Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, March 22, 1918, Image 1
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l. m. orist's sons. publisher..} % ^amilg Jeirspaper: ^or the promotion ojf the political, ?o$iaI, Jgrieoltnnl and (Commercial interests of th$ feojtty | sinolkcopr. rivijckirt.
imtiiii.nhkii iftisis YORK, S. C.. FRI DAY, MARCH *2*2. 1918. NO, 24
"OVERT
By ARTHUR
An American Boy Who
Years Before
Copyright, 1!?17, l>y Arthur Guy
CIIAlTKit XXI.
About Turn.
Tho n?-xt owning \w wi-it h Ih-wil
l?y th<- ?tli hriguilo. un<l oni-?- .-igniti
r? turned to rest t>ill>-ts. I |><>n arriving
oi tIn mi* I.ill. is we m ri' given twenty*
lour hours in wtiieli to dean up. I had
jusi finished getting tlii- inu.J from my
uniform when tin- orderly sergeant Inloiim-d
no- that my name was in oriji
rs to leave, ami that t was to report
to the orderly room in the morning lor
onleis, tr.anspoitatioti and rations.
I nearly had a tit, hustled ahoul
parking up, tilling my park with souvi
iiiis sueli a l ste II heads, dud liomliM,
nose raps, shrapnel halls, and a Prussian
guardsman's helinet. In fart, helore
I turned in that night I had everything
ready to report at the orderly
room at nine the next morning.
I wits tlie envy ot tin- whole section,
swanking around, telling of the good
time I was going to have, the plaees I
would visit, and the real, old Knglish
heer I intended to gu/.xh-. Sort of
ruhhod it into tliein, hecaust they all
do it. and now that It was my linn, I
took pains to gel my own haek.
At nine I reported to tin- captain, ircelvitig
iny travel order and |>ass. Ih
iisl.eil me how much money I wanted
I <rlil.lv answered. "Three
hiilidrt-il t'raiics, sir:" In- just as Klihlv
hninh-d mi- one hundri-d.
la-port in tr al britcioh- hi-adi|uartirs.
Willi tin park writ;Iniik a Inn, I waitril
willi forty others, lot I In* iiiljiiliitil <
ins|n-i-t lis. Aftrr ail hour's wait. In
rami* out: must liavr Is-i-n son hrransr
In- wasn't tioint; with us.
Tin- ?|u:iiti-riuasli-r si-rui-ant issued
us two days' rations, in a I it t li- white
ranvas ration hat;, wlilrli we ti> I In
our belts.
Thi-n two motor lorrirs rami- a lout;
:i in I wi- pilril in. luutiliiiitr. joking iiiul
in tin- lu-st ol' spirits. \V?- i-m-ii Iom-iI
tin- (Si-rmans, w<- w-i-ri- feeling so Imp
py. ttur journi-y to si-vi-n ikiys' hlis?
In Mlighty hail commenced.
Tin- riili- in tin- lorry lasti-d ahoul
two hours; li.v ttiis tiinr wi- were covered
with Urn-, whitr dust from tin
road, hut didn't mind, i-vni it we were
nearly t-hokinic.
At tin- railroad station at I-' we
reported to an olliei-r, who had a white
hand around his arm, whk-h ri-ad "It.
T. <>." (ICo.val transportation otliccr).
To us this ofHcor was Santa Onus.
" *vm' WltiiTIlt tti I'TWIKI' Hinmt'11 -in.11
our orders; he Klanml through them
and said. "Make >ourselves ;:oinlo,taide
on tlie platform and don't leave;
the train Is lialde to he along in live
minutes?or live hours."
It came in live hours, a shiny ol
eleven tuateii boxes on big. high
wheels, drawn tiy a dinky little engine
with the "eon." These mateh boxes
were cattle eats, on the sides ?>t which
was iKiintcd lite old familiar sign.
"Homines 10. Chevaux S."
The It. T. it. stuck us all into one
oar. We didn't care; it was good
as a I'tillman to us.
Two days we spent on that train,
humping. stopping. Jerking ahead, and
sometimes sliding hack. At three stations
we stopped long enough to make
some tea. hilt were unable to wash, so
when we arrived at it . where we
were to embark for Mighty, we were
as Idaek as Turcos and. with otir unshaven
faces, we looked like a lot of
tramps. Though tired out, we were
happy.
We had packed up. preparatory to
detraining, when a It. T. O. held up
iiis hand for us to stop where we were
and eiiitte over. This is what he said:
"Itoys, I'm sorry, hut orders have just
been received cancelling all leave. If
>on had been three hours earlier you
would have gotten away, .lust stay ill
that tram, as it is going heck. Rations
will he issued to >ou for your return
journey to your respective stations.
Iteastly rotten I know." Then lie left.
,\ dead silence resulted. Then men
started lo curse, threw tlieir rilles on
the iloor of the car; others said nothing.
seemed to he stupelied. while some
had the tears running down their
cheeks. It was a hitter disap|H>intmeiit
to all.
Mow we Milieu :u inc cutiium
that train; it was all his fault (so we
reasoned ; why hadn't he speeded up
! a little or heen on time, when we
would ha\e gotten ??IT tiefore tl.e order
arrivedNow it was no Uliuhty for
us.
That return journey was misery to
us: I just ean't deserihe it.
When we not hark to rest billets we
found that our brigade was in the
trenehes (another aurora hie surprise)
and that an attack was contemplated.
Seventeen of the forty-one will never
net another ehanee to go on leave;
they were killed in the attack, .lust
think if that train had been on time
those seventeen would still lie alive.
I hate to tell you how I was kidded
by the hoys when I not hark, but it
was uooil and plenty.
our machine nun company took
over their part of the line at seven
o'clock, the night after 1 returned
from my near leave.
