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YORKVILLE ENQUIRER. ISSUED SKMI-WKEKLY. j l m oRisrs sons, PubiuiKn. } & ^amilg IJetcsjajitii: th< Jjromotion oj jpolifiqal, j^Ial, ^jri^nltaijat and (Communal jlnter^U o( flu $mji4. ) TEBI^S^s60copT.EmiNc?m?ANCI ESTABLISHED 1855 YORK, S. O. TUESDAY. FEBRUARY 25, 1919. 3STO. 16 HAIG'S STORY OF VICTORY Official Account of Last Days of tbe Var SPLENDID FIGHTING OF TBE BRITISH " In Detailed Report Field Marshal Telle How Fifty-nine British Divisions Defeated Nintty-nine German Divieions and Brought the War to an End. Prepared aa one has been by the daily telegrrams and reports from the British front of the remarkable series of victorious battles which ended in the complete defeat of the German forces on the western front, it is not possible to read without emotion Sir Douglas Hale's consecutive narrative of , the events leading to this result. A , grimness and bulldog tenacity in de- . feat, a magnificent dash and gallant , a endurance in victory call forth Sir , rVAiiflrlaa Uolw'o fmnnonf ovnro ao inno x/uuaioo UIU5 a ^A>/i?ogivuo| of gratitude and admiration for the ' troops under hie command. The dispatch deals with the operations of the British Expeditionary force in Prance from the end of April to the llth of November, 1918, on which day the troops entered Mons and the armistice was signed. The fierce onslaughter of the German armies In March and April had left the British forces gravely weakened and on the defensive everywhere. Eight divisions had to be written off the strength, two divisions were greatly reduced and five divisions had been sent to a quiet part on the French front for rest and training. There were only 46 divisions available for active service, and of these threefourths had already been heavily engaged with the enemy and reenforced by inexperienced recruits. All available men were being hastily sent out from England and reenforcements were arriving from other fronts. All these troops had to be assimilated and acclimatized and trained before they could be considered fit for frontline trenches. The American army was rapidly gathering and training, but was not yet in sufficient strength to take any great part In fact there was cause for grave 8 anxiety, it being apparent that the j enemy must strike again immediately c in order to obtain 6very advantage e possible while he still possessed supe- g rior forces and before the weight of f the American army could bo thrown f into the scale. The Allies had, there- ( fore to oontemplate acting on the de- j fensive and on withstanding severe assulta during the next three months f before tney could expect to gain an . CTJUAIiU* ilAAU Ui OUOU#WU* v The next two months on the British j front were spent .in 'intense activity. y 200 miles of broad-gauge railway were c laid and 5,000 miles of new defensive r positions were dug and built. The ^ enemy was harried by frequent attacks c and harrassed by artillery Are. The j ^ strength of the British divisions was increased from 45 to 52, much artillery ^ was added, and by the end of July the British army was reconstructed and ' had once more become an efficient ^ r striking force, and the German High command had missed an opportunity j] ' which was never to recur to them. . ^ German Surprise Attack. I 0 The German high command having g been brought to a standstill before t Amiens, altered their strategic objec- e tive, and on the 27th of May launched t a surprise attack on the Aisne, between s Soissons and Rhtims. The five British c divisions constituting the ninth army, t which had been sent to that poirt to , rest and train, thus suddenly found \ themselves involved in the fighting on j tho French rieht, northwest cf Rhelms. j Despite the fact that their ranks had f but lately been filled up by young s drafts still inexperienced in trench ? warfare, they most gallantly held their own. When the enemy broke through In c the center of the line north of Flames, c the left and center of the ninth army t was obliged, after fierce fighting, to i swing back west of Rheims, and finally c to withdraw across the river Vesle ln 't a southeasterly direction. The fight- 1 ing raged hotly until June 5, when the 1 enemy advance was definitely stayed 11 and Rhelms was saved. The French i general under whose orders this Brit- i ish army fought wrote of them as fol- : lows: "They have enabled us to es- i tabllsh a barrier against which the i hostile waves have beaten and shatter- ed themselves. This, none of the < French who witnessed it, will ever for- ] get. . . Sir Douglas Haig writes: ! "Their behavior was magnificent. . . < The twenty-second army corps was 1 sent at the beginning of July to the \ f French front at the request of Marshal i Foch and took port In the great counter- < offensive of July 18. After 10 days' j continuous fighting they took Mar- | faux and Montagne de Bllgny and com- i ' -J.ronAO nt frtlir miles south- I pieieu an auiouvv west of Rhelms in most difficult and , trying circumstances. The counter-offensive proved strik- ; ingly successful, and by the end of i July the AmA-lcan army was beginning to make itself felt and Marshal Foch arranged for plans for an offensive on all fronts from the Belgian coast to the Swiss frontier. To the British was assigned the relief of Amiens which, from the beginning of ^ April had been under the Are of the enemy's guns, and had become "a city of the dead." The interruption of railroad traffic between Paris and Boulogne and Calais at this point had been a serious and dangerous inconvenience to the Allied forces. Elaborate precautions which were ~ * 1 *?? AaaaK'A quite successful were uuten IV UCVV* ? v | the enemy, who was led to expect an attack on the Flanders front. Meanwhile secretly assembled and