Newspapers / Greensboro Daily News (Greensboro, … / March 22, 1918, edition 1 / Page 1
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GREENSBORO DAILY NEWS WKATHEB ' - . North Carolina Friday Fair, . Warmer;' Saturday Fair. , 16 Pages Today Two Sections VOL. XVIII, NO. 63 GREENSBORO, N. G, FRIDAY MORNING, MARCH 22, 1918 PRICE FIVE CENTS Huns Launch a Tempest of Fire on British Front TERRIFIC STORM OF ARTILLERY FIRE BURSTS OVER ALLIES LINE LAUNCHING OFBATTLE GREATEST OF THE WAR Its Results May Affect Destinies ' of Millions IHAIG'S MEN MEET SHOCK' Shells of Large and Small Call ber Rained Upon the British Lines . LASTED FOR FIVE HOURS Then the German Infantry Stormed Out for .the First Great Aaeault Some ' Lightly Held Poaition of Brit ' ish Line Withdrawn. Exactly 25 monthe ago the Germane Ibegan the historic battle of Verdun, the thunder of their gum deepened into a tempest of fire along the British front in northern France and they began That may be the greatest battle of the war, a struggle which may lead to results which Mill shape the destjnies ot mil-' lions of people over coming centuries. . The attack was made on a scale hith- vmlrnMB! jJiiwivtm 4 Vi ! ara nt ma tnr offensives. It was over a front of 30 ' miles. Official reports are very brief, but correspondents at the scene, tell of the terrific storm of artillery fire that burst over the lines held by Field Mar thai Haig'S men. . ,v The bombardment began at 6 o'clock Thursday morning, just tefore the early spring dawn was breaking over eastern J' ranee. Shells of large and small cal ibres were rained upon, the liues held by the British for about five hours, Then German infantry stormed out to make the first great assault. .The Germans, favored by the wind,' moved forward under cover of a pall of smoke, which hid the assaulting columns front the eyes of the British holding the front lines. . No Need for Alarm. Describing the baitle, Andrew Bor.ar Law informed the. house of commons . that lightly held portions of the Brit ish line had been withdrawn, but said that there was no need for alarm on the part of the country. The Associated . Press correspondent at the British front, reports that an attack there had been expected and . that great preparations had been made to meet it. Tho Berlin official report saya that the Germans have penetrated into some British po sitions. Nor were the German efforts concen trated on tlys front held by the British. , Early Thursday morning the Germane assaulted the French lines near the vil lage of Ones,' to the northeast of Ver dun, and claim to have penetrated a con siderable distance. ' Near Rheims, too, the French were subjected to an assault, but here the artillery bora the brunt of 4L. 1 '' HM ligUVllll. t The attacks at Verdun and Bheims, (however, may be considered for the time being, as mere diversions to the principal attack, which has been loosed against the British. They would serve .to keep French forces at Verdun and Rheims from being transferred to the British (Continued en Pace Three) I DIVISION OF OFFICES , IN FORSYTH IS LIKELY ( Democrats and Republican Bold Confer- . encee in Effort to Eliminate Political Contest. (Spend Is Dr Dm.) : Winston-Salem, March 21. For the purpose of avoiding a strenuous political campaign In Forsyth this fall, commit tees from the Democratic and Republi can county executive committees have held two or more conferences and an other one is to be held Saturday, it was learned tonight. The Republicans have asked for equal division of offices', but in view of the substantial Democratic majorities in Forsyth the last two elec tions this proposition was promotly turn ed down. It is learned that the Demo crats have offered to. accede one county luioiuiBsiuner ana representative ui tne legislature ta the opposing party. This appears to be agreeable to some of the ti. O. P. leaders, while (there oppose it. A preliminary hearing in the double murder raw, the killing of Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Hester, just east of this city, two weeks ago, will be held here tomor row before a magistrate. Counsel for the defense have waived the presence of the defendant, Napoleon Spencer, the young negro in jail in another county,' who stands charged with the crime. ' " .-. ' -. f' .''." Semi-Official Negotiations Are On Foot Between Germany and Entente For Peace? London March 21.