Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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s v I 4 l m. grists sobs. Pabinheri } S ^aniilj Jleirspaper: Jfor {he promotion of the jpolitical, fecial, 3lgrieultural and (fommrrrial Jnteresls of the {froptg. j c* ^sr^v'e'o*" r*NCt EST A BUSHED 1855 - YORK, S. C., TUESDAY, MARCH '20. 1918. NO. ^ "OVERT By ARTHUR An American Boy Who Years Before ' >?py richt, by Arthur tiny ? llAJ'TKlt XMJ1. Gas Attacks and Spies. TlilU1 days a t ic! We had lilltll' til Ki'iU, I tie 'lei mans sent ev er Jos. It Jul nut < uteli us Unawares, because Itie wind ha<l been made to order, ihut is, ii was blowing from the ' ierinan trenches lowaid ouis at the rate of about live miles an hour. Warniniis hud been passed down the trench to kee|< a sharp lookout for tjas. \Vc ii.nl .1 new man ..i uie ijvi i?<.ui<v <>n tins ulleniooli in ijuestioh, 1 was I sitting oil tilt: lilt: step, cleaning IIIj I i iili w lit-ii lit- t all til toil to int. "I here - .1 so11 ni (ji'i'tiiinli yellow ion.I inlJiHK along liio ginuiitl out in limit, it s coming Cut I U.ilttii loi no limit, gi.thhillg ill> hayontl, ulil' li was detached from Hit i ill*, 1 gam Hit alarm by hanging an tni|il> slitll tast, which was hanging nt.ir tht jittisi opt. .\i the same instant, gongs stalled ringing down the ti*i*iii'>i. Hit signal tor 'rummy to tlmi Ins respirator, hi smoke htllut'l, as wt tall it. i.ts tr.mis i|iiii kly, so you must not loso any time, you generally liavt* alioul eighteen ol' twenty Seconds ill w hit ii to adjust youi gas helmet. A gas tii in.tt is mailt* of cloth, I tea I id with chcmii'uls. There are two windows, or glass eyes, ill it, through wlio n you tan see. inside there is a Milliter coveied til lie, whieh goes III I he mouth. Vou hrcaihe through your nose, the gas, passing through the eloth lielmet. Is lii-Ull a I ixcd hy the lie. I mil ol the chemicals. The loul aitis exhaled through lilt' luhe ill tile mouth, this tuhe heitig so eiiiistrueleil thai it |ireVetils the inhaling oi' the oilsidi air or the strongest gas. Kacli Tommy carries two of them slung around Ins shoulder in a waterproof auias hag. lie must wear this hag at all times, eii-n while sleeping. To change u defective helmet, you laki out I lie iii'M uitv, liolil your breath, |>llll till- oil I OIK- oil, placing tin- new oiio ovi-r your In-ad.- tucking: in the loose (-mis uiolcr the collar of your I linn-. l-'ot- a iniuuti- pandemonium reigned hi our tri-iieli ToinmieM adjusting their hetuicts. bombers running here anil there, ami men turning out ol' the dugouts with llxcd bayonets to man the tire step. iteinforcoinents were pouring out of t?ur gun's crew were busy mounting tiie muchine gun on tlie parapet and bringing extra ammunition from tin- dugout. *ii-rmaii gas is heavier than air and soon tills the trenches and dugouts, where it lias been known to lurk for two or thit - days, until the air is parilit-il by means of large i-heiiiii-al sprayers. We had to work utiit-kly. as KiIt/, generally follows tin- gas with an infantry attac-K. A i-ompaiiy uian on our right was too slow in getting on his helmet; In* sauk to the ground, club-hing at his tin-out. and after a few spasmodic twisting* went West (diedi. It was horrible to set- him die, hut we were powerless to help him. In the corner of a traverse, a little muddy cur dog. one of the company's pets, was lying dead, with his paws over his nose. It's the animals that suffer the most the horses, mules, cattle, dogs, cats and rats?they have no helmets to save tin-in. Tommy does not syuipa thi/.e with rats in a Kits attack. At times gas has hern known to travel, with dire results, liftccn miles behind the lines. A gas, or smoke helmet, as it Is railed, at the best is a vile-snielling thing. and it is not lt>n< before one Kets a violent headache from wearing It. mr eighteen-pounders were bursting hi No Man's Isind in an effort, by the artillery, to disperse the gas clouds. The lire step was lined with crouching men, bayonets llxed, and bombs near at hand to repel the expected attack. our artillery had put a barrage of curtain lire on the ( eruiai. lines, to try and break up their attack and keep back reinforcements. I trained my machine gun on their trench and its bullets were raking the parapet. Then over they came, bayonets glistening. In their respirators, which have a large snout in front, they looked like some horrible nightmare. All along our trench, rifles and machine guns spoke, our shrapnel was bursting over their heads. They went down in heaps, hut new vines took the places of the fallen. Nothing could stop that mad rush. The Germans readied our burhed wire, which had previously been demolished by their shells, then it was bomb against bomb, and the devil for all. suddenly my neau seemeu 10 uur?i from a loud Vraok" in my car. Then my head began to swim, throat got dry. and a heavy pressure on the lungs warned me that my helmet was leaking. Turning my gun over to No. 2. I changed helmets. The trench started to wind like a snake, and sandbags appeared to be Moating in the air. The noise was horrible: 1 sank onto the tire step, noodles seemed to be pricking my tlesh. then blackness.. I was awakened by one of nry mates removing my smoke helmet. How delicious that cool, fresh air felt In my lungs. A strong wind had arisen and dispersed the gas. They told me that I had been "out" for three hours: they thought I was dead. The attack had been repulsed after a hard Mght. Twice the Germans had gained a foothold in our trench, but had heen driven out by counter-attacka The trench was filled with their dead and ours. Through a periscope HE TOP" GUY EMPEY