under admirable staff arrangements which left nothing to chance, the British resumed the offensive on the morning of the 8th of August on the Amiens front. After a heavy artillery bombardment favored by a ground mist and assisted by many tanks and cavalry, this attack developed with brilliant success, t and by the 12th of August the Infan- I try had reached and occupied the old German Somme defenses of 1916. Montdldler had been recaptured by the French and Amiens was placed beyond the reach of the enemy guns. As a result of their defeat on the M&rne, and the battle of Amiens, In which 20 German divisions were heavily defeated by IS British divisions, three cavalry divisions and an American regiment, the reaction on the German morale was decisive and immediate. Buoyed up with the promise that they were fighting their last fight for peace and that victory would come before the autumn, believing, as they were repeateoiy 101a, inai xne auics reserves were exhausted; scouting the possibility of American intervention in time to be of any definite result, the downfall of all their hopes and desires had the long-prophesied and expected effect the German armies were defeated from the moment they turned back from Paris and Amiens. They lost belief in their invlcibllity and they ceased to be invicible. Allies' Hour Arrivea On the other hand, the Allies, fighting from vastely different motives, felt that at last their hour had come; they "moved forward from one success to mother, suffering, danger, losses alike forgotten in their desire to beat the snemy and their confidence that they could do so," and they rose to the occasion with magnificent spirit. Sometimes slowly, sometimes with dramatic swiftness the enemy was forced sack. The battle of Bapaume from the 21st >f August to the 1st of September ex?v>o lino nf nHvnticp northward. Delivered by the third and fourth irmies, aided later by the first army, t ended with a general advance of the "Yench and British forces between the ivers Oise and Somme and the capture >f Peronne by the Australians on the ,8t of September. During this offensive 23 British divisions drove 35 Gernan divisions from the field in 10 days, etcok the whole line of the old Somme >attlefleld with 34,000 prisoners and 170 guns. The German troops had be;omo disorganised and constantly surrendered. This defeat in the south of he Lys salient compelled the enemy's vithdrawal from that salient and the Lbandonment of Immense quantities >f ammunition. Sir Douglas Halg describes the third )haso of the advance from Aug. 26 to Sept. 3 as the battle of the Scarpe. t resulted in the defeat of 13 German 11 visions by 10 British divisions, the capture of 16,000 prisoners, 200 guns ind ereat Quantities of material. Dur ng this battle the celebrated Droour^-Queant switch was broken, an laborate system of trenches, wlre"and trong points, connected with the amous Hindenburg line. This gallant eat of arms was carried out by.a Canadian corps assisted by several Ingllsh divisions. The fourth stage of the advance rom Sept. 12 to 18 was the battle of lavTtafiourt and Epehy. The battle vas preparatory to an attack on the Itndenburg line ard succeeded in ireaking down the old British and iorman lines to a depth of three niles. It resulted in the defeat of 20 rerman divisions by 15 British, the apture of all the British objectives, 2,000 prisoners and 100 guns. The british were now confronted by he famous Hindenburg line, a fornidable position of great strength in he building of which the Germans iad employed all their powers of or -? TV,o SotiolHt ranizauuii aiiu nouui^v. a ? 'anal, running in places 60 feet beow the surface of the ground, formed in integral part of this great system md afforded cover for the troops from he severest bombardment A tunnel 000 yards in length was taken advanago of and converted into concrete ihelters and dugouts. The enemy had :oncealed along the top of the canal mplacemcnts. Trench lines, barbed virc, switch trenches, etc., covered a >elt of country varying from 7000 to 0,000 yards in depth and organized nto & most powerful system cf deense well meriting the great reputation ittachcd to it. Attack on Hindenburg Line. The attack on this position was pened by the crossing of the Scheldt anal of Moeuvres on the 27th of Sepcmber. This most difficult maneuver on a very narrow front was carried >ut with complete success. After two la:, s* heavy and continuous bombardment the forty-sixth division stormed ( :he western arm of the Scheldt canal at Bellenglise. The canal was crossed on mats and rafts by foot bridges, by rwimming or wading, and so gallantly ind rapidly was the attack carried out, ' -A a# Kid Hlvlainn ran .nai ine nuu^a ui imo r :ured German batteries In action, over i.OOO prisoners and 70 guns on this one lay. The second American corps took port in the action on the Hindcnburg ine and though heavily engaged pressed on with great gallantry. The battle raged for nine days. The enemy frequently counter-attacked in great strength. It resulted in the whole pf the Hindenburg defenses passing Into the hands of the British. A wide gap was driven through the enemy's rear trench system which constituted a direct and instant threat to his line of communications, for nothing but well-wooded and open country now lay between the Allies and the German great railway center at Maubeuge. In this battle for the Hindenburg line 36,000 German prisoners and 380 guns were captured, and the enemy's morale was greatly reduced. At this time the second British army was engaged under the king of the Belgians In the battle of Flanders. Launched on the 28th of September, by the end of the first day, the British were far beyond the historic battle grounds of 1917. The British and Belgians followed up the