Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1943-02-09
National Service Bill


National Service Bill
The Republicans held the center Of
the stage yesterday as the first out
lines of comprehensive and bal
anced American manpower program
began to take form.
For months, or so it seems, Gov
eminent officials have exerted them
selves to avoid coming face to face
with the issue of compulsory war
service legislation. Now this ques-
ton has been brought into the open
by two Republicans, Senator Austin
Of Vermont and Representative
Wadsworth OF New York. who have
introduced companion bills in the
Senate and the House. Simulta-
neously, former President Herbert
Hoover went before a Senate Appro-
priations Subcommittee to present
his views on the manpower needs of
the armed services and the home
front.
The Austin Wadsworth bill goes to
the heart Of the manpower problem
by empowering the President, at his
discretion, to require men and
women, with certain exceptions, to
take jobs in war work where need
for them exists. The bill rests frank
ly upon the principle of legal COM
pulsion, but it preserves full oppor-
tunity for use of voluntary methods,
and the President would not resort
to compulsory steps until the volun-
tary procedure had failed to provide
the necessary manpower.
No doubt the measure is imperfect
and, if passed, it probably will be
changed in several respects. For in
stance, the bill is silent on the ques-
ton whether a drafted" worker
would be compelled to Join a union
If sent to plant where closed shop
contract had been signed. Obviously,
this involves most important ques-
ton OF national policy and it ought
to be determined by Congress. To
leave matter Of this sort in the air
would be to invite serious contro-
versy in the future. But, despite its
Importance, this is a matter OF de-
tail which can be taken care Of later.
The essential thing is that the bills
authors have submitted a substan-
TALLY sound legislative proposal upon
which compulsory national service
program can be erected It has be-
come only too clear that the expe-
dent tactics now being tried are
satisfactory to no one, and, more i'm
portantly, that they are lamentably
inadequate. Upon the grounds both
Of logic and necessity, therefore, we
have come to a point in the prosecu-
ton OF the war where all qualified
citizens must meet their RESPONSE
bility to serve the country, either in
the armed forces or behind the lines.
The time for talking about total"
war has passed, and we must begin
to fight total war-at home as well
as at the fronts. There are those
who believe that it is politically dan
gerous to press for compulsory serv-
ice legislation, and If so all the more
credit should be given to Senator
Austin and Representative Wads-
worth for what they have done. But
this assumption should not be too
readily accepted. Probably the bill
will be assailed by certain articulate
groups and individuals. The Selec-
tive Service Act also took q verbal
beating while it was pending In Con-
gress, but after 1t had been passed
and the oratory had died down the
people as a whole accepted 1t, real
izing that such law was necessary
and fair to all concerned. Certainly,
In the light Of this experience, 1t is
more than probable that the great
majority Of the people also would
accept carefully prepared COM
pulsory war work law.
Mr.. Hoover's testimony was not
directed to the Austin Wadsworth
bill. nor to the specific question OF
work legislation Basically, his point
was that there is limit to our ca
pacities and that II we attempt too
much on the military side we may
overstrain on the home front and
damage our effectiveness in ultimate
victory, 1t is worthy Of note, however.
that Mr.. Hoover did not say we had
reached the, limit of our capacities,
nor did he assert specifically that
too great military effort was in
prospect, although he implied as
much. Thus, so far as his statement
is concerned, the question whether
a more efficient use of our remaining
civilian manpower would not re-
move any need for lowering the con-
templated size of our armed forces
still is an open one And until we
have made real effort to employ
our civilian manpower effectively,
which we are not doing now. the
wisdom Of cutting into our prospec-
tive armed force will remain exceed
1ngly dubious to say the least.