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91.09 Yur In Advance "FOR GOD, FOR COUNTRY AND FOR TRUTH." Single Copies, I Cnta.
VOL. XXVII. PLYMOUTH, H. C, FRIDAY, MAY 25, 1917. NO. 47.
DESTRUCTIVE FIRE
VISITS ATLANTA
THOUSANDS ARE MADE HOME
LESS WHEN FLAMES SWEEP
RESIDENTIAL SECTION.
SEVENTY FIVE BLOCKS BURN
Estimates on Loss Vary Between Two
and Three Million Dollars. Soldiers
Guard Stricken Section. Dynamite
Won Fight.
Atlanta, Ga. Fire that swept
through a large section of Atlanta
from Decatur street north and north
east, cutting a clean swath of vary
ing widths, finally was brought under
control just before it reached the At
lanta baseball park.
The city is virtually under martial
law administered by hundreds of sol
diers who have been training at Fort
McPherson or National Guardsmen in
camp here acting under the direction
of Col. Charles R. Noyes, U. S. A., who
officially is under the guidance of the ,
Chief of Police.
Thousands of homeless persons
were being fed and housed in the
Auditorium Armory, the Negro Odd
Fellows hall and in hundreds of pri
vate homes. The most of them saved
only what they could carry, as house
' hold goods piled in the streets in ad
vance of the flames were devoured in
the rush of the conflagration.
For six hours dynamite was resort
ed to and it finally won the fight. Fire
fighting apparatus sent from other
cities was of some aid and will be of
more as acre after acre of smoldering
ruins await water to make them isafe.
Only one death has been reported.
Mrs. Hodges died of shock after her
home burned. Sixty injured persons
were taken to hospitals, but it was re
ported none was seriously hurt.
Approximately 75 blocks were de
vastated, but the area cannot be cor
rectly estimated by blocks as after the
fight at Ponce de Leon avenue the
flames skirted that thoroughfare on
the south side of the street for some
distance.
Officials would not hazard a guess
at the monetary loss. The destroyed
buildings ranged all the way from
shacks occupied by negroes to homes
up to $6,000 or $8,000. Some estimates
were between $2,000,000 or $3,000,000,
but they were neither from autbori
tive sources nor based on calculations
to give them weight.
The blaze started in the Skinner
Storage and Warehouse Plant near
Decatur street, just east of Fort street, I
from a cause not determined. It '
quickly spread to the small houses
nearby which were dry from lack of
rain and driven by a high wind, start
ed to rapidly eat its way north and
northeastward.
GOVERNMENT REGULATION
OF THE COAL INDUSTRY
Proposed to Congress By Federal
Trade Commission.
Washington Government regulation
of the coal industry, including the fix
ing of prices, was proposed by the
Federal Trade Commission in a report
to Congress charging producers and
brokers with exacting exorbitant prof
its, and blaming the present coal
shortage at consumption points on in
adequate transportation facilities.
"The price of bituminous coal,
which is a necessity, should be fixed,"
said the report, according to the same
general principle which has been es
tablished in the conduct of public util
ities. At a time like the present, ex
cessive profits should not be permitted
to be extorted from the public by pro
ducers and distributors of any prime
necessity of life."
In line with the Trade Commission s
v statements concerning transportation,
the supreme court banded down a de
cision upholding the power of the In-
terstate Commerce Commission to
compel railroads to furnish a reason
ably adequate simply of 1 c"
to handle normal and seasonable de
mands for interstate commerce origi
nating at mines along their lines, and
to award reparation to shippers for
failure to supply cars.
SHARP CONTEST IN HOUSE
OVE"R REVENUE BILL
Washington. Two sharp contests
during consideration of the war reve
nue bill in the house resulted in South
ern members killing a proposed tax
of $2.50 a bale on raw cotton, and rep
resentatives from automobile manufac
turing districts limiting the five per
cent levy on automobiles, motorcycles
and their tires to plants paying an
nual profits above $5,000 and eight per
oent on capital Invested.