-Semi-official negotiatidns are on' foot between Germany and the entente in which Germany is displaying a strong inclination for peace, the. Catholic news paper Nieuwsblad Van Hetjeuden says it was learned, the Central News correspondent at Amsterdam reports. This Amsterdam newspaper is quoted as adding that its information is that if no basis for official negotiations was reached by March 27, the German offensive in the west would be begun. According to reports from Petrograd, dated Wetkiesday, a rumor is current at Moscow that Germany has offered im portant concessions to the allies conditioned upon the recogni tion of the Brest-Litovsk treaty of peace. Attack on the Gauche Wood Pre- ceded by Intensive Bom bardment BRITISH BOMBARD OSTEND British Army Headquarters in France, March 21.-r-(Afternoon.) By , Associ-i ated Press.) The Germans this forenoon launched a heavy attack against the British lines orer a wide front in and near the Cambrai sector, and the assault bears all the earmarks of being the be ginning of the enemy's much-heralded grand offensive. ' . Hard fighting is proceeding from a point north of Lagnicourt southward to Gauche wood, just below Gouzeaeourt. The attack was preced by a heavy bom bardment from guns of all calibres, and the duel between the opposing Heavy cat teries has been rooking the countryside for hours. The Germans have employed gas shells freely, and a constant stream of high velocity shells has been breaking with frightful concussion far 'back of the Brit ish lines. . i ; The bombardment began in earnest at 5 o'clock this morning, and about five hours later the enemv forces hurled themselves 'on the British front line trenches north'of Laenicourt and Louv- eml, the latter place lying due weBt of Boursies. - At the same time other German forces advanced behind a smoke barrage along the ridge running northward from iiou zeaucourt. It may be said that the at tack In this region was by no means un expected by the British and that they had made great preparations to meet the onslaught. ' The two vast forces have been locked in a bitter struggle over this wide front for hours. -The bombardment was of a most terrific nature, and finally the in fantry drove forward against numerous points in the Cambrai sector. The pre liminary - bombardment had extended from, a point below St. Quentin, north to the river Scarpe, and at last reports sanguinary fighting wis in progress as far south as tiie region of Hargicourt and as far north as Bullecourt. The early stages of the battle would seem to Indicate that the enemy was trying to drive a wedge on both sides of the Cambrai salient and pinch it off. A keen struggle has been proceeding ni u .Dtignoornooa oi xiuuecourr. huu Lagnicourt and south of the salient no Hsrgirourt and Ronssoy. . . , The British had been looking for this attack today. Not only have prisoners declared that yesterday or today would mark the beginning of the offensive on" this front. . hut there were abundant signs of an enemy inmh against this sector, which was the scene of the last great battle in the British theater. That the (iermans were as thoroughly pre pared aa possible, was well known and as a consequence the British had .taken extensive steps to meet the blow. GERMANS LAtTNCH INFANTRY ATTACK ON A BIG SCALE London, March 21. Following a heavy bombardment, the Germans hunched an infantry attack on a big scale on the front north of Legincourt, to Gauche wood. Router's correspondent at British headquarters telegraphs this afternoon. "Our counter measures have not yet developed," the correspondent adds. Therefore, it is difficult to define the position. ' Apparently the enemy's pur pose has been to launch converging at tacks upon the two flanks of the Fles quierea salient, in the hope of cutting it off. . "There are unconfirmed rumors- that the enemy has employed tanks." : BY EMPLOYING MASSES OF TROOPS HUNS MAKE GAINS London, March 21 By employing masses of troops supported oy a great weight of artillery, the Germans'appear to nave penetrated the British front line at certain points between the Scarpe and Yendeuil, says neuters J.imited, corres pondent at. British headquarters, tele graphing this evening. OSTEND WAS BOMBARDED BY . BRITISH MONITORS THURSDAY London. March 21. Ostend was bom barded by British monitors today and Helgoland was attacked br seaplanes. according to the official announcement tonight. TRIAL OF PIHS BOYS Able Counsel Arguing the Evi dence to the Burke County Jury A VERDICT BY SATURDAY (Spetlaf te Dtili News.) Morganton, March 21. With the speech of J. F. Spainhour for the defense and of Solicitor Huffman, for the state, and the charge of Judge Cline yet to be made, the jury sitting on the trial of