Mexico weekly ledger. (Mexico, Mo.) 1855-1956, 1918-10-03
JUST WHAT THE DRAFT
DRAWING REALLY MEANS
How the Numbers Were Given and
the Purpose in Having the Lot
tery Il Explained
TO BE CALLED BY CLASSES
Numbers Drawn TO Determine How
You VIII Be Called In the Class
% which You BeOng.

The draft lottery, held at Washing
ton TO determine the order numbers
Of 10 million draft registrants. de-
termines the order in which calls 70
service will be made.
Following the registration Sep
tember l2, each local board huffied
the registration cards, and without
regard to age, alphabetical order II
other system, serially numbered eacn
card, starting with No. and eontIn-
uing in arithmetical order.
Triplieate lists Of these serially
numbered registration cards we're
prepared, one being sent to Washing
ton, one to the state adjutant gen.
eral, and the other retained by the To-
cal boards. These lists were closed
September 21, cards received subse-
quent to that date being delinquent
and the registrant is held for imme-
date induction, since he will have no
order number.
Following the receipt Of the official
list of the order in which the lottery
numbers we're drawn, each local board
will assign "order numbers" The
card bearing serial number 322 Will
be given order No. as 322 was the
first given order No, l as S22 was the
Order No. 2 will be assigned to the
card which bears the serial number
next drawn, if card bearing that
serial number |. held by local board.
Approximately seventeen thousand
numbers were drawn. Serial numbers
in Audrain only ran to 24S0. and
where higher numbers are drawn thay
are disregarded and order numbers
given in numerical progression as
numbers affecting the men in each
local board were drawn.
While every man who registered
and whose card has not been marked
delinquent" will be assigned an or
der number according to the position
in which his serial number was
drawn it does not follow that he will
be called in that order.
Local boards have been instructed
to classify, at the present time, only
registrants between 19 and SO years
Of age, both inclusive. Order No. !
may have been allotted to boy Is or
man 46 years Of age, and the first
man to be called may be twentieth on
the list drawn yesterday.
} first number drawn in the lottery.
: only to men in the 10 to S6-year-old
) class, and the man with the lowest
: order number in that class perhaps
being granted deferred classification,
J the first man called for physical ex-
: animation may bear relatively high
t order number.
e What the drawing really did was to
determine the order in which men
e placed in Glass l will be called for
s physical examination and inducted
: into the army if qualified. If it Is
: ever found necessary to invade the
n deferred classes, local draft officials
n state, the men in Class 2 will be call
o ed accoring to their relative order
numbers, and so on through the Thirt
/ and Fourth classes il necessary.
8 Men between 81 and 46 years ot
d age and the 1s-year-olds will receive
d their questionnaires, as the Presi
y dent may call men Of their age. Upor
). the facts revealed by their answers
d they will be classified and called &C
IS cording to order number as he d.
$ rects the mastering of their respect
l. i've classes.