North Carolina Newspapers

'"1- '5 'i - - - . :r- ' :----:V VZ? Vjj ' -' - : i"'-'. v , ' ' '-V'-. . : '. . V ' . r .- .'-. ? ' V.:. ..''- .: f...v- -.! 5 v"-- ; Z'jt i ; -" -i- ' . ,- '?:'!,'; -!a j OppoTtnolty waits f for atook from n your eye every morniaar Is The Star's Bnalneaa Kiocala. i' ' .: yOL. XCV-KO 154. WIXMIKGTOK, N. SATUEDAT MOIOTG, 20, 1915 WHOLE NrMBEB 39,144 OPERA TIONS IN DARDANELLES CHIEF WAR NEWS OF THE DAY LAND BATTLES STILL RAGING IN THE T J.:-. ... " 1 1 1 1 ' , , . . - -- ; : r--- --..-I. i) " ' J- - - ..- : i - - CTII I HOT ifFinimn British Battleships Irresistible and Ocean and French Fighter Bouyet Sunk i CONTACT WITH MINES British Battle Cruiser and Oth ers Damaged by Fire in the Dardanelles. fire from Turkish Forts Effec tive on Fleet. Londou. March-19. The British battleships Irresistible and . Ocean and the French battleship Bouvet were blown up by floating m&es while engaged with the remainder of the Allied fleet in attacking the forts in the narrows of the Darda nelles Thursday. '.'....- Virtually all of the crews of the two British ships were saved, hav ing been transferred to other ships under a hot fire, but an jnternal explosion took place on board the Bouvet after she had fouled the mme ana most 01 ner crew was lost. The Bouvet sank three -minutes "after she hit the mine. i. The waters in which tjier ships were lost had been swept of mines kt the British admiraltyr -asserts tkt the Turks and ; the -Germans set floating containers " of 3 explo sives adrift, and these were car- ried down by the current onttf the AUied ships gathered inside the mtrance of the straits. , Ships W ere Ola7 But "Uef ul." " All th ships were old. The Bouvet was bust nearly 20 ...years' ago- and the Ocean and Irresistible in 1908. They were useful, however, for the " work in which they were engaged in the Dar danelles. The sunken British ships'- are being replaced by , the battleships Queen and Implacable, vessels "of a sim ilar type. They are said to -have-started some time ago . in anticipation of just such losses as have occurred. Two other ships, the British battle cruis er Inflexible and the French I battle-, ship Gaulols were, hit by shells and damaged. British casualties, ( accord ing to the British official report, "were not heavy, considering the scale of operations." ' ; " The damage done to the Turkish forts by the heavy bombardment has not been ascertained.. It was stated that operations against them -are con tinuing. The forts attacked were those on either side of Kephez bay and n Kephez point outside the" "Narrows and those on Kalid Bahr andichanak ! 'n the Xarrows. . . - ' The Kephez forts 'renllftii strnnelv i hen the battleships advanced up the' uardanelles,and all the ships; were hit. is asserted that these forts -finally ere silenced and a. bombardment of those in the Narrows was under way wnen the three battleships 1 hit - the ses. The blowing up -of the ships am not cause a. cessation of the fight ing, which continued until darkness in "Tened. it is understood the "engage ment was resumed today. ; " The Admiralty's Statement. , The admiralty tonight gave ! out the puowing statement regardingi opera llns at the Dardanelles:- ' ' ' An account of the operations ; at LI)arclanelles on the 18th of March: Aime sweeping having - been, in sirt 1euEs durin& the last ten days in- iofc the straits, a general" attack was ivereo by the British . and - French iirT yester(Jay (Thursday) morning pon the fortresses at the Narrows. At fil-Kia m- the Queen Elizabeth, In w't? A?amemnon and Lord Nelson oomharded forts J; L, T, U, V, wilile the umph and Prince George 4red at JUeries F, E, and . H.; ,, A .heavy Are f-s opened upon the ships with: How 'trs ami field guns. ; J- i ; rnn 12:05 p- m- TheiFrenchsquad- n consisting- of the 'Suffren, 4 Galois, thoar'enia&re and Bouvet. advanced up - uaruanelles and .engaged thelforta reni T 'r ran ge- Forts J U, F, and E, bv tif s,ronsly. The fire was1 silenced ail th ten battleships Inside the straits, durir, slllps being hit several times unng this pdrt of the action. , . ; . Blowing: