North Carolina Newspapers

' V A V ' i : 4' - - MANY ITEMS left in stock after the Holidays will go Tjrell, if judiciously advertised just now. Clearance; sales are' popular. VOL. XCIX-KO. 94. WILMINGTON, N. C, FRIDAY MORNING, DECEMBER 29, 1916 WHOLE NUMBER 39,808 fairf colder southeast V - ' -W ' oJ Sl f BStO v J 1 7 I I l 10 COMPLY WITH Hakes Another Appeal to Modify Protocol, Providing for .With drawal, of 'Troops.'. HOPE NOT YET BANISHED joint Commission to Meet Early Next Week, When Ameri- ': can Reply Will be Made. Washington, Dec 28. One more ap peal for modification of the protocol providing for the withdrawal of Amer ican troops from Mexico " is made by General Carranza in a message deliver ed to Secretary Lane today; by Luis Cabrera, chairman of the Mexican mem bers of the joint commission. v The Mexican first chief replied to the in sistent American demand that the pro tocol signed by his spokesmen at At lantic City be ratified, with an S00 word, document in which he-failed to accede to the demand, but refrained from writ ing anything that could be construed as a flat repudiation. The latest suggestions for changes in the agreement now will be considered by the three American representatives -Secretary Lane, J. R. Mott and Judge George Gray, Secretary Lane advis ed his colleagues late today of the. char acter of the reply and asked them to meet him here as soon as they conven iently could. Early next week, a joint session of the Mexican-American com mission will be held at which the Am ericans will give the Mexicans their answer and on its nature depends the future course of the commissioners. -Neither Mr. Cabrera nor Secretary Lane would discuss the nature of Car - ranza's reply. Mr. Cabrera left; for New York soon after its delivery and. Secre tary Lane declined to reveal its char acter until it had been submitted " to Ms colleagues. The same reticence was displayed at the Mexican embassy. Mexicans Confident. It was learned that the Mexican com missioners were confident that no In surmountable barried had been raised by Carranza-. It was asserted that ut most care had been exercised to keep out of the reply any expressions or sentiments that might make the situa tion more complex or that would in any way offend the representatives of the American government. The chief , insis tence of Carranza has been that the American troops should be withdraw unconditionally, which the American commissioners would not consider. It was indicated tonight that Carranza's insistence on that point Was less pro nounced now, and that the change in his attitude has been wrought- largely by the altered military situation - in northern Mexico. One Objection Indicated. There appeared reason to believe that one of the conditions to which Carran za now objects is that under which he would be obliged to garrison the terri tory evacuated by the Americans as they marched out. It was pointed out that dnce the protocol was drafted the increased activities of Villa and the steady growth of his army of bandits has made it difficult for Carranza to a?ree to use any considerable part of hi? army in the district now occupied hy Pershing, when it might be neces fary to use the same forces in meeting nore active moves ' of Villa at other Points. In Carranza's latest representation, it Is undprstood, he expressed a willing ness to ratify the agreement if a more definite date for the troops withdrawal ere specified and if a more lenient at titude were displayed toward the ques tion of increased bandits activity. Car fanza holds that the presence of the American troops on Mexican soil gives Jil'a pretext for urging the disaffected to join him. Arredondo Not Recalled.. The report persisted today that Am bassador Designate Arredondo had been called by his government and that he-j . ""S to be succeeded sby Consul De h'T''' an Francisco, who would be "charge without diplomatic raftk. - Mr. rfedondo denied the story categori- and the State Department was whout information. . KIT EIGHT OF CARRANZA FORCE OF FIFTY WERE KILLED n-esidio, Texas, Dec. 28. Of a Car- rania fnrino -r r a rt:' ga Earrison, all but eight were killed or "r captured in an nire-TYifnt with VM. so !rcs at Polcerios ranch, 70 miles atUn? .f here according to a statement -the Mexican consulate !here tonight: '-Olonpl u . - - -' . .. Ca uei nanaez, commanaer. or tne Tanza troops, was one of -the'surviv. Ors faenigno Quintela, a Villa leader, "as killed. tSEn PROFAXE LANGUAGE TO HIS WIFE, SAY WITNESSES "Hmoiiy Presented Against i F. L. Small, on Trial for Murder. Ossi " i T ) r-n V TT T-k no T f J A Smif r'0fl ' t0 shov' that Frederick L. iare'h 3 former Boston broker, rused Vjfsh ar,d profane language to his ft,,;'- F''rence Arline Small, fdr whose the t on trIaI were related