i . V J V' -'V .- i WEATHER FORECAST. For North Carolina Fair Sun day and Monday.. Warmer Sunday. MING i i; THREE SECTIONS. FULL LEASED WIRE SERVICE WILMINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA, SUNDaMmORNING, FEBRUARY II, 1917 PRICE FIVE CENTS. WlL 16 PAGES TOU r1-- ' ' "''g - NO ONE 7TT T IT? vv JL H J U J JL'.jT. JL Bit IP j lf OF THE PEA CE NOTE Denials Galore Yet Report Persists That Germany Trying to Avert War. REPORTED WILLING TO DISCUSS TERMS Would Prevent Clash With United States, So Rumor Says Secretary Lansing , Denies He Knows Any thing About Nate From Germany. 4 Washington, Feb. 10. Out of the T,ar clouds havering over the crisis between the United States and Ger pany tonight came the vague sugges tion that Germany was willing to dis- j cuss me.ins of preventing actual hos-j tallies. Thi.i came apparently out of j the air. r- one n official Wash-1 ino-mri v.-nn!,. arcpnt .he rp:: s-.ns.h.l- ity for it. It left the White House and the State Department gasping with astonishment; and met with au thoritative denials from practically cv; ry official source of information in Washington. But its effect was ap parent. The White House, the State De partment, the German -embassy, and the Svifs embassy, now handling German affairs here, declared they had never heard of the situation. The publication or the report that Germany had addressed to this coun try a note suggesting that the two nations discuss ways and means of preventing actual hotiliMes caused a furore in American circles. Tonight Secretary Tumulty declared that the white House had never heard the slightest intimation ofsuch a com munication, that so faTas the White House knew the report was a com plete fabrication, and that its publi cation was a matter of "deep suspi sion." Meanwhile it was stated in admin istration circles that the situation re mained unchanged and mat the few vessels reported sunk in the German submarine zone during the day of fered no indications of the dreaded "overt act," which will prompt the sext step in the German crisis. The fctate Beanment made it clear that the administration reserves the full fight to arm American merchant ves sels whenever it may deem such ac tion nec.sary. This announcement as made officially, and was design ed to deny various reported conten tions that neutrals have no right to nouat guns on merchant ships for uteir defense. It was made plain that fie United States will insist upon its nght to arm its ships for their own protection, no matter what posiion tcer nations may assume. o indication was forthcoming, noffever, as to whether the an nouncement was preliminary to the mounting ot-gtms on the ships of the -rnoncan Line, now held u in New ,.,h It was made clear that the I'gnt of ship owners to arm their ves--s had been plainly set forth in Elements to the nwmw bir th( rto. Panment, and the department said to ua. uiey Position. It was would adhere strictly to this recognized that the question w American shipping was today the fc--er of the International situation. egress was confronted resolutions with the f-ue through introduced ry --i.i x ia.Lt., ui icv luin, ery communication in the hands of rr,a"I)artraent- The state Depart d'P", offlcials, after the conference penned to discuss the situation, but -Cretan- 0f State Lansing himself pottered the statement that he had -vryer even- heard of such a commu-kpudon-" Dr. Patter, the Swiss min-niP-f !Who visited the State Depart- "it late in the day, likewise denied rei Vledge of the matter. The Hou11 was tra-nsmitted to the White Hon!1' anJ a lnorO'JSh investigaaft aRd ?-fLer a borough investi h,:on Sff,ietP.ry Tumulty declared there me WaS known of the matter vosifp- was suSSpsted that an in ciipp n be made to determine the " -j'jr ot rne report. to ,h report as published here was me effect that Germany had fram Rpsthn to the United- States sug venta steps be taken to pre--i actual hostilities between the two .' . A A A A 4 MORE TROOPS COME FROM BORDER. J-aso, Texas. Fh. 10 thp i ' tooutn Carolina Cavalry o Carolina Field Ambu- IW i58 and Tennesse Field ie" ,i 1 and Ambulance compan- i rnfin a r. . . over m;V,, tor home tonight- J ern Railway em raso and Southwest- FO UND A nPTJiTCTb GERMAN AMBASSADOR LEAVES NEXT WEEK. ... AT STATE Wooden Structure Near Cam