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THE WEATHER Fair Sunday; Much Colder in East Portion VOL. XXII. NO. 306. WORTH TORPEDOED LIE FROZEN BENERTH S Halifax Cut Off From Rest of World, Is No-Man's-Land of Suffering NOT ENOUGH LUMBER TO MAKE COFFINS Many Survivors Overcome By Nervous Strain After Gazing on the Dead Tho Halifax Situation. Dead From 1,500 to 2,000. Injured 5,000. Homeless 20,000. Money needed $30,000,000. Bodies recovered 800. St. John, N. B., Dec. 8 A lilt of ' wire the one link of quirk communi cation between St.. John end Halifax, with Its suffering and grief., stricken populations-failed lute today. Mes ! sages are reaching here only from towns near the devastated city. Un der a wind swept covering of Khiftlnrr snow, Halifax waa practically isolated at last reports. Automobiles, which up to that time, had heen Used be tween the city and nearby, towns, were almost Useless on roads deep under snow. A late message from Truro said communication with Halifax had failed and all efforts to net in touch with the stricken city were unavail ing. No Man's T-tiul of Suffering. ; Halifax. Dec. S. Blanketed iy snow beneath which many frozen coipses lio stiff and stnrk In attitudes of .agony. Halifax tonight"- is a Xo linn's 'Land of suffering. Twelve hundred bodies remain In their icy solitude in that blasted re gion of the old city into which en trance is barred by armed guards. From that deserted horror spot in the north end of the town no sound conies tonight except the howling of the bit ter Atlantic, gale through skeletons of houses, and the occasional thunder of a tumbling fragment of wall. Lights burn dimly in the Chebueto school road, where but a few days ago happy children sat at their desks. To night rows of bodies lie on the floor, blackened, shattered fragments of hu man beings, and living people hud dled in their furs step among the dead searching. As rapidly as possible the injured are being shipped away. A special train filled with suffering humanity departed for Truro. 70 miles away, this afternoon. It was hoped the train would be able to buffet its way through tho blizzard to the little town where scores of homes have been prepared to receive the victims. Many Slranftc FrcwUs. Many strange freaks of Thursday's explosion were observed today when the United Press correspondent en tered the ruined district. In one place a house stood, solitary and alone in a chaos of debris. Its broken win dows and a smashed door were the onlv signs of damit,e to it. More than 3,000 injured men. wo men and children have been attended by the surgeons and nurses in the temporary hospitals. Relief for these workers of mercy came tonight when tho first of the mercy trains from the United States arrived and its doc tori plunged into their work. Not Enough Lumber For Coffins. All the dead, both Identified and un identified, lie uncof fined tonight. There is not enough lumber in the town to warrant using any of it for making caskets. Some bodies are wrapped in sheets. Others have bits of rag dropped over their faces. Call for doctors came from hotels tonight where relatives of those who died here succumbed to nervous utrain and exhaustion after hours of gazing at dead faces frozen in ex pressions of agony, hunting for tho one dead face thoy dreaded to find. The food depots were nearly at the i and of their resources tonight. A sys tem of rationing for all Inhabitants of I the city may be established. There is still food, but, with the ctty practical ly Isolated, it must be carefully con ! served or famine might add to tho 1 hardships already undergone here. Majiy Children Killed. When coffins for the dead come in, ' there must be many small ones among thorn. The casualties among the chll 1 dren were frightful. More than two xeore of little ones He in the ruins of the Protestant orphanage. While the sleet blizzard moaned through Halifax tonight there were innny sad scenes In the Academy of Music, In the churches and other MANY NOW (Continued on Pas 2. BAGLEY ASHEVE1E NUT L HOSPITALS HERE Government Is Negotiating Lease of Kenilworth Inn as Hospital Tuberculosis Sanatorium Desired By GEO. H. MAX XING. Washington, D. C, Deo. 8. The war department is still intent on es tablishing a tuberculosis sanatorium at or near Asheville. and unless some hotel or other large building can be leased in that section the government will most likely erect Its own building for the care of soldiers and sailors who develop tuberculosis during the war. There is a probability that a conva lescent hospital for the care of ordi nary war patients may also be estab lished there. The surgeon-general's office of the war department has been making inquiries regarding quarters at Asheville that could be leased for a tuberculosis sanatorium for some time, and an officer has mode two visits to Asheville and examined hotels and otjier large buildings there with a view of leasing them. What the government really wants most is Kenilworth inn for a sanator ium. Jake M. Chiles, manager of Kenilworth, held a conference here Willi., the war department