INAUGURATES SURVEY TO RE
DUCE LOST MOTION IN VAR
OIJS WAR BUREAUS.
INVOLVES 250.000 EMPLOYES.
Col. Reeves Placed in Charge of In-'
quirv by Which It Is Hoped to Es
tablish Many Constructive Reforms
in All Branches of the Service.
WASHINGTON, June 18.—With a I
view to determining where more army j
red tape may be eliminated, Benedict,
Crowell, first assistant secretary of i
war, has inaugurated a thorough in
vestigation into the office personnel 1
and methods of the warious war de
partment bureaus. I he survey is be
ing conducted by Colonel Ira L. Reeve.-'
an infantry ofticer, detailed temporar
ily in the inspector general’s depart
■
ment.
“The inquiry,” said Mr. Crowell to-;
day, “is intended to be of a construct-1 *
ive nature. No criticisms will be j
made unless accompanied by full rec- 1
ommendations as to an impioved
means of performing the work. It is , 1
intended to make changes of an evo- ■ 1
lutionary rather than a revolutionary
nature. Reports are rendered from
day to day of weak spots in the war 1
department organization with recom- 1
mendations that immediate steps be
taken looking to their correction. The ; 1
intention is that no general plan of i
reorganization shall be attempted, as j j
such a plan would retard activities..
The idea is to speed up. but to do it
through elimination, one at a time, of ,
congested centers. Results are being
■expeditiously obtained, and it is be
lieved that the survey already has re
sulted in increased efficiency, the j
speeding up of activities generally;
and the turning out of a greater
amount of work with fewer employes.
There has been very rapid expan- 1
sion of the various bureaus of the war
department. At the outbreak of the
war there were fewer than 3,000 em
ployes on duty. The number is now 1
approximately 25.000, an increase of
800 per cent. The increase in the ar-1
my itself has been more than 1,500 per
cent. The increase in personnel at the
administrative end of the war has
not kept pace with the growth of the
military estamisnment. i
“When the present inquiry was be-;'
gun,” said Mr. Crowell, “many criti-1
cisrns of the war department were | '
taken up for consideration. Some of '
these were based on presumption and j
were not of a constructive nature. The j
inouir vhas developed the fact tl'.at1
j
many blunders were attributable j
largely to inexperience on the part of .
those charg 'd with Cue responsibilities |
and the lack of sufficient trained force
to master at once all the details of the
enormous undertaking. t
“When the United States entered <
the war the entire army, including all ! t
officers and enlisted men, consisted of t
i* s.- than 100,000. The army, how- \
ever, had had some experience in 1
handling problems larger than those \
normally confronting it in the mobili- <
zation of the national guard on the
Megican border. The border troubles;]
also had resulted in a small ino-ea.se! ’
in the permanent establishment and I
the retention in the sendee of a con-!
siderable number of national guard j
troops.
Four out of every hundred officers j 1
in the service now were in the army j I
at the time the war began. Probably ]
less than one third of 1 per cent of <
the entire commissioned force has had :
sufficient service to be equipped for <
responsible military positions as j
judged by European standards. s
Army officers say that one feature 1
of the military administration which
is not plain to the laymen is the fact
that there are legal requirements
making it necessary that more com
plete records be kept of all military
activities than is required in the case
of large industrial institutions. These
requirements usually are referred to
as “red tape.” They involve an in- j
creased amount of office work, requir- t
ng a largo clerical and supervisory
'orce.
“In the face of such legal restric
:ions as exist, “said Mr. Crowell, “the
umy has attempted to clear itself of
'O-called red tape. It is the purpose
jf the present inquiry to eliminate
lost motion and get direct results.
Most of the bureaus already have cm
ployed efficiency experts who have
attempted to install modern methods.
Many new suggestions have been
made which are rapidly being carried
nto effect. In installing new efficien
cy methods it has been essential to
maintain certain characteristics of the
nilitary establishment necessary to
sustain military discipline.”
