The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-08-21
Bill as Completed by Com mittee to Be Reported to
 the House Today
AMENDMENT DIFFERS
 CALL OF YOUTHS
Dent Secures Agreement With Clark and Sims to Give Measure Right of Way, and Believes It Can
 Be Passed in Single Day

l Washington, August 20. Both Senate and House will begin consideration of the man power bill, extending the army draft age limits to Is and 45 years, next Thursday under lplans completed late today, in a trace to complete the legislation
 as soon as possible.
 With the bin ready for Senate de- lbate Thursday the House committee
 late today closed it's hearings and vir-
 tually completed the measure. The bill. laccording to the committees plans. will be reported to the House tomorrow i with an amendment to defer service of youths IS and 19 years of age until all others are called--and discussed I in the House Thursday An agree
 ment with Speaker Clark and Repre- sentative sims of Tennessee in charge
 of the pending man power bill. to give the man power measure right of way Thursday was secured today by Chair- \ man Dent, who believes the draft bill lean be passed in single day.
 CONTESTS EXPECTED
 Passage of the bill in the House lThursday and in the Senate by satur- rday is planned by leaders. Vigorous
 contests, however. are expected in both
 branches. In the Senate sharp debate l is expected on the work or fight
 amendment, while in the House a con
 troversy is brewing over the commit
 tees amendment to defer calling boys
 of IS and 19 years, mandatory pro-
 vision which Secretary Baker, General
 March, chief of staff, and Provost Mar
 shal General Crowder have vigorously
 opposed With both Senate and House Committees pledged to lowering the
 minimum age tc Is years it appeared the age limits will be fixed as recom-
 mended by the war department. i Sentiment in Congress against calling youths found expression today in the House committee amendment. After a lstormy session. in which Representative Kahn of California led a fight which he promised to renew on the Holse lfloor, to retain the administration meas- iure's provision giving the President dis tcretion to fix the order of calls for all
 men within the new draft limits, the lcommittee voted to to write in an amendment offered by Representative Mckenzie of Illinois, republican, pro- yiding that all men 20 years end above shall be called before those of 19 and l IS years. with the IS-year-old youths i to be called last. The amendment makes mandatory what Secretary Baker has indicated will be the policy of the war department
 TEXT OF AMENDMENT
 The Mckenzie amendment reads: Provided. however. that registrants or the age of 19 years and not over 2U shall be designated as class f9' srd shall be drafted subsequent to regis- trants of the age of 20 and aot oyer % years; and registrants of the age of 1S years and not over I9 years shah he designated as class 1S and shall be lcalled for service last; those registrants above the age of 20 shall be called prior to those in the classes hereby createds
 Representative Kahn and those joininc with him in support of the administra. ton provision vesting authority in the President to establish the order of calls reserved the right to oppose/ the Mc Kenzie amendment on the floor of tho House and expressed belief that tho amendment would be rejected. Chairman Dent and others of the committed who expressed themselves as dissa tisfied with Secretary Bakers promise to make regulations for separate class for 1S year-old boys and defer their call as long as possible, however. are confident tha
 House will retain the amendment If adopted by the House sharp contro- versy in conference is expected, as the Senate bill retains the administration provision for executive discretion in es- tablishing calls.
 Work or fight legislation, Chairman Dent said tonight. is not contAmplated by the House committee. The commit- tee was said to take the position that the legislation is unnecessary in that preseRt draft regulations protect the gov ernments interest.
 PROTEST PRESENTED
 At the closing hearing of the commit tee today, organized labor's protest against the work or fight" clause in the Senate bill was presented by Score tAry Morrison of the American Federa- ton of Labor, who declared labor is loyal. strikes are not ''appreciable', and the Senate amendment would bring the odium of ''slackers'' upon working men and be bitterly resented. Mir. Morrison suggested that big employing interests were secretly behind the legislation. which he denounced unsparingiy n . covert plan to put into effect . policy ot labor conscription.
 The House committee had hoped co report out the bill today, but the Me- Kenxie and other amendments caused S~la. !. st :. s .. <. &3t t,sz