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THE WEATHER Local Rains: Snmetchat Colder Tonight; Wednesday Cloudy O'CLOCK EDITION 10 PAGES VOL. XXII. NO. 301. ASIIEVILLE, N. C, TUESDAY AFTERNOON, DEC. 4, 1917 PRICE FIVE CENTS DOES NOT RECOMMEND AGAINST TURKEY OR BULGARIA JUST NOW 'Austria Merely Vassal of Germany, Declares President in Speech Before Congress Tur key and Bulgaria Do Not Yet Stand in Amer ica's Way Germany Must Be Beaten LAYS DOWN TERMS ON WHICH PEACE CAN COME Germany Must Have Rulers That Can Be Trusted; Reparation for Destruction Must Be Made; Con quered Territory Must Be Given Up Menace of In trigue and Force Must Be Crushed Washington, Dec. 4. Immediate declaration of war against Austria-Hungary tvas recommended to congress today by Presi dent Wilson. The president did not. however, recommend a declaration of tear against Turkey and Bulgaria at this time. MERELY VASSAL OF GERMANY. Immediate tvar against Austria, the president told congress. was necessary to meet the anomalous situation the United States faces in its ivar with Germany even though, he declared, Austria was not her oivn mistress and merely a vassal oj Irermany. The same logic, he said, would lead to war against Turkey and Bulgaria but they do not yet, he said, stand in the path of the United States in its war against Prussian autocracy. GERMANY MUST BE BEATEN. In ringing and definite terms the president declared that nothing shall turn the United States aside until the nor is icon and Germany is beaten. All talk of peace he pronounced out of the question. GIVES PEACE TERMS. Peace, the president declared, could come only when the German people make it through rulers the world can trust; when they make reparation for the destruction their present rulers have wrought and when Germany recedes from all the territory acquired by armed conquest. To Be Published In Nearly Every Capital of World Washington, Dec?. 3. --The Interna tional character of President Wilson's address which will be delivered to congress already has placed it for sim ultaneous publication in yraoticaily every capital in the. world. Although the address was not en trusted in advance to American news papers or news distributing associa tions, it already has been placed with the London office of Reuters, the principal European news distributing agency which in turn is to supply others in Europe. Indirectly, the address will set to Berlin and the other central power capitals. Its world wide distribution is also evidenced by the fact that it will be available for publication today in China antt Japan. The fact that the government also has taken steps to have the document placed in the hands of Ambassidor Francis in Petrngrad is taken as an indication that the president's address will deal arso with the situation in Russia. The secrecy which has been thrown around the address here in Washing ton while it was being transmitted by cahle and wireless all over the world, prevailed up to the last moment. All that was said at the White House exec utive oflices in response to inquiries was that the address was "reasonably long." All officials disclaimed knowl edge of its contents. Tha president, it is understood, practically finished the document last Saturday. On that day the public printer called at the White House, as is the custom to get the document In prison, and it was taken to the government's great print ing plant to be turned out with all Bie precautions against "leaks" which THE ADS the government has established for confidential .documents there. Today, officials prepared to give out printed copies to newspapers and pros sassociations at the moment the president began speaking in the hall of the house. White it was generally supposed that the president Intended to touch upon the war and the international situation a sa matter of course, no one suspected it would be made the occa sion for a pronouncement deemed worthy of being distributed through out the world through the agencies of Urn government itself. Inasmuch as the allies have more and more acknowledged the presi dent's positJin as spokesman on pre vious occasions, notably his reply to thr pope's peace proposals, today's de velopments forecast that the president intended making some pronounce ments of importance to belligerents as well as neutrals and made certain that his address would not be confined to a mcro discussion of the state of the Union. The opinion of administration con gressmen who have made official In quiries, has been that the president did not intend to recommend a de. duration of war on Germany's allies. In the Russian situation, officials have declared that the president's pol icy was