Evening star., 1943-04-04
April Draft Calls Cut
Sharply in District
And Most States
Revision Is Termed
Administrative Matter:
Army's Size Unchanged

April draft calls for the armed
forces have been cut in almost all
States and the District, it was
| learned last night
The last-minute instructions, re-
vising earlier April call" downward
by as much as 20 per cent in some
States, was described at national
selective service headquarters as
merely an administrative matter.
In confirming reports that calls
for April had been reduced, ma
tional headquarters tion d
against interpreting the reduced
calls as a decision to cut the size of
the Army.
The reduced calls, a national
headquarters spokesman said, re-
fleets only a temporary situation
and will have no material affect on
postponing the date when fathers
will be taken into the service.
Similar Action Taken Before.
Draft calls have been revised
before The calls are sent out sew
eral months ahead of time, and
changed conditions have previously
resulted in altered calls.
It was learned that the District
was one of the places where a short
call for April was issues. Others,
mentioned by the Associated Press,
were Maryland, Virginia, Indiana,
Pennsylvania and Kentucky.
While some States in the virtually
Nation wide order were given 20
per cent cuts, others rated 10 per
cent or less.
In Baltimore. COL Henry c. STAN
wood. Maryland Selective Service
director, disclosed that the State S
April call had been revised down.
ward, but said the revision was
nothing like 20 per cent"
Virginia Cut 8 Per Cent.
At Richmond, Va, Col Mills F.
Neal, State Selective Service direc-
tor, announced a reduction of ap-
proXimately per cent in Virginia
draft calls for April and May. The
reduction was brought about, Col.
Neal said, by revision in the na-
tional call of men needed for the
next two months.
The reduction in Pennsylvania S
call was reported as approximately
20 per cent. Col. Benjamin F.
Evans, acting director of Selective
Service for Pennsylvania, said not
all boards in the State and else
where are affected by the reduction
this month, but those not affected
now will have their calls reduced
in May.
Col. Evans declared that after
Pennsylvania received its first call
| for April, the Third Service Com
mand instructed State headquarters
to revise the call without giving
any explanation.
Kentucky Cut Is Sharp.
At Louisville, Capt. Solon Russell
of Kentucky Selective Service head
quarters reported that last-minute
cut in the States call for April had
resulted in cancellation of the April
call entirely in 20 counties.
He explained that transportation
for selectees from local boards is
arranged month in advance and it
was easier to cancel the calls for
counties which were to send men
in the last week of April than to
revise the program for the entire
State this month. He added, how
ever, that the reduction would be
| eCualiZed among all boards in the
May call.
Col. Robinson Hitchcock, Indiana
State Selective Service director, said
at Indianapolis that the cut in the
April draft call for the Hoosier
State would amount to about ID
per cent.
The reduction will be effected by
omitting calls on certain days OF
the month. In this way. only GER
tain boards would be affected, he
said, but May calls would be scaled
to compensate for that.