officials some time ago and will make another visit here, tiext week. The government ti led to -lease the Kenilworth inn from Mr. Chiles during his last visit here as a : tuberculosis .sanatorium; but while Sir. Chiles was willing to turn over the bu'icii.i:-, for a general hospital, he d. ''!ine.d to lease it as a tuberculosis i'.'iiip.torium because ho held it would be useless fur hotel purposes after the government finished with it; It Wan .stated at the surgeon-general's office today that the depart ment still has in mind the establish ment of a tuberculosis sanatorium there and a convalescent hospital, and .hut Unless suitable buildings can be rented for both purposes the goverrt iiicnt will probably construct a tu berculosis sanatorium itself and rent ono of the Asheville hotels for a con valesoent hospital.. There is no foundation for the re port that the department contemplates establishing a hospital at Asheville for "tfhull shock" patients, it is said. An officer representing the war de partment was here last week in Con ference with Mr. Chiles and others in terested In Kenilworth inn. . FOHNEW OFFENSIVE Roads Filled for Miles With Austro-German Troops, Scouts Report Washington, Dec. 8. The l;aiser is preparing for another supreme military effort on tho Italian front, official Home cables tonight stated. Favored by fine weather the Ger man operations along the Piave river In the Asiago plateau are being car ried forward with a rush. Italian aviators reported the roads filled for miles with Austro-fierman divisions marching to a front that the Italians are being forced to abandon. Kvery Inch of ground is demanding a blood sucrificc. Today's official ca ble, described the increased use of gases and over-powering artillery all along the Asiago front. Already tho entire arch forming the first line Ital ian defense has been eliminated by the German line with large losses to the Italian army. Battalions of Italian troops are de fending difficult positions until the last man has been killed. Troops on captured Monte Fior and Castle Com berto were exterminated while they held the Invading Hermans and allow ed other Italian units to retreat and fortify new positions. THREE IRE DEATHS AT Camp Wheeler, Macon, Ga Dec. 8. Three additional deaths were re ported nt the baso hospital here today. They were. C. C. Willis, 124th infantry, Hermont, Fin.; H. C. Cargile, 106th engineers, Grady, Ala.; J. B. Crosby, 121st Infantry, Macon, Qa.' All died of pneumonia. A cold wave struck Macon this morning and apprehension is felt that the number of pneumonia victims will Increase. There are more than a hundred men in the base hospital critically Hi of pneumonia ni ORATE THO ASHEVILLE, AND BOY TO BE CONSIDERED Leaders Expect To Dispose of Both the Measures Before Christmas "DRYS" CERTAIN TO WIN IN THE HOUSE Resolution Creating Ameri can Legion of Honor Is Reported Favorably Washington, Dec. 8. Another week ol'. strenuous "win the war" legislation loomed ahead of congress tonight. Its first Week with the historic declara tion of war against Austria was to be followed by a speedy action on other Important war measures. A senate committee Friday will take up dis cussion of permanent universal mili tary training as the national policy. Others will consider use of convict la bor for munitions making, war crops, labor aid, and railroad war legislation. Kxcept for early consideration of the woman's suffrage and prohibition amendments and the $336,000,000 postoffioe appropriation bill.-' : the thought of tV' Members will be cen tered on how to win the war and ad vocates of tho two amendments based their pleas of the world struggle, stat ing 'that democracy of equal . suffrage and the food and man-power saved from saloons would aid toward Amer ica's, victory. Will Report Hoth Measures. Tho house judiciary committee will report both suffrage and prohibition measures Tuesday. Leaders hope to dispose of them before the Christmas recess Suffrage action in the senate, however, where a poll indicated fail ure, to obtain the two-thirds majority, may be delayed by its advocates. Pre liminaries were arranged today by ap pointment of the democratic majority In the house suffrage committee--Representatives Raker, Clark, of Florida; Saunders, Rlanton, Hilliard, Sullivan and Mays. Assured of .Victory 'in House.' Prohibition will Hha-e the lime-light with -suffrage nevt week while com mittees are pounding the big war measures Into final shape. The "dry" amendment is assured of the t.ecessary two-thirds vote in tho house, anti-saloon loaders declared tonight. Saloon forces were reported to be making no special fight in opposition, as they re ly upon the requisite one-fourth vote of tho states to withhold approval., Both amendments are likely to pro voke dramatic sessions. Many mem bers are preparing speeches. Export Trade Bill. The senate's calendar did not ex tend much beyond early disposition of the Webb export trade bill. . It may adjourn in midweek until the follo" ing Monday while committees work on bills introduced. Senator Owens' resolution creating an