North Carolina Newspapers

:,V -v; py;.' '"'V. :!: ' .V--v'Vv . V i,'-t-V. -v- rrn V. , - - - . '--. . 4 PUDLIQHC2D EVERY nOKDAy AND; THURSDAY ( - FACING UIIDER - SEA PERILS ST DAYS OP APRIL, SAW VALU ABLE CARGOES OF XHM IK RETRIEVABL.Y IiOST. T"iat Germany's submarine arm, ol her military arm, is the menace : u for the moment is greatest for future welfare of the Unite States and the entente allies is rec ognized by the cnanceiiones oi .au the powers which are at, war with Germany. . The last days of April saw the un derwater boats send to the bottom hundreds of thousands of tons of shipping which means that huge quantities of ammunition and food atutfs have been irretrievably lost to t. the allies and made the pinch of ant to those countries, their sol diers and their people mote acute. These unseen monsters of the un 4erseas from April 20 to April 27 "hai their share with mines in the sending beneath the waves, some of .31 unwarned and with tolls of death, 38 British vessels of over .1, 600 tons and 13 others of less than 2.600 tons the aggregate in each, category being orfly two vessels less than the British admiralty reported the previous week, when the . high point in the sinking of Britsh mer chantmen since the reports have een issued was reached. Impetus is being given to the plans to combat the menace by all the countries at war with Germany and iiopes are expressed that shortly a check may be put to the inroads of ihe submarines into commerce. (The military activities on" all fronts in France and Belgium are still in a stage of apparent deadlock, j On none of the other fronts have! here been engagements of great im portance, although the British in Mesopotamia have driven forward their lines against the Turks and male captures of men, guns and stores, while the Turks have forced ou: the Russians from Mush", ' in Turkish Armenia. Tne anticipated proffer of peace Iby -he imperial German chancellor -vr-il not be given to the Reichstag Thursday, but will be withheld for a "more fitting occasion," according to advices reaching Copenhagen. That peace, is not uppermost in the minds of all German officials appar ently is indicated by the address be iore the Reichstag at its reopening session of Dr. Johannes' Kaempf, president of the chamber, who as sened that the German people ad hered "to the firm belief ,. in Ger many's star and in a peace which Tri" secure for all time the father lasTs. happy development." Disaster Threatened. Washington, May 2. The enor aioas inroads on the world's shipping male by German submarines within H last few weeks has brought to American government officials a full realization of the disaster that faces ?he United States and the allies 'if 'he undersea warfare .is not checked. Governors and state representa tives, here today for a national de fense conference, will take home to their people a message from the gov ernment emphasizing the menace to America and urging that there must --he fullest co-ordination by the ata:es in war preparation if Ger aian' is to be defeated. cretary Lane told the conference Vr aa: the great destruction of ships Jas threatening the existence of eat Britain and France and men acg the United States. No one, he knew the exact number of Ps lost recently, but estimates put las- week's submarine toll at 400,- tons. Later he explained that estimate probably was too high, secretary Lansing in a statement unng tfle day declared the serious of the submarine situation ouid not be exaggerated. Reports 0 Te state department give a total 101 eighty vessels lost "in one week, th ."le British mission announced cea- rate f destructioil in re" - weeks had continued unchang- and that it showed no alarming creases. All its members agree the Nation. is critical. Announcing the government's pro LT r exercising a more direct ntrol over the country's' shipping 'Deam building facilities Chairman esrmT' f the sniPinS oard, said 300 onn! reacned the board of tin.: . eek. -.wyiu6 ounis. in one j, , laredUreaU f navigation report pre- ship recently estimated the world's , construction in 1915 at slightly - - - tuns nr shiniv;. i . CQDTROL OF RETAIL PRICES x w i!ATiiiiV MELLION DOL- " ' IiARS WANTED FOR FOOD DICTATORSHIP. iMuuigu, jnay jl. as .a war measure President Wilson has au thorized the secretary of agriculture to ask full powers for food dictator ship and an appropriation of $25,- 000,000 to carry put the project. The icontrol of retail prices of food is regarded by Secretary of Agricul ture 'Housfton as no less important in hfs plan: than the power to fix the minimum price for staples raised by the farmer.. The reason for the government's interest in retail prices is easily il lustrated by a comparison just tabu lated between