Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-10-28

AeSCNCldllO COAiAG AZ ~
told the board that the one
person who always would know
where he was, was a man work.
ing for the Bob-Lo Excursion
Company. which berths its
craft at the foot of Woodward
avenue.
Wells and the workers In
Board % are rather Intimately
acquainted with the floating
population, although good
many Of the men who used 10
while away the years sitting on
park benches have settled into
fairly permanent quarters.
'M0re prosperous now" says
Wells terseiy, ''and living In
small hotels instead Of Fisher
Lodge (now ciosed) and the
Howard Street Mission"
They have, however. talent
for losing their registration
cards, and for moving. One man
lost three cards in one week;
some move to new lodgings on
a steady average Of once a
month. The bookkeeping Is
quite a headache.
Adolf Hitler In n headache on
both scores. He lost his card.
That was some little time ago,
hut you may recall that Hitler,
because of his name, got his
picture I'm the papers at that
time. He's . native Of Moscow,
Mich, and doesn't seem TO mind
being named Hitler.
'Tt was his name" says
Wells, "while Fuehrer Hitler
Was stfll Schicklgruber. Any
way. our Hitler seemed TO be
BATTERED by all the attention
he got"
Currently, however, Hitler
from-Moscow h on the delin-
qucnt Hist, He appears to have
moved without giving . for
warding address, and the draft
board h trying to find him.
The boards registrants run
the whole scale. from drunks
mp. They even have one bank
president. In between are day
laborers, loafers, skilled crafts
men. bear garden entertainers,
burlesque house employees, sail
ors, visiting aliens and students.
And almost any nationality
you might name. I'VE have"
Wells said. 80 per cent of De-
troit's Chinese and Is per cent
OF the Mexicans In this board.
And q good many Greeks, Ar
menians, Maltese and Italians,
too"
Bob Mcclellan, latest MEM
her Of the Times staff to 70
through the induction center,
was surprised TO find I'M his
group two men who spoke no
Enxiish--a Maltese, who brought
his own interpreter; and q
Mexican who didn't, but man.
aged TO make himself under
stood, after q fashion, 10 an
oHkcer who knew some Castilian
Spanish.
Down at Board %, such
things are common enough 90
excite little notice. Wells. him
self. lived along the border and
can talk TO the Mexicans and
CubAns.
The Maltese, Chinese and
Greeks usually bring interpret
err. The consuls help . good
deal, too.
Plenty Of men born In other
countries are going into service
without complaint. Wells has
one Directing Filipino on his
list. but he's a radical, and a
criminal, too" No Italians have
objected TO joining the army;
the Chinese are probably the
most anxious and willing 10
serve Of any" and some Ger
mans, even with only their first
papers. have been investigated
and accepted. A lot of Germans
In Detroit are anti-Nazi, says
Wells.
Japs aren't accepted. There
are only three or four In the
board. anyway, and ones a
student.
The hardest 10 deal with are
the mentally deficient, the psy-
chopeurotics and alcoholics
Sometimes one man Is ell three
st once. ~
"One alcoholic, I" Wells recites
sadly, has been called three
times for induction, and every
time he's been In the House OF
Correction, 80 they had 10 ex-
cuse him. But ! guess II doesn',
matter, because when he gets