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Wt\ YORKVILLE ENQUIRER. MSWtP ?MP-WKgHI.T. t * i atsTs sons, Pabinher.. j 3 4amilS Jeirsjaper: Jfor the promotion o( the political, lofial, agrimltnral and (fommrrriai Interest* of the people. j TERMJ?^c^EJ?JNc?^ANCE ESTABLISHED 1855 YORK, S. C., TUKSPAYTQCTOBEK '39, 1918. NO, 87 MOST PERFECT OAS MASK Amerlcao Producf Twenty Times Better Than German. PEACH STONES ABE REAL LIFE SAVERS The Terrible German Poison Was too Much for the British and French; But American Chemists Quickly Prove Equal to the Task of Circumventing Any Deviltry the Enemy Chemists Can Hatch Up. Tho reason why the pits of stonefruits anil tho shells of nuts are good material for gas-masks is simply because when converted into charcoal, they arc found to absorb a larger percentage of the poisonous gases than the charcoal made from woody matter of other kinds. It is easy to provide a ehemiral that will neutralize one particular gas. hut when the familiar iifty-seven varieties are outnurnls-red by the products of the Herman gas far lories, ix oecoines nrriwii r.v 10 i?n i .? .1 jiph'lul mask for each or to iliscanl the Idea of chemical neutralization and adopt another that will take care of all (fuses alike, which is what has been done in the selection of porous varieties of charcoal. Says a writer in The | Scientific American (New York. (?eto" her 6): "Early in the use of Kas, before the full possibilities of the attack were recognized. the attempt was made to supply the wearer of the mask with a separate reaxent for each separate Kas employed by the foe. 1 tut as the number of (fuses available for the attack increased, it became evident that this procedure had decided limits. So the defense was directed into another channel, and a sinttlo universal reaKent was sought?a substance which, placed in the mask, would react with any poison-kus that iniKbt be encountered, but would pass pure air without any alteration. ???i? ? nsaHf Inrirn nr/ler >UW l?II? in u I'l VllJ IM.nv and complete attainment is doubtless out of the question. Hut the chemist has a resource which we have not yet touched. In order to secure protection against the hosti lev gases, the substance in the mask need not necessarily read chemically with these, in the ordinary sense of that word. It will be <iuite sufficient if they absorb them. There are various substances which possess in greater or less degree this power of absorbing gases- the platinum sponge employed In the manufacture of sulphuric acid is an example raised to the nth power. Hut not all of them can be induced to omit from their sphere of influence air. the commonest of all gaseous media, and the one which must receive free passage through the gas musk. Carbon, however, und in particular carbon in the] form-of charcoal, meets the situation nicely. It docs not absorb air. and It does absorb other gases freely. "Hut charcoal occurs in various forms, according to the particular vegetable source from which it is manufactured; and the various forms posseas varying degrees of gas absorptivity. After exhaustive tests the chemists tlnd that llrst rank must be given to charcoal produced from peachstones, the pits of apricots, prunes, . 1 .Into ui.nUvi I'III ins. UII>l'I>, UN < IIVI ,vo, ..... ... and the .shells of Brazil-nuts, hickorynuts. walnuts, and butternuts. What tomorrow may bring forth in gas mask manufaeture no man can say, for the last thing that a chemist would think of doing would be sitting down with his hands crossed, in contldence that the final word had been written In any of his chapters; but today we make our gas masks with charcoal from the sources mentioned. "For every soldier in the tight there has to be a gas mask. Four million soldiers tloes not mean four million gas masks, because all the four million are not destined for actual lighting, and because those who arc so destined are not all fighting at once. But every mask takes seven pounds of seeds and f shells and a million masks?a reasonable minimum?means seven million pounds of the raw materials. Thirtyfive hundred tons of fruit pits and nut shells is a great quantity; It is a quantity that can not be obtained except by the co-operation of every consumer of nuts and fruits. It Is for this reason that the government has appealed to all of us to save these items out of the garbage pall and turn them over to the Bed Cross agent who will collect them. Others shells and pits would constitute adulteration, and so must not be mingled with the ones enumerated. Especial emphasis might well be placed upon this clause, as it applies to cocoanut shells; for these art being conserved. too, for gas mask manufacture. The charcoal from them Is available; but It Is different from that front the other sources, and requires different ^ treatment; so the cocoanut shells must ^ Do Kepi separate. "The process of manufacturing the gas masks would make a most Interesting story; but during the continuance of the war It Is of course a story which cannot be told. It Is clear enough that the pits and shells must be collected and burned Into charcoal In furnaces of a standard type; and the enemy will hardly get much aid or comfort from the knowledge that before the unit containing the charcoal Is allowed to go Into a mask It Is subjected to a severe preliminary test, to determine whether its charcoal screen Is of sufficient density. But beyond this picture and story can not go far. "We