prices of ordinary-gro ceries and market necessaries as they sold in. April, 1914, and as they are quoted today. For j instance, granulated sugar in this city , was fthen 4 cents, no-w 9 ; an increase or 125 per cent. Flour was then $7.25 a barrel; now H is $14; an increase of 93 per cent. xomatoes, cannea, were 7 cents, now 17 cents; an increase of 142 per cent. Potatoes were 23 cents a peck; are now 90 cents; an increase of 291 per cent. Cabbages were 3 cents a head; are now 15 cents; an increase of 400 per cent. Sweelt potatoes were 35 cents a peck;, are now 75 .cents; an in- crease of 114 per cent. Lettuce was 5 cents T is now 10 cents; an increase of 100 per cent. Onions were 4 cents; are now 13 cents a pound; increase of 250 per cent, j Split peas were 6 cents a pound; are now 12 cents; an increase of 100 per cent. Dried lima beans were 7 cents a poundl and are now 20 cents; an in creased 185 per cent. Navy, beans were 7 1-2 enlts; are now 18 cents.' Spaghetti was 8 cents, is now . 13 cents; j an increase of 65 per cent. Corn meal was 2 1-2 cents; id now 5 cents; an increase of 100 per cent. Other articles which show an in crease all .the way from .23 jper cent to 80 j per cent include prunes, sal mon, canned soups, rib roasts, chuck, porterhouse, hamburg, hams, pork chops,- loins and smoked meats. Lard has increased 100 per cent, butter has increased 83 per cent, eggs have increased from 21 to 38 cents a doz en, or80 per cent. Milk evaporated, tall can, was 7 1-2 cents, is, now 12 cents;! an increase of 65 per cent. Baked beans were 8 cents, are now 13 cents, an increase of 65 per cent. These prices will not be decreased except by governmental action. That is why the secretary of agriculture has as,ked the senate for power to go into the market and buy-and sell all t products, and also to license and reg ulate packing houses, storage ware rouses. , ATTEMPT TO BLOW UP i MORGAN'S OFFICE. . New York, May 1 .Confession was made in court today by wolf Hirsch, arrested last night with George Mey riner, ' both Germans, that they were on their way to blow up the offices of Morgan & Co. with a bomb when intercepted by police. Hirsch told the court that the ex plosion of a bomb was a part of a scheme to create a stock market re versal from which they could profit. He told the court he had made the bomb under the direction of Mey riner and another man in a labora tory at the Roosevelt hospital. He said Meyriner had induced him to speculate in Wall street and had sug gested as a quicker way of getting profits a scheme to frighten the mar ket. jThe plan included blowing up the Morgan offices and the sending out over tapped wires of false news that President Wilson had been as sasinated. The men were held in $10,000 bail each.' . ' 'Keep the Cars Moving." New York, May 1.- The railroads have been aslced in the interest of the nation "in all cases" to ' "keep the cars moving and settle , differ ences of opinion afterwards," ; it was announced here by the special com mittee on national defense of the American Railway Association. less j than 2,000,000 tons, -ii mo Germans keep up their present rate of destruction officials admit without hesitation that their campaign threatens to sweep clean the seas. s . . t . . . : . . . EXPECT PEACE OFFER S00I GERMANY WELl MAKE A MORE i IvIBERAL OFFER THIS TIME, IT IS SAID. nne Hague, May 1 (Via London) -Dr.; Von Bethmann-Hollweg, the German. . imperial chancellor, wil make another peace offer in the Reichstag on Thursday of this, week, according to an announcement made today by the Berliner Tageblatt. "The world will be astonished by the moderation of the German peace terms," saidt the General Anzeiger, of Dussaldorf, Germany, quoting in a recent dispatch ' from Berlin statement 'given out to foreign cor respondents in Berlin. For several weeks j it has been intimated that Germany might soon make another peace J offer and recent information from Berlin- showed that Chamcelor Von BethTnann-Hollweg was expect ed soon to .make an announcement in regard to ihteratioal questions, al though heretofore no statement has come from a responsible quarter that a 'peace offer actually would be made. For; several months a controversy has been in progress in Germany as to the aims of the war. The Social ists, vigorously opposed by the Pan Germans, are urging a clear stated ment of Germany's peace terms, on the basis of no annexations or in demnities. The chancellor was re cently reported to have decided to defer definite formation of peace proposals. The announcement of the chan cellor's plan to make a peace offer on Thursday is given added weight by the fact that it appears in the Tageblatt, one of the most widely circulated German newspapers. Military