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YORKVILLE 1 ENQUIRER. issued stffrwmlt. : ? ??? ?? .... . j. . _ . . ^ , it.. . t?rms?$2^5 a year in advanck. i i grists I0V8. Pabliih?r?. j % <Jfamilg Jftrspajifr: <Jfor th$ promotion of political, fffrial, ^gmoltnral and (Cotnmfi;naI Jnterests of the peopn. | hihol* copy. pivk ckjtts. ESTABLISHED 1855 york, s. c. friday, jtjlyy9. 1918. nxxj38 EVERY MAN AT HIS TOOLS: Merer Beftre Vis Var Like Tbls \ lie. _ ?, ?i HIFE8JINAL.MEN AND MECHANICS. 1 , All Aro N??ded to Perfect the Great t War Machine, the Professional Men, ii the Mechanics and the Artisans, no k Lett than the Man With the Gun. < fussed by the Censor.) Correspondence The Yorkville Enquirer. Cump Sevier, July 13.?.Never was ^ a war like this* To carry it to a suecessful conclusion us the Sammies are going to do. It Is necessary that ^ their millions include men skilled in every known profession under the sun. ' The American army today Includes doctors, lawyers, preachers, photo- K graphers, printers, plumbers, artists, farmers?men of every known profession and trade. The American army is a world within itself because every trade and Industry in progress on the outside I.h being carried on in it. Hundreds and thousands of soldiers in ' the National army will never have a * chance to take a shot at Kritz with an ' Kntield All their time will have l<eei? taken up at their respective trades as " ^ lawyers and photographers and W plum hers and other professions uIkivc 11 enumerated. This most modern of ' wars is being conducted In the most * modern way with all the most modern ' , ' conveniences and comforts. The veteran of the War Between the ' Sections even yet sits by the tohac- 11 co-uinherol colored stove in the corner grocery store and talks about 1 Chnneellorsville and I'etersburg and Yicksburg and other batth-s. He relates liow he slept on the ground ( nights and rammed horseshoe slugs ^ in liis musket when lead balls were out. it is the rarest thing in the world that one of these old vets tells J you that he wasn't engaged at Chan- ( eellorsville or I'etcrsburg or Vlcks- ( burg with a rifle and horseshoe slug . bullets; but spent his time in mending wagons or doing advertising for tin- cause or mending clothes or something like that. In fact, during the V Civil war, there wasn't much of that kind of thing done. Yet. In t(slay's war a large number s of men who wear the khaki, aye. k thousands of them, are doing these tilings. Twenty years hence or thirty ( years ht-niHt when the veterans of tin- . light of today will sit around the ( steam |)I|kh in the corner grocery ( store (there will he no common stoves anywhere l.y that time) thousands will ( till that they didn't hurl honths or slash with bayonets or shove carti ridges Into Idg guns. They served by j dishing out bacon and eggs, by handl- ( tng the mall, by repairing motorcycles t and automobiles, by raising fresh veg^ etablew for their fyllow soldiers and ^ all of that. And they will be given s just as much credit for their service (i as they who went "over the top" a ^ hundred times, putting the fear o' Cod and resjsct for human right Into ^ the minions of "Kultur" every time they went. In a modern war conduct- . ed in a modern manner, it was ne- .| cessary that they serve outside the muddy, brtickish ditches. Incidentally, be It said, thousands of these men in (| non-combatant places will be disapIHtlnbui at missing the thrill and ex- ^ citement. the dash and pictures<|Ue- (| ness of it all. Nevertheless, they serve. s All of this is by way of introduc- ' tion to a story about the trnining of automobile mechanics and electricians , and workers and blacksmiths which is J going on at the United States Meohnnirnl school over at t'lemsoii col- n lege. Having a brother In that school and a letter from him a few days ago that he might not lie there as long as he has been, 1 obtained permission this ^ week to visit him and give him the . n "once over," as soldiers say, perhaps the last for quite a while. There Is always much of interest for a visitor to Clemson college to see. The prc-sence of these National soldiers there and the work that they are doing or rather the work which they are learn- 1 Ing, Is of very peculiar interest. Some L'OO young drafted men from ( every county in South Carolina were sent to Clemson in April, to enter 11 this government mechanical school under the tutelage of the able mechanical professors of Clemson college. Men who had some experience 3 as carpenters, electricians, auto repair and blacksmiths were selected ( for the school. Included among those sent were some who owned garages of their own, others who owned car- ? penter and wood work ing shops, others who had shod many a horse and ? fitted many a wagon tire, and others who had worked with electricity for ' years. Thus these drafted men were ' not rookies, and this fact has helped J ^ the college professors much In train- 4 Ing them for the work which they may soon be doing. Soon after the arrival of these men of various trades they were separated Into four stations?woodwork- j ere. auto re Hair, blacksmiths and elec- 3 trivians. They were placed in charge of the respective professors of the col- ( lege who teach these trades to Clem- ' son students each year. The wood- ( workers Invited people of Clemson and j the countryside who had woodwork to do. to let them do it for experience. There was no charge. Workers in the other departments did likewise. Clemson college bought eight automobiles t to be used by the automobile me- j chanlcs to assemble and dissemble. <j Pretty nearly everybody In the lower t section of Greenville and In Oconee j counties who had an automobile or c Ford that once had run, brought it to f the soldier automobile mechanics at f Clemson. to put In shape again. At j * ?k? .wvel/wl a/ trolnlncr