may. however, still say a word about the inspection of the finished masks. This is done by a specially selected force; and sitjce a mask once passed by this force will not be tested again until some American soldier puts it on in the face of a gas attack, every effort is made to keep the inspectors keyed up to concert pitch. Sometimes this may even be carried to extremes: we learn on good authority of one serious minded inspectress who worried so conscientiously lest a defective mask be passed by her to cause the death of one of our boys in khaki trial 8ne iosi nvr puuiius u wcriv iui an Incredible period, and had Anally m to give up the work to some one whose * mental processes were less Intimately connected with physical reactions. We are also told that as an Inducement to the Inspectors to good work, each of them Is from time to time sent into a gas-chamber protected by a mask selected at random from those which he has passed himself." It is reassuring to know that in the battles now raging, our boys are equip ped with gas-masks twenty times as efficient us the German ones. Says an authorized statement given out by the war department and published in the daily press of October 6: | "German forces opposed to the steady advance of the American line on the I/orraine front have brought into play every method of defense considered effective in modern warfare. They are making a particularly heavy use of poison gas. i'ershlng's men have been unceasingly bombarded with mustard shells, and every efTort has been made to drench the American ad- I vanced positions with deadly fumes. It is it remarkable tribute to the chemical warfare work in the United States ' thiit these efforts to block the progress ! of the offensive have been utterly fu- 1 tile"The American attacking forces arc ' protected against gas by masks which ' ffvtu tirfiVO pivp twonlv 1 times the protection afforded by (ierrtiun wis musks. There is not, as a matter of fact, a single ease on record >f an American falling victim to a gasattack when protected by the mask that is now being manufactured in the 1'nited States on a vast quantity basis. "Fortunately, every American soldier who goes to France is a gas mask expert. He has been trained to adjust his 'land preservers' with almost incredible speed. The mask is put on with Just five motions of the arms and hands. The man who fails to accomplish the feat within a time limit of six seconds is left behind when his unit goes to the front. "Recently, in a practice drill, one company of American fighting men set a record of four seconds from the time the order was given to the final adjustment by the slowest man. "It is an interesting fact that American gas masks stand up under tests that Herman musks can not meet. Herman musks will not give protection against a high concentration of gas. IThis was demonstrated recently when the British assembled a sufficiently large battery of projectors to put seventy tons of phosgene gas into the air at once, with consequences quite well known to the Herman general staff. There is no concentration of gas that American masks will not defy. This has been proved, not only on the battlefield. but in the experimental 8ta<tion in this country, where determined attempts to break down the resistance of United States army masks by heavy gais concentrations were absolutely unsuccessful. i "The American gas mask was developed by actual manufacture. The proper authorities obtained complete information about the French and British masks and full data us to the efficiency they demonstrated under the Otrman (u attacks. Arrnod with this knowledge, an order for the making of several thousand masks was placed in I this country. Members of tho force of 1300 officers and 2,000 enlisted men who are responsible for the production of this modern weapon of defense showed the courage of their convlcjtions by volunteering for experiments. They donned the inaaks and exposed 'themselves to actual gas attacks. From time to time American ingenuity and inventive genius suggested improvements in the original methods. As a result, the officers of our Allies are frank in the admission that the American mask Is the best on the western front." MONTSEC HILL. It Was Impregnable, But Was Surrendered Without Defense. * - ?-? v.mL-ca m foUo iiftotKotaion there swept with their field glasses the devastated land before them, what rose ominous to the eye in the elear January air was that steep, bristling hill some four kilometers to the northwest. It was the hill the French call Montsee. because its abrupt crest rises dry and sandy from what used to be one of the fairest and most fruitful vineyards in ul! Lorraine. Montsee, with its 330 meters, was forbidding enough in itself. Through the four years of their unwelcome tenancy, the Germans had so fortified and armored It that it rose a very Gibraltar in the line from Switzerland to the sea. To storm it from the front or even to surround and take it front the rear would, the newly arrived Yankees knew very well, be a most bloody task if the assailants were stubbornly and heroically met by such a garrison as the disemboweled old hill could easily shelter. Yet in the early morning of September 12 the Yankee troops, sweeping nonchantly past the hill, learned from their equally nonchalant French friends on the left that a reconnoitering squad had mounted Montsee with carelessly slung Rosalies. It had found the gun pits deserted, the tunnels echoing