ifidD Mentis
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1918.
Number 12.
SHIP LOADED WITH
U. S. SOLDIERS SUNK
Liner Tuscania Carrying Michi
gan and Wisconsin Guards
men Sunk in War Zone
2,179 MEN WERE ABOARD
Early Reports State That 1,912
Were Rescued and the List
May be Even Larger
OFFICIALS ARE UP LATE
War Department Publishes List
of Organizations.
Thursday's daily papers car
ried the following news story
sent out from Washington late
Wednesday which was read with
the greatest of interest:
Washington, Feb. 6. ? The Cu
nard liner Tuscania, carrying
2,179 American soldiers, has
been torpedoed and sunk ofT the
Irish coast but official reports
late tonight said 1,912 of the of
ficers and men had been saved
and indicated that the list of res
cued might prove even larger.
The troops, composed chiefly of
detachments of Michigan and
Wisconsin national guardsmen
were traveling on the Tuscania
a British vessel, under convoy of
British warships.
First News Distressing
A brief dispatch to the war
department from London early
this evening announced the dis
aster and reported the landing
of only 1,100 survivers. This
was made public shortly after 1
o'clock and for more than two
hours it was feared that proba
bly 1,400 men, including memb
ers of the liner's crew had gone
down.
When a message came to the
state department from the em
bassy at London saying at 11
o'clock that 1,912 of the Amer
icans had been accounted for,
the joy of officials almost swept
away the distress occasioned by
the earlier news. The first 1,
100 survivors were landed at
Larne and Buncrana, two widely
separated Irish ports, and this,
coupled with the evident fact
that rescue ships were on hand
quickly, gave rise to the hope
that nearly everybody on board
the Tuscania except those injur
ed by the explosion might have
been saved.
Officials Stay Up Late.
The president, Secretary Ba
ker and in fact all official Wash
ington were up late waiting for
further news. Only the brief
est dispatches were received and
none gave details of the attack
on the liner. Even the time was
missing, but it was assumed
that it occurred early this morn
ing, as the first message was
filed at London at 3 o'clock this
afternoon, probably within an
hour after the relief ships reach
ed the Irish coast.
The president was at the thea
tre when the news was received
and he was not told until he re
turned to the White House. In
the meantime the war, navy and
state departments had sent
urgent messages by wireless and
cable instructing their represen
tatives in England and Ireland
to forward every available fact
immediately.
List of Organizations.
Because of the nature of the
military organizations carried by
the ships, the war department
announced it would be impossi
ble to say definitely what troops
were aboard until the list of
survivors was received. Later,
however, the adjutant general's
office made the list public. It
follows :
Headquarters detachment and
Companies D, E and F of the
20th engineers.
107th engineer train.
107th military police.
107th supply train.
No. 100 aero squadron.
158th aero squadron.
213th aero squadron.
Replacement detachments Nos.
1 and 4 of the 3'2nd division.
Fifty-one casual officers.
The Thirty-second division is
composed of national guard
troops from Michigan and Wis
consin. The division trained at
Camp McArthur, Tex.
The 107th engineers was com
posed of the first batallion Mich
igan engineers; the 107th mili
tary police was made up of the
45th and 6th Wisconsin infantry
and the 107th supply train was
composed of the fourth, fifth
and sixth Wisconsin infantry.
Aero Squadron Aboard.
Thus* all the soldiers are for
mer Wisconsin and Michigan
guardsmen except those in the
aero squadron who probably
were recruited from all parts of
the country.
Neither the dispatch of the
war department nor that to the
state department referred to the
fate of members of the Tusca
nia's crew. Undoubtedly many
of them were saved and when all
reports are in officials hope that
the loss of life will be remarka
bly small. The liner, which is
not a regular transport, was
under convoy and the warships
apparently were quickly along
side for rescue work when the
torpedo struck.
War Department's Statement.