At 3:30 the following morning three
waves went over and captured the first
and si<cond German trenches. The
machine gunners went over with the
fourth wave to consolidate the captured
line or "dig in" as Tommy calls
it.
Grossing No Man's luind without
clicking any casualties, we came to
the German trench and mounted our
gun* on the parados of same.
* -MivU <t mnvto in mv 1 i fp
i ncvrr Kin o?v .. n.v.~ ... ?,
?bunches of twisted barbed wire lying
about, shell holes everywhere,
trench all bashed In. parapets gone,
and dead bodies, why, the ditch was
full of them, theirs and ours. It was
a regular morgue. Some were mangled
horribly from our shell Are. while others
were wholly or partly buried in
the mud. the result of shell explosions
caving in the walls of the trench.
One dead German was lying on hii
book, with a rifle sticking straight up
HE TOP" I
t
GUY EMPEY
Got Into the War Two
I His Country.
i
Empy. <
in the air. the bayonet of which was
buried to the hilt in his chest. Across
his feet lay a dead English soldier 1
with a bullet hole in his forehead. '
This Tommy must have been killed 1
just as he ran his bayonet through the
Ccrmun. '
Itilles and equipment were scatter- '
ed about, and occasionally a steel '
helmet could be seen sticking out of '
the mud. i
At one point, just in the entrance to I
a communication trench, was a
stretcher, on this stretcher a German <
was lying with a white bandage
around his knee, near to him lay one
or the stretcher-bearers, the red cross
on his arm covered with mud and his '
helmet tilled with blood and brains. I
Close by, sitting up against the wall i
of the trench, with head resting 011 his
chest, w;us the other stretcher-hear- t
cr. Ito seemed to lie alive, tlie posture 1
..,.,.1 m.cf Kilt whi-n I
got i-Iiism' 1 could sco it liti'KV, j:tKU<-*l ?
hole hi his temple. The three must i
hute heon kill.-,| |?y the same shell- '
hurst. I
The dugouts were :i 11 smashed in I
ami knocked ahout, hit; s<iuare-rut I
tiiuhers splintered into hits, walls eav
ed in and entrances choked. i
Tommy, after taking a trench <
learns to his sorrow.that the hardest :
part of the work is to hold it.
Iii our case this proved to lie so. i
The (iertnaii artillery and machine i
mms had us taped (raitKcdl for fair: '
it was worth your life to expose your- i
self an instant. .?
I tout think for a moment that the t
' ermans were tin- only sufferers; we i
were clicking casualties so fast that i
you needed an adding machine to i
keep track of them. i
I >id you ever see one of the steam I
shovels at work on the Panama canal?
Well, it would look like a hen .scratch- I
ing alongside of Tommy "digging in" I
while under tire. You couldn't see
daylight through the clouds of dirt <
from his shovel. i
After losing three out of six men of (
our crew we managed to set up our
machine gun. One of the legs of the l
tripod was resting on the chest of a
ha If-Iniried body. When the gun was i
tiring, it gave the impression that the ;
body was breathing. This was caused t
by the excessive vibration.
; Three or four feet down the trench <
-prbirri't t'mvt- feet fr-em-thr -gvoYnd.-n- i
foot was protruding froin the earth. ,
I We knew it was a (Serman by the |
hlat-k lea Hut boot. One of our crew
used that foot to haiiK extra luindoilers
of ammunition on. Tliis man always
was a handy fellow; made use of little
points that the ordinary person would
overlook. I
I The Hermans made three counterattacks.
which were repulsed, but not
without heavy loss on our side. They
also suffered severely from our shell I
and machine gun lire. The ground wasl
spotted with their dead and dying. I
The next day things were somewhat I
quieter, but not ?|Uiet enough to bury I
the dead. |
We lived, ate and slept in that I
trench with the unluiricd dead for six I
days. It was awful to watch their facesl
become sw ollen and discolored. To- I
wards the last the stench was tierce. J
What got on my nerves the most!
was that foot sticking out of the dirt. I
It seemed to me, at night, in t^?|l
moonlight, to be trying to twist ||
around. Several times tills impression I,
was so strong that I went to it anil I
gras|H'd it in both hands, to see if 11
could feel a movement. 11
I told this to the man who had used 1|
it for a hutruck Just before I lay down I
for a little nap, as things were quiet, I (
and I needed a rest pretty badly. I
When I w oke up the foot was gone. I
lie had cut It off with our chain saw!
out of the spare parts' hox and had I
plastered the stump over with mud. I
During the next two or three days. I
before we were relieved, I missed that I
foot dreadfully; seemed as if t had)
suddenly lost a chum.
I think the worst thing of all was to I'
watch the rats, at night, and some-1
times in the day. run over and play I
ultout among the dead.
Near our gun, right across the para-1'
pet, could be seen the body of a Her-1
man lieutenant, the head and arms of I
which were hanging into our trench. I
The man who had cut off the foot used I ^
to sit and carry on a one-sided conver-1
nation with this officer, used to argue, I
and point out why Uermany was iu the!.
wrong. During all of this monologueI
him sav anything out of |'
the way?anything that would haveI
hurt the officer's feelings had he been
alive. He was square all right:
wouldn't even take advantage of a
dead man in an argument.
To civilians this must seem dreadful.
but out here one gets so used to
awful sights that it nuikes no Intpression.
In passing a butcher shop you
are not shocked by seeing a dead turkey
hanging from a hook. Well, in
France, a dead body is looked upon
from the same angle.
Hut. nevertheless, when our six days
were up. we were tickled to death to
be relieved.
