| Show GENERAL HUGH S S. S fro S Y COMMANDEERING POWER WASHINGTON This This column has been so busy kibitzing about the conscription conscription conscription con con- of men under the selective service bill that it hasn't had much space for kibitzing about the so- so called conscription of industry or wealth wealth the the commandeering power power power pow pow- er added to the Wadsworth Burke-Wadsworth bill Of course the whole idea of tacking tacking tacking tack tack- ing this provision on a selective service service service ice bill is pure political hokum It was put there to enable congressional al candidates for re-election re to sayto sayto say sayto to their constituents I wouldn't vote for conscripting mens men's lives until I had insisted on voting to conscript mens men's dollars The power to take over private property for or public use is as old as English law It was called the law of eminent domain It is practiced almost every day in peace time and andis andis andis is called the process of condemnation tion The only real difference in war is that it is called commandeering commandeering commandeering comman deering Any important difference in the proposed legislation is only in the method for determining whether the need is for public use In both cases a court must determine what must be paid the owner for his prop prop- erty That must be so because the Constitution itself provides that private private private vate property may never be taken for public use without just com com- In peacetime condemnation the court must adjudge both that the proposed use is public and what the compensation shall be In this proposed legislation whether the I property is to be taken on a rental or ownership basis the secretaries of war or navy can determine whether the use is public but it itis is is-as is as it must be left be-left left to the courts to determine just compensation 0 In time of war or times tunes like these i where nearly every use in connection connection connection I tion with armament is public there I isn't much to that distinction The I law Jaw is faulty however in vesting the commandeering power in the I two secretaries It should be in the tite President That is another lesson of 1918 Both war and navy departments departments depart depart- men ments frequently commandeered the same supplies President Wilson finally straightened that out by re requiring requiring re re-I quiring all commandeering orders to tobe tobe tobe be signed by the chairman of the I Iwar war industries board I Apart from that the Smith or sen sen- ate version of the commandeering amendment is good The objectionable objection objection- able circumstance is the nature of the debate There is no measure of just compensation for a human life deliberately drafted into military military military mili mili- tary service is not the donation of anything to the public It is the performance of an obligation to the public Just compensation as required required required re re- re- re by the Constitution for a doll dollar dollar dol dol- dol- dol lar l r is a dollar On no sustainable theory do the two relationships stand standon on the same ground N Neither either condemnation condemnation condemnation con con- nor commandeering are as the politicos like to say conscription conscription tion of wealth It is electioneering buncombe Finally as our World war experience ence proved while commandeering commandeer ing of some facilities like land docks warehouses and supplies generally generally generally gen gen- will frequently be necessary as a convenient method of determining determining determining deter deter- mining price the taking of manufacturing manufacturing manufacturing manu manu- plants for government operation operation operation op op- op- op very rarely happens only happens only once by the army at least in 1918 The power to do so is useful for what President Wilson Vilson called a CIa I club behind the door in negotiation The pi of doing so on a rental or simple fee-simple basis is useless and unnecessary The government has neither the th personnel nor the ability to move in and operate a private plant The war department for example example example ex ex- ample has all it can handle in fighting fighting fighting fight fight- I ing a war If government has as asit asit asit it did have in 1918 priority powers over power fuel supply and transportation transportation transportation trans trans- it has no need to take over overa a mans man's plant If he doesn't behave it can choke his operation to death in two weeks' weeks time time time-as as we threatened threatened threatened threat threat- ened to do a few times in the old war industries board The threat was always sufficient We never took over any plants No matter how you slice it this controversy controversy controversy con con- is still boloney DRAFT LOTTERY The next big news story on the domestic front will be the great na national national national na- na draft lottery In the Civil war war draft names of young men in each county were written on separate separate separate sep sep- arate slips of paper and put in a jury wheel at the courthouse The order in which mens men's names came out was the order of their going There was waso wasso so o much chance for graft and fixing in this method that in 1917 we invented invented invented in in- vented a new way 1 Registration cards in each local board district were given a serial number after they had been thoroughly thoroughly thoroughly thor thor- shuffled Usually there were less than cards in each district The first plan was to have from 1 to written written on slips of paper and each put into a gelatin capsule In the presence of a crowd crown crowded crowned ed and distinguished audience The secretary of war drew out the first capsule It contained the number That meant that in each of the odd local districts the man whose number was was the first who would be called f for or examination |
