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j nfi m . V* Abbeville Press and Banner Established 1844. $1.50 the Year. Abbeville, S. C., Friday, Dec. 7, 1917. Single Copies, Five Cents. 76th Year WILSON'S M TO ( Those Who Counsel ~ Peace Asked to Take Advice Elsewhere il PRESIDENT ASKS FOR 1 WAR ON AUSTRIA! President Wilsonv in Ringing War! Message to Congress, Asks Immediate Declaration of War j On Austria. Washington, Dec. 4.?The text of 4 President Wilson's war message to Congi ess, asking that body to immediately declare war against Aus- 1 tria-Hungary, follows in full: | * "ENnrhf months have elapsed since j I last had the honor of addressing you. They have been months crowd- ^ ed with events of immense and c grave significance for us. I shall not undertake to detail or even summarize those events. The practical * particulars of the part we have ? played in them will be laid before you in the reports of tha executive T departments. "I shall discuss only our outlook . tipon these vast affairs, our present 1 duties, and the immediate means of accomplishing the objects we shall j hold always in view. < "I shall not go back to debate the causes of the war. The intolerable J ^ wrongs done and planned against ^ us by the sinister masters of Ger-1 many have long since become too c Ame>r- I _ grossly .uuviuua w uih, x ican to need to be rehearsed. ' s "But I shall ask you to consider j v again with a very grave scrutiny ( our objectives and the measures by J which we mean to attain them; for the purpose of discussion here in' this place is action, and our action must move straight towards defin- JI ite ends. Our object is, of course,1' to win the war; and we shall not|t slacken or suffer ourselves to be J ? diverted until it is won. ' 5 When Shall We Consider War Won?! \ "But it is worth while asking and! 1 answering the question, when shall j 1 we consider the war won? ' i "From one point of view, it is not i necessary to broach this fundamen- 1 tal matter. I do not doubt that I the American people know what the, J ? 4. ??|4 war is about ana wnai sun. an i outcome they will regard as a reali- r zation of their purpose in it. .As a i nation we are united in spirit and i intention. I pay little heed to those t who tell me otherwise. I hear the t voices of dissent?who does not? I i hear the criticism and the clamor of f the noisily, thoughtless and trouble- i some. I also see men here and there j flying themselves in impotent dis- t loyalty against the calm, indomit- j able power of the nation. I hear a men debate peace who understand j neither its nature nor the way in ? which we may attain it with up- f lifted eyes and unbroken spirita. t "Bat 1 Know tnat none 01 mese v speak for the nation. They do not t touch the heart of anything. They s may safely be left to strut their un- ^ easy hour and be forgotten. j "But from another point of view 1 I believe that it is necessary to say ? plainly what we here at the seat of action consider the war to be for ? and what part we mean to play in I the settlement of its searching is- e sues. We are the spokesmen of the v American people and they have a r right to know whether their pur- ^ pose is ours. They desire peace by I the overcoming of evil, by the de- I feat once for all of the sinister b forces that interrupt peace and ren- 1 J * J" +Vioir ixrioV* fn f aer it uupuaoiuic, auu ??? >.%? > know how closely our thought runs t with theirs and what action we pro- c pose. They are impatient with those who desire peace by any sort t of compromise?deeply and indig- c nantly impatient?but they will be equally impatient with us if we do 3 (Continued on Page 4) c IESSAGE CONGRESS. \ GLANCE OVER THE COUNTRY in a Condensed Form to Be Read By the Busy Reader. Kerensky is reported to be hiding ^inland. Greenwood will have a Community Christmas Tree this year. In the Red Cross drive for Christnas the South's quota will be over >00,000 new members. The president has allowed an advance of 35 cents a ton on hard :oal. Pershing says that "Germany can >e beaten, Germany must be beaten, tnd Germany will be beaten." TI;? Boys Newspaper is an eight >age weekly written entirely by >oys in Chicago. It will soon be ssued daily. Courtland Smith will act as in;ermediary between the National Capital and the country newspapers >f America to further the Thrift Campaign. Two hundred Oglethorpe men are >n the waiting list. They have not eceived their commissions or asignments yet and it is not known vhen they will be called to active luty. LESLIE M. SWOPE. The friends of Leslie M. Swope, ion of Dr. and Mrs. George W. swope, of this city will be pleased ;o learn that he has been elected as l member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society of Harvard University, vhere he is a