Evening journal., 1918-08-17

, do not yet possess the vote.
"a. II the first draft bill, affecting
men from twenty-one to thlrty-one
years OF age, was more strictly en-
I forced, II would, In my opinion, mate
rally Increase the size OF our forces" ."
Even II this opinion about the insult
flcient enforcement Of the first draft
act were sound. II would not alter the
fact that to whip Germany and end
the war more men are needed and that
these men must be obtained by widen
ing the draft age limit. We do not un-
derstand, however, what Mr. Meister
means by a more strict enforcement
OF the first draft bill unless he has IN
mind a lower standard Of physical and
other fitness in drawing for the regis
trants.
rs. believe that, before calling for
mere boys, the uniformed clerks in the
army and navy should be released for
active fighting service and replaced by
men above the age limit"
There may be some truth and force
In this criticism; we are not Just now
prepared to say.
With a much smaller population
than ours both France and England
raised more than the 100000 we are
now aiming for"
That may be true. II may also be
true that an earlier extension Of the
draft TO the years below twenty in
England and France would have served
TO shorten the war and to win sooner
the decisive victory.
~ France did not reach her young
men OF nineteen and eighteen until she
had exhausted her older classes, includ-
ing men in their fortles. Then her boys
were the subject Of a rigid physical ex-
animation, and when found Mt they
were trained under special sanitary con-
ditions required by their youth"
What the American man power bill
purposes is to put our ut youth in line
for service without waiting for the
exhaustion of the older classes. That
there will be a most rigid examination
OF physical fitness in the case Of the
class under twenty-One nobody need
doubt The lower limit merely fixes
the age at which the boys physically
and otherwise Mt shall begin their mill
tary training. The mere boy" Of eight
cen, however enthusiastic his desires
may be. can scarcely hope 10 get 20
the front Of actual fighting in less than
a year; and at nineteen he will be
soldier, II he is ever to be one.
IS. While we probably have some
slackers, am convinced that our men
prefer TO do their cOuntry's lighting and
are opposed to its being done by our
kids"
The purpose OF the governments plan
is not to transfer the burden OF duty
from manhood TO immature youth, but
to procure from the availables rang
ing from eighteen to forty-five the best
material by the selective process. We
beg leave to remind this correspond
ent and all other honest and candid
objectors to the drafting Of boys" that
the line dividing boyhoOd from man
hood, "kidhOod" from maturity, is al
conception, as destitute OF
objective characteristics as the tropic
of Capricorn. There are probably as
many "men" of eighteen to twenty-one
as there are boys" Of twenty-one 70
twenty-four; and It is the men" that
Uncle Sam needs for the safeguarding
of the worlds democracy and the sal
vation OF civilization
The progress Of this supremely i'm
portant measure toward enactment
should not be delayed an hour longer
than absolutely necessary. This is the
bill that is going TO win the war.