Up of the BonTtU ;A OMf. 12:25 P- m. all ' the forts had tibfP , ng- The Vengeance,- Irresls if,t? A'lKn. Ocean, Swiftsure-and Ma- ola V n advanced to relieve the isix the p UleshiPs inside the straits-. As ?ai1r ch S(luadron, -which - had . en a I forts in almost brief fashion, passing out the Bouvet was blown 35 y. , F drifting mine. - She I sank ; 1 hel-ms north of Enrenkeui vil 'Ht'" ss than three 'minutes. ' ,; r(,n , J::iG P- m. the relief battleships JRain the a"ack on the .forts which fnn Pened Are. The attack -.on the Wirm .Wris maintained' while the oper-1 'At V mine-sweepers continued: thfT V-W P- m. the -Irresistible- quit tfcinr J'' hstinS heavily, and at 5 :50 a drif sank' Probably having struck Ocean mine- At' 6:05 o'clock the Botli' ' !llh0 having struck a mine, sank. Wrt,'-,, vessls sank .in deep water, liVJC ' ' t p -- - ,T- r-r . , . ,. : r 0: Commander of Dardanelles Fleet Taken Sick. , mi Vice . Admiral- -Sackville Q Hamilton Carden,- of the British navy,-' who t has come into fame because of his-success in bombarding forts , of the Dardan- elles, has been taken sick and is suc ceeded in command of the Allietl : fleet now operating against the Turkish positions' by -Rear Admiral John ML DeRobeck. ' The' fleet, which" is reported to 'con- ; : . -' I " ' ' K - "S. ''''M'lC t M B Mil & . . . - ms -Pwtfpfcwp Vftft: Mmmi REPUBLICAN LEADERS AND POLICIES ARE DENOUNCED Senator Lewis in Speech at Jelfereon City,-Mo., Blames Party ' Formerly in Power ; f or Present " Situation Praises f President Wilson for Work Administra tion Has Accomplished. Jefferson Ci ty " MoMarch 1 9Z A rer view" of the -administration's records, praise" yor ipresidentWilfen a nunciation of Republican " leaders and policies were 4 included in the" speech of Senator Lewis ,'tonight; at a' banquet H of Democratic members of the Missouri legislature. -, : ' "Ex-Presidenf ' Taft, ' " v he rsaid, 'In an address In NewYork, called " attend tlon to", the. fact that Unl910-, this na tion was 'on .;the .eve ,of a .revolution, i "The answer is I that Vthe Republican masters hadso administered this gov ernment that the courts : were: toppling, jadges were believed to be universally corrupt corpOfate power, had been per mitted . to- subordinate the , individual tQ the point' that he had become a sub ject. Competitionviri the 'arts of-mankind was throttled, and- in the .race of life men were hobbled ahd an attempt was "made to " gag i them " , to prevent them from crying out teir. grievances. In, high quarters,, it was proposed that armies be established to -r" - baricade every factory, and., to .turn every,, muni cipality into a fort for the -suppression of . revolt , against - oppressldn from whichthe' citizen was -suffering, i f "This is the state to,?which policies of the RVpublicanmasters had brought this Republic. ' ' i k "To remedy such a state; the demo cracy was" Y called to . power.- Notwithstanding- the treachery in -his .own nortr 'h relentless obstruction of ox- ganieations calling .themselves; Repub licans and; the,, tyranny i.pf .large busiv ness, rebelling.. because , its privilege of exploiting the - American, public, looting ' corporate f treasuries, ' defiling legislatures-andrrupUngcourtS; had been - destroyed despite this the President-aud bis administration mov ed on. and mankind - will witness that It has carried out-itsr-' promises -to a ereatertiexte'nt than has . anyr. other -administration8 since the -Ciyil-war. Addressing" the ; Missouri ... legislature today'; Senator Lewis" said the :United States how i must whether : she would 'retain the Philippines and main tain two i large' fleets .to resist aggres- r.-i-nflrt-oSf foreign powers or leave the Phllippines -and return : to the .". "Tr7T TT-i'sfiitA'fina it"nec'Frir (Continued trom ;-fage TwoJaAj; I nrectnet.- Wat-v.f";--:S. :."5vi; A.?-' t :l?i5ti40wTr 5. .VS ::f wh ufmte . - y w. 1 1; V t K -ivwuiiiiueuj yn ts . ' ' ' : II sjst. of nearly. 