UPHEAVAL IN GERM AN AFFAIRS
Political Turmoil Which Has Been
Convulsing Empire Caused Retire
ment of Dr. Von Bethmann-Holl
weg, Which Is Probably Only First
of Far- Reaching Development*
Which Are Bound to Affect Fabric
of Whole Empire and Have Mo
mentous Consequences *n Prog
ress of the War.
London, July 14. ? The political tur
moil which has been convulsing Ger
many ever since Russia's first start
ling success on the resumption of her
offensive, has culminated for the
present in the resignation of the im
perial chancellor, Dr. von Bcthmann
Hollweg, but all indications serve to
show that his resignation, far from
being the last act of far-reaching de
velopments which are bound to affect
the fabric of the German empire and
have momentous consequences on the
progress of the European struggle.
The resignation of the chancellor
came in the end quite unexpectedly,
for Dr. von Bethmann-Hollweg, in
the prolonged party discussions and
heated debates of the main committee
of the reichstag, which have been
proceeding all through the week,
seemed to have triumphed over his
opponents, who have been clamoring
for his head, by making concessions
which were tantamount to the for
mation of a kind of imperial coalition
ministry.
At the same time, the chancellor,
by the declaration that Germany was
defensively fighting for the freedom
of her territorial possessions, evolved
a formula that seemed satisfactory
to both those who clamored for peace
by agreement, and those who de
manded repudiation of the formula,
"no annexations and no indemnities."
Supported by Kaiser.
In all this, Dr. von Bethmann-Holl
weg was strongly backed by the
emperor. The advent of the crown
prince upon the scene, summoned by
his imperial father to share the de
liberations affecting the future of the
dynasty, seems to have changed en
tirely the position with regard to the
imperial chancellor. The crown prince
at once took a leading part in the
discussions with the party leaders,
and his ancient hostility toward Dr.
"von Bethmann-Hollweg, coupled with
his notorious dislike for political re
form, undoubtedly precipitated the
chancellor's resignation.
The fact that Field Marshal von
Hindcnburg, chief of staff, and Gen
eral von Ludendorff, first quarter
master general, have been most prom
inent throughout these discussions,
and that a section of the press has
been clamoring for a joint-dictator
ship by them, hardly augurs well for
the realization of the Prussian fran
chise reform, which the emperor has
just decreed, or for the movement to
ward a dimunition of Germany's war
aims, and therefore toward peace, on
which the Austrian emperor has been
doing his utmost to persuade the Ger
man emperor to embark.
The Bavarian ministers have been
among the most active in Berlin con
fabulations, and the fact that the
Centre Catholic party has rallied to
the peace gospel preached by Mathias
Erzberger directly on his return from
Vienna, where he saw Emperor
Charles, shows that the Austrian em
peror is backed in his determination
to securc peace by at least one, and
that the most powerful of the States
in the German empire. Whether other
southern German States will join in
what appears to be a movement to
ward the renunciation of Prussian
hegemony, events in no distant fu-,
ture probably will show.
The New Chancellor.
Dr. von Bethmann-Hollweg's suc
cessor, Dr. George Michaelis, is a
bureaucrat of the old type, whose ap
pointment can scarcely be regarded as
promising much in the direction of
the parliamentarization of Germany.
Entering the Prussian civil service in
1879 at the age of twenty-two, he
followed the customary placid career
of Prussian officials, holding various
minor posts at different provincial
places until he was appointed under
secretary in the finance ministry in
1909. In February, 1917, he received
the additional appointment of Prus
sian food commissioner, a special
post authorized by the Prusrian cab
inet.
The only brer.k in this monotonous
routine up to 1909 was a period of
four years, which he pent at Tokio
as lecturer in the Gorman law school
there.? Charlotte Observer.
PARIS PRESS ON THE CHANGE.
Hollweg's Retirement Hailed With
Varying Satisfaction. Some of the
Journals Trace Downfall Hack to
Famous "Scrap of Paper" Utter
ance.
