That big page-one tear-jerker the New York Times published today about the National Guardsman from California who “thought he was done with active military duty when he left the Marines for civilian life more than a decade ago and signed on with the National Guard a few years later” omits one major fact—the substantial amount of money he was paid by the Guard during his many years of inactive service which consisted primarily of attending N.G. meetings at local armories.
The monthly stipend offered by the Guard to former servicemen is the big lure that keeps the N.G. going.