New-York tribune., 1921-05-17
Stacker List Errors
Attributable Partly to Registrars Themselves Partly TO Vo-
tcer System Side BY Side With Seectpe Service
To the Editor of The Tribune.

To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: In an admirable editorial in this
mornings Tribune you dispose of the
more or less current fallacy that the
local draft boards are responsible for
the inclusion in the lists of delinquents
of the names of some persons who were
IN active service, and point out the
difficulties encountered by the local
boards from the policy of allowing
other branches Of the service to enlist
those who came under the draft, and
from the failure of recruiting officers
to cooperate with the local boards.
There is, however, one statement with
which, in general, and the differences
which may be drawn therefrom, in
particular, | am forced to differ. You
say: The conscription law was simple
but it became unsimplc when General
Crowder began to issue his huge mass
OF supplementary regulations" mas
much as you follow that Immediately
by your comments upon the vices of
the voluntary recruiting system as it
existed, the reader might we'll presume
that General Crowder was at fault
In justice to him the facts should be
stated.
General Crowder at all times
throughout the draft recognized that
tho volunteer system was a ruinous
one, and constantly urged it's aboli-
tion. While he succeeded from time to
tune IN having certain checks imposed
it was not until August, 1918, that his
advice was needed, and all recruitment.
IN the navy as we'll as the army, was
abolished
The views. which know were held by
him from the very BEGINNING are .x-
pressed in his second report, at Page Is.
as follows:
The volunteer plan took no heed
OF economic value; it received as readi-
ly the man indispensable to production
as it did the industrially worthless.
We were presented with the strange
anomaly of nation which had intrust
cd its man power to "a selective organi
zatlon, at the very breath turning over
the same resources to an indiscrirni-
nate withdrawal by the agencie. of re-
crultment. Recruitment dis
turbed every phase of the scientific
administration of our task and inn
paired the efficiency of the whole or
ganization. To carry selection
to its logical and efficient end there
could be no deviation from the rule
that each registrant must await his time
and perform his military obligation
only when his call, in orderly process.
came to him.
Had General Crowdcr been the ulti-
mate authority I venture to say that
there would have been little need for
huge mass of supplementary regu-
iations." In his first report, submitted
IN December, 1917, he commented upon
the very situation with which we are
now confronted. He said, at Page %:
After registration many young regis
trants, who were eager for immediate
service abroad, left the country to en-
list in Canadian, British or French
armies or to take service with the Red
Cross and other ambulance units
abroad, and in their haste and enthu-
siasm some of them, although warned
OF their obligations under the law and
required to make statement that they
would answer when called, failed to
make arrangements to have their
whereabouts made known to their local
boards, with the result that they were
'adueted into the military service as