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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 18, 1918)
5 THE SUNDAY OREGONIAX, PORTLAND, AUGUST 18, 1918.. AMERICAN SALVAGE SYSTEM COMPLETE Milions of Dollars Saved An nually Through Patching of W. Torn Garments. 4RMY WASTE IS REDUCED Everything Cast Aside by Soldiers Is Collected on Field, Repaired and Returned to Service. - Workers Are Rapid. f. BY CAVX. GREGG DONEY. President of Willamette Unlvenlty. When John Smith went over Into No Man's Land last week on a wire cutting expedition and tore a piece out of the back of his coat ha mar hare thought that was the end of the coat. except possibly for the rag-bair. and paper mill. But it was not. Private Smith patched the coat, making a poor job of it. and his officer had him turn it in at the supply department, where be received another in exchange. " What became of the torn coat? I saw It thia morning, and only a close In pection would tell me that It was not a new one. It was repatched, but could not discover the seam. It was cleaned and pressed, and no man hav ing the garment Issued to him would complain. The ordinary man thinks that Uncle Earn sits up at night trying to devise ways to spend money. He may, but he is alert during the day seeking meth ods to save money. And one of the waya he has evolved is illustrated by his salvage plants, of which he al ready has three in France. JLrmy Waste Is Reduced. Every Army corps has six salvage companies, each in charge of a Lieu tenant and all under the direction of a Captain. It is the buestness of the salv age detail to see that the Army leaves nothing behind to be wasted. Every thing that once had a value Is consid ered as still having a possible use, and Is collected wherever it is found. Tin cans, boxes, paper, bits of leather, rub ber, cloth, old horse-shoes, nails, brok en cots, bolts, torn tente. all find their way to the salvage quarters. When Private Henderson discovers his shoes torn through he exchanges them for another pair. Private Allen turns in his ventilated trousers and goes away with a new pair. A spark set fire to the tent of Squad It and burned a dosen holes In It. and the men trade off the old tent for one that is ound. For a year few persons know how many soldiers were in France, but all of ns knew there were enough to wear out and damage and break an enormous amount of Army material. Instead of the easy method of throwing an old or broken article away it Is sent to one of the salvage plants for an operation. which will restore it to usefulness once more. Already the salvage hospitals have almost reached their full capacity and others will have to be located in convenient places. Work la Plants. When a salvage company has col lected a carload of Infirm or damaged material It Is billed to one of the sal vage stations. I found one of several such cars coming into the plant this morning. The railroad tracks run the length of the Immense building, thereby avoiding the rehandllng of the gooda In this car is every imaginable thing pertaining to the Array except food and munitions. The pell-mell was quickly placed before rows of women . who tossed the assorted articles Into push trucks. In an hour after the car had been received, the confusion of old shoes it had brought was being cleaned and sterilised; the coats, shirts and trousers were in a washing machine the harness, tents, scabbards, cots, leg' gings were In their relative depart ments and receiving attention. Sur geons and nurses who understood their particular needs were busy in trying to bring them back to a condition of service. Every article Is washed and sterilized as soon as it is received, and as an evi dence of the wisdom and thoroughness of this process no case of Infection has arisen among the thousands of employes In any of the stations. The most mod ern machinery hss been installed and throughout the establishment one sees , the enterprise and "pep" of the Amer ican. To his regret, he is obliged to stop work from 11:10 nntil 1:30 because the majority of the laborers are French, and It is both law and custom with them to rest for two hours at noon. Garsaeat Workers Rapid. When John Smtth'a coat Is wsshed. disinfected and dried. It la one garment In a mountain of other coats. The ac cumulation is constsntly being replen ished and diminished. A dosen women at its bsse examine each piece and place It In class A. class B or class C In the first class are the coats which, when re paired, will be good for line soldiers; the second class will be Issued to en listed laborers, and the third class will be dyed a light green and given to Ger man prisoners. The clothing in class A Is repslred by "stoppeurs." women who are pro fessional garment repairers. Their skill Is amasing; if Smith should happen to receive his original coat again he would not know it had a patch in the back., no one who saw it would know It; the patch becomes one piece with the rest of the cloth. These experts are paid about IS cents an hour and require an; noure time to go over the average gar ment. Thus a coat worth IS or $10 is saved at a cost of IS cents, plus the overnesd cnarges. And a coat rehabill tated in nance represents one coat whlcn need not be shipped across the Atlantic thereby saving tonnage. Amer ican workmen and American wool. Experienced Ma a a Charge. This particular salvage plant was opened in January. 