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4 m - '^-A "" MBBBi ? k sabmi.wekkr-^^ . . - - ~ " ~ ~~ L, il grists sons, Pibhabere. | & J'ami's lleirspnget;: Jfor the promotion of the political, Social, Agricultural and (Commn;cial interests of (h< fc:gl<. j TER s,^^0opifi? ^^ANCB ESTABLISHED 1855 . YORK, S, C, TUESDAY. APRL 1, 1919. NO.26 SHACKLING OF THE SOUTH How Cotton Growers Have Been Treated Id Ecooomic Frame-Up TEXAS MAN THROWS ON SOME LIGHT While All the Balance of the Country, East and West, Got a Big Share of War Plunder. Cotton Farmers as Usual Were Held for the Taek of j Paying the Bills. [Of late Texas papers have been exerting themselves to educate their people as to the true facts as to the cotton situation. The following from the pen of State Senator E. G. Senter, in Texas Farm and Ranch, is one of the most enlightening articles that has appeared.] E. G. Senter had the following article in Farm and Ranch. The time has come for plain speaking. The big question now hanging in the balance which affects directly every man, woman and child in the cotton states is not whether the inhabitants of Bessarabia shall be free, but whether the citizen of Texas shall be free. There is no freedom where the prin cipal industry ot one section is suujected to the absolute control of vultures somewhere else which feed and fatten upon it, and fix the terms upor. which it may live. There is a battle royal on today, and every artifice that money, power and diplomacy can employ is beingused to deceive and mislead those whose vital interests are at stake to fight against themselves. The English spinner wants cotton, but he wants it dirt cheap. The American spinner wants cotton and he wants it dirt cheap. The financial power of Europe is hitched by an inseparable cord of the spinners of Europe. The dominant financial powers of New York city and the Atlantic slope -*-1 ' * - ^ ^ l???rl?iKlA otnnl a are uea oy wisys ui tuvioiure okvi w the American cotton manufacturers. Every great financial influence outside the cotton states is arrayed upon the bear side of the cotton market. Every European state has thrown the full weight of its financial and political powers into the scale to help the cotton bears. This is a condition known to every man who has access to the facts. The world is being regaled with ornate stories which tell of plans to establish perpetual peace. But it hears nothing about the plans to control trade and commerce. These things are kept behind the screen. In the meantime the bear fight goes on against cotton. And where does your government ' ** ' stand? * Ask Mr. Barnard Baruch. As far as cotton is concerned, he is the government There have been many powers since time began, but no power ever existed before which exer c'.zed as complete mastery over all the business affairs of the universe as has been concentrated in this one personage. Let me introduce him to the readers of Farm and Ranch. Ladies and gentlemen, this is Mr. Barnard Baruch, one of the most suc ccssful cotton and stock operators who ever hit 'the street"; also one of the most urbane. A man who never lost his head, his temper, or a bet. He is a wizard and a wonder, I can find no record in history of any other man who could say to the waves of commerce, "be atill" and they were still, or "be alive," and they awoke to action. His headquarters at present are in Washington. He is the law giver for the war trade board, the war industries board, and all other governmental boards which have much to do with making the wheels go round. When he is at home he is at ^ New York, and he sometimes shakes things up on "the street." Also, he shakes things down for B. B. and his friends. When he gets real busy the small fry becomes mere pikers. Among the things for which he is noted is generosity. Common repute says that after the election of 1916 there was quite a deficit in the treasury of the Democratic campaign fund, and Mr. Baruch wiped it out with his personal check. This is gossip. Mr. Baruch knows, of course, whether it is true. And if it is not correct, the rumor ought to oe silenced. When cotton was headed for 40 cents per pound last year, the manufacturers and bankers of the east plus all the powers of Europe grew indignant. True it was that Mr. Rnrueh's board had fixed a govern- | ment price upon cotton products that would have justified a price of 60 cents per pound for raw cotton. Other government boards had fixed wages for labor of various kinds which called for a price upon cotton of $1 per pound in order to give the women and children of the south who work in the cotton patch wages equivalent to those paid under the government scale to the immigrants from Europe who comprise the principal part of the laborers in the mines and factories of the Atlantic slope. Hut this was a different story. The powers that be in the industrial world said that cotton must go down, not up. and to Mr. Baruch they went with their complaint. Then began the agitation for a gov' ernment price upon cotton. The slate was made for a price of 25 cents, and the public was artfully prepared for the program. The editorial pages of the metropolitan press (principally controlled. as shown by the Kointa letter, r with London than with America) rang with attacks upon the cotton produc-1 ers. who were classed with the "profiteers." Every other staple product had been harnessed with a fixed government price why not cotton? Thus shouted the factories and their hire lings. Announcements said to be official were given out to the effect that the government was planning to fix a price upon cotton, and that that price would be 25 cents. Then the bears got busy and began to hammer on the cotton market. * Then the commissioners of apriculture of the several cotton