The watchman and southron. (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, February 23, 1918, Image 2
hampeerd In discussing the action
taken ut Versatile!* by a resulut'on
passed at that conference by the mili?
tary representatives and the govern?
ment* that It was not desirable to
give sny information regarding the
genorsl plan arrived at.
Mr. I.foyd (leorge thought, however,
he could make clear where the con?
troversy had arisen and asked for the
! KiKiiie.it of the house of the action
of the government.
"The geneial principle laid down
at Versailles wan agreed to whole?
heartedly by everybody," he said.
There was no conflict as regarded
the policy, but only as to the method
of giving effect to It. There was
agreement ss to the policv ; there WSJ
agreement that there must be central
authority to exercise supreme direc?
tion of that policy; there \ is agree
ment thst authority must oe interal
l authority, anil there WSJ com?
plete agreement that that authority
should have executive power. The
only question thst arose w is as p
boil thst central authmitv shOOld be
constituted. That was the only dif?
ference."
It was the whole issue, and, In
mv Judgment, an agreement wa*.
ranched ut the conference even in re
gnrd to that."
The premier proceeded to give the
stsges of the discussions at the con?
ference. Several proposals, he said,
were put forwsrd and examined very
cm <fully. Fverybody went to the
conference with a full desire to find
Cht best method and not to advocate
n \ particular proposal.
All the other propo.siH. OOS SftSf
the other, were relccted until they
to the last. The first was favor?
ed in the first instance by the French
and British general staffs. He did not
ig that th- American and Italian
? is took quite the same view.
The Am? I M ms were in favor of a
proposal by whcih the central body
ill ! ti. .1 count ii d the chiefs of
???.Tu The case put forward for it
v ? ti ll it was essential that e ich ot
representatives should be In most
h innate touch with his own war of?
fice; he must know about man pOWSl
roo'ale and medial equipments, ship?
ping and foreign office matters.
It also was felt that there wus sc
i ns constitutional objections to an
^iJ ?( if 11 1 body coming to a decision
; ting the Britten army. The coun
.1 Pi?ll\ examined and di .cussed thtS
npOOgl Hud. he added, "it must l>v
cm he red that all the various rep
i? H^ntatiVeH, civil nnc! military, wer -
io with lu* except, on of the Lilian
nmander In chief. On examination
the proposal completely' broke down
and wss rejected as unworkable.
I m<* of the reasons for the con
tir.uous sessions at Versailles was not
merely because they had to make
islnn? b it heruuse they should b*
constantly comprising notes and dis
' Hing the situation from day to day
"A council of the chief of stuff,'
i ml the picmler. involved the crea
? of another body, contllctlng with
the Versailles council. The moment
We began sn examination it beeam?
? Oaf that the functions which the
executive body were to exercise could
riot properly be performed by the
chiefs of staff in various capacities
If the chiefs of utuff stayed in Furls,
their governmerr would be deprive*
for long periods of the advice of their
principal military advisers. For tha
reason the supreme war Council re?
jected the proposal with complete
unanimity.
* I think I am right in saying that
the proposal was withdrawn. Then I
'" suggest* d by M. I'lemenceau that
i was desn iMe for us- to separate ami
it huh d< legation to think out n
? ' .n of iti own. It is very remark.ihlt
it, meeting separately and consld
? rinn th.- matter quite Independently
we should h.ive returned the followin.
morning with exactly the same pro 1
'?osal. And that proposal Is the pro?
posal which now hold* the field.
"I hesitated for some time whether
1 should not read to the house o
< omnions the very eognent docu?
ment submitted by the American
nation which put the c?so for
SO present proposul. It Is one of the
blest documents ever submitted to t
military conference. The only rea?
son why I do not read it to the house I
1*1 that it is mixed up with the plan |
Of operations.
"If I should reasl th? documem
?emitted by the Americans there
would no need to make v irpeeeh
Th?* eas?? is presented with Irresistible
power ami logic.
"AVhat hippened? Wo altered th'
proposal here and there There wa
? good deal of discussion which took
OOM hours, but there wa* not a sin
Sie dissent.n ; voice no far n* the plan
was concerned.