I om* lime uui nig HIV 1^1 ivu VI II I 26 automobiles were standing at the i mechanical auto repair shop for the t soldiers to work on. They haven't yet ] struck a mechanical proposition that c they couldn't solve or that the pro- t feasor In charge couldn't show them t how to solve. r They learned most of what they t know at Clemson and each of them t ? could now command a salary of from | $40 to $60 a week with Henry Ford. "I thought I knew something about automobiles before I came to this t army mechanical school." said one f young fellow from Dorchester county, t to me yesterday. "I have been driving ? strs for years and working in a gauge an<I I know that I knew as much is ihi- avcraK>- 'lilackxitith auto ex< rt." I hit under an able professor, I iave gotten the fine points of the rarne here. The most intricate part if an automobile's im-chanlsm is the lectrical part. We have been intruded in that by a professor who ms been here at Clemson college fif. een years. A professor couldn't stay t Clemson fifteen years unless he aiew his business." That these young soldier mechanics iave a high regard for their instructors is evidenced by the way t laming fellow quoted above talked, rhey all feel that way. None of them tad any comment other 1 than the ilghest praise for them. "I would iave hated to think that I should ome time be driving a truck over lore witnoui me ex|KTn-nii- i n?? ^ rotten at this mechanical school," said i young fellow whom the hoys call I'at," and who lives in Waltorboro. 'at can handle an eighty horse.powr government truck like it wore a 'ord. Along with their mechanical trainng the mechanical students have heen p-tting some two or three hours miliary training each day. They know till ihout the school of the soldier, haymet fighting, skirmishing and every ranch of the Infnntry. -They are loath-red In the barracks of Clemson ollege and they must keep their repectlve quarters In military manner. In Infantry captain of the National irmy and three lieutenants are in harge cf them, and the importance of nilitary training and discipline is itressed. In the drill they use the ifles that the Clemson men left betind for the summer. They are reimnsihlc for the good condition of hose rifles which shine in a July sun ike the rifles of any crack outfit of 'nele Sam's army of the line. Though hose woodworkers and blacksmiths ind electricians and auto men will tardly ever fight in the line, still, hanks to their military training at 'IfHison, 1 hey will know how to do t if it ever becomes necessary. And my .soldier will tell you that ono nev r knows what's next in this modern vn r. So far as military courtesy and es|>ect for ollleers is eoneerned, these loldier-mechanics are the is|iial of the >lst division of Camp Sevier, and the dst has a shade on almost any other livision of the National army or the -egulars either, in saluting and miliary courtesies. I was seated outside he ('lentson barracks under the shade if a tree Thursday after dinner talking o a dozen or so of these young mo'lianics. They were dressed in overills awaiting the hell announcing aft r dinner work time. There was to ?e a dance over at I'endleton that vening and they were discussing vhether or not they wanted to go. Their captain passed down the_jceIVtiefO htoy were landing and sitting, some with clgarttes in their mouths and others with aids of tohacco or gum. '"Shun," called one of their num>er. Cigarettes went flying. Hrown's Mule nice squirted, healthy bodies in ill Itting dirty overalls became rigid, ight hands went up over the right ye and elbows at an angle of fortyIve degrees. The captain returned the salute ami iasscd on. It was all done in a monent and with such accuracy and preision that I imagined myself back in Sevier and In the midst of the Stonerail division Only about two months in service ?ot intended for lighters and yet they mve mastered mechanics t<? ne rami s proficient and in addition know nilitary to l>oat the llun. Jas. D. (ilist. Cotton Statistics for June.?Cotton onsitmcd during Juno amounted to 27.464 running bales, and Tor the leven months ending June 30, it was .049,541 hales, the census bureau anlounced last Monday. Last year in June 574,110 bales were onsunted and for the eleven months period, G.260.6S2 Imles. Cotton on hand June 30 in consumng establishments was 1,661,992 ales, compared with 1.743,527 n year go. and in public storage and at coinpresses 2,117,300 bales, compared with .402,405 a year ago. Cotton spindles active during June ilimltered 33.720.413. compared with 3.447,037 a year ago. Imports of foreign cotton during une nmounted to 30.191 hales, cornel red with 26,1 SI a year ago. Exports during June amounted to 73,302 bales, compared with 245.709 i year ago, and for the 11 months 4.56,353, compared with 5.467.412 a oar ago. Lintcrs Included In extorts were 9.101 bait's for June, compared with 20,077 a year ago and for he 11 months 171,002 compared with 16.9S5 a year ago. June statistics for cotton growing tates follow: Consumed 296.9S0 bales compared vlth 327.962 a year ago. and for the 1 months 3,417.952 compared with .582,140. On hand June 30, In consuming establishments 731.8S7 bales compared rlth 788.402 a year ago. and in pubic storage and at compresses 1,723,90 compared with 1,117.356. Cotton spindles active 14.2S7.731 ompared with 14,021,158 a year ago. Removing Blight of Islam.?The (light of Islam which has sealed lerusalem for centuries, which has reluced Mesopotamia to a desert, Syrn o desolation, promises to be lifted at ast over all that region that was the radle of civilization and the first rarden of the world. "The crescent of ertillty" stretches from old Judea and tLin.ti.. ninno tho Mediterranean imiatiuv mivuj, *-? ? ? lttoral curving eastward to the upper Euphrates and Tigris and then coninuing southward to the Persian gulf. The