Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Eagle Valley news. (Richland, Or.) 191?-1919 | View Entire Issue (May 9, 1918)
WORLD PLEDGES HUGE ARMY T AID INDIGENT ALIENS FOOD CRISIS PAST" Congress Asked for l.at Man to Win War Department Now Able to Handle 3,200,000 Kremlin. U. H. Takes Action Without Treaty Obligation- Two Neutral Nations to Direct Relief Activities. OF CURRENT WEEK T HAPPENINGS PEASAN DEPUTIES S UKRAINE BIG CROPS N SIGRi Brief Resume Most Important Daily News Items. COMPILED FOR YOU Events of Noted People, Governments 1 and Pacific Northwest and Other Things Worth Knowing. A total ofj 113 sick and wounded soldiers were returned to the United States from France in the week ending April 26, tho surgeon general's office announces. The French submarine Prairal has been sunk as a result of a collision with a merchant ship, it was an nounced Friday. Part of the crew of the submarine was saved. At the direction of Emperor Wil liam, says an official announcement, three new Rhino bridges have been named forrtho German Crown Prince, Field Marshal von Hindenburg General LudendorfT. and British troops in Mesopotamia carry-1 ing on their pursuit of the retreating Turkish forces have advanced as far as , the Tauk river. Twelve additional,, Bt,finnfi(innnnn,.Miv field cuns were captured on April 0. ! The total of prisoners has reached 1S00. Prices the government will pay for hides and skins for the next three months were fixed Friday by the war industries board. They are somewhat higher than prevailing market prices, b.ut are declared by the board to be reasonable. Twenty-five thousand Belgian men and boys have been compelled to work jir.... .:,, (i, tu ! on military operations under the whip of German sentries behind the German lines in the regions of Valenciennes and Maubege alone, according to Rou ter's Limited. The German Crown Prince himself has fired several shots with a gun with which Paris is being bombarded, a Cologne dispatch says. He is greatly interested in the workings of the guns, 1 according to the dispatch, and has vis-1 ited the spot frequently. Four sticks of dynamite, 30 feet of J coiled copper wire and detonating caps i were discovered late Thursday buried i under the base of the steel wireless tower at Fort Bliss. The explosive was found by an officer who was train-' ing his men in entrenchment worK near the tower. According to the London Daily News, the government is in serious trouble over the home rule bill. The deliberations of the drafting commit tee have been met by difficulties con nected with Ulster's claims. "It is probable," says the Daily News, "that both conscription and home rule will be temporarily abandoned." The War department was asked to close saloons in Vernon, adjoining Los Angeles on the south, in resolutions adopted by the Lo3 Angeles city coun cil and ordered telegraphed to Wash ington. It was said that Vernon had become a menace to soldiers and sail ors. Vernon is a small incorportcd city, noted for resorts since Los- An gelos abolished saloons and limited liquor sales. Pope Benedict intends to issue a new peace offer on Whitsunday (May 19), Cologne newspapers announce. The document, it is said, will be of a more pressing nature than formerly and will contain concrete offers of media tion by the pope with the possible co operation of neutral sovereigns. Simi lar information of the pope's inten tion, it is said, has reached Berlin, where it has been received sympathet ically. Dr. Sidonio Paes, premier and for eign minister, was Tuesday ' elected president of the republic of Portugal by direct universal suffrage. Cardinal Begin, archbishop of Que bec since 1898, was stricken with, hemorrhage Tuesday. His condition is considered alarming because of his advanced age. Cardinal Begin is 78 years old. When Elmer Nolson, of Goodrich, Minn., refused to submit to vaccina tion, he was tried by a general court martial and sentenced to 15 years in tho disciplinary barracks at Fort Leav enworth, it was announced Thursday. A call for 8985 additional draft men was issued Thursday by tho provost marshal general. They are to bo sent to 22 institutions scattered throughout tho country for a two months' course of training in various mechanical studies. Washington, D. C Secretary Hnker carried to congress Thursday the army increase program mapped out by Presi dent Wilson and his advisers anil bused on the determination to win the war, if it takes the whole man power of the Nation to do it. There are indica tions that ho will ask that all restric tions on the number of troops to be raised bo removed and tho government authorized to mobilize ns many men as it can equip, train anil semi to tho bat tle front in France. Secrteary Baker is expected to dis close that tho department has reason to believe it can handle during the present year at least double the exist ing forco under arms of nppoxiamtoly 1,600,000 men. That woulil mean a total of 3,200,000 soldiers for whom clothing, equipment and transportation are now in sight. Should additional facilities