A WEEK OF CONDENSED WIRE NEWS
MONDAY
Washington—The cold wave which
has enveloped the Atlantic seaboard
is the most severe experienced in
that section of the country since
1880. New York and Boston report
8 below weather; it is zero in Phila
delphia; sixteen below at Portland
and Albany; twenty below at Can
ton, N. Y. The temperature is
somewhat less severe at Chicago,
Louisville and Omaha, where ten
above weather is reported. The
weather bureau predicts an upwird
tendency in the temperature, oe
ginning tonight.
New Orleans.—A shipload of Rtd
cross relief supplies will 'leave ths
city on Thursday for distributioi
among the earthquake sufferers o1
Guatamala City. No details of thi
disaster have been received here.
Detroit.—The destruction of thi
new Liberty Motor plant in this citj
was narrowly averted yesterday bj
the timely discovery of a fire, whicl
had been started, it is believed, bi
agents of the German governmen
The flames were first seen by work
men and the alarm sounded in tim<
to save the works.
Washington.—The department ol
commerce estimates that a new
record has been established foi
American exports. Outgoing ship
meats are reported to have aggre
gated, during the year, the enor
mous amount of more than six bii
lions. The imports for the yeai
were about half the exports.
t
Washington.—It is regarded as
practically assured that Presidenl
Wilson and Director General Me
Adoo have decided to advance the
wages of the railroad workers
throughout the country, the raise
to include both organized and un
organized labor. It is believed
however, that the advance will not
reach the forty per cent recently
demanded by the trainment. Un
necessary officers are to be removed
together with publicity agents, soli
citors and the hundreds of attorneys
whose salaries the traveling ublie
was forced to pay under private
ownership.
Washington.—The beautiful city
of Guatamala is in ruins as the re
sult of a series of violent earth
quakes which began on Christmas
and continued at frequent intervals
until the city was a scene of de
vastation. One hundred twenty-five
thousand residents are walking the
streets, having been rendered home
less by the shocks. The navy de
partment has given instructions to
the commanders of American naval
vessels in those waters to render
such assistance as they can.
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¥
V
New York.—Sixteen residents of
this city are dead and Hundreds are
under the care of doctors as the re
sult of the coal and food shortage.
Thousands are suffering acutely.
Should the cold spell continue, for
another thre days, the situation will
become critical.
Washington.—According to testi
mony given before the senate mili
tary committee today by former
Chief of Ordance Crozier, France
and England had agreed with the
war department to supply all the
artillery needed by the American
troops during 1918. This arrange
ment had been made, Crozier said,
because the United States neither
had the guns to send to France nor
shops in which to make them.
Indianapolis.—Federal Judge Ander
son has rendered a decision to the
effect that it is not within his power
to issue an injunction against Fred
Miller, the alien enemy mayor-elect
of Michigan City, to prevent him
from taking office.
Petrograd.—The directors of the
private banks recently raided by
Bolsheviki, have been imprisoned in
fortresses St. Peter and St. Paul.
New York.—Reports of the Guat
amala disaster, have reached this
city, state that a thousand people
were killed, as the result of the
earthquake shocks.
New Y rk.—Present indications
are that the advent of the New Year
will be celebrated by New Yorkers
much less noisily than usual tonight.
The high price of wine and the one
o’clock closing law will help some
to Keep the celebrants within bounds.
Hotel and restaurant cards will bear
nothing that does not bear the
stamp of approval of the food ad
ministrator.
| Paris.—A contingent of American
! volunteers were landed safely on the
French coast yesterday and were
received with great honors by the
civil and military authorities.
! -
; Copenhagen.—The Bolsheviki gov
ernment has released fourteen Aus
trian vessels which were interned
in Russian waters, according to word
received here today. The ships rep
resent a total of 40,000 tons.
I St. Louis.—Robert Franke, a
young man who objected to the
j draft, has been sentenced to a term
of ten years at hard labor. He was
court martialed.
I _
| Berlin.—The war office admits, in
a statement issued this morning, that
the Italians have made gains on the
i lorthern Italian front, the Teuton
|Ines having been penetrated at sev
] e:al points. The Austrians are pre
.' paring- to launch counter attacks.
