Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-12-15

1.-The spirit of the system, as you
and I know 1t, is too fine to be left
in danger of mems forgetting
Provost Marshal General CrowdeI
in these words epitomizes the pur-
pose Of 1.-The Chronicles Of the Draft, u
which he has asked approximately
Is, 900 draft board members through
out the country to write for the ma
ton.
Forty local and district board men,
bers of the District Of Columbia will
collaborate in writing their share of
this unique unofficial history of the
spirit Of the selective service ma
chinery, which is to preserve TO pos
terity the thousand and one little
side lights attending the bright glory
of the entrainment of 10000 sons OF
the National Capital by the draft
boards here.
Those who have written Of thu vari-
Gus phases Of draft work as news
from day to day, often have regretted
heads of board members and get
therefrom even part of the impress
sions stored up there.
Gen. Crowder intends to get at that
treasure of incident, and has asked
the board men to turn themselves
into story and essay writer's for the
nonce. Such flood of manuscript as
the general Is going to get! He may
not know it, but those $4,000 board
members are going to respond as one
man.
Maybe the provost marshal general
the part of most humans to write
because he limited the chronicles
of each board member to ten pages.
Board members will find no diff.
Guilty in complying with this far
sighted request of Gen. Crowder's. II
is, indeed, fortunate for future his.
torians that man possessed of visior
as well as ability is at the head OF
the selective service. Rows of figures
and pages of statistics are fine ir
their way, but they can never show
the soul of anything.
l remember the autumn of 1917
when the first selective service mer
trained at Union station. Those boys
recently fought for more than a solid
month, driving the Germans before
them. But they were just plain citi-
Gems then.
They marched to the Union station
led by band. The flag fiuttered ir
front of them. A soldier of "a. ole
and bent. seemed to straighten. as he
leaned on his cane and watched the
boys go by.
was heard to murmur. as he waved
his hand. Tears were in his eyes.
Inside the station a father walked
up and down in front Of the train. His
boy was on board. and he didn't want
Il pity you. boys: pity you." he
kept calling.
There is more than one moral
here" as Gen. Crowder said in his in
structions to the board members con-
corning the chronicles. But, at any
rate, the incident is significant one"
Gated that he wants real human in.
terest'' stories-stories Of the goot
and bad things that happened in con-
nection with the draft. These the
board members are asked to write
down now. THE spirit of the system
mems forgetting"
What are the children coming too?'
asked a perturbed business man one
day last week, as he looked after the
retreating form of former Office
boy.
The boy was a bright-faced youth
of perhaps eleven years. maybe
twelve years old. at the most. AS {
lten-year-old. when in the employee o
the business man, he proved one o.
the brightest boys ever seen in tina
establishment.
Even rarer. he was q polite boy
Most of1ce boys push on elevator
ahead of their seniors. forget to pa,
J due respect toegs. and otherwise Of