become available, however, it is indicated that President Wilson wishes to be able to call out more men without delaying to seek authority. Tho President's war cabinet mot with him Wednesday at the White House and went over the ground thor oughly. Secteary linker remained moro that an hour with the Prelsdont after the other members of the war l,: I., ft j fa hougo chairmnn D)nt, 0f the , introduced a bill . .,., , ,niliiiinti,m f... i f i mm fnn service men, iiiaivuu ui . i,u,to to which the government is limited by the existing act. Mr. Dent said tho measure was his own and he had not consulted the War department on it. Under the new classification scheme there are understood to be 1,800,000 men immediately available for active military service in class 1. That esti mate is based on tho returns of numer ous states and the Inw of nvcrages. It fc uu?3 n !al, V.r V, limited special service, all delinquents, i i 1 1 . i r. . ....... t slated for immediate induction into class 1 when apprehended, and nil of the so-called remedial cases, tho men who will be fit for active service after operations or medical treatment to correct minor physical defects. Behind that also stand tho men who have reached 21 years since the draft act was passed and who will be brought in under pending amendments. Prob ably the total of effectives in class 1 will prove to be 2,500,000 men when the definite figures are nvailable. This is the first reservoir from which men will be drawn to fill up the new arimes. It is conceivable that class 1 will he exhausted in time, but not that it would fall to furnish all the men who can be shipped to France be fore congress meets again. For this reason it is regarded' as probable that the question of increasing age limits of the draft act or of drawing upon class 2 can be deferred until congress again convenes. 200 WOOD SHIPS ORDERED Established Coast Yards to Get Most of New Order. Washington, D. C Expansion of the shipbuilding program to provide for the construction of 200 additional wooden vessels of -1500 or 4700 dead weight tons was announced Thursday by Chairman Hurley, of the Shipping Board. This will increase to 580 the number of wooden ships completed, building or planned. The vessels, which will be either of the Dougherty or Ballin type, will bo constructed in shipyards already estab lished and will be allotted, Mr. Hurley said, among yards which are most effi ciently managed. Consturction of the ships will bo started as soon as vessels now building are off the stocks. The board aslo decided to authorize the construction of 25 new sea-going tugs, increasing to 100 the number of such craft now building for the board. The tugs will be employed in Coast traffic, replacing those diverted over seas. A new American wooden ship con struction record was reported to the Shipping Board by the Supplo & Ballin company, of Portland, Or., which claimed the assembling and placing of 79 frames in a now vessel in a total working time of 44 hours. Villa's Men Do Murder. El Paso, Tex. Moro than 30 men, women and children were killed by Villa's men at Santa Cruz de Rosales, 40 miles southeast of Chihuahua City last Friday, according to a report brought to tho border Wednesday by railroad men. Villa demanded that three young girls bo delivered to him. When this demand was refused liia men were ordered to kill every one living in the little settlement, according to the report from Chihuahua City. Old Government of Big Russian Province is Overthrown. TEUTONS RULE KIEV Military Govcrnmrnt Established on Pretext That Slav is Too Weak Rule With Rod of Iron. Berlin, via Imdon -Gorman forces have occupied SobnstojHil, tho great Russian fortress in tho Crimea. Ac cording to tho official communication from headquarters the town was taken without fighting. Amsterdam The old Ukrnlno gov ernment and radn, according to advices from Berlin, have leon overthrown by jK'tisant deputies, who arrived at Kiev, the Ukraninn capital. Tho new gov ernment, it is said, immediately de clared that it adhored to the Brest Li tovsk treaty. London Tho Germans have estab lished military rule in Kiev, tho Ukraninn capital mid havo arrested a number of tho members of tho govern ment on tho ground that "tho govern ment had proved too weak to maintain law and order," according to a Berlin official statement. Zurich -General von Kichhorn, com mander of the German forces in the Ukraine, according to a telegram from Kiev, has ordered tho (wasantry to re turn nil property and effects taken from the landholders and to begin as quickly ns possible the cultivation of tho great estates. The order, which protects tho inter ests of tho landholders, who are mostly Poles and Russians, is opjxised vigor ously by tho Ukraninn rndn, which has adopted n resolution declaring that it will not permit interference by Ger man, Austrian or Hungarian command ers in the K)liticnl, social or economic life of the Ukraine, and that von Kich horn 's intervention will result only in disorganization, rendering impossible the consummation of the