The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1919-01-02
All Kenosha Men in Service
in This Country to Be
Mustered Out by the
First of February.
500 KENOSHANS ARE COMING
Secretary Baker Makes Formal State
ment That All of the Men in This
Country viii Be Out of Camp
First Month Of the New Year.

Five hundred Kenosha men who are
serving with the United States army
in the various camps and environments
of the army within the nation, will
return to civilian life in Kenosha be-
fore the end of January. This is the
announcement that comes from Wash
i'll gton and it is given the personal
sanction of Secretary of War Baekr.
Scores of the Kenosha men returned
to service today after spending the
short Christmas, furlough in Kenosha
and they had no idea at what time
they would draw their final releases
from the service. 1t is expected that a
large number of the men will be back
home to stay by the middle Of January.
This will include both officers and
enlisted men and from now on it is
declared that the men will be released
at a rate of more than thirty thousand
a day. Some Of the men returning
from holiday vacations in Kenosha
will find that they have been mustered
OUT during IHeIf aDScHcC.
Secretary Of War Baker informed
Representative Igoe, of st. Louis, who
sought information as to the intention
of the department. with relation to the
Tenth Division. Representative Igoe
presented to Mr.. Baker a copy of an
official document stating that the
troops in the Tenth Division would be
released only in case of urgent neces-
sity, but Mr.. Baker said the opinion
that these orders meant that the troops
were to be retained in the service in
definitely was erroneous
The War Department and offices If
congressman and senators are now
being swamped with requests for the
release Of men. The reasons prompt
ing the requests for their release, in
almost every instance are worthy
ones, some of them presenting serious
situations which would be relieved by
quitting the service. But owing to the
great number of requests and the fact
that the troops are being demoblized
at the rate of two hundred thousand
a week, Mr.. Igoe said he was informed
by the secretary of war that the
requests could not be given special
consideration.
"Mr. Baker said he expected to
have all the boys in camp home by
February IL said Mr.. Igoe. "He said
the records show that two hundred
thousand men are now being released
each week and that the machinery of
the War Department would not permit
of any greater number being discharg-
ed at that time. He said it was a
physical impossibility to complete the
examinations and the official records in
a greater number of cases.
Mr.. Bakers belief that all the men
will be home by February is founded
upon the fact that more than six
hundred thousand men have been re-
leased and that only one million men
now remain in the camps. With APP
proximately five weeks remaining be-
fore February ] and two hundred
thousand men being released each
week, the camps would be emptied of
men in that time.
Many men from Kenosha who are in
the military service have made special
appeals to Washington for release, but
it is declared that the rehabilitation
of the army is proceeding so rapidly
at this time that the regular order for
rehabilitation will insure the release
of the men just as rapidly as they
could be released If some special order
were issued.
Men enlisted in the United States
navy for the duration of the war, are
also being discharged very rapidly and
most of the Kenosha men who have
been at Great Lakes Station and who
do not intend to continue in the serv-
ice will be sent to their home here be-
fore the end of January.