Abbeville progress. (Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, La.) 1913-1944, 1917-12-01


with the publication Of the foreword
he has written to the regulations UNI
der which the second call will be made
The regulations themselves and the
questionaires which more than 5000,
600 registrants viii be required to fill
out arc being forwarded to local
boards but have not yet been made
public.
War Department officials estimate
that the whole process can be com
pleted within sixty DAYS This means
that no second call will be made upon
the draft forces before the middle Of
next February, as the period of class
ification will not begin until Decem-
Der ii,
The president describes the new
plan Of dividing all registered men
not already modified into five classes,
subject TO military service by "a more
perfect organization Of our man pow
err"
"The selective principle must be
carried to Its logical conclusion,n the
president said. and he added that
thcre must be made a complete inven-
tory of the qualifications Of each reg
istrant in order to determine" the place
in the military. industrial or agricul-
tural ranks of the nation in which his
experience and training can best be
made to serve the common good"
The inquiry projected into the ques-
tionnire will go deep into the quail
ficRtions Of each Of nearly 10000 men.
The sGccess Of the plan and its com
pletion within the estimated time rests
absolutely upon the wholehearted sup.
port given by the people, especially by
the doctors and LAWYERS Of each com.
munity, and the president calls upon
them for their unstinted aid.
The presidents foreword follows:
"Tae task of selecting and mobiiiz-
ing the first contingent of the national
army is nearing completion. The SIX.
petition and accuracy of Its accom-
plishreut were a most gratifying de
monstratiou of the efficiency Of our
sssoeratic pstitdGF6rs Fhe swiftness
&;th. (which thesaaaehinery for its e.
eention bad 10 be es---ssseszs Hssas-evazs
left the room for adjustment and i'm.
provement.
Must Prove Qualifications
"The time has come for q more per.
feet organization Of our man power.
The selective principle must be car.
ried to its logical conclusion. We must
make complete inventory of the quail
ifications OF all reaistrants in order
to determine, as TO each man not al
ready selected for duty with the colors
the place in the military. industrial,
or agricultural ranks of the nation in
which his experience and training can
pssi be made TO sgrve the common
good. This project involves an in
quiry by the selection boards into the
domestic, industrial, and educational
qualifications of nearly ten million
msa.
i'Aiembers of these boards have rem.
dered n CONSPICUOUS service. The work
was done without regard to personal
convenience and under pressure of
immediate necessity which imposed
great sacrifices Yet tle service Of
mon trained by the experience e the
fist lraft must of necessity be re-
tained Gnl the selection board must
provide the directing mechanism for
the Pow classification. The thing they
have done Ia scarcely one-teEth the
magnitude of tae thing that remains
to be done.
cit is Of great Importance both to
our military and to our economic in
terests that the classification be car.
ried swiftly and accurately TO con
clusion. An estimate Of the time nee
esary for the work leads to the con-
ciusion that it can be accomplished in
sixty days; but only if this great mar
shalling Of our resources of men is re-
garded by all as national war under
taking of such significance as to chal-
lenge the attention and compel the as
sistance Of every American.
81 call upon all citizens, therefore,
to assist local and district boards by
proffering such service and such ma
treial conveniences as they can offer
and by appearing before the boards,
either upon summons or upon their
own initiative, to give such informa'
ton as will be useful In classifying
registrants.
81 urge men of the legal profession
20 offer themselves as associate mem
bers Of the Legal. Advisory Boards to
be provided In each community for
the purpose Of advising registrsnts Of
their rights and obligations and Of
assisting them In the preparation Of
their answers to the questions which
all men subject to draft are requested
to submit.
81 ask the doctors of the country