Operations Shadowed. The possibility of peace terms be ing advanced by Germany, the inter nal political situation in that coun try arising from, dissatisfaction -of the workmen over present conditions and a recrudescence of rioting in Petrograd, . in . which bombs were hro wn and the disturbers were fired upon-are--(features in the hews of-the worldl war which for "the moment ake precedence over the military operations: on the fighting fronts. Thursday may prove an eventful day for Germany and the entire world. Announcement is made by a prominent Berlin newspaper that the German- imperial chancellor on that day will make another offer for peace in an address to the Reichstag. May day passed in Germany with ittle news coming out to show the exact situation with regard to the unrest of the workmen, as a result of which it had been predicted that great strikes might result. A brief Berlin dispatch said the efforts of the radical socialists to bring about a cessation of work in munitions. ' fac- ories had failed and that no dis turbances had occurred in Berlin. Inofficial advices, however, were to the effect that strikes had been de clared by ! munition workers in the Rhine provinces. Petrograd has again been the scene of disorder, iformented by op ponents of the present government, in which bombs were thrown and the roops were compelled to fire on the rioters. M Germany's intensified (submarine campaign apparently is causing con siderable : uneasiness in England. King George, it is announced, short- y will issue a proclamation asking he people to cut down their con sumption of foodstuffs by 25 per cent owing to the gravity of the situation. 'Ism parliament various members are harassing the admiralty by de manding that it make public the ex act number of boats sunk by sub marines. ; ; ! Crisis Impending. Amsterdam, via London, May 1. -The Weser Zeitung, of Bremen, re ports that Berlin is filled with ru mors of a crisis in high government quarters, j The - newspaper says that demands are being made that a strong man be placed at the helm of the state. No May Day Appearances. -. Berlint,, May 1 (via ilondoh. Ef forts of the radical socialists to cele brate .May day by a holiday in the munition factories failed. No cessa tion I of work is reported. No pa rades were held and no disturbances occurred . j In announcing the failure of the plans to create holiday strikes the Berlin authorities have offered a re- m MLEYHIG TO THE CALL FARMERS ARE ENERGETICALLY PCSHING FOR BIO CROPS TNEXT FALIi. tlaleigh? May 1. The cities and torvvrP Hne state are being -called upofl iof do their bit"; in the cam paign; ?for increased food and feed production being energetically push ed by the' state food conservation commission. Governor Bickett's proclamition in the interest of more home - gardens was effective to a marked "degree, but the food commis sion is now going a step further and calling upon the cities and towns of the state to undertake the cultiva tion in food aifli feed crops of all va cant land in and adjoining them. "The farmers are rallying to the call," declared Executive! Secretary John Paul Lucas, of the commission, "but many of them are handicapped because of the shortage of work stock and labor. It is evident to me already that, while practically all of our farmers are going to be wise enough to raise sufficient food and feedstuffs for their own establish ments, and many ; of them a surplus that willbe available to feed our cities and' towns and mill communi ties, we are still going to be short. It is going io require a tremendously increased acreace tn nrndnca - " Mr 'v v kj m ill cient stuff to take the place of the $80,000,000 of food and feedstuffs our state has been importing. To prevent, want and hunger our cities ana towns must rally to the cause. "There is vacant and idle land in and near to every town and city in aiuiiua. mere is in everv city and town some workstock and labor that can be temporarily divert ed from other less vital activities to the more important work of e tilling these lands. We are callin sr nnnn . i- - , " the "mayors, the commercial organi zations and the progressive citizens of our - towns and cities., to act promptly; in getting all; of their idle lands into food and feed crops, such as corn,; soy beans, : peas and .pota tuea. : Raleigh - the- Rotary Club; which recently purchased garden seed for 100 poor families, has vol unteered to assist in this important work. "Our towns and cities can and must be a factor in increasing our acreage and (production of food and feedstuffs. They will be the greatest sufferers if the stuff is not produced and they are in a position to render service to the nation and to them selves in the same measure as -the