The Paris press hails the retire
ment of Dr. von Bethmann-Hollweg
from the German chancellorhip with
varying degrees of astisfaction, says
an Associated Press dispatch, dated
at Paris, July 15. Some of the com
ment is in a jubilant tone, whilw oth
ers treat the event soberly. All are
agreed that it indi-ates a crisis in
Germany of unprecedented import
ance. The phrase "scrap of paper"
frequently crops out in the comment,
and some of the journals trace the
chancellor's downfall back to that
early-in-the-war utterance. The Petit
Parisian is one of the newspapers
that is not optimistic over the devel
opment. It says:
"Though the chancellor changes,
the German masters remain the
same. It is they and not the retiring
functonairy who desired the war, to
satisfy their appetite for universal
domination. In what measure may
they have changed their minds, and
are they capable of speaking up now
for peace? Just in such measure as
they realize that victory has escaped
them and that defeat is approaching;
in such measure as the intolerable
sufferings of their hungry peoples are
growing.
"Bethmann-Hollweg is being dis
missed because of his declarations and
mistakes at the beginning of the war,
but his successor will be no less
bound by his acts and words than
was this docile functionary who never
dared to take the initiative. Beth
mann-Hollweg would never have
been disavowed had the hopes of his
masters been realized by victory."
Le Journal says:
"The chancellor was so accustomed
to let things be that he seems to be
surprised to find himself at the bot
tom of the abyss. His famous .excla
mation 'a scrap of paper,' which
many thought to be only a cynical
utterance, now echoes like a cry of
distress. It seems now as if Beth
mann-Hollweg had foreseen the ca
tastrophe."
In the view of L'Homme Enchain
ed, the chancellor's retirement marks
the beginning of a tragic era for
Germany.
The Action Francaise says that
the chancellor's departure indicates
the depth to which the Germans have
descended in their spirit of violence
and ambition.
Libre Parole says:
"The 'scrap of paper' has finished
by strangling Bethmann-Hollweg."
The Gaulois concludes its rather
biographical articles with the words:
"And there is the war machine;
long oiled and burnished, no longer
running as it had been expected it
would; and there in the reichstag it
self, tactless men demanding that the
promises of the government be not
treated by him (Bethmann-Hollweg)
like scraps of paper. There was*ter
rible fatefulness in these words, and
finally the day approaches when his
simple little 'scrap of paper' tossed on
the one side of the scale is beginning
to weigh all by itself more than the
entire credit of Germany."
PRESIDENT URGES FOOD BILL.
Sends Letter Recommending Original
Control. Measure. Against
Gore Draft.
President Wilson Friday came to
the support of the administration
food bill as originally submitted to
congress.
In response to a request from sen
ate leaders for assistance in solving
the difficulties standing in the way of
action there, the President sent Dem
ocratic Leader Martin a personal let
ter recommending the general pur
poses of the original bill for govern
ment control of foods, feeds and fuel
only. He wrote that he believed un
necessary the extension of govern
ment control as proposed in amend
ments attached in congress to steel,
iron, copper, cotton, wool, leather and
other products.
The substitute bill drawn by Sena
tor Gore was opposed by the president
as an amasculation of the adminis
tration legislation.
When a man has nothing to lose he
delights in making other people take
chances.
TWO MEET HORRIBLE DEATH.
At Six O'clock This Morning J. G.
(ireenleaf and His Son Dewey,
Aged Seventeen, Were Killed In
stantly. Ray Crump, Son of Mr.
E. F. Crump, Was Fatally Injured.
Car They Were Riding In Stopped
on Track in Front of Oncoming
Train.
At tlie Smithfield Coton Mills ju?t
south of th# town there occurred this
morning about 6 o'clock a horrible
and awful accident, when the Florida
Special, Train No. 8H, southbound,
ran into a Ford automobile driven by
Mr. J. G. Greenleaf, the Superintend
ent of the cotton mill. Mr. Greenleaf
and his son, Dewey, who was about
seventeen years old were killed in
stantly, and Ray Crump, about sev
enteen years old, and a son of Mr.
E. F. Crump, was fatally injured.
The Greenleafs boarded up town at
the hotel and Ray Crump had been to
the hotel for them to go to the mill.
They saw that the train was near
them and made a rush to cross the
track ahead of it, but in changing
the gears of the engine the car was
stopped just over the track on which
the train was coming. They made
an effort to leave the car but not in
time. When the locomotive struck the
car it demolished and carried it about
the distance of two car lengths. One
of the automobile seats was carried
to where the train stopped about two
hundred yards from the crossing. The
front part of the engine's pilot is
broken. The three persons were tak
en up on the pilot and remained there
until the train stopped. Both the
Greenleafs were instantly killed and
there is said to be no hope for the
Crump boy. It is said that Mr. Green
leaf had owned a car for only about
a month. His home and the remainder
of his family are in Fayetteville. He
had been here about ten months.
