Evening star., 1948-06-15
Sharp Exchange
0pensDebateon
Draft in House
Leaders Abandon Plan
For Passage Today;
Tomorrow Now Goal
By Robert K. Welsh

House debate on the draft Dill
opened today with a stormy ex-
change in which opponents at
tackled it as contrary to the
democratic way" and advocates
warned that liberty throughout
the world may very well fail"
unless Congress passes this pre-
paredneSs measure.
House leaders gave up hope of
passing the bill by nightfall and
aimed for passage tomorrow instead
House Majority Leader Halleck
told newsmen this bill is too i'm
portant and too far-reaching to be
rammed through in one day
Will Meet Early Tomorrow.
Mr.. Halleck said he will ask the
House to meet early tomorrow SO the
bill can be disposed of then and sent
to conference
Backers of the bill predicted that
the House would approve legislation
in form similar to the draft meas
ure voted 78 to 10 by the Senate last
Thursday. Opponents we're armed
with more than 40 proposed amend
ments.
In the opening hour of debate
on a proposed open rule for three
hours of general debate on the
bill, Chairman Allen of the Rules
Committee announced he would
ask for a roll call vote on the bill
but not on the rule. The Rules
Committee yesterday, by 6-to-4
vote, cleared the bill for House con-
sideration.
Allen Criticizes Bill.
Mr.. Allen, urging the House to
defeat the draft bill, said he was
certain that vast majority of the
members, after hearing the debate
today, will be convinced that it is
not a good bill
Mr.. Allen concluded by saying
that the draft proposal is opposed
by a majority of the American peo-
pie as we'll as by school, church,
labor, farm and most patriotic Or
ganizations. Its main support, he
added, comes from "a few interna- =
tional newspapers, few American
Legion officials and the armed
services"
Representative WadsWorth, Re-
publican, of New York, author CT
The wartime selective service law,
led the fight for adoption of the
rule and passage of the bill.
Citing the close margin by which
the bill cleared the Rules Commit
tee, Mr.. Wadsworth. said there
would have been no justification for
that committee to deny the House
a chance to vote on the bill.
The issue is to vital to be
lodged" he continued. The bill is
too important to be buried.
Responsible for Defense.
"We are too prone after war
Is over to denounce our military
authorities. Today there are en-
tirely too many expressions Of lack
of confidence in them. Only a short
time ago they were great heroes
Never once in all my years here
have l met any one of them who
wanted war. They. however, are
the ones charged directly with the
responsibility for defending this
country. Their suggestions should
not be idly brushed aside
Representative Cox, Democrat, of
Georgia urged passage Of the bill
to prevent sabotage of the defense
program on which we already are
spending billions.
Representative Barden, Demo-
crat, of North Carolina attacked
the bill as being undemocratic,
against the best interests of society,
unable to provide adequate defense.
a method of RECOMMENDATION, and a
detriment to the educational sys-
tenn of the country.
The bill before the House was in
troduced by Chairman Andrews OF
the House Armed Services Com
mittee. The Senate bill was spon-
sored by Senator Gurney. Republi-
can, of South Dakota, chairman Of
the Senate Armed Services Com
mittee, and originally had a pro-
vision for universal military train
ing.
Expected House passage would
send the legislation to conference.
The House and Senate conferees
would have to decide, among other
things, whether to accept the Sem
ate provision for voluntary enlist
ment of 18-year-old youths for one
year of training.
Difference in Effective Date.
Another difference is that the
House version at present requires
the President to wait IS days be-
fore ordering the draft machinery
into operation by a formal procla-
nation. The draft law would take
effect Immediately under the Sen
ate bill.
In any event, it is believed un-
likely that inductions would start
before go days, and probably not
until 80 days, after enactment of
the law. Military officials have esti-
mated that about 250,00o men would
be drafted in the first year.
In related national defense legis-
lative moves the Senate Appropri-
ations Committee yesterday ap-
proved a House bill allowing the
Navy to build 65,000-ton aircraft
carrier
The carrier would be the largest
combat vessel ever built. Funds for
a start on the project would be made
tSee DEFENSE, Page A-41