Field Marshal II alg died atten
tlon lo two points which we reu Used
were weak points and we undertook
o put them right They w? ie consti
Mitlonal points, not pomts which
vent to the loot of the propomT
Itself "
After sffsln emphasizing the uuan
Imltv of the Versailles ?oun. il. 0*
premier gave an account of wh.i*
; ippened on bis i StOfffl Hi rSgjOrlSX
to the cabinet. He thought Oenersl
Rgbertsba w.is present, and nothing
wss then saiii to indicate that Qeheru
ilgbertson thought lh? plan unWOrk
aHU or dangerous.
? During the week after he returned
I from Versailles tho army council
eons,dried tho grlVflggflttftt SHo" tn?d<
eertuid 6iitUdsaM from ;? eotietltutlon
[al point of eleu* no cbnaldoroO
.those u-ry carefully with the Kurl o
iferby, a* iett i t for war who ba?i
Ithroughout gut the eass ol Gear,.
Robertson before the cabinet.
.Mr Lloyd QOOrgi continued th.i
Cencral Robertson had refused im?
position at Versailles and that Whet
hi refused that poM he U/SS Offered
the position of chief of ?h? general
staff "with powers adapted to the
position which had been set up at
Versailles."
Former Premier ASQUlth said there
wa na certain amount of disquiet In
the public mind through the onion?
ed withdrawal of Admiral Jellicoe and
General Robertson and that tho
country would hardly feel compen-i
sated by the fact that Secretary of
l
War Lard Derby remained at White?
hall, and that the conduct of prope
panda had been entrusted to Lor 1
Heaver Brook.
lie added that he would do noth?
ing to embarrass the government, hut
he said he felt that in the best inter-'
oats of the country and the cause that
criticisms In parliament should not be
^ilonced.
Tn the house of lords Karl Curzori.!
lord president of tho council and
m in her of the war cabinet, said that
under the n?w scheme Field Marshal'
Haig would have the same power!
over the movements of his troops as ?
before. The only difference was thai.,
the Versailles council would have cer ?
tain troops at tneir disposal, which;
they could add to llaig's forces or j
send elsewhere, according to the
exigencies of the moment.
The F.arl of Derby, secretary of
Stale for war, addressing the house of
lordM. said he strongly supported the
plan adopted at Versailles, lie de?
plored the attucUs in tho press and
had offered to resign, he added, but
Premler Lloyd George had asked him
to remain In ollice.
Meatlier Flash From the Dark Cor?
ner.
Dark Corner, Feb. lib?Things are
calm and serene hereabouts. Only
some folks are worried about the
boys having to leave in a few day I
for the camp of Instruction. It is
me a serious time. Home moasle
of both the old kind and tho German
|i around. Mr. Robert Ardls has two
children that are Just getting over
.he old kind and Mr. Boh Ardls hal
had several cases in his house of the
German.
Mrs. B. T. Kolb, teacher or the
Held School had a spelling bee on;
St. Valentines night (last Thursday),
which was enjoyed very much. Mis
Maggie, daughter of Mr. Joe F. John?
ston, (that running girl of Field Da:.
renOWU) proved to bo the best Spelle
?n the match. Robert Ardls, Jr., cam
^ut a good second. After the spelling
i
contest was over Mr. Robert Ardi
Jr., was asked by the teacher to giv
out the Valentines of which the:
were a great many, some getting five,
others only one, while others not rone
at all. The boys received more than
he girls, which shows that they
? the girls) have sweet words, if the
have to write them behind a curtain,
hut they used to be sly little mixen
fifty or more years ago and 1 sup
pggS they are the same sweet little
things- yet with ull of their winsoin
ways.
Sumter, It. F. I). No. | hus been
extended here into the Dark Cor
ner. coming through for the first
IISAS last Saturday, the 1Mb. We arc
sure proud to receive the route.
I wanted to attend the meeting of
the ''ounty Council of Defense in
Humter today, but did not feel able
Bs 1 hare been suffering with lagrlppc
St over four weeks
The oats plunted over last week atv
coming up beautifully. And wheat
is showing up finely since the weath
-?I has heroine somewhat spring-like.
1 kvt buds expanding on the trees, i
see tho butterflies Hitting arOUUd and
Ines an humming through the air,
Wim h says the iprlng, the beautiful
Spring, is mar at hand.
Hard Tim OS
War Savings Stamps.
