Evening star., 1943-12-13
.Se|ective Service
Expected 10 Clarity
Fathers Status Soon
Occupotionol Deferment
And Board Inventory
Advice Due This Week
BY MIRIAM GUTENBERG,

Two announcements by Selective
service this week are expected to
give fathers a better idea of their
chances of being deferred because
of their jobs Or how soon they can
expect to be called
One is the rewritten order on
occupational deferments now being
drafted by selective service officials.
Second is the long awaited an
nouncement of the results of the
inventory of draft boards made by
selectiVe service at the end of Sep
tember but brought up to date by
subsequent reports.
The new occupational bulletin is
expected to complete the divorce"
of selectiVe service from the War
ManpoWer Commission as directed
by Congress. In the year selective
service was under VINO, draft
boards were continually reminded to
work closely with the United States
Employment Service, particularly on
cases of men with critical skills."
fTesluent May ACT.
In the future, it was indicated,
draft boards will be told to Co
operate" with WING in the same
way as they now cooperate with
county war boards on deferments
of farmers.
Selective service, 1t was reported.
however. is awaiting the return of
President Roosevelt before moving
too far in any direction. He is ex-
pected to issue an executive order
clarifying the present position of
selective service and its relation
ship to the War Manpower Com
mission.
1t was also rumored that the
President might put both VINO and
selective service directly under War
Mobilization Chief James F. Byrnes,
either through providing that both
groups report to Mr.. Byrnes or
naming Mr.. Byrnes director of selec-
tive service. The new draft legis-
lation provides that the President
can delegate his authority over
the draft only to the director of
selective service.
Directions Promised.
Draft boards have been informed
by telegram that directions will be
forthcoming within a few days to
put the new draft legislation into
effect. Among them will be the
occupational bulletin which is ex-
pected to emphasize liberal atti-
tude toward granting occupational
deferments to fathers and more
stringent rules about deferring
childless men.
There was also possibility that
the new order on job deferments
would ban deferments to men under
%, either fathers or nonfathers,
as indicated Saturday by Maj. Gen.
Lewis B. Hershey, but this has not
yet been decided.
Announcement of the results of
the inventory will disclose how many
fathers selective service expects to
take each month and how evenly
divided the calls will be over the
States. since selective service is now
committed by law to allocate its
calls on the basis of Nationwide
pool of nonfathers, levying the
heaviest calls each month on the
States which report available non-
fathers.
Fathers Drafted Since October.
fn 1nt rfc irt,
ally all States have been drafting
fathers since October, although
some have taken only "nondefer-
rable" fathers. Men whose Jobs
made them nondeferrable regardless
of dependents will now be called
with the other fathers by order
number.
Since nondeferrable fathers were
in the class Immediately before the
other fathers, however, most States
merely will switch the call to fathers
with lower order numbers than the
nondeferrables.
Adjustment of the calls alone, tax
ing some States heavier than others,
is not expected to halt the draft OF
fathers in any State for more than
a month, according to selective serv-
ice. since even the largest States
haven't enough childless men to alb
sorb large call for more than
Meanwhile, the fate of the 4-Fs
depends on the recommendations of
the fiye-man medical commission
still to be appointed by the Presi-
dent. Selective service officials have
told Congress a substantial sal
vage' from this group is the most
method of cutting down
on the expected call of million
fathers by July.