When the three men were taken
from the pilot of the engine, Mr.
Greenleaf was dead. His son died as
he was placed on the ground nearby.
Ray Crump was taken to his home
near by where he was given medical
attention.
The train remained where it stop
ped until the arrival of the coronor
who viewed the bodies. It left about
7:30.
The bodies of the dead men were
removed to the Cotter-Underwood
Company's undertaking parlors where
they were embalmed and prepared
for burial.
As we go to press Ray Crump is
still living and may live for a few
hours, but is badly hurt internally and
there is no hope for his recovery,
though he may live through the day.
He has been unconscious since the
accident.
FAVORS TRAINING IN SOUTH.
Gorgas Considers Health Advantages
of This Section Superior to
Those Elsewhere.
Washington, July 15. ? In a state
ment tonight commending the war
department's policy of locating most
of the troop training camps in the
South, Maj. General Gorgas, sur
geon general of the army, declared
such an arrangement would have
great influence for good health and
hence for military efficiency.
"I am strongly in favor of sites in
the South for training camps because
of health advantages to the men,"
said Gen. Gorgas. "The outstanding
fact is that men trained in the South
will have weather conditions permit
ting their being out of doors practi
cally all of every day. In certain re
gions, wisely chosen for our National
Guard camps, rain is scarce in the
winter ? when the heaviest training
will be done ? and at night soldiers
here will sleep in quarters where there
is free r.ir circulation.
"There is, of course, a military ad
vantage involved beyond the founda
mental gain of having soldiers physi
cally fit for their work. It is obvious
that men in training should have the
maximum hours per day and days per
week for drill and exercise. The few
weeks of summer weather which sol
diers in the South may encounter will
be more than offset by the long au
tumn and mild winter during which
the troops will undergo the larger
part of their training."
During the last two years and a
half approximately thirty million men
have been withdrawn from their us
ual occupations in Europe.
JUDGE COX IS MADE COLONEL.
Resigns From Superior Court Bench
to Accept. Calvert to Succeed Him.
Appointments Made by Governor
Bickett Thursday.
Raleigh, July 12. ? Governor Bick
ett commissions Judge Albert L.
Cox of the superior court bench as
the colonel for the new regiment of
artillery for the North Carolina na
tional guard. Judge Cox resigns from
the bench and at once launches a
whirlwind campaign for recruits for
the regiment of artillery, a number
of the units must be recruited from
the very start. Friends of Judge
Cox, who regret exceedingly to have
him retire from the bench where he
has already made a splendid impres
sion, predict that his action in com
ing into this war service voluntarily
when he was exempted, especially
through his judicial position, will
have a fine effect in inspiring young
men throughout the State to rally to
the colors and offer their services in
the new regiment of artillery for the
formation of which there is very lit
tle time, since the national guard
units arc to be mustered in July 25
for federal service.
Governor Bickett has tendered the
judgship resigned by Cox to T. H.
Calvert, who was assistant attorney
general under Bickett. Mr. Calvert
will accept after laying the matter
before the code commission from
which he holds a commission for cod
ification of the laws. ? Charlotte Ob
server.
PLANS FOR MERCHANT FLEET.
The Program of General Goethals
Calls for 425 Merchant Vessels.
Government to Construct Two Ship
building Plants.
Washingtoin, July 13 ? Major-Gen
eral Goethals, manager of the Ship
ping Boards' emergency fleet corpo
ration, took full charge of the govern
ment's shipbuilding program today an
announced sweeping plans for con
structing the great merchant fleet
with which the United States hopes
to defeat the German submarine cam
paign.
The most important steps contem
plated, are these:
Immediate construction of two gov
ernment-owned shipbuilding plants
for building four hundred fabricated
steel ships of 2,500,000 tonnage.
Commandeering of 1,500,000 tons of
shipping now building for private ac
count in American yards.
General Goethals' announcement
was made in a letter to Chairman
Denman, of the Shipping Board, which
said the fleet corporation, under pow
ers just granted by President Wilson,
would start on its building program
Monday by offering contracts for con
struction of the two government ship
plants and by outlining to ship build
ers the plants, for commandeering
vessels under construction.
