VOL. XXIV. NO. 126. WILMINGTON, NORTH OAROLINA.WEDNESDAY,;MAY 15,1918- FIVE CENTS WILSON TO OPPOSE INQUIRY INTO HO W WAR IS CONDUCTED A IAJLAj IN THE GERMAN OFFENSIVE . ' ; ! 1 - nnmiro -niiniHiirin Tiinnirn tn innnrn f i DUbntd DHblVYMtU IUi!1LU IU LUOOLO V Says Martin Resolution is Vote of Want of Confidence. STOPPED ONCE BEFORE Has No Objection to . Probe Being Made Into Aircraft Program. . LIKELY BE LIMITED Sub Committee of Senate Leaves Today to Inspect Ordnance Plants of Beth- lehem and Midvale. Washington, May 15. In a letter today to Senator Martin, of Virginia, democratic leader in the senate, President Wilson declared lie would regard passage of the Chamberlain resolution calling for an investiga tion of aircraft ann other activities as a "direct vote of want of confi dence in the administration' and an attempt by congress to take over the conduct of the: war. Senator Chamberlain indicated that if the enate were to refuse "'to pass an amended resolution giving the military committee QUthority, he would not attempt to press the army inquiries further. The artillery fire is v reported by Paris to have been violent last night north of Montdidier, just-to the south of this sector, where American troops are holding a portion of the front. The bombardment was severe also along the southerly aide of the Mont didier salient as tar east as .iMoyon and the Germans attempted to attack at one point on this lino DUt ; WjftrjB nmrantlv chmecked. . ; , : ': The London statement also indir rated considerable activity try the hostile artillery on the British por tion on the Somme - frdnf ;in f the Somme and Ancre valleys, while" this t morning it increased 'in the-, legion between-the Somme and. 11 a Ancre, ietr Morlaffcoarfc where the: Acttrai- ians recently have adejnot&lefcd- ranees and' where yesterday :. they re ' pulsed a German effort: 'to riMatpturf iae lost. mnna a. vt: " On the Flanders Battlefront-' the Germans likewise spedded up their fire early today in the eKmmel ec tor after having worked their, guns moderately hard during the' iiight on the southerly side of the Lys sal ient, in the eBthune an dNleppe wood regions. The president informed Senator Martin that he had no objection to the most searching inquiry Into the aircraft situation, but that he deemed inadvisable at this time, any' investi gation of the conduct of the war. At the last session of congress his op position to such an investigation put an end to proposals that it be made. It was believed that' the president's attitude was due to the form in which Senator Chamberlain, . of Oregon, chairman of the senate military com mittee, introduced the resolution. The resolution "authorized and - directed the committee to "inquire into and report to the senate the progress of aircraft production in the United States, or into any other matters re lating to the conduct of the war, by or through the war department." Objection to the wording of the resolution was made yesterday by several administration senators and Also by Senator Thompson of Kansas, chairman of the senate expenditures committee, to which it was referred, and -who conferred with the president late yesterday. Senator Thompson has insisted and members of the sen ate military committee have agreed to re-draft the resolution to authorize the committee to inquire merely Into army activities and not into general conduct of the war or military strat egy. The expenditures committee . met today to re-draft the resolution. : Sen ator Chamberlain and ethers of .the military committer have declared there was no objection to him limit ing the scope of the rescfation to army operations and havev disclaimed any intentions of planning any gen eral inquiry into "the conduct of the jyar." The only investigations planned by -he committee, which met today tp PPoint sub-committees , to take -harge, are into aviation, aircraft. Patent licensing, ordnance production d the quartermaster's bureau. These inquiries are regarded by the committee as continuations, divided into separate branches of its recent inquiry. It has been reported, that some sen ators favor restricting the commit tee's inquiry to aviation alone. The whole question of the scope of the committee's inquiry