tone between the sea and the lesert, and again between the mounaln and the desert, will be redeemed is Egypt has In our own day been edeemed. provided the Turk be forced >ack northward and westward behind he Taurus and the Anti-Taurus harder. A dispatch from Amsterdam says hat Germany la trying to recruit its irmy In Russia by offering boys from he Baltic provinces commissions in he German army. j McLAURIN STEPS DOWN Discouraged Because of What Appears to be Hopeless Fight. Senator McLaurin has withdrawn from tin- gul**rnatorial race. His reasons are set forth in the following given out from the Xygla hospital In Itiehmond: To My Friends: I see no pood to In* accomplished l?y my remaining in the cnmtmign and desire to release you from such obligation you may feel as to my support. I am discouraged that my purposes seem so sadly misunderstood and my motives so win liny misrepresented. What is the use when only IK minutes are allowed to present great issues? J did not offer as a candidate because of any personal ambition. My desire was to serve. Primarily, it was my hope.to untte a conservative element in both factions upon a proununme for building a system of finance based upon cotton, which would render our section forever rich and indv|?endcnt. I have given ten years of my life and spent much of my means in spreading the propaganda. Its fruits aiv visible on every hand, but I des|Kiir of ever making faction riddon South Carolina a leader in it great movement of this kind and shall make no further attempt so to do. Let me state the proposition clearly: Section 13 of the Federal reserve act provides not only for the discount of notes secured by receipts for cotton on storage, but also for discounting securities, where the proceeds are to enter into the production of the crop. This means that a note secured by rent or a crop mortgage can be discounted at the Federal reserve bank. It is done now, but not for farmers, few of them know these facts. All that we need is the machinery and it can be more easily provided than the present system, which I presented after the failure of the Wade plan. The warehouse is merely a fundamental ineident in a system of finance. The real basis is the conversion of all securities which represent cotton either made or to be made into fluid assets which will pass current in the money markets. When you do this the marketing question will logically solve itself and can never be solved . . - - .1 ,, excepi ny ini' linn ini?iMi?mn< ? .. system of credits, where the |>ound of cotton is the unit, and as pood in one man's hands as another's. It will never lie done by voluntary organizations; it can only come throuph the povernment, and to secure that political control is necessary. However, as the people are more interested In other matters, I see no reason for drappinp myself around the state in a vain effort to help people who do not wish to be helped. Helnp n side show to a third class country circus does not appeal to me. VOLUNTEERS FOR SERVICE * Mary Roberts Rhinehart Will Do What She Can. Mary Roberts Uhinchart, one of America's foremost writers, respondinp to the nation's call for 25.000 nurses, has enrolled with the department of nursinp of the American Red Cross anil soon will take her place with that valiant army of women who are ministering: to the sick and wounded in France. Mrs. Rhinehart is expeetinp a summon to overseas service momentarily. She has closed her home In New York, has iwicked the nursinp equipment provided by the Roil Cross and has put her jiersonal affairs in order in pri'imration for a protracted stay in France. Mrs. Rhinehart Is a praduate nurse. She received her trnfninp in a hospital in I'ittsburp, retiring from nursinp service and devoting herself to writing after her marriage to the chief surgeon of the hospital. She has no qualms, she says, about the work that may Ih? given to her to do abroad. No matter what the task is. she cheerfully will perform It, she added: "1 am perfectly willing to scrub floors," she said when she applied for enrollment at the heaquarters of the nursing department of the Red Cross. "The time has come for American women to work with their hands. I cannot, just now, think of nnything I would not do. "So longer." she continued, "can a woman of leisure?she who la not self-supporting and who has neither duties nor dependants?sit hack with folded hands doing only the pleasant tasks which have to do with war service. "She Is needed In the hospitals. In the factories, and above all. if she is fitted to be a trained nurse or a nurse's aid, she Is needed by the American Red Cross. If she does not answer the need she Is not doing her full duty by her country and humanity. The Long Pull Ahead. "The time has come for me to work with my hands. Since the very beginning of the war I have been watching and lighting the battles of the enlisted man. letting his mother and his sister and his wife and his sweetheart know what he is doing and how he Is being cared for. "I have visited officers' training camps, have Investigated hospitals, have reported on general camp conditions In many cantonments from the Atlantic to the Pacific at the request of the secretary of war. "Rut the time for the onlooker has cone by. Naturally, we must recognize this. There Is no use deluding ourselves by the occasional small successes which begin to mark the turn of the scale. The big thing Is still before us. We are still merely In our period of preparation. There Is a long pull ahead and to win will require the collective Individual effort of every man woman and child with two strong bands and a brain to use them. "I am going to nurse simply because I should be ashamed not to do so. I haw always been proud of my hospital training, but never so proud ns I am today when It gives me something to offer my country." Has War Experience. Mrs. Rhlnehart has considerable war experience. During the first year of the war she went abroad for a weekly publication of national circu latlon and was fortunate, at a tim^ when correspondents were forbidden, in spending five weeks with the Belgian army at the front. She crossed No Man's Land. spvnt several days at (lenerat Foch's head quarters, and also visited French and British trenches. But she has no desire for such, i ' I want to work," she resumed, "and I l>elleve that every trained woman in the country should work. too. Nut long ago a hoy wrote me from a hospital In France. He had been wounded three times and was about to go back again to the trenches. " 'I am just going to keep on.' he wrote. 