JUDGE GUNNISON
CALLED TO REST:
JUNEAU, June 17.—Judge Royal
V. Gunnison, federal food administra
or for Alaska, died suddenly at his
loine in Juneau yesterday. The fune
•a! will be held tomorrow, under the !
auspices of the Masonic order, of j
vhich he was a prominent member,
[’he whole town is in mourning over
he untimely demise of Ju ,'re Gunni
son, who was held in high esteem in j
Southeastern Alaska. He came to !
\laska some twelve years ago, having i
>een appointed federal judge of the |
irst division. Upon his retirement j
rom the bench, he remained in the j
erritory and entered the practice of j
aw at Juneau. He was associated I
vith Ralph E. Robertson in the law !
iractice at the time of his death, ui- j
hough the greater part of his time !
vas devoted to food conservation in !
he territory.
LONDON, June 18.—A decimal
oinage bill, providing for a rear
rangement of the British money sys
em on a decimal basis, has been in
roduced in the house of lords by Lord
Southwark. The bill is the result of
•onferences between two great busi
ness organizations, the Institute of:
Jankers and the Associated Chambers,
>f Commerce. Both organizations j
rave their support to the scheme by
i unanimous vote.
The bill provides for the continu
mce of the sovereign and the florin, j
he latter being one-tenth of the sov
ereign or pound. A new coin, one
lundredth of a pound, will make its
ippearance, being practically equiva
ent to the American nickel. The new
arthing will be worth slightly less
han the present farthing, being ex
ictly one-thousandth of a pound. Five
arthings wiil make up the new pen
OTTAWA, June 19. — Explorer
Refanssen, in a message to the naval j
lepartment of Canada, says he will
emain at Fort Yukon until the end of
lie summer on account of his health,
.'hieh is badly impaired. The ship
'olar Bear, with the remainder of his
>arty, will come south as soon as ice
onditions will pennit.
J. S. SUBMARINE
GETS BUN U-BOAT
—
AN ATLANTIC PORT, June IS.
Passengers on an American steamer
hat reached this port last night re
>ort that an American submarine op
erating in American waters destroyed]
i German submaiine off the Virginia
•apes several days ago. The passen
gers say the officers of the American
submarine told them of the sinking of
he Hun diver.
BETCHA!
0, people in this happy land,
Cheer up and wear a grin;
The war will soon be over and
Your Uncle Sam will win!
What has become of the old-fash
oned man who used to walk around
he world on a wager?
OFFICERS OF THE WOLF LEC
TURE ABOUT 15 MONTHS’
VOYAGE OF BOAT.
LOSSES PUZZLE THE BRITISH.
Mines Laid Twice With the Help of
British Searchlights, the Teutons
Assert—First Officer Tells of Ships
That Were Lost Off Colomlw)—Min
ed Indian Coast.
NEW YORK, June 18.—The feats
accomplished by the German sea
raider Wolf, which returned home late
in February, after having sunk eleven
enemy ships, captured much booty and
laid many mines on a fifteen-month
cruise, are being thoroughly exploited
for the benefit of the German public,
according to reports found in German
newspapers recently received here.
Captain Nerger has written a book
which, in the words of the Dresdner
Nueste Nachrichten of April 14 “of
fers a fascinating picture of the life
and activities of the Wolf,” and Com
mander Witschewsky, the first officer,
is making speeches along the same
line. Both are being quoted by the
German press as authorities on gene
ral conditions on the seven seas and j
the effect of the unrestricted U-boat |
campaign upon maritime traffic. *
In a speech delivered at Lubeck, j
Commander Witschewsky gave some
new details of the raider’s cruise. He
said that the Wolf went out to sea via I
Iceland, and then round the cape and !
into the Indian ocean, passing close to
Madagascar. In the Indian ocean a
southeasterly course was taken for
safety, and after passing round Aus
tralia, New Guinea and New Zealand
the Wolf proceeded to Bombay, Cey
lon, the Indian coast, and the Red Sea,
then to the south, round the cape, and
through the Atlantic back to Iceland,
whence the ship went home along the
Norwegian coast.