was awaiting consideration when the senate con vened today, upon a report by the expenditures committee of the re used Chamberlain resolution. " The sub-committee which will In-, estigate ordnance production left laay accompanied by 'ASSlstant Sec retary nf Wan CtatMntno mid MdrtT general Williams, acting Chief of ord- ""ce, to inspect the. Bethlehem anu Midvale ordnance ' plants. . -"V The sub-committee comprised Sen ior Hitchcock, of Nebraska, chair man, and Senators Fletcher, of Flor : Beckham . ofr ; Kentucky ;Weeks, I; Massachusetts, and Wadsworth, of xw York. M'UCH B BE F: V k 5? Pen and Ink Humorist 3' ed by I his Paper, " America.. An arrangement was effecirutbday between The Wilmington Disnateh and The Chicago Tribune under , the terms of which the John T. McCutch eon cartoons will become a daily and Sunday feature in The Dispatch. Mc Cutcheon has just returned from a vacation spent in his island home in the West Indies group and' resumed work on his inimitable pictorial com ments on the news of the day. To day his cartoons will begin to ap pear in The Dispatch simultaneously with their publication in The Chicago Tribune. In arranging for McCutcheon's ser vices, The Dispatch has obtained the best, as well as the most famous, car toonist in the United States. Mc- Cutcheon is ; without an equal, as a legitimate American pen-and-ink hu morist. For many years his delightful comic drawings have been utilized by the big magazines to illustrate George Ade's famous "Fables in Slang." He is at his best when he turrs his pen to . current . news. There is comedy and philosophy in the. McCutcheon cartoons, but, best of all, they are filled with the good old-fashioned brand of Americanism that North Carolinians like. In view of the fact that Wilmington, the home of the great shipyards, will play a big role In the winning of the war, The Dis patch feels the need of reflecting the undiluted American patriotism that will foe: the keynote of this city's rnu-r nlcipal life during the vfcusy months ahead..--r By adding the. -McCutcheon cartoons to the Innumerable snew fea tures that are being rapidly" Incorpo rated into the attractions of iThe Dis? patch,' this paper feels that It is per forming a real duty. ; f John T ..McQutcheon Is known to all magazine readers. - His drawings as imtXtmf$Uk "manage to ten a stor ; in a ; picture aw many greaL-ttwA-dltorIaIritW''iW.V saridwrds ftf6rebTer his Is aft ex tremely, interesting . s personality. He ha"traveled 1 all ; oyer ' the 1 world and his ' drawings have been unique, but eloquent stories of his adventures in many lands. . . A few months ago the. newspapers of America chronicled the act that McCutcheon had purchased "Treasure Island" as a honeymoon home and a place of abode for his bride and him self whenever he could steal a. few weeks rest from his arduous duties as the ranking cartoonist and humorous illustrator in the United States. He has saved money all his life for the definite purpose of acquiring the West Indian island made famous by Robert Louis Stevenson's masterpiece. When his pet ambition was realized every American who, as a boy or girl, had reveled in the adventures with pi rates on- Treasure Island, had shud Leered -at the wickedness of Long John Silver and had heard in their dreams the monotonous "Pleces-of -Eight" iter ated and" reiterated by . the pirate chief's parrot, rejoiced at the news that historic "Treasure Island" had passed into the possession of a much lora artist who Is as great a genius in . his own field ,as, Stephenson was as a writer. The Dispatch . publishes the first of the McCutcheon cartoons today and will continue them thereafter, as a dailv feature, except during. the pe rlods when their creator feels he has rnfid a few weeks' res and re tires to his tropical home on "Treas ure Island DR. JOHNSON FACES MURDER CHARGE TODAY Richmond. Va.. May 15. Dr. Lem uel J. Johnson, a prominent young dentist, of Middlesex, N. C., was placed on trial today in the Hustings court here on the charge of murder ing his bride, Mrs. Alice Knight Jcttti- son, on the night or. L?ecemDero, last. Miss Mildred Taylor, chum- of the dead eirl. who was 19 years old, and Mrs. Benjamin Stutz, in whose home the bride took a