states pot busy: also the officials of the farmers union of these states. Together they hurried to Washington, and solicited an audience with the president. After waiting around for awhile, through 1 aid of southern senators they got audience. The audience room was 1 private oiRce of "Air. Barnard Baru After waiting there about an hour a chatting about the weather, they w< greeted by Mr. Baruch, who appei ed upon the scene, moving in hai and clad in a business suit or ordinu gray, and a beaming smile, that reac ed from the tip of one ear to the tremitv of the other ear. The fli thins ne di<\ was to ring for a pa and call for cigais. "When they cai he took the box out of the hands the boy and personally passed around among the delegates. He explained that they needn't h< itate to smoke; that he, not the gc erment paid for these cigars. ] also shook hands with every man pr< ent and declared, with visible emoth that his forbears had been hitched with the cotton patch, had toiled a suffered in it, and that both traditi and experience had taught him tt the cotton producer never got wt was fairly coming to him. Then evei body was happ and expectant. Parenthetically, it should be i marked that Mr. Baruch missed 1 calling when he went to New York a tackled "the street." No matter h< many millions he may make there will never enjoy the sense of trium that would be his if he will go up the stage and play "Mulberry Seller "Widow Bedott," or something of tl sort. When the cigars were all light and good fellowship reigned from p< to pole, Mr. Baruch imparted the i formation that he had just come fr< the White House, and was authoriz to speak for the president, who w too busy to speak for himself. The representatives of cotton, s< eral of whom were officials of th states, presented their case. Th asked no favors of the government although the go\ernment was th scattering its favors with a prodij hand among all 01 most all of the I industries of the east. All they as ed was that the government woi take its hand off cotton, and leave alone to work out its own salvati< They pointed to the fact that th< was no law which authorized the gc ernment to fix a price on cotton a for the government to do so would a palpable and flagrant ursurpati of power. Mr. Baruch listened with neatn< and dispatch. Among his numero accomplishments must be listed th of being a good listener. Whatet he does, Baruch does well; that is say, he does it artistically, if he e\ attempts grand opera, good-bye Cs uso. The net result of this audience w that the cotton producers were pas ed on to the Page committee. In the meantime the bears hai mered and hammered away on t cotto* market**- 1 When cotton went below thii cents the Page committee granted t cotton producers another hearing a graciously told them it had been ti cided not to make a price unless c< ton went too high or too low. And the bears continued to pou and pound away on the cotton mark And the financial and industr journals of New York and the et recorded with great gusto the achie\ ment of Mr. Baruch's board in comi to the rescue and preventing cott from getting beyond their control a running to 40 cents. Only in Tes did the daily pres<; take vigilant ce * ~ nwir mfnr.inhO tn thi.Q h \ P'V lu a > uju auj avAviviiw v?. a. interesting and somewhat imports fact. The existance of a state of war fi nished a seeming reason for the fa ure to find boats for cotton expor although Mr. Hurley, head of t shipping board, assured the represt tatives of cotton that there was lack of transportation facilities supply the Allied and neutral cot tries with the cotton they needed. The war came to an actual end, a still Mr. Baruch's board kept an ir grip on cotton. And the bears continued to hamn and hammer away on the cotton mi ket. And still Mr. Earuch's boards s cotton shall move freely. And in every nook and coiner 1 day of Wall and Broad streets, N York, the question on every tong is, how much long.:r will the farm* of the south, reinforced as they s by the bankers and the inerchai of the south all, thank God, for or standing solidly together, like a sti wall hold out against the opposi forces, which include all of the sp ners of the world, plus all the pov of Europe and Asia, plus all the bar ing. powers of the east, plus all of J Baruch's boards. If a breach can be made in tl v?ail, the forces opposed to cotton v rush in like an avr anche; cotton v go down, hundreds and thousands people in the south will be ruined, a hundreds of cotton gamblers in 1 east and in Europe will greatly a to their riches. Also, the spinners v be enabled to cut several juicy inch when next dividend day rolls aroui But that is not all. If the produi wins now he wins for good and cott is free free td> seek an open marl in an open sea; free to endow the tc or in the field witn a just snare ui i proceeds of his own labor. If, ho ever, the European combine re forced by Mr. Har.tch's boards sh win this battle, the fellahin who tc in the fields along1 the Nile, and 1 fellahin who toils in Van county, T< as, will share and share alike a co mon fate. Each may fret and grc under his burden, but each will stri gle in vain. His mission and the ir sion of his children and their chi ren and their children's children t >>< t.