Commander Witschewsky said that
the main object of the cruise was to
lay mines. In his speech, as summar
ized by the London Times, he said that
the first mines were laid off the cape
by night “in the bright light of Eng
lish searchlights,” and on January 27,
IhlT, the Wolf picked up an English
wireless message reporting subma- ■
lines off the cape and advising cau-1
tion. He said that on arrival at Cey
lon “a large wreath of mines was laid
about Colombo, again with the help
of English searchlights and without
interference.
Ships Lost Off Colombo.
Referring to the alleged work of the
mines laid ofl Colombo, Captain Ner
ger wrote in his book as follows:
“ The very next day the Worcester
shire, a ship of 7,00U registered ton
nage, was blown up here. In expla
nation of this the English announced
in a wireless message that there had
been an explosion in the interior of the
ship and it had sunk some seven miles
ofl Colombo. In reality, however,
they were puzzled at first and even
the marine officers did not know what!
to make of this mysterious affair.
‘‘Outrages were again suspected and
quite a number of Indians and neu
trals were accused of having hidden
infernal, machines in the ship or of
having planted mines. For the time
being, however, no counter measures
were adopted. Then right at the same
place only a few days later a second
vessel of about the same size, the Per
seus, was blown up. The crew, as
had been the case with the Worcester
shire, was saved and brought into Co
lombo.
“The passengers and crew of the
Worcestershire had been allowed to
wander about at will, but this time
different action was taken. All those
who had been in the Perseus were
closely watched and kept away from
the public and the Indian population,
so that the details of the ‘accident’
might not become known and the
mines might be destroyed by infernal
machines. No doubt there was fear
of British prestige and there was a
desire to avoid the indignation arous
ed by the failure of the English to
have done anything to prevent'such a
disaster.
“Of course they were not idle, but
nevertheless they were not able to
prevent other losses of ships. From
news that we picked up later it is
clear that quite a large number of
ships, among them several liners, con
sequently large ships, according to re
ports in the English papers them
selves, were lost off Colombo. It was
said at the time in the article telling
of the loss of the Mongolia, which was
blown up by our mines months later,
in June, that she had not been the
only liner that had fallen victims to
floating mines. Still other liners may
have been lost through floating mines
during the southwestern monsoon.”
Mines Along Indian Coast.
In his speech at Lubeck Commander
Witschewsky said that more mines
had been laid along the Indian coast
as far as Bombay and that “as appears
from a wireless message which was
picked up, the English commandant of
Bombay was the first to guess that the
danger to traffic was due to a German
mine ship.”
It was between Ceylon and the Red
Sea that the Wolf made her first cap
ture. This was evidently the ship
which other accounts have mentioned
as the Turritella, and which the Ger
mans named the litis. Commander
Witschewsky says that the Turritella
or litis, was originally a sister ship
of the Wolf, named Gutenfels, and be
longed to the Hansa company of Bre
men. She had been seized by the Brit
ish in the Suez canal. The litis was
sent to lay mines off Aden, but was
blown up by her commander.
The Wolf was now very short of
coal, and learning that she could ex
pect to get no coal in India, proceeded
toward southern Australia, where she
laid the rest of her mines. The Wolf
cruised “for weeks” in Australian wa
ters without making a capture, and
“at last found a remote group of isl
ands, where she anchored for repairs.”
Commander Witschewsky said that
the engines of the W olf had been tak
en to pieces when the approach of. a
ship was reported. This was the Wai
runa, which, according to previous re
ports, obeyed the order to stop and
made no use of her wireless, which
was given by the seaplane Wolfchen,
sent up from the Wolf. After taking
over the stores of the Wairuna, the
Wolf was painted black and continued
her cruise.
Commander Witschewsky said that
the Wolf had a speed of only eight
knots when she passed “through the
English blockade lines into the North
Sea,” and that the first German ship
she encountered would not believe her
wireless message—“Captain Nerger
returning home in the Wolf.”
SENATOR LENROOT
FLAYS SOCIALISTS
NEW YORK, June 18.—An address
on Americanism and patriotism was
delivered yesterday in the Institution
al Synagogue, 116th street and Fifth
avenue, by United States Senator Ir
vine Luther Lenroot of Wisconsin,
who was introduced by Congressman
Isaac Siegel. Senator Lenroot said
that men born in any country can be
good Americans—as good as those
whose ancestors fought in the revolu
tion, and he instanced that the man
who led the fight for war legislation
in congress was Julius Kahn of Cali
fornia, who was born in Germany.
