FIELD DESK

Special Circular No. 97
Dated 1921

A Field Desk of some description is necessary for a Company Clerk regardless of the situation of an organization. No Field Desks, at the present, fit every need through which an organization may progress from activation to actual combat. Desks are in use now which serve their purpose well until the unit reaches a combat zone.

Experience has proven that desks made of boards are more practical. They may be so constructed as to serve a dual purpose. They may not only be a place where all records may be filed, but can also be constructed as to serve as a desk on which most of the records can be processed.

The records that a unit must have in its possession will in most cases be determined by the Personnel Adjutant of the unit, but it would be well for the Company Clerk to know what records are essential so that in case he should be told to made up his desk in short order he will not be confused about its contents.

He must keep in mind that he is responsible for the records of each individual in his unit as well as the proper record keeping of the affairs of the organization. He must be cognizant of the place to which his unit will be sent so that he will have some idea under which conditions he will have to do his work. The length of time his unit may be away from sources of supply and the possibilities of lengthening supply lines would make the requisitioning more of a task each day. Supplies necessary for a period of three months should be carried on the initial move.

Remember that the situation more often will determine the things to be taken along, but for the convenience and a reminder, the following will aid in giving the Clerk some means of forms which should be in his Field Desk. This is by no means a final list and must not be construed as being the perfect set-up for the contents of a FIELD DESK.