Garfield and Aaron Pitts, charged with the murder of Dr. JS. A. Hennessee, will not get the case before tomorrow noon. The jury listened today to the argu- ments of five able attorneys, ao time limit was put oh the speeches and they averaged an hour and a half each. Mose Harshaw, of Lenoir, began the argument for the state at the opening of court this morning. Mr. Harshaw is a lawyer of the old school and reviewed the evi dence in a forceful and characteristic manner. One, of the strongest pleas made for the prisoners at the bar of the Burke court was that of frank A. Unney, of Boone, tornicrly Republican candidate for governor, who followed Mi'. Ilarakaw with an argument of the innocence of Garfield and Aaron Pitts and an appeal ter their acquittal. JUr. i,mney is a logician of convinving power and an orator of ability. Ex-Lieut. Gov. VV. C. Newland, for the state, again reviewed in a masterful man ner the evidence to the jury explaining, it as interpreted by the prosecution a in his opinion fixing the guilt for the murder of Dr. Hennessee unmistakeably upon the Pitts brothers. Following Mr. New land the plea for the defendants was taken up by I. T. Avery, of the local bar, in a splendid effort to convince the jury that the cir cumstantial evidence in the case by no means showed the guilt of Garfield and Aaron Pitts. S. J. lrvin, of Morganton, made the last speech of the day, doing so with force and favor making a special point of what punishment in this case meant toward the enforcement of laiw and order in Burke county. The state's attorneys have been bas ing their argument mainly upon the facts of the known enmity which existed between tne Pitts and Hennessee fam ilies; upon the evidence of 8am Bvrd, Flagman Laughter and Miss Kllcr Trex ler, that two men were seen to run to the Pitts' store immediately after the shooting; upon Walter Patton's testi mony as to seeing uarneld ritts in the store with a bright pistol in his hand when be ran to the store after being told' that men who did the shooting hi-d run in that direction, and upon Sam Byrd's statement aleo that he was will ing to swear positively as to the identity oi Garfield Pitts aa the man who passed nearest hiin and that he had no doubt whatever, but that, the two men who ran after he saw ' Dr. Hennessee shot down by them were Garfield and Aaron .Pitta, On the other hand the defense has made a splendid point of the fact that bam Byrd did not tell before the cor oner's jury and to others with whom he talked that he thought the men were the Pitta brothers, but that he bad said it was so dark he could not tell who did the ahooting. . J. M Ramsey's evidence is featured in an argument that it might have been one man of different description from tne defendants, ihe defendants' at torneys contend that - whoever might nave oeen tne assassin tne blame would have been put on the Pitts, The general opinion now is that a verdict will hardly be returned before oaturaay. , . ALL PASSENGERS ON BOARD " THE STEAMER AMAZON SAVED ' Buenps Aires, March 21. Advices re ceived here today seem to confirm the reports current yesterday that the Royal Mail Steam Packet company steamer, Amazon, a 10 000-ton vessel, had been torpedoed. The only notice received from the London office of the company, was one stating that-the eailinir of the Amazon for this side of the Atlantic from Liverpool had been cancelled. A cable message from a pesenrer, however, ssys that all on board had been saved but that the cargo waa lost. STATEMENT OF GEDDES IS MADE TO APPEASE A DEMAND FOR FACTS British Tonnage Production Was Far Too Low in January LABOR TROUBLES CAUSE Rate of Destruction of Subma rines Almost Equal to Their Production by Enemy fEXACT TRUTH IS WANTED Dutch Tonnage Will Tide Allies Over Spring Months; After That a Bis Decrease in the Effectiveness ot the U-Boats la Anticipated. Daily tfpwi Burrsu and Trletripb OfflM Tb aicta Bulldlnt (!! UiMd Wire) (By DAVID LAWRENCE) (Copi-rtKht. 