Our machine gun company lost '
seventeen killed and 31 wounded in !
that little local afTair of "straighten- '
ing the line." while the other com- !
panics clicked it worse than we did.
After the attack wo went into re- 1
1 serve billets for six days, and on the '
seventh once again we were in rest bil- j
lets.
I
CHAPTER XXII.
Punishment* and Machine Gun Stunts. |
i Soon after my arrival in France, In
i fact, from my enlistment. I had found
that in the British army discipline is
very strict One has to be very carei
ful in order to stay on the narrow path
of government virtue.
There are about seven million ways
i of breaking the king's regulations; to .
> keep one you have to break another, i
I had played. He was a good sport all
right, because his bullets were going
away over our heads, must have been
tiring into the air. 1 commenced to
feel friendly toward him.
This duet went on for five days.
Fritz was a good pupil and learned
rapidly, in fact, got better than his
teacher. 1 commenced to feel Jealous.
When he had completely mastered the
tune, he started sweeping the road
again and we clicked it worse than
ever. Hut he signed his death warrant
by doing so, because my friendship
turned to hate. Every time lie
IIred he played that tune und we
danced.
The boys in the battalion gave us
the 'Ha! Ha!" They weren't in on
our little frameup.
The originator of the ruse and the
other two gunners had Fritz's location
taped to the minute; they mounted
their two guns, and also gave me the
range. The next afternoon was set for
the grand tlnale.
Our three guns, with different elevations,
had their tire so arranged that
opening up together, their bullets
would suddenly drop on Fritz like a
hailstorm.
About three the next day Fritz
The worst punishment is death by a
iring s?iuad or "up against the wall,"
Tommy rails iL
This is for desertion, cowardice, muiny,
giving information to the enemy,
ooliiig, rape. rubbing the dead, forcng
a safeguard, striking a superior,
itc.
Then comes the punishment of Ct
Jays in the front-line trench with>ut
relief. During this time you have
:<> engage in all raids, working parties
n No Man's l-nid, and every hazardhis
undertaking that conies along. If
fou live through the sixty-four days
i*ou are indeed lucky.
This punishment is awarded where
there is a doubt as to the willful guilt
itt a man who has eoiumltted an offence
punishable by death.
Then comes the famous lield punshrncnt
No. 1. Tommy has nicknamed
it "crucifixion." It means that a man
s spread-eagled on a limber wheel,
two hours a day for twenty-one days.
During this time he only gets water.
iully beef and biscuits for his eJiow.
Vou get "crucified" for repeated min>r
offenses.
Next in order is tie-Id punishment
No. 2.
This is confinement in the "clink,"
Mthout blankets, getting water, bully
jeef and biscuits for rations and doing
ill (lie dirty work that can lie found.!
I'his may lie for twenty-four hours or
twenty days, according to the gravity
?f the offense.
Then collies "pack drill" or defaulters'
parade. This consists of drilling,
mostly at the double, lor two hours
ivitli full ei|uipnient. Tommy hates|
this, because it is hard work. Sometimes
lie lilts his park with straw to
igliteii it, and sometimes he gets
-aught. If he gets ealight, he grouses
it every thing in general for twentymo
days, from the vantage point of
i limber wheel.
The sergeant major keeps what is
known as the crime sheet. When a
man commits an obelise, he is
crimed," that is, his name, number'
iinl offense is entered oil the crime
iheet. Next day at a. iii. he goes to
lie "orderly room" before the captain
Alio either punishes liinr with It."
?r sends him before the u. (.*, (officer
.-oiiiiiianding battalion.! The captain
.< ili? .in,i,:iiic ean unlv award "t".
LI."
Tommy tiuiny a time has thanked
lie king for making that provision in
lis regulations.
To gain the title of u "smart soltier'"
Tommy has to keep elear of the
rime sheet, and you have to be darned
smart to do it.
1 have been on it a few times, niosty
for "Yankee impudence."
During our stay of two weeks in
est billets our captain put lis through
i course of machine-gun drills, trying
ut new stunts and theories.
After parades were over, our guns'
trews got together and also tried out
satnt! therrrU-s-r.r "TfiWr own' im - refer>nec
to handling guns. These courses
md nothing to do with the advancement
of the war, consisted mostly of
tausing tricky jams in the gun, and
then the rest of the crew would 011leavor
to locate as uuickly as possible
lie cause of the stoppage. This anius-J
.al them for :i few days and then
things came to a standstill.
tie of the boys on my gun claimed
that he could play a tune while the
tun was actually tiring, and demonstrated
this fact one day on the target
range. We were very enthusiastic and
lecided to become musicians.
After constant practice, J became
piite expert in tlie tune entitled "All
'onduetors Have Dig Keel."
When I had mastered this tune, our
two weeks' rest eatnc to an end, and
jiiee again we went up the line anil
.....b Hi.. in fi'unl of <:? -
Wood.
At this point the (German trenches
run around the base of a hill, on the
[op of which was a dense wood. This
wood was infested with machine guns,
which usetl to traverse our lines at
tvill, and sweep the streets of a little
tillage, where we were billeted while
n reserve.
There was one gun In particular
which used to get our goats, it had the
xact range of our "elephant" dugout
entrance, and every morning, about
the time rations were being brought
up, its bullets would knock the dust
jii the road; more than one Tommy
went West or to Blighty by running
into them.
This gun got our nerves on edge,
itwl Fritz seemed to know It, because
lie never gave us an hour s rest. Uur
reputation as machine gunners was at
dake; we tried various ruses to locate
ind put this gun out of action, but
uach one proved to be a failure, and
Fritz became a worse nuisance than
iwer. He was getting fresher and more
L'urelesK every day, took all kinds of
liberties with us?thought he was invincible.