> nrndiicc and sell as much eotl as possible at the least possible pri to the spinners, to the end that a v< lew and very wise patriots who < light to servo their country at ?1 ] year may not perish from the eai or from the recollection of men. Truly it is a battle royal, and < which calls upon every man in cotton producing states to show colors. For the benefit of one and all I < olare my conviction that the pros id' does not know wh t has been go on in many of the departments a bureaus at Washington, and that ought not to be h Id Responsible \ \ the niany things that will sooner or later I an arouse the intense Indignation of the R the whole American people. Every well ch. informed man knows that a storm is nd brewing, and that it will break when w ?re the calcium is turned in full force ir_ ifpon all the proceeding of the jump9te cd-up bureaus and boards that were Lry hurriedly organized at Washington to u ,h_ help "win the war." The republicans !X_ are waiting the opportunity and more rst than half of the Democratic senators F ge will energetically assist to throw on me the light. The senate took orders 0f during the war but it chafed under the It collar. Now it is emancipated. 1 lie puuuy vi una guvcimuciii. ui ;g. ours directed by Mr. Baruch and his lV_ associates has cost the cotton proHe ducers of Taxes more than $200,000,- p jS. 000 within the last twelve months. If 5I1( it shall be persited in the result will Up be to make the cotton growers of this ncj country mere hewers of wood and on drawers of water for the manufaciat turing districts of the east and of ,at Europe forever and forever. -y. As I said to the Texas legislature, I am for war upon that policy, and believe that It should be a fight to a flrv , in hl3 ish, no matter what complications, pontl litical or otherwise, may result I DW have discovered that the manufactu- ' he rers propose to continue to beat down 86 ph the price of cotton to the lowest pos- m on sible point. Henceforward I refuse to e s>" support their game merely for the a iat sake of being permitted to play In 88 their back yard. If that be treason, w make the most of it. Since the above was written, the ^ following cable dispatch has been re- " 6? >m ceived from Paris, referring to the e(J proceeding of the peace council. ,as "Announcement is made that the economic drafting committee has com- r? ,v_ pleted its work upon which the peace a> elr treaty will rest in so far as the word 81 iey economic relations are concerned. Bar- e1 t, nard Baruch is the American member e? of this committee, and he is to be apen * 04 ral pointed a member of this committee and he is to be appointed a member of w |jt_ the final committee which will define a1 dd the principles of an economic settle- 8* it ment which will go to the supreme w economic council.' in. j0 ;re In other words Barnard Baruch, ' king of Wall street operators, whose la nd absolute voice, speaking in the name tc be of the government, drove down the bon price of cotton from 38 to 30 cents m within a few days, and whose policy m would make the southern states de- Is ibo p, us pended provinces, is now writing the terms of "an economic settlement" ^ .ot n w which is expected to establish for all ~ t0 the years to come the basis for the ,er commercial relations between this and Lr_ foreign countries, and to provide re- ( gulations for the disposition of all ex as port cotton. Mr. Baruch who believed r ._ thai 25 cents per pound was sufficient ci for the producer of cotton and that w the manufacturer should have the price ? he fdr his products which fairly called for A 65 cents for raw cotton, is now mak.tj. lng terms with Europe for the mar- te ke ketlng of all the cotton we should be n(1 permitted to sell abroad. I What have the cotton producers of t0 the south who had a splendid oppor- pl tunity to pet well acquainted with Mr. ** Baruch, to say that?" y( - sa !?,' SCHOOL EXPLOITATION llf iai ra ISt |^| e- A California Organization Launches sc np Counter Against Preachers and Doc- r? on tors. d( nd The public school protective league, tf :as a state-wide organization designed to h ire "protect the public schools from med- w ily ical and ecclesiatlcal exploitation"; a, int which has recently been active in st southern California, launched its tl ir- work in the northern part of the state tf 11- recently at a public meeting in this as ts, city says a San Francisco dispatch to tf he the Christian Science Monitor. ec i ne meeting was auuresseu uy mc i no president of the league, Dr. L. P. c to Crutcher, a practicing physician and in- president of the board of education of n< the city of Long Beach, California, and in nd by the organization's secretary, Doug- in on las L. Edmunds, an attorney of Los e< Angeles. ei t?*r Dr. Crutcher asserted that the po- w ir- litical doctors have about given up u hope of being able to force themselves p, say into the home, directly, for the pur- rt pose of practicing compulsory modi- tr Lo- cine, and that they are now devoting ai ew all their attention to attempts to w rue fasten these compulsory activities di ers upon the public schools. el ire "The political doctors have the id?i," ti its he declared, ?and are industriously si ice spreading it broadcast, that as scon as a) >ue the child enters the school he is out- 0) ng side the jurisdiction of the parents and tl in- the home, and that the place of the par- w rer ent and the home, in many impor- ja ik- tant and fundamental respects, must t dr. be taken by the doctors. It is this cj *Vvot lnnrrnn IO 1M fTArAll cH* nfl. lUCcl L1ICXI tile ica^uv 10 ? ?5V? VV4U1J W|/ iat posing." p, ;jjl In tolling of the procedure and act- g ill ual work of the league to protect the u of schools from medical influence and fo; n(j activities, Mr. Edmunds explained that C{ he the organization had secured many ex- ^ cellent results by taking legal action crill or giving notice that such action >ns w<>uld be taken, when anything un- e( n,l lawful had been done, by acquainting e] 2er the parents with the true situation, h ion ar,d by showing them what their rights i are in regard to their children and the a, jjj. schools. ^ the ? y< iW- Jerusalem's Water System. How- tl in- ever individual inhabitants of Jeru- T tall salcm may differ in regard to the Brit- f< vilo ?csl% AoAimaiinn 1 horo rmo rOQIlIt Pnn. bl the cerning which their approval can oi X- hardly lie anything short of unani- 01 m- mous. Jerusalem at least has an ai >an adequate water supply, and this bless- t( >g- ing has come with the British. In lis- more than 1,000 >ears from the time tl Id- when Herod established a water sys- p vill tern for ancient Jerusalem, nothing a ton had been done, till the beginning of w ice, the present century, to enlarge or even ri fry keep up the Herodian system, and it w 3e- had long ago fallen into disuse. The -,A Inwrrolv r\rt nrivntp r?ic- tr I?