Evening star., 1943-06-04

board and which were announced
in the boards order of May Is.
LAS President and commander in
chief, I order and direct the miners
who are not at now at work in the
mines to return to their work on
Monday, June 7. l943. l must re-
mind the miners that they are
working for the Government on
essential war work and it is their
duty no ness than that of their sons
and brothers in the armed forces to
fulfill their war duties.
Just as soon as the miners re-
turn to work the disposition of the
dispute between the miners and the
operators will forthwith proceed,
under the jurisdiction of the War
Labor Board and in accordance with
the customary and established pro-
ceedings governing all cases of this
sort"
Hope for Strike Break.
Mr. Roosevelt's advisers were said
to be convinced that the strike can
be broken, and to feel that it would
be better to forego two weeks or so
OF coal production than to give
ground to Mr.. Lewis.
In this decision, they backed up
the War Labor Board which referred
the strike to Mr.. Roosevelt yesterday
with the declara ton that to con-
tinue negotiations between the mine
owners and Mr.. Lewis while strike
existed would ''nullify the no strike
agreement on which the country
depends for an uninterrupted flow
of war goods and would shatter the
basis on which our wartime labor
policy exists
Strong pressure on Mr.. Lewis to
call off the strike was seen by some
members of Congress in the pend
ing anti-strike legislation. They
said it must be obvious to him and
to other labor leaders that legisla-
ton distasteful to organized labor
could not be headed off if the coal
miners continue their work STOP
page.
During House debate Yesterday
Representative Wilmington. Demo-
crat, of Mississippi accused Mr..
Lewis OF hating Mr.. Roosevelt with
such vehemence" that his patri-
otism has been destroyed
Authorities on the Selective Serv-
ice Act said Mr.. Roosevelt clearly
could use it. if he found advisable,
to put pressure on the striking coal
miners.
Hershey Not Notified.
Selective service headquarters said
Draft Director Hershey had not yet
received any official notice of the
action in Tennessee and Alabama
canceling draft deferments OF miners
and would not have any comment
on them, at least until official word
is received.
Of1icials pointed out, however, that
draft regulations provide that local
boards may be directed summarily
to reclassify any draft age man as
available for immediate military
service, regardless of whether he has
been deferred for dependency or on
occupational grounds.
Furthermore, although men past
their 38th birthday are not being
taken now in the draft, reclassifi-
cation, under the regulations, could
be ordered for a man who had not
passed his 45th birthday at the time
he was registered regardless of his
present age.
Authority to direct summary re-
classifications has been claimed by
Gen. Hershey In at least two no.
tices to local boards. The last was
sent out only two months ago, but
selectlve service officials, said no
attempt had been made thus far to
exercise it.
One regulation passed along to
the boards read:
whenever the director of selec-
tive service advises the local board
that deferred registrant or a group
OF deferred registrants is not sup
porting or is adversely affecting the
war effort or the national health.
safety or interest, the local board
shall Immediately terminate the de-
terment Of and consider anew the
classification of such registrant or
registrantS.
Supplementing this, the other
regulation said:
THE director of selective service,
Notwithstanding any other provi-
sions Of these regulations (referring
to eligibility for various classifica-
tions). may direct that any or all
registrants may be classified or re-
classified without regard to. their
eligibility for particular classifica-
tion" -
Congress provided that all men
from IL to IS at the time they were