American le gion of honor for her warriors in France and notables at home is stated for a favorable report. Itran May Not Testify. The Pomerene committee investi gating disloyalty charges against Sen ator La Follctta will try to get a quo rum, two previous attempts having failed. Information Is said to have reached the committee which makes it loss eager than formerly for for mer Secretary of State Bryan's testi mony. The latest date fixed for his appearance Is next Wednesday but an other postponement is likely. Some members predict Brvan will never tes tify. Columbia, S. C Dec. 8. In a well played game of football here this aft ernoon Camp Jackson, of Columbia, and Camp Hancock, of Augusta, Oa., played to a scoreless tie. The two teams are composed of some of the best known football players of col leges and universities of all sections of the country. Among the stars of the game this afternoon were Schultz, of Washington and Lee college, AU American material of a few years ago, and Hill for Camp Jackson, and Wickersham, Moore, Morrison and Gill for Camp Hancock. French Repulse Attack Paris, Dec. 8. A surprise attack thrown against French lines in the Reaumont region, with violent force, was repulsed by General Petaln's troops, tonight's official statement de clared. A number of German prison ers were taken. The fighting for a time waa exceedingly bitter. DESTI ION 11N SUFFRAGE N. C, SUNDAY MORNING, EWE OTHERS m YER HAVE BEEN LMDED;;v : HALIFAX GALLED HELi ON EARTH Flight of Citizens After Ex plosion Resembled Flight of Belgian Refugees After Invasion By the Germans Montreal, Dec. 8. Halifax a hell on earth. This was the description of the wrecked city brought to Mon treal today by Rev. George Adam, of Emmanuel Congregational church, one of the survivors of the disaster. The panic flight of the frenzied peo ple after the . explosion. Thursday morning was described by the preach er as rivaling In terror anything that the war has produced, not even ex cepting the flight of the Belgium refugees from their homes. "After the explosion, which almost shook the hotel I was in to pieces, and started a cry of bombardment, I went into the street," said Adam.; "In front of the governor-general's' residence there was un appalling spectacle. An endless stream of terrified men, wo men and children was surging past. Cloistered nuns from their convents struggled along. I saw several bed ridden old women being carried by their men folks. Half dressed moth ers, cuddling their babies to tbi ir breasts, ran for their lives. Lost chil dren, crying pitifully, scampered past calling for their fathers and mothers. Some of these little ones hugged their pet dogs and cats as they ran. "Then several blind men were seen groping about for some one to guide them from- he death they believed clamoring at their heels. As the ex odus Increased, flames began licking skyward from toward the water fronts. Dense clouds of smoke cov ered the city like a pall of mourning. "Sailors from ships in the harbor, blue jackets and firemen, separated from their companies, all surged In one direction away from the water front. A report that there would soon be another explosion, that the magazine with its huge stores Was about to let go, speeded them on their way. Women fought to board auto mobiles and wagons that overtook them. ','-: "The chauffeur who drove me Into the burning areas was one of two sur vivors of a family of nine. When we entered the district that had felt the full force of the blast, the horror in creased. Dead lay in the streets. Flames r curled through wreckage where wounded lay pinned down by timbers, calling for help. "The burning factories made a .ter rifying spectacle. Flames from the cot ton factory roared 200 feet. We heard stories of whole families annihilated of burned children plucking at the garments of dead mothers, begging them to awake. Husbands ran home to find their homes in ruins and their families vanished. . "I went through the churches and theaters which rapidly tilled with wounded and saw faces scorched black, looking -ghastly .against white pillows. Babies were there and grandfathers and grandmothers whose grandchildren were some where underneath the burning ruins. "Their voices blended in a moan of agony. At night the sights became more weired more unreal. It seemed beyond belief a night mare. I saw frenzied mothers pass crying for their children. A woman burst into the Canadian Pacillc Railway station hunting her son. She refused to search the morgues. 'God would nev er allow my boy to be killed,' she cried. 