cause of the fact that it is recognized that they develop high standards of scholarship there, and those men acquire a position, coming from that school, that enables them to acquire an education which would be very valuable to them if they should afterwards go into private life. Do you have young men with that same idea in view coming into your school, or do your men generally stay in the service?

Admiral BILLARD. The same situation would apply. That is, the course that we give these young men would be equally valuable to them. As a matter of fact, those that get through our school usually stay in the service.

Mr. SHALLENBERGER. The question arose in my mind, there are so many thousands trying to get into these other schools and so few hundreds trying to get into your school, and I wondered why it was. Perhaps they have not learned yet the character and standards of your school.

Admiral BILLARD. I think the explanation is simply the fact that our school, and indeed our service, is not as well known throughout the country as they should be.

Mr. SHÄLLENBERGER. It must be so, Admiral, because there are so many young men wanting to get into these other schools, and it would seem that if they knew of this school and it was as good, they would be trying to get in there.

Mr. GARBER. Do you not think, Admiral, that the entrants to this school should be apportioned around among the several States? It is a national institution, sustained by the tax money of the people, and should not every State have the same opportunity to send students there?

Admiral BILLARD. I thoroughly believe, sir, that every State should have equal opportunity, and there is no difference in that regard.

Mr. GARBER. Equal opportunity in the number of admissions to your school is what I refer to.

Admiral BILLARD. It would add to our administrative difficulties in getting the classes in, if one State fell below its quota. We take some satisfaction in the knowledge that this school is filled by competitive examination.

Mr. GARBER. Well, supposing we have two States with two applicants, and their qualifications are equal, and one State has no membership in your school, do you so administer the admissions that you would grant the application of the State not having any member in your school?

Admiral BILLARD. No sir; we take the list of candidates who have passed the examination in the order in which they passed it, without any consideration whatever to what State or what section they are from. That we are required to do under the law.

Mr. GARBER. Right there, as a constructive suggestion relative to the broadening of the school and equalizing its advantages to the country, would not an amendment to the law requiring such equal apportionment be a good thing for the school?

Admiral BILLARD. It would not affect the school if we could get the necessary candidates to qualify. Of course, the administrative difficulties would be greater than at present.

Mr. GARBER. Would it not develop an interest in the several States to support the school and enlarge it?

Admiral BILLARD. Possibly so.

Mr. WYANT. I suppose a good many of the States do not know this school exists.

Mr. CROSSER. Admiral, I was going to ask you how you get your faculty for this school.

Admiral BILLARD. The faculty of the school consists of commissioned officers of the Coast Guard, just as at Annapolis they have commissioned officers of the Navy. We have there now one civilian instructor, who is not an officer.

Mr. CROSSER. I want to revert again momentarily to the matter of obligation on the part of the graduate of the school after the expiration of the two years which they are bound to serve. I understand that in the other services these men are always subject to call, that is, they belong to a reserve in case of emergency.

Admiral BILLARD. I think not. I do not recall any law to that effect. Of course, in the Navy the young officer who resigns, often unites with the Naval Reserve, whereupon he would be called if needed.

Mr. CROSSER. I do not mean after they retire; I am talking about young men who resign.

Admiral BILLARD. Yes, sir.

Mr. CROSSER. Are they still subject to call by the Government? Admiral BILLARD. I can not speak with authority, but I know of no law that requires that.

Mr. CROSSER. What appears to me to be the practical question as to this service is this: Here is a man who has had a rather extensive training, three years of very thorough training and education at great expense to the Government, and yet you have only three years of service from them assured you after you have given them all this training.

Admiral BILLARD. That situation has not bothered us at all, because, as I say, practically none of them have dropped out, and I know there is no law that enables us to have them remain.

Mr. CROSSER. Perhaps if the opportunities in private industry should suddenly become a little more numerous and attractive it would have a tendency to wean away a lot of your men? I think that all departments and bureaus of the Government are, under present conditions, not likely to be bothered by resignations from the service because of the great difficulty of procuring employment at this time.

Admiral BILLARD. Yes. Of course, our department would not look favorably upon the resignation of a young officer who we felt had not done his part toward repaying the Government.