MINE CORPS TO
GO WITH PERSHING
ALL THREE ARMS OF AMERICAN
FIGHTING FORCES TO THE
FIRING LINE.
APPROXIMATELY 40.000 MEN
American Destroyers Already Combat
ing U-Boat Making Preparations
For a Military Census. New Forces
to be Called.
Washington. All three arms of
America's fighting forces, the army,
navy and marine corps, soon will be
represented in the war zones.
With American destroyers already
combating the U-boat menace in Eu
ropean waters, and army regulars con
centrating to carry the flog to the bat
tle lines in Belgium and France, a
regiment of marines was designated
today to join the expeditionary force
and round out the nation's representa
tion in the field.
The marines will be attached to
the army division under General
Pershnig, which is under orders to
proceed abroad as soon as practicable.
Although details are not being made
public, it was calculated that with the
marine regiment, the total American
force now designated for land service
in Europe is close to 40,000. An army
division at war strength comprise
bout 25,000 men, and upwards of 12,
000 are expected to be in the nine
volunteer regiments of engineers now
being recruited. The forestry regi
ment and the marine regiment each
will number more than 1,000. The
strength of the naval force in Euro
pean .waters has not been revealed.
General Pershing and his staff will
sail for Europe ahead of the troops,
as there is much to be done on the
other side to pave the way for final
training of the 'force and for the huge
army the United States is preparing
to pour across the seas after it as
rapidly as men can be trained and
equipped. For obvious reasons, no In
formation as to the time of the Ameri
can commander's departure or his
destination will be made public.
In all parts of the country state
officials redoubled their efforts at re
cruiting the National Guard to war
strength. Authorization reached them
almost simultaneously with the sign
ing of the army bill. The war de
partment unfolded new elements of
its plans for the guard, disclosing the
departments in which each division
will be trained.
Geographical Distribution.
A similar table of geographical dis
tribution of divisions for the new se
lective army also was given out. It
follows closely the lines of the Na
tional Guard division.
Distribution of the country by
states into the areas that will provide
the sixteen divisions of the selective
draft army, ae announced by the war
department, include:
Fifth division New Jersey, Dela
ware, Maryland, Virginia, Eastern
Department. '
Sixth division Tennessee, North
Carolina, South Sarolina. Southeast
ern Department.
Seventh division&Georgla, Florida,
Alabama. Southeastern Department.
Eighth divison West Virginia,
Central Department.
Twelfth division Arkansas, Louis
iana, Mississippi. Southeastern De
partment. AIRCRAFT POLICY IS
FORMALLY ANNOUNCED.
Washington. Formal announce
ment of the Government's policy as to
all types of aircraft except Zeppelins
was made by the Council of National
Defense through Howard E. Coffin,
member of the council's advisory com
mission and head of the aircraft pro
duction board, recently creat1.
The object aimed at for the first
year, according to Mr. Coffin, is the
production of a minimum of 3,500
training and battle aeroplanes; the
education of from 5,000 to 6,000 avia
tors and the doubling or more of the
producing capacity during the second
year.
Other plans include the establish
ment of nine aviation training fields,
three of which already have been
seleoted by the War Department and
construction work on which will be
gin at once. Each will provide for
two aero squadrons of 150 men each
and have hangars and shop equip
ment for 72 machines. It will cost
approximately $1,000,000 to equip
each field. Six American colleges are
to give cadet courses by July 1. The
first classes opened May 10 and Prof.
Hiram Bingham, of Tale University,
U assigned at the War Department In
charge of this Instruction.
UNITED STATES BATTLESHIP WYOMING
r ,
-As4, m"Wr- pW'
;C VV 4vc ikS.-U At I
Wit. HAA'i'' Uhip
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ARMY BILL FINALLY APPROVED
FINAL CONGRESSIONAL ACTION
IS TAKEN ON BlG ARMY
BILL.
Machinery to Register and Draft Men
Allready Set Up. Date of Registra
tion Will Be Designated By Produc
tion. Washington. Final action was tak
en by Congress on the war army bill,
the second of the major measures of
the war.