General Goethals' letter to Mr. Den
man discloses that the fleet corpora
tion has let contracts for 425 ships,
348 of them wood and 77 steel, with
a total tonnage of 1,800,800. The cost
of the wooden ships will be $143 a ton
and the steel ships $158.
Contracts for building the govern
ment yards will be let Monday, on a
basis of cost plus six per cent. Op
tions will be given to constructors to
purchase the plants on completion of
the work.
Proffers that have come to the fleet
corporation for building completed
ships, it was said today, show that
steel ships can be built faster than
wood. Steel ships complete, it is said,
can be turned out within five months
from the time work is begun, while
wooden construction will require
eight months.
Interest In Revival Increasing.
Selma, July 16. ? The revival at
Selma Baptist Church will continue
through Friday night, July 20th. A
growing interest is manifested each
day, and already quite a number of
professions have been made, and some
have bcon added to the church.
Had there been no services except
the special services, the one for wom
en Friday, children's service Saturday
and the men's service Sunday after
noon, the revival could have been
called a success.
We feel that there are still greater
things in store for this week. Every
body is invited to attend these ser
vices at 10 o'clock in the morning and
at 8:15 in the evening.
PRESIDENT CALLS FOR DRAFT.
Summons Six Hundred and Eighty
Seven Thousand to Colors Under
New Law. North Carolina's Quota
Is 15,561.
A formal order by President Wilson
drafting 687,000 men into the mili
tary service under the selective con
scription law was promulgated Fri
day by the war department, together
with an official allotment showing
what part of the total must be fur
nished by each State and territory,
says a Washington dispatch.
The only steps now remaining are
distribution by the governors of
State quotas among the local exemp
tion districts, and the great lottery,
which probably will be held this week
to establish the order in which reg
istrants are to present themselves for
service or exemption.
The men summoned for service will
be used to fill the regular army and
National Guard to war strength and
to organize the first 500,000 of the
new National army. The total of these
three forces will be 1,262,985 men.
Later another 500,000 will be called
out supplemented by sufficient men to
make up losses and maintain reserve
battalions.
North Carolina's quota is 15,564
men. The Governor of each State
will apportion the men to be drawn
from the several counties and dis
tricts.
SELMA'S BIG ANNUAL EVENT.
Program for (he opening day of Sel
ma's Watermelon Fair and Iletter
Babies Contest at New Opera
House. Monday, July 23, House
keepers' Day.
Address of Welcome, 1P:30 ? Hon.
John A. Mitchener.
Response ? Miss Nell Pickens, Home
Demonstration Agent for Johnston
County.
Demonstration in making nnd use
of Firelogs Cooker and Iceloss Refrig
erator, followed by a canning demon
stration, conducted by Mrs. Estelle
Smith, Home" Demonstration Agent
for Wayne County.
12:30 to 2:45 ? Lunch Hour and In
spection of Exhibits, old Op ra House.
3 o'clock ? Address by Mr. S. G.
Rubinow of the Agricultural Exten
sion Service of North Carolina.
The women are requested to have
their canning and cooking problems
ready to present to Mrs. Smith as
Mrs. Smith is an expert in the can
ning work and will be glad to help in
every way she can.
Mr. Rubinow is an excellent talker,
practical in every respect and his talk
on the urgent farm problems of the
day will be a treat no one can afford
to miss. He will be glad for the farm
ers to bring their problems for dis
cussion also.
Selma, July 16th.
EXPLOSION DESTROYS SHIP.
Of Those on Board British Battleship
Only Three Survived and One
of Them Died Later.
The British battleship Vanguard
blew up and sank on July 9, says an
official statement issued at London
Friday night by the British admiralty.
An internal explosion while the ship
was at anchor caused the disaster.
Only three men of those on board sur
vived and one of them has since died.
Twenty-four officers and seventy-one
men, however, were not on board at
the time of the explosion. The official
statement reads:
"H. M. S. Vanguard, Capt. James
D. Dick, blew up while an anchor on
the night of July 9 as the result of
an internal explosion.
"The ship sank immediately, and
there were only three survivors
among those aboard ship at the time
of the disaster, one officer and two
men. The officer has since died. There
were twenty-four officers and seventy
one men not on board at the time, thus
bringing the toal number of survivors
o ninety-seven."
The British battleship Vanguard
displaced 19,250 tons and her comple
ment before the war was 870 men.