terms of the economic trenty between the Ukraine and the central powers. Tho rada has instructed the min ister of agriculture to direct the peas ants "to disregard the order. BALLOON BURSTS; 2 KILLED Nearly Score of Soldiers Are Burned at Fort Omaha. Omaha, Neb. Two men wero killed nnd 18 burned moro or less seriously Thursday at Florence Field in an explosion of a balloon of tho Cncquot type, attributed by army officers in charge to ignition of the gas by sparks of static electricity from the fabric of the envelope. The men killed were so badly burned as to be unrecognizable, and their identity will not be estabished, it was said, until the roll, of tho balloon de tachment has been called. A statement by Colonel II . B. Hor sey, commanding at Fort Oamuhu, said that some of tho injured were burned seriously, but not fatally, and that all were receiving proper atten tion nt the hospital nt Fort Omaha. May 12 is "Mothers' Day." Paris - "Mothers' day," a day on which every soldier of tho American expeditionary forces, young and old, high and low, is oxpected to write home to mother, has been fixed for May 12. Tho idea originated with tho Stars and Stripes, tho official news paper of the American forces in Eu rope, and was approved by headquar ters, which is doing everything possi ble to help it along, The experienco of tho nrmy iwst offico has taught that tho mothers come first in tho soldiers' thoughts, and so has decided to make every pos sible effort, that ovcry other mother in America whose son is in Franco shall receive tidings from her boy. Thus tho data especially set apart for tho purpose. German U-Boat is Sunk. An Alanttic Port A British freight steamer, fresh from tho yards of hor builders, celebrated her maiden trans Atlantic voyugo by running down and sinking a German U-boat off tho Irish coast. Tho submersible camo to tho surface suddenly n short distanco off tho ship's bow and wus caught by tho British helmsman's quick work ulmost before tho commander could puzzle out through tho steamer'B camouflage whether sho was going or coming. Washington, I). C. With the ap proval nnd co-operntion of the Amer ican government, tho legations of Switzerland and Sweden, representing (Ionium and Austro-Hungurlon in terests, Ijavo undertaken to direct re lief work among indigent enamy aliens throughout tho United States. Relief will lie extended to needy families of Interned aliens direct from legation funds. To aid law-abiding enemy aliens who havo suffered on ac count of their status u nntlonal com mittee of Americans Is to bo organized to co-opornto with thu legalttons and their consular offices. There is no obligation In existing treaties for such treatment of enemy aliens as is proposed. In Germany and Austria many such have been detained, nnd most of thorn aru largely depend ent for siipjuirt UHtn Uio food supplies sent in through tho Red Cross or uthur organizations. In the case of enemy aliens who are now interned, tho United States Is lia ble for tho cost of their maintenance, ns in tho case of any law-breaker or suspect. The Swiss and Swedish le gations may supply them with some small articles of food not provided by the internment camps' administration. The activities of thu legations will not extend in any way to tho compara tively few prisoners of war in this country. The Hague treaties provide that the cost of their maintenance i shall be assessed against the enemy j countries until the conclusion of peace. I WILFLEY MISSOURI SENATOR Governor Finds Available Candidate After Fourth Trial. St. Uuis Xonophon P. Willley, member of the St. Iuuin board of elec tion commissioners and prominent Democrat of Missouri, Monday was tendered by Governor Gardner the seat in the United States senate vacated by the death of Senator W. J. Stone. Willley announced ho would accept tlio nppointmcnt nnd left for Jefferson City to confer with tho governor. Willley Is tho fourth man to bo offered thu senatorshlp by tho gover nor. Willley is 47 years old and a lawyer. He taught school nt Sedalia and other cities In Missouri Ik; fore Iniing admit ted to the bar in 1890. Ho has since practiced law In St. Louis. He was apHintod election commis sioner a year ago by Governor Gardner. This is the only public office he has ever held, although he was figured prominently In Democratic politics for severul years. He is also active in Methodist church circles in St. Ixnils. WAR NEWS QUESTION IS UP " i Secretary Baker Says Present Publicity System Unsatisfactory. Washington, D. C. Tho whole ques tion of how the American public shall bo kept promptly informed as to army activities Initli abroad and at homo is under consideration at tho War depart ment. In making this known, Secre tary Baker said frankly that tho pres ent system has proved entirely unsat isfactory. Tho War secretary would not say what plans are under consideration, but it is known that the issuing of somo sort of a daily statement is con templated. This is regarded as neces sary now thnt American Boldlers hnvo not only taken over several sectors