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Show HUGE TASK IS BEGUN TODAY War Department Classifying Nation's Man Power and Mailing Questionnaires. " rUSH TO ENLIST Recruiting Officers Swamped With Applicants for Volunteer Volun-teer Service in Army. WASHINGTON, Dec. 15. Secretary Baker today camo to the relief of the thousands of men who have, volunteered volun-teered for the regular army but have been rejected because of the breakdown break-down of the recruiting machinery by ordering that all qualified applicants who presented thomsclvcs before noon today should be accepted, even though their examination and other details could not be accomplished until lator. Thousands of men seeking to volunteer volun-teer beforo the new draft regulations wont Into effect at noon had been turned away because the recruiting stations were swamped. WASHINGTON", Dec. 15. The war department's huge task of classifying the nation's man power for army service ser-vice actually began today with the mailing out of the first 5 per cent of the questionnaires. At the same time, .recruitings fajjjljt- j ies throughout the country, already overtaxed with recent enlistments, I threatened to give way before the rush of draft registrants eager to avail themselves of the last chance to vol-.j Constant Stream of Volunteers Recruiting officers in many sections I found themselves without means of I accommodating thousands that en - ' listed yesterday and the stream which continued to apply. Discharge of many ' from recruiting ofTiccs means that : some men of draft age will fail in their efforts to enlist before noon today, , after which they may join the regulars as their status in the national army, i It is announced, however, that men who do not get into the regular army through recruiting agencies may do so ; later through their local boards. Their i nprlications may be acted upon immediately imme-diately but they will appear on the rolls as members of the national army. Mailing Out Questionnaires The mailing of questionnaires will be completed speedily by the war department de-partment and within sixty days more than 9,000,000 registrants will ho divided di-vided into five classes as regards ihelr! liability for military service. I In a statement issued today. Provost! Marshal General Crowdor said: I "The plans have been developed, thel machine has been built and with the loyal co-operation of the local boards so amply demonstrated by their past i accomplishments, the millions of reg- j istrants will," within sixty days, stand ' marshaled for their placo in the! world's war, each in the class to which I his economic worth entitles him. ' "I have not the slightest hesitation : in predicting the absolute success of I the classification system. Selected With Scientific Precision "Never before in the history of the , world Iiave armies been chosen with the scientific precision of the new sys-1 tern. Men will shoulder the gun first who should by all the laws of reason offer themselves first to their country, and only grim necessity will compel us to invade the more deferred classes, class-es, but if such necessity does arise, it will find the country ready. "Through the governors of the states, a legal advisory board 10 assist as-sist registrants to make intelligent answers to their questionnaires haB been assigned to every local board; through the same agencies the leaders in medicine in every" community have pledged themselves to aid and assist in medical examinations. A great majority ma-jority of the men wtao are conducting the new system have offered their services ser-vices without price to thegovernmcnt. "The completion of the system will complete the great work of the local and district boards. Thereafter they will act each in their respective districts dis-tricts as the government's agent for any new restriction which may .occur and will consider changes of status or transfers of jurisdiction when such ma.y arise." |