Got Into the War Two His Country. Krnpy. I ouunU-d eighteen dead Oermans i our wire; they were a ghastly sight i their horrible looking respirators. I .v.i.,m.il inv llrst smoke liellMi A bullet had gone through it on th left side, just grazing my car. Th gas had penetrated through the hoi made in the cloth. out of our crew of six we lost tw< killed and two wounded. That night we buried all of the dea excepting those in No .Man's I^und. 1 death there is not much distinction friend and foe are treated alike. After the wind had dispersed th g.is the It. A. M. (*. got busy with thtd chemical sprayers, spraying out th dugouts and low parts of the trenehe to dissipate aii> fumes of the rJermai gas which may have been lurking i same. Two days after the gas attack 1 wa sent to division headquarters, in an swer to an order requesting that cap tains of units should detail a ma! whom tliej thought capable of passim an examination for the divisional in telligeiwe department. Lfefore leaving for tiiis assign men 1 went along the front-line trend saving good-bye to my mates urn lording il over them, telling them tha I ha>l clicked a cusiiy joh hehind th lines, and how sorry I felt that the; had to stay in (lie front line and argui out the war with Fritz. They wer envious hilt still good-natured, and a I left the trctn h to go to the rear the; shouted after me: "iloud lin k, Yank, old boy; don' lorgi t to send up a few fags to you old males." I promised to do this and left. 1 reported at headquarters with six teen others and passed the require* examination, out of the sixteen up plicunts mur were seiecteu. 1 was highly elated because I was, thought, in for a cushy job buck u tins base. The next morning the four rgportet to division headquarters for instrue tions. Two of the men were sent t? large towns in the rear of the line! with an easy job. When it came oui turn the officer told us we wore goot men and hud passed a very ereditubh examination. My tin hut began to get too smal for me, and I noted that the othei man, Atwell by name, was sticking his cliem out more than usual. _ ^ The officer continued: "I think I ca use you two men to great advantag A Gas Helmet in the front line. Here are your order and instructions, ulso the puss whic' gives you full authority as special M 1'. detailed on Intelligence work. He port at the front line according l your instructions. It is risky work an 1 wish you both the best of luck." My heart dropped to zero and At well's face was u study. We salute< and left. That wishing us the "best of luck sounded very ominous in our ears; i he had said "1 wish you both a swif and painless death" it would hav been more to the point. When we had read our instruction we knew we were in for it good am plenty. What Atwell said is not lit for pub Mention, but I strongly seconded hi opinion of the war, army and division al headquarters in general. After a bit our spirits rose. W< ......... r..ll tl...vile-catchers, b^calls our instructions und orders s;iid so. We immediately reported to th nearest French calamine! und liud scv era I glasses of muddy water, whirl they called hwr. After drinking ou beer we loft the estaniinet and huile< an empty ambulance. After showing the driver our passe we got in. The driver was going to tin part of tlie line where we had to re port. How the wounded over survived i ride in that ambulance was inexplica tile to me. It was worse than riding 01 a gun carriage over a rock road. The driver of the ambulance was . corporal of the R. A. M. C.. and h< had the "wind up." that is, he had ai aversion to being under fire. I was riding on the seat with hin while Atwell was sitting in the anibu lance, with his legs hanging out o the back. As we passed through a shell-de stroyed village a mounted military po liceman stopped us and informed th< driver to be very careful when we go out on the open rood, as it was ver; i...iwwnimo the Hermans late ly had acquired the habit of shellin; it. The corporaJ asked the trooi?er i there was any other way around, an< was Informed that there was not Upon this he got very nervous an< wanted to turn back, but we inslstei that he proceed and explained to hin that he would get into serious troubl* with his commanding otticer if he re turned without orders: we wanted ti ride, not walk. From his conversation we learnei that he had recently come from Eng land with a draft and had never beei ? under fire, h'-nee his nervousness. We convineeii him thsit then* was ; not much dimmer, and he apfteared : itreatly relieved. When we at lust turned into the i open road we were not so "Ttmttdent. I On each side there had heen a line of 1 trees, hut now. all that was left of I them were torn and battered stumps, i The fields on each side ol the road i were dotted with recent sln^l holes, i .... ........,..1 ..........i a. ??.,. .......i it. !xelf. We had gone about hall a mile ' when a shell came whistling through i _ the air anil hurst in a ti<-M about . three hundred yarils to our right. Another soon followed this one and t hurst on the dire of the road ahout \ t four hundred yards in front of us. ' I told tin: driver to throw in > is ; speed t'lllteh, iis We must lie iii sight of tiie Hermans. I krf??w tlie sign: I that hatter.v was ranging for us. and tile <|||iekcr we got out oi its Zone of | *' tire the bettor. The driver was trein- | tiling like a loaf, and every minute 1 ; expected him to pile us u|> in the I " ditell. I pieferi'i d tlie Herman tire. '' in the back Atw. II was holding on I to straps for dear life and was sing- i ing at the top ol his voice: l' We In at you at tin- Maine. v We beat you at tin* Aisnc, I " We gave \imi )ie|| at N'.iim- ('."ipelle, t. And here we are attain. d a s .lllsl tin II we lilt a small shell hole I " and nearly capsized. I'poii a loud < * yell Iioiii Die icar t |oo|;??l behind and | n then was Alwill sitting in tin- middle K of the road, shaking liis list al lis. His * equipment, which lie had taken off upon gitiing into the ambulance, was | f strung out on tin- ground and bis title It was in the ditch. ji J I shouti d to tin- drivi i lo stop, and s t in Ids nervousness lie put on the o brakes. We nearly pib hod out head- ; V lirst. lint the applying ol those hrtikes e saved our lives. m \i iii.