“We cannot have peace,” he added,
“until the German people themselves
take such measures as will control
their own government. This war
knows for America no race or creed or
religion. We are all Americans, and
unless we win this war, the freedom
of conscience to worship God will be
destroyed.
“Some people of alleged high ideals
would withdraw our troops and stop
the war. They tried to do that in
Russia. Any socialist in the United
States who knows this and is not
willing to fight this war is not a good
American.”
DUTY CALLS.
He that by the plow would thrive,
He, himself, must hold or drive;
He that would in this land live,
He must either fight or give.
—(G. W. A.)
ARTILLERY IS !
THE SIGNAL!
- i
FROM THE ASIAGO PLATEAU TO (
THE SEA BATTLE RAGES TO- ,
DAY WITH INTENSITY.
ITALIAN DEFENSE IS SUPERB.
Last Great German-Austro Offensive
Began Last October and Was Halt
ed December 1, When French and
British Forces Went to Aid of Wa
vering Italian Lines.
ROME, June 17.—The Austrian
Hungarian armies this morning start- ;
ed a great offensive movement on the \
Italian front from Asiago plateau to
the sea, declared Premier Orlando, of ]
Italy, in the chamber of deputies to- <
day. .The premier says the Italian ]
armies, all along the line, are putting 1
up a magnificent resistance.
VIENNA REPORTS OFFENSIVE (
VIENNA, June 17.—The beginning (
of a great offensive movement on the ,
Italian front is indicated in official ,
communications this morning. The ,
olfilial announcements state that the
Austrian-Hungarian armies opened a
big artillery action along the entire
Italian front. As the day advances
the artillery activities are increasing
to a terrific intensity. On the Alban- J
ian front, a French attack on our po- :'
sit ions broke down completely.
INFANTRY ATTACKS BEGIN. j
LONDON, June 17.—Official: Aus-1;
j trian-Hungarian guns opened a heavy,]
; bombardment on the Italian front i ;
] from Asiago plateau to the sea. The ]
artillery activities were followed by
vigorous infantry assaults against the
Italian armies and which are continu
ing with terrible intensity. Four Aus
trian divisions have directed their at
tacks against the British forces in ;
sectors on the front held by them. (
(
FIGHTING MOST INTENSE. '
WITH THE ITALIAN ARMY, !
June 17,—Austrian forces which cros
sed the Piave river have been driven I
back, with heavy losses, by the Ital-; ]
ian forces. .The fighting along the Pi- h
ave .river .continues with .unabated
fury today.
SITUATION IS REASSURING.
ROME, .June .17.—The .situation
along the Italian front is reassuring.
The great battle which started early
this morning has in reality just begun.
Although employing sixty .divisions,
tiie Austro-Hungarian .armies have
not succeeded in penetrating the ad
vanced Italian area at any point along
the entire front. .The enemy is con
centrating fierce attacks astride the
Brenta riv er and across the Piave
river.
THE LAST BIG OFFENSIVE.
ROME, June 17.—The last great
German-Austro offensive against the
Italian armies began October, 1917, /
and rolled back General Cadorna’s line (
from the Isonzo front to the front (
along the Venetian plain. More than (
a million enemy troops participated J
in the offensive, and it was not until (i
manv weeks had passed that the Ital- £
(•
ian armies were able to stay the ad- (
vance. About the middle of Novem- <
ber, the Piave battle began on a 90- (
mile front. French and British forces {
were hurried to the scene to reiniorce -
the shaken Italian line. The crisis
was passed December 1, when the en
emy armies were brought to a halt.
Since that time, the Italian armies,
aided by French and British reinforce
ments, have been preparing for the
ilow which is now being struck. The
talian armies have been re-equipped.