senior. The Phi Beta ?appa Society was founded at Wiliam and Mary College in 1776 and s the oldest Greek letter society in America. It has chapters in the eading universities, the chapter at harvard being Chapter Alpha. The society endeavors to gather he leaders in scholastic attain nent from each class, and also to aise the intellectual tone of the mder-graduate body. Not more han forty men may be chosen to his society from each class. In the 'all of each year, the college ofice sends to the active society, that s, to the eight seniors elected the rear previous, the names of the ;welve highest Juniors and of the 'orty-four highest Seniors, exclu(ive of those already members, "rom these names eight Juniors ind twentv-two seniors are chosen 'or membership in the society. Of he seniors this year only sixteen ?ere selected for membership, only his number having the requisite cholarship. Leslie M. Swope of Abbeville, S. C., and Rudolph E. ^anger of Cambridge, headed the ist, standing highest in scholastic ittainment in the senior class. The honor which young Mr. Jwope has won is a very high one. t is evidence of intellectual achiivement in one of the greatest iniversities in America and is the eward for conscientious labor and vork well done, as is stated by the larvard Crimson: "The Phi Beta Cappa man wins his laurels by long lours in the library, by hard cease??< 1nV>ni> Wo is in f.mininc fnr coo iauv/4 AAV *w? 0 hree and four long years and his lonor comes to him without glam>ur. The love of learning is what Irives him on; there is no publiciy; is a simple reward yet one full >f honor." Mr. Swope will graduate this rear and after that will take th? law ourse at Harvard. AMERICAN SOLDIER M CAPTURI British Retirement M Be Necessary In Car brai Sector ENEMY HOLDS UP ON ATTACKS NEAR CAMB1 French Report Successful Op tions at Verdun, Where Til Took a Few Prisoners. American Field Headquarters France, Dec. 6.?German tr< fighting around Cambria have i tured a few Americans, accori to unofficial word received 1 from the British front. Headquarters has issued no < firmation as yet. If the news is true, it is statec authority that the unmber of Ai icans taken was small. American headquarters has as yet received a report of the C brai fighting, in which Amer army engineers participated.. ! annoncement of casualtities is I j available. ! BRITISH RETIREMENT MAY BE FORCED AT CAMB T J TV? r, -OT-itloV. trn j JUUIlUUIIy UCt. U. MW | acting in conjunction with an e: ent force of Russians, have car out a successful operation in Mes tamia, Major General F. B. Mau; ! chief director of military operat j at the war office, announced to "For the first time since I | 1915, the Germans captured I J ish guns at Cambrai," General J {rice added. "We captured 138 of the enci ! guns at Cambrai alone?theref | there is no reason for us to be ash j ed at the balance. j "Some adjustment of the Br: ! line arond Cambrai may be ne j sary as a result of the Germ j small gain in that section," Gen ; Maurice said. He described j south flank gain as most impor j because it menaced supplies. "There is no doubt that Quai [ master General Ludendorff ph I i <v _ n 1 ; _ii._ | ana supervised tne samurai a^ia I j General Maurice continued. | was made simultaneously on 1 flanks and was followed by an tempt at peneration of the cer Both the stroke at Bourion and in center failed. To the south, Germans succeeded, on account the surprise nature of the att and broke our original line tc depth of 6,000 yards, overruning guns." HUNS MASS TEN-DIVISIONS FOR BIOW AGAINST IT/ Italian Headquarters in Nortl Italy, Tuesday, Dec. 4.?(By the sociated Press.)?Great forces men and guns have been massed the Austrians and Germans in Asiago section, according to rep reaching here tonight, and resu tion o fthe offensive is expec The reports indicate that the em is employing ten divisions of tro An exceptionally heavy artil bombardment from the enemy aro Asiago last night and through early hours today appears to f shadow the long expected resu tion of the heavy enemy offen from the north. Cannonade was of extermc a ence, the enemy using heavy ae ' as middle caliber guns. The 1 violent eruption began early night. There was a lull tow midnight and then it was resui with added intensity at 3 o'clocl the morning, lasting until 9 o'cl Heavy shells were rained c>n whole range of Italian positions were concentrated on the locat supposed to shield Italian battel The violence of the artillery act left little doubt that it was a ] lude to infantry advances in f< whereby Field Marshal Conrad Hoetendorf, who is directing s u. s. to take :d over mays ay Government May Take n- Control of the Railwaya NO SPECIFIC PLAN RAI OF ACTION ENDORSED era- Either Government Operation Or ( Suspension of Anti-Trust