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Show NEfWS T(S&f FROM OUR CONGRESSMAN W. K. GRANGER Facits of Demobilization When Germany surrendered the Army had 5,500,000 men overseas. It was then imperative to move hundreds of thousands of these men with the greatest possible speed to the Pacific to end the Japanese War. Although Japan vvas already desperate under our air and sea attacks and the a-tomic a-tomic bomb was in the last stages of experiment it would have been criminal to risk Japans Ja-pans not fighting to suicidal finish and therefore to delay movement of our men toward the Pacific. But Japan surrendered, surren-dered, and it became urgent to demobilize the armed forces as quickly and fairly as possible. The War Department estimated that with an intake of 500,000 new men from the selctive service serv-ice inductions in the 12 months ahead it could immediately begin be-gin to demobilize 6,050,000 of those who had already served their country. The quickest way to demobilize all these men and women would be to load units nearest the ports into the ships as fast as they arrive. ar-rive. This, however, would be unfair. In Europe and in the Pacific there are hundreds of thousands of men who have been fighting for their country for long priods. If the whole units were returned to the United States for discharge it would result in allowing al-lowing many men who had been in the Army only a short time and who have had little or no combat to get out while those who have fought the longest and hardest had to wait behind. The Discharge System It is impossible to find a solution solu-tion or devise a plan which pleases everybody. The now well-known point system was o-riginally o-riginally computed on May 12 after the defeat of Germany, and recomputed as of September 2, and throughout the demobilization demobiliza-tion the point score necessary for discharge will be lowered a-gain a-gain and again. . , Officers and elisted men who are not eligible for release under the age or point system may be discharged if their families are so dependent on their earning ability or family leadership that undue hardships would result if they were retained in service. A hardship discharge application must be accompanied by affidavits affi-davits of two or more persons other than members of the applicant's ap-plicant's immediate family attest ing the situation in the man's home. The decision is left to the designated senior commanders in the field without reference to the War Department. If a soldier is overseas, his family may submit sub-mit the request for discharge to the Adjutant General, War Department, De-partment, Washington 25, D. C, in affidavit form, accompanied by the two affidavits from persons per-sons other thai-, members of the family.' - " |