=l Uliy uejjciiucu lai v# JJ. - th. terns of tain water, and it was consid- b, ered an event when the Turks, in 1901, w >ne partially restored the work of Herod, zi the But this restoration, as the British f< his found, provided only a small aque- ti duet and pipe from the Pools of Sol- I 3e- omen, which also supplied water to ent Bethlehem. In the past six months w inft the British royal engineers have res- w ind tored and improved the Herodian ays- bi he tern, and Jerusalem now has plenty of qi for good water. 1! LONG WITH THE i E. F. tidier Tells lomefolks ol Some ol! Bis Experleoecs ; : AS BEEN THROUGH QUITE A LOT | rank Grayson Reviews His Service ! from the Time of Leaving Home Un- j til the lime ot nis Being n?aay top Come Back. Dudelange, Luxembourg, March 1, 1919. ear Home Folks: I shall at last try to give you a brief :count of myself, what I've been dobg, and where I've been. I left Camp Jackson with the 11th attery, August Automatic Replaceient draft, on the afternoon of August J, 1918. I had charge of the coach in which rode. Everything went very nicely i the coach, except that we did not a,ve very much to eat, and we were idly crowded. We passed through sveral towns and cities, but I shall lention just one in particular, Hamt, N. C. At this nice little town, the dies served us, hdngry boys, chicken indwiches. And, believe me, they ere appreciated too. We arrived at Camp Stuart, about * . . n ml 1 L a. HI., AUgUBl II. X lie uanavou ere very dirty. We had nothing to it, and the rain was pouring. You can nagine our feelings. About all that did here was to help clean the bar-' icks, turn In some of my equipment, id draw my over-seas equipment, ich as hobnail shoes, overseas cap, ;c. My spare time I spent in writing, iting and sleeping. I left Camp Stuart on the afternoon ' August 21, marched three miles, ith full pack, to the port of embarkion, Newport News. I boarded the lip at 3 p. m. At 11 a. m., next day e sailed. And that sailing! Oh, boy! When I oked my last on the dear old horn! ,nd It had never seemed so dear be- * ire. I said, Good-bye relatives! Goodie friends! Good-bye all! I am on ,y way to do my "bit." And I thank iy God that I did my "bit" There no dead man who took my place: an you say that? You, who stayed ' Jhind. Can you say it? If you can't, iere may be harder things for you to .ce than the German guns. It was t i awful trip. Packed like cattle, our t :how" was ridiculous, and the place j here we had to sleep wasn't like j nother's beds." I was carried on spe- ( al duty and had many privileges ' hich the other boys did not have, ut I can say that It was next to h 1* fter we had traveled In this way Just Jrteea days, we landed at mber 3, 1918. As soon as we were off the ship we irmed a line and marched three miles i Camp Brest. In an open field we tched our "pup" tents. This from le battery commander: "Grayson, >u will be acting mess-sergeant." I iid, "Very well, sir." He and I then" iked back about two miles to draw itions for next day. Neither of us new where we were going, but we ion found the place. We drew the itions; then I was told to meet the stall. "Go out the north gate, take le road to the left," was the order, ow the devil was I to know which as the north gate, in a strange place, id the night so dark, not a single ar to guide a fellow. I went out at le first gate that I found, turned to le left, and ran square Into the detail i iking the way up. I took charge of le detail, got the rations and return- . 1 to camp. It was only 2.30 a. m-, as { "turned in" with my "Buddie," Ralph ? , Jackson. I You, boys, will know how I felt y ?xt morning with the words ringing r i my ear, "Grayson! Grayson! where , i the h?1 are you?" "Here!" I call- j 1. "Report to the battery command- j cried the runner. I reported and j as told to have two field ranges get { p, and prepare breakfast as sooni as i ossible. I had never seen a field j mge, and mother, I know, would not ust me to make coffee; but in the j rmy we obey. I got my four cooks to y ork at the breakfast and a special \ etail at the field ranges. I had ev- j rything in readiness in a very short , me. My work as mess sergeant con- r sted chiefly in drawing the rations , nd wood, and in getting the same to , ar camp. Yes, and I had to prepare t le "bill-of-fare," that is I decided ( hether we should have becon and im or jam and bacon for breakfast. , he othv meals were as easily de- , ded. ( On September 10th we packed our , acks, hiked the three miles to the ( KAni%/?n/l o froin moHp I Cdl ucpui, CLiIV* uwaiutu c* ti p of box cars, Just forty to a car. My rother, Maynard, had charge of the ir in which I rode. He became sick le first night. I took charge of the ir. We traveled on that night and le next day. As hour after hour passI by, Maynard grew sicker and sickr. Finally the battery commander ad him moved to his car, a box car. tried to sleep. Suddenly I was wakened and some one said, "If you ant to tell your brother good-bye, du must do so at once." Can you, lere at home, imagine that feeling? hat handshake I shall never, never >rget, nor shall I forget how my rother looked as he was carried away a that stretcher. On and on and still award