191a. and the cloth ing department was placed under the direction of Captain E. M. Lempert, of Toledo. 0 who was reared to the clothing business. Twenty-two hundred women are under his control and during the week ending June 1, 84.(19 garments were sent out from this single department, requiring a car each day. Almost an equal number of pairs of shoes were repslred in the same time, and when one adds to these the vast supplies of blanket, legglns, tents, harness, cots and the like the total is staggeringly big. Comparatively little new material Is used and 85 per cent of the articles re ceived are sent out again as being en tirely fit for use. We have been Impatient with the Government and in varying terma have charged the authorities with varying degrees of Incompetency. Here, how ever, is one or the by-products of the war which not one in a hundred of our cltlsena has considered. Had we considered It we probably would have said. "Salvage, go hang! Win the war: we've got the money." ' Maybe, but there are some things which money cannot do. We are finding that it takes time aa well as money to trans port men and supplies overseas. There fore, someone who was wUe deter mined to save both money ' nd the necessity for ao much overseas ship ment. French Womea Patriotic. ' In establishing the salvage plants, the Government placed each depart ment in charge of a man who. was an expert In It. A successful leather mer chant of Cincinnati directs the work .of saving harness, a shoe manufacturer controls the shoe repairing, a tent maker la at the head of the tent re placement, and an expert in rubber is in charge of that branch. The Government was Influenced by the examples of the French and Eng lish, but both nations were so busy they could do no more than show their own methods and results. The men and machinery for the American plants had to be carried across the ocean, proper buildings had to be secured, the machines Installed and the workmen procured. To do this In eight months in a foreign land after war had been declared is not to be slow. When every other branch of Army enterprise is crying for tonnage one wonders how ftjey could receive attention so soon. That the American plants are suc cessful is frankly acknowledged by the French, who have been openly surprised at the modern machinery and the amount of completed products sent out. And a British officer declared that we have quite outdistanced the English in the matter of salvage, though they had three years the start of us. Internal Problem Faced. The enterprise Is not without Its in ternal nroblema. Most of the employes are French women and It Is not easy for American foremen to direct them. They are strongly organised, having rather Intricate and particular privileges af forded them by the law. For example, a woman having one child must be paid 10 centime a day extra Irrespective of her wages, and for each additional child she receives 15 centimes dally, enouia she live beyond the limits of the de fined factory district she is paia ou centimes for the expenses of travel. It all comes under the law of "vie chere." dear life or dear living. Furthermore, should the woman have a soldier-husband who comes home on a week or 10- day "permission" she. too, at tne same time Is granted a like vacation wnn pay. It Is excellent; it is numane ana human, but it complicates mattera fer the American who knows nothing about such arrangements. Manv of the women are refugees who have fled from the Invaded districts and some are not fully efficient. It is there fore necessary to discover where tnei service will be most profitable. And some are Indifferent enough to be slackers: not many, for the American has found a satisfactory and Innocuous wav to discourage loafing. The build ng is so open and well-lignted tnat tne foreman aulckly detects the women who is shirking. Shirkers Are Penalised. She is then transferred to the apave, the place where the material Is un- oaded and assorted. The work there Is dirty and heavy; and to be sent to that task Is to have one s idleness wen an nounced. Consequently there re few shirkers and the work goes on with speed and enthusiasm which astonishea the French and is gratifying to tne Americans. Incidentally, the salvage plant Is an untold blessing to the French people Inasmuch as it affords employment to women who would be unable to enter the factories or labor on the farm. And in a strange way It saves some Amer icans. It Is well known that a number of American officers have rendered themselves morally unfit for leadership and have been sent home. A few oth ers with blameless characters have found themselves unable to adapt them selves to the life of an officer, xney are. however, excellent business men, capable managers of workmen, and these are given responsible positions in the salvage plant, thus saving them to the Army and avoiding the necessity of sending another man overseas, anus far every American soldier In France represents an investment of 130.000 or 140.000, and it is good business to keep everyone here wno can be maae to ao the work properly. Pathetic Scenes Enacted. The salvage