Laws Necessary. Washington, Dec. 5.?Immediate action to effect national unifica>ops tion of the railroads, either by govcaP* ernment operation or by suspension for the war of anti-trust and antiaere pooling laws, a federal loan and regulation of security issues to permit con- more effective voluntary co-operation was recommended today by the 1 on Interstate Commerce Commission ner-jin a special report to congrress. Neither plan was specifically enno^ dorsed, but an implication that the am- majority believed tlie railroads ican I might successfully work cut their No! own) unification, prompted Comyetj missioner McChord to submit a I separate report emphatically urging j government control and saying "the j strong arm of government authority I inessential if the transportation sit?Ps?i uation is to be radically improved." ?c*"| Any voluntary pooling plan would T'edjfail to meet war exegencies, he de?P?" clared, because of the unavoidable rlce? j influence of selfishness among ions roa(js> (|ay' There was no disagreement thai ' competition among railroads musl . ; be diminished, if not altogether l eliminated, to prevent a serious , breakdown of transportation facilny s ities under the war's strain. ore, iam_ The railroads' own proposed solutio nof the difficulties?an increase itish! *n rate *n or(*er *? attract capital? ; was characterized as entirely inices-! ang,; adequate by the committee. Ever eraj with more funds, the report said, i the shortage of equipment could .' not be remedied materiallv because tant ! of the inability of industries to i manufacture it . Doubt was ex ter-; , j pressed if sufficient capital would medIf , . . ? , . ? be attracted in view of the flotation "It! ?f cnormous war securities. both! -'htse consilerations led the com ak_!missi(n to wha-, i ?-n,#dered an ,ter.j n'-tpbte conclusion that a high sta*e ^.jjglof efficiency could i.r maintain' *J I for the railroads only by thorough 0?,l co-operation, elimination of dupll ack i cation of routes and ether elements ( a! of expense and energy, and elemiouri nation of the economic waste which comes from competition. This would mean it was pointed out, a complete reconstruction of the policy cies under which railroads have been developed. lern As_ If the alternative of government 0f operation under the direction of the I by president be adopted, said the comthe mission, suitable guarancy of an orts adequate annual return should be mp- &iyen? with provision by which the te(j roads could reimburse the govern mpnt. fnr imnrnvements. after the emy| ? --? ' ? ops. I properties are returned to private leryj owners. und j the MRS. SHILLITO HEARS BILLY ore mP" Mrs. Elizabeth Hill Shillito acSlve companied by her granddaughters, Mrs. J. M. Morgan and Mrs. W. S. DuPre, went over to Atlanta this week to hear Billy Sunday. We have ^rst not seen her to find out just what 'ast she thought of him, but we guess inrH , _.;?u sne was aejigntcu wau mo ined r. in ~ Austrian forces in this sector, hopes the to realize his project of pressing ancj down the valley leading to Vicenza jons and the open plains. :ies. The latest reports show that the ion, intense bombardment continues, pre- The indications are that this is :>rce something more than a demonstravon tion or feint and signals a new and the strong offensive. WAR DECU ON ADSTRI ! nrn n a nnTi r>n |D1<j DA 1 IL.H3 IN NORTH ITALY < Allies Are Awaiting the Attack With Confidence. < While for the moment there are no infantry operations of great ! magnitde in progress on any of the numerous battle fronts, indications are not wanting that shortly the Cambrai sector in France and the northern line in the Iitalian theatre ( ' will again witness titanic struggles, . ' with the Germans and the Austro- . ! Hungarians the aggressors. . 1 Already the Germans in the Cambrai region have brought up reinforcements with the object of blotI ting out the salient driven into their II line bv Gen. Bvne's dash, a small portion of which they have reconquered, but at a fearful price. In 1 j Italy, along the Sette Comuni and ' j the Asiago plateau, enemy guns of ] j all calibres have opened fire on the < j Italian positions and several hill po-!( | j sitions have been captured in small j i j attacks. Both before Cambrai and j . i nthe Italian region the allied afmjies are awaiting with complacency *: the enemy's assaults. >1 , < While near Cambrai it is conced- , j ed that the British will be forced, 'j by reason of the dangerous salient 'i held by the enemy in their line to 'j somewhat straighten out their front 1 !j optimism is expressed that on the | whole General Byng's forces will | be able to give a good accounting j for an yattacks the enemy mayj >! launch. I "I Likewise the menace of a dashi by the Austro-Germans down 1, through the hills and out upon the '(plains of Venetia has been provided ' I for so far as the reinforcement of !ithe Italians by the British and French troops and the bringing up "j of fresh guns is concerned. If 'j Field Marshal von Hoetzendorf, I j commander of the enemy troops, j shoul dbe able to break the line and | gain his objective, it will be only II one of the most sanguinary encount | ers of the war. 