The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-08-18
Richmond BOARDS
ARE 0BEY|kG LAW
Conduct Compliance OF By Provost
Marshal General Has Not
Prevailed Here.
CALLS FOR CLERICAL AID.
chairman COX. of District Exemption
Board, Asks For Volunteers to hcip
In Handling Mass of Clerical Work.


it that no man is certified to the ans
,rtct board for military service unless
Il ia reasonably certain that ms oruel
Of obligation Will INCLUDE MN ia "a.
erst draft 1t was ruled yesterday uy
tho provost acknowledgement In a tel
GRAN received at the office OF Aolu-
tant-General W. w. Sale. The ruling
was made by the provost marshhi ioI-
lowing information received by nun
that some boards were calllns men
throughout the whole list OF persons
registered accepting those who passeo
the physical examinations, ana eH-
empting those who MADE clallhs "
be relieved from service
While no such condition is known
to exist in Richmond or Virginia,
General Sale is sending the telegram
to all the boards in the state for thelr
information. The one thing empha-
sized by the government Is tha' no
man must he called into service un-
less the order of his obligation to serve
indicates that he is within the hrst
call IT is feared that many boards.
falling to conduct their examinations
as outlined by the provost marshal
are not giving the care 10 the claims
for exemptions that Is needed. ana
are consequently allowing more than
they should. Such procedure advances
the liability of every registrant VINO
has not been called, and is unfair 20
them The telegram received yester-
day by General Sale is as follows:
Reports received concerning few
local boards are to the effect that
these boards are proceeding to call
throughout the whole list OF persons
registered, then to certify upon only
, those who claim no exemption, regard
I less of whether their order OF obliga-
! ton places them within the quota,
! leaving the claims of exemption unde-
/ cided. or merely allowing all Of them
without discrimination. In effect this
! course permits volunteering among
! registrants. This method is Illegal ana
unauthorized. All registrants stand in
an equality before the law except az
| the law DEGREES on inequality. The
! law DEGREES an inequality only where
! exemption boards. after property ex-
! ercisng their functions, have granted
exemptions or discharges. Further
I more the method results In calling
, men for military service -out of their
/ order Local boards should certify
those who claim no exemption rap
idly but they should also act on
claims for exemption rapidly and
within the time prescribed by regula-
| tions. and certify the cases ct once.
District boards should also certify
claim no exemption. but they should
! also act promptly on the cases OF
| those who do not claim exemption,
and especially on the cases ~of persons
whose order of obligation is early.
The first 30 per cent of the quota
/ may be composed Of men whose cases
are undecided, although the case OF
i persons of prior obligation are still
| pending in the district board, but
great care must be taken by the local
boards to send no one to military ser
vice whose order of obligation la so
late as to make 1t improbable that he
Will be within the total quota. BY
September 9 when the second call Is
made there will be enough appealed
cases, and cases within the exclusive
4 Jurisdiction of the district board de
cided to make up the second 80 per
cent from men whose order Of ohliga-
ton is early and who are hence sure
to be within the quota. The same will
he true of the 80 per cent to be fur
rished an October 8, The iast-l0 per
f'cent must be4selected with great care
to he sure that no one in the. whole
quota IL sent for military duty while
a selected person with an earlier order
Of obligation for military service is
allowed to remain at home"
Several instances OF persons with
y out dependents who have businesses
which would be abandoned If they
left for service have come to the at
tention OF. the authorities, and In such
cases ii is the belief that the persons
can apply for exemption to the district
board. In many cases men have stores
or other established enterprises, who
on account of having brothers in the
service, have no one to whom they
can leave the business. It is not be-
iteVed that the government would de-
| 'nand that such a person close his bus
mess.
Calls for Clerical Aid.
Edwin P. Cox chairman Of the
board for the Eastern district OF Vir.
ginia, had many volunteers yesterday
IN response to his appeal for help In
the gigantic task on which the board
!. is engaged Much clerical work viii
ne required to be done by the board
much more than the member them.
selves would do--and in order tina
the exemption matters may be hur.
ried all possible. Mr. Cox asked 70,
volunteers Yesterday a number o.
men offered their time and services
, among them being A. j. Bradley, Fe
l Tx keegan, George p. White, w. 3
a Beck. D M. Patterson, P. D. Pendlc
ton. w. S. Burnett, S. P Jones 1nc
walker Cottrell, DR.. J. A. c. Chan
der. of the John Marshall High
: school. is endeavoring to obtain some
: Of the high school pupils OF short
hand classes to do several hours
work daily for the board.
Had Already Enlisted.
All of the local boards Of the cit,
r are husily engaged in going over thu
a exemption papers filed by the men
I and each day some few are certified
q TO the district board as being subiec
to military service. Division No 2
e or which n. F. Atkinson is chairman
n Yesterday allowed about fifty claim
= Tor exemption, and the men were re
= lleVed from service. Thirteen mer
i VINO had been absent on the day Sc
FOR their examination, and had beer
= designated as slackers. it was tounc
: by the board had enlisted Thes,
r persons are as follows:
I Jos. 7. Mckinney. Eighth an,
/. Grace.
n Edward r. Estes, 1908 East Mar
: shall.
: Francis c. Womack. Forty-fourtY
, ana Bellevue avenue.
Rawley Martin Fleet, Y. NJ c A
Harold s. Wright. 100 East Frank
lin,
:, Perley Giles Lewter. 1914 semn,es
l. Iefcy j. Wrenn. 90l East Leigh.