to deal tolerantly with Russia in her time of distress and not to adopt any harsh -measures which it was feared might In the end alienate the Russian people. Complex as the situation has been made by the ascendency of the Bol shevikl. officials have said that It was the president's aim to preserve what progress toward democracy has been made in Russia and to avoid anything which might contribute to throwing the country back into an autocratic regime. Any definite statement as to the contents of the president's address. In advance of its delivery would be noth ing more than a pure guess, because very few If any persons besied the president himself have seen It, No Increase on Live Stoek Hates. Washington, Dec. 4. Applications for increased rates on live stork in less than carloads east of the Missis sippi river were denied today by the Interstate Commerce commission but permission was given to make new minimum weight rulings which would result in small Increases. Text of the Address Washington, Dec. 4. The president spoke as follows: Gentlemen bf the congress: Eight months have elapsed since I last had the honor1 of addressing you. They have been months crowded with events of immense and grave signifi cance for us. I shall not undertake to detail or ven to summarize those events. The practical particulars ot the part we have played in them will be laid before you in the reports of the executive departments. I shall discuss only our present outlook upon these ast affairs, our present duties and the Immediate means of accom plishing the objects we shall hold al ways in view. I shall not. go back to debate the causes of the war. The intolerable wrongs done and planned against us by the sinister masters of Germany have long since become too grossly obvious and odious to every true. American to need to be rehearsed. Scrutiny f Objectives. But I shall ask you to consider again and with a very grave scrutiny our objectives and the measures by which we mean to attain them, for the pur pose of discussing here in this place of action, and our action must move straight toiards definite ends. Our object is, of course, to win the war; and we shall not slacken or suffer olir .selves to be diverd Until it is won. But it is wfirth while asking and an swering the question, when shall we consider the war won? Nation Is United. From one point of view it is not necessary to broach this fundamental matter. I do not doubt, that the American people know what the war is about and what sort of an Outcome they will regard as a realization of theln purpose in it. As a nation we are united in spirit and Intention. I pay little heed to those who tell me otherwise. I hear the voices of dis sent; who does not? I hear the criticism and the clamous of the noisy, thoughtless and troublesome. I also see men here and there fling themselves In impotent disloyalty against the calm, indominatable pow er of the nation. I hear men debate peace who understand neither its na ture nor the way In which we may attain it with uplifted eyes and un broken spirits. But I know that none of these speaks for the nation. They do not touch the heart of anything. They may safely be left to strut their uneasy hour and be forgotten. What the Wur Is For. Rut from another point of view I believe that it is necessary to say plainly what we here at the seat of action consider the. war to be for and what part we mean to play in the settlement of its searching issues. We are the spokesmen of the American pople and they hav a right to know whther their purpose is ours. They desire peace by the overcom ing of evil, by the defeat once for all of th sinister forces that interrupt peace and render it impossible, and they wish to know how closely our thought runs with theirs and what action we propose. They are impatient with those who desire peace by any sort of compro mise deeply and indignantly impa tient but they will be equally impa tient with us if we do not make it plain to them what our objectives are and what we pre ' planning for in seeking to make conquest of peace by arms. Menace of Intrlque and Force. I believe that I speak for them when 1 say: two things: First; that this intolerable Thing of which the masters of Germany have shown us the ugly face, this menace of com bined intrigue and force which we now see so clearly as the German power, a Thing without conscience or honor or capacity for covenanted peace, must be crushed and. if it be not utterly brought to an end, at leastj shut out from the friendly intercourse of the nations; and, second, that when this Thing and its power are indeed defeated and the time fines that we can discuss peace when the German people