farmer who has the workstock, the labor and the land necessary ' to in crease his usual acreage. This work can De undertaken by individuals, syndicates, by the municipal author- ties or otherwise as local conditions may determine, but our people, to get the results demanded by neces sity, should act promptly." In order to relieve the labor sit uation with the farmer to some ex- ent if possible the food conservation commission is calling upon the ma yor of every town and city in North Carolina to rigidly enforce the vag rancy statute and force the loafers to the farms or factories. MEXICO HAS HER OWN MISS RANKIN. Mexico City, May 1. With the meeting of the, congress of Mexico today, the congress of the United States loses thed istinction of being he only national legislative body in the western world which numbers a woman among its official members. To Senorita Hermilda Gahndo has alien the honor of .( becoming the first, woman member of the Mexican congress. In the general elections recently held Senorita Galindo was chosen a deputy from the fifth elec- oral district of the federal district of Mexico, which comprises the cap ital. In Mexico it is permissible to be elected to congress from another district than that in which the can didate has legal residence. Senorita Galinda is a citizen of the state of Yucatan, where women have suf frage. She is the editor of a woman's ournal and has long been conspicu ous in the movement to achieve po- itical freedom for the women of Spanish-speaking Americans, coun- ries. : ward of 3,000 marks for the prose cution, of "agitators in enemy service who are trying to start dissension, especially in the labor ranks, in Ger TZAIIT AMIT SEAT TO FRAKGE ARM OTAFF DISApfPROV-ES A DKUISION RESTS WITH PRES IDENT WILSON. Washington, April 30. With the judgment of the Frem u war mission ami the American army-' general staff seemingly in coullici as to wnea American troops should be sent t3 France, particular In crest attache J to a con I erence at t v f White House today between Pres'Se.T t Wilson and Rene Viviani, h?ad ; of the French mission..- C-;;-," ; ; -.!'. ": iDecisfon rests with the president, through his constitutional function as commander-inJcfrief of the United States army. It was generally as sumed that the views of the French officials disclosed in Marshal Joffre's statement yesterday advising that American forces be sent to the battle front soon, were formally presented to Mr. Wilson during the conference. No information as to that discus sion was given out, however, and no administration officials would com ment upon the statement of the great French soldier. "Upon that subject I have no com ment to make," was the reply with which Secretary Baker met all in terrogations. ,J ' There is no question, however, that the general staff disapproved any suggestion that American forces be sent abroad until they, are fully trained and equipped for the task be fore them with the exception of final touches to be given behind the battle lines. This has been made evident by testimony given by many staff of ficers be'frore congressional commit tees within the last two years and by the administration selective draft bill, under whose provisions no ele ment of the army, regular, national guard or conscript, would be ready for service for many months. v As to Volunteers. So far as volunteers are concerned, there has been no indication that the administration would favor the pro- posal that a separate provisional army be raised tor early service in France.' " Stripped of all military pros and cons, the proposal made by Marshal Joffre and apparently supported by all members of the French mission is understood here as providing that a small force of American troops, pos sibly a division number from 18,000 to 25,000 men, be sent at the earliest possible moment to France for the sentimental effect its presence would have both upon 'the French and the Germans. N On the other hand stands the often repeated military precept of the general staff that no, man can be considered ifit for even defensive war fare until-he has had more than one year of intensive training. On one point there is complete agreement between Marshal Joffre and the American officers. Both be lieve that" any force sent, to France must be given additional training on French soil behind the battle lines before it should take its place in the trenches. , There is reason to believe that the arguments of the French commis sioners have been presented directly to American officers during the con ferences here.' Since it is the psychological effect that is sought, troops with no more training than the border-hardened national guard units would serve the purpose, in the French view. French officers