The Pittsburgh Press (October 25, 1940)
DRAFTEES TO GET 5 DAYS’ NOTICE
By John A. Reichmann, United Press Staff Writer
Washington, Oct. 25 –
President Roosevelt today issued regulations governing selection of men for service and training under the Selective Service law.
Each man called into service shall have at least five days notice to conclude his personal and business affairs before being ordered to duty, according to the President’s regulations. These rules also require that men may be inducted only after the corps area commander is ready to provide them with adequate facilities such as shelter.
While procedure for the draft after the national lottery next Tuesday was being formulated, eight girls in a locked room at conscription headquarters started filling the capsules with numbers for the draw. The order in which those numbers are drawn will determine the order in which the 17 million registrants for military service will be called before their local draft boards.
President Roosevelt instructed draft officials to make certain that volunteers are called before any non-volunteers in their community are ordered into service.
Another Presidential regulation specified that draft officials must post notice of the corps area requirements for men at least 21 days before the men are inducted.
Another regulation provides that no man shall be sent to camp while he has an appeal pending from his local board’s classification.
Instead of dealing directly with national Selective Service headquarters, Army requirements will be transmitted to the governors of the states in each corps area by the corps area commander. When and if the Navy and Marine Corps begin taking men, however, the requirements will be arranged between the governors and a representative of the Navy or Marine Corps.
Other Requirements
When a contingent is ordered to leave an area for induction it will proceed under direction of one individual trainee chosen for his “age, experience, character and personality.” An assistant leader also will be designated. Their authority over the group will be designated by a warrant and the leaders will have charge of transportation, food and lodging.
Selected men who are far from their local board may report to the nearest board and ask to be sent to an induction station. If his request for induction at the local board where he presents himself is granted, he is to be inducted even though it be necessary to substitute him for a volunteer in that board area. If his request is rejected he must report to his local board.
Local boards are required to provide replacements for men who are rejected by the armed forces at the induction center. The rejected men must then be reclassified by their local boards, either as Class I-B – available for limited military service – or Class IV-F – mentally, morally and physically unfit for military service.
The director of Selective Service is required to furnish each state governor “from time to time” the quotas, credits and debits of his state. The governor also must inform the director the number of registrants in the state, the number of Class I-A men and the number of industries. The director is required to give periodic notice of the men each state must furnish.
Governors are required to apportion state quotas among local boards.
The placing of the numbers in the capsules will be done in greatest secrecy. The girls did not know they had been chosen until late yesterday. Their operations will be closely supervised and every precaution will be taken to assure that no capsule is left empty or that none of the numbers is left out.
Numbers Are Hidden
Small tabs, each bearing a number from one to 10,000, have been printed on both sides. The capsule, made of a new plastic material, is opaque so that no person drawing a capsule from the bowl can read the number until the capsule is opened.
Racks containing 25 holes each, just large enough to hold a capsule upright, are used in the production line. One girl fills them with capsules. Another places a number in each capsule. A third girl checks to see that each capsule has a number in it and will make a further check by comparing the serial number with a guide number on the rack. The fourth girl will place the cap on each capsule.
Each 100 capsules will be placed in a small box, tied and deposited in a safe. When all are filled and capped, the capsules will be put in the goldfish bowl and locked in a safe until just before the lottery.
Delay Rumors Quashed
Selective Service headquarters today denied rumors that the lottery might be postponed. Some Congressional members, it was rumored, were protesting against having the lottery before Election Day.
Invitations were sent out to distinguished guests yesterday and workmen began the work of transforming the hall in which the lottery will be held. Hundreds of seats will be replaced with working tables for newspapers and press associations which will flash the numbers to the public. Platforms are being built for movie cameramen and radio broadcasters.
Instead of drawing the 100,000 draft numbers originally planned, it was said, only between 7,500 and 8,500 will be drawn.
The highest number allotted by any local board so far is 7,278 n a Louisiana district.