The first news was given in
this terse announcement from
the wor department :
" The War Department has
been officially advised that the
steamship Tuscania was torpe
doed and sunk and that surviv
ors numbering 1,100 as far as
could be ascertained, were land- j
ed at Buncranna and Larne in
Ireland. There was a total of 2,
179 U. S. troops on this vessel.
No names of persons tost have
been reported to the war depart
ment and no names of survivors
were reported. Additional par
ticulars are promised as soon as
received."
Democracy of the Red Cross. ^
Tinr? was, though it was never true,
when folks might say that the Red
Cross represented only a certain class
of the American public. That is, that
it was representative of the bankers
and moneyed interests and the so
called society types of our cities and
towns. But what can be the attitude
today, when twenty million of our
American people have voluntarily en
rolled under the banner of the Ameri
can Red Cross?
This great multitude of people rep
resents more than 20 per cent of our
population. It represents the lawyer,
the doctor and all the other profes
sions. It represents those in the
business walks of life. Big business?
Yes, and little business, too. It rep
resents the mill work, tWe clerk be
hind the counter, the fashionably
dressed purchaser in seal-skin furs.
And now, with this great army of pa
triotic American citizens back of this
greatest of all single movements in
the world today, with a program rich
in the variety of opportunity for serv
ice which it offers, the Americpr. Red
Cross ? your Red Cross, our Red
Cross ? will make advances absolute
ly inconceivable a short time ago.
Let us bear in mind, there repre
sents a tremendous responsibility. It
is a responsibility of measuring up
to the opportunity of playing a real
part in this World's War. While the
Red Cross, through its vast number
of volunteer workers in France and
the countries of our Allies, is truly
fighting the American fight, until our
boys take their places in the trenches;
while it is actually representing the
Spirit of America until that time
when our boys in khaki shall more
clearly demonstrate the American
Spirit, the great army of Red Cross
members and workers at home must
keep ever faithfully at it, in order to
clearly demonstrate our ever willing
ness to support this great work. Mem
bership is all right in its place, but
service is more important still. Do
something! There is a part for each
to play!
"Shun not the struggle. Face it.
Tis God's gift." ? Red Cross Briefs.
The United States' Flag that flew
over the Senate Chamber of the Uni
ted States during the last session of
Congress, tfie flag underneath which
President Wilson delivered his mem
orable war message before the as
sembled Senate and House of Repre
sentatives was presented to the Uni
versity of North Carolina Wednesday
by Senator F. M. Simmons, to whom
the flag had been given as a mark of
esteem.
NO MODIFICATION OF
FLOUR REGULATIONS.
Those Buying Flour Must at the
Same Time Buy the Same
Amount of Meal or Other
Cereals. It Is Absolutely
Necessary to Economise Now
or Have no Flour at All Later.
Mr. Editor:
Please allow me just a short
space to further explain the rul
ing of the Food Administration
with reference to selling of Hour.
At the conference of Food
Administrators held in Raleigh
yesterday there was an eflort
made to change or modify this
ruling, but without avail. Mr.
Page stated, while this was a
hardship on the people, yet we
had not reached the real hard
ship, if cutting Hour rations is
considered such, for unless Hour
is used exceedingly sparingly
that there will no flour before
the first of July, and the people
might as well now become accus
tomed to eating corn bread and
other cereals with a little Hour
occasionally, instead of having
to do without flour bread en
tirely.
The ruling as to the sale of
equal amount of meal or other
cereals with flour has not been
modified or changed in the least
and will be strictly enforced.
The merchants will have to ac
tually purchase meal from their
customers and sell them back an
equal amount of meal or cereals
with flour. This is necessary in
order that the merchant might
buy flour as he need it. Any
merchant who violates this rul
ing will be blacklisted and will
not be able to purchase any more
flour during the period of the
war, and will be otherwise dealt
with by the government.
The farmers of Johnston
County are in a position to do a
great service in this emergency
by having their excess corn
ground into meal and carrying it
to the nearest market and sell it
in order that the town people
may have meal to eat, and at
the same time keep several
thousand dollars in North Caro
lina that are now sent to other
States for the purpose of paying
for meal.
