Evening star., 1944-11-17
GIs in Congress Pledge Aid to Yonks
By WILL r. KENNEDY,
star Stan Correspondent.

delphia, and Sergt. c. Melvin Price
80, East st. Louis, Ill.-will begin
their new jobs January 20, pledged
to make every effort to promote
legislation beneficial to servicemen
Pvt. Green, who has been In the
Army eight months, said: Being
= serviceman myself can appre-
ciate the needs of servicemen-and
will give them my closest attention.
Sergt. Price, who has been In the
Army Is months, said: IT feel that
after living with servicemen fol
more than q year and being one OF
them, know the kind of treatment
they want. This election makes me
feel like real representative OF al
servicemen, and / know something
about the enlisted mans point Of
view, not the officers
After every war in this Nations
history, many former soldiers have
come to Congress, but these are the
first from, the Global War.
The Navy also has contributed Q
man to the incoming CongreSs-Lt
James Grove Fulton, who as a Re-
publican candidate defeated the in
cumbent Democrat, Representative
James A. Wright, in the 3lst (Pitts-
burgh, Pa) district.
Preference in Assignments.
Both Camp Lee Representatives
elect are ambitious to get commit
tee assignments where they can be
most active on servicemen's legisla-
ton. Pvt. Green, elected from the
5th Pennsylvania district, will ask
for assignment to the World War
Veterans Committee and to the
Labor Committee. He has a chance
to get on the Veterans Committee
because Representative Grant Fur
long, a Democratic member from
the oath Pennsylvania district, was
defeated. Mr.. Green seeks place
on the Labor Committee because he
is interested in labor questions, had
the support of adj labor .organiza-
tions and comes from a strong labor
section of Philadelphia. There are
now two Pennsylvania Democratic
members on the committee, but one
of them, Thomas E. Scanlon, from
the 30th district, has been defeated
by q Republican former member,
Robert j. Corbett The other, Rep
resentative Augustine B. Kelley, has
been reelected.
] Sergt. Price, elected from the 22d
Illinois district. is a seasoned Cap
itol Hill veteran. He served for 10
years as secretary to former Repre-
sentative Edwin NJ Schaefer March,
1e33-April, 1943). He intends to
ask for assignment to the Military
Affairs Committee, because he feels
he can best aid the servicemen in
that post. As Mr.. Schaefer was a
member of that committee for eight
years, Mr.. Price is already familiar
with the duties and knows the
ropes" in Washington. Illinois now
has no Democratic member on the
military committee, although the
Republican whip, Representative
Leslie C. Arends of Illinois, is mi
nority member.
Sergt. Price has been a member
Of the National Press Club for more
than 10 years. He has many friends
in the Capital. including Democratic
National Chairman Robert Hanne-
gan, who played on the ST. Louis
University baseball team when Mr..
Price was manager.
Prices Second Bid.
This was Sergt. Prices second bid
for Congress. When Mr.. Schaefer
retired in 1943, Sergt. Price made a
try for the seat but had no organiza-
ton support and was defeated in
the primary by 1900 votes, and the
Representative Calvin d.
johnson, Republican, was later
elected. This year the party lead
ers selected Price as the most likely
candidate, while he was in the
Army, and he won. Stocky, some
what bald, a bachelor, living with
his widowed mother and brother,
Sergt. Price tried for six months to
get into the Army before he was
finally accepted for enlistment in
october, 1943. His entire service
has been at Camp Lee, basic, field
and technical training. He is an
inventory control clerk in the post
quartermaster's Office.
s Sergt. Price was a New Year
baby, born the first hour of the
day, the first day in the week, the
hrst week in the month, the first
month of the year, January l, 1905
sae left college after two years to be
sports editor of the now defunct
East ST. Louis News-Review, and
later worked as a police reporter on
the East st. Louis Journal. He be-
longed to the National Baseball
Writers Association. Assigned to
cover the 1882 Illinois Guberna-
torial contest. Price became inter-
ested In politics and later was Sc
lected as Representative Schaefer's
secretary.
After his defeat in his first at
tempt for Congress he joined the
staff Of the st. Louis Globe Demo-
crat. In his newspaper work he
claims one distinction-he wrote
the first story claiming that Senator
Harry Truman would be considered
for the vice presidency which Of
flee he won on the same day that
Sergt. Price was elected to Congress
: Pvt. Green is member of the
43d Quartermaster Training Com
pany, Army Service Forces Train
ing Center. He defeated Repre-
sentative c. Frederick Pracht, in
cumbent Repuhlican, in the 5th
Pennsylvania district. He became
interested in athletics and played
varsity basket ball and football at
st. Joseph's College, Philadelphia.
He also shoots a good game of golf
He ran for the Philadelphia city
Council in 1885, when he was Is
years Of age, and was defeated by
300 votes, but claims to have re-
ceived the highest vote for a de-
feated candidate. He had his first
Army induction training at New
Cumberland, Pa.
Pvt. Green is married and has
four children, William j., jr., 6;
Mary E., S; Ann T., 8, and Michael
F., /.
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