Nome.—Earl Rogers, editor of the
None Industrial Worker, and five
. of his associates, are under arrest
here on the charge of making sedi
, j tious utterances.
Washington.—Despite the opposi
tion of Secretary of War Baker,
numerous congressmen are strongly
in favor of the adoption of a uni
■ verbal military training law at the
i present session of congress.
r _
j Washington.—As the result of the
! commandeering of the railroads of
the country, the government now is
! being urged to take over the coal
mines. The demand is being voiced
by Americans in all sections of the
United States.
i
—
Petrograd.—Bessarabia has de
clared its independence and will form
: part of the Russian federal republic
| Petrograd—An explosion at Kron
! stadt, the chief fortress defending
j this city, has completely wrecked
f the biggest forts and ammu
\ nit! n depots in the country.
—
London.—General Haig reports
| this morning that the British forces
j in Northern France have recovered
i considerable lost ground in the Cam
bria sector as the result of attacks
; launched yesterday. A numter of
1 prisoners and guns were taken dur
; ing the operations, but the French
managed to retain a portion of the
first line trenches.
Peking.—Advices received in this
i city state that Eastern Siberia is the
; scene of a bloody revoluton, in
which women and children are being
'murdered without mercy. The Red
; guards are reported to have burned
| a town, ait r having murdered the
I French consular agent and three
'other Frenchmen.
WEDNESDAY
j Washington—Explosions and fires
at Norfolk, Va., Philadelphia navy
yard, and Fairmont, W. Va., during
| the past two days, caused the death
of eight workers and injured thirty.
1 A vast amount of property also was
destroyed. The outrages were clear
ly the work of incendiaries. A score
of suspects, including two Germans,
have been placed under arrest. The
city of Norfolk has been declared
under martial law.
' Washington.-—Having been in
formed that a leather shortage does
not exist and that many shoe fac
j tories throughout the country are
j operating short of capacity, the fed
eral trade commission has ordered
an investigation of the leather in
1 dustry, to determine why the price
' of shoes is so high,
i '
Olympia.—The Stone & Webster
i traction companies, operating in
| Seattle, Tacoma, Bellingham and
Everett, have asked the public ser
j vice commission for permission to
■ employ women as members of their
; car crews. The scarcity of men
: prompted the request.
! Washington.—Secretary of War
Baker is authority for the statement
that Russian troops continue to aid
the British in Mesopotamia, notwith
] standing the peace negotiations
i started by Bolshevki and the general
j suspension of hostilities on the var
| ious Russian fronts.
London.—It is generally believed
jin local military circles that a
cris s is approaching ra; dly in Rus
sia. The Bolsheviki gn> ernment has
demanded that the future delibera
tions of the peace conference be
[held at Stockholm. And there is
strong objection to the German atti
tude regarding occupied territory.
Leaders of the Bolshevikl forces are
I considering a resumption of hostili
| ties and claim that they have an
j army of three million available for
1 immediate action. The kaiser is
j aroused over the sudden change of
, front and has dispatched German
; and Austrian representatives to
| Brest Litovsk with new Instructions.
I One report states that the Red guard
has already started fighting against
the Germans.
! London. — Compulsory rationing
j will be put into effect in England
, at an early date, according to a
; statement made today by officials
. of the government.
_
Washington.—The state depart
ment has been advised that a Swiss
engineer, employed for many years
in the great factory at Magdeburg,
has returned to Switzerland and re
\ ports that the industrial machinery
of Germany is breaking down, due
to the shortage of oil and rubber
and the metals necessary for alloy,
in steel.
Detroit.—Advices received from
Canada state that the new conscrip
tion act went into effect today with
out disorder or confusion.
I
! Petrograd.—The kaiser has forc
ibly transferred 300,000 civilian
Poles and Lithuanians to Germany,
where they will be used as laborers.
