The Pageland journal. [volume] (Pageland, S.C.) 1911-1978, May 02, 1917, Image 1
THt PAGELAND JOURNAL
Vol.7 NO. 32 PAGELAND, S. C.( WEDNESDAY MORNING. MAY 2, 1917
^ __ ' ' SI.(Ml ner vpar
Bayonet Still Decides Battles
From a staff correspondent of
the Associated Press with the
British armies in France, via <
London. Apiil 26.?Despite all i
the wondrous war weapons ,
modern science has created, the
cold steel of the bayonet has as
serted itself anew in much of
the recent bitter fighting as the
arm of last appeal. As already
related, the struggles about ,
Monchy le Preux since Monday
hove attained an intensity unequalled
by any of the fighting
in the Somme campaign last
vear.
There was one German posi
tion north of the town and paralleling
the Scarpe which resisted
four desperate attacks. It
was finally decided to take this
position at the point of the bayonet,
without a shot of any kind
being fired to rob the attack of
its surprise nature. The attack
was made along a three quarters
of a mile front under cover of
darkness.
The British battalions were
formed in comparatively close
order and at the whispered word
of command, repeated along the
line, trudged forward into the
night. Grim and silent figures
they were, some in kilts, some
in plain khaki, each man wear
ing a steel helmet, each having
a firm grip of his rifle with fixed
bayonet, the polished surface of
which, however, caught no reflecting
glint in the enveloping
darkness.
Four unsuccessful daylight as
saults had left a touch of cha
grin which was to be wiped out
io this "getting" of a man.
There is little more to tell. The
sound of the fighting in the
trenchis was lost in the British
barrage which closed down
some distance behind the German
position immediately the
British signalled they had entered
the position. This barrage
cut off any German who at
tempted to flee from the bayo
net charge.
Thus, in ten minutes with the
silent bayonet was secured a
a position which had held out
lor two days.
The bayonet also has come in
effectively in dealing with the
ever troublesome machine gun
and gunners. A few brave men,
stealing out in the night, have
been able to accomplish much.
Several British battalion shave
reported in the last few . days
that the Germans are again em
ploying the old "Kamerad" ruse,
suddenly standing up in the
shallow trenches and holding up
their hands and shouting acioss
to to their opponents that
they would surrender. Two
battalions, believing the sinceri
ty of this proposal, started across
to bring in the prisoners' but
were immediately attacked.
Incidents like this have helped
materially to give the element
of bitterness to the fighting to a
degree which have startled even
? ihnca I' - L *
iuuov men wiiu iiiivc nccn in j
the battles since the first general j
rush through Belgium.
Guatemala Breaks Off Diplo- 1
matic Relations
Washington, April 28.?Gaute (
mala has broken off diplomatic 1
relations with Germany, has 1
handed the German Minister his i
passports and cancelled the exe (
quaters of German consuls s
there.
"I have kept up with the Ger i
man losses, as reported in the t
dispatches, and subtracted this 1
from the total population of <
Germany. This leaves only i
seven Germans alive at this i
time," said a citizen of Union i
county the other day.
Months of Bitter Fighting Still
Ahead
Washington, April 27.?While
definite ascendency over the
German war machine has been
established by the Allied forces
in France, and eventual victory
is in sight, many months of bitter
fighting are still ahead.
This is the view of military
experts attached to France's war
commission as gathered by officers
of the American general
staff today during informal conversations
at the War Depart
ment.
Statements of the Frenchmen
fully confirmed conclusions
reached by the general staff
after its long study of losses in
all armies actually engaged in
Europe, in an effort to learn the
provision they must make for
maintaining the fighting strength
of an army at the front. The
terrible toll in dead, maimed and
prisoners, computed on figures
including Prussia's enormous
losses in captured, amounts to
ten per cent a month of troops
at the front. Half of these are
permanently out of action and
were it not for the constant
stream of recruits going forward
every day, an army of a million
men soon would fade away.
Of the wounded or ill sent to
the rear, great numbers recuperate
and return to their regiments.
i nere was no indication that
the French officers had any suggestions
to make as to the part
the United States Army is to
play in the great war. They
came to place themselves and
their experience at the disposal
of the American officers, to
answer questions?not to ask
that certain things be done.
