The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1945-08-03
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UNIVERSAL MILITARY
TRAINING MYSTERY

ing"
No special information concerning
difficulties ahead of this nation was
privately passed to the committee by
the war department which has been
promoting the youth draft. Specif-
ically, no inside scare over Russia
inspired the committee.
Consequently, considerable per-
plexity has developed as to how and
why it went contrary to the weight
OF evidence In its own hearings.
1t seemed to vote 16 to 0 in
favor Of program which none
OF its hearing witnesses en-
dOrsed, except the army, navy,
state departments and the u. s.
chamber Of commerce, against
the popular opposition Of nation
al educational groups, both ma.
jOr national labor organizations,
two of the three national farm
organizations, as well as the
usual peace societies, and wom-
ems groups.
To make the mystery more pos
sible, one member of the committee
says he has received only two let
tiers from his district in favor of the
youth draft, while he has bushel
of mail against it.
When congressman 60 16 to 0 (the
remaining six members abstained or
wanted to delay action but did not
vote against the report Directly in
favor of something opposed by their
constituents and the most powerful
lobbies in Washington-labor, farm
er, education, women-a miracle is
wrought.
Wo0drum's Plan
This one seems to come within the
realm of magic-political magic. It
should have been entitled 'How to
Be Politician in One Easy Les
son." Caught between the army and
the Hobbies, the committee favored
both opposite courses = in modera-
ton, of course.
Committee Chairman Woodrum
tossed all the hot potato evidence he
had amassed into the air, then
caught and came forward with some
conglomeration which steamed in
the headlines.
Actually it is cold potato salad.
His pride in it did not leap even
to ordinary bounds as he did not
even have it printed in the congress
sional record which prints all con.
gressional thoughts for the asking.
Upon close inspection you will find
the report did not endorse the war
department program but was
worded to sound as if it did, by ap-
proving tthe principle" and "the
broad policy" yet underlined.
Among members of the Woodrum
committee is Rep. James w. Wads-
worth of New York, who is supposed
to have seen to the wording. He
wants to draft all youths of IS or
Whereabouts for year in the army.
Talking around with the COM
mitteemen, you will find many
favor a Democratic substitute
such as advocated by the veter-
ans Of Foreign Wars for training
boys in schools, without inter.
rupting their education, expand
ing the national guard and re-
serves systems, and summer
camps. The report did not OPP
: pose this, excepting it seemed
to want the youths drafted for it.
The Veterans Of Foreign Wars pro-
gram, following the lines outlined in
this column since last September,
now rates the best chance Of adop-
ton by congress in the end-with-
out draft-but only after more
magic and semantics. Next will
come a report from the house mill
tary affairs committee and this may
recommend drafting, as the military
totalitarians are in the majority.
Home C0mpulsion!
But on the floor of the senate and
house today, a majority for a youth
draft would be hard to find. Com
pulsion for home and school training
without a national draft Is the OBJ
vious compromise.
The army has never come for
ward with a specific outline of what
it intended to do with the young
men il it gets control Of them for a
year (no one mentions the young
women any more and I assume
they have been dropped from the
army training program.)
But retired officers who are going
around the country whipping UP
sentiment in American Legion posts
advocate something like this:
Nine weeks basic training Dunk
making. setting-up exercises, etc.,;
0 weeks of specialists training in
1000 categories in the army.
Eisenhower really proved there
must be citizens training system,
and urged that the training pro-
mote coordination between the land,
sea and air forces. But like Marshall
he did not even consider enlarging
the national guard, youth camps for
summer only, creation of a larger
and better officer reserve system,
quadrupling West Point and Annapo-
lis, injection of military courses in
high schools and colleges as COM
pulsory subjects-or any of the other