Rome.—The war office announces
today that, with the exception of a
few outpost positions near the mouth
of the Piave, the entire western
bank of that stream is now clear
of Austro-German forces.
i _
Rome.—The war office announces
that the attempt of the Teutons to
cross the Piave river has been de
feated by the defending Italian
forces. Ten boats, loaded with the
Austro-Germans, were driven back
after they had reached the middle
' of the stream. Many of the Teutons
i were killed.
London.—The British labor party
has drafted an after-the-war pro
gram, for submission in June. A
minimum wage will be demanded,
and government control of all large
industries. A protective tariff also
will be demanded and unrestricted
free speech and freedom of the
press is urged. Economic war is op
l posed and the abolition of the
I house of lords is sought.
i Cam]) Lewis—Private George Pidd
has been sentenced to life impison
ment for a murderous assault on a
comrade, with the object of robbery.
Washington. — President Wilson
will address congress tomorrow on
the railroad situaion, for the pur
pose of securing the enactment of
legislation needed.
Spokane.—An abandoned marble
quarry at Chewala, 60 miles north
of here, has recently been reopened
for work of mining and extracting
magnesite ore therefrom. Its o it
put now of this valuable ; r ■ average?
daily over five thousand net. The
qnarrrv, two years ago was oflered
to a man for ihe loan of his auto
mobile tor a days trip.
Petrograd.—Local newspapers de
clare, in commenting on the peace
negotiations with Germany ,that im
perialism is showing its claws,
during the recess.
Washington.—The senate met to
day, but adjourned immediately out
of respect of Senator Newlands and
Representative Batherick, who died!
Washington.—Following a confer-J
encr between Ambassador Springj
ice and Secretary Lansing, the latter !
announced that the British diplomat
would leave shortly for England, on j
leave.
Washington—As the result of the
disclosures made before the senate
investigating committor. with rela
tion to the ineffice icy of the ord
nance division under the manage
ment of an army officer, the divi
sion is to be reorganized immediatly
and an expert will be placed at the j
head of the department, as chief of j
ordnance.
Washington—In a statement mads
before the senate investigating con,- i
mittee today, Food Administrator,
Hoover admitted that he had made [
sensational statements regarding j
food shortages, for the purp.so of;
awakening the American people to
the importance of conserving their j
%
food supplies. He declared that his
statements had not tended to in
crease prices.
Olympia.—Exemption boards are
having difficulty locating Alaskans
who registered in the North, while
temporarily employed, and failed to
leave their permanent address when
leaving the territory. The state de-1
partment has ordered them to send
their present addresses to the Alas
kan boards or to Governor Strong.
Unles this is done, the men will be
certified as delinquents and de- j
serters.
New York—A mob of six hundred [
persons, including many women,
stormed the coal yards in this city
yesterday and made off with thirty
tons of the precious fuel before the
police arrived on the scene.
Seattle.—Countess Anna P-nlina
Fredericks von Kalow, an operatic
singer and first cousin of the kaiser,
died in this city today. She had re
sided in Seattle nine years.
Amsterdam.—In a telegram sent
to the head of the German navy,
J von Hindenburg said that submarin
es had given considerable relief in
the fighting on the Western front.
[ “Hand in hand, with God’s help, we
shall gain a victory in the coming
! year” he said in conclusion.
Zurich.—Advices received here
state that the governments of Russia
and Germany have entered into an
agreement whereby Russia promises
| to supply the kaiser with great stores
of wheat.
Washington.—Secretary McAdoo
has named Hale Holden, president
of the Burlington railroad, execu
tive head of the railroad system of
the country.
Washington.—Dr. Anna Howard is
in leceipt of a cable from General
Pershing, thanking the women of
the United States for their patriotic
efforts on behail' of the Americans
soldiers, for their lov ■ and their
prayers. He concludes w’th “accept
our best wishes for the coming veer
and our firm confidence in our final
; success.”
| London.—The New Year’s mes
sage of Premier David Lloyd George
concludes as follows: “The road to
duty and to patriotism is clear be
fore you. Follow it and it will lead,
ere long, to safety for our own
people and victory for our cause.”