'He's only 16 and I'm a widow.' She went on crying." MEANS' FRIENDS RESENT APPEARANCE OF OOW Concord, N. C, Dec. 8. Ill feeling between Gaston H. Means, on the wit ness stand in his own defense on the charge of murdering his benefactress, the rich Mrs. Mamie A. King, of Chi cago and his cross examiner. Assist ant District Attorney pooling, of New York, made progress of the case today a series of quarrels. Means got to the point in his testimony where he told of Mrs, King's Interest in fire arms, The nerves" of court, jury and counsel were on edge when Judge ('line adjourned the. case till Mondav. There have been hints of serious .de velopment from the resentment of Means and his friends against the ap pearance of Doollng, an outsider, as states prosecutor against Means by courtesy of the court. Continunnce of the Means examina tion Monday undoubtedly will open new phases of inquiry. The indncllit of the witness today was manifest!' a source of embarrassment to his counsel. The witness, however, be came more tractable toward the closi of the day. Summed up, the result of today'! proceedings waa to get before the Jur: substantially all financial transaction' and to show how much money Mean' handlsd while with Mrs. King-. DEC. 9, 1917 ONE OF FINES T SHIPS IN FOREIGN FLEET SUNK M flHOLAS MAY TRY TO 'G0IV1E BACK' Reported Escape Gives Rise To Much Speculation at Washington North and South Russia May Split Washington, Dec. 8.-Xieholas, ex czar of all the Russians, has broken the fetters of his prison home in grim Siberia and fled, according to a ru mor the state department had today from its Tiflis consul. Whither he is bound or his inten tions, the rumor did not say, but be hind the unconfirmed story may lie a new and startling chapter in the bloody history of the land Nicholas once ruled. . Coupled with press, reports that lynching of tho ex-czar Was feared and that his guards had been dis armed, the story appeared to have the germs of truth, particularly as the Tiflis consul paw fit to dignify it with a report while the government an nounccd it without solicitation. If the story proves true, it may mean that Nicholas, aided from, the outside, is .'attempting ''the. coup of rallying followers in an effort to re gain his power at. a time when the nation is in tho hands of an armis tice, negotiation, confusion and strife. If he has such an ambition it will doubtless come to naught, for Russia now is thoroughly steeped in p spirit of freedom. Only a few here saw the possibility that with the aid of tho" Grand' Duke he could gather sufficient military strength to put over his coup What ever the truth may be, the story star tled Washington as no recent Rus sian twist has done. While speculating on possibilities within the puzzling Slavic nation, au thorities suggested that south Russia may split with north Russia, and, uniting with Rumania, continue in the war. The southern section has a strong military force with much sup plies, and it is opposed to the Lenine Trotzky peace negotiations. The reported Rolsheviki attempt to control Vladivostok on the Pacific Is watched closely here, for it is an es sentialb at o for food and army sup plies. BQLSHEVIKI RUM THIRD IK Heavy Majority Indicated Against Lenine - Trotzky Party--Coalition Govern ment Accepted Haparanda, Dec. 8. Russia's Rol sheviki have tun third in the nation wide elections for the constitutent as sembly, according to reliable infor mation reaching here tonight. The social revolution party polled tho first place and the. cadet party second. A heavy majority against the lfolshevlki is Indicated. A majority of tho Rolsheviki. it was asserted, have already accepted a coalition government and acknowl edged authority of the central soviet of workmen and soldiers not the Petregrad soviet. This central soviet will henceforth bo composed of 108 workmen und 108 peasants, with other professions and classes of smaller re lative strength. Kmployeri of the post and tele graphs have obtained control of the ministry of railways and communica tions. Peasants will be represented in the agricultural portfolio. The new centrol soviet, dispatches say, had adopted a constitution, the chief point of which commands the llolshevlkl soviet and tho people's commissaries to subordinate them iclves to the soviet representatives and i hut all measu es and acts must be endorsed by representatives of the central committee. Provisional government ministers of the Kerensky regime have been trnns 'erred to Kronstadt, it was declared, n order to prevent possible atacks. All the information here set forth vas brought to Haparanda by arrivals roni Petrograd Friday night. E T FROM Destroyer Caught Unawares and Sent to Bot tom Without Chance to FightLess Than Half of Crew of 107 Reported Rescued Possi bility That Some of Remainder Will Be Found SIXTY FOUR OF CREW NOT ACCOUNTED FOR Six Survivors Picked Up By Small Motor Boat and Landed Uninjured on Sci lly Islands 37 Had Previ ously Been Reported Rescued Mrs. Daniels Overcome With Joy When She Heard That Her Brother Was Safe Washington," Dec. .9. Sixty-four of the crew of the tor pedoed American destroyer Jacob Jones remained unaccounted for today. Announcement by the navy department slwrtly after midnight that six additional members of the crew had been safe ly landed on Scilly islands, the commander of the torpedoed de stroyer, Davis Worth Bagley, being among the number, great ly relieved the tenseness of the situation and brought hopes of a smaller casualty list than had been anticipated. Bagley is a brother to Mrs. Josephus Daniels and since announcement early Saturday