The further ruling of the
Food Administration is that
flour can be sold to no one in
quanities above one sack (except
to institutions requiring more
than that for its reasonable im
mediate use) to a person living
in the country, one-half sack to
persons living in town, but the
Administration asks that the
merchants sell 24 pounds or less
to town customers and 48 lbs.
or less to customers living in
country. Merchants can put
their usual profit up to one cent
a pound on flour in quantities of
24 pounds or less, and up to 3-4c
a pound on quantities exceeding
24 pounds.
The hotels, cafes, clubs and
boarding houses using as much
as three barrels of flour a month
are required to have Federal
license.
All flour mills large or small
are required to have a license
after February 15th.
All dealers, large and small,
selling any and all food stuffs
and hay are required to have
license after February 15th.
All persons required to have
license can obtain same by writ
ing
Federal Food Administrator.
License Division.
Washington, D. C.
Merchants can continue the
sale of food stuffs after Febru
ary 15th, even if they have not
received their license, if they
have written for them.
This Februarv 7, 1918.
F. H. BROOKS,
Food Administrator.
Johnston County.
SmithHeld, N. C. .
Increased trade with South Amer
ica is shown in figures issued Monday
hy the Bureau of Foreign and Domes
tic Cemmerce. Imports from South
America increased from $427,000,000
to $598,000,000, and exports to South
America increased from $220,000,000
to $312,000,000.
NUMBER OF LOST LESS
THAN FIRST REPORTED
The News Carried in Today's
News and Observer in Regard
to the Sinking of the Tuscania
is More Encouraging.
An Irish Port, Feb. 7. ? The
Tuscania carried a total of 2,397.
The saved number 2,296 as fol
lows :
Troops, 2,106; crew, 190.
Total lost 101, mostly mem
bers of the crew.
Among the American surviv
ors are 76 officers. There are 81
American troops in the hospital.
Washington, Feb. 7. ? Latest
official advices to the War De
partment tonight accounted for
all except 113 of the 2,156 Amer
ican soldiers who were on board
the British liner Tuscania when
a submarine sent her down
Tuesday night off the Irish
coast.
This figure was not final, and
high hopes that the loss of life
would prove much smaller were
built upon cabled press dispatch
es saving just 101 men, most of
th em members of the crew, were
missing among the entire force
of soldiers, sailors and passen
gers.
Washington, Feb. 7. ? Much
satisfaction is found by officials
here in the unofficial accounts of
the destruction of the British
liner Tuscania by a German sub
marine, which showed a de
stroyer, presumably British,
gave chase to the raider and pos
sibly destroyed her with a depth
bomb.
TURN CASH INTO GUN FIRE.
(By Frank A. Vanderlip.)
We fought and won the Spanish
w.r with 150,000 soldiers and a $200,
0<'0,000 bond issue. In men under
arm we now have ten times that
number. We issued ten times that
amoun' of bonds in the first Liberty
loan. We are proposing to spend and
loan to the Allies in the first fiscal
year of the war $19,000,000,000. From
now until the end of this fiscal jear
the treasury anticipates needing $.'*00,
000,000 a week ? that is, the treasury
has got to fight financially a Spanish
war every four days. That indicates
a money measure of the size of this
work, but that is not the real measure.
We have just seen that one might
have plenty of money, but an empty
coal bin. In just the same wfly the
government can have plenty of m?.ney,
but an unequipped army. This :rmy
cannot be equipped as modern war
fare demands if the man power of
the country is at the same time called
upon to produce all of our ordinary
comforts and luxuries. It is as p!ain
as two and two th^t, all of us must
make personal sacrifices, must give
up comforts and luxuries, even neces
sary expenditures that can be post
poned, if there is to be labor and ma
terial enough to equip the army in
time for it to fight while it will do
some good to have it fight.
In war the only effort that is of any
value is that which is ultimately
translated into gun fire on the field of
battle. The gun fire that will win
this war cannot be delivered until all
America recognizes individual re
sponsibility, until the whole people
join in the effort by giving up things
that they can do without, so that the
labor that would have been employed
in making those things can do work
that will ultimately result in gun fire.
