Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1917-05-02
IALIA SOUTH CAROLINA WEDNESDAY MAY 2 1D17
SELECTIVE DRAFT BILL WINS.
Both Senate and House Pass bill by
Overwhelming Votes.

oNcfWnelIllnE tOtcS.
Washington, April 2S.-By over
whelming majorities both the Senate
and House passed late tonight the
administration bill to raise war
army by Selective draft.
The final roll calls brought into
line behind the bill many Senators
and Representatives who had fought
for the volunteer system until routed
by decisive defeats of volunteer
amendments earlier in the day in
both Houses.
The Senate. which had voted down
the volunteer plan 60 to Is, passed
the bill by vote Of 81 to 8. In the
House the vote agains. the volunteer
plan was 313 to 100, and that by
which the bill itself was passed was
397 to 81.
AS passed by the Senate, the meas
ure provides for the draft OF men be-
tween the ages Of 81 to q years.
while In the House the age limits are
fixed at 21 and 40. This and lesser
discrepancies will be threshed out in
conference so that the bill may be
in the hands of the President as
quickly as possible. The War De-
for carrying 1t into effect.
Senators who voted against the
bill were:
Democrats-Gore, Hardwich, Kir-
by, Thomas, Trammell
Dublicans-Borah, Gronna, La
Toilette.
Senator Vardaman, of Mississippi,
Democrat, was excused from voting
at his own request. He did not give
a reason.
The Representatives in the mega
tive were:
Republicans-Bac King, Haves,
LaFOllette. Lundeen Of Minnesota,
Mason, Nolan, Powers.
Democrats - Burnett, Church,
Clark Of Florida, Claypool, Grosser,
Dill, Dominick, Gordon, Hilliard,
Huddleston, Keating, Sears, Sher-
wood, Sisson.
Prohibtionist--Randal.
Socialist-London.
Pay to Be Increased.
Both Senate and House adopted an
amendment just before the final roll
calls which would greatly increase
the pay Of enlisted men during the
wais The House provision would
make their pay $40 a month, and
that approved by the Senate would
fix 1t at 500 month. The present
pay Is only SIS.
In the House at the last moment
Chairman Fitzgerald, objected vigOr-
ously to the appropriation Of $4,000
100000 carried in the bill for the
expenses OF the new army and the
section finally was eliminated.
Senate Favors Teddy.
Among the amendments adopted in
the Senate was one which would per-
NIT Col. Roosevelt to recruit volun-
teer force for service in France. A
similar proposal had been rejected
by the House.
Anti-Liquor Amendments.
In the Senate there was a long de-
bate over the proposal to prohibit the
sale or possession of Intoxicating IL
quOr during the war. Several amend
ments were adopted, including one to
make 1t unlawful to sell or give IL
quor to officers or men in uniform or
to members Of Congress, or other off,
cials, and then the Senate reversed
itself and adopted a substitute sim
ply forbidding the sale Of liquor to
soldiers in uniform and giving the
President wide discretionary author
ity to make other prohibition regula-
tions.
An amendment, by Senator Curtis,
stipulating that men subject to draft,
who voluntarily present themselves,
shall be recorded as volunteers, was
accepted by Chairman Chamberlain
and went into the bill.
Another long debate was evoked by
Senators Thomas and La Toilette to
exempt from conscription those hav-
ing conscientious objections to
military service. Both were defeat
ed without a roll call, and the bill's
exemption proposals left unchanged.
Many Of the more radical amend
ments adopted are expected to be
thrown out in conference and admin
istration leaders hope to restore vir-
tually all Of the important features
before the bill goes to the President.
The question OF ages probably will
form the biggest barrier to quick
conference agreement.
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SOUTH HOLDS THE KEY. y