Lewis Blaine Hershey Lewis Blaine Hershey ( September 12 , 1893 – May 20 , 1977 ) was a United States Army four - star general who served as the second Director of the Selective Service System , the means by which the United States administers its military conscription . Early life . He was born in Steuben County , Indiana . He attended the local public schools and trained as a teacher at Tri - State College ( now Trine University ) . He taught at local elementary schools and served as a school principal . He married Ellen Dygert ( 1892 – 1977 ) and had four children : Kathryn , Gilbert , George , and Ellen . Military . He enlisted in the Indiana National Guard in 1911 . In 1916 , his guard unit was called to active duty on the Mexican border . The unit was relieved in December 1916 . That year he was commissioned as a second lieutenant . His unit was again called to federal service during World War I and sent to France with the American Expeditionary Force . After the war , Hershey remained in the National Guard until promoted to captain in the Regular Army in 1920 . He attended the Command and General Staff College and the Army War College . Hershey taught military science at the Ohio State University and then served in the general staff as G - 4 at the Department of Hawaii . Career . In 1936 , he was assigned to the General Staff in Washington , DC . In October 1940 , President Franklin Roosevelt promoted him to brigadier general and named him executive officer of the Selective Service System . On July 31 , 1941 , President Roosevelt named Hershey director of the Selective Service . In 1942 , Hershey was promoted to major general . While officially retiring in 1947 , he was retained on active duty . In 1956 , he was promoted to lieutenant general . He was the longest - serving director in the history of the Selective Service System , and held the position until February 15 , 1970 , spanning World War II , the Korean War and the Vietnam War . General Hershey was one of only three generals in the history of the United States Army to have served as a general during three major conflicts . The other two were Brevet Lieutenant General Winfield Scott ( War of 1812 , Mexican War and Civil War ) and General of the Army Douglas MacArthur ( World War I , World War II and Korea ) . In October 1967 , in response to increasing demonstrations against military recruiting on college campuses , Hershey issued an order which became known as " The Hershey Directive , " that anyone demonstrating against a military recruiter could be subject to immediate Selective Service reclassification of their draft status , meaning those students who demonstrated would be at risk of being immediately drafted . This order outraged students , many of whom were not subject to being drafted due to education deferments , and campus demonstrations against the war ( and Hershey ' s order ) increased . The Supreme Court voided this order on January 2 , 1970 ( in Bucher v . Selective Service System ) . Hershey was removed from his Selective Service post by President Richard Nixon after becoming a focus of anti - war protests , and replaced by Curtis Tarr . Nixon appointed him as a presidential adviser and promoted him to a full General - up to that time the only four - star General to reach that rank without having served in combat . Retirement . As required by law , Hershey was involuntarily retired from the army on April 10 , 1973 , at the age of 79 , as a four - star general . Hershey died in Angola , Indiana ( only a month after his wife ' s death ) and he is interred in Section 7 of Arlington National Cemetery . Hershey is a recipient of the prestigious Silver Buffalo Award from the Boy Scouts of America . He was a Scout leader and executive in Washington , DC . His previous awards from the Boy Scout s include the Silver Beaver Award and the Silver Antelope Award . Quotations . " " Between a fellow who is stupid and honest and one who is smart and crooked , I will take the first . I won ' t get much out of him , but with that other guy I can ' t keep what I ' ve got . " " " " I hate to think of the day my grandchildren will be defended by volunteers . " " " " A boy becomes an adult three years before his parents think he does , and about two years after he thinks he does . " " See also . General Hersheybar - Parody of Hershey , a satirical character of the Vietnam War - era protest movement .