hollowly, the observation posts abandoned. It had found no living creature on an Momsec, save one affable Internationalist f setter, now variously known as Fritz and Montsec. and four blinking rabbits, penned against a shortage in ra- , tions. j A disemboweled hill! Thero is no , other word for such a human anthill J as the Germans made of the famous , Lorraine mountain. ( Everywhere within the hill run tun- | nels, some well paved and shored, some hollowed out in slovenly fashion, de- | landing on the calibre of the resident , troops who did the work. Tunnels en- ( terlng from the bottom and meeting , tunnels from the top. Tunnels open- , ing out into underground chambers, | some fitted up as barracks, some as kitchens, some ns mess halls, some as pantries, some as arsenals. Tunnels | connecting the various machine gun posts of which twelve pointed towards tUa Miid iinp Tunnels screened against the chance observer. You might walk quite a way up the hill , without suspecting any subterranean life unless you happened to spot a smokestack protruding unexpectedly < from the ground. < Equipped with shell-proof quarters. with ammunition, guns and food supplies, boasting, besides its signal < points, a fine wireless station, supplied ] with water and electric light brought < from afar, Montsec was as self-sup- i porting and impregnable a fortress as < (one often sees in these days of sandbag I fortifications.?Stars and Stripes. I WIPE BUT THE RATS Hey Cost the Country Millions of ^ Dollars. | HEED OF WIDESPREAD CO-OPERATION | There Should Be a General Rat Kill- I ing In Every Section of the Country Q| ?A Vigorous Campaign Would IB Leave Much Food for the People? H It Is a Work for Boys and Aleo a H Work for Men. gS Ity K. H. Jeter. Kdltor Ap-lrulturul Kgj Kxtcnslon 8crvict\ H There l.s on^ j?ara?lte very coniinon H n South Carolina which is without a H single redeeming characteristic, and H| shich should everywhere he routed H ind destroyed. In fact, it has l?oen H dated and some fanciful writers wl nave prophesied that a time would H -onie when tlx re would be a struggle H tetween the human race and mils to f? lecide which would possess the earth. iTactical folks, of course, have very J'll It tie fear of anything like this. I>ut |H hey do set the rat down as a costly l a ind a dangerous nuisance. ' a The department of agriculture at ! kVashington. through its biological H survey, has recognized tlx- seriousness H >f tlx- nit in tlx- program of food pro- Li tuition ami food conservation, and H ins classified him in a recent bulletin ?| >y Mr. David K. Igintz as the worst inimal jiest in the world. The losses rum his depredations amount to many nillions of dollars yearly?to more, in act, than those from all other injur- ? oiih mammals combined. Hp Of the four species which have been irought to America, for none is nit- ~ Ivo. the lirown rat Is the most de- \ t*r 1 itriictive and, except the mouse, the nost numerous and most widely dis- , IS I riliuted. This rat was brought to Vmerica just before the Revolution- "u 1 try war. and, in spite of the fact that nan has since waited constant war'are on it, this brood has been aide to ^ rradually extend Its range. and to ^ iteadily increase its numbers, because >f its wonderful ability to udapt itielf to all surroundings. He is sly and ^ tntnlvorous, feeding upon all kinds of ^ inimals and vegetable matter, ami 'rorn its home In filth visits dwellings md storerooms to iKiltute an<l destroy ^ niman food. While it does not eat ' 10 much of this food, it causes a much ?renter waste by pollution. In fact it is estimated by statist!- ^ ^ ians that these creatures destroy rops each year, and other projierty. ,-alued at over $200,000,000. It Is hard o conceive of this amount of food and import y lielng destroyed each year. vhen we notice the smnll amount of Inmage done by n single rat In a ^ tight, but if we take the earnings of ' ' 100,000 men, let them work hard each , lay. at reasonable wages for rthelr abor, at the end of the year they will jt inly replace in wealth what rats have neci lestroyed in an equal length of time. ^ tn the aw-rage farm, if the grain cairn and wasted by rats and mice .-outd .. .. ... now to sold, the farmer could u*c this to my his taxes. In fact: h> the e::ternination of the rat there will be DOS* nough food materials saved to pay ^j.' tur normal taxes in this state. Were it not for the fact that the rat . i yet, las natural enemies, such as weasels, ( ikunks, and some kinds of hawks and ^ . wis, the nite of increase would la- ^ cry much greater. One investigator IIIV vho kept two female nits In captivity ^ or thirteen months stated that during (jo" hat time they produced 26 litters, toaling ISO young, and another invesigator figured tliat the progeny of one I ' iair of rats would, in three years soal lumber 651,050. 