plant is not without its tragedies. Not infrequently the raee senger comes with a telegram announc ing the death of the husband or son of one of the women. A wave of deep sympathy follows her as shj seizes her hat and goes down the aisle biting back the tears until she can be alone in her room. The Impending shadow rests over many of them and one wonders how any can be happy. But they are happy. There is laughter, a song, the look of evident pleasure. It is for France and France will win; they will helD France win. Now and then a garment comes in with the dark-red stain upon It and one then knows that a soldier has gone to the hospital. Imagination can pic ture the fight, the wound, the Red Cross, the hospital and then we wait for the recovery of the hero who placed his body across the track of Hun bar- harltv. The soldiers are not always carerui to remove their possessions before the clothes are exchanged. It would possi bly embarrass some of them were we to mention the names inscribed upon tne photographs which they failed to take from their coat pockets. Several Marys and Susans think their pictures are where they certainly are not. Lockets, tags, pen knives, souvenirs, anything that a man carries with him can be found in the "archives" of the salvage plant. A check for $56 was discovered addressed to a woman in America. There was no way to communicate with the maker of the check; hence It waa forwarded and a grateful acknowledge, ment waa received In return. No one can Inspect the plant without being impressed by its magnitude and vast usefulness. It represents unci Sam getting into hi war stride, saving mosey, saving time, saving men and winning the war. And it suggests the question aa to whether large cities could not profitably operate something slmllsr to It as a means to save In a scientific msnner the tremendous waste which constsntly goes on among the people,' both poor and rich. U. S. HAS 3 MILLION MEN UNDER MS Nearly Half of Total Sent to Fight Battles for Freedom in Foreign "Lands. I liberty bonds could be submitted to a surety company to secure a bond, but I the .laws of the state prevented the court from receiving them. , Mrs. Mooney is -under indictment for alleged murder in connection with the bomb explosion here. She was acquitted of one of the counts against her and liberated on ball pending the trial of other charges. She is the wife of Thomas J. Mooney, under sentence of death following his conviction for mur der in connection with the bomb ex plosion. BOYS IN FRANCE PRAISED General March Quotes Letter From French General, Who Writes of Energy, Endurance and Dc votion of . Americans. Cotton Gin People Mast Wait. WASHINGTON. Aug. 17. The war in dustries board has declined to grant priority to the manufacturers of cotton gins for Iron. ' steel and fuel for the manufacture of new gins, and has reached an agreement with the manu facturers substantially to curtail their normal production of gins for the year ending June 30, 1919. The necessity for new equipment and parts was recog nised, but it wss concluded that exist ing plants and equipment can, through repairs, be made to last until after the war. Electric locomotives are being In creasingly adopted in South Africa for underground haulage. WASHINGTON, Aug. 17. Of more than 3,000,000 men now under arms, the United States has sent nearly one-half, or more than 1.450,000, overseas for service against the enemy in France, Italy and Siberia. These figures were given today by General March in his Saturday talks with newspaper men and members of the Senate military committee. The Senators were told that some transports are making the trip to Europe and back in 19 days, and that the average has been reduced- to 28 days, with which additional shipping becoming available makes the great Job of getting 0 divisions of American troops to France by June 30, 1919, cer tain of success. The chief of staff paid only brief attention to the progress of the fight ing in France. He spoke of the bat' tie as "the German retreat," and in dicated further retirement was ex pected. i Explaining his announcement as to embarkation. General March said: "When I give figures hereafter of troops embarked from the United States the totals will embrace the troops in Siberia, in Italy, France and Russia proper. The figures will mean the en tire American expeditionary force in all parts of the world. We have now embarked on all the expeditions more than 1,450,000 men. Americana. Win Praise. "The American troops In France are beginning to receive official French commendations of various sorts, and here is one that came .this morning. This refers to the Second Artillery Brisrade. ' which was with the Second division in the fighting around Cha teau Thierry. "After the Infantry was withdrawn our field artillery stayed there &nd helped the French at that point. This commendation is from the French com mander of the division to which it waa attached. It is in the form of an offi cial order and the translation is some thing iike .his: ' " 'On the eve of the relief of the Second Artillery Brigade of the Sec ond United States- Infantry' division from the 12th (French) Infantry divi sion, the General commanding this in fantry division takes the opportunity to express to