The Watertown news. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1917-1919, 1917-10-22
CROWDER CHANGES
DRAFT SYSTEM
New Regulations Fix Status of All
Men Who Have Reg
iStered.
DIVIDED INTO FIVE CLASSES
Men Without Dependents Will Be
Called First, Unless Vital to War
lndustry-Date for Next In
crement to Be Jan. 1.

Washington.-Oct. 22.-New draft
regulations, postponing the physical
examination of the remaining 100000
draft registrantS until they are called
for military service, and assigning the
men to five classes, thus determining
the order of their call to the colors,
were announced by Provost Marshall
General Crowder.
1t was indicated that January will
be the date of the next call.
Under the new regulations it will be
possible for registrant to determine
whether he will be called in the first
100000 additional men to be sum-
moned, the second 100000, or later
cOntingents.
The Five Glasses.
Here is the new system In a nut
shell:
Five classes of draft registrants are
established approximately as follows ::
F1rst-Men with absolutely no de-
pendents.
Second-Skilled farm laborers or
others slightly less available for mill
tary service than the first class.
Third-Skilled laborers and men
whose work is deemed vital to war in
dustries.
Fourth-Married men with children
whose families are wholly dependent
upon them for support.
tffth-Cripples, mental detectives,
and those specifically exempted from
military service.
OF these classes.
The New Order.
The provost marshal's announce
ment In full follows:
with the completion Of the draft
OF the first army of 6S7, 900 men a new
system will be installed for the crea-
tion of succeeding armies, which will
greatly lessen the labors of the local
and district boards. So far as this
been accomplished that it is believed
under the new system 80 per cent of
the work will be eliminated while the
forms to be used will not exceed twen-
ty In number as compared with ap-
ent system requires.
Along with the reduction of labor
there will be provided a system which
VIII classify each one Of the nine mil
lions Of men who have not yet been
inducted into military service and each
man will have'been given his place in
the national scheme of defense.
Fix Economic Worth of Each.
ITO do this it has been determined
to obtain from each man complete in
formation of q character which will
definitely fix his economic worth as
compared with his fellow registrant,
and from the Information thus OBJ
tanned to place him in one of the five
classes, each to be called in turn as
the need arises.
THE method of obtaining this in
formation is through QUESTIONABLE,
q series of questions calculated to
produce the information required. This
document will be mailed to every reg
istrant not yet In service on a day
to be fixed, seven days being given to
each registrant to complete and return
the same. Every opportunity will be
offered to each man to complete his
'questionaire fully and without error
"The local boards will then examine
questionable and assign each registrant
to one Of five classes.
"These classes will be based upon
every conceivable condition, from the
family or Occupational standpoint. that
should properly be advanced by man
desiring to be excused from military
duty. Glass one will be the first called
for physical examination and service.
and when it is exhausted. If the ma
tlon's needs are such as to make it
nt ;essary, class two will follow, and
thus each man registered will ulti-
mately take his place if needed.
Every opportunity for appeal from
has been retained and perfected. but
p. ceedings have been greatly sim
plified.
THE tedious work of the local
boards has been practically eliminat-
ed by the production of a form, to be
known as No. 1000, which will be the
foundation stone of the new system.
"On this new form the complete his.
tory of each mans case will appear
at glance.
1.-The completion of the new system
will solve problems which have con-
fronted the provost marshal general
and caused him much concern.
Under the old system Of exemption
and discharge 1t would have been
necessary, IL the national need re-
quired. to send for the exempted man
to return for physical re-examination,
while In the meantime his Industrial
or family status might have changed