100 battleships and ar mored .cruisers waslput" under the corn- mand. of Vice- Admiral. Carden. because he' wast the senior -officer on" the scene The .manner in; which he Jias conduct ed' the "shelling 'of the forts of the straits,r many Of " which have "been si 3enced,Jhas. brought the. .admiral much praise r. both, in--the. countties . of the Allies -and in neutral nations. essary . to make" , a protest against Japan's forcibly seizing' China, Japan would probably '.. exact,, of her present allies- England, - France. and Russia -support fori her against the' United States," said, Senator Lewis.- i - "If war followed," : he - continued, "Japan would -seize, the Philippines and Hawaiil 'aiid' Russia, the ally of Japan. wbuldi seize ; Northern . Alaska. ( "This, would -divide ur army and navy. -England "because of her alli ance with, Japan . couljd. render no aid te the " United 'States.1 ! -: I "GentraFAme'rica, which has a griev ance' because'rof the claim that we forcibly : to.o'k' Panama, might aid - our foesr by destroying the Panama canal to prevent bur-fleets .in the Atlantic and -Pacific from, entering. '"It" is plain' that the United States- has but-- one or two courses. Either we must remove any governmental in terest; from the :Far East,; or. we must maintain an, Atlantic fleet large enough to K.cope ' with a combined-Europe and a Pacific fleet - large ' enough" to combat a combined . Orient."- ' NEVER MADE SUCH REMARK "Senator Lewis Must , Have Miscon ' atmed Something," Says Taf t. -I Raleigh, ' Is. C., "March .19. Former PresidenTaft, -in Raleigh for a few minutes tonight, on -his way to Wash ington, having his; attention called to the ''statement - of Senator - Lewis, ,of Illinois,, .in, a - speech made at Jeffer son ' City, Mo. tonight, ' that "ex-President T4fti ' in '-an - address , in New York called attention to the fact that in 1910 , this ' nation ; was dri the eve of a -revolution," . and ' being asked as to his -'making'' the statement -replied: " ' . i "Never; I never; made any such re mark." Senator Lewis : must have mis construed sonetliihk;.1y;hichTI"said.. I do not know what he was talking about." vThisiwas all' the comment' . Mr. Taft would make -astcCrthe .. statement of Senator Lewis."-" ' (-, . ' The -former' President ' finished, the t h ird" of hi s ' 1 ectiires ' at " the" University of ;,NoHh Carolinii at ChapeJ Hill, to night" and went from thai place to Dur ham where- he was. the honor guest at a l banquet .;given :by ; the - Durham bar,' He ame from . Durham to 'Raleigh in United States to Ask- Further Information' of Nations CONCERNING BLOCKADE Aext Protest to be BaedCn Blockad ing of Neutral Coasts IThlle En forcing Blockade Agraiast Ger many Only ! Objection Washington,' March 19. While the United States government . does . not know as yet whether theAllies intend to maintain a legal blockade or pro pose to .apply general rtles of con traband and non-contraband . . in en forcing their embargo on commercial intercourse between Germany and neu tral countries, America naval offi cers and officials versed ji -international law, expressed, the Joj?inion today, that the indefinite limU;pjrescribed "European waters, including the Medi terranean" might be constructed as a legal area of operations; for a block ading fleet. ;i. . ' ' -'": Naval officers frankjy admit, that theold form of blockade by warships close to an , enemy coast "passed with the investment of Santiago in. the Spanish-American war, Accordingly, in asking Great Britain and France for an explanation of their recent de claration of an embargo, the United States conceded that 'the activity of submarines might makeuphysicially im possible a close blockaLde-of an-nemy coast, and suggested that If the. de claration of the Allies-were to be con strued as a legal blockade, some "radius of activity" be' announced. "Radius of Action" "This principle of at 'radius of ac tion" for a blockading fleet was dis cused at the international naval con ference at London in 1909 and the de claration which followed contained this rule: - ' ' " ' i'-'-'p " ' "Seizure of neutrals-Vessels for vio lation of blockade may be made only within the radius of action of ships of war assigned r