In iav stimony of. several witnesses .,tp- onIhl.!iP L; DavIs formerly 'employed jobs by the defendant, said that one occasion Small had kicked his irs. fayu- tp r- i- 1m it. - ti , . runner, wjic oi ie io 8iti8n1Sh schot1 principal, said that lis addressed profane language to lIiirt', on one occawon. because she "i not steer his motor ; boat -with Jrrl that he had arranged. . - WEA THER PREVENTS General Maurice TeUs Associated Press of Obstacles Encounter- ed on Somme Front. WATER FILLS SHELL HOLES Saya the Wet Ground and Fogs Make .;' It Impossible to Continue the Of fensive Now First Rnman- ln Army Re-Formed. London Dec. 28. The continuation of the British offensive along the Somme; front is impossible as long as the present weather lasts, Major Gen eral Maurice, chief director of military operations at the. war office, so in formed the. Associated Press today. -""I -told you some time ago,." "he said, "that ! our offensive would not cease during the winter, but it must be ap parent from the daily reports that no real battle has been offered in that sector since October. In the first place we under-estimated the effect of the shelling on the terrain. The country over, which the advance will have to be made is thickly sprinkled with shell holes filled with "water. Also, never having held the same line in any other winter," we underestimated the effect of the fog in the valley of the Somme. "There have been rrequent frosts, not severe enough to harden the ground, but sufficient to form fogs, making artillery observation fire practically useless and also preventing1 the drying of the ground. '"rtie French arrived at the same de cision and transferred, their attention to Verdun with results which you know. We may be able to resume in March as we found the ground at Neuve Cbapelle in fairly good shape in ijarch, ' 1915, although it had been very bad during the winter. Unable to continue the offensive for the pres ent, we have done the next best; thing. The taking over of a section of the French' line has kept us busy during the last ten days. The operation , has been successful and I will be glad to tell you the exact extent of the line taken oyer when I am sure the Ger mans know . the point of junction. "In Rumania, the first Rumanian ar my, which has borne the brunt ot the fighting, has been entirely withdrawn and now is re-forming in Moldavia, while its place has been taken by the Russians. In Dobrudja the line has been moved back in alignment with the battle front north of the Danube. In this region both our allies and the enemy are suffering from adverse wea the rconditions." NEW APPOINTEES FOR THE OFFICERS' RESERVE CORPS Names of 121 Men are Announced by the War Department. Washington, Dec. 28. Names of 121 additional appointees to the officers reserve corps created by Ahe National Defense act were made public today at the War Department, after acceptances had ben received. They have been as signed in grades ranging between sec ond lieutenant and major, both to line and staff divisions of the army, and are subject to call for active service - in time of war. Seventy-nine of the new reserve offi cers are in the Eastern department, 33 in the Central, six in the Western and three in the Southern. .- A preceding list carried about the Ram number of names, making the "present strength of the new corps about 250. Plans of the War .Department con template the building up of an offlcere reserve corps of not less than 50,000 men. COLLEGES ARE URGED TO AIH PREPAREDNESS By Emphasizing the Necessity of , Physical Training. Officers Elected by National Collegiate ' Athletic Aoclation, in Session at New York Addresses are Heard. New York, Dec. 28. A resolution en dorsing, physical preparedness in the cause of National defense was adopted today by the National Collegiate Ath letic Association. It was a substitute for one proposed by the conference committee1 on ; National preparedness and . was as follows: , "Resolved, That this convention calls Upon all affiliated persons to give their entire support, to the cause of the Na tional defense to, the end that -.the na tion "shall, be assured' of immunity from' invasion and that all members be 'Urged to emphasize the 'necessity of physical preparedness on the part of each 'individual." An amateur athlete was decided by the convention to be one who partici pates in - competitive - physical sports only for the pleasure and the physical, mental, - moral and social benefit di rectly derived therefrom. The vote on this question was 24 to 11.. For the nrsx. unw -m ma iiioumj the association delgates were pres: nt today from aY -e districts, jepre senUng more than t-0 colleges .