1^, Trnjis. poisons nn<l other devices of ... nan have served. In addition to its ^ latural enemies, to keep the pest un- ,(|| ler some control. Cats and dogs ii1h?? ' lestroy many, .then the male rat Is " 'requently a cnnnlbnl who eats his own |08 nmiiy. Tills Is nliout all that can tie ^, Mit down in the favor of the rat. ex- (0 ( ept for the fact thnt he does some- (.;|1 imes eat carrion. The world has been r()|)| igliting the rats for centuries, without |Um irgnnizatlon of any kind, but at the ^Qr same time the world has been steadily rats coding them and building for them W(>)| 'ortresses for concealment. ca_>| According to Mr. LanU. if these rats th(1 ire to be found on equal terms they (.a,| nust be denied food and hiding places. Cfttv The people must organize and rid the T ndividual communities of the pest. 0XC( There is yet a short while before the ( rops are harvested in which consid- 8pr| cable good may be done in destroy- mt>1 ng the number of rats that will be fed gpn luring the coming winter. Organized sho fforts should he put forth on nil 'arms, and In every community, to jjj,, nake way with the hiding places, and jio ;o so construct any building thnt they mpr nay be rat proof: then, with poison. Ver, raps and organized rat hunts, the pest P(j ( should be exterminated as closely as >ossll>le. t)u. The world Is now on reduced rn- q Ions, and the foodstuffs which these [ssts destroy Is a serious matter. It |,ro s said thnt we might get a better Idea v ar )f what the $200,000,000 value lost by S,.V( neans of rats, when we consider thnt (u{, :hls amount, would pay lioard bill, at j,P 110 a week, of 384,615 men for one rear. How long Is it supposed that we LvnnlH nav such a board bill of such i number of men who did nothing but 70 around spreading germs, burning buildings, and robbing hen houses? Vet. this is exactly what we are doing In the case of the rat. If these were ( men we would not stop until the last one was brought to the electric chair, br at least securely jailed, yet on the other hand, the sly, slinking rat is doing just these things every day, and Is getting only passing attention. Suppose we consider some of the things that he does. It has been proved, beyond all shadow of a doubt, that nits gnaw away the insulntioln from electric wires and cause houses ; to burn, seemingly without any cause,! and destroy any food or other property i which might be stored therein. He | j will go from farm to farm, and. In somcj rases, it has been proved that the j deadly cholera germs have been car-1 ried from one affected hog herd to the! healthy herd on the adjoining farm, and several hundred pounds of pork lost by this overnight journey. Bubonic plague, that most deadly of human diseases, is spread by this same [ vil little pests. He infests all kinds 01? filthy, dirty plaoes which reek with germs, and brings these into germ- ** THREE GENERAT -/EHK A family group of three genera string three stars, one of which h Theodore Roosevelt's grandson, ptain Archie's wife, Richard De rby on the lap of her mother, Etl i places, depositing some where le wanders. oultr.v growers have found that 'radically Impossible to rear you ihutor chicks where there are co ruble numbers of rats, as thr keen delight in killing as ma possible, sometimes destroying tie hatch in one night. They (1 1 in country slaughter houses, ej the offal of slaughtered nnimn . In this way, perpetuating t use known as trichinae in poi y also get as a source of food t nants of lunches left by employ actorles, stores or public buildlni this small amount of food, aloi iiiffieient to attract and sustain ill army of nits. They shorten t of sills and floor timber In t r of many wooden buildings ring tunnels around under the piling dirt against them whf , may find a safe retreat frc rly all enemies. irds are needed to help in contr< the- Insects affecting the croi rats prey on the orbs nn<l you many kinds of these birds, a ? tbm trom --tecwilag jld. can l?e seen, therefore, that t \ssity for keepinR such pests ?k Is a very vital and apparc and there Is no better time thi ' to wage a war aRainst them. \ asked by the government to eo e our food and to save as much dble so that our soldiers and o es may be properly fed, and t l?le at home sufficiently nourish' all this while we are paving t; his pest which returns to us le at all. s a method of destroying?'the many kinds of traps recommen IKvtsons may also be used, wh s. eats and ferrets may do sor il. The use of fumigation by vvlii i are destroyed in their burrows field by putting a wad of eott <00 In carbon bisulphide pushed in burrow, and the opening pack i earth to prevent the escaping is a good method. In this w; the animals in the burrow are a xlated. Other gases may be used chouses where these are tighl <d. and the rats either killed, en out. but it is hardly prnetic use these in occupied buildini sail-a considerable help in ovr ilng the remarkable development liters, but these are of most val mice, very few learning to cat i. The ordinary house cat is t I fed, anyway, to undertake t tare of an animal as formidable brown rat. In fact, the continu ng of rats in some cases poiso i. rnps cost nothing in maintenam ppt bait, and the live and ten ce ?, the wire cage sort, or the sti ing traps, are all pood anil reeoi idod by the agricultural extensl ice. The l.nlt used in these trn uld be that which is different frc l which the rat generally feeds c i of toasted cheese, or Itacon, m used effectively. It must be r nbercd. however, that the nits a y sly. and that bait must be chan often, the trap kept clean, and pr ibly handled with gloves to entl animal into them, ne man was ve.-y successful hint? rats bv covering a barrel wl ivn paper and feeding the rats ii chouse on top of this barrel I cral nights. After they hail learn at there with comparative freedo cut two slits crosswise the top a MINIATURE TANK Si The lataet novelty (Uncovered I ? one-man tank, need m a nip rtuitd by the OftaedUne darlnf mm ?pertm?qttu| tHth It Wh rd or backward, fmt k rather a IONS OF ROOSEVELTS B Easy Wil Dei Litt Sta "Mc crack er <la Inn.' ly do. army. what . and a Met tachec side o metho ject If ting r hard i The nn "i _ t- - Bkm^B <'*^B defens B Bf ? iBWW Met: ^B^2l|^^^k^^Q^QB9HBf 1R"? < ^??