Newton D. Baker to Woodrow Wilson

I have received your letter of the 27th, enclosing telegrams and letters received by you with regard to the reorganization of the Missouri National Guard.

The situation is comparatively simple. The form of organization required for modern warfare consists of regiments of 3,600 in number. Our old form had regiments of from 1200 to 1400 in number. The National Guard of the several States and the Regular Army were, of course, organized in the old form. The English and the French use the new form. General Pershing and his staff have requested us to perfect the divisional organization in the new form, with larger companies and larger regiments, and with certain accessory troops, machine gun companies, etc., before the divisions leave the United States, so as to obviate the necessity of doing it when they get to France. The division commanders of the several National Guard divisions have been directed to bring about this reorganization. In every instance it has required breaking up some regiment and combining others. The question as to which regiment should be broken up could not be left to any other authority than the division commander since most divisions contain troops from several States and, of course, there could be no agreement among the States, nor could the judgment of the Governor of any one of the States be taken in such case.

It has seemed to us that the division commander, having the troops before him, consulting with the colonels of the various regiments, knowing their histories, will be best qualified to make these consolidations and reorganizations. If we were to attempt to do so from here it seems quite certain that while we might please the 2nd Missouri, we would displease the 1st Kansas or the 6th Missouri; that is to say, we would displease whatever regiment was selected for the auxiliary units. It seems essentially a problem that is best solved locally by consolidation of all the officers concerned, and I have directed the division commander in effecting this reorganization to give the utmost consideration consistent with the military necessities of the case, to traditional or historic organizations, and to the preservation as far as possible of local sentiment.

Complaints have, of course, come from a number of places, and some of the complaining officers have come to Washington and talked with me personally about it. In practically every case it has seemed to us here that the complaint really arose from a fear on the part of the colonel and captains of a particular regiment that they would be left in this country while their associates went abroad, and not at all because of any objection on the part of the men in the regiment to assuming the new form of military unit. In many of the instances an explanation of the plans of the Department with regard to the reorganized divisions seemed to satisfy.

I have telegraphed General Wright with regard to the 2nd Missouri situation and presented to him very earnestly the claims made as to the historic character of the 2nd Missouri, so that he will assure himself of the wisdom of this determination. In the meantime I have talked the matter over very often with General Bliss, and after trying every expedient which suggested itself to our minds we have come out with the belief that as the reorganization is necessary and as any consolidation of feelings from Washington would be impossible, it is best to leave each case to be solved by its division commander and staff in the manner I have described above.

I trust this solution will not prove distasteful to the people of the State when they understand both the necessity and the care with which we are acting.