have spokesmen whose word we can believe and when ' those spokesman .are ready in the name of their people to accept the common judgment of the nations as to what shall henceforth be the basis of law and of covenant for the life of the world we shall be w iling and glad to pay the full price for i eace, and pay it ungrudgingly. We lu.ow what that price will be. It will be full, impar tial Justice justice rione at every point and to every nation that the final settlement must affect our ene mies as well us our friends. Voices of Humanity, you catch, with me. the voices of humanity that are in the air. They grow daily more audible, more arti culate, more persuasive, and they come from the hearts of men every where. They Insist that the war shall not end in vindictive action of any kind; that no nation or people shall be robbed or punished because the ir responsible rulers of a single country have themselves done deep and abom inable wrong. It is this thought that has been expressed in the formula 'no annexations, no contributions, no pu nitive indemnities.' JuBt because this crude formula expresses the instictlve Judgment as to right of plain men everywhere It has been made diligent use of by the masters of German in trigue to lead the people of Russia astray and the people of every other country their agents could reach, in order that a premature peace might be brought about before autocracy has been taught its final and convinc- Enemy AI'" jpes To frouble With Us MINISTER PANAR.ETOr"fr Stephen Tanaretoff, Bulgarian min ister to the Iinited Mates, has Just Issued a statement in winch he de clares that his country will never con sent to shedding American blood on the battlefields of Europe. "Bulgarian people," he said, "welcomed the en trance of the United States into the war, because they fed that regard less of what comes they will now re ceive a 'square deal.' " ing lesson, and the peopl of the world put in control of their own destinies, Wrong t'se of Idea. But the fact that a wrong use has been made of a just idea is no reason why a right use should not bo made of it. It ought to be brought under the patronage of its real frier da.- Let it be said again that autocracy must first be shown? the utter futility of its claims to power or leadership in the modern world. It is impossible to ap ply any standard of justice so long as such forces are unchecked and un defeated as- the present masters of Germany command. Not until that has been done can Right be set up as arbiter and peace-maker among the nation.- ' But- 'When thrt hay1 been done as, God willing it, it assrredly will be we shall at last be free to do an unprecedented thing, and this is the time to avow our purpose to do it. We shall be free to base peace on generosity and Justice, to the. exclu sion of all selfish claims to -advantage even on the part of the victors. Let there be no misunderstanding. Our present and Immediate task is to win the v , and nothing shall turn us aside troin it until It Is accom plished. Every power and resource we possess, whether of men of money, or of materials, Is being devoted and will continue to be devoted to that purpose unt'l it is achieved. Those who desire To bring peace about be fore that purno.se Is achieved I .counsel to carry thotr advice elsewhere. . We will not entertain It. Wo shall regard the war as won only when the German people say to us, through properly ac credited representatives,' that they are ready to. agree to a settlement based upon justice and the reparation of the wrongs their rulers have done. They have done a wrong to Belgium which must be repaired. They have established a power over other lands And peoples than their own over-the great empire of Austria-Hungary, over hitherto free Balkan states, over Tur key and with Asia, which must be relinquished, FOUR INDICTED FOR CONSPIRACY New York, Dec. 4. Conspiracy to defraud the I'nited States government out of hundreds of thousands of dol lars on contracts for more than 1,000, 000 service hats is charged iji an in dictment returned today against Wm. B. Thorn, 'John .1. Slattery, Joseph Ives and Edward Slattery, connected with the corporation of Thoin and Bailey, the Peekskill Hat Manufact uring company, and the firm of H. D. I'armlee and Cove. French Ch 5;'"'r','r'' - w'i 1 VA3,lfTi ''l-j K Ji Haiti ' krt,tm,mv.3$-.'r - """ - $ a V it ft I if! fcmW ft 4"?'