-aaui ? L* there was a Minding flash and a deaf t s niiitf i"i-uii. All that I remeiid.er is r that I was living through tin- air, ami wondering if I would lain) in a soft f I spot. Tin ? llu' lights \\iiil out. I, r When I came to. Atwi ll was pourinc water ?mi in> head out ol' liis bottle. p tin tin- otlii-r side of tin- road llu- eor- .? . poral was sitlintr. rubbing a lump on ,| 1 liis forehead with his left hand, while i, - his right arm was hoiiml lip in a Idoodsoaked haiida;;e. lie was moaning 1 very loudly. I had an awful headache 0 t and the skin on the left side of my t) lace was full of gravel n,,. |,|ood n ] was trickling from my nose. Hut the amhuluiiee was turned nvet } in the ditch and was perforated with g holes from fragments of the shell. One r of the front wheels was slowly revolvI' ing. so I could not have heen "out" ? for a long period. 0 The shells wire slill screaming overI head. Init the hattery had raised its . lire and they were l.nrsting in a little r wood ahont hall* a mile from us. j, Atwell spoke up. "I wish that olll- tj n Jcer hiwin't "wutaert iT8'tH"el"esf^5 "Tek*!,'W Then lie cotnmencod swearing. I . couldn't help laughing. though mv . ! head was nigh to hurst in jr. Slow I.\ rising to my feet I felt myself all over to make sure that lher? were no broken hones. Hut outside of ( a few hruises ami scratches I was all j right. The corporal was slill moaning, hut more from shock than pain. ^ A shell splinter had tame through the . flesh of his right forearm. At wall and ^ 1, from our lust-aid pom lies, put a tourniipictit on his arm to stop the ' Merditig ami then galla-ied tip our caiuipinent. W'e it ali/ed that we were in a dan- * gcrons spot. At any minute a shell might drop on the road ami finish us 1 off. The village we had hit was not very far. so we t<>l?I the eoriMiral In ' had better so hack to it and get his y arm dressed and then report the fact 1 ol the destruction of the ambulance to ' the militnr;. police. He was well aide " to walk, so lie set off in the direction ' of the village, while Atwell and I eon- J tinned our way on foot. s U'likoiri hixlluiv iiiivlcm we arriviil ^ ^ nt our destination, and reported to bri'* gade headquarters for rations and billots. ? That night wo slept in tin battalion '' sergeant major's dugout. Tho next morning I Went to a first-aid post and had the gravel pieked out of my fnoo. l' Tin- instruct ions wo received from division lujidqiiartors read that we were out to catch spits, patrol trench1 os, sonrch t Senium doad. reconoiter in ' No Man's laiml. ami tako part in e trench raids and prevent tho robbing of the dead. s I had a pass which would allow mo J to go unj where at any time in the sector of tIk* line held by our division. It " gave me authority to stop and search s ambulances, motor lorries, wagons and even ollicers and soldiers, whenever nit suspicions deemed il necessary. e At well and I were allowed to work to' cither or singly?it was left to our judgment. We decided to team up. e At well was a good comimnion and - very entertaining, lie had an utter It eontemp| for danger, but was not foolr hardy. At swearing he was a wonder, d 3 A cavalry regiment would have lieen a proud of him. Though born In Kug- v s land, he had spent seveial years in s p New York. He was about six fn t one, p - and as strong sis an ox. d We took up our quarters in a large |j ? dugout of Hie royal engineers, and $ - mapped out our future actions. This a 11 dugout was on the edge of a large j cemetery and several times at night p s in returning to it we got many a fait t p stumbling over the graves of Knglish. i Kreneh and Hermans. At well on these a occasions never indulged in swearing, i though at any other time, at the least c . stumble, he would turn the air blue. u f A certain section of our trenches t was held by the Ko>al Irish rltles. For j, - several days a very strong rumor wen* j, . the rounds that a German spy was in s p our midst. This spy was supposed to t t be dressed in the uniform of a Hritish u y staff officer. Several stories had been - told about an officer wearing a red i band around his cap who patrolled the f front-line and communication trenches ^ 1 ashing suspicious questions as to loca;. tion of batteries, machine-gun -emJ placements and trench mortars. If a V 1 shell dropped in a lottery, on a ntai chine gun or even near a dugout, this i* spy was blamed. The rumor gained such strength that t 0 an order was issued for all troops to e immediately place under arrest anyone f 1 answering to the description of the 1 - spy. a r? Atwell and I were on the qui vtve. r v W'cr constantlx patrolled tie- trenches ;it ni^ht. and tven in the but the spy always eluded iis. One day while in a communication trench, we were horrified t<> see our brigadier general. Old 1'rpper. l?