^^^5^^^^^^BBPBimWBIPWM ^BBBBbBH^B ernlzc? tlons of Roosevelts, with their service flag om' f as turned to gold. The group is composed wo,ks. the baby of Archie; Theodore Roosevelt, Eacl rby, Jr., Mrs. Roosevelt, and Baby Edith (,t lei Roosevelt. linked highly v- wa* re|K?i*ted to have caught over 3,000 mcnts. rats l>efore they heeanio fearful of his vies, I it arrangement. zincs I ng In a large barn near Washington. "1e n- a few years ago. piles of corn left in a Ron? >se loft were soon greatly infested with forts t ny rats. A wooden pen was set down by an*' n a each pile in the barn, the corn thrown w'ho,,l nd out until the dogs were able to get at the *? it- rats, and in this way several men and Thus Is. dogs killed over fiUO rats in a single Pp,"fect he day. advnnt rk. 1'oisons are also used with success. 'n', r'? he but must by handled with care. If a ''oe c< es |?dsoned rat escapes into the parti- an ;s, tlons of buildings, the resulting odor so t',?! ie. is fre<iuently very far from pleasant. nun 0 a and it is recommended in most cases :,s ni' *1 he to put the poison in unoccupied houses, "P^tln; he or out buildings. Poison should never Behi l,v 1 ii nut where domestic unlmols nmt ('r'' " V r . favoral m pets can gain access to It, because it ^ tj| re ivcognlzes neither friend nor foe. ^ ^ im Anions the principal ones which hnve ^ b.?en recommended arc barium car- roundj >1- bonate. strychnine arsenic, phosphorus, ^ ;>?. and s(iullls. Detailed methods as to , ng the use of these can be found fan deyej0] nd tanpers' bulletin 896. wHhln' ry m HffWrcr 'method IS used Tor destroyng rats. It Is of the utmost Im- timc 0 he portance that co-operation ho done, ft ^ j In will <lo very little good to destroy the nt rats on one farm In a community, and ^ an none of the remaining farms, as they stnnd Ve nt ignite very readily. From year to n- year organized efforts should be made ,|0f<>nill as to kill all the rats in a community. n|)ont or The boys should be Interested in this wprp ( he and paid n bounty for all rat tails outH|d( d, turned in. Clubs, societies, and organ- ^ ax i/ations should make co-operative ef- nPCP88) no forts to kill the rats. Itulldings should rPspon be so constructed that the animals may Hem re be built out of shelter and food, and wnj,ln d- thus at the mercy of their natural mftns lie enemies. Hppnd nc a ing a i ch Swap Crosses for Cigarettes.?Gcr- |na| ( in man prisoners captured in the recent anothe on lighting, who have arrived at a British ^p 8|z ito port, show a surprising depreciation of Pn0rm( od the once coveted Iron Cross, says an r(H,uir( of Associated Press correspondent. One ThP it>' of them traded his decoration for a were r s- cigarette, and an American officer, con tail 'n who accompanied the captives from mngaz France, said several of them spoke niunfti or slightingly of the war token bestowed rival o 'al upon them by Emperor William. mason -s- A marked change in the demeanor found r" of the new prisoners was also noticea- pt>riine hie. Instead of the arrogant and al- tresses most insolent manner which charac- plosive terized their predecessors, when the The Germans were sweeping everything ing. ai before them, the latest contingent tlon it ,,,1 8erm8 humble and crestfallen. Almost ways i every officer and one in ten of the men opmen wore the ribbon of the Iron Cross. and t ( The tobacco famine, which exists land a ' among the prisoners, makes it easy for offense ( J American soldiers to collect souvenirs. ?its ( ; The Germans will part with almost any having on of their belongings for a package of mans cigarettes. at Lie American troops are leaving for Thei France daily with bands playing and parent " (lags flying. Stress ! ? m must I ire A bandit held up an express messen- solete. lR. ger and his assistant In the express car brougl 0. of a Grand Trunk railroad train as it wipe I Ice was leaving Sunnyside, Ontario, Thurs- Thui day, obtained a sealed bag containing in $20,000, and leaped from the train. A niethoi ith few hours later the bundit held up the even * i a chauffeur of an nutomobile and drove 'ntpro^ 'or away in the machine. The greater part mldabl ed of the stolen money was recovered in a 001 m, a house near the scene of the hold up. nd The bandit made his escape. value, parahl term USED BY THE HUNS lod. Soor I -oundt TjnTy "The s ?uch t end 01 earris' that would army army he as lllustn shal F alan i the "1 ent k. and driven did n< town. In his The _ * tlon c n ok by the Boche forces Is this minis- stron^ loc port by the operator. The tank was supplj the recent offensive and oos of them can man ] a ones behind It the operator can go for- mUM a awkward peettton. offerti " : ' ' ' ? ' Sii DEFENSES OF METZ ig of City Will Be a Big Under taking. IFICATIONS OF GREAT STBEAGTIj Enough to Destroy the Town h Long Range Guns; But the truetion of the Town Is of But :le Value, So Long as the Forts nd In the Way. tz Is going to?be a hard nut to " said a French general the othV I vol V* imuch as the cracking in evidenttined as a task for the American it will be interesting to consider the fortifications of Metz are like hy they are so formidable, z is defended by n girdle of deI forts four to seven miles outf the city. This Is the modern d of