Mexico Missouri message., 1918-06-13


"(d)' Persons employed IN domestic
service.
"(e) Sales clerks and other clerks
employed in stores and other mercan-
tile establishments.
Men who are engaged as above or
who are idlers will not be permitted
to seek relief because of the fact that
they have drawn a later order mum,
Der or because they have been placed
in class II, Ill or ~ on the grounds of
dependency. The fact that he is not
usefully employed will outweigh both
of the above conditions.
ut Is expected that the list Of non.
useful occupations will be extended
from time to time as necessity will re-
quire so as to include persons in other
employments.
Temporary absences from regular
employment not to exceed one week,
unless such temporary absences arc
habitual and frequent, shall not be con-
sidered as idleness. Regular vacations
will not be considered as absences in
this connection.
"The regulation further provides
that where such a change of employ
ment would compel the night employ
ment, Of women under circumstances
which a board might deem unsuitable
for such employment of women the
board may take such circumstances
into consideration in making its de-
clslOn."
General Crowder Explains Plan.
Explaining the new regulation and
the necessity for It, General Crowder
said:
"The war has so far disorganized
the normal adjustment of Industrial
man power as TO prevent the enor-
nous industrial output and national
organization necessary to success.
"There is a popular demand for or
ganization of man power, but no di-
rect draft could be imposed at pres
ent.
"Steps to prohibit idleness and nom
effective occupation will be welcomed
by our people.
1--WE shall give the idlers and men
not effectively employed the choice be-
tween military service and effective
employment. Every man, in the draft
age at least, must work or fight.
'This is not alone a war or mill
tary maneuver. II is a deadly contest
Of industries and mechanics.
Must Copy German Machine.
Germany must not be thought of as
In fCf
think of her as being an army-an
army in which every factory and loom
in the empire is a recognized part in
a complete machine running night and
day at terrific speed. We must make
of ourselves the same sort Of effective
machine.
at is not enough to ask what would
happen II every man In the nation turn
ed his hand to effective work. We
must make ourselves effective. We
must organize for the future. We
must make vast Withdrawals for the
army and Immediately close up the
ranks Of industry behind the gap with
an accelerating production of every
useful thing In necessary measure.
HOW Is tnlS TO De OOnef
"The answer is plain. The first step
toward the solution of the difficulty Is
to prohibit engagement by able-bodled
men In the field of hurtful employ
ment, idleness or Intellectual employ
ment. and thus induce and persuade
the vast wasted excess into useful
fields.
1.-THE very situation we are now con-
sidering, however, offers great possi-
bilities in Improvement of the draft as
well as great possibilities for the COM
position of the labor situation by eff
fective administration of the draft.
Considering the seiective service law.
we see two principal causes Of detri-
ment Of the call to military service
exemption and the order numbers as
signed by lot.
Exemptions In Two cateeorIes.
"The exemptions themselves fall into
two conspicuous categories-depend-
ency and Industrial employment. One
protects domestic relations, the other
the economic interests of the nation.
Between the two there Is an lnev-
table hiatus, for 1t Is demonstrably
true that thousands, If not millions, of
dependency exemptions have no eff
feet of Industrial protection whatever.
"One of the unanswerable criticisms
of the draft has been that 1t takes men
from the farms and from all useful
employments and marches them past
crowds of idlers and loafers to the
army. The remedy Is simple-tO couple
the industrial basis with other grounds
for exemption and to require that any
man pleading exemption OF any ground
shall also show that he is contribut-
ing effectively to the Industrial well
| fare of the nation"