-ins nought down it by a biff private of the Ifoval Irish rifles. The general was walking in front and the private with lived bayonet was following in the rear. W'e saluted as the general jgissed us. I'll* Irishman had a broad grin on hi" face and we could scarcely believe our yes?the general was under arrest. \fter passing a few feet beyond us. he general turned, and said in a" wrathful voice to At well: "Tell this d?n I'ool who I am. He's inested me as a spy." At well was speechless. The sentry mien in wiin: "None o' that Knssin' out o' laek to headquarters you poes. Mr. "ritz. Open tliat fare o' yours airain. in' I'll <l< nt in your nup|H-r with the nit I o' no- rifle." Tin- ai-iu-ml's fnee was a sipht to I" lohl. H?- was fairly hoilins ovi-r v\ itli ape hut In- shut u|i. Atwell tiii-il to n -t in front of the entry to explain to hini that it really ias tin- pi-m-rul lie hiol iin<l?-r arrest, nit Ho- sentry threatened to run his iayon(-t through him, anil wouhl have loin- it. too. So Atwell stepped asiih-. ml remained silent. I was nearly urstinp with suppressed laughter, no word, and I would have exploded, t is not exactly diplomatic to laitph t your pem-rul in such a predicament. The sentry and his prisoner arrived t luipadi- headipiarters with disnsrons results to tlo- sentry. Th* joke was that the peneral had M-rsonally issued tin- order for thiol's arrest. It was a hahit of the penral to walk through tin- trenches on omuls of inspection, unattended ny of his staff. Tin- Irishman, hoing ' ?' in the regiment, had. never seen In- ueiieral Iii-I'oh-. so Minn lie eanni-ross him alone in a eominmiication reiich. hi- prompt p. put him under atest. Hripndier penerals wear a red and around their caps. Next day we passed the Irishman led to the wheel of a limber, the heinnintr of his sentence of twenty-oih? ays. tiefd punishment No. l. Never 1 efore have I seen sueli a woehpono 1 xprossion on a man's face, l-'or several days. At well and I made ' ursclves scarce around luipnde head- 1 uarters. We did not want to meet 1 in- k'enernl. ri?> spy was never caught. t (To He Continued.) ] ???? FARM BANK LOANS 1 iur Cumbersome Red Tape Makes I .Investigations Difficult. 1 To expedite loans and to overcome, ' ' possible, the cumbersome process of, 1 aestivations prevalent in this set> . ion, the^fsdsr^ J^jj^Jhuik ion adopted what is known as the! 'short term abstract," according to an ninouncement just made by the Counibia Ijand Hank. Under this uethod, when an application is made or a loan, the realty on which the iioney is to be secured is to be traced >aek for twenty-one years. Should he applicant who makes the loan lave held the property for that pcrod or longer, then title will be traced tack to the liist transfer beyond that eriod. Conversely, should the realty n question have changed hands once >r several times- in the twenty-one cars then the title will be traced ?ack for the full period of twentymo years. "The great handicap from which his bunk has suffered," said K. II. iVcleh, of Columbia, general counsel if the Columbia land bank, recently in liscussing the short term abtraet, "and tin- same thing is true if federal land bank districts Nos. one, wo. three, four and live?this district aintc No. three?is the slowness in vliioh ui>i>licunts have been able to uriiish abstracts of their property: tnd this in turn has been due in great ncasurc to the old system of requireng an abstract to carry title back to he grant from the state, or, failing in hat, to some remote period. This quiroment, when applied to titles in lie original thirteen states, which nake up the districts above named, i.is made the closing of loans very, cry slow. "The object, therefore of this short ? rm abstract is to cut out this tedious rocess of abstracting over such a ong period and to substitute in lieu hereof the short period of twenty-one ears. The period beyond twenty-one ears, and therefore not covered by In- short term abstract Is, that period in account of the conditions of our words which has been so troubleome to the abstractors and conseucntly has been such a prolific source if delay to the applicants in getting heir loans closed. "To protect this bank against loss, icwever, of any kind by reason of any efoct in the titles beyond the period Instructed in our .short term abstract | ire have u bond from the United dates Fidelity and Cuuranty Comiuny, of Baltimore, Md., and the FiJellty and Deposit Company of Maryind, also Baltimore, completely aving the bank harmless in case of ny loss which may arise out of any efect in any title upon which a loan 1:1s been made, based upon the short ' erm abstract. "The western banks are a long way head of the eastern banks In the mount of loans closed, and all beuuse of the difference In the title sitlation. The short term abstract will, herefore, place this bank on an equally in title matters with the western anks. This is only another way of aying that it places the farmer in his section on the same footing with farmer out west." John Taylor, a 12-year-old negro toy, was killed by an Atlantic Coast Jne train at Cheraw, Thursday. The toy jumped a freight train, rode 200 ards, jumped on a .cinder bed ard was hrown back under the wheels. Twenty-eight applicants for license i o practice stood the pharmaceutical xamination before the state board at | Florence on Wednesday and Thursday. !,i hirteen successfully passed the ex- , minatlon, and of these one was a egro. . J I ., i SOLDIERING AT SEVIER Process of Selection Being Steadlty Pushed. MARRIED MEN BEING ELIMINATED. Mental Incompetents Not Needed? Married Men Get Discharges?Food Conservation Gets Close AttentionNo More Easy Picking for Camp Followers at Paris. (Cussed by the Censor.) 