Hershey Says 18-Year Draft Vital to Army

Selective Service Director Lewis B. Hershey urged the House Armed Services Committee yesterday to recommend the drafting of 18-year-olds and cautioned it against any moves to delay taking them by lowering present draft physical requirements too much.

Hershey said that assignments for limited-service men have to be selected ones. He also asserted that the armed services prefer to have rear-echelon personnel who can fight if necessary.

Present Danger

On Tuesday, the Committee on Present Danger, which includes President Conant, presented testimony at hearings of the Senate Armed Services Committee in favor of the pending universal military service and training bill.

Reiterating its plan for calling up age groups for service and extending the draft to 18-year-olds, the committee claimed that this scheme would provide a continual flow of manpower as well as a trained reserve.

Dr. William C. Menninger, a psychiatrist and member of the committee, claimed that under the present selective service system there exists in colleges "apathy toward current activities and indifference towards the future."

Drafting of men over 26 was killed in the previous day's hearings.