pus Destroyed and Many Lives Endangered. (Special to The Dispatch.) Greensboro, Feb. lo. Fire this morning at 2 o'clock destroyed a wooden building adjoining the cam pus of the State Normal and Indus trial College, and endangered the lives of about twenty-five young wo men who had rooms in the building. The ffre was discovered by the night watchman in making his hourly rounds, within a few minutes after it started. The young women were able to escape from the building, but lost , practically all of their clothing. The building belonged' to Mrs. Leah Jones Stevens, of Southport, who was be fore her marriage a teacher in the college. The total loss from fire is probably $7,000. The young women who escaped from the building were- taken care of in other buildings of the college. It was the coldest time of a cold night when the fire was discovered and there was considerable excite ment among the students who were j housed in the building, and who es caped with so little clothing and per sonal effects. The fire department arrived quickly upon the alarm, but the frame building was the best of fuel for the flames and the firemen could make but little headway against it. The occurrence shows the neces sity of more brick and fireproof dor mitories if young women of the State are to have safe places to live when they come to the college. It is hoped that it will have a good effect upon the members of the Legislature. DECLARED NOT GUILTY OF EXPRESS ROBBERY Chattanooga, Tenn., Feb. 10.-A jury in the criminal court here this afternoon absolved Henry. Cornelison! of any connection with the robbery j of $409,000 from a Southern Express truck here last November. Corneli-1 son who was the driver of the truck carrying the money, claimed ne was helu up by two masked men. -MACON TO HAVE A BIG PACKING PLANT Macon. Ga.. Feb; 10. An application for a charter for" the Macon Packing ; Company, with a capital stock of $400, 000, was filed here this afternoon. The incorporators include a large number of influential Macon business men. It is stated $200,000 has already been . subscribed. Plans for the. plant include the - old Acme Brewing uompajay s plant on Bay , street. Jhei concern will do a general meat packing business. FAR! Y MQRN F RE WHO T LE Td GERAR GERMANY'S Expected American Ambassa dor Will Cable President the True Situation. ! BERLIN HEARS RUMOR OF WAR PREVENTION Americans Made Happy By Financial Assistance "Fortnight Rule" Strict- 1 Berlin, Feb. 10. ( 4 d. m.1 Unless unforeseen events overthrow present A SUNDAY T IN ! Mil I) OFF m SOIL i yiiut in me eievenm nour, Mr. and a f - . . . j Mrs. James w. Gerard and 202 Amev- A wireless message picked up here today stated that the leans will pull out of Berlin in a cpe- U-boat which recently sank the Peruvian ship, Lorton, in Span cial tram within less than four hours ;l L IT ri F land at dawn on Sunday will be on' ish waters, t lew the t rench flag. j neutral Swiss soil well on the way Twenty white American mule tenders were aboard the to Zurich, whence they will proceed, R-.;. k t n . r a air , , to Spain for the next boat homeward fltlsn steamer Japanesennce, of 4,876 tons- sunk today. bound. I Their fate is not Known. I AthrttoSTtelS! , Tday'S t0taJ toa& destroyed is considerably larger j statement announcing that he would j than that reported sunk for several days, though the number ,give no interview of any kind to any! of vessels .sent to the-botfbm is onlv seven one more than I person until he had reported in per- i n r j . , lxlJ acvcu' one more man j son to President Wilson. His state-! the toll ot yesterday and the preceding day. liiciit wao luaut; tu warn uie worm that anything he will be "quoted as j saying" between now and the time he ' 1 meets the President in Washington will- be -invented. "I Late tonight intimation came to the correspondent of the International! News Service, from a responsible and I j well-informed source, here, that when I land he will use the first opportunity! - i i a i i ' since the diplomatic break to send a,T) 0 R-,,0.l, r confidential message to Washington. The correspondent's informant hint ed2strongly that in that message migh t j be included tangible suggestions to the Americn government to the end of avertitig war between the two countries. The belief that