Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-12-01
PLANNING TO AID
D. c. REG|STRANTS
Court Shortens Days Work,
Giving Lawyers More
Time to Help.
SCORES OF VOLUNTEERS

The Supreme Court of the District of
Columbia will hold but one session
day during the twenty-seven days fol-
lowing December IS. in order that mem
bers of the local bar may devote their
afternoons and evenings to assisting
the 10000 registered men of the District
yet uncalled in answering the war De-
partment missionaries. The aid of
the lawyers is to be given gratis.
Chief Justice ]. Harry Covington an
nounced this action at n meeting of the
local legal profession held in the audi
torium of Georgetown University Law
School last night. Scores of lawyers ex-
pressed their willingness to serve as
volunteers with the legal advisory
board of the District. of which A. A
Hoehlng. jr.. is chairman.
Provost Marshal General Crowder and
Maj ]. S. Easily Smith of the provost
marshars Office explained in detail to
the lawyers just what the PRESIDENT
and the War Department are. calling
try to do in assisting the registered
men in properly filling out the question:
naires.
To Begin December IS.
Beginning December IS, lcal boards
of the nation will begin sending out
| the questionnaires to all registered
men not actually indicted into milf
tary service. The sets of questions
will be sent out to per cent OF regis
trants in each local exemption division
per day Thus it will require twenty
days. beginning December 10: TO com
plete the mailing of the questionnaires.
Seven days is given each registrant to
complete his QUESTIONABLE. Thus
twenty DAYS, and seven thereafter, will
be required for completing all ques,
ltionnaires, and ii is during this period
that the services OF lawyers Will De
required by registrants.
This war work is so vital and so
important. so much more important
than litigation can ever be-, Chtet JUS
nouncing that there will be but the
single session of the court. beginning
December Is. he declared:
az needs be- the court feels constrained
to take perhaps an entire adjournment II
it may be necessary to give OF the entire
service of the bar of the District of Co
lunbia to this work" Great applause
greeted this announcement.
Will Accomplish Two Things.
1.-THE questions that are to be put to
these men," declared the chief Justice,
"are many they are necessarily in COM
MEX form The accuracy or those an
swers, the fullness OF those answers. the
frankness of those answers will go far
toward the doing of two things: Simply
fying the work of the already overbur-
dened War Department, and vastly aid
ing in the impartial selection OF the men
who are to go forward to win the battle
! for democracy, and thus Justify the under
living principle of the original selected
| draft act"
| Provost Marshal General Crowder. after
reading a letter from Secretary Baker
greeting the lawyers. said:
ssIp fha beginnings of all the In
which this nation has been engaged we
have been able to contemplate veritable
professions Of enthusiastic men. ready. in
recruit parlance, to take on in the mill
tary and naval service Of this country.
Not That Kind of War.
| This is not that kind of war. 1t
was not that kind of war in England.
| It is not that kind of a war in France
| or italy. or in any other of the ma
lions with which we are allied. The
reason Is not far to seek. We are up
against an enemy in this war that is
organized industrially. militarily. to
the last man, woman and child in the
empire, and 1t is only by perfecting the
same organization In this country that
we can hope to win this war
"Out Of that all-important fact there
has been born a new national attitude
toward war. 1t is not an unpatriotic
attitude; it is emphatically the con-
trary; 1t Is a thoughtful attitude, 1t
| is a sober attitude, it is an attitude of
great military value. The nation
pauses: there is an absence OF hys-
| terra; there is an absence of the en-
| thusiasm that has generally accom-
panied our wars, born of the convic-
| ton that every man in this nation
must be classified and assigned to the
field where he can contribute most to
the common good"
The ration is the lawyers client in
the work which the legal profession
will do in assisting registrants. Gen.
Crowder said. He paid high tribute to
Mai Easby-Smith, former chairman of
the district board for the District of
columbia
Maj. Easby-smith Reviews Process.
MAJ. Easby-smith. reviewing for the
| lawyers the new process OF classtdcA-
i ealllaA AHGf -AllAA <all& AZ