Mr. HOCH. My impression was different from that of Mr. Crosser. I think there is a good deal of force in what he says, but my understanding of the Navy, for instance, is that at the end of two years after graduation, if they desire to resign, they can resign, and the Government has no further claim upon them.

Admiral BILLARD. That is my understanding. I may be mistaken. Mr. CROSSER. That was just a general impression I had. I am not at all sure about it. I know that they can resign after a certain number of years.

Mr. WYANT. The law ought to be changed if that is the case. If a man can be educated by the United States Government, given an

education worth $2,500 a year, and can walk out after two years of service, there is something wrong. He ought to be subject to recall. Admiral BILLARD. Of course, that is out of my province as regards the other services. We have not had the problem in our service. Mr. GARBER. What is the average cost to the Government to graduate a student at this school?

Admiral BILLARD. We have computed that for the information of the Appropriations Committee and have found that to graduate a cadet from our school is about the same cost as to graduate a man from the Naval Academy.

Mr. GARBER. What is that amount, about $12,000?

Admiral BILLARD. About $11,000, as I remember.

Mr. WYANT. $2,750 a year.

Mr. GARBER. Mr. Wyant says it amounts to $2,750 a year at the Naval Academy.

Admiral BILLARD. That is about the same thing, you see.

Mr. GARBER. What is the pay of the Coast Guard?

Admiral BILLARD. The cadet receives exactly the same as the midshipman in the Navy. The pay of a cadet is $780 per annum, and one commuted ration per day, 80 cents per day.

Mr. GARBER. And what is the pay of their service after graduation? Admiral BILLARD. When they graduate they become ensigns, and their pay from then on is regulated by the pay act that affects the pay of the Army and Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Public Health Service, and Coast and Geodetic Survey, and it is a bit technical. It involves pay periods, and all that.

Mr. GARBER. Practically there are the same inducements in the way of compensation after graduation for service in the Coast Guard as there are in the Navy or the Army.

Admiral BILLARD. As far as actual compensation is concerned they are identical. When it comes to promotion, of course there is another story there. But under the law their pay and allowances are precisely the same as in the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps.

Mr. Hосн. They are a civil branch during peace times and automatically become a part of the Navy upon declaration of war.

Admiral BILLARD. Not at all, Mr. Hoch, if I may correct you. The law provides that the Coast Guard is part of the military forces at all times. It simply operates under the Treasury Department in time of peace and under the Navy Department in time of war. But the law says that the Coast Guard shall constitute a part of the military forces of the United States at all times.

Mr. Hocн. It is simply transferred from one department to another?

Admiral BILLARD. Exactly. Its status does not change but the the department under which it functions changes.

Mr. HOCH. Are there any other questions? Admiral, you or some one will present the facts a little further about this proposed site, I presume, its location and character?

Admiral BILLARD. This is a photograph of the academy [producing some photographs].

Mr. HOCH. You have some pictures there, have you?

Admiral BILLARD. The situation about the site is this: The city of New London proposes to turn over to us a beautiful and appropriate 30922-29- -2

site right on the Thames River, and Mr. Clarke, of New London, who is connected with that phase of it, is here. Would the committee care to hear Mr. Clarke, who is not connected with the Coast Guard but is entirely familiar with this site?

Mr. Hocн. We will be very glad to hear him at this time. Will you give your name and whom you represent?

STATEMENT OF WALDO E. CLARKE, NEW LONDON, CONN.

Mr. CLARKE. My name is Waldo E. Clarke, ex-mayor of New London, Conn.

Mr. HоCH. Are you speaking for some organization or are you simply appearing as an individual?

Mr. CLARKE. I am appearing as an individual, but I went before the city council and took this matter up with them with reference to the gift of this site, approximately 40 acres in extent, and I have the promise from each member of the council, the city manager, the director of law, the finance chairman, and a group of about 20 citizens of New London, and that offer was made to Admiral Billard that this property would be forthcoming. I suppose to make it legal for a dollar consideration. The area in question is about the same distance from the center of the city as the old Coast Guard Academy. Mr. HOCH. How far is that?

Mr. CLARKE. Well, that is about a mile and three quarters, by the various street turns.