'And perhaps out of all this wretchfulness and struggle, I shall gain some honorable advancement for my soul.* He was killed two weeks later. So It seems to me that the women who can, should gain this honorable advancement for her soul. We cannot gain it through fighting. We must gain It through service. In addition to enrolling nurses for assignment as needed to the army and navy nurse corps for military service, the American Red Cross through all Its chapters Is making a special effort to encourage every nurse who, because of marriage or other reasons, has given up her profession to enroll as a home defense nurse for part time service at least in public health nursing or In hospitals, clinics and dispensaries. ABSOLUTELY 8URE TO WIN John Tample Grave* Thrill* a Newsi paper Convention. One of the outstanding features of the convention of the Southern Newspaper Publishers' association, in session at the Grove Park Inn. Asheville, recently, was the aduress delivered by t'ol. John Temple Graves, editorial representative of the Hearst publications. Colonel Graves, one of the most eloquent orators in the country and for years a favorite in the south, reviewed in detail the superb achievements of the American government In the conduct of the war and the unpn-cedented results of Its excellent preparations. "I note the amazement and inspiration with which our allies in foreign countries have followed the vigor and exiKdition with wide* th's great republic has crossed the ocean to their ivliof, and the staggering realization of our imperial enemy that the United States under the s.ress of necessity and purpose hns developed in a night into a military power of Irresistible force and efficiency," he said. Colonel Graves paid tribute to the genius and devotion of President Wilson, the secretaries of war and the navy, to the shipping board, the ordnance board and the provost marshal general. He emphasized the resources of the country and the sub* lime devotion with which they f hav> fld? -ftfewt t'OrtSUL'miwf "W lflu of humanity's Armageddon. He set1 in order the mighty and transcendent issues for which the United States is fighting and made It clear that "peace short of achievement is a cowardly surrender of all trat Is worth living for and so abundantly worth dying for." Colonel Graves spoke of the lessons this great war will teach, speaking of it as a stern and bloody schoolmaster whose teachings will develop character and later all the future race. | "It shall be a nobler race," he said, "more unselfish, more efficient, more t>nt riotic, more helpful, more man-loving and more God-fearing than in nil its previous history. There will be an equality and fellowship among the millionaires and the men In tnc ranks wno ngnt ship uy side nnd bleed and sacrifice together. There will lie a fellowship of races and nations never known before. "England nnd France are bound to the great republic in bonds that centuries will not dissolve. Italy is our bond brother through the ages to come, as the Czech-Slavs and Poles and redeemed Russia will be knit in the grand brotherhood of man which makes Inevitably for the fatherhood of God. All the thousand years behind us will not have brought so much or counted so far toward the ultimate of the race as these bloody, heartbreaking but triumphant years that are about us now.. "There is not a shadow of doubt In my mind. I know that we are absolutely sure to win this war. All the prophecies of Holy Writ and all the promises of God are above and beneath and beside America and her allies, against the foe of all creeds and all humanity. The sword of the Lord nnd of Gideon Is unsheathing now in the providences of diplomacy and in the dispensations of God, in the hunger and discount, the reaction and revolution of the Germanic nations, and in the more than natural power which He is putting Into the armies of the republic of liberty, 'whose strength Is as the strength of ten because his heart Is pure' to the cause of liberty and humanity. God Almighty is coming at last to take His part In this war. "For our eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord, He is trdmpling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored; Our God Is marching on.*" Colonel Graves concluded his address with the great question of why God permits this war. He recently addressed a Bible class in Washington on this subject which caused so 1 much comment that Dr. Charles Wood of the Church of the Covenant, Invited him to repeat It before the great congregation. Four hundred and fifty Amertcanbullt battle planes have been sent aoroaa or aeuverea ai pons iur ointment on July 5, the date of the latest complete official report reaching the ' war department In announcing this figure last Monday, Secretary Baker disclosed also that deliveries of Llb' erty motors of all classes on the stone date had reached 2.S14. President Wilson went to the war department last Monday- and spent j three-quarters of an hour with Seci retary Baker, going over tire news from the front Official reports were i far behind the press dispatches describing the fighting. | CHASING THE