Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1918-09-27
Paramount DUTY to Aid Work Of
SgeUtive Boards.
Can Perform Great Service to coua.
Try BY Helping Work Of Classifying
Registrars Under the Sc
leetive Service Act.


err representatives OF industry through
out the country concerning their share
OF responsibility In the classification
OF the new registrants under the Sc
lective service act.
General Crowder says:
l have noticed. In the general ex.
presslons OF the public attitude which
reaeAi this Office. two frequent features
which lead me TO the present com
ments. One Of these features ia the
belief that the process OF awarding de-
ferred classification TO registrant re-
quires merely the filllng out Of the
questionable. and that the selective
service boards VIII perceive the pro-
priety OF making the deferment. with.
out the assistance furnished hy the
registrant's formal claim indicating
the deferment desired. The other fea-
ture IL the employers failure 70 real
Ire his responsibility to intervene IN
aiding the boards determination, and
therefore to Inform himself fully % ell
the considerations which should AFFECT
the decision as to defeFment.
/. As TO the first mentioned belief,
Il must be pointed ont that " Il were
universally acted upon. the process Of
classification would be seriously ham
pered and delayed. Someone must IN
dictate that the individual case II one
which should arrest the special atten.
ton OF the boards In respect TO the reg
istrant's occupationai status, The
boards do not possess supcrhuman
omuiscence.
Boards viii Make Examination.
The boards viii do all that they pos
sibiy can. on their own initiative, 10
reach a just decision by n complete ex.
animation Of the questionable. evea
where no claim IL expressly made. A
reglstrant Is therefore at liberty, II he
sees At, 20 trust to the scrutiny Of the
boards to discover the necessity for his
deferment.
Nevertheless. the boards will well
come and will need all the aid that can
be furnished by the Indication Of a
claim made for deferment. With this
aid. the process viii become simple
and speedy one.
2. Why should the employer. or 9TH
or third person, IN such cases. make
the cIaIm3 Because the employer In
this situation represents the nation,
because In the statutory phrascl
''the maintenance Of the military en-
tabllshment or Of national interest
during the emergency requires that
some weil-ndvlsed third person should
look after that national interest which
fhe registrant himself may not have
sufficiently considered.
l. II Is often forgotten that the selec-
tive draft Il only one element in the
depletion Of particular industry's
man-power. A second ana large eie-
ment IL found IN the voluntary with
drawals for enlistment: how large this
IL NAV be aeen from The circumstance
that the total inductions ny drift have
reached some 2.O00. 900. while the total
enlistments In army md navy amount
TO some 1.400. OO0-nearly three-luar-
tiers ms many. third element. very
large. but unknown ~ 10 its precise
extent, has been the transfer OF labor
power from one industry 70 another.
namely. into the distlnrtiveiy war In.
dnstries offering fine indueement Of
higher wages. How relatively small.
IN actual effect. has been the effect Of
the selecfive draft is seen In the fact
that. for all the occupations represent
ed In the 100000 classified regis
trnnts Of January. 1918, the percens
fage OF the entire Industrial p0puin-
| ti0n represented by the class l regis
trants amounted 70 onIg per cent. II
ran as low rs 2 per cent for some oc-
equations. and correspondingiy higher
/ for some other occupations: but tho
national average was only per cent
Any notably larger depletion In partic.
Mar Industries must therefore have
been due. partly 10 enllstments. and IN
probably greater degree. To voluntary
| transfers into other industries.
Must Remember Nations Needs.
These other influences are therefore
70 be kept In mind By employers and
others. IN weighing the question wheth
err the best solution, In the national
interest. IL 70 ask for the defeTmeni
Of individuals or groups of men. Such
defermenfs may assist the Immediate
situation In the particular establish
ment: but they merely force the army
and the navy 70 seek elsewhere for the
same number OF men thus deferred.
The cumulative needs Of ths
military forces are known and Inn.
perntive: and any given quantity oi
defeFments will ultimately have TO BE-
made up By the depletion Of SONS
other occupation. Thus Il becomes
the employers duty to consider these
aspects Of deferment. In seeking thai
solution OF his own problem which besi
COMFORTS with the national Interest
The cessation Of eHiistmenta VII
henceforfh protect industry against
one irregular and uncomfortable
source II arrangement Il Will CORE
EpoHdIngiy throw upon the aeIectiyl
service system the greater reapOnsl
bilify fer m intelligent and diaerim
mating selection made in TIE light 0
Industrial groups II workers. 10 fni
an this responsibility they mus nos