London.—General Haig reports
that the British forces have driven
the Germans out of a'! the positions
won by them earlier in the week on
the Flanders front.
THURSDAY
Vienna.—The war office admits
today that the Teutons have retired
from the western to the eastern
bank of the river Piave, in Italy,
where they have been subjected to
heavy Italian fire.
San Francisco.—President Burton,
of the Iron Workers union, says that
there is no prospect of immediate
settlement of the metal workers’
strike, which is interfering seriously
with the progress of shipbuildng on
the Pacific coast. ?
Washington.—Feed Administrator
Hoover has issued an appeal to the
American people to eat potatoes
every day of the year.
Paris.—The French war office an
nounces that six German airplanes
have been shot down on the French
front since yesterday.
Petrograd—Representatives of the
Bolsheviki government, who parti
cipated in the peace negotiations
at Brest Litovsk, have returned to
this city and declare that the Ger
man terms show positively Uiat the
kaiser plans the annexation of Rus
sian territory, and for that reason
are unacceptable. The delegates say
further that if the Germans insist
upon their terms, when the peace
conference is resumed, Russia will
conclude peace, not with the Ger
man imperialists, but with the rep
resentatives of the German people
—the German Socialists.
London.- The admiralty is au
thority for the statement that the
past month witnessed the destruction
cf more German submarines than
have been lost by the kaiser dur
ing any previous p' ' id of the same ■
length. More of the U boacs were
sunk, it is claimed, than could be f
built by the Germans. The Allies
are hopeful of increasing the de
struction of he divers even more by
the application of newly discovered
methods, which are proving most
effective.
Shrevport, La.—A fire, believed
to have been started by incendiaries,
is raging in the Caldo oil fields and
appeals have been sent to this city
for apparatus to help get the flames
under control.
Geneva.—Swiss troops fired on
the German steamer Kaiser Wil
helm yesterday, when that vessel
entered Swiss territorial waters.
Washington—The first contingent
of Polish soldiers, recruited in the
United States, have been landed in |
France, acording to announcement
made today by the war department.
Paris.—In an address delivered
to his troops yesterday. General
Petain said: “I Like this occasion
to assure you that the co-operation
of the United States is becoming
more powerul every day.”
London.—Major-General Maurice,
chief director of military operations,
expresses the belief that the Ger
mans will soon launch a vigorous
offensive on the Western front, tak
ing advantage of the arrival of
heavy reinforcements from the East
and the unreadiness of the Ameri
can troops to lend assistance to the
Allies at this time. He warns the
public to be prepared to hear that
the Allies have lost both ground and
men, if the offensive starts. He
says, further, however, that it is
not to be expected that the Ger
mans will inflict any such losses on
the Allies as they have suffered
themselves during the past several
months.
New York.—The Staten Island
plant which handles New York gar
bage, was destroyed by fire yester
day, following a terrific explosion iTt'
mysterious origin. The plant was
valued at $2,500,000.
Rome.—In a recent engagement
on the Italian front, a detachment
of French troops captured more
prisoners than there were men in
their own ranks. The prisoners
numbered over 1400 and in addi
tion, more than 500 Germans were
killed.
Vancouver.—A steel cargo car
rier, of 8,800 tons, will be launched
before the end of this month at the
Coughlan shipyards. The vessel is
being built for the Norwegian gov
ernment and will be christened
Alaska.
London.—The admiralty anounc
es that there was considerable in
crease in the number of British ves
sels destroyed by German sub
marines during the past week.
Eighteen ships, of more than 16U0
tons were sunk, and three under
that tonnage. The losses for the
previous week totaled twelve.
New York.—There were further
disturbances in this city today, re
sulting in the storming of a coal
yard by a mob of men and women.
Four coal trucks were also attacked
and the fuel appropriated to private
consumption. The yard was reliev
ed of five tons before the mob was
dispersed.
London.—Advices received from
the mainland today state that un
favorable weather conditions on the
Verdun and Italian fronts are
blocking large operations. The \
Italians report that several raids
undertaken by the Teutons were re
pulsed yesterday. On the Western
front, the Germans are bombarding
the Ypres sector and the big guns |
also are active on the Verdun front
but the infantry on both sides is
inactive.