Jenerai Diaz has succeeded General
Jadorna as commander-in-chief of f|he
Lilian armies. Rome awaits the ou't'i
ome of the present offensive with en
ire complacency, having entire faith
n the ability of the Italian armies to
lold their own against the Austrian
lungarian forces. It is believed that
Jerman officers are in command of
he enemy troops.
1J. S. FLYERS BOMB
HUN RAILWAY TOWN
WASHINGTON, June 17.—General
’’ershing’s communique last night
;ells of a successful bombing expedi
ion in the rear of German lines by
American aviators. A railway station *
iml railway tracks in a town behind
he German lines was attacked by the
Americans and a number of direct
fits were made, doing considerable
lamage. All of the aviators safely
■eturned to their base, in the Toul sec
;or.
A bride has to have envelope
ombinations of crepe de chine that
ost about nine fifty. But a few
•ears later she is glad to get plan*
mion suits of Scrap de Cotton that
:ost about fifty-nine.
Job printing at the Times office.
ADMINISTRATOR’S NOTICE TO
CREDITORS.
n the Matter of the Estate of Ernest
Pod boy, Deceased.
WHEREAS, on the 11th day of May,
918, R. O. Albritton was regularly ap
iointed administrator of the estate of j
2rnest Podboy, deceased, by the Com- “
nissioner and Ex-Officio Probate Judge
if Knik Precinct. Third Judicial Divi
iop, Territory of Alaska;
NOW THEREFORE, pursuant to the
aw in such case made anti provided, no
ice is hereby given to the creditors of
aid estate to present their verified
hums against said estate, accompanied
vith propei- vouchers, to said adminis
rator, at his office at No. f>05 Fourth
Avenue, in the city of Anchorage, in
he Territory of Alaska, in said pre
inct, within six months from the date
if this notice.
Dated this 14th day of Mnv. 1918.
R. O. ALBRITTON, *
Administrator.
ARTHUR THOMPSON.
NOTICE FOE PUBLICATION
Department of the Interior, U. S.
-.and Office at Juneau, Alaska, January
0, 1918.
Notice is hereby given that Vinten E.
,’aves, of Knik, Alaska, who on June 21,
9ir., made Homestead application No.
1829. for WVaXW'U W%S\V% Sec, 26
114NE’,4 EV^SEVi, Section 27, Town
hip 16 N, Range :i W., Seward Meridian,
ins filed notice of intention to make fin
1 three-year proof, to establish claim
o the land above described, before U. S.
Commissioner S. S. Bateman, at his of
ice at Knik, Alaska, on July 1, 1918.
Claimant names as witnesses:
Peter Jenson, George Gates, J. W.
lownins, William Marfit, all of Knik,
Gaska.
51 C. B. WALKER, Register.
Ik Sitka Hot Springs
These springs are five in
number and one of the old land
marks of Alaska. The Russians
had a hospital there in 1841,
where they sent patients with
diseases of the skin and consti
tutional blood disorders.
The temperature averages
145 degrees Fahrenheit at the
Spring. The baths are effica
cious for rheumatism, stomach
and liver troubles, kidney and
bladder diseases, and for consti
tutional disorders.
These springs are in charge
of Dr. F. L. Goddard. The
terms for room, board, and
baths, $2 a day and up. Cabins,
$7.50 per month and up, includ
ing furnishings, except bed
ding. ADDRESS
F. L. GODDARD, M. D..
SANITARIUM, : ALASKA
NORTH POLE
BAKERY
AND COFFEE HOUSE
4th Ace., Bet. C and D. S
W. D. WANGLING L
HIGHEST PRICE PAID FOR
FURS.
Q()®®(5XsXj)®®@00€X!Xi)®SXsXs)®(SXS)@®000®®®®0®<5Xs)00®00®®®0®@®0<S)®®<5y5!0
Get the Best Price by Shipping Your
Furs to the EASTERN MARKET.
Furs Bought Outright, or Sold on
Consignment.
FURS
REMITTANCE BT MONET ORDER, EXPRESS ORDER OR CHEQUE
Hoerner, Williams & Co.
FUR MERCHANTS REG.
NEW YORK, N. Y.129 West 29th Street
REFERENCE—BANK OF ANCHORAGE.