U-BOATS iHttsfe And American Destroyers Hive Exciting Game. NiNTEKS FBQM OFFICIAL RECORDS. V , Landsman May Get Some Idea of the Grim Game From Oetaila of Few * Encounters Officially Reported? f. Thrilling Story of Rescue of Crew v From Burning Oil Ship by British Destroyer. The destruction of n German subOaarine Is never announced by the British admiralty except upon the atrongest possible evidence, which is often provided by the destroyers that *re engaged in a long game of hide and seek with the elusive U-boatB under conditions of varying excitement. The landsman may obtain some idea of this grim game from the details of official records of a few encounters as to the rnanU nt thoro in nA room for doubt A convoy of merchant vessels was being escorted by British and American destroyers. A submarine attempted to attack the convoy, but although It maneuvered from one position to another the destroyers were too quick for it and every time it attempted and came to the surface its presence was detected, f Finally an American destroyer plghted the periscope in a favorable position and headed for it, with the pntention of ramming. A depth charge was dropped directly over the U-l>oat, which was still visible under water from the American ship. The result was an upheaval of black-colored water, two broken ijieces of a spur and some small pieces of wreckage. ^Nothing more of t^ie enemy was seen. Early one winter's day a destroyer sighted an enemy submarine on the surloce and steered for it nt full speed. So swiftly was the maneuver carried out that the German had no time to submerge. Within thirty seconds of the sighting the destroyer had rammed the enemy, tearing a great rent in the hull of the U-boat. At the same time a bomb, "which," said the commanding officer, "exploded satisfactorily," was dropped. After this the destroyer wheeled back over the spot and dropped another bomb. Large quantities of oil rose to the surface, but no other sign of the enemy's presence could be detected, and when the position was swept later the submarine was located, still lying on the spot where she had sunk. Submarine Cut in Two. A merchantman which had fallen heblnd the main body of the convoy to which she belonged was escorted back tee her position by a destroyer. Just then another of the merchantmen wag torpedoed. Immediately ?the ggyyw tuning ~round and headed |Hilt for the enemy's posJJjf,ft.'"As s^^^assed over the^jgf a severe shock Tlfas ffJJ Iftfoughout the destroyer, and Just nfterwnrd the German's periscope was sighted by the destroyer's sister ship, which hastened to drop a bomb on the U-boat. A heavy explosion resulted, and the submarine came up right astern of her pursuers. Helm was put hard over and Are opened by both Hrtttsh ships, three hits being registered In uulck succession. Escort No. 2 had now come round, and, being nearest the enemy, went straight for him and succeeded In cutting the submarine clean In half. Both halves appeared on the surface for a few seconds hefore plunging Anally from view. A destroyer hunting for submarines observed two periscopes about eight feet apart on her starboard how. The destroyer managed to get within 50 yards before the U-boat "submerged; then a depth charge was dropped over the submarine's course. After the explosion of the charge a second and much louder explosion was heard and felt by everyone on board the destroyer, and a column of black-colored water was thrown to a height of about 30 feet. A film of light oil then spread over the water, and In the next two hours had Increased to a considerable extent. Sighting the wake of a submarine, a destroyer dropped a depth charge and oil rose to,the surface. Later a periscope appeared. Another depth charge was diopped, and more oil was seen. When darkness fell a large and const Icuous patch of oil was observed, and was still very clearly marked next morning. Another depth charge was dropped In the middle of the patch, whereupon more oil and bubbles rose and continued rising for the next two hours. Sweeping operations were then undertaker and on obstruction was located on the bottom. More oil rose to the surface. Rescued From Burning Ship. n ncuicnuni in uuiuuiuuu ui a ucstroyer discovered that a British ollei had been torpedoed and set on fire. She was burning furiously and was out of control, although her engines were still running. A continuous stream of oil fed the flames, which prevented anyone from entering the engine room. Her peak was not yel alight, and crouched up there were thirty Chinamen, the remainder of the crew. To extinguish the Are was beyond the power of the destroyer's crew, bul her captain determined to make an attempt to rescue the survivors In tht peak, although It was obviously a difficult undertaking. He ran his vessel closer past the oiler's stern, and as she passed rafts, lifeboats and life buoys were pitched overboard. This maneuver was carried out three times. By now all the destroyer's boats had haat! UniAiul wlalf ..M iVA maM (m t Vw IUKCICU (V 1/IV.IV up IIIC lllvll Ul lilt water, while all her available loose life-saving gear had been throwr ?werboard. However, there still remained nine men In the peak of the oiler. The concluding part of the operation may be explained In the wordi of the destroyer's captain: "I therefore decided it was necessary to place myself alongside the shlj and take off the remainder of th< crew. A speed of eight knots being maintained, this was done. We remained alongside locked to the steamer's windward bow for a period sufficient for all nine men to lower themselves on board this ship, which sustained slight superficial damage t< gpard rails and upper deck fittings ?f silk".. Ten minutes after we cleared the steamer she was burned to the water line." .. m ' AMERICAN SOLDIERSHIP French People Convinced that the [ World Has Never Seen