Really, Florida? All able-bodied men between the ages of 18 and 55 had to be employed or face arrest? In August of 1918 did Pensacola have a problem with vagrants? Was it a slam against itinerant or migrant workers?
Was this a way of shaming those who hadn't yet enlisted in the armed forces? The United States had been in World War I for over a year at this time.
Source:
- The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.), 31 Aug. 1918. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress. <http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87062268/1918-08-31/ed-1/seq-4/>