we traveled until at last we rrived at Camp Hunt, 11 a. m., Sep;mber 12th. At Camp Hunt I was transferred to le Sixth Battery, Field Artillery Relacement regiment. A gas mask and n Enfield rifle were given to me. i | as given a little foot drill and some f ifle drill all that could be given , rithin three days. ] On September 15th, I was again ( ansferred to the Troop Movement ( attery, to go to the front. While aiting for transportation the influen- ] x epidemic broke out in camp, and , )r that reason the camp was quaran- , ned for twenty-two days. On the 18th ] was taken to the emergency hospital , -barracks with wooden bunks sick j ith influenza. I stayed there two , eeks, then i'wcuj discharged and sent ick to the Sixth Battery, marked uarters until October i^th. On the J < Jth I waa again transferred to Troop | ] : N. Movement Battery. This time I left on October 14th for the front. We traveled in another bo* car for (our days and five nights. At the end of which time we found ourselves at Bellicourt. Here we were taken from the cars. Then it was hike, hike, and bike some more. On October 26th we (ound the 21st Field Artillery headjuarters. Here I stayed u~til October 29th. Then I went to "A" Battery Echelon. That night 1 slept in a dugout my first experience. Next morning I awoke with the music of our machine guns ringing in my ears. They I were firing at a "Boche plane." I orawled out of my underground bed with some reluctance, got some 'chow," and hiked two miles up to where "A" battery was making gun positions, xnis was in a vauey one mile from Neiville, and three miles from Thiaucourt This Is the valley palled "Death Valley." Here I used a pick and shovel and carried ammunilion, until November 5th, when two men were "knocked off," and another leriously wounded. It was then that I volunteered to lake one of those dead men's places, at :he 165mm howitzer. And this place I llled until all was finished, November LI, 11 a. m., 1918. We stayed in "Death Valley" until November 23d, then -we hiked about leven kilometers to Mamey. Here, we itayed until the morning of the 30th. Dn that date we hiked to Thiaucourt. Ne left Thiaucourt on the morning of December 2d, and hiked to Dudelange, Luxembourg, a distance of seventyive Jtilometers. We made this Journey n Just four days, arriving on the liorning of December 6, and I am still n this town, Dudelange, today, March L, 1919. I have been carried on special duty nost of the time since I've been here. [ was assistant battery clerk for a Utile over two months. Now I am initructor in the regimental school of :ommon education. I am now looking forward to that treat trip home. When I get there I vant six meals a day, because as I am toing over I shall have Just that many "Bean chow coup" three down and .hree up. See? Yours truly, Private Frank L. Grayson. A TERROR OF THE JUNGLES. :amoui Naturalist Tells of Experience With Army Ants. As that active naturalist and avlaor, Mr. William Beebe, has recently tailed on another visit to his beloved ungles in Guiana, we may expect new pictures of tropical life like those that lelighted the readers of his latest book,' 'Jungle Peace" (Henry Holt & Co.).1 Ln this book Mr. Beebe tells of that itrange bird, the hoatzin, a relic of )re-Glacial days, that in its pin-feath? -stage climbs the strees of the moist egion that it inhabits, and, when hard pressed, escapes by taking a strange live into the water below. Hardly of ess interest is the following descripion of a marching army of nats: I was dozing quietly in my hamnock, glad to escape for an instant he insistent screaming of a cicada, vhich seemed to have gone mad in the ungle heat, when a low rustling aught my ear a sound of moving eaves without the wind; the voice of i breeze in the midst of breathless leat. There was in it something sin ster and foreboding, i leanea over ;he edge of my hammock, and saw :oming toward me in a broad irreguar front, a great army of ants, battaion after battalion of them flowing Ike a sea of living motes over twigs ind leaves and stems. I knew the danger and I half sat up, brepared to roll out and walk to one lide. Then I gaged my supporting it rands; tested them until they vibrated and hummed, and la> hack, vatching to see what would come ibout. I knew that no creature in the vorld could stay in the path of this horde and live. To kill an insect or a rreat bird would require only a few nstants, and the death of a jaguar or i tapir would mean only a few more. Against this attack, claws, teeth, poison 'angs would be idle weapons. In the van fled a cloud of terrified nsects?those gifted with flight to ving their way far off, while the humbler ones went running headlong, their egs, four, six, or a hundred, making the swiftest pace vouchsafed them. There were foolish folk who climbed ip low ferns, achieving the swaying topmost fronds only to be trailed by the savage ants and brought down to nstant death. Even the winged ones were not imnune, for if they hesitated a second, in ant would seize upon them, and, ilthough carried into the air, would int loosen his grip, but cling to them, Jbstruct their flight, and perhaps bring hem to earth in the heart of the junjle, where, cut off from their kind, the jingle combat would be waged to the loath. ~ From where I watched, I saw massacres innumerable; terrible batles in which some creature?a giant oesides an ant?fought for his life, :rushing to death scores of the enemy oefore giving up. They were a merciless army and their number was countless, with host ipon host following close on each oth;r"s heels. A horde of warriors found i bird in my game bag, and left of it lardly a feather. I wondered whether they would discover me, and they did, :hough I think it was more by accilent than by