retreating enemy with vigor, and by the evening of the 1st of October they had cleared the left bank of the river Lys. On the 2nd of October the enemy began extensive withdrawals from Lens to Armentleres, and shortly afterward the development of operations on theHindenburg line forced the enemy to further retreat. The second phase of the British offensive now began in open country and consisted mainly of heavy actions with rear-guards and delaying troops. The enemy's transport blocked the road to the east, while the armies retired to the line of the Meuse. Cavalry, tanks and aeroplanes did valuable work. Thousands of prisoners and many guns fell into our hands By the 13th of October the Selle River was reached and Leon was In French i hands. Ostend fell to the Belgian i forceo on the 17th of October and or . the 20th of October the Allies reached , the Dutch frontier. On the 17th of October Doual waj occupied and the enemy was given nc time to evacuate stores or destroy > bridges and on the 18th the British had . surrounded Lille and by the 22nd had i reached the Scheldt In the Selle battle the 24 British and 2 American divisions engaged had captured 20,000 prisoners and 475 guns from the 31 German divisions opposed to thorn. Hopeless German Situation. f The capitulation of Turkey and Bui garia and the collapse of Austria had made Germany's situation ultimately Impossible. Sir Douglas Halg now prepared a principal attack on a 30mile front on the Sambre on the 1st of November. On the 4th of November, after an Intense bombardment, the troops moved forward and advanced to a depth of five miles along the whole battle front. In these operations 20 British divisions utterly defeated 32 German divisions, captured 19,000 prisoners and over 450 guns. The enemy now fell back on the whole front The roads packed with troops and transport provided excellent targets to our airmen. Fighting their way forward, our troops compelled a general retirement of the enemy on the whole front of the British armies and the fortress of Maubeuge was entered on Nov. 9, thus cutting the German line of communications. On the early morning of Nov. 11 the third Canadian division captured Mons, the whole of the German defending force being killed or taken prisoners. At 11 a. m. on tljat day hostilities were suspended, but not before the enemy's resistance had been broken beyond the possibility of recovery. In the three months of epic fighting the British armies in France had brought a sudden and dramatic end to the wearing-out-battle of the past four years. Tnroughout all those years and amid the hopes and disappointments brought with them, the confidence of our troops in final victory never wavered. By the long road they trod with so much faith and with such devoted and self-sacrificing bravery we have arrived at victory and today they have their reward. In the great series of victories won by the British forces between Aug. 8 and Nov 11 the strongest and most vital parts of the enemy's front were attacked by the British and his best divisions fought to a standstill, this despite the fact that the attacking British troops were always numerically inferior to the German forces they defeated. On me amerent oatue iron is io<,000 prisoners and 2,850 guns were captured by our armies besides immense numbers of machine guns and trench mortars. These results were achieved by 59 fighting British divisions which, in the course of three" months of battle, engaged and defeated 99 separate I German divisions. Sir Douglas Halg concludes his dispatch by referring to all branches of the service by land, sea, and air, which have so contributed their share toward the great result achieved. He also pays a glowing tribute to the loyalty of the leaders of the various Allied forces to the Ideals which they pursued in common and have so gloriously realized. RED FLAG MUST GO. Congress Considering Strong Prohibitory Law. The red flag must go. Legislation has been planned to prevent its use in parades or at public meetings. Circulation of literature advocating use of the red flag as a symbol of violence, or overthrow of government, will be forbidden. The new bill In a modified form has been approved by the Benate Judiciary committee and a favorable report ordered. A sub-committee, comprising Senators Walsh, King and Brandegee, | was instructed to prepare an amendi ment excluding from the mails and prohibiting the carrying in interstate commerce of the printed matter declared by the bill to be unlawful- This will be added to the bill before it is reported. The bill as approved by the Judiciary committee, follows: "Section 1. That the display, or exhibition, at any meeting, gathering or parade, public or private, of any flag, banner, or emblem, symbolizing or intended by the person or persons displaying or exhibiting the same, to symbolize a purpose to overthrow, by force or violence, or by physical injury to personal property, or by the general cessation of industry, the government of the United States or all governments, is hereby declared to be unlawful. "Sec. 2. It shall be unlawful for any person to advocate or incite or to write or with intent to forward such purpose to print, publish, sell or distribute any document, book, circular, journal or other written or printed communication in or by which there is advocated or incited the overthrow by force or violence, or by physical injury to personal property, or by general cessation of industry, of the government of the United States or all governments. "Sec. 3. That any person or persons convicted of violating any section of this act shall be fined not more than $5,000 or imprisoned for not more than five years or both." A large majority of congressmen favor the enactment of such legislation as is carried by the new bill. It is regarded as certain of passage if it can be brought to a vote berore tnis session of congress expires. Ben Franklin's Wisdom. Every little makes a mickle. Look before you or you'll find yourself behind. He that waits upon fortune is never sure of a dinner. Learning is to the studious and riches to the careful. All things are cheap to the saving, 1 dear to the wasteful. If you would be wealthy, think ol saving as well as getting. Beware of small expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship. A penny saved is a twopence clear 1 a pin a day is a groat a year. Gain may be temporary and uncertain, but expense is constant and cer1 tain. REDUCE THE ACREAGE. t I Governor Cooper Isauee Proclamation to Cotton Farmers. 