defending a town. Its obi to prevent an enemy from getear enough to the city to bomt effectively. rehy is constituted what is called ritrenched camp.". Antwerp is i camp; so likewise <with their es) are Paris. Verdun and HelStrnsshurg is another, s Is a first-class example. In while still French) It was thus ed, but the outlying forts were <hed. The Germnns have mod1 them and have added a seciiul outer ring of formidable t fort stands by Itself, but all lem eom|>ose a system, being together by a complete chain of elaborate concrete lntrenchwlth tnonts and other obsta>omb-proof shelters and magaror ammunition and stores near htlng line. is ana rauroaas conneci me ivith one another. Other roads illroads rtin like spokes of a from the center of the system p different defensive sectors, the defenders, provided with communications, have a great ape, being able to operate on r lines. They can at brief nosncentrate their forces against tck at any point. And in doing y are not obliged to expose their r transport vehicles, inasmuch uuate covered approaches to the g line are provided, nd the outer and inner girdles iched forts at Metz. located at l)le points, are specialized forr>ns designed to assist step-by^fense; and In the rear of these o-called last line defense surng the city, where the garrison ?slst to the ultimate limit. Illustrate rather strikingly the potent of the art of fortification (Ms -Jhalf ?. isum>, it e mentioned that In 1870, at the f the Franco-Prussian War, the ine of defense at Metz was a tied wall of masonry twelve gh! Imagine how long It would against modern guns! idea of detached forts for the e of a city was first adopted just a century ago. At first they >lacod only 1000 yards or so ? the mdln wall. But as the of siege guns increased It was try to establish them at a cordlngly greater distance, e It will be understood why, very recent years, the Gerhave thought It worth while to huge sums of money In extending of forts outside of the orig?lrdle. There was, however, r idea in view. It so Increased e of the defensive circle that an jus besieging force would be Hi to Invest It detached forts of former days nassive structures of mansonry, ilng barracks for Infantry and Ines and storehouses for amon and supplies. But the arf the rifled cannon made exposed ry obsolete, and the year 1886 the French pounding away exntally at one of their own for(Malmaison) with high ex1 shells. destructive results were amazad-their ensued a fresh resolut the art of fortification. Althere has been a race in develt between the means of offense he means of defense. But on s well as on sea the weappn of ; has clearly and decisively won Inal victory as one might say, : been celebrated when the Gerllterally blew to pieces the forts ge, Namur and Antwerp. ewith, however, it became apthat the defenses of Metz, burg and other German cities je regarded as in large port obLike methods of attack it against tlfem would Inevitably hem out. i. from the present point of and relatively to up-to-date Is of attack the forts of Metz. taking Into account all recent ements are really no more forle than the primitive works of itury ago?considered indivldthat is to say. Their strategic on the other hand, is incomy greater?meaning by that their total defensive efficiency, ng them to hold off from the great force for an Indefinite perler or later Metz will be sur >a ana mvesiea, as me pnrane the Americans and their Allies, lege is likely to be long. But i siege, if long continued, can ily with the surrender of the >n. So well is that recognized no military commander today think of seeking safety for his in an Intrenched camp. The under such circumstances would trood as lost?a fact strikingly ited by the experience of Marlazaine during the Franco-Prusvar. Prince Frederick Charles, ted Prince," uncle of the presaiser, simply sat down outside waited until the French were by starvation to surrender. He >t throw a single shell into the It was the most humane siege tory. most Important military funcf Metz is not that of a mere rhold, but to serve as a base of - and point of support for the Gereft flank. Strassburg. ninety-nine to the southeast. Is a bridgehead, ig the Hun safe retreat across the ' - " ' ' St' . .. - -'v, Rhint. If defeated on the plains of Alsace. It is In this direction. throuRh Lorraine and Alsace, that Germany will be invaded. As soon as Metz is seriously threatened the Huns will be obliged to retreat to the Rhine. This is an idea that doubtless figures imj portantly in Marshal Foch's strategic plans. Long-range guns, to keep the foe at a distance, are an essential element i of the defensive system of an intrenched camp like Metz. The news . dispatches indicate that the guns of Metz are already throwing shells into the American lines. Hut that is a game two can play at: and there is no doubt that the Americans could destroy the city by gunfire If they chose. They do not choose to do so because Mtti Is a French city in tierman hands; and furthermore to destroy the town would not Injure the forts or impair the defensive power of the great Intrenched camp. PROPHETS OF YESTERDAY. Things of the Present Were Not Hidden to Great Souls. Literary antiquarians are finding all kinds of prophecies covering events of today, and some of them are enough to awaken the spirit of marvel in view of the remote contingency as to the day of fulfillment. For example, what could have put it into the head of George Sand seventy-two years ago that American forces would ever occupy French soil? Mr. J. S. X.