Mr. Herbert a. Moses bus been i
pointed chairman for War gavlngi
lamps for iumtei count]. He an
nouneos that be will begin immediate
iv to o- gnnlsi the . aunt) I or the ? tl?
of tin 111 stamps and war savings
Bt naps Tim e stamps are on sah
at all postoihecs. but it is the doaln
of the treasury department (bit hi
mess houses nlso keep them for sali
so that the puhtte may more easlt) b.
able to obtain the,,,. These stamp
pgj interest to the purchaser .it ton
per sent, ( am pounded,
Any business bousi dei Irlnu. lo 1 <
ippolntec! an authorized age ? ? h m
ipply to the Sumter pOStOglcC or to
Mi Moses.
i ion. n. Qoode yii Kb. tt of i hi r
lost in is director of war saving! foi
outh CfefOUa i
F THE EFFECT OF WAR
MAINTENANCE OF I I I K ll.MA
AM) CHEDIT OF PL'BMC
IT1UTV COMPANIES
EMHHNTI \l .
I \<rrpi from The Annunl Report of
Tue lion. John Bkrttuti Wilhams.
IVsmptrolZcr of the Cnrrency.
National and state banker, and
i.iany thousands of small ami large
Inveetore, have suffered seriously
from the decline of the earning" ca?
pacity of public utility corporations
ami the consequent shrinkage in the
\alue of their securities, representing
, investments of many hundred mil
? lions of dollars. These losses natur?
ally diminish the power and dispo?
sition of the public to respond lo the
tails of the government for money for
war. This danger should arouse. 1
venture to suggest, the anxiety and
stimulate the efforts of the congress
and of OVOry patriotic citizen. A more
urgent and pressing peril is forced
upon our attention by the obvious tact
that we are dependent so largely on
the efficiency and strength of these
corporations and on our railroads
lor speed ami success in preparing for
and prosecuting the war.
The corporations referred to sup?
ply light, l^eat, power and electric
railway transportation for passengers
and freight. They touch intimately
the daily life of the people. ?n nor?
mal times they have been favorite tar?
gets for sneers and savage criticism
from large parts of the public and
the press. In some instarfcos, doubt?
less, they have deserved and invited
hostility. In others, the attacks- Up?
en them probably have been unjust
and unreasonable. Frequently they .
have been the victims or beneficiaries
of local politics, suffering injury in
the end in either case. Yet, general?
ly, they were able to serve the needs
Of *their communities with (reason?
able ettlciency and to earn fair re?
turns on the money invested in
them. Now they are threatened with
ruin. If they sire allowed to sink into
inefficiency, much of the most import?
ant war work of the government will'
be crippled or paralyzed.
The work of war has thrown upon
i
many of these corporations strains
which they are unable to endure
without prompt help, The costs of
their labor and of all material for
operation, betterment, and upkeep
have increased heavily anil suddenly.
They are required to increase radical-:
hjr and quickly their service and Ca#
'iiilas. Industries manufacturing
[war munitions and materials de?
mand of the public utilities corpora?
tions constantly greater supplies oi
power ami light, .\t the Indusrlal
centers, enr lines are being rushed
and overburdened i>y new armies or
workers, The gas companies are
ailed upon for gas for cooking and
lieatins in quantities beyond all nor
I mal Calculations and for beyond
their present capacities. They are
urged continually to furnish more
coke and coal by-products, toluol, and
other elements absolutely essential in
modern warfare. Where canton?
ments have been established, the de?
mands on the resources of water.
i
, lighting and transportation compa?
nies are especially s.-vere; ability to
i comply With such demands is neces?
sary for the safety and comfort of th<
lighting men in training.
A committee representing the four
hading associations, which include all
the principal electric light and pow?
er companies, street railway compa
, nice, and the most important gas
' companies of the country, recently
! submitted to this office a report in j
which attention was asked to the in?
crease within the last two years in
the cost of materials they must use
for the maintenance of their proper?
ties. They gave a list of percentages
j of additional cost, showing among
others the following items:
Increase from IglS to i?i7.
Per Cent.
Copper wire. 180
Pipe, east-ii on. 100
Axles . 27 2!
Adds. ltiij
1 lirass. 800
Car forgings. 21?; !