1 Governor Cooper has issued a proo' lamation in which he designates Saturday, February 28, "Cotton Acreage Reduction Day." A cut of one-third 1 of the acreage customarily planted ia urged and also a reduction in the quantity of fertilizer used. The governor calls on the farmers to assemble In each county that day to discuss and agree upon plans looking to the holding of the present crop, to | the protection of this cotton against damage incident to exposure to the weather, to the curtailment of the yield of the 1919 crop, and to sign the reduction pledges presented. "Unless this be done, we may expect poverty while others enjoy wealth," the governor warns. The full proclamation reads: Whereas, an extraordinary situation exists in the cotton growing states, due to the low price cotton is bringing, which situation threatens dire financial distress and suffering to these states, because the existing market prices do not allow any margin of profit to the producers of cotton; and Whereas, this situation is caused by the fact that the available supply of raw cotton is in excess of the demand, which condition will continue if the 1919 crop should be a large one; and Whereas, the only plausible solution for the situation that presents itself j is a reduction of the 1919 cotton crop; Now, therefore, I, Robert A- Cooper, governor of South Carolina, do declare Saturday, February 28, 1919, to be Cotton Acreage Reduction Day, and do call upon the cotton planters of South Carolina to pledge themselves upon that day to reduce the acreage ordinarily planted in cotton by one-third and to curtail the use of commercial fertilizers. Cotton growers today have on hand more than one-third of the 1918 crop, which they cannot sell at prevailing prices without sustaining a great loss. It is a matter of common knowledge that the ratio of supply to demand determines prices. and should the supply of raw cotton, already too large, be greatly augmented by a large crop in 1919, the result would be tremendously disastrous to the individuals of the i states, and to the south at large. The prudent merchant who is overstocked with a line of wares does not procure more of those wares before he has sold that which he has on hand, and has paid for. Southern cotton growers must operate on this same principle. Unity of purpose and concert of action will save us from calamity, and give to us our just share of the prosperity which other sections of the nation are enjoying. Therefore, as governor of South Carolina, and as one to whom the happiness of this state is of first import, I - 41 AMAmhlA in call upon me ioxuivio lu mkuii/k ... each county of the state on Cotton Acreage Reduction Day, to discuss and agree upon plans for the holding of prensent cotton on hands, for the proper protection of this cotton from depredations of weather, and for the curtailment of the 1919 crop so that it will not exceed two-thirds of the average ( yield. I call upon the farmers to sign the cotton reduction pledges which will be presented to them on that day, and to create a public sentiment which will not permit individuals to violate the reduction programme. Unless this be done we may expect poverty while others enjoy wealth. During the world war our people responded nobly to every call of patriotism. This movement to prevent the financial collapse of the south should appeal to the patriotism of every citizen, and no one should desire a personal gain to the injury of the whole people. I, therefore, most earnestly urge that the bankers, mercnants, ousiness and professional men, co-operate with the farmer in this movement, and that the farmers co-operate with each other. FUTURE OF PALESTINE. Leading Jews at Odds as to the Best Thing to Do. Jewish unity, writes a Washington correspondent, is being shaken by the charges and counter charges made by the factions which have sprung into being as a result of the situation growing out of the peace conference, and have spread to every country where Jews are to be found. The subject is of special interest to millions in America, for the failure of their leaders to take action has been made the cause of severe strictures. The quarrel lies in the claim of the anti-Zionists that foolish efforts to erect a Jewish state in Palestine have absorbed attention that should have been devoted to measures tending to rectify and secure the position of the Jews in those countries in which they are persecuted. Instead of having done this, the charge is made that the peace conference was besought to busy itself only with obtaining the return of Palestine to the Jews, Zionists pursuing the object with total disregard of the thousands being killed and tortured in many parts of Europe. Leading Jews here say the failure of the American Jewish congress delegation, which included Louis Marshall of New York, and Judge Julian W. Mack of Chicago, to attend the conference, and add their pressure to requests alrpadv made for relief of their co-re liglonists, has contributed largely to the omission from any work done so far of measures intended to safeguard them. French, English and American Jews had hoped to put into the recognition given the new countries of Poland, Czecho-Slovakia and Jugo-Slavia conditions preventing further attacks upon members of their faith. Roumania, tdo, they wanted to have pledged to abandonment of inhuman practices, ' and all were to be compelled to remove various disabilities existing against the religion in question. - ? *UabA Nothing- has been done aions uimv lines, and hard feeling is developing over the attempt to place the blame. 