Evening star., 1942-08-27
1een-Age Draft
Seen by SABBATH
Before Year End
House Leader Says
Coll to Family Men
Only Alternative

Congressional action on draft
legislation to make IS and 19-year-
old youths eligible for military serv-
Ice can be expected before the end
of the year, Chairman SABBATH of the
House Rules Committee indicated
yesterday.
I'm all likelihood" Mr.. SABBATH told
reporters, Congress will be asked
this session to permit the drafting
of lS and 19-year-olds and wilt give
its approval
He added that in his opini,.n the
1919 group, which includes more
than 100000 men, contains the
finest fighting material available" !"
Family Men Alternative.
In considering lowering the
minimum age limit, Congress will be
forced to face squarely the choice
between drafting family men or teen
age boys. That this choice would
eventually be necessary was in
dicated months ago when Congress
passed the family allowance law, in
the course of which it went on record
In favor of maintaining family rela-
tionships as long as possible.
Meantime, another Capitol Hill
spokesman, Chairman Reynolds of
the Senate Military Affairs Com
mittee, yesterday called for a def
mite determination of who must
work and who must fight.
A repercussion of Selecive Ser
vice Director Lewis B. Hershey's re-
cent statement that vital workers
must soon 60 into the service, SEN
ator Reynolds demand was for an
end to public confusion"
Calls for End of Confusion.
We've got to eliminate the con-
fusion" Senator Reynolds declared.
Nobody knows what to expect
whether they are going to be
drafted or not"
He suggested that selective serv-
ice and the Manpower Commission
get together to see If they have
suficient powers to work out a def
mite plan to apportion men between
the armed services and war indus
tries, land If they haven't the
powers they need, then they should
come to Congress with recommen-
Gations for new authority. This
should be done Immediately to re-
move the public confusion"
We've got to have some rules as
to who is going into the Army and
Navy and who is going to do the
war work" he declared.
Studies Indicated.
President Roosevelt has indicated
that studies are now being made to
work out ways and means OF assign
ing men to the jobs for which they
are best suited. The proposed man.
power mobilization legislation is
making progress" in the Manpower
Commission, of which Gen. Hershey
Is member.
Gen. Hershey, speaking at Evans
ton, ILL.,, last Friday, said:
THE number of able bodied men
In industry must be drastically re-
duced in the very near future. In
dustry must replace so-called vital
men otherwise eligible for the draft
with women and older men. -
From here on, when the Army needs
the man, there will be no waiting
until he is replaced"
This followed by only two months
q directive issued by Manpower
Chief Paul w. McNutt to Gen. Her.
shey asking that action be taken to
assure that, Ito the extent required
for the maintenance of essential
activities, individuals who are en-
gagged in essential occupations IN
essential activities are temporarily
deferred"
Moreover, Mr.. McNutt asked that
men with essential skills employed at
unessential work be given a chance
to fnd jobs in vital war industries
before being called for induction in
the Army.
Inconsistencies" Denied.
A selective service spokesman en-
phasized today that Mr.. McNutt's
directive said such workers should
be deferred temporarily" and it
AiSNCA way iltcllucu LIldC SuCn OcISr-
ments be indefinite or permanent"
Occupational deferments have been
made for periods of not more than
six months.
A Manpower Commission official,
Who declined to be quoted by name,
said that so far there had been no
Inconsistencies" between selective
service and the Manpower Commits
sion, and that Gen. Hershey had
been very cooperative" with Mr..
McNutt.
Senator Reynolds said he had no
criticism of either Gen. Hershey or
Mr.. McNutt; that both needed men.
one for the fighting forces and the
other for the war production lines.
He emphasized that he was calling
only for them to get together and
work out plan whereby men now
In war industries may know whether
they will remain at the work benches
or will be called in the draft.