Arizona republican., 1918-07-12
A Great Hoosier Put Aside

Provost Marshal General Crowder is in many thousands in Washington. At a time when little seeking honors and promotions, when they and their friends pulling all the wires in sight for advancement, merited unmerited, and when almost every other in any way related to war is magnifying his services rdiculousy, General Crowder puts aside great honor thrust at him by the senate-his promotion to be lieutenant general The provision for his promotion was in serted in the s12,OOO,OoO,OoO military bill. General Crowder asked that it be stricken out. He he said sensible the great honor offered him, but at 5he risk of being considered ungrateful to those who had proposed it. he must decline it for the reason that it to be regarded a reward for services which he alone had not performed and could not have performed
 He further said that it would be unfair to accord him such honor without extending proper recog milton to the thousands of others who deserved credit for the creation of the national army.
 ! Said he:
 Forty eight state and three territorial headquar- and nearly 5000 local and district boards, with an aggregate membership of nearly 1S.000 citizens, assisted by legal medical advisory boards in every jurisdiction. have co-operaed with the national head Quarters efficiently and honoraby, many without compensation. in the superb teamwork which has duced the gratifying result attained under the selec- tive service law These results embrace the regstra of and their claS- sfcat1on for military serVce and the entralnment or nearly 1,600000 serving with the colors. By August of this year this latter number will be ap proximatey 2,OOO,OO0, and by the close of the year. if expected acquisitions received the aggregate will approach 3000000
 ! Of the members of these boards. it may be truly said that when the selective system which they administer to function efficiently to produce the military and to the industrial shall be in a fair way to lose this I have long entertained the view that something ought to be tO Il1yt he sacrifices these citizens have made in besowng the continuous and exhausting service that has been indispensable in carrying the administrative burden of the seective service system. The difficulty has been in devisng suitable reward, nation wide in it's application and acceptable generally to those who have participated.
 In offering his declnation, General Crowder said
 That the provision in question involves a compi- ment and a distinction which I value beyond anything in my military natural and that the approval testified to by the of the senate gratifies me beyond the power of words to express is a simple statement of fact.
 But after considerable reflection and viewing the matter in broad way. I am reluctant to allow the consideration of the proviso proceed any further
 Fellow officers of General Crowder said they had expected this of him, but that his refusal to accept this greatly advanced rank rendered him marked precedent in modern army annals
 The details of the great of General Crowder have been subjected to criticism We have complained of the unfairness of the basis of the by which many states and Arizona more than any other, have been compelled to contribute than their just quo- as But there is criticism, there be none of the net results of General Crowders administration selective service law, whose fruit is steady pouring of American soldiers into France to strengthen the sorely pressed allies If General Crowder and his associates had been active than most of the others almost any of the others engaged in work we hate to think what would be the situation the western front.
 He has been from the moment he took office the most hard working at the head of any service and the who most clearly what he had to do. He has now broken record in declining a ieutenant- -generalship.