1 More than 6,000,000 Jews are included among those who live in daily fear of : losing life or property, and it is to succor these that measures were to be ' urged. The proportionate representation which the Jews have expected would be assured them has not been granted. They say that the Polish elections saw aeventy-flve Jews returned, but that fewer than thirty were permitted to qualify, and the influence of these was hamstrung and rendered null. In Rou! mania they add, Jewish representation 1 is made a farce, and as a result there is none able or willing to speak for! the Jewish population in the country's councils, though Jews form a large and ipdustrious part of the inhabitants. Jews are demanding that America join with France and Great Britain in granting members of their faith full .lights and guaranteeing them in their [sbcercise. Their leaders are chagrined] n* I cbiiu uioap^uiutou tnuu uto league vi, 'nations constitution dropped the 21st clause, which safe-guarded religions. T. TAFT ANSWERS CRITICS. Former President Saye Charter for the League of Nations is All Right. ? William H. Taft, president of the League to Enforce Peace, has given out a statement in which he reiterated his assertion that "those who oppose" the proposed league of nations 'covenant "on the ground that we should maintain the so-called policy against entangling alliances have a narrow vision of our national duty." The former president declared he was confident that without "specific provision the league of nations would, ' under the covenant, as it is, maintain 1 the justice and wisdom of the whole I Monroe doctrine," but if Article 10 was not sufficient, he had no. doubt such 1 provision would be inserted. i Mr. Taft denied that the Carnegie Peace Foundation was financing the i congresses of the League to Enforce < Peace. < "I observe," tbe statement saia, "tnat I have been misquoted in dispatches from San Francisco. I have been made to say that I would not trust overnight senators opposing this treaty. What I said was this: , "I yield to no man in my profound respect for the constitution of the United States as the. greatest fundamental instrument ever struck from the brain of man, but it makes me impatient to see a perversion of its meaning and purpose urged in order to keep this great country out of a covenant to secure peace among men; that Among those engaged in this were men whose adherence to the guarantees of civil liberty in that great instrument and the means of maintaining them through the courts, had not been conspicuous in the past, and whose disposition to amend or weaken them in the past made me feel that I would hesitate to trust them with the constitution overnight" "I have said that those who oppose this covenant on the ground that we should maintain the socalled policy t against entangling alliances and would withdraw us again into an impossible t Status of world Isolation without responsibility for the peace of the world, 1 have a narrow vision of our national i duty. They fail to realize ous enormous 1 power of assistance to the world in se- s curing peace by concert. Thus they i minimize America's proper part as a i factor in the advance of civilization. 3 They thereby belittle America and be- i come little Americans. "In reference to Senator Borah's \ question whether I would recommend t an amendment to the covenant of Par- ] is specifically reserving from its re- 1 strictions any limitation of the power i of the United States to enforce the i Monroe doctrine, I have to say I be- l lieve the whole spirit and essence of t the covenant is not only to preserve i the Monroe doctrine in the western ( hemisphere, but also to extend it to the c world and to give it the sanction not ( of the United States alone, but also of ( the whole league of nations. This is j particularly and specifically shown in Article 10 of the covenant "If it be said that Article 10 does not prevent a foreign nation from buying its way Into territorial ownership In the western hemisphere, without the consent of the United States, and other American powers, then I doubt not that hefore the covenant is signed and embodied in the treaty of peace, the concert of nations at Paris will consent to have such a provision inserted. Of course, I would favor this, but personally I am confident that without this specific provision the league would, under the covenant as it is, maintain the Justice and wisdom of the whole Monroe doctrine." Senator Borah In Reply. Senator Borah of Idaho, made another speech In the senate last Friday, especially because of what he termed misleading statements of Former President Taft. He vigorously disagreed with Mr. Taft's assertions that the ' league does not conflict with the Mon- * roe doctrine or Washington's injunction against entangling European alliances. Declaring that America would be outvoted five to one by England alone, because of the recognition of British colonies, Senator Borah said the league constitution was the "greatest triumph of English diplomacy of three centuries." He declared that the tentative constitution was almost identical with that presented to the peace conference last month by General Smith, the British drafting