- ' DeapTLeBaron R. Briggs, of Harvard. who presided', refuse to accept' anoth- ANY ABLE-BODIED HELD LIABLE If He is Between Ages of 18 and 45 He May be Drafted in the Militia in War Time. UNDER TUB , DEFENSE ACT Further Act of Congress Would Not b' Required When Guard Regiment Called Out a Reserve Battal ion Would, be Organized. Washington, Dec. 28. Every, able bodied male citizen of the United States between the ages of 18 and 45 years is held liable for service in the National Guard in war time, without further act of Congress, by War Department regu lations of the government of the Guard issued under the National Defense act. In a circular prepared nearly two months ago, but made public only to day, the militia bureau . directs- that where a National "Guard regiment is called out for war service, a reserve battalion to fill vacancies at the front shall b organized out of the National Guard reserve and by voluntary en listment. "If for any reason," the order con tinues, "there shall not be enough re servists or enough voluntary enlist ments to organize or to keep the re serve battalions at prescribed strength, a sufficient number of unorganized mill, tia shall be drafted by the President to maintain such battalion or other lesser reserve unit at prescribed strength." The language follows closely that of the National Defense act, in which the unorganized militia is defined as includ ing every able-bodied male citizen within the prescribed age limit, or those who have declared their intention of becoming citizens. The National Guard regulations which will be amplified in great de tail later, also strike at the problem of dependent families of soldiers which has cost the government several mil Hqij;s., oc-jdbllars already through, the border mobilization. Recruiting officers for the National Guard are directed to discourage the enlistment of married men or those with others dependent up on them. Such persons are to be ac cepted only for reasons in the public Interest, men who wish to become offi cers being the only class specifically excepted. It is provided in the regulations that no officer of the Guard hereafter shall be recognized as such under the de fense act unless he shall have subscrib ed to an oath binding him to obey the orders of the President and of the gov ernor of his state. Appointments will be made on recommendation to the Sec retary of War from governors or the commanding officers of the state or territorial units of the Guard, and after proper physical and mental examination by boards of officers. Promotions will be handled in the same way and any officer, who fails in the examination as to his professional ability, cannot come up for re-examination within a year. After three years active service or when the organizations are disbanded National Guard officers may pass into the National Guard reserve. The reserve is to remain an unor ganized body in peace times except for temporary purposes. It will be compos ed of men who have served three years in active organizations and whose en listment contracts will require them to serve three years more in the reserve unlss they prfer active service. They will hold the same rank in the reserve that they held at the time of furlough from activ service 'except that when drafter into the Federal service they will report in the grade of private. BROTHERHOOD CHIEFS ii Conference on Eight-Hour Law Discontinued Abruptly. Agreement Could Not be Reached as to Wage Schedule Under Adamson Act Will Await Supreme Court Decision. New York, Dec. 28. Conferences be tween representatives of the railroads j and the four brotherhoods of railway employes, at which were discussed the possibilities of a settlement of the eight hour controversy, were discontinued ab ruptly today when it became apparent an agreement could not be reached. It was announced by both sides that there would be no more meetings until after the United States Supreme Court hands down its decision on the consti tutionality of the Adamson act. The break came, it was learned, when the railroad representatives refused to concede the demands of the brother hood chiefs for an agreement looking toward the enforcement, of the new wage schedule fixed by the Adamson law which goes into effect January l. The brotherhood chiefs held, it was said, that their men had the right to begin drawing wages according to the scale provided by the Adamson law im mediately after the law became effec tive, irrespective of the suits brought by the railroads to test its validity. ..A statement issued by 'Ellsha" Lee, chairman of the conference committee ! or railway managers, cuverea ine posi- (Continued on rage Two.) j BREAK WITH MANAGERS RUSSIA IS STILL MORE HOSTILE 10 IME FOR PEACE Negr vv Attitude Strengthened, if jible, by Germap; Reply to Wilson's Ndte. 3 ; REGARDED AS "EVASIVE" It is Believed Russia's iFinal Word Will be