the brigade commander. General Bowley, to all his officers, non-commissioned officers and soldiers, his thanks for the services rendered for their French comrades and his ad miration for the splendid American bravery. ' Fine Qualities Exhibited. "After having vigorously fought with the Second United States Infantry division and with the 68th (French) In fantry division, the Second American Artillery Brigade come to show, during two days of severe fighting at the side of the 12th Infantry divisiofi, the finest qualities of energy, endurance and devotion. The fortunes of war separate us from these brave and loyal fighting comrades. I trust that the fortunes of war will reunite us again upon the field of battle. The lJth-French Infantry division will faithfully treasure the memory of the Second Artillery Brigade of the Second United States Infantry divi sion.' " ' McCain Geta OTvlslon. General March announced that Major- General Henry B. McCain. Adjutant General, as a reward for efficient work done in that office, has been assigned to command the 12th division, now be lng organized at Camp Devens. MaBS. Brigadier-General Peter C. Harris will be made acting Adjutant-General. Announcement was made that Major- General George B. Duncan, one of the first American officers to win the French war cross for distinguished gallantry in action, was being sent home for a rest. General March said the case was typical and showed the tremendous strain under which both officers and men work at the front. He Indicated that a number of cases aim! lar to that of General Duncan would follow. Announcement was made also that Colonel John W. Heavey has been ap pointed head or the militia bureau, suc ceeding Major-General Jesse McL Car ter, who hao taken command of the new division being formed at Camp Meade, Md. OREGON PAROLE LAW BEST Development of System Declared Due to Joseph Keller. SALEM, Or.. Aug. 17. (Special.) Governor Withycombe today declared that Oregon has the finest parole sys tem in the United States and that its development is due to Joe Keller, present state parole officer. "Under the present system," said the Governor, "a series of charts and records has been developed that keeps a definite line on every man on parole, with the exception of violators, and by this system I am frank to say that believe more men are being redeemed under the Oregon parole law than in any other state in the Union. - "Every paroled man is given work- and is kept at work, and his movements are followed very closely. s 1 : ' - EVENING CLASSES PLANNED Washington High Schools to Begin War Service Work Soon. SEATTLE, Aug. 17.- Under super vision of C. R. Frazier, state director of war emergency classes in vocational education, evening classes to prepare men between 18 and 45 years of age for war service will be- started in high schools throughout Washington be ginning August 22. Instruction ' will be given .in radio operating, automobile repairing, elec trical work, machine shop practice and other mechanical lines, three nights, a week. . Certificates of the vocational board will be honored by personnel officers at cantonments. . ' Klamath Boys in Latest Draft. KLAMATH FALLS, Or., Aug. 17. (Special.) Arnold ,N. Melby, Horace Earl Hamaker. Don C. Redfleld, Charles McPherson, Paul R. Dodge and George Ogle left yesterday In response to a draft call to take - special training in the Benson Polyteohnical School at Portland. . Nineteen men will be en trained for. American "Lake from Klamath County August 27. .This calll completely exhausts. the original class 1 and takes in a few' of the men who were recently reclassified. It does not. however, include, any of the reg istrants of June 6. Military , Training , in. School Plan. COTTAGE GROVE Or., Aug. 17. (Special.) It is quite probable that some form of military training will be taken up in schoons the coming year. The subject was discussed at the board meeting, but no definite action could be taken until arrangements were made for an instruction officer. It is-prob-able that the services of Major H. K. Metcalf will be secured. The training probably will be confined largely to the setting-up exercises. The girls will be Instructed by Miss McDonald, physi cal director. Farm Secretary Named. VANCOUVER. Wash,, Aug. 17. (Spe cial.) E. J. O'Connell. secretary of the Clarke County Farm. Loan Association in Vancouver, has accepted the secre taryship of the La Center organization! prefer iheso hsho-hs-ko-ks-ko ilV Ww Ink rScadiK? QIoMq III Mf . ' There are two other organizations in this county, Including a small portion of Cowlitz County, near Tacolt. The La Center association will hold a meet ing Saturday, August 31, and Mr. O'Con nell will speak on "Extension of Service." Former Councilman Is Jailed. ABERDEEN, Wash., Aug. 17. (Spe cial.) J. F. Myles, at one time City Councilman, now employed as engineer at the American Mill, and H. J. Peter eon, yard foreman at the same plane. were arrested as they were leaving the pyard, each carrying a case of whisky. The men are neia in tne city ponce station on bail of 3100 each for the city and $100 each for the county. Later they were rearrested by Deputy United States Marshal Secrist on a Federal charge. . Discount Operations Fall Of. WASHINGTON, Aug 17. Discount operations of Federal Reserve Banks in the last week were somewhat less than the previous week, bills on hand at the close of business last night amounting to $1,497,000,000, as compared with 31.541.000.000 a week before. Members reserves increased $44,000,000. Paris Tries Out Air Postal Service. PARIS, Aug. 17. -The first experi ment with an airplane postal service between Paris and St. Nazaire, on the coast, was made today. 