Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1942-11-02
'Teen-Age Draftees'
Training Chief Issue
Confronting Congress,
Sending Of Navy Women
Oversees Also Will Be
Decided Next Week
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
Whether teen-age soldiers
shall be sent into combat with
out a year Of training and
whether women enlisted In the
Navy and Coast Guard Reserves
shall be permitted to serve over
seas are among issues facing
Congress when it resumes regu-
lar business next week.
Both Senate and House have
decreed that Is and 19-year-old
youths may be indicted into the
armed forces, but have disagreed
over the question of giving them a
stipulated period Of training before
putting them under fire.
The House skirted the training
issue BY not even voting on it direct
ly, only to have the controversial
subject tossed right back into its lap
by the Senate, which. on close vote,
decided no teen-age inductee should
be assigned to combat duty until he
had at least IL months of training.
Compromise Proposed.
Representative Thomson, Demo-
crat, Of Texas, acting chairman Of
the House Military Affairs Com
mittee. has announced that he would
seek unanimous consent next Mon
day for the appointment Of House
conferees to meet with a Senate
group to work out compromise bill.
Representative Rankin, Democrat,
of Mississippi, leader in the fight
for retention of the amendment, de-
clared he would demand a roll
call the same day on his motion that
House conferees be instructed to
accept the Senate changes.
Roane Warning, national COM
mander OF the American Legion, de-
clared his organization was "un-
alterably opposed" to the pre- combat
training proposal.
BY setting up outfits made up
entirely of young men, Mr.. Waring
said, the Army would be denied "the
beneficial and leavening effect that
can be had in having older men
OF training, experience and stability
placed side by side with younger
men furnishing the fresher quail
tiles OF youth"
Reynolds Opposes Measure.
ut might have a very disastrous
effect" he added, land in battle
would probably result in these d.
visions suffering far heavier cas-
ualties on account Of the natural
daring Of youth"
Chairman Reynolds Of the Senate
Military Affairs Committee voiced
personal opposition to the training
proposal. declaring 1t would ham
string" the Army.
This amendment means that
these men have got to be trained
full IL months in the United States
and cannot be sent abroad for prep
aration behind the lines where they
will fight" Senator Reynolds told
reporters Il don't think you can
train men in camps in this country
to fight the kind Of war we are
engaged in"
A Navy Department recommended
ton that the ban in existing law
against use of the WAVES on for
eign assignments be removed Is eX-
pected to receive early action by
the House Naval Affairs Committee.
The WAVES now are restricted to
shore duty In the United States.
though their Army counterpart, the
"WAACS, may serve anywhere and
some of them are expected to I've
on duty in England before Christ
mas.
Deferring the final decision until
after the elections is believed by
opponents of the Senate provision
to have strengthened their hand.
They took the view that some OF
the members up for reelection
might hesitate to oppose such a
proposal before elections, but that
returning members just reelected
for two years might not be so ap-
prehensive of possible political con-
sequences.
Farm DefermentS Studied.
Much less controversial are two
other Senate changes. One stipu-
lates that irreplaceable farm work.
ers shall be deferred from induc-
ton as long as they stay on the
farms or until suitable requirements
can be obtained The other pro-
vides that registrants who have
passed their 45th birthdays shall
not be inducted.
Hearings on various manpower
control bills probably will continue
despite indications that the admin
istration prefers to handle the
problem without legislation for at
least a while longer
A fight appeared to be shaping
up in the Senate Banking Com
mittee on a bill which would per-
NIT the Government to sell its non