to maintain an effec tive blockade". ; ; - - "' The United States .ffaval War. Col lege authorities point? out that while oritrinallv under JAnietiean doctrine the., definition- "pf the'; area 6f bpiera tlons of a -blockade even if In such a manner as to include a large range of high sea is regarded as a legitimate act of war; ' and while it is un doubtedly an inconvenience and may be a loss to neutral commerce to be excluded from the blockaded area, it is a recognized, consequence of war". . The Declaration of London and all previous expositions . of international law specifically ruled, hqiW-ever, that "the blockading forces must not bar access to the ports or coasts of neu trals". ' It is on this point which the British order in council, if intended to be a notification of blockade, would be in the view of officials here, a violation of previous rules.- For that reason, further development of the. British policy in specific " cases is awaited with keen interest. i HOLLAXD TO OBJECT Xote Being Prepared for Delivery, to England and France . The Hague, March 19. - via Lottdon, March 20. It; is' reported that 'Holland is preparing a ;note to be ent to Great Britain and France in reference to the order in council which is re garded as not in accordance with in ternational usages. There is no official confirmation of this report. - ; . FRENCH NEWSPAPER COMMENT General Opinion Is That America Will See Reason for Action Paris, March V 19. The newspapers today discussed in sober terms the blockade measure Of which the United States has been notified by France and England. J The Temps says . that it, considers that the American people, who are noted for their practical good . sense, will understand that the situation created by the German , war zone , de claration Imposes on France and -England recourse to i comprehensive ' and energetic measures to meet a situa tion oh the seas unknown to any pre vious modern war. ANGLO-AMERICA CONVENTION Sir John MacDoneli Suggrests Com plement to Order in Council ' .London, March : . 19. Sir John MacDoneli, . considered an authority. in international law, in an article in the nation discussing a the hew blockade suggests 'that if the new order in coun cil is to be put finto operation on a large scale, the proper complement to it is an Anglo-American convention by which questions arising under the new order might, along with other mat ters' affecting rAmerican claimants in our prize courts,; ' be referred to a Joint tribunal." i : " , r 'i RETURNS FROM ONE PRECINCT V AT. TERRE HAUTE; HELP BACK Fearing Favorite : Candidate - Would Need Some Extra Votes Cast ' Indianapolis . Indl,. March - 19.- How returns' from precinct B., of the sixth ward in Terre Haute were ordered held because Eli H. . Redman, Democratic candidate -for circuit judge,;, was run- ; ning behind, was related today at the hearing. In .Federal court of the. elec tion fraud ', case by i Sylvester ' Jordan, Democratic committeeman and one of the 88 who have pleaded guilty. , : "Chief of Police Holher, said Jordan, "came down to the pfecincf. and-told me ; to have the returns ; held back un til late," as. we might have to add ; a hundred or two votes, to save Redman. I later got" word . that-' ! we' " wouldn't have to; add: any votes".:; T . .- A number of J witnesses; told of Associated Press Correspon dent Pays Night Visit. MAKE GOOD SOLDIERS Troops Fron Canada Show American Initiative in . Trench '. Work Are 4 Making; Good and Anxloiifi v for General Offensive. . (By tederlek Palmer) For the Associated Press. British Headquarters in France, Mar. 18 (via London), March 19. "Gang way ! Lookout for that bunch of wagons!" A voice with an American accent called and one knew he was near the part of the line held by the Canadians. It was pitch dark and at the hour when supplies go up to the trenches. There was not a light on any vehicle or in any habitation, but after stum bling along the correspondent passed through an open door and the dark ened hall of a farmer's house and en tered the brilliantly illuminated room, With thickly curtained windowsof