had been given up as lost. COMPLEMENT OF 107. Of the creiv of 101 enrolled and six officers, 43 are now reported safe. It ivas considered probable that more definite' information tcill have been received by the navy department be fore night. Every effort is being made to secure names of the other survivors and details. NO WORD REGARDING HOOD. , No definite word" has been received regarding Gunner Harry Roberts Hood, of Asheville, N. C, who was aboard the Jones. -..."' Given Xo Chance To Fight. Caught unawares, the destroyer valiant center of other U-boat en counters apparently sank without a chance .'or a fight, taking with her probably more than half of her crew While hopes for the remainder of the crew are meager, it is possible some other vessel, without wireless, may have taken the frozen, struggling vic tims from the seus. One of the Crack Ships. The Jacob Jones, one of the crack ships of the foreign destroyer fleet, was fully 500 -miles off the British Isles when the attack occurred. De tails thereof are lacking, but from tho brief message naval officials patched together the picture of a submarine oi the usual run, the darkened de stroyer buffeted by heavy seas, run ning slowly and unaware of her en emy; the deliberate, deadly aim of the f pedo und a square hit that left the .troyer's crew scant time to get ..way. v hat the Jones errand was in her distant Journey is not revealed, but the presence of merchant craft nearby suggests she was perhaps convoying valuable cargo as she had done niuny limes before. Valiant Work Recalled. With the official announcement of the Jones disaster the most tragic yet befalling an American navy craft was reveaied the story of her vali ant work in the October sinking of the p.ritish cruiser, Omnia, formerly a peninsular and oriental liner. On that occasion she put the at tacking submarine out of action and rescued 35 of tne 47S aboard the Orama. A sister ship picked up thi balance of the cruiser's men. The Jones was one of a convoy at the time, and her work was praised highly by the 'peninsular and oriental line of ficials. Worth Hagloj's ltocord. Worth Rnglcy, the commander, heard I he cull of the sea as a boy. Obtaining a special congressional per mit, he entered Annapolis at the age of 16, and had been on practical I continuous service since his gradua lion. , He had seen service on the China statiou; he wus on the ill-fated Mis souri, and he took part in the rescue of victims of the U-53 off Nantucket in 1916. A clean-cut officer, he had the respect and admiration of his fel low officers und men alike. Under him were picked graduates of the academy and a fine set of youths from all corners of the country. His ship, one of the comparatively 24 PAGES 2 Sections SUNDAY MORNING EDITION PRICE FIVE CENTS new destroyers, was out in commisj sion early in 1916. She was prac tically a 30-knot ship, driven by tur bines, and built at the New York ship building works at Camden, N. J. Official Announcement. Washington, Dec. 9. Six addition al survivors from the Jacob Jones, announced torpedoed yesterday, have been safely landed, the navy depart ment announced early today. The following statement was au thorized: "Further Information has been re ceived by the navy department from Admiral Sims that the following sur vivors of the Jacob Jones were picked up in a small motor boat and have been landed uninjured on the Scilly islands; "Lieut. "Lieut. Scott. "Chief MrPride. "Chief Commander D. W, Bagley. (junior grade) Norman Boatswainsmate Clarence Electrician Lawrence E. Kelly. "Coxswain Ren Gunnery. "Fireman (first class) Joseph Kor zenierky. "The names of other survivors have not been received. The above are in addition to the 37 reported saved yes terday which were previously an nounced." Mrs. Daniels Overcome With Joy. Washington. Dec. 9. Mrs. Josephud Daniels wife of the secretary of the nuvy and sister of Lieut.-Commander Baprley, of the destroyer, Jacob Jones, was flverjnyed at tho news that her brother was among the survivors of the vessel. The shock of'tTTe intima tion of his death conveyed in the ab sence of his name from the first list of survivors sent by Admiral Sims, was terrible but the joy at his rescue proved a most effective antidote. Word has been left bv the secretary to Immediately notify him if any news was received of hts brother-in-law and (ho jingle of the telephone bel' shortly after midnight tonight was music to the ears of every member of the Daniels household. KIvoii lost Lives. Atlantic City. N. J., Dec. 8. Eleven- nen lost their lives off Atlantic Clt tonight when the tug, Kugene F. Mo ra n. of New York, foundered in n gale. The tug was owned by the Mo ran Towing company of New York. Credit for Belgium. Washington, Dec. S. Secretary of the Treasury McAdoo today author ized a credit ef $2,000,000 to Belgium, making a total loan to Belgium of 167,900,000 and a total to all the ftllie. . o our nnn AAA ' i
The Asheville Times (Asheville, N.C.)
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Dec. 9, 1917, edition 1
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