it is yet possible for Germany and the United States to es tablish a common meeting ground on which to bring about measures that will-fullv safp2nmrd Amprican shirs nnr. livpa without imnairirtt? thfi pff i- ! cieucv of the U-boat weapon is held ! in wide circles here even, tonight when the last semblance of official connection between the two govern ments is about to vanish in the per son of Mr. Gerard. Reports that pacific negotiations are contemplated will not down. A joyful surprise came to scores of i Americans, whoas a result of the di- plomatic break found themselves face . to face with the prospect of being , stranded,, in a country that may soon er or later be at war with theirs, when Mr. and Mrs. Gerard and Mr. and Mrs Jacques Meyer, of New York, made it known that lack of funds will not stand in the way of those Americans returning to the United States. They offered to assist financially all those desirous of returning but lacking funds. 1 S ENLIST Town Would Readily Furnish Its Quota Church to Be Dedication Maych 4th. (Special to The Dispatch.) Lumberton, Feb. 10. The Ameri can is- eoine to have his joke no mat ter how serious the matter may be. With the war clouds lowering many amusing incidents are reported. If one would believe all he heard he would think that the Big Swamp would be the most popular refuge in 1 1 RADlDTUM BOY ii mmm II 1 1 1 in 1 L.UIIIUUII I w I READY TO this section in tne vent oi war witn Germany and a call for volunteers.!. DIRECTS PROBE OF FOOD -X- One humorist declared he knew two j -x- PRICES. men who would not show up himself j -x- -x- and the man sent to get mm These jruns are 2.24 men calibre. The supply of ammunition available for use, however, consists of Civil War cannon balls, seven inches in diameter. These guns can be .easily mounted so as to repel an attack by air and it is the consensus of opinion that one should be thus mounted. Many are in favor of mounting the other on the schooner George Edwards to protect the river from U-boats. All joking aside, if a call is issued for troops Lumberton will furnish ivs quota, say those who are familiar with "conditions here. -1 , ' - Chestnut Street Methodist Church will be dedicated Sunday, March 4th, by r Bishop -John C. Kilko. TEN DA3?mHAR VEST FOR GERMAN London, Feb. lp.rGerman U-boats today, the tenth day of unrestricted warfare in the barred zone, sent to the bottom seven vessels, witjvpaggregate tonnage of 22,273. Three British ships and one Iorwegian were sunk. Two lives are known to have beerfi&ft in "the sinking of the latter. Today s toll brings the total tonnage destroyed by U-boats since Feb. 1 up to 1 72,75 1 . AlDjgether 75 ships have been reported sunk. Saturday's list follow; Mantola, British 6;828 tons. tullington, BrilshV 2,8 1 6 tons. Solbakken Norgian, 2,616 tons. Beechtree, British,; 1277 tons. Japanese PrinceiBrith, 4,876. Ellavore, Britis, ' ,760. Havgard, Norwegh 1 , 1 00. Total Seven srups of 227273 tons. Summary of ships sunk since February 1 : Americans, 1 . Other neutrals, 30. British, 44. Other ! belligerents, 1 otal, 82. 'pi . r lit i lne most seriOUS" JLSlltlsh loss today was the Steamship Mantola. built onlv last vear. most modern steel cargo-carriers in the British marine. She sailed from Glasgow and was owned by the British India Nav igation Company. ' ; A small boat containing three Englishmen and one Amer ican negro, memberoof the crew of the torpedoed 'Brish steamer Dauntless, has been picked up at sea by a trawler, ac- . v. i.w a. uioyLv.n nuwmaunu. i ne occupants naa oeen without food for five dav and i , ...-f i. THE PAlENT "oyiv,ft. ' saiullcl 3 IVlust Make Lxtra Levy for Educational Debt. (Special to The Dispatch.) Southport, Feb. 1Q. The Bruns wick Land Company, a. Delaware cor poration, through its President, Hen ry Holt, Jr., has executed armortgagei to the Page Trust Company, Aber deen, to secure bonds that it means to issue to develop its property m Brunswickf is a do.curaent of more than li,0Q0 words. It is altogether the longest legal paper that Register of Deeds V. H. Walker has been call ed upon to record. The Brunswick Land Company has as its holdings in this county some 41,000 acres of land , in between tn c F d T. , , G ru11 rivers, ana is mat uveieu uy an oia grant nnowrn as tne Allison