fatal dose of poison, are among the principal witnesses for the prosecution. Several witnesses are trrom North Carolina .amone 'them being R. D. Johnson, father of the accused man It is expected all of today will be consumed in the selection or a jury. Twentv veniremen were summoned, The court room was crowded before the case was called,1 . a - large number of women being present. ' , Miss Taylor Is expected to tell how hannv Mrs. dJhnson t seemed before takine the poison. In a'statement af ter Mrs. Johnson's death-Miss Taylor was auoted"as saying: ; ; X "Alice remarked that she was the happiest person on earth ..because she was eoine .to oin Lemuel down in North Carolina Christmas.'! , ; N'S CARTOON DISPATCH in RFGIIiiR a?SHR ' Tfl HFMFNT GERMANY ' IIUIUUIII UI.UU1UI1 UC ,?l-llll K.Ullllklll IIUUIIUI IU UL.II1I.I1I ULIIIIII 111 I , COUNCIL FEAMESS , DOINHPlUiS May Permit Country People tp Sell Produce From the , v ; City Market. session of city council was devoid of features, all matters of Importance being referred and only those of a minor nature being disposed of. The session was of short duration and attended by all members excepting Councilman McCaig. ? The question of permitting country pebple, bringing produce here on the weekends for sale, to use a portion of city market was referred for inves tigation. The matter was brought to council's attention by Councilman Bradshaw, who stated that it was a shame that these people should be obliged to stand on the street corners ip the rain when the market afforded ample room for their operations. There was some discussion of mov ing the fish stalls back and permit ting country hucksters to use the shed adjoining the market, but final action was not taken. As regards lessees of stalls in the market paying rent no action was taken. The question came up through a protest registered against one occupant of the market who 4iad been charged for water and who had "kicked" against paying for what others received without cost. Coun cil was at first inclined to rule that water would not be furnished free unless the -contract specifically called for it, but Councilman Hall objected on the. grounds that regardless of contract it would be unfair to furnish one stall - with -water- and require the other to pay. The matter will be gone into thoroughly and disposed of at the next meeting of the board, the probability being that all will be re quired to pay water rent. ' . ..t ; The board voted to pay Fireman N.' H. Davis, .whowas out for a per iod of two weeks because of illness for the time he could not be at the station. Mr. Davis was taken ill vis iting in another" city and lost two weeks. His name did not go on the payroll for the latter half of that month but he is to get this pay. A petition, signed by several per sons urged that council instruct City Attorney Robert Ruark to appear be? fore the corporation commission and oppose the proposed increased rates of the Tidewater Power company and the Southern' Bell J Telephone and Telegraph company. The health budget, as ' adopted at the Tuesday afternoon monthly meet ing of the board of health was. pre sented to council by Chairman Mc Girt and County Health Officer Low. It was referred to the finance com mittee. . .- , .,. Says Sheriff Was Prejudiced. . Edwirdsville, Ill-Mar --Summoning of jurors for the trial of 11 men charged , with the' murder of Robert Paul Prager, enemy alien, who was lynched at Collinsville April 5 was today taken out of the hands of Sheriff Jenkins when Judge Bern reuter, on motion of State's -Attorney Streuber, declared he ..was . prejudiced in favor of the defendants in selecting veittreineiu ' :'-, - ... . ts mm wm r ? Annroximatelv .iZ"iont"hava applied in 'prsonptp4t the emploVment;'offic?i Tlthevr'Caroluta Shipbuilding conjpn Hhev&econd flWofhe-Odd-Ws'1 building, hird;;rPr&63 .streets;, since atj were xfpened oh Monday morning and scores of families have listed their spare rooms and boarding ac commodations during the first three days of the week. About 350 of the applications for work have been made in person and all callers were given short interviews and permitted to file their application in writing. There is hardly a minute in the day that the telephone