the brigade headquarters. An officer was talking over the telephone. He had just j had word that a man had been shot ' in the back by a concealed sniper in the rear of the trenches. The commander and his officers gathered around the correspondent from the United States, whose request to go Into the. trenches had been glad ly granted. : The correspondent soon was on his way down a dark road with a sergeant from ; Ottawa as his guide, to the battalion headquarters. Through Rulneg Village. Passing through the ruins of a vil lage, the sergeant remarked: "The- Germans are not satisfied yet. They chuck a few shells into the wreckage every day. The shells made us nervous at first, but we are used to them now, all right." In a peasant cottage, battened as tight as photographer's dark . room tight as a photographer's dark room spondent found the battalion comman der, who was from Quebec. He sleeps in the cellar and the "- other officers of the battalion staff in dug outs.', " The dicers .renrjce4 -that knocked , off a biece of te; roof h!"8! -Cla4esfBr.eokej?3.- JwJtoa other day,- but that .the: uiissle did 1ioC do any harm. The colonel T was going down in the trenches himself for the night and took the correspondent with him. "Lookout for . that narrow foot bridge; and here you are likely to slip off into the ditch, " warned the colo nel as he advised the correspondent to keep close behind him in- the inky darkness, . " 4 "Right "along here is avfavorite place for the Germans to loosen up with a machine gun, for they, have a clear field for fire," the colonel added when an open space vas reached. "There is nothing to it but. to lie flat and wait until they are done shooting." v Under German Searchlight, .A German searchlight's rays swung toward the colonel and the correspond ent and then rested on the clear spot. "Standstill,' 'said the officer. "That's the. rule until it sweeps, off. Thus they are not able to spot us." Occasional shots were heard behind the trenches. "That's a sniper in our rear," the colonel said. "Occasionally one gets through. We don't know how. He is always in khaki. We are out after this fellow and we will get him before morning. -The colonel and the correspondent kept moving on passing soldiers car rying food and ammunition to the trenches or returning from the trenches empty handed. The .colonel spoke to them as "boys" a. greeting which one never hears from an English .off icer. - As the trenches were entered a sud den, command was given to some one (Continued on Page Eight.) INTERNATIONAL COURT OF ARBITRATION URGED By Former President Taft in Lecture at Chapel Hill. He Urges L That the President Be lin ; hampered In the Exercise of Exe cutive 'Authority Closes ; ' Series at University. Chapel Hill, N. C., March 19. Presi dent Wilson's . attitude in not recog nizing any government, In. the Repub lic of Mexico was pointed . to--tonight by Former President William H. ( Taft as; illustrating .the power the; presi dent of the United States .has inshap- Jhg 'the, Nation's foreign relations. Mr. Taff delivered the last of - three lec tures to students of the University Of ; North Carolina on the Presidency. The appointment of an international court of arbitration was advocated by the 'speaker; ; He asserted that after the ; European eonflict is ended, there "will be many who will favor "settling international questions.; other. than , by bloody wars." ; - 'i;'-J ; ';' . Mr. Taft ; urged that "the President be vunhampered in ' the- exercise of the executive '; authority, : "Think who would " have beep recalled." he declar ed, "had a clause for recall of Presi dents been . incorporated ' in the cOn stitution -Jefferson and. Lincoln'- cerv tainly would have been'; recalled.