The American staff officers
are known to oppose vigorously
any suggestion that a small expeditionary
force be sent to Europe
for its moral effect. They
say their immediate concern is to
see that the American Army is
placed in such position thai
when time comes to send men
to the front, they will be so
strong, so well trained and equip
ped, so adequately supplied, that
it will maxe its weight felt im
mediately, even in a field where
? 1 1
iiiiuiuus uit* iineauy contending.
Money Entente Nations Need
Washington, April 26.? Preliminary
reports to the Treasury
Department, upon which
Secretary McAdoo will base his
recommendations to the Presi
Jent as to the size of the first
bond issue under the $6,000,00u,000
war finance law, indicated
that the United States will be
called upon to finance the Allies
to the extent at least $400,000,
)00, and possibly $500,000,000 a
month.
The tentative progam also
calls tor the expenditure of vir
tually every dollar of the bor
rowed money in this country
for foodstuffs, munitions, coal
and other supplies.
The estimates indicate the fol
owing Entente needs:
For Great Brittain, $200,000,
)00 to $250,000,000 a month; for
Krance, Irom $100,000,000 to
125,000,000; for Russia, a sum
jndetermined. but up to $100
)00,000 a month, and for Italy,
ibout $50,000,000 a month.
Under these requirements, the
&3,000,000,000 available for lending
the Allies would be exhausted
in fron si.< to seven and one
tialf months. It is likely, howaver,
that the perliminary esti
mates can be pared down so
that the huge loan could be
made to cover possibly one
year. . 1
Administration Wins Fight for j
Selective Conscription By
Big Vote In Both Houses
of Congress
Washington, April 28.?Bv
overwhelming majorities, both
the Senate and ' House passed r
laie tonight the Administration
bill to raise a war army by selective
draft.
The final roll calls brought into
line behind the hill many
Senators and Representatives
who had fought for the volunteer
system until routed by decisive
defeats of volunteer
amendments earlier in the day
in both houses.
The Senate, which has voted
down the volunteer plan 69 to
18, passed the bill by a vote of
81 to 8. In the House, the vote
against the volunteer plan was
313 to 109, and that by which
the bill itself was passed was
397 to 24.
As passed by the Senate, the
measure provides for the draft
ui men uciweec me ages ot 11
and 27 years, while in the House
measure the age limits are fixed
at 21 and 40. This and lesser
discrepancies will be threshed
out in conference early next
week so that the bill may be in
the hands of the President as
quickly as possible. The War
Department already has completed
plans for carrying it into
effect.
Senators who voted against
the bill were: Democrats?Gore,
Hard wick, Kirby, Thomas, and
Trammell. Republicans?Borah,
Gronna, and LaFollette.
Senator Vardaman, of Mississ
ippi, Democrat, was excused
from voting, at his own request.
He did not give a reason.
The Representatives voting
in the negative were: Republicans?Bacon,
King, Hay, Hayes,
LaFollette, Lunden, Minnesota:
Mason, olan, Powers. Demo
crats?Burnett, Church, Clark of
Florida, Claypool, Crosser, Dill,
Dominick, Gordon, Hilliard,
Huddleston, Keating, Sears, Slier
wood, Sisson. Prohibitionist?
Randall. Socialist?Lorwlnn
Better Battling Along British
Line In France
From a Staff Correspondent
of the Associated Press, British
Headquarters in France, April
28, via Ixrndon. ?There was
more desperate fighting along
the British front today, and the
Germans, evidently spurred on
by the declarations from Field
Marshal von Ilindcnburg that
they must hold their present
position at all costs, are making
a resistance more stubborn than
any heretofore encountered. At
various points captured in the
fire! Ant?io?'il I *1 !">?!*!-?
vu wtun i u3ii uy uiu i>i nisii,
the Germans have been ordered
into counter attacks will be a
reckless disregard for loss of life.
The battle was still in progress
late today, and it was possible
near Oppo to see at one time no
less than five grey waves of Germans
blindly facing the Briti b
fire in an attempt to retake tile ir |'
lost positions. Heavy shells
broke upon them in a great ex-i
plosive torrent, and where each
shell burst great gaps were cut
in lhl> mnlfc r?f tlw?
.... , uuna tilt UI1V.W1IMII);
men. Those who penetrated
the British barrage from the
larger cahbered guns were met
by field gunfire and mown
down under continuous sprays
of machine gun bullets.