bell is not pingling or some individual conversing with the offi cials in charge relative to employ ment. All the work in the office is being systematized and every effort will be made to put all applicants to work as early as possible. Men are being em ployed according to the manner in which : they apply, absolutely no fa voritism being shown. In other words, fthe carpenter who lists his application will be employed when a carpenter is needed, according to the place his . name occupies on the list This shows clearly that it is imper ative that all apply as early as pos sible. ' Listing of--rooming and boarding accommodations . are also being . care fully made with the object or placing roomers and , boarders without incon venience to either the roomer or the party letting the room. - - - . A call was made this morning on the employment agency fprr a small army of workmen who will! go down o the jQb in the morning. This includes a score or more carpenters and .vari ous other tradesmen. ARE ELECTED TODAY 'Atlanta, May 15. With the elec tion of Dr.. F. N. Parker, Emory uni versity; Kev, w. jm. Ainsworth, Sa vannah, Ga., and Rev. H. M. Du Bdse,; Nashville, Tenn., as bishops, the general conference of the Metho dist, Episcopal church, south, today completed the personnel of the col leg : of bishops for. the next quad- rennlum. :Tne- ftevs. John -M. Moore, W,.F. McMurry and U. V. W. Darl ington.. were the bishops elected late yesterday.; Announcement was made that the .ordination of the "new bish ops would take place Friday after noon. ' - . . - ' ' . . v bvM. Smith and Rev. A. J. La mar, ootn or iNasnvuie, were re elected publishing agents. ; In accordance with the y action of the conference, the , bishops must submit; the question of ; laity rights for women ; and tne change in the wordings of the ritual at the..first an nual conference to .be heldafter , the session.of . the-' general conference. A resolution to that effct, presented by the -Rev. M: T. How, of the Missouri conference,4 was adopted. , The Rev.3 Fr M r Thomas, of -Louis ville, Ky., was,t elected bopkeditor, to succeed Dr. Du Bose, elevated to the episcopac;j&-. r- - --: THREE MORE BISHOPS AND AUSTRIA-HUNGARY MccVNained or Pro- VgmcewwiYieeung or -t4 Kaiser and Charles 'I ' London, May 15-TIhe -Austrian and German emperors" at: their meeting at German great headquarters German newspapers say, according to an. EX change Telegraph dispatch from Co penhagen, - selected monarchs f oi Lithonia (Lithuania), Courlandy Es thonia and Poland. . London, May 14 The recente meet ing of Emperor William of Germany and Emperor Charles of Austria is of absorbing interest to the British pub lic. There are two viewpoints which appear in the comment on the meet ing, one as to . the Immediate result of the conference and lie other as to its future result, but both are of par amount importance. The first is the effect which the meeting is likely to have' in military events, whether an other great blow at Italy may be ex pected to coincide with the dally ex pected renewal of the onslaught atUenant James F. Crawford, Warsaw, the Anglo-French front. Also, wheth er Austria can be persuaded ' to ,send troops to the western front to strengthen German divisions. The more distinct "outcome of the meeting and its cementing of a po litical and economic defensive alliance loft' the central powers Is a realization that eventually must be . faced the materialization of the Mitteleuropa policy and it is argued that if this is accomplished the natural reply of the entente nations would be the placing in operation of the resolution . call ing for economic pressure against Germany, known as the Paris resolu tion, because it is contended that only by the strongest economic pressure could the entente deal with the great est unit of power ever known In the world's history. E IS INAUGURATED TODAY Machines Start Today on First Trips From Washington and New York. ; " Washington, May 15.