The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-07-06
|DRAFT HOAX HIT
KEOkUk YESTERDAY
Not Semblance of Truth in the Re.
port That Was Spread Broadcast
That Numbers Were
Drawn.
NUMBERS GO TONIGHT
For This Reason, IT For No Other
There Gould be no DRAWING
Prosecutions May be
Result.

A hoax that was started by some
one who deserves to be placed In the
category with the idiot who rocks the
boat, and points the didn't know 1T
was loaded gun" at you, stirred Keo-
kuk yesterday afternoon when the
word was spread broadcast that the
first draft numbers had been drawn.
The worst of it was that local people
let their sanity run away with them
and believed the hoax. In the first
place the numbers could not have
been drawn, because the Lee county
numbers are not going forward to
Washington until tonight. In the
next place the provost general has an
nounced that not. before next week
would the drawing be made.
How the list Of purported numbers
got started is not definitely known.
1t was posted first on baseball bull
letin board in Peru, Ind, and it is quite
generally believed to have been pick
ed UP by brokerage offices and ssent
broadcast. The same list was flashed
from coast to coast so that 1t was evil
dent it started from the same source.
1t is presumed more than likely that
some one intending to play a joke on
some friends made up numbers. Who
ever it was should be ferreted out, If
possible, by government agents and
an example made of him. The list of
numbers was received here in several
places, and 1t proved bad night for
some of the local people, who thought
their sons or brothers had been
drawn.
Calls It Crime.
Sheriff Scott, chairman of the Lee
county exemption board, character
lied the hoax as shame and crime.
People were telephoning him in wild
est excitement from West Point and
other points in the county, Fort Madi-
son papers "bit" on the sell and pub
lished the numbers. They will be
busy "eating crow" doubtless by to-
day. Calls poured into The Gate City
office from all sources. Long after
the office was closed last night indi-
vidual members of the force were
kept busy trying to explain that the
whole thing was without semblance Of
truth. But people refused to believe
them, so excited had they become.
Why II Was Impossible.
just " oIoW Ao" oItCliy llhpcoSlDAo
such a proceeding as was reported
late yesterday could have been, a
Gate City man asked Sheriff Scott to
tell him just what was being done by
the Lee county board The sheriff re-
ceived notification. Tuesday to organ
lie the board within twenty-four
hours. He organized the board We'd
nesday. Then the board in compli-
ance with orders, arranged to send to
the provost marshal through the ad
jutant general of the state, the off,
cial list and numbers of Lee county's
registered men. This list is now in
the process Of compilation, and will
not be completed and o. KID until
just time enough to go forward to-
night on the TAB train north.
The provost marshal asks for all
lists to be forwarded by Saturday,
and the Lee board is complying. This,
on the face Of things, shows that such
a situation as arose yesterday after
noon could not be possible. 1t shows,
too, just how excitable people are in
times Of stress like this, and how,
If they would listen to reason instead
Of going off half cooked, they would