'I In Mesopotamia the British and 1 Russian troops have carried out a ' successful operation against the 1 Turks, but just where has not been ' stated.. This has significance, ina&I ""l* **? iVvn ?or>Arf nf | IIIUV^II AO It JO Ulu nioii iwyvi v vi wiiv | 1 fighting of the Rssians with the I 1 British in this region since they . " formed a junction after the British ! captured Bagdad. AUNT LEAH. 1 i Aunt Leah Thomas, an old colori ^ , ed woman of the city, offered her , services free to the ladies of the jJ la <hpir dinner on i ' XVCU Vlvoo uu??*.5 ...... , last Monday. She says that the j{ white people help the colored peo- ' pie when they are in need and she ( wants to do her bit to help with the ^ war, so she came down and helped 1 all day. f ! , ? j j The next Liberty Bond issue is to ] | be put out in March of next year. _ . Representative Osborne of Calif- ( ornia has a bill which would raise j the salaries of all government em- , ployees receiving $1,200 a year or ( less, 5 per cent. His bill also would ^ make the salaries of the representa- t tives and senators subject to the | income tax. , 1 I * * 1 vVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV, V COTTON MARKET V t V Cotton 28 1-2 V i V Seed $1.08 V > VRATION A CERTAIN ? ' I Made by President the Recommendation r.nn OTPRft Will Arlnnfr I ""?T ?" | 3E REPORTED FOR DEBATE rX/M IN THE HOUSE FRIDAY Jj Congress Clears Deck for Immediate Action Against Austrians?Joint Resolution by Pres. and Stat* Department Approved. Washington, Dec. 6.?Congress cleared the way today for prompt respnose to President Wilson's call for a declaration of war with Austria-Hungary. A joint resolution approved by the President and the State department declaring existence of a state of war between the United States and the Imperial and Royal AustroHungarian Government from today at noon was introduced in the house and unanimously approved by the house foreign affairs committee. It will be reported tomorrow for house debate Friday, with final action in the senate late this week or early . v 'J [1CAI W ccn pvuu KTAJ v Conforming to the President's recommendations the resolution which authorizes and directs employment of the Nation's armed forces against Austria and pledges the country's resources to victory, applies to Aasr tria alone. Germany's other allies, Turkey and Bulgaria, are not mentioned. As perfected by the house committee and ordered reported without a dissenting vote, the resoln- . :j tion reads as follows: i "Whereas, the Imperial and Royal Austro-Hungarian Government * 7 has severed diplomatic relations ft with the government of the United y States of America, and has commit 5# ted acts of war against the government and the people of the United States of America, among which are . ; its adherence to the policy of ruthless submarine warfare adopted by its ally, the Imeprial German Gov ernment witti wnicn me umieu States of America is at war and by giving to its ally active support and aid on both land and sea in the prosecution of war against the government and people of the United States of America, Therefore: be it "Resolved, By the senate and the house of representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That a state of war be and is hereby declared to exist and to have existed since noon of the 5th day of December, 1917, between the United States of America >"<1 the Tmn?rial and Roval Aufitro Hungarian government; And that the President be, and he is hereby, authorized and directed to employ the entire naval and military forces )f the United. States and the resources of the government to carry >n war against the Imperial and Royal-Auetro- Hungarian governnent, and'to bring the conflict to a iuccessful determination all the reiources of the country are. hereby pledged by the Congress of the Jnited States." Although sentiment remain strong n both branches to have the war laniafa+inn cvffnHpH tn Turkev and Bulgaria, approval of the resolution is it stands is regarded as virtually :ertain. Reasons given confidently oday to Chairman Stone and Flood ind which probably will be made )ublic in debate, were regarded as :onvincing. Senator Stone and Representative Flood both conferred vith Secretary Lansing and it was inderstood to be the secretary's co* fiction that no circumstance yet vas warranting action against Turkey and Bulgaria. y\ 3 - : .. . ' i