intention. Nevertheless, i half dozen ants appeared on the foot strands, nervously twiddling their intennae in my direction. Their appraisal was brief; with no more than i second's delay they started toward me. I waited until they were well on their wav. then vigorously twanged all :he cords under them harpwise, sendill the scouts into midair and headlong lown among their fellows. So far as t knew, this was a revolutionary manmilitary tactics, comparable nnly to the explosion of a set mine. But even so, when the last brier tiad gone on their menacing, pitiless tvay, and the danger had passed to : new province, I could not help thinking of the certain inexorable fate of i man who, unable to move from his hammock or to make any defense, should be exposed to their attack. Here is One for You. What did clothes moths live on before Adam and < Eve got clotheB? - J TAXES ON LUXURIES. New Revenue Law Gete Income from Many Commodities. Certain sections of the new revenue act and how they affect a large number of taxpayers, calling for monthly returns of taxes due and when they oecome effective, etc. Section 628-A. Upon what Is generally known as bottle soft drinks, including unfermented Grape Juice, Ginger Ale, Root Beer, Sarsaparilla, Pop, Artificial Mineral Waters, other Carbonated Waters and Soft drinks; sold oy the manufacturer, producer or importer, in bottles or closed containers: Of selling price, 10 per cent. Section 628-B. Upon all natural Mineral or table water, sold by producer, bottle or importer thereof, lnbottles or other closed containers at over ten cents per gallon, a tax of, per gallon, $0.02. Act effective on above two sections February 25th, and remaining days in February to be Included in March report. Section 630. On and after May 1st, 1919, upon what Is commonly known as soft drinks including Ice cream, ice cream sodas, sundaes, or other similar articles of food or drink, when compounded and mixed and sold at or near soda fountains. Ice cream parlors or other similar places of business. One each 10 cents or fraction of amount paid, $0.01. Section 900. Effective February 25th, 1919. Upon manufacturer,, producer or importer of the following articles, a tax equivalent to the follow ing percentages ior wmcn ao sum; 1. Xutomoblle trucks and automobile wagons, etc., 3 per cent 2. Other automobiles and motorcycles, etc., 3 per cent. 3. Tires, Inner tubes, parts or accessories, etc., 5 per cent. 4. Pianos, organs and other musical instruments, 5 per cent. 5. Tennis rackets, nets, and other sporting goods, etc., 10 per cent. 6. Chewing gum or substitutes, 3 per cent. 7. Cameras weighing not more than 100 pounds, 10 per cent. Photographic films and plates, other than moving picture films, 5 percent 9. Candy, 5 per cent. 10. Firearms, shells and cartridges, 10 per cent 11. Hunting and Bowie knives. 10 per cent 12. Dirks, knives, swords, etc., 100 per cent. 13. fortaDie eieciric uqb, a per cent. 14. Thermos and thermostatic bottles, etc., 5 per cent. 15. Cigar and cigarette holders and pipes, etc., 10 per cent. 16. Automatic slot devices, etc., 5 per cent * .v. i 11.- -Livery -an<4 livery .boots andhats, 10 per cent. .18. Hunting and shooting garments and riding habits, 10 per cent. 19. Articles made of fur on the hide or pelt, etc., 10 per cent 20. Yachts and motor boats not designed for trade, etc., 10 per cent. 21. Toilet soaps and toilet soap powders, 3 per cent. The taxes in this section only apply to the manufacturer, producer and importer. Section 902. Upon the following articles when sold by any persons other than the artist, a tax equivalent to 10 per cent of the price which so sold. Sculpture, paintings, statuary, art norcelain, and bronzes. Tax on the a hove effective from February 25th 1919. Sec. 904. In effect on and after May 1, 1919, a tax equivalent to 10 per cent of so much of the amount paid for any of the following articles as is In excess of the price hereinafter specified as to each such article, when sold by or for a dealer for consumption or use. (1) Picture frames, on the amount in excess of $10 each. (2) Trunks, on the amount in exess of $50 each. (3). Carpets and rugs, including fibre, except imported and American rugs made principally of wool, on the amount in excess of $5 per square yard. (4) Valises, travelling bags, suit cases, etc., used by travelers and fitted toilet cases on amount in excess of $2. each. (5) Purses, pocketbooks, shopping and hand bags, on amount in excess of $7.50. (6) Portable lighting fixtures, including lamps of all kinds and shades, on amounts in excess of $25. (7) Unbrellas, parasols and sunshades on the amount in excess of $4. (8) Fans, on the amount of $1.00 . (9) House or smoking coats or jackets, and bath or lounging robes on the amount in excess of $7.50. (10) Men's waistcoats, sold separately from suits, on the amount in excess of $5.00 each. (11) Women's and misses' hats bonnets and hoods on the amount In excess of $15 each. (12) Men's ana ooys ntno, v.. ...... amount in excess of $2 each. (13) Mens and boys caps, on the amount in excess of $2 each. (14) Men, women, misses and boys boots, shoes, pumps, and slippers, on the amount in excess of $10 per pair. (15) Mens and boys neckties and neckwear, on the amount in excess of $2 each. (16) Mens and boys silk stockings and hose, on the amount in excess of $1 per pair. (17) Womens and misses silk stockings and hose, on the amount in excess of $2 per pair. (18) Men shirts, on the amount in excess of $3.00 each. (19) Mens, womens, misses and boys, pajamas, night gowns and underwear on the amount in excess of $5 each. Kimonos, petticoats and waists, on the amount in excess of $15 each. Sec. 905. In effect on and after April 1st, 1919. Upon all articles commonly or commercially known as jewelry, whether