Said When Answer to President is Made. Petrograd, Dec 28, (via London, Dec. 29) After the recent declarations of the Russian foreign minister and the pronouncement of the Smiperor, which vigorously expressed the reluctance of the nation to consider any peace proposals at the presentJtme, it Is be lieved that, except for ths formulation of Russia's official reply-, to President Wilson's note, the last wford has been said here regarding the possibility of peace negotiations. Russia's negative attitude has been strengthened, if possible,; by the Ger man answer to the American note which the Russian government consid ers "not only irrelevant; but imperti nent, to the United States," according to information received by the Asso ciated Press. Russian official circles call attention to the fact that Germany's response "is not really an answer" at all since it evades the question of Germany's aims in the war and proceeds prema turely to the consideration of peace which, in the Russian . view, Germany knows will be unacceptable to" the Al lies under the . present conditions." The foreign office denies that other neutral government will foUow the lead of the United States and Switzer land and" has dissipated the vieVr tak en yesterdayby "part of ttte pfess re garding the neutral governments which in the form of a neutral league intended, according to reports to bring combined pressure upon the warring countries in an effort to bring the war to a speedy conclusion. GERMANY'S REPLY TO THE NOTE FROM SWITZERLAND. Berlin, Dec. 27 (delayed) The Ger man reply to the; Swiss note was hand ed to the Swiss minister today. It is on the same lines as the reply to President Wilson, and reads: "The Imperial government has taken note of the fact that the Swiss Federal Council, as the result of its having placed itself in communication with the President of the United States,, is also ready to take action and side with the United States toward . bringing about an understanding between the belligerent nations una towards the attainment of a lasting peace. "The spirit of true numanity where by the steps of the Swiss Federa Council are inspired is rully appreciat ed and esteemed by the imperial gov ernment. "The Imperial government has in formed the President of the United States that a direct exchange of views seems to be the most , suitable means of obtaining the desired result. "Led by the same considerations that caused Germany on December 12 to offer her hand for peace negotia tions the government has proposed an immediate meeting or all the belliger ents at a neutral place. "In agreement with the President of the United States, the government Is of the opinion that the great work of preventing future wars can only be taken In hand after the present world war has terminated. . So soon as that moment comes they will joyfully be ready to co-operate in this sublime task. "If Switzerland, wnich, faithful to its noble traditions, in mitigating the sufferings caused by the present way has won unending gratitude, will also contribute to safeguarding the world's peace, the German nation and govern ment will highly welcome such ac tion." NORWEGIAN LABOR PARTY SENDS MESSAGE TO WILSON London, Dec. 23. The Norwegian la bor party, says a Reuter dispatch from Christiana, has sent to President Wil son the following message: "The Norwegian social-democracy, numbering a third part of Norwegian electors, expresses sympathy with Pres ident Wilson's energetic labor for the conclusion of the war of barbarity and the establishment of a lasting peace." The Norwegian peace union has re solved to send the Norwegian governs ment a declaration ' urging the govern ment to support every well-founded ef fort to attain, a lasting peace based on respect' for international rights and the indepence of nations. AUSTRIAN CIVILIANS FAVOR SEPARATE PEACE, IS REPORT. London, Dec. 29. Recent" -reports from Switzerland-have reported the in ternal . conditions in - Austria-Hungary as so .serious that those governments are prepared to negotiate direct with Great. Britain and France, preferring a humiliating peace to what has been termed inevitable banicruptcy and ruin. The Morning Post's Budapest correr spondent, writing December 22, records opinions to the foregoing effect as be ing prevalent in some quarters in Austria-Hungary . but in no wise confirms the view that-they are favored by the Austrian and Hungarian government. On the contrary ,v the correspondent contends that-however much a secarate peace may bf desired, it I almost tmi tVln'VohU artA Varf IkIt tVha ' ent impossible. '" concurs with- thA (gonpnued on rage Eight) ? PRESIDENT AND SECRETARY LANSING ADOPT POLICY OF SILENCE REGARDING PEACE All Steps Hereafter Will be Considered by American Government as Confidential Secret Exchanges With Belligerents May Take Place Teutonic Allies Would be Willing to Outline Terms,if Necessary to Gain Conference. . .