'amp Sevier, March 20?Weeding out of physical and mental misfits, married men and others with dependents among the soldiers here continues. None other than soldiers who are in the best physical condition and possessed of average mentality at least, will ever see service abroad with the American armies. At Camp Sevier there are scores of men who should never have been enlisted because they were not physically fit. There are dozens who should never have been admitted to the sendee because they arc lacking in mental aptitude. Take "Surge Hughes" for example. He was discharged the other day because of mental inaptitude. "Surge" is about twenty-eight years old. He said he went to school ten years anil in that time never learned to read or write his own name. Place a nickel, a dime, and a penny and a quarter in his hand, tell him you will give him the lot if he tells you the sum total and you would stand in no danger of losing your money. He couldn't add the sunt to save his life. I saw "Surge" lend a fellow soldier one day after he had just received his pay for the month. Within live minutes he had absolutely forgotten the name of the man to whom lie loaned the money result that he is out The soldier who wheedled him out of the live did so deliberately, knowing that poor "Surge" wrtuld ne\er remember. All those like "Surge" are going fast now and as eaeh one goes there is one more sigh of relief wafted skyward by that company commander or other officer who is responsible for the many delinquencies of that man. Many drafted men who have families are also being discharged from the service. Drafted married men who can establish the fact that they are unable to support their families in the same degree of comfort on their salaries as soldiers together with the monthly family allowances made for support by the government as they w.re In civil life are being turned out In large numbers. Experience of the past five months has sliown that as n rule married drafted men do not develop into good soldiers as readily as do single drafted men. Probably It is because the married drafted men much to think about beelde Turning to soldier. A major, a friend of mine, in conversation the other day voiced the opinion, that no soldier should be a married man, especially in war time. I think that myself sometimes, though I know that if Uncle Sam should prohibit any of his soldiers from marrying during the period of the war there would be tinmischief t<> play. The view of Private Prince, a married man and hardly -t voices tiie sentiment of soldiers in regard to marriage. "Sure, 1 have a wife," said he the other day. "I draw thirty bones a month, l^fteen of w hleh go to her together with an additional llfteen that Old Man Sam hands her. She gets thirty and lives and we anas happy as any two kids you ever saw. Her dad boards her and clothes her." "What do you do?" I Inquired. "Oh, he said, "the thirty I send her is pocket change." The wives of those soldiers who have not fathers-in-law to look to. though, have a pretty tough time of it in this day of the high cost of living Judging from the strenuous efforts their husbands are making to get out of the service and back to them. And even Private Prince, scion of a house of comfortable circumstances, while a line fellow, is a rather poor soldier. His mind is mostly up ill Tennessee, in that town where the wife lives. Wo in the army don't know anything about meatless and wheatless days. We get ours seven days in every week and plenty of it. A "clean plate at every meal," however, is not only an army slogan: but fast becoming an army law. Every soldier is entitled to all he ran eat, and the authorities see to it that he gets all he can eat; but woe to that soldier who takes u great raft of food on his plate and then fails to eat it unless he has a good reason why. We had brains and eggs at breakfast a few mornings ago. That is a favorite dish of mine. Front my place in the "cliow line" X could see the big pot of the food afar off. The cook who happened to be dishing out the brains and eggs that morning is a particular "buddie" of mine and 1 knew right then that I would get a liberal helping. I held out my aluminum eating apparatus, gave him it certain signal that is well understood between us and he tilled my chow pan full of brains ami eggs steaming hot I ate heartfly but there was more in the pan than I could handle. 1 placed my dish with the balance of the food in it under my shirt and went out stealthily and with fear lest the mess officer (it is his duty to report those wasting food) should see me. I thought he was in the kitchen or hoped he was there at any rate: but lo and behold he was out in the yard standing over the garbage can in which I would have to throw my discarded food before washing the mess kit. There was one of two things to do. have a good excuse for not eating the food or take a week's confinement on the company street for wasting It. I twisted my face somewhat in the manner that Frits twists his when a Sammy gets after him with a bayonet I placed one hand on my stomach as though I were in 'great pain and then, marching up to the garbage can, threw the brains and eggs I couldn't eat therein. I limped over to the tub where mess kits are washed, pondering to myself whether my ruee had worked. \ . " - .. . ' y It did. My name was not included in the list of those reported that night for wasting food during the day. Hut the next time 1 let my friend the cook till my kit full of brains and eggs, 1 shall he absolutely sure of my appetite. y I'a ns, the town in the midst of Camp Sevier inhabited by scores of quacks and leeches of various kinds who have < been engaged in the easy and profitable business of relieving soldiers of I their respective thirties per since the i camp was established last year, suf- i fered a knock-out blow last week when the military authorities issued < orders whereby all the restaurants of i the place were forced to close and f barber shops were made to close until i they should meet certain require- 1 inents. 