Fathers, Go to War

For the last three months U.S. draft boards failed to meet the quotas of the armed forces. Last week the Selective Service system told Congress what it proposed to do: turn the heat on, double its dips into U.S. manpower.

A "considerable number" of the new draftees will be pre-Pearl Harbor fathers, of whom only 90,000 so far have been inducted.

Only by drawing on fathers heavily can the Army & Navy hope to get the 699,000 more men they will need by July 1, plus an unpredictable total of recruits (estimate: 600,000) that the services will need for replacements.

Selective Service explained that its failure to keep up to quota was "partly because of pending legislation, partly for other reasons." The fact remained that by year's end Army & Navy net strength was almost 300,000 short of a planned net strength of 10,709,000. Planned net strength by next July: 11,130,000.

The induction rate will have to be 200,000 a month for six months. Said Selective Service: some of the heat would be taken off fathers if Congress passed a national service law.

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