Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1918-02-28
Many Excuses Made
By Men Seeking to Be
Exempted From Draft

Kar..a. City. FEB. .s.-rhe very SER
lou business of selecting from the man
hood OF Kansas City and vicinity the
represent atives in the national army
was attended by much humor and
pathos The draft appeal board from
its opening session vas besieged by
throngs Who sought 10 serve their
country in any but military way and
exhausted tHtir ingenuity in thinking
up reasons why they should not be
drafted And in contrast, there were
those who yc2rned for army lie and
sometimes were hard put 10 il to
prove they would De useful 20 their
country in soldier Uni form.
There was man who declared, IN
Al >At: 70 8 question as TO why he
thought ~ should be exempted. that
10 cher man in the world except HIM
SEX roU'd I've with his wife. To this
4 member OF the draft board replied:
II should tell her on what grounds
you couldn't either"
There was the representative Of
county organization who asked the
distr.cc board that his entire county
be dealt with leniently since 1t was
an age ultural county and there was
Inc w5;can OF T. years who asked ex-
enption for csr 30-year- old husband
beCal So she loved him SO much. There
was Z coffee salesman who pointed
cat that several hotels would suffer (
ne Gcre called TO the Colors.
Likewise here was a petition signed
hy forty megUters OF a Sunday school
ccnd.t ted in a rural church five miles
from a towa asking for exemption for
tEe schools superintendent and as
Scrt.Ls ire school could rot De main
.aj"ed without his leadership.
Nrrh for the government did not
cNCn'pt from military service. a post
rlyster IN vain fled an affidavit that
Il Tura ma. carrier was necessary TO
tho iJcpo: distribution OF the mail on
his route and a district draft boarl
refused 20 make any concessions for an
assistant secretary Of a state board Of
agriculture seeking exemption on in
dIstr.al grounds, altho many infuen-
! Al pu olic men were interested in his
I
5, hool vic had charge Of the school
military drill. was not exempted.
On the other hand deputy United
states collector of internal revenue
! ,ras placed in division !, class 3, as a
necessary government employe. He
| was engaged in technical work in the
| administrator Of the income tax law.
One Buchanan county man assigned
| five reas 10 the appeal board why
he oIid be exempted. He said he
| was under weight, had q crippled foot
and detective eyesight. These reasons
| were rejected Then he claimed ne
was the sole support of his father and
| tina. being dlsallowed, made the claim
he was farmer working on land his
! father rents. He was certified for the
| national army.
| Although the small salaries given
country schoo' teachers in this as in
! other states are notorious. many school
| boards in the Kansas City district FL
| ed afldavits that the teachers were
| necessary in educational work.
In one case IAN act OF God" was re-
spons!ble for an exemption claim. The
overlooking OF the Platte river in
Buchanan county devastated the farm
Of the grandfather OF a man already
serving at Camp Funston. The grand
parents were left destitute and forty
Of their neighbors petitioned the dis
trict draft board to return the grand
son from training camp.
| Some actual fraud and deceit Was
found among those seeking to avoid
military service One man, asking ex-
emption on the ground that he was the
sole support Of his wife. challenged
TIE DRAFT hoard 20 find the. either he
or his wife hal funds or property. They
accepted and discovered ne had a bank
account OF about $500 that had been
hidden in a safety deposit box and that
his wife owned property.
Another MAJ became i'll when noti-
fed to repor.. for service and his moth
! er asked that he be examined and ex-
empted because mentally unbalanced
| The doctors made q written report.
finding that the mans mental condition
was brought On by his own yolition.
| Some queer exhibits reached the
draft boards to back UP claims for de-
tendency. One man produced a jew
eIers diamond guarantee issued last
April to prove q dependency claim in
the case Of marriage since May 1S
He pressed a dependency claim altho
married last September. He had been
engaged in the spring. he explained
and to prove it pinned the engagement,
ring guarantee to his .questionnaire
Love letters were offered to show in
tention to marry before the draft law
menaced ard Wichita paper with
news OF an announcement party and
pictures OF the bride and bridegroom
to-be was sent to draft board II
prove that one bridegroom was nc
marriage Stacker" q Jewish couple
| sent in marriage contract made gu,
last winter. X - g. ~