Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1943-03-18
Second OF a Series. J
BY MIRIAM GUTENBERG.


! Widespread lack of uniformity
in deciding whether or not de-
pendents count in the eyes of the
draft has resulted in situation
where a mans geographical To-
cation determines how soon he
may be drafted.
The inequality even extends to
the street on which a man lives
with some local boards in the same
town following different procedures
Some men with children 2l2 years
old are Pearl Harbor fathers as
far As the draft is concerned.
A survey by The Star of Draft
Boards in widely separated parts
| of the country, coupled with the
hundreds of letters received by pro-
ponents of the Kilday bill to defer
fathers until all other sources OF
manpower have bene exhausted, in
dicates that Draft Board members
as we'll as the men who face Undue
ton are unhappy about the uncer-
tainty arising from the phrase i'm
minence of selection
No Specific Date.
Repeated efforts to pin national
selective service down to specific
date after which dependency is not
to be considered cause for defer
ment have failed, according to Draft
Board members.
Asked why national headquarters
had consistently refused to set such
date, National Selective Service
spokesman responded: How can
you set an arbitrary date? What
might be imminent for one man
might not be imminent for another. .
He admitted. however, that busy
local boards might decide to set an
arbitrary date for themselves instead
OF going into intricate mathematics
and applied psychology to determine
whether reasonable man" might
know his induction was imminent
when he decided to wed on conceive
children.
Typical Of confusion that ap-
pears to be general was the press
conference revelation recently by
War Manpower Chairman Paul v
McNutt that fathers were now being
drafted. He made no distinction al
the time between before and after
Pearl Harbor fathers. Several DAYS
later, he amended the statement to
explain that he meant men who
had acquired their dependents after
Pearl Harbor.
Seek Equality.
In writing to Representative Kill
day. Democrat. of Texas, men ex-
planned that they were perfectly
willing to 60 into service when
the time came, but that they OBJ
Jected to going ahead of married
men in the same position who hap
pened to be registered with other
boards. What they sought, they
explained. was not permanent draft
deferment, but quality. A Norfolk
draft Official said the lack of uni
formity was producing serious I'M
rest" among registrants in his city.
This is one type of local autonomy
the draft boards won't want" the
Norfolk official added. I'VE can't
get categorical answer from State
headquarters and they can't get one
from Washington. We have letter
here stating that if child is con-
ceived after Pearl Harbor it is not
to be considered a dependent, but
there's nothing in the regulations to
construe it that way"
When Maj. Gen Lewis B. Hershey
selective service director, was asked
curing a congressional hearing last
October, When is a child not a chile
and when is married man not q
married men for draft purposes" be
responded that any dependent &C
CURED after December 7 or when
induction is considered imminent is
not considered dependent. He
added, however, that those were
broad rules, subject to relaxation as
individual cases arose.
Confusing Memora ndum.
Considered just enough clarifica
ton to confuse was the memo
randum to local boards issued last
April.
"A regiStrant's selection is con-
sidered to be imminent" the men,
orandum explained, "at such time il
the course of his consideration by
the local board that a reasonable
man in his circumstances would be
put on notice that in the norma.
course of events he would. at ar
early date, be called on to perform
military service. The circumstances
to be considered in the determine
ton Of imminence Of selection are
the state of the national emergency
the registrant's order number, the
re2istrants classification, if anv
and other such considerations which
would appeal to the mind of the
reasonable man to assist him In
forming judgment With respect tc
his future.
The fact that a registrant &C.
quired status, such as by marriage
since September Is, 1910, but before
December 8, l94l. is not in itself
controlling. On the other hand, the
acquiring Of such status when the
registrant's selection for militar,
service Is not far off will be adequate
reason for denying deferred CLASH.
flcation."
Aware of varying Interpretation.
by its local boards of this and SINH.
lar directives, District selective serv.