the Like. j Communiques give us the story of e our troops at Cantigny. They "fought j gallantly" Is the soldier phrase, and it covers deeds for which awards have already been given. But a soldier's re- ^ port can hardly give the impression that these precursors of the American armies to follow make upon the sea- * soned warring countries of Europe. This reaches us In a letter from the famous French painter, Francois v Flameng, to an American friend, who (l allows, through the columns of the 5 Xow York Tribune, the public in gen- h eral to share in the pleasure of hearing S our troops well spoken of. The letter ' comes from the French front, where Mr. Flameng Is also serving, for all o classes in France help to bear her ? burdens. "I cannot resist the pleas- t ure of telling you," he writes, "of the c admiration and joy of the French i army corps where it is my good for- t; tune to be hospitalized, at the splen- r did conduct of your compatriots in the affair at Cantigny." And going on: "Seeing them work with so much energy, so much Intelligence, good listeners, questioning and studying all ? the time, our chiefs had soon discover- f ed the rare quality of the American soldiers. But what would be the practical value of the officers and staff? That was the question. Well, the answer came quickly. Under the constant bombardment, buried in the cellars of ruined chateaux and houses, 1 all ottlcers?generals, colonels, majors 1 and juniors?did their duty calmly, eagerly, with an Intelligence always alive. It was soon realized that they 1 were model otllcers, active, hard working. capable of assimilating with ex- 4 traordinary rapidity the experience " and methods of our old armies. It was a tremendous satisfaction, and at once f absolute confidence and mutual esteem >s were established, affection followed, 'I and then admiration. There is not a 1 French soldier, from poilu to general- I In-chtef, who does not spenk of the * American troops with emotion. Eyes < and hearts smile at their courage, their devotion to duty, their disinter- 1 Thlo lu tho rpfiitfin tllflt U'l1 t were not without anxiety for your 1 debut?not that there waa any pos- > slble doubt of your courage, of your ' contempt of danger, but because one was moved to ace such good friends t face death for the first time, Itecause e their Uvea seemed even more precious j than ours. We Frenchmen have lie- c come accustomed to give our blood l without stint. To die Is nothing, our i beloved patrie, France, Is everything t for the poilu. 'i "Therefore, when at 7 o'clock in the 1 ( i morning we watched for American J < I .[row* to 'fb&MRjtf,' Tn 7 that most dramatic of moments when r the soldier goes to death and glory, c we hnd our hearts in our mouths. " n Rut there was a shout of unanimous admiration when they leaped out v quickly In as perfect order as on parade, faced the formidable barrage j. fire, and disappeared in the dark v smoke of obus bursting on all sides. ,. Soon we saw hem coming up to the j village and taking it so brilliantly v that It seemed as if an Irresistible force Impelled these soldiers fighting j, for right and Justice. The proof j was conclusive; the American soldier ? was truly a great soldier, and one n could be sure that whatever counter- v attacks might come, he would stend like a rock against which the enemy waves would be broken. I cannot tell you our Joy, for you are the hope of 1 the world, you are the future, you s will bring us victory, nnd also because 1 you personify to our people the high- ' est feeling of honor and generosity. ^ "When on the dangerous roads 41? I mui fin Amnrlrnn h Ilt'U.1 UK' UVIU, UK. .... ...... .... poilu covered with dirt and dust, 1 loaded with his arms and heavy equip- ' ment, sweating and trudging along 1 without a murmur, nay, whistling and c singing, I see again the splendid t specimens of humanity I- used to meet c with In New York, in Chicago, every- * where In America, and when I think " that this American poilu is one of ' them, that he has left everything? t family, affections, comfort, oil his In- c terests?to come across the ocean and ' take his part In this sacred flght, I cannot restrain my emotion, and I want to express to that lone soldier , the gratitude I feel and which no hu- . man words can express, i "Dear friend. It is too wonderful. . The coming of America Into this war , will ever remain as the most beautiful i and noblest action In the history of the world. You were not obliged to come. Why do you do It? Why this gigantic human effort of yours, why so many sacrifices freely consented? Simply and solely to save the future . , civilization and the liberty of man." , Good Roads Saved France.?In the , ! July Farm and Fireside an editorial , says: I ! "Good roads have twice saved , France In the present war. Had it not been for the radiating road sys, tern maintained by the French gov, ernment, the Germans would have won the battle of the Marne and ' I reached I'arls. The Germans had ' t calculated on only three divisions be- ' tng sent out from Paris to stop.the < , Invasion. Instead, the excellent sys- ' tern of highways made It possible for ? i five divisions to be sent to this front. < . "Again, shortly after the battle of , Verdun started, the French railroad , which was to furnish many of the supplies to the troops was destroyed. I The French government, however. , had a macadam road 32 feet wide on , which four lines of traffic, two In , either direction, were maintained. . Day and night 14,000 motor trucks , carried men and equipment '"The traffic never stopped. When , & hole was made In the road, a man with a shovelful of rock slipped In bc. tween the lines of trucks and threw , the rock into the hole, then jumped , aside to let the truck roll the rock r down." A French aviator, in America to . help train American aviators, last . Sunday performed the unprecedented . feat of flying a big warplane under- i > neath the four bridges that span the i East river, New York. < GENERAL NEWS. tems of lnter??t Gathered From Various Sources. Tho Arlwiter Zeitunp. of Vienna, the orxan of the Australian Social Democracy, demands, according to a lavas dispatch. that the Austrian govrnment come to an agreement with 'resident Wilson. John I'oters. manager or the farming ntercst* of A. 1'. Smalling of Bristol, 'a., was shot to death last Sunday ight. Jess Cantrell. a farmer, is in til at Itlountvllle, Va., charged with he shooting. Six completed wooden hull ships rere launched by one firm in one ay at Portland, Oregon, last Sunday. Ir. Schwab, who witnessed the uinchlngs, said that there would be 200.000.000 worth of ships built at ortland during the next year. Returns from the recent enrollment f women through Xcw York state hows that 679,618 women availed hemselves of the opportunity to beome aftlliated with the party, so as to >e nble to vote In the primaries and laveasny in party management. The lumber of men enrolled with all partss In the state is 1,475,OSS. Mayor riyingtor. of Reno, N'ev., has innouneed the adoption by Reno of he slogan, "Work, Fight or Walk." The poliee have strict orders to enorce it. All idlers must get a joh, join he army or leave town. Gamblers, > jolroom touts, saloon hangers-on and heir like will be rounded up in a leneral police dragnet. Government control of common lab?r throughout the country will become (Tectlve August 1, After that date the Jnited States employment sen-ice will >e the exclusive agency through which mnmon labor may be enjoyed by war ndustries having on their payrolls 100 ir more persons. This Is inclusive of ill employes, regardless of the status. Robert S. Armstrong of New York, abricating engineer for the Carolina tliipbuilding corporation, was found lend in a bath room of a hotel at Wilnington, N. C? .Monday afternoon. )eath was due to apoplexy. Anntrong was for ten years fabrinting engineer for the American fridge company, and later general nana get' of the Downey Shipbuilding ompany, tie was one of the reeogii/.ed experts in his profession, lie vas 44 years of age and is survived ?y his wife. A proposed concentration of freight rattle on railroad lines having the msiost grade, wua one 01 me prmnml items of discussion at u confornce between William U. McAdoo, 'ederal director of rallroada, and uilroad chlefa from all parts of the :ountry in San Francisco last Monlay. "There is a pronounced 'unconpestion' in railroad transportation sondltlons," sai4. Mr. McAdoo. "We iav?'"rn?iJe " ' ' uary 11, when there ara sidetracked and \... _ ? ue loved." Organization of the strikers whose walkout at the big plant of the (ierrd Electric company of Lynn, Mass., ist Monday, seriously hampered J oik on war contracts, has proceeded upidly, according to strike leaders, tetwocn 6.000 and 8,000 employes, .'ho have heretofore been unorgiinizd. are said by the leaders to have oined unions connected with the rade. No formal demands were made pen the comimny. Many departlents of the plant were closed down, rhile others were operated on a fenced scale. Oovernment control of tho tobacco ndustry of the United States may reult from the heavy requirements of he American military forces abroad, tationing of the American population st believed to be a possibility. The war ndustries abroad announced It has cen conducting an investigation to deermine the requirements abroad and no amount inai must no smnru his country to meet the situation. It !9timates that approximately twohlrds of the leaf tobacco raised In this country in 1917 will be available for Interican manufacturers. Out of this nust como cigarettes and pipe tobacco 'or troops not yet overseas and exports >f manufactured tobacco in addition to igarettes and toi>acco purchased here 'or Belgium. The University of Texas will have sent more than 25,000 Into the army >.v the end of the year. Besides this, he university has financed the cstabishment of army technical schools to he amount of more than $600,000. [letter still, in the chemical laboratory >f the university there recently was made a discovery in the making of munitions, which has been turned over :o the War Department, which will iave the United States many times the .-ost of the university, both for buildng and maintenance, throughout Its mtire history. The nature of this dis overy, for obvious reasons, cannot Inmade public. These are only several >f the prideful statements made by the ?oard of regents In a review of the iniversity's activities, 40 of whose facilty are actively engaged in the war tervlce, many of them In the army. Government regulation of the wages it labor and the fees of professional men in the United States is provided n a proposed amendment to the Fedaral constitution to be offered In the inn?o Kw naiironontlvc Henrv W. Wat ion of Langhorne, Pa. It authorizes congress to regulate wages of laborers ind mechanics employed in any occupations and to regulate the prices of ill commodities produced in or offered for sale or consumption withi:*. the United States and its insular posseslions. Representative Watson said he would address the house at length on the proposed amendment at an early late. He declared there was only one way to prevent strikes and that was by government regulation of labor. The government now is regulating the prices of wheat and other food products, and if it is going to regulate the prices of the things the wage-earner buys, it follows logically that the government must likewise regulate wages," said Mr. Watson. * "This can be done by a commission created by congress. Such a commission, of course, would have to establish wage standards according to the economic conditions in the different sections of the country- The regulation