1H18, by New York Fft-clnf Post.) Washington, March 21. Explanations made by Sir Eric Gcddes, first lord of the British admiralty, as to the statis of allied tonnage losses brought very little satisfaction here, for what is most ly desired now is some data on the exact amount of shipbuilding being done in British yards. From the beginning the tendency lias been to expect America's tremendous re sources would save tho situation, but while temporary expedients are being resorted to, such as the Bcizuro. of the Dutch ships and the requisitioning of private vessels right and left, togither with a curtailment of importB and ex ports of non-essentials, the outstanding fact is that during iflie month of Janu ary the production in England was far below what it should have been. : Labor troubles are largely responsible and although Washington is far away from London such men as aro informed about events abroad do not feel that sufficiently stern measures are b.'ing adopted to deal with the situation. By constantly depending upon America, tile urgency of the tonnage situation is not brought home to the workers abroad. Bases of Optimism. There are certain facts, however, which permit of an optimistic view of the future though unfortunately they can not be taken as a basis for com plete confidence because the tactics of the enemy are constanly changing. But such as they are, they afford comfort in a situation on which obviously the whole success of our ocean transportation pro gram depends. In the first place, it can be stated definitely that the rate of destruction of submarines is almost equal to the production of under sea craft. The Ri-it. ish very properly supprese the number ot (.Terman submarines sunk because a great many are lost through accidental causes. German crews go out and never return, and the morale of those bcini' enlisted for submarine service has been steadily weakened by the British policy. nui rom sucn statistic as are availuble it is true that irrespective of the losses by accident, the American and ItriUch destroyer fleets are steadily bagging tic To beat the submarines which are con tinuing their depredations on allied ship ping, there must, nevertheless, be an un ward curve in production, in America, the program is moving along fairly well with the prospect of continued imDrove- ment in the spring and summer. But wane tne United IStatos has been going forward, Great Britain has been backward. Shipowners in England ere outspokenly critical in their comment on the British government's labor policy, ufib-iniB'ia oi course a matter in wnieli no official on this side of the water would care to be quoted. Hay Call For Explicit Statement. Yet if the tonnaee losses as announced by Sir Eric Geddes continue without a marked increase in new shipping, the necessity for a frank statement of jnt what America is doing will bo develon- ed, and it will command a similarly "'ex- piiciL Bet oi ngures rrom tne jbrit istt government. The speech of Sir Eric Geddes had. to be made to appease a general demand for facte. Some inkling of the widespread confusion about ton nage losses and dissatisfaction with the British shipbuilding program had reach ed here before the first lord of the ad miralty came out in, the open with figures. Fear that the enemy might get com fort out of delays and handicaps has been responsible for the policy of se crecy, but the time has approached when the maximum effort will be ob tained only ky a statement of the truth. Not infrequently optimistic surveys of the American shipbuilding program are used to refute the idea of any crisis. Vet, as viewed from Washington, there should not be any reliance on any one factor, but a general drive on all' sides to produce tonnage and regardless of what another nation may be doing. Unquestionably the addition of Dutch tonnage is going to tide the allies over for the spring months when, indeed, they expect to have anti-submarine de vices working so well that heavy gains in tonnage will result through an ap preciable dimunition in the effectiveness of the U-boat. So while there is really no special cause for gloom either from the facts' disclosed by Sir Eric Geddes or the facts available here, neverthe less it nrovea that by greater and more consistent efforts at production will the final victory over the submarine be ac complished. ,, Late Dr. E. A. Hennessee For Whose Murder Garfield and Aaron Pitts Are Now Being Tried HEGE SLAYER WILL PLEAD Hege, in Jail at Lexington, Admits That He Shot to Kill E. Raper, Counsel For Hege, Says "It's the Old, Old Story, When a Married Man Has Improper Relations With Another Man's Wife He Does So at His Peril." (By C. M. WAYNICK.) . Lexington, March 21. J. Cr.aham Hege will plead the "unwritten law" plus when he faces a jury for the killing of J. Franklin Deaderirk. What the "plm" vill -be remains to be revealed when the defense opens its case. Chief Hege's counsel wouldn't say what it is to be and Hege, at the. jail, gave little intimation that there would be much else to his defense than the plea that he shot in resentment of the invasion of his home. ' There is no shadow of question about