The Mena weekly star., 1917-08-09

FIRING SQUADS
 WILL BACK DRAFT
Resistcrs Will Be Treated As De- serterS, General Crowder An n0unces -. COurt-Martial for
 Failure to Respond to Call.

Washington. Aug. 5.-Registered men who resist the Selectiye Draft Law face court-martial for deser- tion and possibly death for deser- tion in time of war The whole mil itary and civil power of the federal government and the civil power of the states, cities or counties will be employed
 This was announced last night by Brigadier General Enoch H. Crow der, provost marshal general. in response to reports from North Car olina, Georgia and Oklahoma of anti-draft disturbances, tho fed eral aid has not been invoked.
 Nothing to Resist Now.
 General Crowder's statement fol- lows:
 Press reports and other advices received indicate that in one or two widely separated districts indi- viduals, misinformed as to the pur- poses of.the law and misguided as to its results, are threatening forcible resistance to the draft.
 There is nothing to resist at this stage i'll the execution of the law. All male persons between the ages of 2i and 30, inclusive, have been enrolled for military service. A preliminary call has gone forth to some such persons, but the immedi- ate and actual object of this call is merely to provide an opportunity for them, or for someone else in respect of them, to present to the government reasons why they should not be finally ordered to re- port for military duty. If such persons do not appear and present these reasons they have simply neg lected to take advantage of an op- portunity that was offered solely for their benefit
 Army Will Be Raised Just the Same.
 The failure of persons to take advantage of this opportunity does not interfere with the raising of the army and interests the government only as a punlshible crime of omis- sion. If they do not desire to make such claims or if, for any other req son, they fail to appear, their names are automatically posted as having been called and not exempted or discharged Automatically, also, they are inducted into the military service and made subject to military law. Failure to appear merely hast ems the automatic processes.
 When the time allowed for mak- ing these claims has elapsed, these persons will be enrolled as in the military service. They will then be ordered to appear as soldiers. From this point on they will be under the swift and summary procedure of court-martial Failure to report for military duty when ordered to do so constitutes desertion.
 War Desertion a Capital Oirense.
 'Desertion in time of war is a capital ofTense. Deserters may be apprehended by either civil or mill itary authority and after the man date of the federal government has gone forth the whole strength of the military arm of the government is available to apprehend deserters, if it is necessary to use such force. To Make Exemption Claims Public.
 General Crowder took action to- day to reduce the number of appli- cations for exemption. In a tele- gram to all governors he directed that local boards be instructed to furnish daily to newspapers names of all registered men who apply for exemption, give grounds for such claims and state action by the board, exception in cases of physical dis qualifications.
 Far from regarding the progress of the selection process as slow, General Crowder believes rapid strides are being made If reports were available tonight, he said from each of the forty-six hundred local boards, 1t would be shown that many thousands of men have al ready passed physically, filed no ap- plieation for exemption and are now merely awaiting orders to join the colors. An accurate estimate of the number of this class is not obtain able.