The Vanguard belonged to the St.
Vincent class of dreadnoughts, and
was launched in March, 1909. The
Vanguard was 536 feet long, with a
beam of eighty-four feet and a draft
of twenty-seven feet. Her armament
consisted of ten twelve-inch guns,
eighteen four-inch and four three
pounders in audition to three torpedo
tubes.
SUNDAY'S WAR SUMMARY.
Section of Powerful German Trench
Elements North of Mont Haut Cap
tured. 360 Prisoners Are Taken.
Berlin Reports Success In Fighting
Along t'hemin l)es Dames Satur
day Night. Russian Drive Slacken
ed. However, Further Gains Are
Made Despite Bad Weather.
In Champagne, to the north of
Mont Haut and northeast of the Te
ton, the French in a violent attack
captured powerfully organized Ger
man trench elements on a front of
more than 800 yards and to a depth
of more than 300 yards and held and
consolidated the position notwith
standing heavy counter attacks in
which the Germans suffered heavy
casualties and lost in addition 360
men made prisoners.
Along the Chemin des Dames, the
Germans west of Cerny Saturday
night, after heavy artillery prepara
tions, threw heavy forces against the
French line. The battle waged back
and forth throughout the night but,
although the Germans broke through
the French lino at several points,
daylight saw them completely evicted
except from front line trenches about
500 yards in length. The Berlin war
office claims the capture of 350 pris
oners in the fighting.
In Flanders at various points the
British and Germans continue to car
ry out intensive artillery duels and
the British to make successful raids
in German positions.
Although rain and swollen streams
are militating against the prosecution
of the Russian offensive in Galicia
the troops of General Brussiloff nev
ertheless have driven the Austrians
from positions southwest of Kalusz
and taken more than a thousand pris
oners and a number of guns. Appar
ently the Austro-German lines are
stiffening as the result of the arrival
of reinforcements for Petrograd re
cords that repulse of attacks along
the Dobrovdiany Novica front and
says that the enemy has gone on tho
offensive along the Lomnica River,
near Perzhinzko and is stubbornly re
sisting the Russians on the Slivkiiasen
sector.
There has been little activity on
any of the other fronts although the
Russians near Van, the Turkish Ar
menia, have driven the Turks from
several positions. It is not improbable
that Rumania again may soon become
an important theatre in the war as
the Berlin official communication an
nounces that an increase in the artil
lery activity at various points is no
ticeable.
While the political situation in Ger
many still remains obscure, one of
the chief Berlin newspapers is cred
ited with the assertion that the reso
lution of the majority block of tho
reichstag, which will be introduced
on the re-assembling of the reich
stag, will reassert the desire of the
people of Germany for peace and
that the reichstag "labors for peace
and a mutual understanding and last
ing reconciliation among the nations."
It is unofficially reported that Count
Brockdorff-Rantzau will replace Dr.
Alfred Zimmerman as German imper
ial foreign secretary. At present he
is German minister to Denmark.
Weather In the Cotton States.
New Orleans, La., July 16^ ? Tem
peratures of one hundred to one hun
dred and six northwestern portion of
cotton region Sunday and Monday,
otherwise seasonable temperatures
prevailed.
Moderate to heavy rains Sunday in
Tennessee and Arkansas, and light
showers in North Carolina. General
rains reported Monday in Oklahoma,
Arkansas, northern Texas, Mississip
pi, and Tennessee, and light to mod
erate showers in Louisiana, Alabama,
Georgia, and Carolinas.
Monday, heavy rains ? Tennessee,
Arlington 1.00; Covington 1.18. Mis
sissippi, Hazelhurst, 1.12; Clarksdale,
1.36; Batesville, 1.34. Louisiana,
Grand Cane, 1.19; Minden, 1.44.
Arkansas, Prescott, 1.38; Warren,
1.04; Mplvem, 1.44; Marianna, 1.40;
Wynne, 1.40; Texarkana, 1.70. Texas,
Paris, 2.40; Greenville, 2.00; Long
view, 1.40; Sherman, 1.78.
Sunday, Heavy Rains ? Tennessee,
Arlington, 1.50; Brownsville, 1.22.
Arkansas, Dardanolle, 1.32; Newport,
1.60; Bentonville, 3.40; Batesville,
2.36; Osceola, 1.14.
Even if some things refuse to go
your way there are other things.