grant. Much of it has been settled by other people. Parts of this j grant are now the subject of litigation in the Federal court the opposing litigants in the case now in court be ing D. L. Gore, of Wilmington, and the Brunswick Land Company. An interesting bill that has passed the General Assembly was one intro duced in the early days of the session to make it mandatory upon the Bruns wick county commissioners to levy a 15 cents property and a 45 cents poll tax on the property and polls of the county for the purpose if paying off an indebtedness of the Board of Edu cationthe board having gone into debt for the purpose of running the schools the constitutional time. It will be remembered that the Board of Education attempted by mandamus proceedings to force the commission ers to levy additional tax last Fall. The tax provided for above is under- stood to be in excess of any, other tax the commissioners may be requir-1 i ed to levy for the purpose of running ! the schools four months. i -x- -x- -X- -X- -X- -X- -X- -X- -x- -x- -X- -X- X- Washington, Feb. 10 President -X-X- Wilson todav i directed that a dim iflfiii rnnnr mms mmt - . jc -X- Federal inquiry be made at once !y Senator uverman tnat tne aendie Was introduced.. X- into the question of the Nation's e- insist on its amendment to the Guil- I in the Senate the Oates bill for a x- food supply and the high prices -X- j ford battleground bill, striking out the ; firemen relief fund was killed. X- of foodstuffs. The Federal Trade -X- provision for the appointment of ai a measure that would create a X- Commission and the Depart- -X- commission to govern it, and agree to board of examiners for law applicants X- ments-Of Agriculture and Justice -X-'a conference on the bill with the was also put to sleep. Some thought x- have' been Instructed' to conduct ' House. Senator Overman was nafitad it a reflection on the Supreme Court, X- the pro-Del ! : " -x-jas chairman of the conferees. but Senator Warren explained that x- "Ah adequate supply of food- -X-) It now seems quite certain the Sen- the highest tribunal really wanted it. -x- stuffs is a matter of concern to -X- ate will continue to insist on its ac- j One State-wide measure won favor 45- the Naition at all. times. It is ot -X-.tion in striking from the bill the pro- of all. Joyce, of Rockingham, had in-X- peculiar importance tit present," -X-! vision for the commission. Congress- j troduced a bill regulating the removal X- the President declared in a let- man Stedman says the bill is now un- of causes in courts of justices of the ter to Chairman Harris, of the satisfactory to the . owner&pf 'the prop- i peace, and providing that the written X- Federal . Trade Commission. . , . erty which it is intended to turn over request of the parties to a suit would ai. . -. i . I . J' Jt'tn-thA. finrerTiment. Vnr this reason .'secure its hearing before another mag- j 4 " ' 4 SUBMARINES Sh w nnp f tk i ' ' w HIV. ItfTVOl auu were taken to a hosnital. Negro Killed On the Eave stone Was a Fugitive From Justice. Fitzgerald, Ga., Feb. 10. Local au thorities feel certain Richard Wal lace, the American negro who was killed when the British collier, Eave stone, was torpedoed, is the same Richard Wallace, who was under in dictment for the murder of an A. B. & A. call boy nine years ago Wallace made his escape and it was reported at the time that he went to Boston and shipped as a stoker on an ocean liner. About three years ago a negro filling the description of Wallace was arrested in Columbia, S. C. convicted and sentenced to hang, j A local newspaper investigated the case, and securing a second trial, it was proven that the convicted man was Emanuel Fordand and was given his liberty. All hope of bringing the slayer to justice had been given ut until it was learned that he had met 1 death by shell . fire vr -X- - r -X- -Jf X- -K -X- WANTS TO KEEP AT PEACE -X- WITH WORLD. rX- -X- X- Washington, Feb. 10 Secretary -X-X- of State Lansing tonight assert- X- ed that it was the Administra- -X-X- tion's wish to keep the Nation at -X- peace with all the world, if it -X-X- can do so with honor. Speaking -X- at the Amherst Alumni dinner X- he declared there always exists -X-X- the hope that the country may -X--X- be spared the calamity of being -X-x- drawn into war. -X- -x-x- -x- -x- -x- -x- -x- -x- -x- -x- -x- -x- -x- G GUILFORD BILL Act for Converting Battle ground Into Park May Fail of Passage- (By George H. Manning.) Washington, D. C, Feb. 10. -The Senate adopted today the motion made mini iai'T iflinniTm - " mmm m mm SB SMIilB t I'll AS A MURDERER i STRUCK ON j the bill may fail of passage. . 