Evening star., 1916-06-26
1O4 NAVY YARD MEN
| IN NATIONAL GUARD
Mixed Situation Proving Hard
Problem for Officials of
Two Departments.
SKILLED MACHINISTS RARE;
SERVICES SORELY NEEDED
Yard Commandant Asks Secretary Of
Navy to Use influence to Have
Men Discharged.

Just what disposition is to be made
of 1o4 employees of the WASHINGTON
navy yard, who are now In camp With
the District National Guard at Radio.
Va. is a question which Is troublihg
the minds of Army and Navy Depatt-
ment officials.
The majority of these men are skilled
machinists and their services are sorlly
needed at the navy yard. Good ria
chinists are hard to get these d9ys,
not because they do not exist, but be-
cause the war orders being executed
by Industrial plants have made it pos
sible for all of them to obtain en-
paoyment. The list of eligibles at the
Washington navy yard is exhausted.
The commandant of the yard has writ
ten to Secretary Daniels calling his
attention to the fact that section So of
the national defense act exempts en-
ployes of the federal navy yards from
militia service in combatant capacity.
The commandant has asked that the Sec
retary of the Navy use his influence to
have these men discharged from militia
service in order that they might return
to their work at the navy yard In
his letter the commandant states that
to the government by working in the
naval gun factory than they will in
the ranks of soldiers.
Claim Exemption Waived.
Oficers of the War Department take
the position that these employees
waived this exemption when they en-
listed in the District National Guard,
which is the organized body of the
District militia that includes all able
bodied men between the ages of eight
cen and forty-flve years. 1t is further
held that the War Department could
not discharge these men at the request
of third party and not without their
consent.
They take the stand that the exemp-
ton in the national defense act was
intended to protect navy yard en-
ployes and certain other government
employees from being drafted into the
army against their will in event of a
war which necessitated conscription.
They say the. provision was written
into the act so that in event of such
a situation there would be provision
of law which would prevent the draft
ing of such men. who, it is pointed out,
would be of greater service to the
country in making guns and other mu-
nitions than they would in uniform
on the fighting line.
will come about when the District
militiamen have been mustered into
the federal service. Then the Secre-
tary of War will have power to dis
charge any who may want to return
to their stations at the navy yard. The
Secretary of the Navy has requested
that this course he taken.
In addition to the 104 members of the
District National Guard amongTthe en-
ployes of the navy yard there are ff-
0f he Pcft tat lion,
These men are not affected by the sit
uation, since the naval branch of the
militia has not been called into service.
Employees Who Are Guardsmen.
The employees of the yard who are
members of the District National Guard
are given in the letter of the COM
mandant of the yard to the Secretary of
the Navy as follows:
w. o. Little. B. P. Shields, n. B.
Schmidt. William Mackenzie. ]. G. Moody
George c. Leakin, c. E Smithson. Thomas
Brown. F. A. Parkhurst. Fred T. Watson,
L. c. Waters. J. J.. Graham. J. W. Hol-
Harry f. Davis. R E Hurfurth. w A
Cooper. H. F. Richardson. Walt S Hall
c. G. Rankin, H. P. O'Malley. H. NJ. Den
nison, C. E. Veitenthal. A. E. Klotz. A
l.. Bernard. C. f. Bush. J. A P Hebrew.
w. Sparks. P. L. Baldwin. A R. Belts.
A. B. White. NJ. o. Clark. John H. Stull.
J. l.. Tanning, F. l. E. McCarten, Guy
E. Ellis. w. G Peake, Alex Licarione, j.
Brown. A. w Manger. A. Giovannoni
]. c. Jenson. B. D. Costello. R. S. Crow
ther. J. R. Mehfelt, w. NJ Hannemann.
J. A Fletcher, ]. w. Kimmerling,
George G. Holroyd. John Kennedy, J..
L. Proctor. T. o. Thoman, Frank Craw-
ford. w w. Luscombe, w. l.. fudge.
G. c. Holt, William Mcmahon, G. A.
Long. J. w. Sebastian. 7. b. Regan,
Eddie Johnston. ]. H. Moore, w. H
Werden. c. w. Stansbury, w. f. Hayes,
J. NJ. Watts. E. w. Sweeney, H. NJ
Dickinson. Joseph I. A. Creager. B. J.
Webster. J. T. Kelley, w. H. Lloyd. A
S. Harvey, j. H. Fetter, Oscar Kibbey.
NJ. W. Smith. E. B. Deeters. f. Deshazo.
G: w. Johnson. Joseph Schriver J. c.
Wilkens. William Smith. C. J. Seger, w
e. Crawford, E. NJ. Jarboe. R. D. Gran
mann. R. L. Davis. William NJ. Griffith.
n. Mortensen. c. E. Higgs. w. E. Cullen,
T. A. Costello. w. Lescallet. w. H Muir
ply, j. G. F. Schulz, Paul NJ. Anderson,
r. w. Watts. C. ]. Hurley, G. A Sim
mons and J. Roth.