Castings, malleable. 188
Copper, bar and sheet. 117
Lead, pig and sheet. 127
Nails. 110;
Steel, tool. 400
Tie-plates. 276 j
The continued and increasing ef
fleiency of these corporations is im - i
portent for the successful conduct of
the war. This efficiency is not pos
slhle with present conditions. Cor?
porations proved by their own figures
to be approaching bankruptcy can not
obtain money for improvements or
maintenance. On the other hand,!
banks and olttsene suffering severe
losses from investments in the se?
curities of these entirely legitimate
and once promising enterprises will
be discouraged from lending money
to the government or deprived of the
means to lend.
The first and most direct relief to
the public utilities corporations can ,
Le given by the State public litilitie
< ommissions and municipal and local
authorities, with the 'broad-minded
co-operation of the people generally,
understanding the necessities uf war
nnd realizing that the more prompt
i
y its burdens are aeoepted the soon
or tliey will be lifted. It is es-cnt a
ihm forbearance and consideration'
be exercised by the state Commis?
sions ami municipal authorities! and
thai the corporations also be per?
mitted to make Hindi additions to
hen- charges tor service as will keep
.'n them tin- breath of solvency, pro
it their owners against unjust los-s.
iand give them a basis of credit on
Which they may obtain the funds with
j which to meet the strain put on
them by the government's reeds. The
i breaking down of these corporations
, would be a national calamity.
Because of the gravity of the sit?
uation in this regard, 1 | m move.:
' to Oflk for it the careful attention
Of the congress and the public. 1
am impressed with the importance of
early consideration by the congress of
some measure to provide directly or
indirectly for advance of funds on
some conservative basis to such of
these corporations as need help most
I urgently, so that they can ?ivc ade?
quate service to the government. The
remedy would be unusual; but the
times are unusual.
The amount of railroad and oHier
public service bonds owned by the
national banks June :10, 1917, was re?
ported at |76S(000,000. This is equal
to approximately TO per cent, of the
capital stock of the banks.
With appropriate aid from the gov?
ernment through the congress; with
liberal recognition by local authori?
ties of the present acute conditions;
and with some practical provision to
enable the corporations to ncet their
own needs and those of th ? country,
the danger now pressing and becom?
ing more serious with each day will
be removed, the general business in?
terests of the country will be fostered,
the ability and readiness of the pub?
lic to respond to calls for money will j
be maintained, and urgent require-'
mentS for the defense of the country's j
life and assurance of our freedom i
and peace will be met.
GERMANS <;ET CiRKAT ROOTY.
Herlin, Feb. 21.?The Russian,
town of Rovono has been Cleared of;
Russians, the war office reports.
Trains with about one thousand cars,
many of them laden with lood, have
been captured, as well as airplanes
and cn incalculable amount of war
material. I
WAR FINANCE COHPOIlATinx.
Senate Keports Administration Ilill
Favorably.
WMhlngton, Feb. 21.?By unani?
mous action the administration bill to
create a WAV finance corporation, with
a capital of four and a half billion
dollars to extend government aid to
war industries, was ordered favorab?
ly reported today to the senate.
Miss Millwee Davis, the Sunday
School Superintendent, will hold a
conference In the Sunday school
room of rhe Presbyterian church at
4.3o Saturday afternoon. All Sunday
school workers of the city are urged
to be present.
Geo. H. Hurst,
Undertaker and Emhlner
Prompt Attentin to Day and
Night Calls
A) J. D. CRAIG Old Stand. N. Main
Phones: BWS?
We Grind Dcnses, examine the
eyes tcientiflcally and fit eye?
glasses perfectly. Let us work
for you.
We have all prescriptions
on file. Broken lenses replac?
ed promptly. Graduate Opto?
metrist and Optician in charge.
W. A. Thompson,
JEW El E & OPTOMETRIST.
Tlllllllltjltl"
NEW CR
NS IN FOOTWEAR
C P hud & co
\
(
life
.j
A
i ?.
V
T
Ladies' Footwear made by E. P.
Reed & Co., are as well known in
Sumter, as
THE O'DONNELL STORES
We merely wish to let you
know that the Spring Stock is
now here.
All the latest styles in popular
materials. Patent Colts, Tans, Kids
and Guns.
B.. C D. and E. Widths
We are equipped to fit you
properly and comfortably, with
our guarantee back of every pair.
Also a big line of Krippendorf
Dittman Oxfords at $3.50. None
better at the price.
E.r.Reto x co
ftjjn
I
A
Dry Goods Company