Evening star., 1939-04-04

servation Corps director, who .
Radio Forum.
will be given the opportunity to see
how these boys work, how they play,
how they live and how they learn.
Since the beginning of the corps
in April. 1888, nearly 100000 en-
rollees have served in the camps
for varying periods of time. I
think this has had and will continue
to have a very considerable effect
upon our national life. For the most
part, these enrolleeS came to the
corps discouraged, without skills,
often undernourished and in many
cases without hope. Life in the
C. c. C. is conducive to a radical
change in these thought patterns
and in correcting physical Short
comings. The men in the camps
follow regular living schedule. In
general. they will arise between $50
and am, have breakfast a half to
three quarters of an hour later, go
to work at about o'clock in the
morning and return from work at 4.
When they return from work there
is often a little personal or camp
cleanup work to be done. Then
there is free time for sports. reading
or just simple loafing. At about
$50 or 6 o'clock supper is served. and
when supper is over about 80 per
cent of the boys participate in the
after-hour educational program
which is offered in every camp. The
courses vary all the way from the
elimination of illiteracy to technical
and academic courses of college
difficulty. In these classes young
men can make up educational def
ciencies If they so desire and they
can obtain technical instruction on
subjects related to the jobs they
are doing and related to the jobs
they hope to do. During the last
six years more than 10000 young
men have been taught to read and
write in these after-working- hours
classes. Glasses will generally stop
about 8 O'Clock and lights will be
turned OF between 10 and II.
Given Good Food.
In addition to the regular hours
which, In themselves. tend to pro-
duce healthier men, the enrollees
are given good, wholesome food ane
plenty of it. I think it is interest
i ing to note that the gross weight of
the ration for one man for one day
is about five pounds. Nearly all of
the enrollees gain between 10 and
20 pounds during their periods Of
enrolment. 1t is. of course, most
important that these boys have
strong healthy bodies. Equally i'm
portant, or perhaps more important
is the changed outlook on life which
most of these young men acquire
When they get out of the corp:
they have confidence in themselves
because they have learned how to
work. They have proved it to them
selves, to their superiors and they
know that they can prove it tt
private employers. Hundreds of
thousands of enrollees have done
exactly that. The jobs they have
obtained vary all the way from ILL
ing station attendant to highly paid
technical and professional men in
almost every line Of human en-
deavor. I have received many COM
munications from both large and
small employers expressing their
preference for young men who have
served in the c. G. G. because these
employers have a reasonable as
surance that former c. c. C. en-
rollees have been taught how to
work, how to take care of them
selves, how to accept orders and
how to give orders. Right here,
may add parenthetically to en-
ployers who have not yet hired any
former G. C. c. men that, in justice
to themselves, they give a job to a
former c. c. c. enrollee when the
next vacancy exists. AS have said,
letters have come to me from all
sections of the country, from all
types of business, both large and
small, indicating the desirability of
c. G. c. enrollees as employees.
AS time passes we can do even
better job than We are doing today
to assist young men to become self
supporting I am not, nor have I
ever been, q believer in coddling
youngsters, and so long as I am
director of this organization I in
tend to do everything I can to help
young men to develop self-reliance
and pride in their ability to make
their own way in the world. I shall
insist that c. c. c. enrollees be given
every possible educational and train
ing opportunity that can be given
without sacrifice to the work pro-
gram. do not think it is practical
to shorten the work week of 40 hours
to provide additional time for school
or any other activity as I believe
young men obtaining their first work
experience must learn at the begin
ming that they must do an honest
days work and do it every day when
they are employed if they are to be
worth their salt.
There is no doubt but that the
five cooperating departments and
agencies-War, Interior, Agriculture
Labor and the Veterans Admins
tration-have done a splendid job
The Labor Department, with little
expense, selects enrollees through
State-financed selection organiza-
tions. The Veterans Administration
selects the war veteran enrollees
State selection officials have put
forth remarkable efforts to choose
men who will get the most out of
the corps and who will put the most
into it. The War Department Is
justly proud in the record it has
made in the administration of the
camps. The Department Of the In
terror and the Department of Agri-
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