The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-04-10
Whole Town Aroused Over AL
legged Draft Evasion.
Floyd Fischer "Pulled Wires"
To Get Clerkship!
WAS ONCE GUN ENTHUSIAST
'Tis Said He Quit Club When
War Was Declared.
Married in August, He Boosted
He Would Beat Draft.

The crack sportsman of the Wam-
ego Gun club, an organization of the
young bloods of the gilded set of the
vicinity of Wamego, is said to have
the club when the war broke out
Rabbit shooting suddenly lost its al
lurements. Funny, isn't it?
Along with this story of young
Floyd Fischer, of Wamego, comes the
information that the citizens of Wam-
ego and the neighborhood round
about. are wrought up over the al
legged Irregularities of the local draft
! board at WeStmoreland. Fischer is a
young man of draft age, and last Au-
gust, sometime after the declaration
of war and the registration, he mar
ried pretty Virginia Leach, the daugh-
! ter of wealthy banker of Wamego,
and former student in the College
of the Sisters of Bethany, of Topeka.
The wedding is remembered by their
friends as an event of social impor-
tance and elaborate in arrangement.
After the marriage. Fischer sought
a deferred classification in the draft.
However, he was put in class l. divi-
sion A. altho he appealed to the dis
trict board. AS he was about to be
summoned by the local board for ply
sIcal examination, he went to Wash
| ington and obtained a position as army
field clerk.
Whole Town Aroused.
When news reached Wamego that
Fischer had been placed in the field
service and stationed at Newport News
safe and guarded from the German
| long range guns-Wamego arose to
the occasion. The arising wasn't ex-
actly home coming welcome to
Fischer. There was no band at the
| station to meet the bankers son-in-
| law. There was no banquet and no
| cut flowers. Instead indignant Wa
| megoans filled the town hall. There
they preached patriotism and protest
/ ed. "A score of fond fathers with sons
in in the service already signed petitions.
! They declared that politics and pull
had overridden patriotism A few
score citizens on foot signed protests
against the Fischer appointment.
But the protests seemed to be Just
| two or three jumps behind Banker
Leach and his son-in-law. Fischer. il
was declared today had taken a fast
train to Washington as soon as he re.
celved word to report for physical ex-
animation at Westmoreland, the
county seat By enlisting support o1
members of the congressional deleea.
ton in Washington, Fischer won hi:
appointment to Newport News. Sc
when the Wamego delegation came tt
Topeka today to file protests with Ad.
jutant General Huffman and Governor
Capper, they found Banker Leach hat
| beaten them exactly twenty-fcul
hours.
viii Protest to Washington
1t was red hot, indignant deIega
ton which told its story at the stat,
house today. State officials promised
to take the matter up with Washing
ton departments. An attempt will b,
made to get the case reopen I'd Twic,
the case was before the Pottawatomi,
county local board. Twice it was be
tore the district appeal board Eacl
time Fischer claimed deferred classi
fication because of his responsible,
to his bride of last August
why that bride to whom Fische
owes so much and for whom he feel
such a deep rooted respons bility, i
the daughter of the richest man in tn
county," said Howard johnson. VIII,
came to Topeka with the professors
, And do you know they told us al
along they would beat this draft
Seems they just about did it, too"
Every section of Pottawatomi
/ county is stirred by the action which
resulted in placing Fischer in a de
ferreG service near home and ava,
: from the danger zone of the western
: front. Bert kerSey, chairman of tn,
Potte.watomie county board, told stat
officials the board had at all time
denie1 exemption or deferred classi
| fication to Fischer.
Brother Married Topekan.
; Floyd Fischer is a brother of Ear
!, Fischer, who formerly worked as
newspaper reporter in Topeka an
afterward married Helen Ames, tn
; daughter of E. Z. Ames, of Kansa
City, former Topeka banker L. E
! Leach, father-in-law of Fischer.
president of the Wamego State ban
t and reported to be the wealthiest ma
? n POttawatOnie county