-.. Washington, Dec 28. A policy of absolute silence regarding the peace negotiations has been adopted by. Pres ident Wilson and Secretary Lansing. It was stated officially today that all steps henceforth will be regarded as confidential; that no comment will be made on any development and .that ru mors will not be discussed in any way. The decision to pursue this course was made known after the State De partment had received the official texts of the German and Austrian replies to President Wilson's identic notes o the belligerents proposing a discussion of peace terms, and after it was learned that the Teutonic powers would be wil ling to permit a confidential exchange of tentative terms if it became neces sary to do so to bridge the gap threat ening to prevent a gathering of peace delegates. Secret Exchanges May Follow. In many quarters the official atti tude was construed as indicating tb.at secret exchanges were expected to fol low, if they did not precede the formal answers of the Entente nations to the notes of President Wilson and the Central Powers, Because of the high ly confidential nature of any such ne gotiations', it is pointed out, the inter mediary would be obliged to refrain from admitting even that they were in progress. So far as the Entente governments are concerned, it is understood that little if any confidential information has reached here to shed more light on their attitude than has been given publicly in the speeches of their pre miers and the comment of their press. Consequently, there is no disposition here to doubt that the Allies unani mously will refuse to enter any sort of peace conference until Germany has indicated herself clearly on what con ditions she will stop fighting. Germany Open to Suggestion. On the Teutonic side, while the re ply to President Wilson is regarded by the German embassy as complying with President Wilson's suggestion in offer ing a method of procedure, Germany is said (to be willing to consider other suggestions regarding methods from any quarter, including her enemies. The views of the Gefrfjan govern ment, further are represented as be ing as follows: . If the Entente considers that guar antees for the future are the principal elements to be achieved, and, lacking confidence in the German government, insists upon knowing some of the guarantees that Germany is willing to give, the Berlin government might make some declaration regarding the principles to which she is willing to subscribe, leaving details- for settle ment at the proposed conference. The German government considers that there is but little to be gained by go ing into any lengthy discussion of guarantees for the future with the present war in progress. In this con nection Germany, it is asserted, never has intended that the conference sug gested should result immediately in the establishment ofpeace. It- is con sidered that it necessarily would be of a preliminary nature to determine whether it might not be possible to end the war. Germany's Proposed Plan. According to the German diplomats, the plan Germany is , proceeding upon would provide that the delegates should first agree upon territorial and immediately connected terms, and that a preliminary treaty then should be settled upon. This complete, the Ger- IMMEDIATE RETURN OF CARS Mf BE ORDERED Question Taken Under Advisement by Commerce Commission. Commissioner McChord Says Roads are Violating1 Written and Verbal Agreements Objection Rais ed by Railroads. Washington, Dec. 2S. After an all day hearing, the Interstate Commerce Commission today took under advise ment the question of whether it shall seek to solve the car shortage probj lem. by ordering all railroads to return cars of other lines to their owners im mediately upon unloading. f - Railroad representatives, headed by W. W. Atterbury, vice president of the Pennsylvania and president of th American Railway Association,, appear ing in response, to a summons to show cause why such an order should not be Issued, earnestly urged against 'the ac tion. They declared that most of the roads were doing their best jiow to deal fairly with the public and argued that a hard and fast, rule by : the com mission would interfere with opera tions and make the situation worse. Commissioner McChord said -the rail roads seemed to pay no attention to the orders of the railway association which has adopted various drastic measures to relieve car shortage. "The railroads," he said, "not oply have vio lated their written and verbal agree ments, but they have deliberately been from each other.", When Atterbury objected, saying . (Continued on Page Two.V man idea is