1ERICAN SKIPS FORTH IN JAWS OF DANCER ZONE Defiantly Two Steamers Leave Flying the Stars and Stripes. I BEAR CONTRABAND i AND GO TO FRANCE Neither Vessel Is Armed Ships of Americana Line Won't Move With out Convoys. New York, Feb. 10. With the Stars and Stripes flying at her rail and in j defiance of Germany's submarine i warning me American steauismp, ivu- .Chester, sailed today for Bordeaux. The Rochester was followed by the American steamer, Orleans, of the Oriental Navigation Company, also bound for Bordeaux. These are the second sailings of American steamers for allied ports since Germany warned of her extend ed submarine warfare. The first ves- el to brave destruction in the U-boat I zone was tne Dochra. sne sailed on February z tor Genoa. Upon the voyages of the Orleans and Rochester, manned by crewrs, 22 of whom are American citizens, may de pend the issue of peace or war with Germany. v Both carry contrabrand, according to the German point of view. They are not armed for defense against the submarines. Neither are they mark ed to comply with the conditions set down by Germany in her note warn ing the American vessels. The Rochester, of the Kerr Steam ship Company, has an American flag planted on her bow and another on the! stern. On the side in three foot lines is her name and U. S. A. The Orleans is marked in a similar manner. The r Orleans has seven Americans in her crew, including Captain Allen Tucker, of New York Citv She is . a first sailing of the Orleans since she was transferred from Argentina to American registry. The Rochester of 5,000 tons carries a crew of 33, fifteen of whom are Am erican citizens. Her commander, Cap tain J. Korkrits is a naturalized Am erican citizen of Swedish birth. While interest centered no the test voyage of the Orleans and Rochester, reports concerning the safety of other vessels caused a feel ing of more optimism than has been evident since the situation became grave. The Cunard line received a cabla telling of the safe arrival of the Or duna at Liverpool last Thursday. She sailed from New York January 22. The Dante Alighieri has reached Genoa according to advices ; here. received The New York of the American line is nearing this port and will dock eith er late tomorrow or early Monday. She sailed from Liverpool on January 31. Captain Thomas Barman of the Am erican liner Kroonland wireed today that he will make port cy midnight. Continued on Page Eight.) DATES SCHOOL ACT TARES THE COUNT Bill to Provide Examiners For Law Applicants Also Knocked Out. (Special to The Dispatch.) Raleigh, N. C, Feb. 10. Neither the Son a to nnr Hnnsfi worked extra lone today, but in the few hours that they 1 held forth they did some important i work. In the House, Representative Henry Page, who has advocated pop 'ular election of members of school boards, made the motion which tabled the Oates educational bill, that would have left it to a primary in each coun ty, but at the same time, would have Imade it certain- that the Democratic party, the dominant party in the State, held conrol of the boards. It is said that Page has ready for introduction a bill that will provide popular election for his county. The House decided that the bill pro- viding for a board of chiropractic ex aminers was a good one and passed it, and also approved the measure es tablishing the Cleveland-Gaston county line. And speaking about counties, a bill for Jarvis county, which would take parts of Harnett, Sampson, Lee ! and Hoke for the purpose of creation, :Istrate.Jj :: WANTS T WILL E OVERT ACT North Dakota Senator Thinks America Is Receding From Its Rights. THINKS SOMETHING SHOULD BE DONE In House Debate Grows Warm As to the Rights of Submarine Leader Mann Favors Subs. Washington, Feb. 10. Concrete and exact definition of what shall or may . contribute the much discussed "overt act" precedent to a declaration of war on the part of the United States is be ing asked in both branches of Con gress. Just