The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1917-11-02
BAKER SAYS THEY ALL
WOULD co TO FRANCE
SELECT MEN EAGER TO GET
ON FIRING LINE.
Secretary of War Declares Ma.
tiOn Should Have Only
Pride Over SOldiery.

theyoung men called for service in
the national army want to go toI
France as fighting men, and they
want to get there quickly.
Reports from five or six of the
big training camps, Secretary Baker
said. show that when asked what
they want to do, the great majority
of the select men say they don't care
what their job is to be just so they
get to France among the first. When
given a choice between the COM
batant and non-combatant branches,
most Of them elect to be fighters.
THE boys at the front and those
getting ready to go there are right
is the verdict of the secretary, who
recently visited several training
camps in the east and south. "Our
nation need have nothing but mount
ing pride at the spectacle they pre-
| sent"
"In these camps" said Mr.. Bakers
statement, leach man is asked:
had reports from five or six of the
largest camps and they show that
the majority answered in effect: L
don't care what / do just so l get to
France among the first The next
question asked them is: what
branch of the service do you pre-
fer?' Now, one who didn't know
America would expect then to say:
Well. l have been working in a
store L have been a hand on a
farm L have been a mechanic.
L have been clerk i don't
know much about guns and cannon,
perhaps some one of the non-com-
batant places is the place where l
can render the best service But
what is the fact?
"These sons and brothers, drawn
out of life by selection-more than
one-third have asked to go into the
infantry service. The next choice
is the light artillery; the next is
the heavy artillery service; the next
is the aviation service.
80 that what they ask for in a
tremendously predominating MAORI
ty of instances is, not the non
combatant service for which their
previous experience might we'll quail
ify them, but the fighting branch, so
that they can take the risk of fight
ing for their country with the real
weapons of war. The boys at the
front and getting ready to go are all
right. Our nation need have moth
ing but mounting pride at the spec.
tacle they present.
The gathering Of information as
to the mems preference for service
, is but small part of the work OF
classifying the national army mer
that is being carried on under the
, direction of the committee on class
ification of personnel in the army
Virtually the life history OF every
man is set down by means of al
elaborate card system, the origina
being sent TO the divisional head
quarters, where a division personne
, officer studies the answer given anC
, classifies the selected man accordin.
' to his capabilities. The other cop,
, is kept in the company records.
) Questions asked include extent O
schooling, what foreign languages
the men speak, their preference a.
to the branch of service, whether
married or single, what was then
previous trade, job or occupation
name of last employer, wage re
ceived and in what work they have
. been most proficient.
1t is within the province of the
personnel officer to recommend
transfers from one company to an
other to fill deficiencies in expert
men, such as gunsmiths and the
like.