Washington Work

AC. C. HILL JR. '25 is assistant to Chairman . Donald Nelson of the War Production Board. His advice to Dartmouth men interested in a war position in Washington is: "Stay right where you are, and rest assured that your Government will let you know when your services are required. There are going to be heavy increases in our armed services; it hardly makes sense for the man under thirty, or thereabouts, to try to make any very definite plans regarding a war-time career until he knows definitely whether he is going to be wanted in the Army or Navy."

For older alumni who seek work in Washington, Mr. Hill feels that the best and simplest approach is through the Civil Service, though he emphasizes the keenness of the competition and warns against disappointment. "The number of applicants for Government positions these days" he declares, "tends to exceed the demand rather substantially. While it is true that the Government does need men of outstanding talent, it is also true that the winnowing-out process is performed pretty intelligently and carefully through the Civil Service."

And finally he commends to men who feel a strong urge to do their bit by going to Washington "a calmer, broader, more searching examination of the contribution which their organizations may already be making to the nation's cause. The war agencies down here are never going to win the war unaided. They exist pretty largely to guide and direct the business, scientific and commercial agencies of the nation. Consequently, the man who has a place of any consequence in any private organization which has any kind of role in the war effort may be satisfied that he is making a genuine contribution right where he is; and in a great many cases it is undoubtedly true that he will serve his country best by staying on the job without trying to wangle a post in Government service."