* Davis bcihis 10 me .>ew i urn nines mis merary find: "George Sand, In her novel 'Mauprat,' written in 1846, put into the mouth of Bernard Mauprat, in about the middle of the fifteenth chapter, the : following words: "'In his (Marcasse's) dreams he used to see an army of victorious ' Americans disembarking from num- ' berless ships, and bringing the olivebranch of peace and the horn of plenty to the French nation,' etc. "Mauprat in his old age is telling the story of his life and was here giving an account of himself and friends, their doings and thinkings, while in America with Lafayette fighting for American freedom. "It would be hard to find a more literal fulfillment of any written expression." Tennyson's "Locksley Hall" places its author as a safer guesser in view of the declared determination of science to conquer the physical universe; but the Catholic Citizen (Milwaukee) thinks his vision of seventy years ago an "almost uncanny forecast" not only of "the present world-upheaval, but even the instruments of warfare developed in its course, and the result to follow Armageddon." It quotes this passage: For I dipped into the future, u far u human ere could eee. Saw the vision of the world, and all the won. der that .would beu Saw the heavens Ml with commerce, argosies of magic aails. Pilots of the purple twilight, dropping down with costly bales; Heard the heavens Ml with shouting, and there rain'd a ghastly dew From the nation's airy navies grappling in the central blue; far alnntr tKa wap if.tvtHa wrklannr nf ikn miifh wind rushing warm, 1 With the standards of the peoples plunging j through the thunder-storm; Till the war-drum throbb'd no longer, and the 1 battle-flags were furl'd , In the parliament of man. the Federation of the World. 1 The cue being given, another delver, I a writer to the New York Sun, finds l that in 1849 Victor Hugo, addressing < the Peace Congress In Paris, foreshadowed the "United States of Europe." ' Mr. Isaac Markens comments before I quoting the French poe* that "Germa- I ny's subsequent role in the history of i nations, more especially the theft of 1 Alsace-Lorraine in 1871 and her Dra- 1 conlan policy of the past four years. I leaves no doubt of Hugo's attitude 1 with respect to Germany's representation in the proposed confederation, i were he living today." Hugo then said: "A day will come when you, France. ' you, Russia, you, Italy, you, England, you, Germany, all you nations of the Continent, shall, without losing your distinctive qualities and your glorious individualities, blend in a higher unity, 1 and form a European fraternity, even as Normandy, Brittany, Bergundy, Lorraine, Alsace, all the French provinces, blended into France. "A day will come when war will seem as impossible between Paris and London, between Petersburg and Berlin, as between Rouen and Amiens, between Boston and Philadelphia. "A day will come when bullets and bombs shall be replaced by ballots, by the universal suffrage of the people, by the sacred arbitrament of a great sovereign senate, which shall be to Europe what the Parliament is to England, what the diet is to Germany, what the legislative assembly is to France. "A day will come when a cannon shall be exhibited in our museums as an instrument of torture is now, and men shall marvel that such thingB could be. "A day will come when we shall see those Immense groups, the United States of America and the United States of Europe, in face of each other, extending hand to hand over the ocean, exchanging their products, their commerce, their industry, their art; their genius clearing the colonizing deserts, and ameliorating creation under the eye of the Creator. "And to you I appeal, French, English, Germans, Russians, Slavs, Europeans, Americans, what have we to do to hasten the coming of that great day? Love one another. To love one another, in this Immense work of pacification, is the best way of aiding GodFor God wills that this sublime will should be accomplished." Formidable American Flyers.?The American flyers are beginning to appear on the battle fronts in increasing numbers. There have been a few American flyers from the beginning; but during the past month the flyers whose training was started in various American aviation fields and continued In England and France, have been Joining the fighters. Several times recently as many as fifty or sixty Americans have gone out together on bombing expeditions, and have not only wrought terrible havoc in the Oerman towns they visited; but have sent to earth all the German flyers that undertook to interfere with them. LJeut Sidney White of Elisabeth City. N. C., last Thursday brought down a German airplane and successfully fought off five others that offered help to the Hun, on the western front PROBABLE TERMS OF PEACE. Subject* Being Discussed by Washington Military Experts. Discussion in Washington is centering on the probable terms of armistice which may be formulated by the Allied and American military advisers after the Allied governments have considered the German proposals transmitted by President Wilson. It was generally assumed by army officers that the president already has as leruiuifu ine wunn^uew 01 me milieu governments to submit the matter to military men. Military opinion in Washington is that Mr. Wilson has expressed the basic idea upon which an immediate armistice can be