Then one of our crew got a brilliant
idea and we were all enthusiastic to
put it to the test.
Here was his scheme:
When firing my gun, 1 was to play
my tune, and Fritz, 110 doubt, would
fall for it, try to imitate me tun an
ulded insult. Tbis gunner and two
thers would try, by the sound, to locate
Fritz and his gun. After having
got the location, they would mount
two machine guns in! trees, in a little
Mump of woods to the left of our cemetery.
and while Fritz was in the middle
>f his lesson, would open up and trust
to luck. By our calculations it would
take at le.st u week to pull off the
stunt.
If Fritz refused to swallow our bait.
>t would be impossible to locate his
special gun, and that's the one we were
fter, because they all sound alike, a
slow pup-pup-pup.
our prestige was hanging by a
thread. In the battalion we had to enilure
all kinds of insults and fresh remarks
iis to our ability in silencing
Fritz. Even to the battalion that German
was a sore spot
Next day, Fritz o|>ened up as usual,
i let hiin tire away for a while and
then butted in with my "pup-pup-puppup-pup-pup."
I kept this up quite a
while, used two belts of ammunition.
Fritz had stopped tiring to listen. Then
he started in; sure enough, he had
fallen for our game, his gun was trying
to imitate mine, but at first he
mode a horrible mesB of that tune.
Again I butted in with a few bars and
topped. Then he tried to copy what
/
started "pup-puping" that tune. I blew
a sharp blast on a whistle, it was the
signal agreed ujion; we turned loose
and Fritz's gun suddenly stopped in
t ho middle of a bar. We had cooked
his goose, and our ruse hail worked.
After tiring two belts each, to make
sure of our job, we hurriedly dismounted
our guns and took cover in
the dugout. We knew what to expect
soon. We didn't have to wait long,
three salvos of "whiw.-bangs" came
over from Fritz's artillery, a further
contirmation that we had sent that
musician gunner on his Westwardbound
Journey.
That gun never bothered us again.
We wore the heroes of the battalion,
our captain congratulated us, said it
was a neat piece of work, and, conse!|iicutly,
we were all puffed up over
the stunt.
There are several ways Tommy
uses to disguise the location of ills
machine gun and get his range. Some
of tin- most commonly used stunts
are as follows:
At night when he mounts his gun
over the top of his trench and wants
to get the range of Fritz's trench he
adopts the method of what he terms
'n.i? nf
gelling l lie spurns. mux lunn.x.x .
tiring bursts from bis gun until the i
bullets hit the Herman barbed wire, j
He can tell when they are cutting the i
wire, because a bullet when it hits a I
wire throws out a blue electric spark. |l
Machine-nun lire is very damaging to I
wire and causes many a wiring party |
to go out at night when it is iiuiet to j
repair damage. <
To disguise the flare of his gun at >
night when tiring Tommy uses what is 1
called a flare protector. This is a stove '
pit** nrruiigiTTitoit *wnrctt rtts ovur tflf
barrel casing of the gun and screens '
the sparks from the right and left, but *
not from the front. So Tommy, always
resourceful, adopts this scheme: 1
About three feet or less in front of the '
gun he drives two stakes into the '
ground, about live feet apart. Across '
these stakes he stretches a curtain '
made out of empty sandbags ripped '
open. He soaks this curtain In water ]
and fires through it. The water prevents
it catching lire and effectively
screens the llare of the tiring gun
from the enemy.
Sound i.s :i valuable asset in locating '
? machine gim, but Tommy surmounts 1
Ibis obstacle by placing two machine '
guns about one hundred to one hun- 1
drcd and fifty yards apart. The gun 1
on the right to cover with its fire the '
sector of the left gun and the gun on 1
the left to cover that of the right '
gun. This makes their lire cross; they (
are fired simultaneously.
My this method it sounds like one 1
gun tiring and gives the Hermans the
Impression that the gun "Ts tiring from
a point midway between the guns (
which ure actually tiring, and they accordingly
shell that particular spot. j
The maehine gunners chuckle and say. t
"Fritz is a brainy boy, not "alf he (
ain't."
Hut the men in our lines at the spot (
being shelled c urse Fritz for his ignoranee
anil pass a few pert remarks (
down the line in reference to the ma- (
chine gunners being "windy" and
afraid to take their medicine.
(To He Continued.)
The "Eagles."?The history of five i
wars will stand behind the men who i
serve aboard the submarine fighters i
of the "Kngle class." the name re- j
ccntly selected for the vessels now he- |
ing constructed at the Ford plant, l
says a Washington letter to the I'hil- i
adelphia ledger. (
The statement issued by the navy i
department showed the valiant part <
played by ships bearing the name i
"Eagle" In and since the Involution- I
ary war. 1
In the war which brought indc- i
pendente to ini' unncu .-Mines st *rn .
vessels hearing this name took to sen <
for the colonies, and left behind them i
a record of sterling merit. I
During the naval war with France
the "Eagle" of that day was com- i
manded by such illustrious men as I
Commodore John Harry, Commodore s
Thomas Truxton and Commodore Ste- <
phen Decatur. Sr. While in active :
service during the years 1799 and 1800 i
she captured from the French Le
Hon I'ere. La Fougueuse, La Favorite i
and La Magdalen et Dolphin. I
Five "Eagles" took part in the war <
of 1812. One of them was captured <
by the Hritlsh, only to be retaken i
when, as a part of the enemy forces, s
she met the American fleet under *
MacDonough in the battle of Lake <
Champlaln. where another "Eagle" i
flew the American colors. '
The Civil war and the Spanish- 1
American war each had an "Eagle" as i
l?art of the United States naval forces, <
and the vessel commissioned during I
the war against Spain Is still on the 1
navy list. She was once In command '
of Lieutenant F. F. Fletcher, now an 1
admiral. 1
m , I
Wheat holdings by country mills and
elevators on March 1, according to
estimates of the department of agri- 1
culture, totaled 68,972,000. That la I
about 20,000,000 bushels less than was I
held on the same date last year, and !
about 86,000,000 leas than was held on I
the same date of 1916. 1
ROUSE YE AMERICANS!