of labor is a question me uo\erumeni musi seme eventually and the sooner it Is disposed of the better for the country." THE GERMAN RIFLE A Splendid Weapon But Juet a Bit Clumsy. In the hands of the chap In the sloppy greonlsh-grny uniform, watchfully suiting in the trench across the way. there is a rifle with higher velocity than ours, with nearly a foot greater stabbing length when the bayonet is fixed, and with a belter stock, making snap-shooting and shooting at night more certain. The rifle of a nation that has specialized on war and its tools, the German Mauser in some respects offers serious advantage to tta user over the new Sprlngfwlu of the American forces. The weak point Is the man behind. It gives unquestionable advantage In bayonet fighting?but the Hun doesn't like the bayonet, and therefore gets licked In spite of his superiority In weapon. It gives higher speed to its bullet?but the German soldier Is usually a poor shot and even the little, antiquated, patched-up short Lee-Enfield of England proved too much for the letter Mauser, because it was In the hands of better men and better rifle shots. The stock is better than the stock on either the new Springfield or our newer M1917. modified Enfield, but the bolt handle Is so clumsy that the superior speed of Are of the American rifle neutralizes this advantage and gives us a lead in the bargain. Consider Mauser rifle No. 2,66#. captured at the Somtne, and made in the year 1916 at the German works of Ohcrndorf, where Paul Mauser developed the great rifle that boars his name. It was taken by the Itritish in the year in which it was made, but as it lies before inc it looks the part of the battle-scarred veteran. The wood of the stock is chewed up ami scarred and full of dents, as if it had been used on barbed wire. Hut the bore is still clean and bright, testifying to the German efllclency, and the fear of the consequences that comiwlled its UW HIT I" KIT|I II l It. Mil ill njun IM III II ami high water." The stock Is 13 Inches long, or onefourth more than the Springfield. It is far better shaped, with its neat pistol grip, and senii-shotgtin lines, and it is better shaped than the stock of the M1917, because it tits the shoulder and aids to line up the rifle. In mechanism the rifle is practieall> the same as the new Springfield and the M1917?which arc both modified Mausers. We tried it out one day at Camp Kearney, Major White and 1, and a lieutenant with a vtry Teutonic accent, a man who had doubtless served his time with some other army regardless of his love for America -a? of 1 3-6 seconds per shot, from a position below the elbow to the report of the rifle, and using only this square of light for a rear sight, made bull's-eyes on the little 8 Inch hluek s|K?t at 100 yards, or else "fours" close up to the black spot. The lieutenant did nearly as well. We tried out the Hun rifle at long range, S00 yards, ami then some grou|M at 550. It was accurate enough for fighting?it hit the 3-foot black spot eight times out of ten shots at 800 yards, with the other two shots not far off. At 550 yards it put flw shots Into a space stnnller than a man's chest, but not Into so small a space as would the two American rifles. Hut with all the Mauser's good points, a lias a poini mo Dad mat our Yankee rifle* far outdo** It In the *ort of fighting now done on the field* of Europe. This Is that the American rifle, in the hand* of skilled American riflemen, will fire, I should nay, three or four shot* to only two *hot* for the Hun rifle. The sole difference lie* in the Hilly and clumsy shape of the Mauser bolt handle, the only weak point In the Mauser, but the fatal and necessary concession to the rough-handed, halftrained "wop" type of soldier found In the armies of Central Europe. 1 say half-trained, because as riflemen, they are half-trained; a regiment of American marine of the old days? I don't know about them since war broke out?could He In a field nt K00 yards and shoot to pieces a regiment of Prussian guards if said guards depended only on their rifle Are to serve them. I know this because I know German systems of training and I know the marines. Wherefore, In spite of the bayonet superiority of the Hun rifle, and In spite of the better stock, and in spite of the higher velocity of the German bullet, our new rifle makes two bullets fly where but one bullet had flown before?and bullets are what are going to end this war.?Edward C. Grossman, In the August Popular Mechanics Magazine. Eight Billions Needed.?Eight billions of dollars, double the amount now yielded by present tax laws, are to l>e raised under the new revenue I.Ill uKUk ?Kn hnuuo .on tu nn/1 mnnna committee Ixgan framing I ant Monday in executive session. It is part of the administration's programme of meeting the vastly increased expenses on account of the war, estimated at $24,000,000,000 during this fiscal year. The income and excess profits taxes will t>c levied on the basis of the calendar year 1918, the other taxes not earlier than the date of approval of the bill. Eighty per cent of the new revenues are planned to be produced from readjustment of the excess profits and income surtaxes and the remainder from excise taxes on luxuries, non-es- , sentials and possibly essentials. A long list of tentative suggestions, submitted by the treasury department, ranging oil the way from a tax on retall sales of gasoline to a graduated tax on servants Is before the commit tee rjui memnera nave indicated tnat many of them will not be adopted In addition to these suggestions the committee had before it a mass of recommendations made to it by witnesses who testified during hearings on the bill, which did not end until last week. Several weeks probably will be required for framing the bill, i which the committee hopes to present i around the middle of August. ~ . Vie.