real or imitation; precious and semi-precious stones, and imitations thereof, etc. Upon any of these articles, when sold by or for a dealer for consumption or use, a tax 1 k nor rent of the price equivalent ? ? t-? for which so sold. It is stated by the Collector that any' person or firm that would1 be liable to 1 any of the above taxes should imme-1 / dlately write the collector so that his name could be placed upon the mailing list and proper blank be sent him upon which to make report of taxes due. If there is more than one liability, each such should be stated as there will be separate blanks for all classes of taxes, even though some are given In the same sections. WRIbi_t?v bu,s aN island i ,-amoui r.hewinn Cum Man to Deuelon Pacific Pleasure Resort. One of the biggest real estate deals .ever put over In California Is now an | assured fact and details can be furnished by the interested parties according to a Los Angeles, California, correspondent Mr. William Wrigley, Jr., manufacturer of the famous "Wrlgley's Spearmint" one of the chief stockholders in the Chicago "Cubs" ball team and an officer and director in a total of tifteen enterprises In various parts of the United States, is the head and controlling interest in a company which has taken over Santa Catalina island. The purchase price is close to $4,000,000 and several millions more will be spent to make the island the ieat show place of the Pacific coast Included in the transfer are practically all of the 48,000 acres of the island, the new $400,000 Ste. Catherine hotel and its appurtenances, ten thousand head of sheep, two large , steamers which ply between San Pedro and the Island, a fleet of glass bottom power boats and other property of the Santa Catalina Island company. This news Is of Interest to every past, present and prospective visitor to California, in fact, it is of particular interest to the country at large, for it presages an era of expansion , and development in our home resorts in keeping with the tendency to cultivate domestic tourist travel which the , war has so strongly intensified. The officers and directors in the new ; Santa Catalina Island company are some of the most enterprising business , men in Los Angeles county. The general manager is Everet H. Seaver who directed the Fulton shipyards at San Pedro during the war and who last year built successful wooden ships at astonishing speed for the government. Mr. Seaver's record as a builder of ships is equalled by his fame as an employer of labor in all his period of service at San Pedro there was no rumor of labor trouble. David Blankenhorn, a well known Los Angeles business man is president of the new company. He recently received his honorable discharge from the United States army where he ranked as captain. "We intend to make Santa Catalina Island the greatest summer and winrapidly as possible and when business warrants we will put on more steamers. There is room for half a million new cottages on the island and a second new hotel is projected for early completion. It is my plan to make this gem of the Pacific a resort of such attractiveness that it will be the mecca for visitors from all parts of the country." There are many unique features found at "Catalina," as the island is called locally. In one vast expanse are the frames of 650 tent cottages which in summer are covered with canvass, furnished completely and rented by the day or week Just as hotel rooms are rented. This is the famous Island Villa. Another summer settlement is made of hundreds of tents completely furnished for housekeeping. The glass-bottomed power boats, already mentioned make daily trips over the Marine Gardens through these boats the visitors get- such 3)ghts of a great ocean world of vegetation and flsh as can be had nowhere else. Here is a realm peopled with brilliantly colored Inhabitants swimming through forests of feathery verdure. Huge tree-like ferns waver and bend with the motion of the water. Great stalks of kelp touch the bottom of the boat From the strange sea-cucumber" that clings to the ocean floor and is said to be one of the lowest forms of animal life, to giant tuna fish and sea bass, which are the delight of sportsmen, the range of species, size and appearance of these creatures of the deep is utterly astounding. Above water are scores of seal, some of them weighing a ton, sunning themselves and their young on the rocks. The bald-headed eagle perches himself on a crag and haughtily, surveys the scene while a flock of stormy petrel scurry away before the boat's advance. Yonder on a cliff some mountain goats enjoying the scenery and herbage. Over and above all are the bluest of skies, reflected in the depths of the deep blue sea. Mr. Wrigley, as the world's greatest chewing gum manufacturer, has been said to be one of the largest contributors to men's lasting enjoyment among all who make for creature comfort. His plans for the development of Santa Catalina Island for the tourists and pleasure seekers who flock to California's sun-kissed shores will en title Mr. Wrlgley in double measure , to all the credit he has thus far attained as the most extensive purveyor of America's own famous confec- , tion the stick with the flavor that lasts. ( "Just as we have looked to advertising to build up our business." said Mr. Wrigley, "so shall we make known the fame of Catalina Island. The power of the press is one of the world's greatest agents of advancement. With out advertising it might take twenty years to accomplish what advertising makes possible in one." None Will Deny. Really, I don't think the medical profession has done as much to relieve suffering as some others," said her husband. "What, for instance?" asked the wife. "Well, piano tuners." "One Dollar Down." Visitor "What lovely furniture!" Johnny "Yes, I think the man we bought if from is sorry now he sold It; anyway, he's always calling." TitBits. - - .? . . _ NEW STANDARD PERMANENT Development of Labor Saye Pre-War Conditions Will Not Return. Ajs a result of investigations by economists for the Federal department of labors, according to a Washington dispatch, '.he conclusion has been reached that the popular expectation of a decided reduction in prices is not justified." The warning is therefore issued that the re-establishment of prewar prices is not to be looked for. The department of labor and department of commerce, working lnde pendently, have reached the conclusion that the country is on a new pries level, and that the delay in establishing new business' or enlarging old, or in undertaking construction work of any kind because the return of prewar prices Is hoped for, can only lead to disappointment. The new industrial board is finding the same condition. "Through all the economic studies recently issued by the information and education service of the department of labor, there has been such evidence as clearly indicated the importance of any policy contemplating radical changes in existing wage sdales," the labor department asserts. "In the recent conference of governors and mayors in Washington, it was clearly the consensus of opinion that readjustment should not and could not mean an immediate pressing down of wages. This because wages have not gone np in the same proportion as living costs and, further, because it is generally believed prudent to do everything possible to maintain the higher living standards which have been evolved during the war. "Notwithstanding these develop ments, there are many in Industry who have been urging wage reductions. There has been enough of this agitation to create an uneasiness in the ranks of labor, and uncertainty as to the future labor conditions in the minds of prospective builders and contractors. For this reason, the precedent established by the industrial board of the department of commerce in the steel case should have a very beneficial effect On the wags matter, in the statement announcing the new prices on steel, the board says: " 'It is fully understood and expected that the present wage rates or arrangements will not be interfered With, the approved prices having this in view.' "All economists and practical business men agree currency conditions are an important feature in present prices. This cannot be admitted without admitting also that present currency conditions are an important factor in present wages. Money is Just as cheap when it buys labor as when it buys steel, and those who talk of prewar wage scales under present currenand we will not have them for many vpjtrn to come. "The department of labor hold* that wage scales have less to do with construction and manufacturing coats than efficiency of labor. Investigations in this field iBuggest a gradual improvement in efficiency of labor as the re-adjustment progresses and Industry gets away from the high speed, forced production regime incident to the war." ASSASSINATION OF FRANCI8 German Kaiser Implicated With Murder of Austrian Archduke. George Creel, former chairman of the committee on public information, made public in New York last Thursday, a summary of the secret correspondence of Count Ccernln, late foreign minister of Austria-Hungary, which was turned over to Edgar Sisson, at Prague by the custodian officials ef the Bohemian government on January 24, last On^of the most sensational of the disclosures was that there was a German-Magyar conspiracy against the Archduke Francis Ferdinand, heir apparent to the throne of . Austria, who was assassinated at Sarajevo on June 24, 1914, because he was considered a rival of the then Em peror wiuiam. Mr. Creel said Mr. SiMon accepted the privilege of using the correspondence In behalf of the United States government. Translators and a photographer In the service of the committee on public information were set at work to translate the documents for general publication In this country as the final contribution of the committee, according to Mr. Creel. He declared one copy was to be turned over " to Secretary of State Lansing for use of the peace conference commission investigating responsibilities for the outbreak of the war, while another was to be sent to the committee at Washington for release to the presa He added that Mr. Lansing's copy undoubtedly in his hands and that the copy for the press probably was on Its way to this country. In a report to Mr. Slsson on the scope of the letters, Capt Immanuel Vosko, U. S. A-, head of the Prague bureau of the committee on public information, said: "From the documents and letters It will be shown that Francis Ferdinand** was working on building up a strongAustria which would eventually emancipate itself from the Influence of Berlin. This was blocking Berlin's plans for expansion toward the east, and the Berlin government came to an understanding with the Budapest government to offset the plans of Frnacis Ferdinand. "From one of the letters It is evident that the German emperor's son, Eltsl Frederick, waa selected to stuay me Magyar language and to make friends of the Magyar nobility. . "Although no positive proof was found from the documents on hand as to the conspiracy to kill Archduke Francis, it is sufficiently evident that there was no conspiracy in Serbia for that purpose. The archduke was rather a friend of Serbia in hatred of the Magyars, as he knew of the conspiracy between the Berlin and Budapest governments. New Way to Read. "Dorothy always begins a novel in the middle of it" "What's that for?" "WThy, then she has two problems to bo excited over: how the story will end and how it will begin."