representative, and added that the English press and other foreign authorities concede that the plan involves the end of the Monroe doctrine. Articles appearing in newspapers urging the people to write President Wilson ana tnana mm ior m? pan. iu drafting the proposed constitution of i the league were ridiculed in the house ? Friday by Representative Hersey by Maine. "Why should the president be thanked for something which has not yet been approved by the country?" Mr. Hersey asked. "The thanks should be postponed until it Is seen whether or not the constitution will be acceptable." Mr- Hersey appealed to the members of the house to carefully study the proposed constitution, declaring that If it conflicted with the constitution of the United States congress should reject it. ? A bill of statewide interest passed last Tuesday night was that by Mr. McAdams of Abbeville, to require physicians practising in motor vehicles to procure special tags, so that automobiles of physicians may be readily distinguished. These tags are to be furnished by the ltate highway dei partment. "COHORT OF THE DAMNED" Remarkable Body of Freocb Air Fighters MADE UP OF MENTALLY UNBALANCED Where Men Became too Wild to Regard Discipline, They Were Sent to a Special Organization, the Members of Which Were Allowed to be as Reckless as They Wanted to Be. This picturesque name was given by the French to a group of their aviators formed of men whose minds had become somewhat unbalanced in their work. These fliers were totally unable to maintain discipline, but were brave to the point of recklessness, and instead of transferring them to another branch of the service, as was done by the British in similar cases, the French military authorities grouped them, isolated the group, and allowed its members to flght in their own way, with rather picturesque results, as narrated by Douglass Reld, in Popular Mechanics (Chicago, January). Now that the war is over, Mr. Reid tells us, it is proposed that this unique cohort shall be used to police the Algerian dederts. The peculiarities that led to its formation were flrst noticed among French fliers, he says, when French aviators, following the example of the Germans, began to fly in squadrons, or "circuses-" He writes: "Am soon as the French began to send up these circuses they discovered trouble. A certain number of the airmen refused to fly in formation. Either from impatience or a mistaken sense of the dramatic, they would break away from the squadron, disregard the orders of the flight commander, and dart away erratically to do battle on their own account Others, seized with a strange eccentricity, would persist in doing stunts in formation, causing accidents from collisions, breaking up the carefully planled hattle-line. and ruinine the attack )f the squadron. Punishment for :hese irresponsible fliers did not cure :hem. So the French air-service set psychologists and trained nerve spe:ialists to study the offenders. "These scientists discovered that the nsubordinates were slightly unbalmced mentally, that their daily labors inder extreme nerve tension and conitant excitqment had carried them beyond complete sanity. Slavish and nonotonous employment in desperate lir-flghts, the dally absorption in this itrange new occupation, had combined, vith the peculiar effect of swiftly :hanging air pressure on their nerves, ;o make them abnormally recldess. " 'The Machine' was too much for heir strength of mind. "At approximately the same time the British Royal Flying corps began to jtudy its own men of this type. It followed the practice of discharging mch 'unmanageables' from the serrtce, sending them into the infantry or lpon destroyers in the Grand Fleet [ts technical name for them was 'wild nen.' "The French, however, always a race vith more understanding of genius and emperament than the Anglo-Saxon peoples, forebore to cashier these fliers. ;t realized that they were, man for nan better tnan their German oppo tents; that Individually they were the jest aces of all In an air-duel, for heir very disregard of rules and regllations, their very carelessness of leath, made them terrible foes. So it >rganized a special corps, called 'The Cohort of the Damned,' filling it enlrely with these untrustworthy pilots, placed it apart from all organized es:adrllles; forbade its members to approach the regular branches of the lervice; isolated it entirely at a point lear the front-line trenches; furnished t with the best equipment, and turned it free to fight at its own sweet will. "Lonely and tragic, this band fought .'or the rest of the war, its members lying rapidly out of the air, but a ccnitant flood of new fliers coming to take heir place, as the nerves of pilots here ind there among the disciplined escaIrilles gave way and made their owners fit only for this reckless company. "The execution these half-mad men >f the 'Damned* wrought in German anks was astounding, but no records :ould be kept of the number they shot lown, on account of their iacR or orjanization, and the irresponsibility of .heir testimony. Captured Germans, lowever, are known to have reported ;hat their own fliers swore fervently ind wrote their wills when ordered to iccupy that part of the line opposite he 'Cohort.' "The statement is made that France it one time had three of these strange jroups, but there is definite information only upon the one and original sand. This, on one occasion, had over )ne hundred members, but the figure is lot of great value, since the lifetime of :he fliers was particularly short. "In the last year of the war, too, the lumber which the government was forced to consign to this isolation grew iess and less, due to the greater knowledge of fliers' air temperament obtained by the special corps of scientific men attached