The government has offered the op
portunity to translate at once every
one's personal patriotism into the
sort of help that will win the war.
Forego buying something thc.t is
unnecessary; loan the money you
would have used to the government
by buying $5 War Savings Certifi
cates. You will thun have released
labor, you will have given credit to
the government, you will have acquir
ed the best security in the world, a
United States government bond.
Prof. Jos. E. Avent, of the Virginia
Normal School, is advocating winter
vacations for city schools as a means
of saving fuel. His plan is to open
school for the fall about August first
and run four months and a half. Then
to give a vacation during the winter
months, and open the spring term
about April first. One argument in
favor of this is that without schools
in winter it would be easier to prevent,
contagious diseases.
MEATLESS MONDAYS CONTINUE
Decision to Continue Closing Reached
at a Conference Tuesday. Only
Day's Supply of Coal on Hand in
East. Coal Production Is Cut.
Blizzards in Many States Have Al
ready Forced Plants to Close Down.
With the east facing the most acute
coal shortage of the winter and in the
grip of the coldest weather in a gene
ration, the government decided Tues
day that the heatless Monday pro
gram cannot at this time be abandon
ed, as had been hoped.
The conclusion to continue the clos
ing-was reached at a conference be
tween Fuel Administrator Gartield
and Director General MacAdoo, at
tended by a dozen state fuel adminis
trators. There was no official an
nouncement.
There had been every indication up
to Monday night that the Monday
holidays were over, but reports
brought to Washington by the state
fuel administrators that throughout
most of the east there is on hand but
one day's supply of coal, coupled with
the weather situation, were accepted
as convincing proof that the present
is no time to lift the closing order.
Even Mr. McAdoo, who up to this
time is understood to have opposed
the closing plan, was said Tuesday
to have agreed that until the weather
permits an improvement in railroad
transportation, the order should be
continued in force.
The blizzard has cut coal produc
tion and movement- to such an extent
that officials pointed out Tuesday that
even had the Mond; y closings been
abandoned, industry would be forced
to close down to a considerable extent
because of a hick of fuel. In fact, re
ports to the fuel administration
showed that in many states plants al
ready are closing in large numbers. ?
Washington Dispatch.
FLIER IS BURNED TO DEATH.
Cadet Loses Life When Gasoline
Tank Explodes After Fall.
Houston, Tex., Feb. 4. ? Wyles B.
Bradley, of Mount Vernon, N. Y., fiy
ng cadet at Ellington Field, was
burned to death when his plane fell
30 feet today, the gasoline tank ex
ploding.
Bradley fell while trying out his
plane on short flights. He probably
would have emerged uninjured from
the smash had not the gasoline tank
exploded, covering him with blazing
oil. He has a brother at Camp Kelly
flying field, San Antonio.
BRITISH CASUALTIES ARE LESS.
Only 6,354 During Last We^k, a Low
Comparative Record.
London, February 4. ? The British
casualties reported during the week
ended today totaled 6,354, divided as
follows:
Killed or died of wounds ? Officers,
51; men 1,325.
Wounded or missing ? Officers, 173;
men, 4,805.
The lowest mark for many months
past is reached by last week's cas
ualties. They compare with 8,588 the
previous week, with 17,043 the week
immediately preceding that, and with
9,951 for the week ended December
31 ? the previous low figure for any
week in recent months.
Dr. L. F. Brown, of Pender County,
has just been convicted for violation
of the quarantine law by diagnosing
whooping cough as "bronchitis." Miss
Nellie Fussell, a school teacher, dis
covered that two of her pupils had
whooping cough, and sent them home.
The parents called in Dr. Brown, who
gave a written statement that they
did not have whooping cough. A few
days later, eleven other pupils de
veloped the same disease. The matter
was brought to the attention of the
State Board of Health. The matter
was brought before a local magistrate
and Dr. Brown paid a fine and the
cost of action.