The Philittiaps are Upon Ut And Seek
Our Ruin.
The following fmtriotie message is
'fmn (.low Charles H. If rough of Artansas.
and It is well worth the most
lerious anil alarmed attention of every
Uneriran:
I nfortunately there is a Ihdshevlki
n the United States as well as in
Russia, eoin|tosfd as it is of persons
*h > are assiduously husying thetntelves
around the great cantonments
n unscrupulous and clever lying as
o our motives for entering the war
?nd our chances of winning the war.
t feel that in this hour of our nation's
stress and strife there can he
10 twilight zone in American pa.riotism.
Every citizen must he either
tot the president and for the flag, or
iguinst the president and against the
laz.
We are engaged In a great struggle
>f human liberty and human dem>Cntey
against military autocracy and
lespotism. We are lighting to make
jh" world safe for democracy and
lemocrary safe for the world. We
Ire vindicating our rights and the
freedom of the high seas sanctioned
J> international law. We are projesting
against the fencing off of the
teas, the laying of mines in neutral
(raters, the violation of a sacred
reaty of Cermnny with liclgium the
tilling of defenseless civilians, and
.he attacks on defenseless towns and
he ruthless violation of the sanctity
>f womanhood. All rules of humanity
wive been thrown away by the modun
Huns, who through the teachings
ind demands and commands of their
ruling classes deserve to be called
"the scourge of Clod," just as truly
is Attilla and the Huns were known
us the scourge of t'.od nearly 1,000
rears ago. In this great holocaust,
ehich has already cost approximatey
20,004.1)00 men in killed, wound*d.
and prisoners, and tin- expendi.ure
of $125.?0ft.0ft0.ftftft. Ccrniany
?1 * ??.i ti?, central
Teutonic powers arc making their last
itaiul for feixlaltsin against oncmnng
democracy. This is a war against
'eialalisin?the ripht of the castle on
he hill to rule the villape below,
feudalism plus science, thirteenth
entury plus twentieth?this Is the
elipion of the mistaken Herman that
ins linked itself with the unmcntiontble
Turk, that, like its scholar, has
ulopted the method of Mohammed
md the theory that "the state has
jo conscience," and "the kinp can do
10 wrong." With the spirit of the
ranntic the deluded people of the ccnrnl
powers lielleve this pospel and
hat It is their duty to spread it by
force, for, with the I'otsdam dynasty,
fmlpht is ripht and strength Is triumphant."
With tar. chlorine, and
hustard poisonous pases that make
ivlnp a hell; with submarines that
worse than the devil carrying a
Mill'hi wilh-ifc HP?:HlW? tbwtSombed
men and women while they
deep; with a perfected and scientific
system of "man's inhumanity to
nan" that the modern world first
leard of when Herman troops invad;d
hopeless Helgiuin?Herman feudalam
iy making war upon mankind.
Let this spirit of evil and autocracy
have its way and no man could live
n America without paying toll to it.
n manhood, and in mercy. We would
ice ns Ki-iinee has lived for 40 years.
n haunting terror.
Our people need to he thoroughly
roused as to the seriousness of the
dtuation. We are confronted hy war.
jrlm-visagcd war. (Jertnanv occupies
our times as much area and has
.vithin the control of her armies and
ivilian population six times as much
ood acreage as she occupied three
ind a half years ago at the outbreak
)f the war, with 2.500.000 Russian
prisoners to cultivate this food acreige.
She has concurred and holds
toumania. Servia, Montenegro, Kusilati
Poland, the entire Russian
ountry up to Riga, many square
nlles in Italy, 85 per cent of Bel;luni,
and 246 square miles in France.
Until the real issues of the war are
wrought home to the Herman people
hey will continue to oversubscribe
ler loans ami furnish the necessary
^redit for the mobilization of her
roops and resources. She Is practically
the only nation in the world
:hat has made a census of her man
>ower, which' has been carefully selected
with reference to occupation,
ind we are told that she has fully
100,000 carpenters and 200,000 electricians
and mechanical engineers
iv,ho have never seen the trenches or
ihe firing lines. Official authorities
ldmit that Hcrmany can put into the
Held 800,000 men each year, nnd that
her average losses for the past three
ind a half years have been only 400. 00
annually, leaving a tremendous
reserve power upon which she can
iraw. In her Ihree landstrunis in
reserve we are told that there are
Fully 12,000.000 men. With the colapse
of Russia, and the estimated
withdrawal of 140 army corps, f!erTiany
is massing thousands of troops
in the western frontier and Is prel>aring
for a supreme effort to brenk
ihe western line. She failed at the
Ntarne, at Y.pres, and at Verdun; tf
we properly support our government
the troops of America, fighting
ihoulder to shoulder with those of
iur brave allies, will see that she falls
it Solssons, at Champagne, or wlier?vcr
she may strike this spring.
But in order to accomplish this It
will be necessary for everyone of us
IA -1' nlol.notor ImT ftf his
dntment of sacrifice. We must teach
jur children and people of moderate
neans to buy thrift stamps and war
saving certificates: that a dollar sav*1
In the United States is a patriotic
lollar; that a dollar hoarded is a
slacker; and that a dollar wasted Is
i traitor. We must continue to enist
in the membership campaign and
subscribe generously to the Red
[?ross, whic^. by Its expenditure of
1100,000,000 on the battle fields of
Prance, has already relieved over
200.000 French and Belgian civilian
women and children. We must buy
new Liberty bonds in the third crusade.
