The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1919-10-27
PLACES SECURED
FOR 1900 A WEEK
Federal Board for Vocational Education
Is Helping Disabled Veterans of
the World War in Great
Numbers.

|
The following letter from DR.. Ue
w Lamkin, chief of rehabilitation o.
the federal board for vocational educa
ton, to Gen. Harvey c. Clark of JEFF
ferson City, Mo, should offset all thu
effects OF the recent criticism of tht
board. Any disabled soldier entitled
to re-education who was misled by
some of the unfounded criticism which
has appeared need only read the fol
lowing letter to understand the true
nature of the unwarranted attacks
upon the board.
October IL, 1919
General Harvey c. Clark,
jefferson City, Mo.
Ny dear General Clark: | am taking
the liberty of writing you in regard to
the work of the federal board for voca
tional education because + know OF
your interest in the boys who weht
into the service, because of your pres.
ent position in the state of Missouri
both as adiutant general Of the state
and as former temporary chairman of
the American Legion, and because
feel that | can write you as friend
in these matters. You may not know
that | came here and since Sept. Is
have been chief of the division of re-
Mobilization.
The criticism Of the work of the
board whNh has been most widespread
is that contained in two articles which
appeared in the American Legion
Weekly, written by young man
named Mason under the nom de plume
of Marquis James,
Mr. Mason sat with our board Of
review, or case board, here in Wash
ington and stated to the man In charge
twho, by the way, is member of the
American Legion, that the board was
more liberal than he would have been
in most cases After the appearance
of the first article, he stated that what
he had written had been revised in
the Office of the Weekly,
In the minds Of many people, the
federal board for vocational education
is regarded as, in way, compensa-
tion bureau. The law does not desig.
nate this board as such On the other
hand, it specifically states that it shall
train men who because of their dis
ability have vocational handicap 1t
is not necessary for me to say to you
that a man in one vocation may be
seriously handicapped by a disability
which would prove only a minor dis
ability in another vocation.
Our board is charged with the duty
Of retaining the yocationally handi-
capped. Another department of the
government deals with compensation.
The fact that man in training re-
eeived for maintenance from S35 to $50
per month more than man who was
not in training, no doubt, caused many
persons TO seek TO come under the di-
rection of this board who otherwise
would not have done so.
There has never been a more diff
cult or complex work undertaken by
the government We consider men
varying in education from the litter.
ate to the college graduate, in indus.
trial experience from the day laborer
TO the specialist in law or medicine,
and in disability from the temporary
removable disability to the man suf.
fering from major amputations. Men
have expressed preference for training
for each of several hundred various
the trades and profes.
sions desired vary from those which
are oyercrowded to those of which few
Of us have heard.
The case Of each man must be deter
mined on its own merits and in few
instances are any two factors the same.
This board cannot say that every man
who has lost hand shall be given the
same training, but other things must
be taken into consideration.
Prior to July IL, as YOU know. we
mad no authority to act until after the |
bureau of war risk insurance had de- !!
Jared a man compensate. At that |
lime we actually had in training $3.50 |
men, To-day is Oct. IL, three months |
alter. The record shows that we have |
800 men in training to-day | may |
'ay TO YOU that the opening of schools |
,ince the middle Of August has caused |
he large increase of men in training.
They are entering now. according to
notices received, at about 300 per
week
While we have approved for training
omething over $4,000 men, you may
'e interested in knowing that the last
igures from Canada show that during
he entire time Of more than three
ears, the Canadian government has
approved for training 23,07s men and
7 300 had commenced training. In
ess than a years time we have ex-
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"a STOR "a.