- This is not an unusual scene in the i-treots of the French villages where our troops are stationed. The little children of France seem to havo acquired tho idea that our soldiers will put the finishing touches without much delay to the Roches, and are quick to make friends with them. The camp barber seems to have opened his tuiitoriul parlor hi a doorway in this street. GERMANS KEEP UP EFFORTS TO B REAK Throw New Reserve Forces Against Southern Leg of the Cambrai Salient FIERCEST FIGHTING SINCE VERDUN DAYS British Advance In Flanders German East Africa Cleared of Enemy Before Cambrai the violent fighting activity, unequalled since the days of the Verdun attack, has broken out anew on a front of less than ten miles between Marcoing and Oonnelieu. I British troops 'in- this sector repulsed with heavy losses German attacks de livered in great strength with large forces. - After the fighting of Friday and Saturday in which the enemy suffered severely in fruitless efforts to break througli the British defenses in the salient before Cambrai, the Germans brought up new reserve forces. These were thrown against the southern leg of tho salient and throughout Mon day Field Marshal Haig says "fighting of an exceptionally sever nature" took place. The infantry masses attacked under. a strong artillery fire from con centrated German guns. """The Germans advanced into La Vacquerlo but . were Immediately thrown out of most of their gains. East of Marcoing the attacks forced the British to retire slightly. South of Marcoing the enemy broke through but a British counter attack restored the position. Elsewhere on the Cam brai battle front there has been little activity, the Germans bending all their offensive efforts on the front be tween Marcoing and Gonnelieu. Southeast of Ypres, in Flanders, the British have advanced their line slightly near Polygon wood. Very heavy artillery actions are taking place norih of the Aisne on tne French front. On the right bank of the Meuse the '-Germans essayed an attack north -of Flirey in the Woevne only to be checked with heavy loss by the French. Infantry activity on the Italian front iias not been renewed although the Austro-Gernians are busy with troop movements behind the lines, probably in preparation for a supreme blow against the Italian northern front. Large Teuton forces have been in motion north of the Asiago plateau and between the Brenta and the Piave but they have kept beyond the reach of Italian guns. Artillery activity continues heavy. German East Africa, has been cleared of enemy forces and Ger many's last colony has fallen com pletely into allied hands. The cam paign in this territory with an area of more than 3X4.000 square miles began nearly three years ago. British. Bel gian and Portuguese troops were en gaged against the German troops, mostly natives who prolonged the fighting by carrying on guerilla war faro In small bands. Lull In Rattle. London, Dec. 4. A lull In the battle on the Cambrai front last night after the IcrTitic lighting of the last few days is reported by the war office. ildren Friendly With Amer BRITISH DEFENSES 1 London. Dec. 4. An armistice between Russia and Germany has been sighed at the headquarters of Prince Leopold, of Bavaria, says an Exchange Telegraph dispatch from Amsterdam today. The arm istice is valid for a period of 4S hours. Berlin Announcement. Berlin, Dec. 4. An actual armis tice already is in operation in sec tions of the Russo-German front, a bulletin from German great head quarters reported yesterday. Vienna Announcement. Vienna, Dec. 4.- The following official communication was issued yesterday: "During the last few days an armistice lias been announced on many sectors of the Russian front, from division to division and from corps to corps. In the Pripet re gion the Russian army concluded an official armistice with the op posing command of the allied (Teutonic) troops;" "A Russian deputation crossed our lones yesterday in order to pre pare the Way with the plenipoten tiaries of the allied (Teutonic) ar mies for an armistice on the whole Russian 'front." GENERAL DIAZ, OF ITALY. Convinced That They Will Furnish New Proofs of Their Bravery With the French Armies in Italy, Dec. 2.- (Delayed) (By the Associ ated Press) -General Diaz, chief of staff of the Italian armies, today re viewed two battalions of French troops' which have arrived to take up the fight against the invading forces of the central powers. The reviews took place close behind the front within hearing of the artillery battle and were singularly impressive as the troops marched snappily past the It alian and French generals to the tunes of the royal Italian march and the Marseillaise. General Diaz ad dressed the troops -briefly, congratu lating their past exploits and conclud ed: "I have known of your bravery for a long time and I am convinced that vou are going to furnish new proofs of it." General Diaz was accompanied on his reviewing tour by General Fay olle, commander