A Clever Burro.?A friend tells us
the following 4bout Rowdy, a burro
Ite bought as a foal in Colorado and
wrought home to Massachusetts for
ma children: "Rowdy is now an aged
baasioner, but he has been as clever a
little pet and servant as one could
'J A l'
wish. His friendship for the family
cow has been one of the distinguishing:
features of his career. They used I
to stand side by side In the stalde.
and in the jwsture would actually play
tag. The cow began years ago with I
her rough tongue to lick Kowdy's ]
face. When he attempted to recipro- (
rate the courtesy, his smooth tongue i
made no impression. This then is \
what we have seen him do a hundred ,
times: He would tind a small stick,
take it in his teeth, and scratch the
cow all about the eyes, and ears and '
horns." Can anyone call this instinct?
Was such an idea tucked away in I
Itowdy's brain when he was born, a '
part of his inheritance from genera- I
tions of ancestral burros? That would '
seem out of the uuestion. We are in- !
dined to think that Howdy thought
out the stick idea for himself.?Our I
Dumb Animals. i
GENERAL NEWS NOTES.
I
Record of Current Happenings Col- (
lected from Various Sources. <
Uncle Sum wants his soldiers to be :
clean shaven, and to help this along <
every soldier is to be given a razor, <
a mirror and a shaving brush.
Police officials throughout N'ew 1
Jersey as making vigorous efforts to
enforce the recently passed law of that
state aguinst idleness during the 1
period of the war.
The Young Alen's Christian assoclation
has started a national campaign t
to secure 4.000 "Y" workers for serXI
vice in the red triangle huts with the ,
American army in France.
President Wilson on Tuesday signed j
the daylight saving hill. Under the t
terms of the law all United States <
clocks are to lie set forward one ;
hour on the last Sunday in March. r
Two men wore killed and thirty- 1
three Injured by the collapse of an un- 1
tinished hangar at the aviation sta- 1
tion near Miami, Fla., Tuesday. The *
collapse was cuused by a heavy wind
storm.
(iround glass has been found in j
bread, buckwheat Hour and chocolate
candies by tho New York food administration
within the past few days. It '
Is churged to be tho work of alien
enemies.
Tho Delaware legislature has ratified (
the proposed anti-liijuor amendment ,
to tho Federal constitution. This ,
makes a total of nine states that have {
ratified the amendment, one-fourth of ,
the necessary two-thirds to ratify the t
amendment. <
Director General McAdoo has is- i
sued an order for the curtailment of I
useless railroad officers in New York '
and other centers. He is having of- I
fleers of different lines consolidated in '
order to reduce unnecessary expenses. 1
Treasury officials and congressional
leaders have reached an agreement ,
. llnder-U-hich - a Jaill -tO- authorise the
government to extensively deal In pilver
certificates be withdrawn from j
circulation. The silver will be melted
down and the bullion exported to pay
trade balances.
Secret service officers made Import- ,
ant arrests in New York Monday when (
they arrested Mine. Despina Davido- .
vitch Storch, Mine. Charlotte Nix, ,
Baron deHeville and Count Iiobert de |
Clermont. All of them were in the ,
employment of the German govern
inent as spies. Mine. Storch is said to ,
have been the leader of the gang. I
Advices from Argentina are to the '
effect that hundreds of horses of that <
country have been inoculated with 1
germs of glanders. The horses Inoe- <
ulated are intended for England, but '
very few of them aro reaching their I
destination and more of the animals 1
so infected have been landed in Eng- '
land. 1
Information reaching Geneva, '
Switzerland, is to the effect that res- |
idents of German cities are in a panic
over the air raids of Allied airmen. In
the principal cities along the Rhine it
is said thut many houses have been (
vacated and their owners have moved (
further away from the German bor- (
der. It Is also said that opinion is |
growing against the continuation of
German air raids.
An iron pot containing $115,000 in <
gold was blasted out of an old well |
near Hillsville, Pa., last Wednesday. |
Tho money had belonged to a man j
named Shaffer, who died in 1888. ,
Stricken by apoplexy Shaffer tried to i
tell his family where tho coin was
hidden but died before he could do
so. The money was found by acci- |
dent, although the hunt had been go- i
ing on all these years.
A. Uruco Hielaski, chief of the
United States secret service, in an addross
in .Vew York, said that while the
secret service of Germany had been
claimed to be the most proficient in
the world, the truth of the matter is
that the secret service of the United
States had proved that the German
service was the most blundering organization
of its kind in the world.
He said that the biggest part the
German service had played in the
United States had been the part that
brought the United States into the war
as Germany's strongest enemy.
Cotton Seed Statistics.?Cotton seed
statistics for the period from August
1 last to February 28, announced last
Tuesday by the census bureau show: 1
Receipts at mills 3,802,905 tons; 1
crushed 3.203.433. and on hand February
28, 633.399.
Cotton seed products statistics for
the same period show:
Crude oil produced 971.110.040
pounds; on hand 199,220,773.
Refined oil produced 1,549,913
pounds; on hand 245,754.954.
Cake and meal produced 1,540,913
tons; on hand 113,272.
Ltnters produced 829,019 bales of 500
pounds: on hand 266,549. ?
Hull fibre produced 138,951 bales:
on hand 6,567.
Imports of oil 7,452,821 pounds; exports
32,804,683.
- Exports of cake and meal 17,643
tons; of llnters 120,776 running bales.