Petrograd.—A new republic, em
bracing considerable Rlaek sea ter
ritory has been proclaimed by the
residents of that region. The re
ports state tha a cabinet has been
formed and steps taken to place the j
new governent on a solid founda
tion.
Washington.—The late-1 German
peace proposals have been answered
in effect, by -he action of the state-:
department, which has made public
the report of Col. House, on Euio
pean conditions. I'he repot shows i
that there is no indication of weak
ening in the determination ot Amer
icans to win the war. He shows
how the war can be won, fee m
mending that American tr< ops be1
dispatched to Europe with the least i
possible delay; that America exert
her influence to obtain a united
effort with the Allies; and that the
ship program be rushed .
London.—The war office has is
sued a statement in which it is
claimed that the British forces in
the Holy land have advanced an
other three miles, in spite of stub
born resistance on the part of the
Turks. Several important positions
are reported to have been captured.
Seattle.— The Pacific Steams o > is
installing soft drink saloons on their
Alaskan vessels, in order that pas
sengers may live up to the new hone
dry law.
Amsterdam.—In his New Year's
address to the army and navy. Em
peror William said, in part: “The
German people, in arms everywhere
on land anil sea, have achieved great
deeds. But our enemies still hope,
with the assistance of new allies, to
defeat you, and then destroy for
ever, the position won by Germany
:n hard endeavor. They will not
succeed . Trusting in our righteous
cause and in our strength, we face
1018 with firm confidence. We will
go Jo*ward therefore, with vice, to
tiesh oeeds and fresu victories
London.—Premier Pavid Lloyd
George has cabled the viceroy of
India, expressing the belief that be
fore the end of the new jear a com
plete victory will have been won by
the Allies.
Copenhagen.—The town of Rylsk,
in Ukrania, has heen the scene of
heavy fighting during the past
forty-eight hours between Bolsheviki
forces and Cossacks, according to
advices received in this city this
afternoon from Petrograd. Part of
the town has been burnt'’.
London.—The peace negotiations
which were in progress at Bre t
Litovsk, have been called off by the
Bolshevika government because of
the insistent attitude of the Ger
mans, who refused to consent to '.hi*
removal of their troops from Libau,
Riga and other Baltic positions.
Washington.—Senator Reed and
Food Administrator Hoover engaged
in a spirited clash before the senate
investigating committee yesterday
afternoon. Reed, who is one of the
food administrator’s critics, charged
Hoover with usurping authority in
handling the wheat situation. He
said that such conduct in peaceful
times would be regarded as a crime.
Hoover denied the charge, declaring
that his acts had been approved by
President Wilson. He said further
that as the result of his alleged
usurption of authority, the farmers
of the country are now getting a
better price for their wheat and con
sumers are paying less for flour.
Seattle.—H. P. Warren, repre
sentative of the Alaskan Engineer
ing commission, has been instructed
to raise a railroad construction regi
ment from among the former em
ployees of the Commission and other
Alaskans. The regiment probably
will consist of about 2,500 men.
Ottawa.-—The Dominion govern
ment has issued a call for about
20,000 men for the training camps,
the first to be summoned under the
new conscription law. The law pro
vides for a total of 100,000 m >n.
Washington—Chairman Hurley, of
the shipping board, has asked con
gress for an additional amount of
seven hundred millions for the con
struction of merchant ships and for
the acquisition of shipbuilding plants.
Newport News.—Hundreds of citi
zens yesterday raided the Chesapeake
& Ohio coal yards, carrying off two
carloads in small quantities. The
rioters were dispersed by the police
after they had taken all the coal
they required.
Petrograd.—Eleven hundred air
plane machine guns were destroyed
and a score of persons killed today
as the result of a mysterious fire
and explosion at a military depot
in this city.
Washington.—In his address to
congress, President Wilson Informed
the lawmakers that the demands of
war made the comma dec; eg of the
railroads of the country necessary.
He said further that compensation
ror their use should be bast 1 on the
average net earnings for the past