7 Sew Promotions Predicted. A list, of new Major and Brigadier- Generals is about ready for transmis sion to the Senate, General March said, and most of the other division com manders will be found in that list. General March Informed the com mittee that In the recent Plcardy offen sive the allies have regained approxi mately one-third of the territory the Germans took in their. March drive, together with approxrmately 40,000 prisoners. He said the allies succeeded in kill ing a large number of Germans and capturing muoh ordnance, which is re garded as a most telling victory at this time. THE PERSONAL WRITING MACHINE Its light weight and ready portability make Corona instantly available, anywhere at the office, at home, on train or ship or afield. It's so simple to operate that you can dispense with a third party to private correspondence can put your personal or business affairs into leg ible, business-like, permanent form, whenever convenient. And Corona stands the grind of heavy daily service,, for all its 6-pound com pactness. " Chang-ins the custom of years is a big job for a tittle machine but . Corona bids fair to accomplish it. E; W. Pease Co. no Sixth St. LIBERTY BONDS REJECTED Judge Dunn Refuses Federal Paper In Lieu of Cash Bail. SAN FRANCISCO. Aug. 17. A motion to substitute liberty bonds for the $15, 000 cash ball on which Mrs. Rena Mooney was given her liberty was de nied by Superior Judge Frank H. Dunne here today. Judge Dupne said that the PERUNA and MANALIN Cured Me Mrs. E. M. Harris, R. R. No. 3, Ashland, Wis., sends a message of cheer to the sick: "After following your advice and using Peruna and Manalln, I waa eared of catarrh of the aose, throat and stemaca. from which I had suf fered for several years. ' When I commenced taking Peruna I could Catarrh of the Nose, Throat and Stomach. f t ' I i - not make my bed without stopping to rest. Now I do 'all my work and am in good health. I recommend this valuable remedy to all suffering any disease of the stomach." Pernna Is Sold Everywhere Liquid or Tablet Form The Proof of the Pudding is in the eating: and youH never imagine how very good the ' ' Alifiost-Sugarless Candies we're making-, are, 'till you've tried them! Already they're becoming famous. We're receiving orders from all over the country. DOZENS OF KINDS And they're aes good and better than the sugary kinds. Buy them by the pound or box at 388 Washington 127 Broadway III . ' III 'Delightfully different and musically the most perfect talking machine in all the world." Quality IIIIIIIIIlllllllllllllllllIIIIIlllllllllllilllN 1 Astoria Is Celebrating 1 TWENTY-THIRD ANNUAL REGATTA AND SHIPBUILD- EEs ERS' CELEBRATION on the streets ".and waterfronts of EE Astoria, Or., under the auspices of the Soldiers' and Sailors and Shipbuilders' Club of Astoria the city with the -million- dollar monthly payroll August 29, 30, 31, September 1, 2. Five days and five nights. Grand Civic Parade and Labor r Day celebration, closing with a grand Mardi Gras. EE E. B. BALDWIN : . Secretary S. S. S. Club, 10th and Commercial Sts., Astoria) Or. EE; The Ganoe Amusement Co. is furnishing the amusements and " EE; concessions. ' EE EE EARL GANOE, ETHEL GANOE, s: Owner and Manager. Secretary-Treasurer. ' EE EE Portland headquarters, 443 Washington St., Hotel Madras. EE EE Phone Broadway- 4056. E pilllilllllUIIIIIIIlllllHIIH is the basis upon which all Sonora instruments are manufactured. They are madetsolely for those who can, and care to, appreciate their artistic merit. A critical comparison of all other makes of talking machines with the Sonora will convince you that the Sonora is without doubt the most perfect and most beautiful of all musical in struments. The Sonora is so designed that it will play per fectly all makes of disc records without altering or adding additional equipment. The Sonora, in competition with all the leading makes of phonographs at the 1915 Exposition in San Francisco, was awarded the only and highest score for Tone Quality. This mark of distinction surely will merit your earnest consideration of the Sonora before you make a final decision. There are fourteen different models, varying in price from $60 to $1000. WE Invite Your Inspection Made In America and Represented In This Territory Exclusively by Bush & Lane Piano Co. CORNER TWELFTH AND WASHINGTON STS. Dealers in Victrolas, Sonoras, Columbias, Records. ID.10 I' Warner's Safe Remedies ,A Constant Boon to Invalids Since 1877 Warner's Safe Kidney and Liver-fleniedy. Warner's SafeJiabeteTTfenTedy. rarner's Safe Rheumatic Remedy. Warner's Safe Asthma Remedy. . . Warner's Safe Nervine. Warner's Safe Pills, (Constinatlon and BiliousnesO The Reliable Family Medicines Sold by leading druggists everywhere. Sample sent on receipt of ten cents. . WARNER'S SAFE REMEDIES CO, Dept. 265 ROCHESTER N. Y