Evening star., 1943-09-25
Bailey Plans 10 Bar
i. ). Job Deferments
For ChiIdIess Men

OAA @IOIUluuulB OCCupaClOQal
deferments for non-fathers in Gov
ernment service was being drafted
today by Senator Bailey, Demo-
crat, Of North Carolina.
Senator Bailey said he would offer
his bill next week as a substitute
for the Wheeler bill to postpone
induction of prewar fathers until
January /.
The Wheeler bill has been sched-
uled for vote Tuesday, but ad-
ministration leaders are confident
they can muster sufficient votes to
send it back to the Senate Mill
tary Affairs Committee.
Senator Bailey's proposal follows
charges made by House Military
Affairs subcommittee that an esti-
mated 100000 single and childless
married men are still on the Federal
payroll.
Details Not Yet Settled.
While details of his bill are vet
to be worked out, Senator Bailey
said it would forbid occupational de-
ferments OF bachelors and childless
married men in the Government
service and cancel deferments now
In effect except in cases where
superior ofhcers can offer proof of
indispensability."
He said provisions also will be
included to force. the transfer to
combat service of uniformed men
at the War Department capable of
bearing arms and whose services in
their present desk jobs are not abso-
lutey Indispensable"
Voicing opposition to the Wheeler
bill as class legislation" the North
Carolina legislator said that if ia
thers are needed they must be
taken but that single men in the
service first In the line of battle"
Is his objective.
Senator Wheeler also appears to
be switching his attack to Federal
workers. In radio broadcast last
night, he declared that selective
service, in its search for men, could
turn to ':that multitude of Gov
ernment employees who, like swarms
of locusts, infest Washington and
every city in the land where Gov
ernment bureaus have been estab-
hshed."
He riterated his charge that mo
South American country up to the
present time has furnished division
for combat service anywhere in the
world" and declared that the Army
and Navy can get 2,0O0, 900 additional
servicemen by lowering physical
qualifications.
Favors 90-Day Suspension.
Senator Reed, Republican, of
Kansas also had suggestion to
make on the draft. Declaring that
the Army's got more men now
than 1t knows what to do with"
Senator Reed said he favored a 90
day suspension of all inductions ex-
cept those Of 18-year- -olds.
THAT would give an opportunity
to resurvey the need for additional
men," he said. 1--WE aren't going to
lose the war in 80 days. We have
5,OO0,O 900 men in the Army in this
country now and we can't possibly
ship more than 2OO0, 900 of them
overseas In the next year"
Senator Reed added that no one
could honestly accuse him Of trying
to hamstring the Army, since he has
a son, grandson and two sons-in-
law in the armed forces.
Meanwhile, the father-draft de-
bate has reused interest in increas-
ing allotments and allowances to the
families OF servicemen. Several
members of Congress have an
nounced they would push for in
creases, and yesterday CIO Presi-
dent Philip Murray wrote House
leaders asking that family allow
ances for wife and two children
be boosted to $120.
The increase, which is far larger
than any proposed in Congress.
would assure tolerable living con-
ditions for the families of our men
now taking the offensive" Mr.. MUIR
ray declared.
Mr.. Murray contended that the
bill which has already passed the
Senate allows increases which are
more than $40 month below the
absolute minimum of necessity"
The Senate bill raises the allow
ance OF a wife and two children to
$79 a month by allowing s28 for the
first child and $11 for each addi-
tional child.