- ., t Professor Taf t's subject, for the three lectures ; was .The Presidericyj its Powe-B, Duties, Limitations and-. Re sponsibilities." z ie urtetiy aiytat.a tne EFFORT TO Minority Stockholders of East ern Railroad Act. PROSECUTE DIRECTORS Former Directors, of Jiew " York, Xew Hampshire and Hudson are Un der Fire Alleged to Have Misspent Hundred Million Boston, Mass., Mar, 19 Arguing for the plaintiffs in the suit of minority stockholders of the New York, New Hamphire & Hudson railroad who seek to recover from former directors more than $100,000,000 alleged to have been wrongfully expended, Attorney General Sherman Whipple, today de clared that "all of the. transactions re ferred to in the bill except the West Chester deal were in violation of laws of the stateN.a.nd nation. "There can be no question of re sponsibility", counsel asserted. , "The time has passed . when great corpora tions can say with impunity 'we will put this thing or that thing through, no matter what the people say'. There is no question, Mr. Whipple said that the suit against the estate of the late J. P. Morgan has been lost. This, he said, was1' due to "the delay of the directors of the road in filing an answer - to our suit". The defendants who were directors of the road at some time during the period between 1904 and 1909 when the money is alleged to have been wasted, are: . , ' The Director Charged William Rockefeller, Charles M. Pratt, Lewis Cass Ledyard, George Mc'.C. Moller James S. Hemingway, Aw Heaton Robertson, Frederick F. Brew- J LjKCRiey,', ?Jftmtl' Sci-UBltonv JHenry K, McHarg, ; Robert : W. Tafct, William Skinner, Charles S. Mellen and Alex ander Cochrane. - The other defendants are the execu tors of .the estates of the late J. Pier pont Morgan, Edwin Milner, 1. DeVer Warner, and Amery Lawrence, and the following who have served as-directors. since 1909 and who are alleged to be liable for failure' to bring suit against their predecessors: John I. Billard, George F. Baker, Thomas DeWitt Cuyler, Edward Mul liga'n; Francis T. Maxwell, Theodore N. Vail, Sidney W. Winslow, Lawrence Minot, Samuel Rea, Morton F. Plant, DeVer H. Warner, Howard Elliott, James H. Richards, W. Murray. Crane, Arthur T. Hadley and James H. Hus- us. ; The" bill charges that about 1904 Rockefeller, Mellen, Brooker, Barney, Skinner, Miller and Taft, acting in con cert with J. Pierpont Morgan, Edwin Milner and 1. DeVer Warner, entered upon a plan to effect a monopoly of all transportation companies operating in New England and certain parts of New. York and in acquiring such properties paid large sums in excess of the actual value. For street ; railways, it is claimed $46,000,000 was thus wrong fully expended $16,000,000 was lost in steamship ' enterprises; $22,000,000 on stock of the Boston and Maine rail road and $18,000,000 .on the New York West Chester and Boston railroad. ; The principal contention of the de fendants is' to the right - of minority stockholders to bring a bill of this na ture. F T OF Asked by Southern - Railway, But Probably in Vain. Corporation Cbmmission Wantit Figures Showing Earning) of Trains Be fore Allowing Them Discon tinued H. E. Bonitz. (Special Star Correspondence.) Raleigh, N. C, March 19. The Cor poration Commission gave hearing to officials; of the Southern Railway Com pany today in their petition for permis sion to take off a number of trains fn this territory and then gave a strong intimation that thej--were not inclined to " allow any further curtailment of train service. However, there will be filed later detailed statements of pas f sen ger earnings of the several trains involved and on the showing by these statements will depend the final out - come. ' ; The trains asked to be allowed dis continued are the morning train into Charlotte from Winston-Salem and the afternoon trai :nout of Charlotte- for Winston-Sarem; morning train out of Norwood for Salisbury and afternoon train out of Salisbury " for Norwood; morning train 108 Greensboro to Golds bora, and afternoon train 131 Goldsboro to Greensborop trains 239 and 240 be tween Winston-Salem' and Wilkesboro; trains 21 and 22 between Asheville and Waynesville. 