Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-12-23
MAILS LIE AGAINST STATE
Major Murdoch Proves Pennsylva.
mans Were as Physically Fit as
Men Elsewhere In the
Country
BY GEORGE NOX MCCAIN

A'I state draft executive for the United
States army during the war, has done a real
service to the state. lie has set the com
monwcalth right before the country and has
campcd the lid down tight on certain maga-
zniSts and careless statistical sharps.
There is class of pseudo Investigators
and alleged publicists who have been max
ing capital out of the alleged fact that Penn
/ sylvauia had one of the highest averages in
/ the Union for men rejected for war service
/ because of physical and mental defects.
| Flatly it was II reflection on the manhood
of the state. But it isn't true.
| Major Nlurdock clears it all up in the
| statcment--a brave one TO make under the
! circumStnnccs--that some one has blundered.
! He doesn't say it was at Washington, but
! YOU can draw your own infercnces.
, TTNllE first report of the selectiye system
published by Washington, back in Decem-
| Der. 1917, contains. as Major Murdock points
! out statement showing that the average
| ratio for the United States of the physically
! unfit to the total number of registrants was
| Poll to every hundred. The ratio of Penn
! sylyania was, according to this 1867 per
! cent.
| According to these figures nearly one
! half of the Pennsylvania men examined were
! unfit for service
/ .,, ,
/ ,r,;,. Nt.i'I ..l .t,,,a
| would be cause for alarm.
| But they were glaringly incorrect.
The same report shows by a careful tabu-
! laton Of the figures in detail, by every draft
| board in the state, that the percentage of
| men unfit for service, and thus rejected, was
| only 2S. 80, which is less than the average
| for the entire country.
And this percentage would have been
considerably less had it not been for faulty
| regulations which in the beginning were
| neither clear nor complete.
The largest class of Pennsylvania men re-
! jcctcd for obvious defects was because of
! deficient vision.
feet due to II failure, for a long time, to
| distinguish between occupauohal ana heredl-
| tarN nat meet. inns caused many reJectlons
| OF men VINO 'ouia 90 nara manuai laoor ana
! VINO were undoubtedly lualiheu lor military
! service
! TNliE new prohibition enforcement officer
! l. for the state. eX Senator William Wayne
| IIindman is, at least by family tradition and
ancestry. peculiarly fitted for the Office.
! He is native of Clarion county, where
! his father was leading member of the bar
! and prominent figure in Democratic poll
tics for years prior to his death about four
! years ago.
Ills mother was Miss Margaret Shallen
| berger a member of an old Westmoreand
county family that removed to Clarion
: county about 1I10
The head of the family was Lloyd Shal
lcnbcrgcr. a consistent churchman and
temperance leader in his community.
Ex-senator iilndman IS member OF the
| younger ana dominant element IN Demo
| craft" stare poIltlcs' tne Lailher Ntcoorhlch
! faction. lie was untll iolo state senator
from the twenty SNth ulstr'Gt.
lic Will prlnS TO ms new duties not only
poiitlcal experience Dut hlsh degree OF IN
! telngence ana aolii'E' iic Is s'"uua'e VI
Princeton
DROilBlIloN lodging stories are apropos
L now as the edge of the desert daily
| draws nearer. Charlie Howell of Pitts
| burgh. tells the latest.
| 4 widely known and wealthy iron manu-
| facturer out there. who objected to trailing
over the hot sands of the future without
| something whcrewith to brighten the hegira
! and moistcn his clay, commandeered by the
| neutifuI use of corn tidy stock of red
! iioror JIe didn't trust handed warehouses
Gno Dicht roccntlv n nniformcd nolco.
| man and plain clothes man called at his
| homo and hluntly inqured if he had any
whisky stored about his house. Knowing
he was safe as to the law he replied in the
affirmative.
"About how much have you?" the de-
tcctivc asked.
well. if you must know, I've got ten
barrels.'
MAY we see it?'
"Certainlv,'' and the manufacturer led
the wov 70 thc !owcr regions in person.
trhc policcman uonchalantly .paradcd
along in front of the array of barrels, tap
! ping each one lightly with his club. They
were all empty save one, which had splgot
in it and from which immediate supplies
were drawn.
thought,