to the hangars. Psychologists learned how to treat the dementia when it made its first appear-1 ince, and it was found that frequent vacations spent far in the south of France, in complete rest, would, in the majority of cases, allay the nerve Btrain and keep the men tractable and efficient. | " 'The Cohort of the Damned' at present, it is understood, is to be kept in service after the mustering out of the ether French forces. It is deemed impossible to return the men to civil - ovnlbmpnt life, as tneir nunger iui and craving for thrill would immediately cause them to be disturbers of the peace. Still 'wild men,' peaceful pursuits would have no avenue for their satisfaction, and they would become criminals from sheer force of nerve strain, or at the least, they would be speed-crazy chauffeurs. "Consequently the French army will send them across into Algeria to be used In policing the desert wastes, holding the native tribes in check. One of them, using an airplane to traverse the parched and dangerous deserts will be worth more than a regiment of cavalry, the branch that garrisoned the province before the war. i "Franc* has the tendsrest affection for these unfortunate heroes, and has decorated them with all the honors given more sane fliers. It will maintain luxurious quarters for them In their African exile, it is said, and will grant them large increases in pay over the regular branches of military service. "in succeeding years, the French people, with their love of the picturesque and tragic in literature, will write much of this terrible and beautiful 'Cohort*" RRINfJINfi TWFM RACK All Americans to Be Returned From France Before Fall. With a steadily Increasing tonnage of troop ships, it will be possible for the war - department to return to the United States all troops now in France by the end of the coming summer. This announcement has been au-' thorized by the department to clear the atmosphere regarding the return of troops and the ships available and in prospect. It does not mean that America will not leave in Europe a considerable army to co-operate with the Allies. Under the present schedule, by March 1 approximately 400,000 troops will have been embarked on the other side for home. During March erabarcatlons will reach 200,000 possibly 225,000. The March capacity will depend on the usefulness of the German liners which have been or are to be allocated to the United States- Already eight large German ships, including the Imperator, which are at Hamburg, have been apportioned, and other craft will be assigned at Bremen. It is hoped that in April 250,000 men may be brought, and a minimum of 225,000 is assured. The rate is then expected to increase to suu.uuu a montn during the summer. As the return movement increases more ships will be diverted from New York, in order to prevent undue congestion in the port and in the camps adjacent to the city. All of the larger ships will continue to berth at New York, and that port necessarily must handle the larger proportion of returning troops. The movement of returning transports to Newport News, where extensive facilities have been provided, is steadily increasing. ' A larger use will be made of Philadelphia's facilities for vessels of lighter draught, and of Boston. Some ships will be sent to Charleston, S. C., and Savannah, Ga., and other southern ports, as many large camps are in the south. When the Allies withdrew thel* ships from our transport service, immediately after the signing of the armistice, the army was left with a fleet whose carrying capacity was approximately 86,000 a month. As a result of negotiations, Allied and neutral shipping interests are again furnishing considerable troop tonnage, with still more in prospect A total of 98,000 men were brought home in December, onH 111 000 tn .Tannarv. The aaare gate this month will be 160,000. Some of the biggest ships in the army fleet have had their troubles during the winter months. For example the American, one of the largest liners, has been out of service since October 16; the Mount Vernon, which was torpedoed in French waters, since September 28, and the Northern Pacific, which grounded on Fire Island, since January 1. The big Leviathan lost a month through turbine trouble on returning after an overhaul in England, while the Great Northern was rammed in French waters and was out of commission from November 19 to February 11. Up to date ten large American cargo ships have been converted into troop transports and have sailed from France. Twenty-nine are undergoing conversion and fifteen more will be converted. These flfty-four ships will aecTeirate 550.000 deadweight tons. Since the armistice was signed our troopships have increased from 400,000 tons to 830,000 tons. In another month it will reach 950,000 tons. These figures are exclusive of the large number of naval vessels converted temporarily into troop carriers and the ships turned over by Germany. The German ships ultimately are expected to carry 50,000 to 60,000 men a month. The army now has the use of British tonnage with a monthly capacity of 30,000 men and other Allied and neutral ships are transporting troops at the rate of 20,000 a month. His Specialty.?"Yes, but what has Senator Smugg ever done?" "Well," replied Grout P. Smith, "he has delivered some of the most voluminous speeches that were ever addressed to my wastebasket" BIRTHPLACE OF CLEMENCEAU Entrance to the house iu ilouilleron, I France, where Premier Clemenceau was horn. Over It will be placed a tablet bearing the formal declaration that he has "deserved well from hli | country." j EASILY RECOGNIZED. Membera of tha Holy Ordar of Haw* aatars ara Numerous. Scientiata claim that the claaa of food eaten has a marked influence In forming the man'a character. I