reached. The terms to render the German military power on land and s*-a absolutely impotent must be worked out by the supreme war council. It will be the mission of the military advisers to translate general principles into concrete terms of fortresses to be occupied, submarine bases to be placed under guard, munitions to be dismanteled, rail lines to be secured against German use- Since an armistice on Allied terms means an end of the war, attention also mdst be given to demobilization of the German army, in itself a long process since the great force could not be turned back into civil life overnight. The machinery for formulation of ' the terms already exists. The military and naval boards of the supreme war council at Versailles furnish the natural avenue for tho assessing of the views of the military leaders and bringing them into harmony in a definite statement of the conditions upon which fighting could come to an end and Marshal Foch, as supreme commander, and Generals Petaln, Haig, Porshinir T>inz :in<l flllllnn tho nplctim chief of staff, are ex-offlclo members of the naval hoard. The president proposes that the terms to be drawn up by these military and naval agencies are to be submitted to the respective governments associated against Germany for ratification before they are given to the German government. The supreme war council, composed of the premiers of the Allies, and of President Wilson, probably would pass upon the programme since It is only armistice conditions and not peace treaties which ire to be considered. As to the terms themselves the situation on land so far us the western front is concerned appears simple. To make certain that the U-boat fleets are put out of action, however, by any terms except the surrender of the submarines themselves appears more difficult. Occupation of Helgoland might jerve to bottle up both the submarines ind the German high seas fleet so far is the North sea outlets are concerned, but there is another gateway, via the Kiel canal and IliiilTfcglfirH" filf'ir between neutral water. On the western front, which domijates the situation elsewhere, it is regarded as obvious that occupation of the Metz-Thionvllle "Mutterstallung" is the Germans call that great fortress, would be essential. Speculation In this connection has an unusual interest in Washington since it is regarded as probable that the Germans would in any case stipulate that American troops take over the fortress until final disposition of Alsace-Lorraln is determined at the peace conference. Holding the Metx-Thlonville gateway, supplemented possibly by occupation of the Rhine fortress of Strassburg, some officers think would enable the Allied forces not only to dominate the German forces on that front, but would give also an open road Into Germany Itself should a resumption of hostilities be threatened. Terms for the evacuation of Belgium and northern France probably would precede the statement of conditions that must later be enforced along the German-Belgian frontier. It is believed the Allied chiefs will propose a definite plan for the rearward movement of the German forces under which the enemy's armies would successively retire. The plan marked out It is thought, would provide for exposure of the German forces to flanking operations that would cut them to pieces should any treachery be revealed. What fortresses on the German-Belgian frontier might later be required for occupation Is not so clear, since It is thought that in any case the reservation of the Rhine road to Berlin by the occupation of Metz and possibly Strassburg might make precautions in the north less essential. Other obvious requirements would be. It Is thought, surrender by Austria to the Italians of fortresses in the Alps that guard the Austrian border and the road to Vienna; probable evacuation of the whole east coast of the Adriatic and the occupation of such bases as would bottle up Austrian naval power completely In that sea. Possibly the surrender of their naval base of Trieste might be demanded. To safeguard Rumania and enforce peace conditions in Russia, It was said the road to the Black sea must be cleared, which would require surrender by the Turks of the fortresses of the Dardanelles. Surrender also or Russian battleships and destroyers In the Black sea, seized by the Germans, would be demanded. It was thought, and possibly the surrender of Turkish war craft as wellBoys Saved tbe Soger.?The national headquarters of the United 8tates boys' working: reserve has announced that 7,000,000 pounds of sugar was saved for the country this season by members of the reserve. Michigan farmers were on the point of plowing under their sugar beet crops ort account of lack of labor when United States boys' working reserve boys volunteered to go Into the fields and save the harvest. "One hundred and sixty-Ave thousand boys In American high schools * and colleges have enlisted in the boys' working reserve. As many more boys who were not in school are actually at work on the farms. 1UW 10 VIIV VI vuv IWVUI vw v? modification that la to have an influence after the close of the war. An idle boy la in great dancer of being employed by hi* aatanlc majesty. American boys have been swept along at very fast pace through vacation Idleness. "An idle vacation can nndo much of the good done in the school year. Indeed. an idle 8aturday sometime* undoes all that the school has don* in five days."?Journal of Education. ^ ,