-r Airplane mall service between Washington and New York went Into operation today when the first mail carrier, piloted by'Lieu tenant George L. Boyle: left. Po tomac Park: for Philadelphia at 11:45 o'clock. President and Mrs. Wilson witnessed! the initial start. - Left New York. New York, May 15. Airplane mail service In the United States was in augurated today when a government airplane piloted, by Lieutenant Terrey H.vWebb left Belmont Park ayil: 30 a.fin for Washington, with pouches dtatatning ; some 44000l:letters, - -. AIRPLANE Ml n Push Forward Close to the Paris -Aniens Railway. NEW VANTAGE POINTS Renewal of Hun Offensive on French Guns Break Up Con Western Front Fails to vpys Behind Teuton Lines DeveloD. . HEAVY ARTILLERY FIRE In Flanders Germans Speeded Up Their Fire in Kemmel ' Sector While it Was In creased on British Line. The expected renewal of the Ger- man offensive having failed to develop the allies are continuing their tactics of nticipatlng the thrust Dy reach- Sf HUti50rvnrr v,antagf ,p2nts from whicli the better to resis.t !t. I The French were the aggressors in line last operation of tnis kind, carriea Lout .late yesterday. They pushed out fiTOin their lines south of Hallles on J tje Bomme front, their objective be- to ia wood situated at about the point Wnere the Germans had made their furtherest westward advance and are l Urithin a short distance of the Paris-1 Amiens railway. l viv nao cuvlv.j ovoo i Jood on the slopes west of the Avre river, possession of which improves considerably the allied defensive posi- tion in this Important sector. thKertoe?Sy at night Their determined attack was a failure, however, for, after spirited fighting, the . French remain- ed in entire control of their new po- 'ri WUy .. TT fill tUVll 411 V) UVWAXAVU WIMM more than three score prisoners. 120 NAMES 'S MALTY LIST inzht ' Southern' OOVS - Among n.. J onfl WntrnHM in ueaa ana. wounaea m rranCei- Washineton. Mav 15. The casualtv list today contained 120 names, divid- ed'as follows: Killed In action . . ., Died' of wounds . . . Died of accident . . Died of disease .. .. Died of other causes Wounded severely .. Wounded slightly a 3 1 5 7 - .g - Wounded . . . . . . iff J . ' 5 An I unicers namea were. REPORTED DAY Captain Clarence. F. Jobson, Chi- pulsed further Austrian attempts to: cago, and Lieutenants King Alexan- regain the summit of the height. . der, Chambersburg, Pa.; Clarence M. Much interest is. displayed In al-l. Archer, Saratoga Springs, N. Y.; Rob- Hej capitals as to the meeting bob bins L. Conn, New York city; John tween the German and Austrian" em-'l N. Dickerson, San Francisco, and perors and their diplomatic and mili-r: George Howard, Rosendale, N. Y., tary assistants and especially in the' wounded slightly; Captain George C. truth behind the apparently purpose-. Freeland, Westville, Conn., and L,ieu- N. Y., missing jn action. The list includes: , Died of disease: Corporal Robert Carroll Muller, . Dickinson, Texas. Died of other causes: Corporal Wll- let T. Brightman, 917 South Perry street; Montgomery, Ala. Wounded slightly: Corporal Thorn- as G. Speck, Livingston, Tenn.; Pri- vates Sam Hosier, Waldo, Ark.; Jeff Johnston, Mcintosh, "Ala. ; TKttfras C. Seder, Ravenscroft, Tenn. Missing In action: Private Sylyesterl J. Clements, Geneva, Ala.; JefT D. Qulnn, Glencoe, Ala. GIVE DEMONSTRATIONS IN CANNING NEXT WEEK Demonstrations in canning are to .ri -iifrM,V:Aw.iA t t I county home agent, ?:and Misa Mary Clifford Bennett, city agent, in the rest rooms of the Housewives' Tjeague Tuesday - andV Wednesday of next week in order that the canninr . , U icvuiu uiauo iuia vuuui; last jf car might be . broken tiring the coming. weeks. On Thursday and Friday the demonstrations wlil be repeated for the colored women. On Tuesday, morning at .10:30 o'clock demonstrations in the use of wheat substitutsi wlll.be glvsn. At -Irltir-5 f 1elly and preserves will be demen- Pirated. Wednesday morning the hot water process ; of canning In tin and glass will be shown and on Wednes- day afternoon the steam pressure proces will be demontrated. Bi-monthly. Meeting. I The regular bi-monthly meeting of the Rotary club;-postponed: from yes- erday -was held-this afternoon at tnvershell, the model farm of Hugh MacRae, a- short d stanc? beyond uasue Jtiayne. mf aaaition. 10 uo- xanans many Dusiness men oj: ue p.itxr vcrA nrArit a cnimmfa . nf Mf 1 MacRae. . Luncheon was served at 1:30, o'clock .and a . number of ad- dresses were made by various per sons. -Machines, carrying Rotarians and others.' left the city hall at 11 o'clock, the pafty returning ' late in the afternoon.