Evening star., 1946-10-05
|DeadIine Tonight
For GI School Rights
Spurs Recruiting Here


Last-minute recruits-a1xious to
get under tonight,s midnight dead
lire for full CT Bill of Rights priv
ileges-filed steadily today through
the Army Recruiting ONCE. at 4o3
Tenth street NV.
Deadline enlistments were being
taken throughout the Nation as the
Army estimated $1,000 or more
volunteers Joined the colors In Sep
tember in final rush to qualify for
the full CT bill benefits. For PLAN
ming purposes the War Department
had figured on only $4,000.
The Washington office was to close
at 8 pm. in order to allow ample time
for processing the enlistees through
the Fort George G. Meade reception
center before midnight.
Expresses Satisfaction.
An expected land Office rush Of
ast-minute recruits had not ma
terialized In the forenoon, but Mai.
Richard Carmody, officer in charge
Of the recruiting station, expressed
satisfaction at the turnout.
At 10 am. an Army bus took Is
men to Fort Meade, Of whom Is
were recruits and veterans.
One of the first in line this morn
| ing was Willard Davis, IT, Of 318
Fourth street NE, who had obtained
his parents permission to enlist.
He signed up for i " years and hopes
to attend a trade school after his
discharge. He has been attending
the Chamberlain Vocational School.
A Navy veteran, Charles l.. Hoover,
not yet 10, of 2222 Perry street NE.
was another early conner. Young
Hoover enlisted in the Navy In 1945
and saw a little bit" of combat in
the Pacific before WI day. He hopes
to take a four-year college course
after he has finished with the Army.
Looks to College.
George Wenner, IS, of Waterford.
Va, Joined up for three years, and
hopes to 60 to Virginia college
after discharge. He was graduated
from Leesburg High School in June.
Mai. Carmody said there has been
a rush of applicants all week, high
| lighted by an alltime local peak
of 81 accepted Monday. Recruiting
fell of from 305 in July to 162 but
! with nearing of tonight's deadline
enlistments picked up, 800 being
taken in September.
Volunteer enlistments the country
over numbered 37,925 in the first
three weeks of September. Omcials
said incomplete reports indicated
the upsurge had continued to be the
largest total since June.
/ Altogether the Army had received
up to September II, a total OF $685.
/ 823 volunteers since its intensive
recruiting drive started last fall
i This is the largest volunteer force
on record, but men still in service
4 were permitted to sign up for as
little as one year, and their enlist
ments begin to expire this month.
] Meanwhile, the War Department
authorized the discharge Of GIs
directly from Army camps in the
United States, bypassing separation
Icenters.
4 Four Centers to Close.
4 Eventually all but three OF the
.. present centers will be closed, it
was announced.
These separation centers, through
, which several million men have been
routed since WI day, will continue
to be used for men arriving from
ioverseas for discharge, and for men
at posts where adequate facilities
are not available.
II Described as one Of q series Of
ECONOMY measures resulting from
administration orders to trim mill
] Itary expenditures. the order also
1 will relieve these centers from pres
sure which has followed q recent
Ispeedup of discharges.
4 Present separation centers are at
Fort Dix, N. j.; Fort George @.
Meade. Md; Fort Bragg, N. O.;
Fort Sheridan, Ill.; Fort Sam Hous-
4 ton, Tex; Camp Beale and Fort
Lewis, Wash. The War DEPART
lment said present plans are to re-
tain one each on the East and West
Coasts and third "in the New
Orleans area"