Lottery: Happy Birthday For Some

If your birthday is September 14, pack up your troubles in your old kit bag and smile, smile, smile.

September 14 was the first date selected last night in the newly-re-instituted annual national draft lottery. All U.S. men between the ages of 19 and 26 were assigned by birthday to a number between 1 and 366. The numbers represent the order in which each man will be called up for the draft, either in 1970 or when his exemption expires.

The next four dates drawn were April 24, December 30, February 14, and October 18.

The drawing began at 8 p.m. at national draft headquarters in Washington. After a prayer, draft director Lewis B. Hershey ordered unlocked a black box containing 366 blue plastic capsules and had them poured into a large glass jar. Inside each capsule was a gummed paper printed with a date of the year.

The first capsule was pulled by Rep. Alexander Pirnie (R.N.Y.), ranking Republican on a special House subcommittee on the draft. He unfired the paper and handed it to a Selective Service representative who announced the date and pasted it on a display board. The following capsules were drawn by members of the Selective Service System's youth advisory council- one representative of each state, Guam, New York City, and the District of Columbia.

Several of the representatives refused to participate in the drawing, and the D.C. representative stepped up to the mike to say so.

The drawings ended with a benediction at 9:37 p.m.

Representing Massachusetts at the festivities was Harvard politico Lawrence S. DiCara '71. DiCara, active in both Harvard and Boston polities, is considering running for the Boston City Council upon graduation.

"These classmates of mine who are familiar with my interests were not the least bit surprised to learn about my new position," DiCara said.

President Nixon asked state draft directors early last summer to set uppanels of young people to advise them. Massachusetts had not done so by a week and a half ago, but picked DiCara to attend the drawing because "we were very impressed by Larry's credentials."

DiCara came out number 20$.

"If you're going to get fucked." he told the CRIMSON before the drawing, "you're going to get fucked."

About 850,000 men were affected by last night's drawing. About 250,000 of these will probably be drafted nest year, Those whose numbers are above 200 will probably be safe from the draft.

In future years, the lottery will only apply to those who turned 19 during the previous year. Once you are originally assigned a lottery number, it is yours for the rest of your draft eligible career. Those who get through their 19th year with no exemption without being drafted will probably never be. If a man's exemption ends before he turns 26, he becomes liable to the draft for a year according to his number. just as if he were 19.