the killing and no coroner's inquest was necessary. The body of "Frank" Deart- erick remains in the little home, but not awaiting the sitting of a jury. It wiil!,i",-e,th? incarceration of Hege He was .. . .,- asked why, and his answer was that Mrs. be buried when the fatuity assembles, siien me miuny asseaiuiei, but where was not definitely settled. Perhaps in Arkansas, the home state uf Mrs. Deaderick. Hege admits that he fired tho full round of tiie revolver and ho paid today that he shot "to kill." He was asked the question specifically, after he had stated that he intended to remain silent about the circumstances imrtediately preceding the shot, He Shot to Kill. "Mr. Hege, when you shot Mr. T).vd erick did you fire with intention to kill,'' he was asked. The prisoner hesitated momentarily. "Yea," he replied, "he was my best friend, but there wss nothing ol to do." "I will tell everything when the time comes," he ssid to the representative of the Daily News, facing him through the bars. "I hare-nothing to ror.real. My counsel advised m to say nothing: ttbout the killing itself 'jut that will all come out on the ify of tho trial, and I feel absolutely Confident that the story I will tell will free me." The man has fine nerve, lie was in good spirits snd: showed no nervousness until his wife's name was brought into the conversation and he was i sked if the stories were true that it wan about her that the trouble with Dea lenck arose As he spoke of Mrs. H-je, hij hand trembled for the first time nnd miccr tainty found a place in his speech and manner. The urbanity Wt him and haltingly he said that he wo iU MI the sv-v when the time came aid n it be- for. ' ... Unwritten Law. There Is no mystery fieri as la what will be the theory of tho defensa. It is conceded generally that Tlege'a R-iulnel will undertake to show tljx justified jealousy was the cause, that n irre parable wrong to the homi Jf the pris oner was his motive l'o." hootinr the man he described aa his best triend. Shrewd, cleiwitted, combative, slight E. E. Raper is at present 4iief vi "oiinsci for Hege. ! "It is the old, old at iry," said he. "When a married man of ainh tnan for that matter, lias improper relations with another man's wife, lie dw . at his peril. Hege was ssked in jail if he would set up a contention that he shot in self-de- :;;::! ..-:as"L .if ssissi M A , - - : OF DEADERICK UNWRITTEN LAW fense. IIo l)f.il arts! over this, indicated indecision and reiterated his statement that the story would come out Ht the trial. There seems to be the possibility that this plea might he argued, but is no reason apparent to eVpect. it to oe more than an incident. So far as an ;n,.A.i;ntn . ..u .i u ofjj,jKi,iy prf.baiblo ti.at Ihe jury will be toul of alleged imprnier relations be tween the dead man and the wife, of the prisoner and asked to let Hege go as hundreds of other southern men havj gone free upon similar pleas. What will Mrs. llegc testify f In dubitably this is the bi;r single question in which the public is interested. Frank ly, too, the state is Interested. There. is a strong belief that Mrs. Hege mar sac nnee her own name In defense of her husband. She has not been near the jail u- !. ill Hi. jm. 1,1. f.lka. (Continued on Page Nine) SIX MEN WERE KILLED IN AClffll MISSING Two Others Killed in Accident in France and Nine Died of Disease ' . FIFTEEN ARE WOUNDED - (By 'AmrUttd Preu.) Washington, March 21. Six enlisted men "killed in action-and II missing, are reported in today's casualty list, iwued by the war department. Two men were killed in accident; nine died of disease, two were severely wounded in action and 13 slightly wounded. Killed in action Stanley Dolilcv, Er nest B. Fulkerson, Robert If. Hogg, Wil liam J. SfcKay, Lloyd L. Morrill, Wil liam B. Shepard. Died of accident Privates William J. Hayes and Burett W. Wade. Died of disease Corporal George E. Eklund, pneumonia; Privates Sidney J. Anderson, meningitis; Fay Briner, ap pendicitis; Wm. M. Dubry, pneumonia; Paul J. Farnum, pneumonia; Erwin A. McArtbur, meningitis; Daniel E. McCar thy, embolism; Francis Sullivan, agina ludovici; and Joseph Moran, pneumonia. Missing in action Sergeant John A. Sheehan; Privates Harry E. Hirney, Eu gene F. Curtiss, Albert M. Kennedy, Grover C. Leitheuser, William F. Marvin, James Moran, Dennis F. O'Connor, Wil liam F. O'Connor, Joseph Reid, Carl Schultz. ' Wounded severely Privates Orja O. Archey and Albert. K. Tibbetts. Wounded slightly Corporals Carl C. Dyvad and Alex Smellzer; Privates John Bowler, Stephen Derrig, James