never believed in this theory until I met up with the Haweatera, and now I am a confirmed believer of the grub proposition. In fact I would be willing to bet a modest sum that I can tell a Haweater fifty yards away by merely watching him and noting his actions. In the first place you would always find the Haweater perched up In the Imost prominent point of observation possible. He wants to see, but prefers I being seen. He seems to cherish the silly idea that a sight of him does other people good. One of his particular fads is to stand in everybody's way if possible. At railway depots, where seats are in abundance, the Haweater will invariably plant himself in the doorway, and you have to run over him or squeeze by him in order to entar or leave the room- On board a train he seldom remains quietly seated for over two minutes at a time. He saunters along the aisles, stepping on first one person's foot and then suddenly on another's. If he discovers any one he knows, he will refuse to be seated, but placing his elbows on the arm rest of the seat, will double out like the letter Z, with the larger part of his anatomy completely blocking the aisle, and stand there and gab nonsense for a fifty-mile run. At a postoffice delivery window the Haweater shines. He can poke his head further through the window, stay there longer, and get leas mall than a nigger cotton picker. At theatres he stands by and assists the doorkeeper in taking up the tickets and inspecting the ladles. On street cars he talks so everybody can hear him and often gets gay with the conductor and says funny things atwhich he laughs alone. At hotels he grows confidential Vith the bell boys. In drug stores he calls for drinks, the names of which he can not pronounce, and If the Jerker Is silly enough to listen, will tell him stories with, whiskers on them as long as a populist's. He will butt into a consultation of physicians If permitted, thinks he Is the smartest thing that ever wore suspenders, when, In fact, he hasn't as much common sense as a June-bug. Really, the law ought to turn him out like Cain, so that "every man who saw him, might slay him." Scant courtesy and withering looks have no effect on a Haweater. He won't be squelched, no matter what you say or do, and about the only argument to which he will respond is a brickbat or a swift kick. He is simply an irrepressible, jackasslcal nuisance, who flourishes in every community to the intense disgust of decent people. Birmingham Age-Herald. ? Fixed Price of Wheat a Terribly Perplexing Problem. The house remained in session until a late hour Friday night in an effort to reach a vote on the bill providing mean* for the government to carry out its guarantee of $2.26 a bushel to the farmers for the 1919 wheat crop. The measure was taken up after the railroad appropriation bill was passed and was freely debated. After adopting amendments changing from October 16. 1920, to June 1, 1920, the date on which the government guarantee would expire and giving the president power to prohibit importation of wheat should unfair tactics be used in trying to force down the price, the house adjourned without reaching a vote on the bill. The measure was made the unfinished business for Saturday and a vote was expected soon after the house met Representatives from southern states made a determined effort to include as amendments provisions for lifting the embargo on cotton, reducing the number of grades traded in on the New York cotton exchange and making cotton speculation unlawful, but they were ruled out by Representative Hamlin of Missouri, who was presiding. A- At. - kill WtA/fA KV UDjeCllOn W mt) win nao lunuv M, both Republican and Democratic members because it does not specifically provide that the wheat be sold to the consumer at the price determined by the law of supply and demand. Representative Lever of South Carolina, In charge of the measure, told the house that public sentiment would force the government to sell the wheat In this co-.ntry at the price prevailing in the world markets. Twice Saved by Chance. Fatee kind or unkind or singular, coincidences have given Aaron Walker, negro, at the state penitentiary a short lease of life. Walker was to have been electrocuted one month ago, but was granted a reprieve of 80 days beoause of the m a!with in* Illness Ul (.lie guuc mnuivaa. ...... fluenza. Yesterday was the day set for the execution and everything had been arranged for the electrocution of Walker when it was discovered that the electrical apparatus refused to apply the current. Several tests were made while the doomed man waited In an adjoining room. The death warrant was read and another test was applied. It was then discovered that the current failed to travel through the wires. The witnesses and doomed negro patiently waited for about 40 minute# when the elt-ctrlcian announced that the electrical equipment failed to work. Walker was carried back to his cell' once more and the governor was immediately notified. Governor Cooper granted a two weeks' reprieve. The officers of the state prison are not superstitious, but like many ethers believe that the law may be Imposing the death penalty upon an innocent man. Walker had maintained that he is innocent and repeated the statement yesterday after the death warrant had been read to him. The legal document was read to the negro and Captain Day approached the negro and said, "Aaron, what have you to say?" The negro looked at the ofleer and replied, "Boss, It Iboks like I have to go, but you are going to kill an Innocent man." \ Walker was convicted In Greenville county of attempted criminal assault He was brought to the penitentiary 'or safekeeping, and has left his cell on two occasions on his march to the execution chamber. Columbia State.