DEFENSE LEAGUE'S TRAINING PROGRAM WILL HELP CONSCRIPT IN PLACEMENT

Just how much previous military or technical experience will aid the conscript when called to arms is one of the major problems presented by the Selective Service Act. It touches college directly in determining the worth of the Student Defense League's proposed training program.

While even Army officials are unable to predict exactly how the Personnel Department will work, it is obvious that many technical jobs must be filled with draftees. College students will have an advantage in gaining these, and those with special training may be able to direct themselves into the particular branch they desire.

But as far as the idea of becoming officers is concerned, it is quite apparent from the set-up that the draftee has virtually no chance, and superficial college courses in military subjects won't particularly help. With 125,000 reserve officers organized in units ready for call, and the positions in the framework now projected filled with regular Army officers or National Guardsmen, the action of General Marshall is little more than the offering of an improvement prize.

The present plan for training of the new army is to create a skeleton organization of nine army corps, each composed of two National Guard square divisions and one Regular Army triangular division. Into these the conscripted men will be sifted.

The divisions will each have their own reconnaissance corps, anti-tank gun corps, and the like. The actual four projected mechanized divisions will be smaller, trained separately, requiring carefully selected men to fill out their increment.

However, there will clearly be demand throughout the regular training for a much more highly technical sort of ability than in the last war. Thus the men will clearly be divided according to their ability.

Part of this classifying will occur immediately on induction, when the personnel officer assigns the conscript to a post, and part after three months of training. The conscript will be judged on his experience and placed on the basis of this.