The Senate, by a vote of 65 to 8,
adopted the conference report accept
ed by the House. Vice President
Marshall and Speaker Clark signed the
bill and sent it to the White House
As finally approved, the bill provid
ed for raising by selective conscrip
tion a war army in increments of 500,
000 men from 21 to SO years of age.
It also authorizes, without directing,
the President to raise volunteer forces
which Colonel Roosevelt desires to
take to France and greatly increases
the pay of all enlisted men.
Machinery to register and draft the
first 500,000 men already has been set
up my the War Department. Imme
dlatelly after the President signs the
bill, he will by proclamation designate
the day for registration of the ten
million or more men of the prescribed
age. Registration books will be in the
hands of state and local authorities
who are to co-operate in the work and
Brigadier General Crowder, the pro
vost marshal general, expects to have
his complete lists in Washington
within five days after registering be
gins. Whether Colonel Roosevelt shall be
permitted to raise an expedition rests
with President Wilson. His views
have not been disclosed, but it is be
lieved that he probably will postpone
decision while the draft system is be
ing put into operation.
As during the early stages of the
long dispute in Congress, the closing
debate centered upon the so-called
Roosevelt amendment. Colonel Roose
velt was vigorously attacked by Sena
tor Stone, of Missouri, and as ardently
defended by his friend, Senator John
son, of California.
The Senate's approval of the meas
ure agreed upon by he conferees and
adopted by the House came late in
the day after attempts to send it back
to conference and an earnest appeal
by Senator Chamberlain, chairman of
the Military Committee for final ac
tion. The eight senators who cast the
negative votes were:
Democrats Gore, of Oklahoma;
H&rdwick, of. Georgia ; Kirby. of Ok
lahoma; Stone, of Missouri, and
Trammel, of Florida.
Republicans LaFoilette, of Wis
consin; Gronna, of North Dakota, and
Norris of Nebraska, The bill backed
by the administration and adopted in
the Senate April 19. was passed April
28 In the Senate b ya rote of 81 to
6 and in the House 39T to 24 has
since been tied up in conference, re
turned thereby twice by the House to
Include the Roosevelt volunteer pro
vision and further pay Increases for
enlisted men
U. 5. VESSELS REACH EUROPE
AMERICAN BATTLESHIPS HAVE
JOINED IN HUNT FOR SUB
V MARINES.
Squadron of Torpedo-Boat Destroyers
Has Crossed Atlantic and Reported
To British Flotilla Commander.
One Has Brush With U-Boat.
Queenstown. A squadron of Ameri
can torpedo boat destroyers has safe
ly crossed the Atlantic and is patrol
ling, the seas in war service.
The American Navy's actual entry
into the war zone has already been
productive of a brush between a de
stroyer and a German underwater
boat, according to an announcement
by the British Admiralty, but the re
sult of it has not been made public.
The destroyer squadron arrived in
Queenstown after an uneventful voy
age across the Atlantic, but almost
immediately after a formal exchange
of greetings with the British Naval
officials, put to sea again for the hard
work that is before It.
A crowd of several hundred persons,
several of them carrying tiny Ameri
can flags, lined the water front and
cheered, the destroyers from the mo
ment they first sighted the flotilla
until it reached the dock. The crowd
cheered again when a few moments
liter the American senior officer came
ashore to greet the British senior offi
cer and Wesley Frost, the American
Consul, who had come down to the
dock to welcome tne flotilla. Every
thing was done in simple, business
like manner. There was an entire ab
sence of formality.
The commander of the British flo
tilla was waiting on board his ship
and sent wireless greetings to the Am
erican units as soon as they hove in
sight, steaming in a long line into the
harbor.
After the exchange of shore greet
ings and the British commander had
congratulated the American officers
on their safe voyage, he asked:
"When will you be ready for busi
ness?" "We can start at once," the Ameri
can commander replied promptly.