1 The place is almost dead now. A i few stores are open though they han- t die nothing but tobaccos, toilet arti- t cles and soft drinks. The two vnudo- i ville houses in the village still do and the notes of an electric t piano advertise the fact that the pic- > ture show is still exhibiting fairly i good photo plays?admission fifteen t cents. But the Joints that formerly I mopped up with the sale of hot dogs: f hamburgers, cold storage eggs and t other foodstuffs are doing business no i longer. i It is understood that the army doc- s tors are of opinion that a considerable r percentage of the sickness in camp is due to soldiers gorging themselves I at every opportunity on the food sold < in Paris and Sevier station by these s camp followers, which is often times t improperly cooked and of poor t quality. I As a result of the closing up of these J places soldiers have money in their 1 pockets and are certainly as well otT I physically and maybe a couple of \ week's" time will show that they are t mu< !i better off. The Paris peddlers f aiv madder than wet liens over the i order. They can't do a thing-our iou* < mad. Th'\v know hotter than to say anything and they certainly can't do i anything- Whether their tdacc.s are r closed for all time is not known. I Jas. D. Urist. ? I SOME POLITICAL RUMORS ? I Dillon Herald Hears that Manning and 1 Blease May Run for Congress. c The Dillon Herald says: f It is rumored?and rumors must he Liken for what they are worth in j political years?that if Congressman Lever runs for the senate?Gov. Manning will be a candidate for congross from the seventh district. And t another rumor has it?of course these are rumors- thut if Gov. Manning enters tho race for cons, vo- a. ^ the seventh Gov. Uleuse will not run ( for the senate but will oppose Gov. e date for the senate and If he is am- J bitious to go to the national capital us a representative from South Caro- ( lina lie is free to make the race for congress from the seventh. As stat- ( ed in the beginning, these arc polit- ( ical rumors and can he taken for ( what they are worth. Congressman ( Lever is being urged to make the f race for the senate and there are i many people who think he is the ( most logieal man to oppose Gov. ( HI ease. Hut there are other sena- , lorial aspirants that will have to be reckoned with. X. B. Dial, a busi- , ness man of laiurens, has annoiinc- J ed his candidacy, and it is said that ( iSx-Senalor John L. McLaurin is heing urged to become a candidate. As ( is well known, there Is not the best feeling between Senator Tillman and ( ex-Senator McLaurin, and McLau- ( rin's friends want him to make a vigorous campaign for the senate and "even up" with his former colleague in Washington. Hut viewed j from any angle the situation is somewhat puzzling: Mr. Lever does not ( want to oppose Senator Tillman, provided Senator Tillman in strong enough to beat Mr. Blease. If Mr. Lever runs for the senate to "save the state" and Gov. Manning and Mr. Blease oppose each other for congress in the seventh the race will narrow down to n light between Mr. Lever and Senator Tillman, both of whom stand practically on the satne platform. In that event ex-Senator McLnurin would stand an excellent chance of winning over both opponents. If Mr. Blouse sta>s In the race for the senate he will have the advantage of a solid vote as against the divided vote of Senator Tillmun and Mr. Lever. In the three cornered race for governor in 11116 Blease lacked only a few votes of getting a majority over Manning and Cooper and it was only by thorough, aggressive and systematic work on the part of Mannings friends that Blease was defeated in the second primary. Mr. Blease's unpatriotic attitude toward the national administration has cost him some strong friends and supiiorters, but It Is not to be doubted that he will be able to drawaround him a pretty strong following next summer. Australian Hunters.?In endurance and speed the Australian aborigine is not the equal of the American Indian, and his weapons of wood and poorly fashioned stones are effective only at short range, says the N'ational Geo graphic Magazine. But as a hunter ' the native Australian is marvelously t adopted to his environment. His sue- i cess lies in an intimate knowledge of i the habits of the animals on land, in i the ground, in trees and under water, i and his wonderfully developed power < of observation. 1 He decoys pelicans by imitating i their crys, catches ducks by diving be- > low them, locates an opossum in a t tree by marks on the bark or by the ? flight of mosquitoes, flndB sharks by t observing the action of birds and fol- < lows a bee to its store of honey. > Any animal which leaves a track < however dim in sand, on rock or in f grass falls an easy prey to the native. Children are taught to track lizards and snakes over bare rocks and to find > their absent mothers by following i tracks too indistinct to serve as a i guide for any European. When a white j man is lost In the desert or a child c strays from home the final resort is to 1 secure a "black tracker." t LABOR CONTRACT LAW May be Convicted When There is Fraud or Intent to Injure. iJovernor Manning has approved the new labor contract law, passed by the < recent general assembly. It Is as fol- < lows: ' "Section 1. That sections 492, 493, 494. 495, 496, 497. 