Dougherty, Kobert W. Gregg, Vernon Johnson, Frederick P. King. Michael Me halek, Hoy Montgomery Ogle, Stephen J. Xavin, Eugene J. Sweanhard and Atti- eu II. Thomas. J. GEO. L GIVEN HIS FREEDOM BV JURY INWAKE COUNTY Acquittal Was Popular Surprise in Raleigh JURY WAS OUT 30 MINUTES Major. Peterson Was Charged With Embezzling $7,600; Admitted the Shortage HE HAD PAID IT BACK Peterson Will Return Immediately to Camp Sevier Where He Is in the Federal Service Small to Have Opposition. - (Rfftelil to Dally New,.) Raleigh, March 21-Major George L. Peterson today confounded his foes with his new freedom and in .10 minutes after the jury took a case which tho populace thought dcad&hot. against him, he was adjudged worthy of neither death nor bonds. It was one of the greatest popular surprises tiiat ever came to Raleigh.-' The jurors reje.-ted by the defense had with uniform and significant expression, declared their btlicf that he was guilty of the $7,000 emle7.zlemeiit alleged against him in the bill of indictment. There must have been 20 ruled off the jury for their positive opinions. Yet 10 of the 12 today votl for immediate acquittal and tiie remaining two had been converted almost before another ballot was taken. The jury was manifestly a Peterson body throughout the trial. It could be seen that tho sfato had not impressed it with the gravity of the offense charged against Peterson nor Had the state made a good showing as to intent in the nl-' legcd defalcation. The common judgment was that the state had put on too much testimony. It might have ended its case with the evidence of Judge R. II. Sykes- who declared that Mn.or I'eterson ad mitted working the adding machine to cover up alleged discrepancies, thus al lowing the itato to argue that the falsification of a record was prima Tar io evidence of the felonious intent. Due to Cross Examination. The circumstance that must have worked most in behalf of Major Peter son was the defenses skillful cross-ex- amination jf Adjutant General Young In wiucn the business methods ot the ad jutant general's oflice got an airing that will hardlv be forgotten soon. In that grill the defense brought out the fact that the national guard had banqueted with state funds Governor Craig when the chief executive was at Morehead; that $300 of the fund iad been expended in motoring on the launches down there, and the suggestion that tho governpr ball game in Richmond at state expense ( was deftly thrown into the box though the actual truth about it was not brought put. The defense developed tho including General Young hod ridden across the country with their families ai;d th it the state had paid these fares without reimbursement to date. This method of gathering detail must have pleased tho jury thnt wasn't so much intcresfed in whether the bull-doz ing of thd nddimr machine was done to cover up actual shortage through bad stewardship or shortage due to baby business methods in all departments. The jury had no difficulty in reaching an agreement. Henry Grady representing Major Peterson made a. tier re attack on Gen eral Vounr and declired that the gov ernor should make (ienera.1 Young resgn. Y. K. Jones closing for the defense today burst often into the basis of the tmt. Ide, as it appeared to the lawyer. "THa trouble is," ihouted Jones, "that Major (Continued on Paa fill) MR. M'ADOO WILL AL$0 SPEAK IN WILMINGTON Secretary of Treasury Will Speak la Raleigh on April 9 and Leave at Once For Wilmington. Dally Sen Burru uid Trlnrripfa OfTlrs Tbc Bins BuIUJtrtf Hit Utifd Hire) Washington, March 21. At the elev enth hour William (jibbi MrAdoo, sec retary of the t mi miry, derided today that he would ehnnge hit itinerary and make two speeches in North Carolina inntoad of on?. On the morning of Afiril p Mr. McAdou will make an ad dreM at Kalein. He will leave the capital city about noon for Wilming ton, reaching the North Carolina port town about 7 o'clock. Th original itinerary of Mr. McAdoo en I led for only one Bpwh in North Carolina. Important developments of Wilmington an a port of entry, how ever, mode it necenKary for him to make an additional stop in the old North .State. It ifl conceded by all that WUmiifir- ton will be made a port of entry. For this reattfm Mr. Mcdoo will stop at Wilmington and muke a npeeeh on April 0 and at the same time investi gate the facilities of Wilmington aa ft port of entry.
Greensboro Daily News (Greensboro, N.C.)
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March 22, 1918, edition 1
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