This response, so charactistically
American, surprised the British com
mander, who said he had not expected
the American would be ready to bo
gin work on this side so soon aftur
their long voyage. When he had re
covered from his surprise, however,
he made a short tour of the destroy
ers and admitted that the American
tars looked prepared.
FOOD LEGISLATION
TO BE RE-DRAFTED.
Washington. Re-drafting of food
legislation pending In Congress to meet
the views of the Administration was
forecast in the request of the Senate
Agriculture Committee that the House
Committee name a sub-committee to
assist it in drawing new bills. Mem
hora rvf tho mmmittees of both houses
I received a clear idea at a conference
' of what the Administration wants
' nnacted into law.
1 TO LEAD
TROOPS IN FRANCE
AMERICAN GENERAL WILL COM
MAND EXPEDITION ACROSS
WATERS.
nuns to go m owe
America's Answer to France's Appeal.
Troops Go at Earliest Practicable
Date. Pershing to Precede Soldiers.
Washington. President Wilson or
dered that a division of regular troops,
commanded by Maj. Gen. John J.
Pershing, be sent to France at the
earliest practicable date.
This is the answer of America to
France's plea that the Stars and
Stripes be carried to the fighting front
without delay to hearten the soldiers
battling there with concrete evidence
that a powerful Ally has come to their
support against German aggression.
Announcement of the order follow
ed signing of the selective draft war
army bill by the President and the
issuance of a statement that under the
advice of military experts on both
sides of the water, the President
could not employ volunteers nor avail
himself of the "fine vigor and enthu
siasm" of former President Roosevelt
for the expedition.
The army law provides for an ulti
mate force of approximately 2,000,000
men to back up the first troops to go
to the front. When the bill had been
signed, the President affixed his name
to a proclamation calling upon all men
in the country between the ages of 21
and 30, inclusive, to register them
selves for military service on June 5,
next. The proclamation sets In mo
tion lmiedlatey machinery that Will
enroll and sift 10,000,000 men and pave
the way for the selection of the first
500,000 young, efficient soldiers with
out crippling the industries or com
merce of the nation or bringing hard
ship to those at home.
Orders For Guard.
Even before the bill was signed,
the War Department announced that
tho full strength of the National Guard
would be drafted into the United
States Army beginning July 15 and
concluding August 5. Orders to bring
the regiments to full war strength im
mediately accompanied the notifica
tion sent to all governors. A mini
mum of 329,000 fighting men will be
brought to the colors under those or-1
ders, supplementing the 293,000 regu- j
lars who will be under arms by June :
15. Tha Virginia North Carolina,
South Carolina and Tennessee guards
will be mobilized July 25.
It is from these forces that the first
armies to join General Pershing at
the front will be drawn to be followed
within a few months by recurring ,
waves from the selective draft armies,
the first 500,000 of whom will be mob
ilized September 1.
COL. ROOSEVELT WON'T
BE PERMITTED TO GO
Washington. Colonel Roosevelt will
not be permitted to raise his volunteer
expedition to carry the American flag
against the Germans in France. On
signing the war army bill, President
Wilson issued a statement saying that,
acting under expert advice from bot'j
sides of the water, he would be
able to avail himself at the pre
stage of the war of the authorizj
to organize volunteer divisions,
There was talh In army cir-t
of the possibility 1 hat a way wouli
found to use the former presie
services in anoth r way, but
comment on the subject was r.
BRITISH SUFFER IN NAVAj
BATTLE IN THE Af
Cruiser Damaged and Four
ers Are Sunk.
London The British aOf
nounced that 14 drifters hrf
in a raid by Austrian ligh
the Adriatic Sea and. that!
light cruiser Dartmouth 1
pedoed in a subsequent I
with the Austrian warshipsV
ed port safely.
The text of the statement :
"The admiralty announcia
from reports received from th
admiral commanding the Adiatic
squadron, supplemented by the Ital
ian official communication, it ap
pears that early Tuesday morning an
Austrian force consisting of light
cruisers, subsequently reinforced by
destroyers, raided the Allied drifter
line and succeeded In sinking 14 Brit
ish drifters from which, according to
the Austrian communications, 7?
