Evening star., 1942-02-16
Members Of Congress
Register With 0ratory
And Threats al Foe
Special CopitoI Desk
Set Up for legislators
Exempt From Service

With a bit OF speech-making and
assorted threats to "lick hell out OF
the Japs," members of Congress Of
selective service age registered in
the Capitol rotunda today. They are
exempted by law from a call to serv-
ice, however.
Chairman Randolph of the House
District Committee was the first Of
handful of Senators and scores of
Representatives to report to the reg
istration desk, discreetly screened
from view In the rotunda and man
ned by American Legionnaires in
uniform.
Just to be sure all was going we'll,
Brig Gen. Lewis B. Hershey, ma
tional director OF selective service,
and District Selective Service Dt-
rector william E. Leahy paid brief
| visits.
The special registration center,
limited to members Of Congress, was
set up to, prevent the registration
from interfering with the business Of
running the country.
| Dies belligerent.
| Representative Dies of Texas, Al
year-old chairman of the House
Committee Investigating Un-Amer-
ican Activities, and one of the early
arrivals at the registration desk,
! said his son, Martin. jr.. 20, had
volunteered last week for naval
service.
Between the two of U.s." he re-
marked, I'VE will lick hell out of
those Japs."
Representative j. Percy Priest of
Tennessee, former newspaper editor
serving his first term in Congress
was asked where some of his COL
leagues were when he appeared at
the registration desk. He replied
that they were crowded in their
ofIices, answering pension letters" y,
When several of the Representa-
tives friends asked him to put on
an exhibition of native Tennessee
folk dancing, at which he is some
thing of q master, in front Of the
registration table, he answered,
This Is no time for dancing except
for q war dance"
Maybank Brings Papers.
One Of the Senate's youngest
members. both in years and service,
Senator Maybank of South Carolina,
a, brought with him his Navy dis
charge papers from the last World
War.
Il thought I might need some Of
this information" he explained.
Senator Maybank went on active
duty as a naval reservist at the
Norfolk Training Station and had
just won a transfer to the Naval
Air Corps when the last war ended.
Senator Pepper, Democrat, of
Florida, Al, a veteran Of two and q
half months service in the last
war, also registered in the last
war and was inclined to make q lit
tie speech about this registration.
The great democratic principle
behind selective service is one Of
| the fine things about this whole
struggle said the Senator. Il am
! impressed by the democratic spirit
(which pervades it and wished it
could be extended even further. In
this national crisis it should be the
rule to assign every man and woman
to the place where he or she is best
fitted. Everybody can and should
do something"
Some Are Stopped.
Some of the legislators were not
recognized by policemen at the en-
trance to the registration section
and had to stop and identify them
selves. Representative Secrest OF
Ohio was one Of them.
Registration was q reunion for
Representative Kilday, Al. of Texas
and Director Leahy. Mr.. Kilday
was a 1922 graduate of Georgetown
University law school. where he
studied The rules of evidence in .
class taught by Mr.. Leahy.
Other congressional registrants
during the morning were Senator
Danaher Of Connecticut and Rep
resentatives Kefauver Of Tenpes-
see. Hess of Ohio Gosney Of Texas,
Hebert of Louisiana, Mundt OF
South Dakota, Ford Of Mississippi.
Mills of Arkansas and Anderson Of
California.
The registration desk was to re-
main open until all the congress
sional registrants have answered the
ID -,