I have read with sympathetic interest your letter of December 3rd. I assure you that it would be a great pleasure to me to assist you in any way possible, but since the ruling of the War Department promulgated on the 13th day of November the Governor has no more power or influence with respect to a man who has already been sent to a training camp than he has with respect to a soldier in the armies of England or France. My jurisdiction was completely removed on the 13th day of November, and it would be improper for me to attempt to interfere in any way with the judgment of the military authorities.

The case of your son now rests entirely with the officers who have him in charge in the camp. He is in exactly the same position as if five years ago he had enlisted in the army of the United States. No State Officer of any kind has anything whatever to do with his discharge.

Lest you may feel that you lost something by the failure of the local board to reopen your case, I will say further that between the 27th day of September, when the Governor and the Adjutant General of the State were given authority to ask local boards to reopen cases, and the 13th day of November when all our power was cancelled, something over fourteen hundred cases were considered, and in not a single one of these fourteen hundred cases was an unmarried man sent back from the camp. Between these two dates - September 27 and November 13th - the authorities in the camp had the last work, and, as stated above, in not a single instance was the request to discharge an unmarried man granted. The truth is that it has been practically impossible to get an unmarried man out of the army when once he has been inducted into military service. In the next call, which will be made in January or February, all the single men will be put in the first class, and my judgment is that twelve months from today there will not be an unmarried man between the ages of 21 and 31 left in the United States.

I think it proper to say to you further that under the law your son can go before his Captain and allot $20. per month of his wages to you, the government will allow you $10. more per month. You will get $30 per month regularly. You can go to any lawyer in Union County and he will make out the papers necessary for you to get this money, without charging you one penny.