Boys for Service.?Quotas of boys
which each state is to furnish in the
campaign to enlist a boys' working
reserve of 260.000 for the farmers,
which opens today has been announced
by the department of labor. It Includes:
Georgia, Alabama and Virginia,
8,900 each; Vorth Carolina and
Arkansas. 7,000 each; South Carolina,
4,000; Florida, 2,600; Kentucky. 9.600;
Oklahoma, 11,000, and Texas, 26,000. 1
IN FRONT LINE TRENCHES
3ouglas Featherstone Telia of Thrilling
Work.
The-following letter Is from Douglas
Featherstone, son of Hon. C. C.
Featherstone, well known to York
county people, as a candidate to
tvhom they gave a majority of their
totes in 1K1U. The letter is republished
from the tlreenwood Index:
Feb. 13. 1?1S.
[>ear Mr. Holton: ?
The very nice box of candy from
*ou and your family came to me some
Jays ago and I am sorry that my work
has been so unceasing and exacting
[hut I have not been able to thank
>ou all before this time.
You aimed the candy for somewhere
in France ut cnristmas ume. n uiuu >
reach me at that time due mainly to
my many moves Just at the last of the
rear; but when it did reach me on
:he firing line I assure you that it was
ten times as acceptable and nice as it
tvould have been had it reached me
it Christmas. I might say in passing
that the candy in company with two
ither packages from Greenwood found
lie with gas mask, waiting for a
Uoche gas attack to pass over.
The Spirit That Will Win.
The year 1918 has been exceedingly
satisfactory to us so far. To begin
nith 1 am working with one of the
est. if not the best organization in
he 1'nited States army?and my eonlection
with it has been of the pleasintest
nature itossible. With it I have
>een through almost the entire I toe he
iue-up of frightfulness and we have
ret,to fail to give them as good as
hey sent. We have met and will meet
lillleulties on all sides: but tile men
ire really wonders and somehow we
nnnage to pull through. I have been
....... ... If. in Ihnl t have I icon
(trough ex|torleneos anil situations
vhich usually come with yours initcad
of months on the tiring lino.
Magnitude of the Task.
Fighting a poworful, wonderfully
>rgnnizod enomy throe thousand miles
'rorn home is a task the magnitude ot
vhich wo can hardly realize ourselves
tad wo have many, many lessons to
earn: hut the U. S. soldiers are cutting
to the scratch noltly. I have Iteen
tut with our men (and the largest
[tart of the battery is made up of men
younger than I am?and a great many
tf thorn seventeen, eighteen and ninecon
years old) for three and four
lays at hard work when our average
deep was close to nothing and they
vorked cheerfully faithfully and
tteadlly. Once we were In the saddle
for sixteen hours and we got in and
earned that we had to go out in an
tour for eight hours more (and we had
tne meal when there should have
teen three and that one had been
fold)?one man complained out loud
ind he was met with a volley ol
'what'd you come over here for anyivayT1'
"Hay"you ought to've linougtit
your nurse along.' "D" you come herr
lo get your till of chow?" and he was
rorry he hadn't kept quiet.
Hot German Fire.
Only n few days ago a Hochc battery
opened up on us with high explosives
and they weren't wasting their
<hells all over the country either. The
dtnation was pretty bad and everybody
was ordered to take the best
ihelter available. The Hochc lire got
i little more previous as it went on
?nd it didn't make very nice music.
Finally we got some information as tn
is bat battery was tiring on us and tlx
captain told me to open up on them
with two guns and send the rest ol
the men away from the battery position.
We computed tiring data very
hastily and when I stepped outxidi
ind blew the whistle the men sprang
aut to the puns with a yell?ami il
reminded me of a footliall team when
I he whistle starts the game. With
<hell falling all around us we gave
them ahout thirty rounds and absolutely
silenced them?and if there wa>
si man in the battery as scared as 1
was he didn't show it that day. A
number of the men were hit, but not
hurt, by fragments and I had thr?f
fragments try to make a l?ell out of m>
helmet when a shell burst In the toy
of a nearby tree. It was one of th?
happiest bunches I ever saw when II
was phoned Into us a few minute;
later that we had caused a big explosion
and fire at the Boche batter)
ind put one gun out of commission?
lpparently having hit an ammunition
Jump in their vicinity.
In Very Front Line.
I have been In a forward observation
post for the past two days and I hav<
in opportunity to write this only bemuse
it is raining slightly and a denst
fog covers things and where yesterlay
I could see nearly every movement
over a couple of kilometers ol
front in No Man's Land enemy trenches
and, with the aid of glnsses. eight
3r ten kilometers behind the enemy
lines, and aerial activity still further
?today I can scarcely see the enemy';
first line trenches and It has been
the quietest day since I have been at
the front. Yesterday we were shelled
heavily and there hasn't been an inmeeting
officer around in three days?
the Germans are useful for some
things after all.
Wire Trouble There Too.
Early last night our telephone
ivire* were, to use technical terms
"all blowed to hell," and while II
wasn't essential. It was best that the>
tie replaced as soon as possible. Twc
Df the five men with me picked ut
their coats and helmets, shouldered
their kits and started out on the lines
without a word from me?and thej
worked for two hours without a lighl
under shell fire until the lines were
repaired, covering about two kilometers
of wire by feeling their way along
?and there was shelling of a light
nature all the time. It ia things like
this which give me a great deal ol
faith in the possibilities of our army
What Observation Work Is.