believe that with brief addi tional training in sound of the guns at the fronlt, such men could be made ready to take their places by the sides, of the veteran French and British regiments. . In reaching a decision, President Wilson probably would turn first to his own military advisers, the gen eral staff.' One factor in the decision is found to be the question of the ef fect on the army building plans. There are possibly 40,000 fully train ed regular soldiers of the mobile army, the remainder being men who have enlisted within the last few months. ' ' No Official Information. Washington, May 1. This after noon state and navy department of ficials said they had no official ; des patches on the destruction, of the Vacuum or the fate of the men miss ing. Whether the names of the na val gunners are made public will, de pend on what information the ; navy department receives. SGBIIE SAUSOirS EXPLOITS CITY IN WHICH SXEOSG MAIf MET ; HIS DEATH NEAR SCENE OF WAIT.- - Washington, May 1. -"In ad vancing upon Gaza, an ancient 'City of Palestine situated some three miles inland from the Mediterranean and about 50 miles in an airline southwest of Jerusalem, the British forces' in the near east are fighting over territory which was . the scene of the spectacular exploits of the great judge of Israel Samson more than a thousand years before the Christian era," says a war geog raphy bulletin issued today by the national geographis society from it Washington headquarters.' "Gaza was one of the five great -cities of the Philistines, having risen to commercial importance on ac count of its situation at the juncture Of , the trade routes between Egypt and Babylonia, Elath and Arabia. Its seaport was Majumas (re-named Cpnstantia many centuries later by Constantine.) "During the heydey of Gaza's prosperity the Philistines were a powerful and warlike people, their soldiers being equipped with copper helmets,' coats of mail, javelins and long lances," each man thus accoutred being accompanied into battle by a shield bearer. The lishtarmed sol diers were archers. "After .the Israelites conquered it, Gaza was a prey to Assyrians. Rahv- lonians and Persians. It resisted the Greeks under Alexander the Great for several months.. More than two centuries later it was destroyed by Alexander Jannaeus, the Jewish king. Subsequently a new Gaza, some distance to the south of the old city, ,was built and was presented by Emperor Augustus . to King Herod. Upon the latter's death it "became a part of the Roman province of Syria. "Up to the days of Cpnstantine, Gaza was one of the. chief strong holds of paganism, -the god Marnas ; T ue- seventh century came the Arabs, and the Moslems still venerate it as the place of burial of Mohammed's grandfather. The Crusaders under Baldwin II tried to revive its former glory, but without success, and twen ty years after their erection of a military stronghold here Saladin plundered the town. Napoleon cap tured Gaza in 1799. "One of the points of interest pointed out to tourists is the 'tomb of Samson,' but there is no evidence td show that the site is authentic. El Muntar ('the watch tower') 13 thought to be the eminence to which the strong man of Israel 'took the doors of thje gate'of the city, arid the two posts.' He 'went away with them, bar and all, and carried them up to the top of a hill that is before Hebron.' It was in Gaza also that the final tragic chapter in Samson's ife was enacted. 'And Samson-said: Let me die with the Philistines, so runs the Biblical account. 'And he bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the dead which he slew at his death were more than they which he slew in'his life.' "Gaza is today a city of some 40,- 000 inhabitants. The chief industy of the community is the manufacture of a peculiar black pottery. . Barley is raised extensively and exported to England. The bazaars and the ap parel of the Moslem women are strongly suggestive of Egypt." TEDDY BELIEVES AS DOES MARSHAL JOFFRE. New York, May 1. Theodore Roosevelt, upon; his return here from Chicago today, declared he hoped as Marshal Joffre had urged, that the people in this country would realize the necessity for sending without de lay an American force to the French front. "To keep all our men here being trained by regular army, national guard and Plattsburg officers tfor a year and then try 4 send them over as one army would mean-in- the first place a discreditable, .failure to do our duty during this year, and fur thermore that- the ; army when sent would be. inefficient," said Colonel Roosevelt. ' He added that those in Congress who oppose the raising immediately of some divisions of volunteers for such service "will be repudiating tha advice of Marshal Joffre."