New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-08-02
Only Five Willing to Fight
Of171 Tested in Draft I Here
Flat Feet or Bad Teeth Principal Disqualihcations
of 63 in District l42-Others Claim Exemption
Many Who Fail to Report Face Court t-martial

The first batch Of men to be fed Of
ficially into the New York draft ma
chine appeared for examination yes
terdav before local boards No. ll2
and 1874, which stole march on the
excmptors Of the city's other 1877 dis
tricts and posted their notices last
Friday night
In all one hundred and sevcnty-one
men were examined, and the net re-
suit was five men willing and ft for
the new National Army. The hve
were ready to fight, and said so. A
good share of the rest probably Will
be made to do so.
sided over by Isidor Wasservogel,
former assistant district attorney Of
Whitman's day, and has headquarters
in Public School No. II, at Eighty
sixth Street and First Avenue, had
called l28 men. All appeared, with inc
result that the three medical examn-
ers were swamped. Twenty-Five of the
registrants, after waiting their turn
patiently for many hours, were re-
leased at 5 o'clock in the evening and
told 10 report again to-day.
Many Fail to Report
In the l54th exemption district calls
had been sent TO 108 men. OF these
only sixty-fve reported at exemption
Headquarters, at so West Thirteenth
Street, a fact which may hasten the
filing of the districts quota OF l6O.
Uncle Sam has shrewdly mixed medl-
cine for the man who doesn't take the
draft seriously enough to do as he's
told, and if the absentees don't get
around with a good excuse within the
next ten days there aren't any Tor
malities.
From that time on they will be SOL
diers. If they don't get over their
deafness then they'll be deserters, and
after that the real trouble will develop.
IL was not necessary for DR.. j. Mill
ton Mabbott and his assistants 20 ex-
anime five of those who obeyed the
summons. They were Germans and eX-
empt-rather, excluded-as enemy
aliens. Two more puzzled the physl-
clans so that they were told to report
for re-examination, and no action was
taken on their cases.
Twenty-four Pass Physical Test
OF the fifty-eight remaining, Just
half passed the physical test. The
others, their physical disqualification
for service certified, will be heard Of
no more.
There being no central authority to
direct them, the boards are going ahead
pretty much on their own interpreta-
ton Of the regulations Albert S. Bard,
Allan Dawson and Dr. Mabbott, the
exemptors for the l54th District, felt
they were without right to question
registrants concerning their intentions.
Consequently there is no official record
vet, and will not be until the seven
days of grace have expired, Of the
number OF men qualified physically
who will step out Of their civilian life
without seeking exemption.
One Of them did put himself en- rec
ord. though, as willing and intending
TO serve. This was Orville j. Bells,
who is twenty-five years old, a clerk in
the National City Bank and lives at 2l5
West Twenty-third Street. Bells
seemed surprised when asked whether
he would claim exemption.
"Of course not" he replied. II
haven't any one dependent on me for
support, so why should II"
BELLS glanced about him. He seemed
TO be making 4 new appraisal Of those
about him.
whats the troublsT" he wanted TO