of the French forces in Italy. General Gondrecourt, chief of the French mission with the Ital ian supreme command, General Du chesne, commander of a French army and by the divisional commander. So many French and British troops are now in northern Italy that the novelty of their presence has worn off. although the sight of the regiments marching toward the front or to their cantonments evokes the same tremen dous enthusiasm as when they first arrived. The French are busy with reorgani zation work, assisting the Italians to reform their forces and giving them the benefit of their technical skill and experience. Increases Allowed on Iron Rates. Washington, Dec. 4. Increases on iron and steel articles-' amounting to about 40 per cent were allowed to western railroads today by the Inter state Commerce commission. The in creases, however, were not as great us the railroads asked. ican Troops MRS 1 0 HAVE FIRED SHOT, SIX DOCTORS SAY Means' Counsel Relying On Testimony In Contraven tion of State's Experts BUT IS IMPROBABLE, SAID DR. M'FADDEN Counsel Refuse To Divulge Whether or Not Gaston Means Will Testify Concord, N. C, Dec. 4. Counsel for Gaston B. Means, on trial here charged with the murder of Mrs. Maude A, King, were relying today on testimony of half a dozen North Carolina physicians to convince the Jury of the fallibility of the state's claim that the woman could not have held in her hand the pistol which killed her near here last August. The six physicians, who appeared for the defense, testified yesterday in contravention to New York and Chi cago experts who previously had told tho Jury that it would have been a physical impossibility for Mrs. King to have shot herself in the back ot the head. At the opening of court the defense prepared to go on with its side of the case, which was begun yesterday af ter the state unexpectedly rested. ; At least one more "expert" was due to go on the stand for Means, but what other testimony would be brought in his favor was not announced in ad vance. The defendant's counsel also remained silent as to whether or not , he would take the stand. When court convened today the de fense introduced Dr. J. W. Wallace, a : local physician, who described exper imental tests he had observed In fir ing a 25 calibre automatic pistol at paper blotters and hair switches and declared that in his opinion a person could self-inflict such a wound as that which caused Mrs. King's death. Dr. P. R. McFadgen, another Concord physician, testified that he believed it possible though not probable that Mrs. King had fired the shot that caused her death. Dr. McFadgen had appeared as a state's witness last week. Dr. McFarcn was the physician first to examine Mrs. King's body when it was brought to the Concord hospital after the shooting. On di rect examination he review. J his tes timony at the coroner's inquest. The witness had testified before the coro ner that he believed the fatal wound might have been self-inflicted. SEVEN OF 13 CONVICTS Joliet, 111., Dec. 4. Seven of the 13 convicts who escaped from the state prison here yesterday morning were captured early today -by three posses near Morris in a box car on the Chi cago, Rock Island and Pacific rail road. The other six are surrounded and their capture is expected shortly. The captured convicts offered no re sistance. The three posses were organized late last night after the convicts had stopped a Chicago, Ottawa and Pe oria interurban car, robbed the pas sengers of everything they had, in cluding most of their clothes, and had driven the car to Morris, 111., where they abandoned it. . Reports from Morris stated that the passengers from the interurban car reached there about midnight, all badly bruised but none was seriously Injured. PRICES RECOMMENDED Washington, Dec. 4. An immediate reduction in bread prices wherever possible has been recommended to bakers throughout the country by the war emergency aouncil of the baking Industry. Bakers will go under gov ernment licenses December 10 using h set formula and producing a stand ardized loaf required by the food ad ministration. P. K!ii!llllKlfitlt)( ' ? f Conference Knds. M m H The inter-ullied conference at H W Purls has come to un end. No announcement was issued but i W resolutions adopted yesterday H H will be made public shortly. l H Colonel House expressed the con- S victlon that the unity and co- H ?. ordination of purpose arrived at tt kV would enable the allies to reach X H their desired goal. It .lij--.- i' ifr f iMt i m
The Asheville Times (Asheville, N.C.)
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Dec. 4, 1917, edition 1
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