I am here in the "O. P." to se?
things and since the fog prevents thai
today, my job is mainly "sticking
around." With five men I am helping
All (and six of us do All it up!
a place about the size of a big closet
We can't move outside,during the daytime
and can't have a Are until it it
very dark. We are getting "slum*
and "coffee." hot and in buckets, from
an infantry company early in th<
morning and at night Our mid-daj
meal for the most part just "ain't" Today
the fog has enabled us to send
back for supplies and since it is on<
of the men's twentieth birthday and
we can start an early fire, we are having
quite a feed, in addition to our
slum and coffee, we a re having corned
i beef, buttered toast and jam, a can
of peaches and some candy. We have
had no mid-day meal and we'll do a
i lot of damage when we fall to in
' about an hour, it has lieen dump and
cold and we have shivered in overcoats
through the day. A tire that we
have just started helps the cause along
wonderfully.
Hair Cut in Tranchti.
Another treat that the fog brought
' was a hair cut which I had needed
for weeks. I couldn't leave my post
' and after sending several times a
barber from an Infantry comtiany
came up and did the job almost it! the
' Roche's faces?and not knowing how
far off the next one would l?e. I had It
1 clipped so close that it looks like a
' shave.
i The gift from your family was far
i from being necessary as evidence of
Mon.luhiif 1)11f it U:m
1 thoughtful and afforded tile much enjoyment.
i Please pass this across the street?
I may not get in another for days?
the music has just started and the
rattle of machine guns and thud of
trench mortars may l>e the beginning
of something that will keep It from
being the quietest day I've gone
through.
My best to all the Hoi tons.
r>. p.
John H. Pentlierstone.
2nd Ft. Hattery "It" Mli P. A.. A. F-. P.
INCOME TAX IN BRIEF.
The Requirements Boiled Down for
Busy Folks.
Iteturns must be tiled on or before
April I. 191H.
Tax due may be paid now or on or
before June 1.*. 1918.
If you are single and your net Income
for 1917 was $1,000 or more you
must tile a return.
If you were married and living with
| wife tor husband) and had a net Income
of $2,ono or more for 1917 you
must tile a return.
Husband's and wife's income must
be considered jointly, plus income of
minor children.
Income of a minor or incompetent,
derived from a separate estate, must
he reported by his legal representative.
Severe penalties are provided for
those who neglect or evade the law.
For false or fraudulent return there
is a penalty not exceeding 12,000 tine
or year's Imprisonment, or both, plus
loo per cent of tux.
For failure to make return on or
before April I, loix, line Is from $20
to $1,000, plus fiO per rent of tux due.
Returns must be tiled with the col,
lector of Internal revenue of district
In which you live.
Jft.agrn? way f.k rctnni <ui a pw- 1 "
[ son who Is ill, absent from the country
or otherwise Incapacitated.
ICuch return must be signed and
sworn or affirmed by person executing
it.
Single persons are ullowed $1,000
, exemption in computing normal tax.
A married person living with wife
(or husband) is allowed $2,000 exemp
tlon, plus $L'ou fur each dependent
child under 18.
A head of family, though Mingle, i?
allowed $2,000 exemption if actually
j supporting one or more relatives.
Hit urns must show the entire
amount of earnings, gains and profits
, received during the year.
Officials and employes are not toxuble
on the salaries or wages received
from u state, county, city or town in
, the I'nitcd States.
Interest on state and municipal
| bonds Issued within the U. 8. is ext
empt from Federal income tax and
should be omitted.
Interest on United States govern(
mcnt bonds is also exempt, except on
I individual holdings of Liberty Fours in
excess of $5,000 par value.
Dividends are not subject to normal
, tax, but must be reported and included
. in net income.
, Gift* and legacies are not incomo
. and should not be included on the return
of the beneficiary.
, Life insurance received as a beneficiary
or as premiums paid back at
. maturity or surrender of policy is not
income.
Payments received for real or peri
sonul property sold ts not income, but
the profit realized thereon is income
for the year of sale.
Amounts received in payment of
1 notes or mortgages is not income, but
' the Interest on such notes or mortgages
is taxable income.
From the entire gross income certain
allowances are made in arriving
at the net income.
Necessary expenses actually paid In
' the conduct or bUHiness, trade or profession
may be claimed.
A farmer can claim payment for
labor, aeed, fertilizer, stock feed, re'
puirM on buildings, except his dwelling;
repairs of fences and farm machinery,
materials and small tools for Immediate
use.
i The amount of rent paid for a farm
muy also be claimed as a tenant farmI
er'a expense.
Payments for live stock are allowable
If bought for resale. But If bought
- for breeding purposes cattle are an In
vestment, not an expense, and cannot
be allowed.
A storekeeper can claim amounts
paid for advertising, clerk hire, tele'
phone, water, light and fuel, also drayi
age and freight bills and cost of opcrating
and repairing wagons and
trucks.
' A physician can claim cost of his
i professional supplies, rent, office help,
> telephone, expense of team or auto.
mobile use in making professional
calls and expenses attending medical
1 conventions.
r A dentist can claim similar items,
, except team or auto expense, which
are not necessary in his profession.
! Expenses that are personal or con
nected In any way with the support or
f well being of a person or family are
! not allowable.
The costs of machines, instruments.
' vehicles or implements that are more
r or less permanent in character are not
allowable as an expense. They are investments.
Interest paid on a mortgage or other
? personal indebtedness is allowable on
I a personal return.
, All taxes paid within the year can
be taken out on a Federal return, ex'
cept Federal income taxes, inheritance
i taxes and assessments for local lm,
provements.
Losses sustained in business or
through Are, storm or shipwreck or by
1 theft, except when compensated by In'
suranee or otherwise.
, Wear and tear of rented bulldlno or
( machinery used in business may be
- claimed.
' Tou can also claim amount paid
. to the Red Cross and to other charita.
ble, religious or educational organisations
to the extent of 16 per cent of
1 your net income.
' \ * v . - l : . ,