The country's foreign trade amount
ed to over $9,000,000,000 in 1917, ex
ports reaching a total of 6,226,000,000,
while imports amounted to $2,952,
000,000, according to a statement
issued by the Bureau of Foreign and
Domestic Commerce, Department of
Commerce. This is a gain of nearly
$1,300,000,000 over 1916, when the
total trade amounted to $7,874,000,
000.
%
TUESDAY IN THE GREAT WAR.
Huns Were Preparing to Go Over the
Top When the Americans Opened
Heavy Fire. Shells Hit Their Mark.
From North Sea to Swiss Frontier
Activity is Daily Growing in Inten
sity.
(Associated Press War Summr.ry.)
From the North Sea to the Swiss
frontier the military activity daily
seems to be growing in intensity, and
it may be fair to assume that in the
not distant future some of the big
battles that have been forecast will
break. 'I he American, British and
French armies have been taking
hacks at the German line, either by
fairly strong patrol attacks or by
bombardments, while in turn the Teu
tons have been giving considerable at
tention on various sectors to their
enemies.
From the American viewpoint an
other successful maneuver by the
Americans on their sector of the front
is of the greatest interest. As on last
Saturday, the Americans a^ain have
nipped in the bud an impending sur
prise attack on their trenches and
taught the Germans a salutary lesson
with their artillery. In the German
trenches the Teutons were awaiting
the word to go over the top for an at
tack when the Americans opened a
heavy fire on the positions.
Heavy casualties are believed to
have been inflicted on the Teutons and
considerable damage was done by the
75's on the German trenches, due to
the accuracy of aim of the American
gunners.
The Germans have not yet been able
to recover the, trenches and dugouts
battered by the American tire Satur
day evening and have been forced to
build another line of trendies at that
particular point. \
faext in importance to the opera- (
tions on the American front have been
attacks by the Germans against the
French in the Aisne region and north
of Verdun, near Baumpnt. The
French war office asserts that the at
tacks north of the Aisne were re
pulsed, but the German war office says
that south of Beaucourt, Baden storm
ing troops pushed far into the French
front, inflicting heavy casualties and
returned to their own line with pris
oners. *
The British have carried out suc
cessfully raids against the Teutons
southwest of Armentieres and in the
vicinity of the Ypres-St. Alden rail
way, where many of the enemy were
killed and others' captured.
Intensive air fighting has been going
on between the French and the Ger
mans in France and between the Ital
ian and British airmen and the Ger
mans in the Italian theatre. Sunday
thirteen enemy plains were downed
by the French far inside the German
lines while an equal number were shot
down by British and Italian airmen.
In Germany, according to the latest
advices, the strike situation has about
died out, although discontent is said
still to exist. This feeling has extend
ed even t* the German troops in Flan
ders, who are asertcd to have incited
Belgian workers to strike.
Seeming evidence that the peace ne
gotiations at Brest-Litovsk are ended
for the moment or that they are pro
ceeding without the attendance of
some of the chief delegates of the
Teutonic allies, is the fact that con
ferences took place in Berlin Monday
between the German emperor and
crown prince and the Bulgarian pre
mier; Count Czernin, the Austro-Hun
garian foreign minister, and the Turk
ish grand vizier. That knotty ques
tions were to be solved is also indi
cated by the fact that after the con
ferences the emperor presided over a
crown council.
Turko-Tartar forces in southern
Russia now are in operation against
the Bolsheviki. They already have
captured the town of Yalta, in the
Crimea, and now are fighting with red
guards, soldiers and sailers in an en
deavor to press on and take Sebasto
pol, Russia's big fortress and naval
base on the Black Sea.
Mrs. Carrie Chapman C&tt, chair
man of the educational propaganda
department of the Woman's Com
mittee of the Council of National De
fense, is appealing to the Women of
America to educate women speakers
to bring the message of war necessity
to all communities. This should ap
peal to the fairer sex. Surely .they
will maintain their reputation as
"talkers." 1. dl ,