499. u?d 499 of the ' criminal code of South Carolina are hereby stricken out and the following 1 inserted in lieu thereof, to be known IS Sections 492, 493, 494, 495, 496, 497 i ind 4 9$, to wit: \ "Section 492. Misdemeanor frau- 1 latently to foil to cairy out contract 'or persot^il service. Any person 1 f\f\ uhnll rnntrnpf with nnnthpr fit render lilm personal service of any a cind and shall thereafter fraudu- t ently. or with malicious Intent to I njure his employer, fail or refuse to t ender such service us agreed upon, y iltall be deemed guilty of a misde- \ neanor. u Section 4 93. Misdemeanor to fall r o employ after contract.?Any per- 1 ion who shall hereafter contract to | iceivo from another personal aer- i Ice of any kind, and to compensate l it in therefor, und shall thereafter <1 raudulently or with malicious In- n ent to injure his employe, fail or >1 vfuse io receive such service or to f nake compensation as agreed upon, v ihall be deemed guilty of a misde- < neanor. > Section 494. Misdemeanor to fraudueiitl.v fail to perform services after reliving advances.?Any person who hall hereafter contract with another " u render personal service of any kunl o him, and shall thereafter frauduently. or with malicious intent to Inuro the employer, procure advances ? n money or other things of value from tint, with Intent not to render the ser- ( ice agreed upon, and wlio shall f hereafter, with like intent, fail or reuse to perform the service agreed ipon, shall be deemed guilty of a tnislemeanor. Section 4i?.*?. Misdemeanor to re- * eive labor and not make advances or ' ompensation.?Any person who shall ' lercafter contract with another to re- ' eive from hint personal service of any lind, to compensate him therefor, and li 0 make advances to him. and shall <1 hereafter fraudulently or with mail- ii ious intent to injure the employer, re- a eive the benefit of such service in vhole or in part, and with like intent (1 ail or refuse to make the compensaion or advances agreed upon, shall be t lecintd guilty ot' a misdemeanor. 0 Section 496. fontracts may be ither verbal or written?to be read 3 lid witnessed.?The contracts re- ^ erred to in Sections 491' to 4?7, in- (] lusive, may be cither verbal or in j. vriting; if in writing, they shall be ?iby one or more dlslnterstod person-. ut the rec.|uest of tither party be dui, executed before ^ 1 magistrate, whose .ftitv , J !o readana explain the same to the parties. Such contract shall clearly 1 ?et forth the conditions upon which he laborer or laborers engage to 1 nork. embracing the length of th< line, the amount of money to be paid, ami when; If it be on shares of rops, what portion or portion* [hereof. If verbal, they must be witnessed by at least two disintcr. stcd witnesses, not related by blood >r marriage within the sixth degree, [o either party, and the term of service contracted for must be for a h-linitc time, not exceeding one fear. All such contracts shall be ralid only between the original parlies therein, and any attempted transfer or assignment of any rights thereunder shall be null and void. Section 487. Registration of contracts.?If either party to any written contract herein referred to deores to avail himself of the benefits of Sections 492 to 497, inclusive, igainst third parties, he shall cause the sume to be indexed In the office of the register of mesne conveyance or the clerk of the court (where the office of register of mesne coijveyiiice does not exist), of the county in which said labor or service is to toe performed, within ten days from tlie date of the contract; and such indexing shall constitute notice to ill third parties. Such index shall show the numes of the employer and the laborer, the date of the contract mil the date of its termination, and I he location and the name of the place or places whereon the said labor or service is to be performed. me cierK 01 mo court. or iuc rctm- j tor of mesne conveyance, us the case may be, shall endorse his official I certificate and the date of the filing t to be indexed upon every contract lied under the provisions of Sec- ; Jons 492 to 498, inclusive, und his jnly fee for the same shall be five cents of each contract. And the *] clerks of court, or the register of mesne conveyance as the care may 1 jo, in all the counties of the state j diall provide a book for indexing iuch contracts, which' shall be plain- 1 y labeled "Index Labor Contracts." j Section 498. Punishment for vloation of provisions as to contracts.? 1 Upon conviction in a court of com- . [jetent jurisdiction of any person charged with a violation ot Sections f 192 to 4 97, inclusive, the person so convicted shall be.punished by a fine lot less than $25 and not exceeding j (100, or by imprisonment not less :han 20 'days and not exceeding 30 lays for each offense; Provided, <. That there shall be no prosecution inder Sections 492 to 497, Inclusive 1 inless the arrest warrant shall be ^ ssued within 30 days from the commission of the offense. Sections * 192 to 497, inclusive, are not intend- y id, and shall not be construed, to jrotect any of the parties to, or pun- I sh the violation of, any contract or f matter connected therewith, where he inducement or consideration of C iuch contract is money or other hing Of value advanced to or for the ^ .mninuo ?rinr in th? commence nent of service thereunder; all such 1 contracts are hereby prohibited and jleclared null and void." m 1 Feet Too Big for the Army.?Prl- j rate Ifose Jefferson, the negro who v.is honorably discharged from the ^ latlonal army at Camp Travis, San j tntonio, because tl e government rould not And shoes big enough to At G lira, la back in his little log-cabin tome near Goose Creek. He Is slosh( >ug around unsuod, as ho has beon doing ever since he saw the light of day. about twenty-flve years ago. Mose's feet require a No. 15 shoe. During the three months he spent at I'amp Tra\ is he v as a sor trial to the officials of the supply departments, as well as to the officers who had charge f the drilling of the co.apany to which he belonged. Mose is proud of the distinction he las attained. "Y-a-s, sah, I likes de ahmy fust-ate." he said to a white neighbor who ;isifiq) hi in short Iv his .