The old section is on a peninsula, as Senator Bingham said, surrounded by an Italian quarter and the railroad yards of the New York, New Haven & Hartford which make it impossible to enlarge.

The new site is north of the Thames River Bridge, railway and highway bridge at the mouth of Thames River. It is just north of the city park, Riverside Park, and will join with that park. It has a water front of approximately 500 feet in length. It is a very irregular piece of property with outcropping, broken ledges, beautiful in layout, with old oak trees, and the idea was that, as was the case with the Connecticut College for Women, there is sufficient stone right there to build a number of structures just as the Connecticut College for Women did, which is about a quarter of a mile. farther north. This really is the highest part of the city of New London and it is ideally situated for educational purposes.

Mr. SHALLENBERGER. Can ships come up this river? Is it deep water?

Mr. CLARKE. Yes, the main channel is very deep. The submarine base is 2 miles above the bridge. The water is about 50 feet deep there. That is the largest submarine base in the United States.

Mr. HOCH. What is the population of New London?

Mr. CLARKE. About 30,000. The city is only 6 square miles in area, very small in area. The surrounding territory runs about 60,000 population.

Mr. GARBER. About how far is this site from the city itself?
Mr. CLARKE. It is right within the city limits.

Mr. GARBER. How far from the business section?

Mr. CLARKE. Here is our business section right in here [indicating on map]. Here is the railway station. This is about a mile and a quarter or a mile and three-quarters, depending on the way the streets go. In a bee line the present academy is a little bit closer to

the center of the city, but in the roundabout way that the streets go it is about the same.

Mr. Hocн. Are there any buildings on this site now?

Mr. CLARKE. No, not at all. This property belonged to the Allen estate. Miss Allen left about a million dollars to create a museum, and the museum is going right there [indicating], and this is all Connecticut College property above. They have about 800 students there now. This museum, which will be historical, marine, whaling, and so forth, that will be just across the street from the proposed

site.

Mr. WYANT. If it was left by her for specific purposes or use, how can they divert it to any other use?

Mr. CLARKE. The trustees have given me an option-as a matter of fact, the location in her will for the museum was on this side of the street, but inasmuch as she had already encumbered that land 16 years before her death, and yet without changing her will, she has given this area to the Connecticut College; they in turn gave it back, but by the terms of her will she left her sister-in-law the old homestead, and they have arranged with the sister-in-law to give the sister-in-law a life interest, but they will build the museum on a knoll in the extreme eastern part of that land.

Mr. HOCH. The purpose is to transfer a good title to this property to the Government without cost?

Mr. CLARKE. Without cost-say, one dollar.

Mr. GARBER. What is the estimated value of this site?

Mr. CLARKE. It will run-the chances are it will cost about $75,000, because as an estate I have an option on part of the Allen property for $50,000, but if that was bought for commercial purposes it would be maybe twice that. But the theory of the trustees was that they felt they would not have sufficient money to create the museum and also maintain this 40 acres as a public area or park, and therefore they thought that instead of selling that and letting it go into houses or commercial purposes they would much prefer to have the city buy it for park purposes, and when I suggested the Coast Guard Academy they naturally fell in line with it, and they gave an option on that area of about 30 acres in extent for $50,000.

Mr. GARBER. Is the topography of this site suitable and favorable for the location of these buildings?

Mr. CLARKE. Yes, sir. The area alongside of what is known as Mohican Avenue is more or less level, and halfway down is a natural slope, a ledge outcrop and a lower section here [indicating on map], which makes an ideal football or baseball field, with a natural slope to the west of that field for grandstands.

From the bridge here it is just 311⁄2 miles to Long Island Sound, and then across to the open ocean is 21 or 22 miles.

Mr. CROSSER. You are right on the river?

Mr. CLARKE. Yes. Here is the bridge, and the submarine base is about in this location [indicating], 2 miles above the bridge, and there is a 50-foot channel there.

Mr. SHALLENBERGER. This is farther up the river then, than where you are going to locate the academy?

Mr. CLARKE. Yes; the submarine base. That water is always open there.

Mr. GARBER. Point out the location of the Connecticut College.