The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1920-06-24
SOLDIERS BOARD
MUSTERED OUT
Board Which Helped Sol
diers Back to "Ciyies"
to Be Discontinued.
A MILLION MEN

The Service and Information Branch
Of the War department. will be discon-
tinued on June 80. This is the govern
mental agency created in March, 1919,
to help men Of the Homecoming Army
and Navy re-establish themselves in
civil life upon rehabilitation. Origin
ally organized by Colonel Arthur
Woods, of New York, as the office of
the Assistant to the Secretary of War,
it was taken over in September last
by Major William G. Haan, Assistant
Chief of Staff.
Secretary Bakers first idea was to
give ex-service men assistance in OBJ
tanning employment. The whole coun-
try was covered, and force of officers
travelled continuously, linking up the
various agencies interested in employ
ment work, and lending all the assist
ance possible from the War Depart
ment. AS the demand for this de-
creased, the Service and Information
Branch turned it's attention more to
the other problems Of veterans, part
icularly the disabled.
To date 1,457,862 men have regist-
cred for employment at the govern
mental and welfare agencies all over
the United States. OF these /, 053,
544 have been placed at work. In the
past twelve months At, 815 men have
asked for other assistance from the re-
representatives. of the Service and Infor-
nation Branch thr ughout the country.
These cases have covered every need of
the ex-service man vocational training
or hospital treatment; compensation,
insurance, unpaid $50 bonus, back-pay,
travel pay. missing Liberty Bonds, etc.
Local Committees Formed.
Throughout the country there have
been established local committees
which will now take up this work, and
before General Hams men cease their
efforts there will be such committee
in each congressional district. Member
ship in these groups includes repre-
sentatives from the American Legion,
Red Cross, all welfare bodies and of
ficers from the War Risk Insurance,
Vocational Training Board and United
States Public Health; as we'll as other
individuals interested in the ex-soldier.
In organizing these committees, the
welfare agencies everywhere have been
brought into direct contact with the
bureaus administering soldier relief,
and since thus connected up with the
Government representatives
Aided Disabled Men.
Lieutenant Colonel Mathew G..
Smith, General Staff, who has been in
direct charge Of the work under Cen
eral HAN, says: "As the employment
situation cleared up, more and more
attention has been given to disabled
men and to organizations of local COM
mittees to continue handling soldier
problems of all kinds. Our emergency
army has been demobilized and absorb
ed into civil pursuits. For some
months there has been no soldier re-
employment problem The mass of
help-wanted advertisement in news
papers Of the large cities show con-
clusively that there Is work for pract-
ically everyone.
For years to come there will be ex-
soldier problems, but the various well
fare agencies which have done so
splendidly in the past will be wholly
competent, working through the local
committees, to solve them for each in
diyidual. The entire press Of the
United States has been behind the War
Department, and may say that with
out its cooperation we never could
have reached the individuals scattered
throughout the land, as we have been
able to do.
Thanks Those Who Helped.
For Secretary Baker and General
Ham I wish to thank every one Of the
welfare agencies which has contributed
SO much to the success Of this work.
To the patriotic employers who re-
sponded SO generously to our requests
that they take back all their employees
who left to serve in the war, we owe
a great debt Of gratitude. On our lists
are nearly $4,000 firms and individuals
who so pledged themselves. Many Of
them have made signal sacrifices"
The Adjutant General of the Army
will take over the records Of the Ser
vice and Information Branch, and GEN
eral HAN requests that correspond
ence be directed to the Civil Relations
Sections Of that Office after July /.