-irrivn! 'rom Camp Travis. "Did you do any drilling at Camp Praxis?" Muse was asked. ' Yus. Indeed. I'se drilled ebery day ilong with do rest of do niggers In do >ne Hundred and Sixty-ninth Depot brigade. When 1 wuz grafted I went o San Antonio with a hunch of nlgjers who had done boon grafted, too. .Vhen we got out to de camp we wuz liven a wash-up an' den handed out iniforms and shoes. I tol' de cupt'n "d a-nevor wore shoes, but he said nit 'em on. De man kept a-haudln' no one pair after another till lie said le had run out of sizes. He called up le major and he axed me what I neant a-hahin' such big feet. He said le goxinent didn't hab no time to be oolin' and losin' time over a nigger rho had feet dat 110 shoe would tit."? loose Creek, Texas correspondence few York Sun. GENERAL NEWS NOTES. A I * M innamnnt P.rtl . icwuiu w vui 'vi . w?? lected from Various Sources. The somite l>y an amendment to the grlcultiir.il MM has llxed the price f wheat at per bushel. After April 1st all restuurunts anil heat res in laiudon will be ret|Uireil u close at v:i? p. in., instead of at s I'eloek. as now. The rule will also pply to clubs and private hotels. War risk insurance to the total of i!O0,00U,uo0, has been taken out by iig enterprises of New York, covering lossible losses by bomharduieiit from he ocean or the air. The license court of Philadelphia ias dealt the liquor saloons of I'hllalelphia a staggering blow by prohlbling dancing and moving pictures in ny place where lhjuor is sold. \V. K. Young, a barber of Marlictte, Wis., bus been lined $25 and osts for saying that the sinking of he Tuscaniu was a Joke and thut it ught to have been done. licnjaniin P. L>ink, a private of the 12th Field artillery at Camp Meade, id., has been sentenced by courtlartial to serve six months at hard ibor for desertion. Joseph i-iincnmun, a weauny uacnlor of Merchantvllle, N'. J., died last Vcdnesday at tho age of 93 years, luring the later years of hla life he rdoptea vtar-mmx maw lawn miy ?~ >oys in his home. John Slousurski has been sentenced o live years' imprisonment by the Yderul court at Detroit, Mich., for hrcutcning the life of Henry Ford and ns son, Kdsel, unless Mr. Ford gave mil llo.oou. The shipping board is making plans or the building of ten l&,u00-ton steel Inps of uitsinkable construction. I'ln se lire to be the lurgest cargo earlets yet undertaken by the shipping toard. Major George Ij. Peterson, on trial it ltaleigh, N. O., lust week, on -hurges of embezzling 37,000 from the V'orth Carolina National Guard funds, las been dec-lured not guilty by a jury. l'he major will return to his duties at Jump Jackson, Columbia. Tax slackers who fail to tile their m-onie tax returns by April 1st will ie prosecuted as vigorously and reentlessly under the war revenue act is draft slackers are under the selee:ivc draft law, according to a statement made last week by Daniel C. Itoper, commissioner of Internul evenue. THE GIRL I LEFT BEHIND ME Jailing, when I ain far away, From you, somewhere in France, ask you to always think of rne, And pray that I have a chance. To leave you, dear, was hard, The hardest thing of ull, tut I am no slacker, When I hear my country call. Co be at home with you, little girl, Is happiness that is true, tut I cannot see the enemy, Down the red, white and blue, used to lie with you often, -Those beautiful happy days, tut it makes me blue to think That we are so far away, tome day in the near future This great conflict will end, Vnd the soldier boy who loves you Will come linen to you again, t is the duty of every girl Who is left behind. To always remember the boy she loves who Is on the tiring line. Ic did not want to leave you, For he has gone to risk his life? le Is a true American, And upholds the stars and stripes. The girls here are beautiful, Most everywhere you roam; Jut arc nothing to compare With the ones at home. iVhen the boys go marching by In step with some national hymn, t thrills my heart to know 1'hat I am one of them, told you wh<tn 1 kissed Those lips of yours so sweet, rhat I was going to leave you. And again we may never meet. )on't give up. my darling. If you love me you will wait; f we don't meet on earth again, We will meet at the Golden Gate, tome girls are not so patient. Who will not wait so long. Jut will go and love a slacker When their soldier boy has gone. Vhen he comes to fight the battle r or nis couiur> unu iui ;uu, ii.s thoughts arc always resting On the one he thinks is true. Vhen he returns in yegrs to come And finds you false, {is whole life will be ruined, And his happiness lost. )on't bear this strain, little girl; Make your love be true; ireet the boy in khaki. Whet^ he comes marching back to you. 'hrow your arms about him, Let him kiss your sweet little lips, 'hen he will fully tell you. All about his wonderful trip. )on't respect a slacker. They deserve not a chance; 'he boys you should honor. Are the boys who go to France, will close this letter, hoping You will be mine some day, is I bid you goodbye for this hour, And goodbye for this day; f it is goodbye for a month. He loves you as true as ever, Joodbye for a year. And perhaps goodbye forever. -C. M. 3.. Co. M, 118th Inf., Camp Sevier, Greenville. _