Evening star., 1943-07-16
Draft Officials Assure
Fathers Of Delay in
Call Until October
Next ; Months Quotes
To Be Filled by Single,
ChiIdless Married Men
BY MIRIAM OTTENBERG

Bona fide fathers in the eyes of
the draft now have the positive
assurance of selective service
that they will not be called up
until October at least, and pos
sibly later.
In the first official statement on
the draft situation in many months,
Maj. Emmett Solomon of the selec-
tive service manpower division,
speaking for Selective Service Di-
rector Lewis B. Hershey, disclosed
late yesterday that enough single
and childless married men will be
available to fill the calls of the
armed forces for July, August and
September.
In addition, of the 10000 youths
who are registering for the draft
each month, $4,000 go into uniform.
putting another buffer between
fathers and the draft.
Figures Are Cited.
Declining to predict just how soon
fathers living with children born
before last September Is will be
called. Maj Solomon presented fig
ures to indicate that the draft boards
will not reach fathers until late in
the fall at the earliest.
"Recoveries" from the groups now
deferred are expected to increase
the pool of available men. Some of
these 'recoveries" will be from Glass
Al as draft boards continually re-
view men deferred for physical,
mental, educational and moral rea-
sons. Others will be farmers at the
end Of the harvest season and men
now deferred for occupational
reasons.
Since the first announcement that
fathers would be taken this year,
Maj. Solomon said, draft boards
have been looking at men in the de-
ferred classes with different eyes"
Public pressure to defer fathers as
long as possible, he said, has made
draft boards change their emphasis
for deferment from occupation to
family status.
Draft Boards Realistic
Maj. Solomon's figures show for
the first time how draft boards are
handling hardship cases" Ma
tional headquarters, he said. was
surprised to find that only $4,000
men SO far had been deferred be-
cause of extreme hardship to de-
pendents. Draft boards, he COM
mented, were being extremely
realistic" probably because they are
nearing fathers.
The darker side of the picture, as
far as fathers are concerned, were
statistics showing that so per cent
of the men between the ages of 18
and 81 already have been inducted
into the service or rejected and
placed in 4-F. The other half of
the 22,184, 4,000-men pool has either
been loaned to industry" (occupa-
tional deferments) or to the farms
or are deferred as fathers.
A total of 8,023 900 men have been
furnished to the armed forces
through the draft or enlistments of
draft registrants Maj. Solomon
commented, however that some of
these men have been discharged or
are casualties.
Latest armed forces strength fig
ures place the total strength for all
services at 100000, which includes
enlistments of nom registrants.
among them youths under l8 and
men over 80; the regular forces at
the beginning of the war and Ma
tional Guard and women.
Largest Call in Four Months.
AS far as draft calls are con-
cerned. Maj. Solomon said that, con-
trary to Capitol Hill remarks, the
July call for all forces was larger
than for any of the four preced-
ing months. He said statements by
members of Congress that calls had
been cut in half in July might have
referred solely to Army calls.
Selective service knows exactly
how many men the armed forces
will require in July August and Sep
tember. Maj. Solomon said the Sep
tember call will be larger than the
August call and slightly under the
July call.
Maj. Solomon warned that a
number of factors may change the
draft picture. Physical and educa-
tional standards now in effect are
being explored" for possible lower
ing Of the standards and expert
(See DRAFT. Page A-12.)