DTisoners wer taken
PS
ELK I
ODGE NAMES
MURPHY PRESIDENT
GREENSBORO IS SELECTED FOR
MEETING PLACE FOR THE
1918 CONVENTION.
VISITORS TAKE THE TOWN
D. D. Daughtridge of Rooky Mount,
Re-Elected Vice-President. New
Bern Lodge Wins Double Honors
Raleigh. After selecting Greens
boro as the meeting place for the 1918
convention and electing ex-Mayor T.
J. Murphy of Greensboro president of
the State Association, the Elks of
North Carolina accepted Mayor John
son's Invitation to "take the town"
and without a semblance of timidity
stormed Fayettevllle street until the
last note of "Auld Lang Syne" brought
an end to the jubilant festivities, so
far as the public was concerned. Mr.
D. D. Daughtridge of Rocky Mount was
re-elected first vice-president of the
state association, T. B. Beard of Sal
isbury second vice-president and Mr.
T. B. Kehoe of New Bern secretary
and treasurer.
The program began with a business
session of the association, concluded
with a smoker at the Elks' home. A
buffet luncheon was given at the home
and the business session for the elec
tion of officers was held in the senate
chamber at the State oapitol. The
grand parade took place at 5:30 and
from 8:30 until 11:00 the Elks' Jubi
lee extending in space from Martin to
Morgan on Fayettevllle street and in
proportions that excelled any similar
event of North Carolina Elkdom occu
pied the center of the arena. The con
' tortionists", spielers and terpsichorean
artists vied with each other In makng
the celebration an event that would
nut toneues to wagging and leave fond
memories of the seventh annual con
vention of the antlered tribe of the
state. Church societies, the Associat
ed charities and the Red Cross organ
izations sold everything that an
abundant generosity could compel
purse strings to open In order to sat
isfy the whims and fancies of the
visitors.
States Waste Total $20,000,000.
Raleigh. Experts of the department
of agriculture at Washington have es
timatethaJt if just one ounce of edi
ble meat or fat Is wasted by each of
the 20,000,000 families in the United
States each day St means a total
waste of 125,000,000 pounds per day.
or the staggering total of 465,000,000
pounds In a year, the equal of 875,000
steers or 3,000,000 hogs.
If an ounce of bread is wasted by
each family each day it means the
throwing away of 875,000 pounds of
flour each day. or 1.500,000 barrels
each yeai sufficient flour with which,
to make 365,000,000 loaves of bread.
Stated In terms of wheat It is 7,000.000
bushels.
Secretary Lucas, of the North Caro
lina Food Conservation Commission,
has figured out North Carolina's part
of such a waste. There are approxi
mately 6000,000 families 'in state. An
ounce of meat or fat and an ounce of
bread wasted each day means in a
year's time In this state a loss of 13,-
;80,000 pounds of meat, tne equivalent
tf 90,000 hogs, and 10.95U.ouu noaves
bread, or 210,000 busfoels or wneax.
CThese figures simply show." stated
f wAir omOill -Wflta
. Lucas, wiiac j
, in t.he aggregate. As a mat-
- f f,afvf on ounce a day of meat and
Uad does not begin to approximate
;at we destroy of those two proauora.
sav nothing of the waste in vege.
fies milk, poultry products and
Vr edibles. North Carolina's part
- AAA AAA ti
e national waste oi u,uuv.wv, ,
holds approximately. $20,000,
1 A very great part of this wasite
Lecessary and preventable. Of
there will be some waste un
Imosrt careful and economical
Sent but even if we would cut
in half we wouftlO
rrheise fleures a
At the
ago commission
..Hlck
arst In-
ect to be neute.
fantry, North (romhal Guard
to succeed Lieutenant-Cololenl Gil
mer, who resigned to return to the
regular service. Lieutenant-Colonel
Sharp has been In Raleigh assisting
in the work of the adjutant general's
office since the military situation be
came acute and ha9 rendered Invalua
ble service. For the present, at least,
he will remain In Raleigh.
v