobilized.
The justness and fairness of the scheme as worked out by the Provost
Marshal General have obtained the earnest co-operation and enthusiastic
support of our people as a whole.
As I have said, our military law has been amended giving the President
authority to call additional increments of men from time to time as
needed. It has also been amended to permit him to register and classify
all men that reach the age of 21 years. We now have 2,000,000 men in
the army. The men between the ages of 21 and 31 years in 1917 have
been classified, and there remains in Class 1 approximately 2,000,000
men physically fit not called. The class of 1918, which will be
registered this Summer, will add another million, making a grand total
of 5,000,000, without calling Classes 2, 3, 4, or 5, containing nearly
6,000,000, and without calling the boys from 18 to 21--3,000,000 more.
If the war lasts until 1924 there will be added 6,000,000 more men. The
potential man power of America for a seven-year war, therefore, may
be conservatively estimated at 20,000,000 fighting men of recognized
military age. This out of a population of 125,000,000.
Not because I think that all of our man power will be needed, but in
order that we may get a view of the task that is in front of us and
understand the necessity for the large army we are calling and the huge
expenditures we are making, let me recall these facts.