to have all the neutrals called in to participate in considera tion of the questions of guarantees for the future. They regard it as a mat ter for the conference to settle wheth er the neutral nations should become signatory to the entire peace treaty or one to that part having to do with guarantees for the maintenance of peace in the future, such as freedom of the seas, limitation of armaments, formation of a world league to enforce peace and establishment of an inter national court of arbitration. . Diplomats familiar with the view point of Germany and her allies were especially emphatic tonight in saying that Germany necessarily would be able to make much better terms in confi dential negotiations than in public. The radical element in German poli tics, it Is said, ' must be considered. Under any circumstances, however, it was said Germany would not consider making peace if the Entente should insist upon retaining Germany's lost colonies, and requiring Germany at the same time to evacuate all enemy territory now occupied. In admitting today tthat no further communication had aocompanied the German or the Austrian reply to the President's note,, officials stated flatly that such questions to .this effect in the future would not be answered. Notes Vary Slightly. The official text3 of the German and the Austrian replies, received today varied slightly from each other and from the original cabled press trans lation. Most of the difference, offi cials thought, was in the warmer, more cordial tone of the official version. Differences between the two replies were noted, .with interest. For in stance, the German reply refers to the President's note as calling for the cre ation of a basis for the foundation of a lasting peace, while the Austrian note has it an "exchange of views for the eventual establishment of peace Germany proposes "the speedy as sembly on neutral ground of delegates of the warring states," and Austria "proposed that representatives of the belligerent powers convene at an early date at some place on neutral ground The most decided difference noted was in Austria's ascribing to Presi dent Wilson himself the view that It was necessary to postpone dicussion of guarantee for a pemanent peace. The Austrian reply "concurs with the Pres ident that only after the termination of the present war will it be possible to undertake the great and desirable worK or prevention or future wars." Wilson's Note Misconstrued. The President's note says the .United States will be glad to co-operate to wards permanent peace "whenthe war is over" but did not specifically declare the two subjects could not be discussed at the same time. In the allied coun tries there is uncompromising hostility to any plan not guaranteeing "repara tion, restitution and guarantees." Statements in the Austrian press Which have turned from hostility to the President's note to expressions sug gesting that he is allied with the Cen tral Powers for the accomplishment of the same end, caused further embar rassment here today in the administra tion's attempt to disassociate the Am erican action from the Central Powers' note of six days -before. The official text of the German note follows: Text of German Note. "The imperial government has accept, ed and-considered in the friendly spirit which is apparent in the cbmmunica . (Continue on rage Eight) MACHINE IS DEVISED TO PHOTOGRAPH SOUND Vibrations of the Human Dia . phragm Flashed, Upon Screen. Association for Advancement of Science Witnesses Machine in Operation. Various Topics are Dis cussed. New York, Dec. 28. A machine that "shows how sound looks," a restored "pithecanthropus erectus" who roamed the earth 500,000 years ago as the "missing link", a discussion as to whether man has been on this conti nent 125,000 years or 300,000, and many addresses on modern economic and hu Jiitarian subjects made up the Inter e at the various sessions of the American Association for the Advance ment of Science here today. s The sound machine, which is called the "phonodeik", photographs the vi brations of the human diaphragm gov erning the volume and cadences of the voice and projects them, magnified 40,000 times, on a screen. When the demonstrator spoke the word "war" into the machine a, confused irregular blot of light flashed upon the screen. Pronunciation of "peace",' produced in marked contrast a mild glow regularly and delicately outlined. A record of Caruso's voice caused a broad, vio lently fluctuating line of light, while Tetrazinl's voice showed as a finely penciled dancing - path of light, " .The discussion as to the antiquity of (Cfr6iued on Page Twoj. FRESH GAINS III 1LLAG1 MADE BY THE TEUTONS Berlin Reports Capture of 3,000 More Prisoners and Twenty Two Machine Guns. ACTIVITY AROUND VERDUN Greeks