Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-07-18
FATEFUL DRAWING
!. FOR NATIONS ARMY
. BEFORE WEEK ENDS
Only Final Approval of Sec
retary of War Baker Re-
mains to Be Given.
ALL BUT SEVEN STATES
ARE FULLY ORGANIZED
Crowder May Reveal Sufficient
Details to Inform Registrants
of Positions on List.
REHEARSAL OF PROCESS HELD
Complex Arrangement VIII Be Em.
ployed, So That Drawing VIII
Be Absolutely Fair.
ALL BUT SEVEN STATES
ARE FULLY ORGANIZED
OF PROCESS HELD
Complex Arrangement VIII Be Em.
ployed, So That Drawing VIII
Be Absolutely Fair.
IBy Associated Press.1

,s..
WASHINGTON. July 1T.-All but
of their local exemption machinery to-
night. encouraging officials in their
hope that drawing of lots to determine
the order of liability under the selec.
tive conscription law may be held be.
fore the end of the week. Four States
reported ready to-day, and the War
Department has been informed that IN
those remaining TO report only q few
local districts are missing. TN>
Although no details have been re-
vealed. it was learned tonight that
the plan Of the drawing to be held i'm (
Secretary Bakers Office virtually has
been completed. and that an announce
ment may be made by Provost-Mar-
shal-General Crowder tomorrow. Sec
retar:' Bakers final approval of the
plan is yet to be given. but General
Crowder may reveal enough of the de-
tails to guide newspapers in preparing
to publish the result and to inform
registrants what facts they must as-
certain in order to know their exact
position on%the liability lists.
SENTIMENT GROWING
TO MAKE ALIENS LIABLE
While these preparations are going
forward. sentiment apparently is grow
Ing in Congress in favor OF amending
the conscription act so as to make
aliens liable for service, or otherwise
to relieve the requirements placed UNI
der the present allotment upon COM
munities with large foreign popula-
ton. Bills to this end have been pre-
pared In both Senate and House, but
the administration has not indicated
that 1t will favor any change. Many
officials hold to the. opinion that to
compel aliens to serve would bc a ylo.
lation of International law.
The States from which reports OF
complete exemption arrangements wero
received during the day are: Utah, Ala
bama. Ohio and Virginia.
Reports ntill are to come from Illt-
nois, Kentucky. Michigan. MississippL
New York. Missouri and Pennsylvania,
Detailed plans of the drawing itself
remain to be finally approved by Sec
rotary Baker. rehearsal of the pro-
cess nended was held several
days ago in order to determine the
amount OF time necessary and to de-
Velop any weak spots In the scheme
but pending its approval no details 4
VIII be revealed. There are indica-
tions that more complex arrange
ment than has yet been outlined pub
licly Will be employed in the interest
of perfect fairness.
REGIsTRAN1S MUST KNOW
THEIR SERIAL NUMBERS
AS far as can be told now, every
registrant will have to be informed
not only of the serial number placed
on his card by the local exemption
board. but also Of the exact number OF
registrants in his district Otherwise
he will be unable to know until he ID
ordered before the board what his order
OF liability is.
Given his own number and the total
number OF reEistrants in his district,
any registrant can figure out quickly
what place he occupies In the line as .
soon as the RESULTS Of the lottery are
announced. If there are 1900 regis
tered men. every serial number above
that will represent blank In that
district when it Is drawn. and the ro.
tation numbers of the drawing will &
pass them over. Thus II No. 1.4as
should be drawn first No. 1860 second
and No. 1.247 third. the order of liza
biiity In 1900 district would be No.
l.42S first and No. 1.247 second While
ofhciais of the provost marshars Office
refused to-day to discuss charges OF
unfairness in allotment of quotas made
yesterday in the S-,nate, it was pointed
out again that the revised population
estimates OF the Census Bureau, upon
which the allotment was made, were
based wholly on the actual showing at
the registration. Under the law the
bureau had to consider the huctuatlon
OF population since 1910. the last CEN
sus. and the War Department had to \
count in aliens in making allotments,
even though they are exempt from ser-
vice.
RUN HIGH
IN INDUSTRIAL CI:NrERS
Reconstruction of population esti.
mates in the light OF registration re-
turns showed that on the average s3-1o
per cent of the total population were d
within the age limits OF the draft bill.
In large commercial and Industrial CEN
ters. the percentage ran far above the
figure because OF tho inhux OF young Il
men. case I'm point Is Detroit. where n