Under this galling fire, the|
attack utterly broke down. In
some places there was ferocious
hand to-hand fighting.
German Losses in Recent Fight- ]
ing Along the Aisne Are
Estimated at More Than
200,000 Men
Paris, April 27.?The extent
of the German losses in the recent
desperate fighting along
the Aisne is practically disclosed
in today's official statement on
the capture of 130 guns, of which
a considerable number were of
heavy caliber.
The German losses in men
are estimated at more than 200,
000, with the probability that the
total reached 235,000. These
figures include killed, wounded
and prisoners.
The number ot German prisoners
aggregates approximately
20,000, The usual formula
among military experts is to estimate
the casualties at five
times the number of prisoners,
but this five to-one ratio has
not held good in the present
case, owing to the exceedingly
sanguinary character of the
fighting for the mastery of the
strategic position of the Chemindes
Dames plateau. They
held this firmly at the outset,
and when it was rested from
ihem by the French attacks, the
Germans repeatedly brought up
large reserves in a desperate effort
to regain it.
Zeb Wasn't Dressed to Go
Visiting
Mr. Zeb Green gives the fol
lowing account of his experience
on Gourdvine Creek in last
week's issue of the Marsliville
Home:
"I have had some experience
witlrF&rd conveyance through
swamps in the eastern part of
the State. Scapegoat whites the
Monroe Journal from Whiteville
and tells about how Rowland
Beasley got a Ford out of a
swamp down in Brunswick
county. In his narrative of the
trip Scapegoat says: "The engine
got plum drowned out in
a long lake which we had to
ford and everybody including
Mr. Beasley, shucked everything
but their shirts and pushed. I
am awfully sorry that I haven't
a cut to illustrate how we got
out of the Brunswick swamp."
And this reminds me of some
embarrassment and excitement
that I experienced at Gourdvine
creek, near Olive Branch, some
years ago Cull Marsh and yours
truly were out on a buggy and ,
stopped at Holly school house
4 ~ ? 1 - r -
uui ui u suower oi rain mat was
almost a cloudburst. We succeeded
in crossing the creek in
good shape by kneeling on the
seat, but there was a swift stream
just beyond the creek and the
current was so strong against
the buggy that the mule stopped <
When Cull struck him with the
whip the harness broke. I volunteered
to shuck off everything
but my hat and get into the
water to make repairs. Just as
I took the lines the mule took a ,
mule notion to go and up the
road he went. I was holding
on to the lines hitting the ground ,
in high places. There was a
residence up on the hill a hun (
dred yards ahead. Since I was
not dressed to go visiting it
quickly evolved itself into an ,
emergency, I didn't seriously
object to Cull splitting his sides ,
laughing back there in the buggy
1M 1 t \ < 1 wl A!\1 ?1
. UIU v?w|vv.l IU Villi >111)4 mill
involuntary performance on up
the hill to that residence, so I
dashed to one side, wrapped the
lines around a persimmon tree
and stopped that mule. I judge
that Rowland's performance in
that Brunswick county swamp
was a rather tame affair as compared
with that Gourdvine performance
which nobody enjoyed
except Cull Marsh?and possibly
the mule."
ties on the seas make it impera
tive, the Frenchmen believe,
that the United States carry out
quickly the plan for a large
fleet of wooden ships to assist
in the struggle against Germany.
Winthrop College Schollarship
and Entrance Examination
The examination for the
award of vacant scholarships
in Winthrop College and for
admission of new students will
be held at the County Court
House on Friday, Julv 6, at() a,
m. Applicants must not be less
than sixteen years of age. When
Scholarships are vacant after
Julv 6 they will be awarded to
those making the highest aver
age at this examination, provided
they meet the conditions
governing the award. Appli
cants for Scholarships should
write to President Johnson for
Scholarship (examination blanks.
These blanks, properly filled out
by the applicant, should be
with President Johnson by July
1st.
Scholarships are worth $100
and free tuition. The next ses
sion will open September 19.
1917. Further information and
catalogue, address President D. .
B Johnson, Rock Hill S. (J.