Who Were Interned in Ger many Reported Ordered to Fight Against Allies. s The latest official communication trom Berlin records fresh advances for ; the Teutonic Allies against the Ru sians and Rumanians in Wallachia. Tho invaders now are well beyond Rimnlk Sarat, advancing along the railroad to ward Fokshani. Three thousand more prisoners and 22 machine guns have been captured by the invaders, bringing the number of men taken in the Rim-nik-Sarat maneuver up to 10.200.; Although the Berlin war office re ports that the Teutonic Allies in Dob rudja are keeping up their pressure against the Russians and Rumanians and have forced the Russians from fortified height positions east of Mat chin, on the east bank of the Danube, opposite Braila, Petrograd announces that the invaders south of the Danube have been repulsed with heavy losses, except at the village of Rakel, which has been occupied by them. British armed motor cars, says Petrograd, did great execution in this fighting. Considerable fighting has again taken place on the Verdun sector around Le Mort Homme and on the eastern .slopes of Hill 304, where the Germans made an attack but were repulsed, and where later the, .French bean a bombardment of the German positions. Elsewhere along the French front there have bu t reciprocal . bombardments and attacks by small patrol parties interspersed with fighting in the air and aerial raids by French, British and German avia tors. In the encounters in the air each side is reported to have lost machines. In the Austro-Italian theatre, the weather has cleared and the artillery duels have been renewed with vigor, especially on the Carso front. In Mac edonia, except for British attacks against the Bulgarians northeast .of Lake Doran, which Berlin reports were successful, comparatively quite still prevails. South of Brody ln .Galicia the Ger mans have brought their howitzers in to play against Russian positions and at various points have damaged their trenches. Unofficial advices received in London from Saloniki say the Greeks who sur rendered to the Bulgarians at Kavala -and were Interned In Germany have been ordered by King Constantine to proceed to the Macedonian front io fight against the Entente Allies. Simultaneously from Athens comes an unofficial dispatch announcing that Greece is addressing another ncte to the Entente, declaring that unless there Is a change in the Entente blockade, Greece may be forced to seek the ad vice of the nation concerning the course to be followed. COUNT CZERNIN IS NOW THE AUSTRIAN FOREIGN MINISTER Berlin, Dec. 28, (via Sayville). Count Czernin, the Austro-Hungarian foreign minister, has sent a telegram to the Germari chancellor announcing that he has taken possession of his new office and asking for the chancellor's "pre cious co-operation in the fulfillment of our task," says the Overseas News Agency. . Count Czernin ra quoted, by the agency as also saying: "Our alliance has . formed the main pillar of our foreign policy. For more than three score years and ten It had given to our nations and to Europe the blessings of peace and had fostered prosperous evolution. Now it has prov ed its value In our heavy struggle against powerful enemies, whose" aims was our destruction. The heroic cour age of the allied (Teutonic) armies and the self-sacrificing "co-operation of the nations will, I am sure, bring final success arid with it a guararitee for our existence and our future." - The German chancellor, In replying, thanked Count Czernin. and added: ."Our alliance creates a firm and un shakable basis upon which,-as I confi dently trust, our common work will bring the war to a good ending and, after a victorious peace, will firmly establish and foster the welfare of our nations in mutual, trustful co-operation." SAYS RUSSIANS ASSASSINATED OVER fl.400 IN EAST PRUSSIA Berlin, Dec. 28, (via Sayville). The number of civilians assassinated in East Prussia in 1914 during the Russian In vasion has now been officially made public by the Koenlgsburg statistical oJfice and totals ,6,408, 6f "whbm 99 were women," says a statement today by th semi-official Overseas News Ageney. "Among these," adds the statement, "338 men and 58 women Were shot, 48 men and one woman stabbed, 27 men and one -women . beaten to death, six men and five women burned and one man choked to death and two men kill, ed durfng the hold up of a train. Of 107 men and four 'women, only 'murder ia given as the cause of death." ORDER OF. MERIT BESTOWED - ' . i UPON SUBMARINE CAPTAtW Amsterdam, Dec, 28, (via London).- Announcement is made In the Berlin newspapers that the Order of Merit has-been- conferred-on Captain -Valentiner ' captain of a German - submarine, for sinking 128 ships of a total tonnage ot -I (Continue on, Pa$6 Elffnt): v