what are the indisputable rights of the neutral ships, particularly American ships, on the high seas, and what constitutes legitimate and what illegitimate submarine warfare are the answers sought through interrog atory resolutions introduced in the Senate and House and frankly discusa- e(j today The State Department's and inci dentally the President's interpretation of an "overt act," was demanded to day by Senator McCumber, of North Dakota, on the Senate floor. "Since February 1, auout 75 ships have been sunk by German submarines without warning," said Senator Mc Cumber. ?"Yet we are told, now, that we will await an overt act. Certainly if we are to await anything further there will never be any cause for war." The North Dakota Senator quoted press reports of the decision of yes terday's Cabinet meeting to the effect that only the destruction of American ships and American lives would be re garded as cause for war. "American ships and American liyes ?" demanded Senator McCumber with .emphasis. "Does this mean that we have further receded from our po -sltfoir? TSea rmeaif thatr wtf' - nT longer "question Germany's right to sink without warning belligerent ships with Americans on board and that it calls for nothing sterner than a note? Does it mean that another Lusitania episode will be allowed to pass un noticed? If so, we ought to notify our people to prevent their traveling on belligerent ships. We owe it to the American people to let them know just where we stand and without any further actual participatibn in the great European war that will be nec essarily involved In protecting our shipping, our citizens and our com merce from unlawful and inhuman acts of German armed vessels." Representative Piatt proposed to arm American merchant ships follow ing the precedent laid down in 1798. The legality of submarine warfare as directed against merchant craft is indisputable, according to Republican Leader Mann, of Illinois. In his con tention, MrvMann was supported by Representative Cooper, of Wisconsin, senior minority member of the House committee on foreign affairs. Both expressed themselves today in debate on the pending Naval appropriation bill. The presentation of the views of the two leaders was brought about through the assertion made by Repre sentative Temple, of Pennsylvania, also a Republican, to the effect that the invention of a new weapon did not change the rules of International law. This has been the Administra tion's contention through the subma rine controversy with Germany and has been the contention of the British and other allied governments in deal ing with the most modern war prob lems. "As I understand Dr. Temple," said Leader Mann, "if we are engaged in war with a foreign power, and we have a submarine which meets a merchant vessel, either of a neutral country or of the other belligerent countries load ed with ammunition to supply the Army or the Navy of the enejny coun- try, our submarine must, lady-like, rise"" from beneath the waves, so as to board the merchant vessel, armed, ask to inspect the papers of merchant ves sels. If we could get that far before we could do any damage to that mer chant vessel. I am not very well in formed as to submarine warfare, but I have been told that while this lady like operation was going on the mer chant vessel would sink the subma rine before officers from the subma rine could board here. "It is for our interest if, we are go ing to have . submarines for our own use in time of war to give them power to do execution. I am not in favor of barbarous warfare, but 1 do not think men can engage in a 'lady-like' fight." Representative Cooper asserted that under the present interpretations of International law it was to be ques tioned whether the submarine could be used at all. Then he said: t"l shall now ask a question I asked in a speech a year ago: "If we were at war with Japan and you and I are out on the sea in a sub marine and your brother and mine are on shore fighting to save the repub lic, and along comes a Japanese mer chantman flying the flag of Japan, arm ed with ammuition to kill Americans,, and you and I are asked to stand back with our submarine, because aboard this merchantman armed with six-Inch. guns are three Chinamen, citizens of KNOW 1 MAK m 3 si fit : fen M .A