Immediately the cry went up that the Jews evaded their military duty, and that the Christians were forced to make up the shortage.

The official pens in St.
Petersburg and in the provincial chancelleries became busy scribbling.
The Ministry of War demanded the adoption of Draconian measures to stop this "evasion," As a result, the whole Jewish youth of conscription age was registered in 1875.

At the recruiting stations the age of the young Jews was determined by their external appearance, without regard to their birth certificates.

Finally, in the course of 1876-1878, a number of special provisions were enacted, by way of exception from the general military statute, for the purpose "of insuring the regular discharge of their military duty by the Jews." According to the new legal provisions, the Jews who had been rejected as unfit for military service were to be replaced by other Jews and under no circumstances by Christians.

For this purpose, the Jewish conscripts were to be segregated from the Christians after the drawing of lots, the first stage in the recruiting process.