Memorandum for General Surles1
#3-062
Memorandum for General Surles1
January 19, 1942 [Washington, D.C.]
The other day when the March of Time photographing was going on, I caught a glimpse of the marking on several pages of the mimeographed copy of my report which was being used as a stage setting. Apparently large blocks had been marked off for quotation.2
If this is true, I do not think the right approach to this phase of the presentation has been taken. There are a number of short statements, usually not more than a sentence each, which I made from time to time either before Congress or on the radio, indicating the growing seriousness of the situation as well as the necessity for correcting our deficiencies. For example, in February 1939 while Deputy Chief of Staff, I made a short summary of the deficiencies and requirements.
Taking my Report of July 1, 1941, the following would be samples of desirable extracts:
February 23, 1940: "If Europe blazes in the late spring or summer, we must put our house in order before the sparks reach the Western Hemisphere."
"As late as March of 1940, War Department estimates for a small number of replacement airplanes were cut by the House of Representatives to 57 planes. An estimate of $12,000,000 for the development of a defensive force in Alaska was refused."
August 5, 1940: "Wehave been trying to find some manner, some means for getting started. We want to proceed in an orderly and businesslike manner. We know exactly what we want to do and exactly where we want to do it, but we have neither the authority nor the funds and time is fleeting."
July 1, 1941: "As this report is submitted, the possibilities of a year ago have become dangerously near probabilities today, and it is vital to the security of the nation that the hazards of the present crisis be fully recognized."
"Events of the past 2 months are convincing proof of the terrific striking power possessed by a nation administered purely on a military basis. Events of the past few days are even more forcible indications of the suddenness with which armed conflict can spread to areas hitherto considered free from attack."
"In the light of the situation, it is believed that our interests are imperiled and that a grave national emergency exists. Whatever we do for the national defense should be done in the most efficient manner."
"I submit that the limitations referred to should be removed as quickly as possible if we are to have a fair opportunity to protect ourselves against the coldly calculated, secret, and sudden action that might be directed against us."
"These proposals (extension of service and removal of limitations) have but one purpose: the security of the American people; to permit the development of the national defense on the orderly and businesslike basis necessary if the dangers of the military situation are to be met. Such a purpose does not admit of delay." (Note: A point should be made of the length of the debate and the fact that it passed by a majority of one vote.)3
In a radio address, I made a statement to the effect that the Axis powers plan and prepare as they choose to strike when and where they choose "with sudden and terrific violence." As this is exactly what happened at Pearl Harbor and in the Philippines, I think this reference should be brought into the picture.
Another item that might be utilized was reference in a radio talk to certain possibilities trembling on the verge of becoming probabilities, as result of which a Joint Resolution was introduced in Congress to investigate me.4
Document Copy Text Source: George C. Marshall Papers, Pentagon Office Collection, General Materials, George C. Marshall Research Library, Lexington, Virginia.
Document Format: Typed memorandum.
1. Brigadier General Alexander D. Surles was director of the Bureau of Public Relations.
2. Beginning in March 1931 as a radio program presenting dramatized and re-created scenes of current news events, Time Incorporated's March of Time had expanded into the film format in February 1935. By the time the United States entered World War II, the short (approximately twenty minutes) films were released about every four weeks. The March of Time organization also issued occasional special films and numerous military training films. Marshall's July 1, 1941, "Biennial Report" for 1939–41 is in Report of the Secretary of War to the President, 1941 (Washington: GPO, 1941).
3. See Papers of George Catlett Marshall, #2-509[2: 567], note 1.
4. The editors have been unable to identify Marshall's comment regarding the Axis powers. His observation regarding certain possibilities was made in a C.B.S. radio address on September 16, 1940; see Papers of George Catlett Marshall, #2-263[2: 308–12]. The joint resolution to investigate Marshall has not been identified.
Recommended Citation: ThePapers of George Catlett Marshall, ed.Larry I. Bland and Sharon Ritenour Stevens (Lexington, Va.: The George C. Marshall Foundation, 1981– ). Electronic version based on The Papers of George Catlett Marshall, vol. 3, “The Right Man for the Job,” December 7, 1941–May 31, 1943 (Baltimore and London: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1991), pp. 71–73.