1 1 Southern Railway officials here were General Superintendent - K. E. Simp- IKING URTHER GURTAILMEK PASSENGER TRAINS -1 Damage Done Allied Fleet by Turkish Guns Holds Cen ter of Attention. TWO MORE SHIPS SUNK Memel, German Port on Bal tic, Taken by Russian Forces is Report . Political Situation in South ern Europe Obscure. London, March 19. The opera tions in the Dardanelles, in which the British battleships Irresistible . and Ocean, and the French battle ship Bouvet were sunk by mines and a British battle cruiser and several other of the Allied war ships were damaged by shell fire from the Turkish forts, held the denter 8 attention in the war news today - - ' There were no other .events of importance reported except the sinking of two more British steam ers by German submarines and. the occupation by the Russians, oi Memel, a German port on the Bal tic, which was announced- in the German official communication. Memel is a town of considerable importance, in northeastern Prus- v J sia. -. - : Start of New, Campaign. . The preqexice : of " Russian ' forces fq;' this 'section is" taken 6y military- Ob-, servers here to indicate that the Rus sian generals have decided to attempt a big sweep down through East Prus-'-sia in an endeavor to compel the Ger-,? mans to fall back from Northern Po land.. - Again Norrh Poland has been trans formed into, an immense bog by the thaw,-which has set in, just as Field Marshal Von ; Hindenburg has started his offensive Tagainst Przasnysz. It is declared that it is impossible except at widely separated high places to move, let alone fight. The Germans, however, seemingly anxious always to be doing something, have -.started an offensive on Central Poland, , where they have commenced an attack on the Russians in the re gion of the Pilicia river. There also is heavy fighting in Galicia, the Carpa thians and Bukowina, despite 'the heavy snow. On the Western front no Operations of great importance have taken place, although the French continue their ef forts to work their way forward in the Champagne - and Argone regions and the Belgians still are active in the lit tle bit of their territory remaining in their hands, The political situation as regards Austria and Italy remains obscure, but there are persistent Reports in London that negotiations for the cession ot Austrian territory to Italy have broken down, Italy's . demands having been considered excessive. BRITISH SHIPS SUNK German Submarine Active Again -Tvo, Vessels Meet Fateoff Beachy Head Londron, Marcn 19.--The British steamer Bluejacket with wheat from Liverpool has been torpedo by a Ger man submarine off, Beachy -head. The crew took to the boats. Tha steamer, although badly damaged, re mained afloat. Second Vetwel Is Sunk Glasgow, Scotland, March 1 9 via Lon- don -The British steamer, Hyndford was torpedoed today in the English' channel by a German submarine. It is reported one member of her crew was killed. This steamer was torpedoed in the favorite hunting ground of the German -submarines off-Beachy head while she was proceeding for London under -her. 7. Own steam. -,.-.-. - -X ; . - The Hyndford was of 2,775 tons net burden. She was 3?6 - feet long and was built at . Fort Glasgow, in 1905. She was owned -by the Scottish Ship Owners -Company,, of Glasgow. . . . The . Blue Jacket was of 2,271 tons. She was 336 feet long, was owned by G. Hallet, of Cardiff and was built at Sunderjand in 1904. RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE FAILS According to German Newspaper Cor respondent at Austrian Headquarters Berlin fvia London," March 19. Herr 1 LennhoftY correspondent of the Zeitung i Ammittagfe,1 sends " the following dis I patch ; from Austrian-Jieadquarters un aer date or xaarcn is: "The Russian offensive asrainst - the Carpatian line has. broken down quicker than was .f anticipated considering the vigor with which the attack was be- ;' gun. The Russian hope was to break . ' ; the Austrian and German lines east of . Lupkow Pass They sent forward hupe " forces there, but all attacks were re- . pulsed with- enormous Russian ; losses' if-:: and the Austrians and Germans are v steadily -but 1 slowly, gaming groun. k-;j; j t cessive lines . As soon as one line was; i, cut down, .another advanced until .all "if'iiif'. five had : been" shot: down. . The"Ru; rAf-9-lr?- i ; '. f - "v . :" "'.7'.' I ' "fatinued on