A Ray of Sunshine
Mrs. Larz Anderson, wife of '
our ex-Ambassador to Belgium <
and Japan, writes in the Harp- i
er's Bazar this month a charm- '
ing description of a recent vov- I
age aboard the yacht "Roxana". 1
Like many other women of so- j
ciety who write for Harper's i
Bazar, she asked that her check <
be given to charity. It went to <
Saint Faith's House, near New I
York, a haven for unfortunate I
girl mothers, and one of the 1
most meritorious charities in i
this country. <
The editor of Harper's Bazar 1
has received this letter from the <
secretary of Saint Faith's: "Our |
work depends upon voluntary '
contributions. Until this won
derful generous donation came,
we had nothing to meet the i
bills which will come on May
1st. and we are now respond- 5
ble for the care of 22 mothers
and 18 babies." 1
? ? x J
Hoover To Be World's Market
Man
Washington, D. C., April 29.?
The World's Market Man is the
title that may be bestowed upon
Herbert C. Hoover as a result of
plans of the British, French and
American Governments for the
United States to control the
food supplies of the Allies with
America's best man in supreme
command. t
Hoover has already done the
biggest job of feeding people
that any m^n ever did.
Unknown outside of his profession
of civil engineer when
war be^an, he has sprung to
world fame through his wonderful
work in feeding the starving
ofB elgium. Through that work
he may be called the World's
Greatheart.
Americans stranded in Europe
when war broke out remember
Hoover is the man who passed
out $50 to $100 each to stranded
persons, millionaires and school
teachers alike, counting ou
human goodness for the return
of his money. While others talk
ed, Hoover acted. He got the
Americans home.
Typically American is Hoov?
er. Well set up, with a jaw
that is square with determination,
with eyes that have a stern
glint in them, but that betray at
the same time deep compassion
and sympathy, this Wizard of
Bread looks the true Doubtless.
Hoover is of a paternal type.
All children are his children.
The suffering of Belgium compelled
him to act because he *
cannot resist the appeal of suffering.
His most striking characteristic
is love of children.
He has two sons, one six and
one eight years of age, one
born in China, the other in Russia.
A hard task is to get Hoover
to talk about himself. American
newspapers printed columns
and columns about Belgium.
About Hoover there was little.
ii? '
iiuuvci saw to linn.
The German Government was
so impressed with the rationing
of Belgium it ask Hoover to
take entire charge ot rationing
Austrian Russian Poland, ottering
him one million dollars a
month and asking no accounting.
But he would not leave
his Belgian work.
Better Than Lynching
The Monroe Enquirer makes
ihe following sensible comment
upon the prompt action of the
court in sending the brute, Hunk
Maske to his death:
"If in every case the administration
of justice was as swift
[ind as sure as it has been in the
case of Bunk Maske, who murdered
Mr. Edgar Williams, the
Wingate policeman, lynching
would cease. In the case cited
there has been 110 undue haste.
The guilty man has had a trial,
fair in every particular. Judge
Whedbee, who presided; the
jury, composed of good and
representative citizens; the counsel,
both for the State and the
defense, did everything possible
to give the accused his rights hefore
the law and to measure to
liim justice. The murderer will
in less than thirty days die in the
electric chair and no man will
tiave committed a crime nor
stained his hands in blood by
putting Hunk Maske where he
will commit no more crime."
"I had no idea she'd accept
me the first time I proposed."
"Did vou think she would the
second time?"
"There would have been r.o
second time."
French Declare World Famine
Danger Exists
Washington, April 27.?The
French war mission has informed
the American Government
that the things France needs
most from the United States are
money, food, fertilizers, coal,
steel, oil and transportation
equipment, especially ships in
which to carry goods from the
new to the old world.
One of the foremost purposes
of the French mission revealed
late todav authoritively for the
first time, is to impress upon the
American Governmen t and people
the serious food situation in
Europe. Members of the
prnnnmip cdo?Iah *v.~ ?:?" ?
vwvuvriuiv jvvuuu ui me mission
believe there is serious danger
of a world famine.
Other features of the war will
be carefully canvassed during
the stay of the mission in Wash
ington.
The economic section of the
mission is prepared to submit
evidence that all the world is
seriously threatened with famine
because of the withdrawal of
men from agriculture, the lack
of fertilizers, and the derangement
of transportation facilities.
Rolling stock of railroads in
Europe rapidly is being
worn out through the lack of
lubricants, it is declared, and
more railway supplies are ur
gently needed. The growing
scarcity of transDortation farili