- w- - Huns Penetrate British Lino V But Later Driven OuU t? NO INFANTRY ACTIVnY At Montdidier. AMERICAN ZONE QUIET Artillery Firing Has Become More Llvely n ItaKan Thea- tre in Trentino and From Lake Garda to Piave. In ; Flanders and Picardy there ari ml no indications that the Germans . are ready to "resume infantry opera- tions on a large scale. Local enemy attacks, probably for the purpose oi . u positions ia; "l aitaca nave Deen re- pulsed north of Kemmel and south of Albert. Qn thQ southern battleneld um. German affort was .made on a front of . e mile near Morlancpurt, between the Somme and Ancre rivers, bttt" was - not pushed stronrly. The enenfV Mjj,, initial coo.... i Jrater the British lines at one point... Deiug repuisecu elsewhere. A countef. attack by Australian troops fully re-" stored the British positions. The at- fJ T Je on HU1 V adjoining, elements . The Germans gained the'j; hill, which dominates the surround" ing region, but Field Marshal . Haljr rerts they were repulsed Anally Almost a week has gone by since" : the Germans displayed any marked infantry activity and while the a i 'j tacks north of Kemmel and south of" . Albert apparently were not in greajP"-! strength, they were made against the vital sectors of . the two .'German :v Ji; driven salients and wherf the enemy ; 1 probably, will, launch his next, heavy , : attempt or attempts, v it ; not- un- 1 K- kerjr:.th attacks "were 'adttaV certain , the result of the German al "ry nre, wnicn ; continues exceed .mf irw. xinuwt .-. .: v -f Considerable activity is reposed vtO?P in the region of Montdidier. .'where . : J oe going on Denind the German .lines . . . i Americans hold a part of the al-: lied lines. French batteries hare broken up German' troop concentra- tions and convoys around Montdidier " as well as near. Noyon, The artillery." fire along the American zones in Pi- : cardy , and northwest of Toul has"" been below normal. . ' In the, ItaUan theatre the artillery" firing is more lively, especially in the" from Lake Garda to the Piave. ItaF v-r UMU VA, VMV UiVltUMMU ilVUH, , ,an tpnn. unna r!nrn k, ly vaguely official statements on Its: results. That a more, firm. allianceV between the two countries has been . cemenjted is certain and It is believed "X Austria-Hungary has been forced to... make up for her delinquencies as .a - ' ally of Germany by getting deeper - -:, into the power of the stronger na- tion. Developments in the near fu-v ture, it is felt, probably will show ;-r whether. Emperor Charles has been - compelled to renew the offensive . against Italy or to send large nunVf f uers Oi ms (roups iu uiu iue euttuon- ed Germans on" the western front. The emperors, according to -Geiv -man newspapers, picked out rulers .. for Poland and the occupied portions " of Northern Russia, including Cour-V land and Esthonla.. The names of : : those appointed to reign over those r,aptT a dUHnkA border states Is not discloed. Colonel Watterson Improving. Louisville, Ky., May 15. Reports that Colonel .- Henry Watterson, who h - ooanttv underwent an abdominal on- . w w J . y t eratlOU, lleUl . BlUltiieu. iciajiso ailVi ."-, V was in a critical condition, were de-.. j nied here today. It was said that Mr. , Watterson's progress toward recovery tad nQt diminished dnd'. that . it' was 4 he will be able to leave' wlthla : 10 days. ' . - - ' ' - ' " X". Big Damage by Fire, j: : . " " - ' Vancouver, B. C May 15. FWng. . s starting in the boiler room of the J, Coughlln and Sons shipyards here ear- y toaay, aw aamage esumaiea ai.t-ir bvv.wv.' une nreman was uuea aaa ; several injured ' .- , r, , X..: ' r - . ! - r Officers ;R-Eleeted. . . Hot Springs, Arki May 15. With- out a dissenting ote the general Of- ' flcer8 0f the Southern Baptist conven- . tion were re-elected at this morning! r: w - 'k7i Washington,.. May 15, Presldsnt; Wilson has "asked Charles E. Hughes to . assist 'Attorney Xleneral Gregory In. Investigating. the. aircraft .situation. ' j Mr. Hughes has replied that he will be loaa to assist- V : ) i ; 1 J! Si- ... U , " ' ' f-"'i'-V-i" -. '-. ... . : ' y . .' .'"...' . ' . ,