of trenches in Franco as individual units, but also hnvo been brigaded with French and British forces in Picardy, where tho Germans are still trying to drivo their offensive forward. While Mr. Baker was In Europe re cently ho Issued an order, that any news regarding tho American expedi tionary forces in Franco would havo to come from the headquarters of General Pershing. Princess Marie Banished. Paris -The Princess Mario Antoi nette, mother of Empress Zitn, has been ordered to leuvo Austria within 21 hours und not re-enter that country until thu termination of tho war, ac cording to n dispatch from Geneva. Empress Zlta hus been blamed by tho pro-German party in her liusband'H em piro as being responsible for Emperor Charles' now famous letter to Prince Sixtus, of Bourbon, his brother-in-law, in which ho mado overtures for peace to Franco. Gompers III on Rostrum. Montreal Samuel Gompers, presi dent of tho American Federation of Labor, was stricken suddenly ill whllo addressing u mass meeting of labor representatives hero Monduy night. Mr. Gompers hud said that when de mocracy wns enthroned no ono would outdistance him und his associates in tho labor movement extending tho qand of fellowship and goodwill to tho working pooplo of Germany. Outlook This Year is for Ample Food for U. S. and Allies. HOOVER GIVES WORD Administrator Informs Grain Drnlrrs Thnt Only Government Action Averted Great Food Riot. Now York If tho government had "allowed tho commerce in wheat to take Its untrammoled course, Hour would bo selling at the mill door today for :U) to $50 a barrel Instead of $10 to $10.50, and probably rioting would hnvo taken place at all our centers of congested xpululon, of a violence that leads to Mood In our gutters," de clared Herbert C. Hoover, Federal Food Administrator, In an address here Tuesday. Ho continued: "At the present moment our crop prosMJcts are for 000,000,000 to 900,. 000,00 bushels of wheat. The harvest of thu allies also looks promising. "With tills prospect we now have ground for hojies for plenty for oursel ves and our allies and instead of fam ine we can look forward to an entirely different economic situation this year from that which confronted us in thu summer of 1917." Mr. Hoover sxko at a conference of 100 representative American grain dealers nnd officials of the Food admin istration's grain division called to dis cuss grain exports and regulation of cereal consumption in this country. Asserting that when Hour went to $10.75 n barrel at tho mill door last May and the resulting hardships dislo cated our entire economic life, Mr. Hoover said he did not accuse the grain trade of having been ropsonslble for thu situation, but rather blamed thu fact that the allies had to havo wheat and wore prepared to pay any price for It. "A series of speculations sprang up that were deplorable beyond words," lie said, "but only n microscopic xir tlon of tho speculation was of deliber ate or vicious nature. There wns no concerted manipulation." If price levels had been allowed to rise without restraint tho pxir would have paid in suffering and the rich in price, he said, adding that "any rox titlon of rising price ' levels such as those of the 1910-1917 harvest year would have meant an enormous profit to the middleman nnd would have in spired the foundation of social discon tent from Uils reason alone, if no other." Therefore, he said, "tho government hail placed reduction in consumption on a voluntary basis. "I do not believe there is another nation in tho world in which the pro portion of individuals of so willing a sense of voluntary self-sacrifice is so high as this people of ours and nothing has demonstrated it moro finely than the conservation in wheat," he said. "Today there is no suffering in tho United States and wo are actually shipping f0 per cent of our monthly mill output to the allies." FIFTY-SIX MILLIONS EARNED U. S. Steel Reports Decrease for First Quarter of 1918. New York Total earnings of tho United Suites Steel Corx)rntlon for tho first quarter of 1918, issued Wed nesday, amounted to $50,901,42 1, after deducting expenses incident to opera tions, including $31,585,198 for Feder al income and war excess profits taxes. This Is a decrease of $2,702,701 from returns of thu previous quarter. Net income of $18,449,817 shows a gain of about $400,000 and tho surplus of $15,0:12,502 represents a decrease of $1,225,770. In all other essentials tho stalemont mot popular expectations. Monthly earnings roso from $1:1,00:1,129 In Jan uary to $27,190,152 In March, confirm ing general trade reports of Btcudy re vival alnco the early weeks of tho year. Ilocho Souvenirs Deadly. With tho American Army in Frnnco Knowing that tho Americans aro persistent souvenir hunters, tho Ger mans in tho Toul soctors havo been strewing No Man's Land with nil sorts of infernal devices. These consist of electric wires attached to bells, hol mots, rifles and other paruphcrnallu connecting with concealed bombs. In n number of instances American soldiers Imv.e tripped over theso and escaped.