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Freaks Cr-.cJV-1-
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1.00 a Year In Advance
'FOR GOO, FOR COUNTRY AND FOR TRUTH."
Single Coplea, I1
VOL. XXI X
PLYMOUTH, N. C, FEIDAY, AUGUST 16, 1918
NO. 2
FURTHER GAINS OF
MISS MARION DAVIES
ALONZO E. TAYLOR
36,000 PRISONERS
GERMAN ARMIES
STILL SWEPT BACK
TENTATIVE PLANS
COVERING STATE
HIGH IMPORTANCE
TAKEN
STEADY GAINS OF GREAT STRAT.
EGIC VALUE ARE MADE BY
ALLIED FORCES.
GERMAN COUNTER ATTACKS
'.-Violent Counter Attacks by Foe Are
as Uusal Repulsed With Heavy
Losses.
Although the Germans are employ
ing fresh forces of reserves in efforts
to hold back the allied troops who are
pressing them from the region of the
Somme to the Oise, the American,
British and French armies continue to
make progress. Monday witnessed
gains of ground at various points
along the battle front of high import
ance for the further prosecution of
the endeavors of the allies to drive
out the Germans from the old
Amiens-Montdidier sector.
After an extremely bitter contest
the. Americans and British have gain
ed a foothold in the important little
town of Bray Sur Somme, on the
northern bank of the Somme. A short
the Brtiitsh have taken Proyart and
midway of the line have pressed on
to the east of Fonquescourt in a fur
ther outflanking of Chauines from the
south and of Roye from the north.
On their part, the French in the
rolling country lmediately north of
the Oise river have captured Gury, a
position of great strategic value, ly
ing southwest of Lassigny, and at sev
eral other points southward to the re
gion of the Oise, have advanced their
line further toward Noyon.
In Monday's fighting hundreds of
additional Germans were made pris
oner and the enemy also lost heavily
in men killed or wounded. Unofficial
reports give the number of German
captured during the present offensive
as' in the neighborhood of 40,000.
The Germans at last accounts were
Mill throwing reinfrocements to the
east of the road running through
Chauines, Roye and Noyon, the pass-'
age of which , by the allies would se
riously menace all the German forces
inside the pocket formed by the
allid airplanes continue. to bomb Ger
Oise on the south. Not alone are the
allies endeavoring to press their ad
vantage by frontal attacks, but they
have drawn up to 'their back lines
guns of medium and heavy calibers
and with these they are heavily shell
ing the areas held by the Germans,
even as far back as Bethencourt,
which lies on the Somme, seven and a
half miles east of Chauines. Meantime
allid airplanes continue to bomb Ger
man positions.
GAS ATTACK BY SUBMARINE
OVERCOMES COAST GUARDS
Washington. Gas from oil dis
charged on the water by the German
submarine operating off the middle
Atlantic coast, overcame six men In
the coast guard station and lighthouse
on Smith's Island, North Carolina,
the navy department was advised by
the commandant of the sixth naval
district.
If the gas attack was deliberate
and most -off icials believed that it was
It constitutes a new and Ingenious
form of "frlghtfulness" and, so far
as has been reported, was . the first di
rect effort of the German raiders to
har persons or property on Ameri
can shores.
ant of the coast gurd sttton to hve
TWELVE MORE RAINCOAT
INDICTMENTS RETURNED
New York. Twelve indictments,
charging 19 individuals and two firms
operating factories here with furn
ishing defective army raincoats for
the government, were returned in the
federal court. Several of the persons
accused are under previous Indict
ments alleging payments of commis
sions to federal officials who are said
to have aided them in obtaining coo
tracts. PRISONERS CAPTURED
VS. ALLIED CASUALTIES
With the British Army in France. -The
contract between the number of
prisoners taken and the allied casu
alties is regarded as remarkable. For
instance me casualties oi ins eniuw
allied forces were considerably less
than the total prisoners taken. When
it is understood that this battle has
not been waged for the purpose of
taking prisoners, the casualties in
flicted on the Germans must have
reached a large figure.
Miss Marlon L. Davlee, a graduate
f the Unlverelty of Wisconsin, I one
of the first women to be appointed ex
aminer under the federal trade com
mission. She Is doing research work
In the congressional library, Investi
gating facts about the manufacture of
various artloles.
CHANNEL PORTS NOW SAFE
FOCH'S NEW OFFENSIVE GIVES
PROMISE OF SERIOUS MEN
ACE TO GERMAN FRONT.
Evident That Rupprecht Must Defer
Campaign to Cut Off the Cross
Channel Service.
The historic battle ground between
Amiens and Montdidier again is the
scene of a mighty contest. This time
the British and French are the ag
gressors and under their fierce on
slaughts in the first day's battle they
have penetrated deeply into the Ger
man positions over a front of more
Ifcan 20 miles, reaching from the re-
-gion of Braches to the neighborhood
of Morlancourt.
Following short but intensive artil
lery preparation and aided by misty
weather, the allied attack took the
Germans completely by surprise and
they fled almost everywhere pell mell
before the tanks, motor machine gun
batteries, cavalry and infantry sent
against them. Al the objectives set for
the Australians, anadians. English
men and Frenchmen were attained in
remarkably quick time, and at last ac
counts the allied forces were still mak
ing progress. Wherever the enemy
turned to give battle he was decisive
ly defeated.
Thousands of Germans were made
prisoner. Large numbers of guns
were captured, great quantities of war
materials were taken and a score or
more of villages and hamlets were re
occupied. In addition, heavy casual
ties were Inflicted on the enemy.
At its deepest point the penetration
of the German line was about seven
and a half miles eastward from Vil-lers-Bretonneux
to Framervllle, while
from two to. five niles were gained
all along the front from northwest of
Montdidier to the region around Mor
lancourt. The fighting extended north
of Morlancourt to the Albert sector,
but no official details concerning it
have been received.
Well out on the plains and press
ing forward, seemingly with great rap
idity, the present offensive of the
French and Britsh gives promise of
seriously menacing the entire Ger
man front from near the sea to
Rheims. If the drive should proceed
eastward to any great depth It cannot
but affpct the armies of the German
crown prince now fighting betwen the
Aisne and the Vesle and possibly make
impracticable a stand by them even
north of the Aisne.
Under the pressure of the offen
sive the menace to the channel ports
also seems for the moment at least,
to vanish. Already there have been
signs to the northward from the posi
tions where Crown Prince Rpprecht
had formf d his men for a drive toward
the channel that a retrograde move
ment by the German was not improb
able. It Is apparent that Rupprecht
will have to defer his campaign to cut
off the cross-chanel berlvce.
ICE FAMINE BLAMED ON
NORFOLK MANUFACTURERS
Norfolk, Va. Rear Admiral Harris,
chairman ef the war industries com
mkte of the fifth naval district, no
tified the Norfolk & Portsmouth Trac
tion ComDanv that he would take over
and direct the distribution of all elec-
trie current, in order to conserve ana
utilize the supply for the more lm-
portant lines of industry and transpor-,
tatlon. The step wa3 decided upon ,
In order to relieve the present acute
traction situation. !
IN ESTIMATES OF CAPTURED ARE
1,000 OFFICERS FROM GEN
ERAL TO CORPORAL.
OVER SOO CANNON IN SPOIL
Enemy Resistance Is Stiffening
Against Advance of Allies; Des
perate 8tand Expected.
The number of prisoners taken so
far in the allied offensive in Picardy
is now estimated at 36,000, including
more than 1,000 officers. More than
500 guns have been captured,accord
ing to the latest advices.
The pivot of the German resistance
at this stage of the battle, it now ap
pears, is the town of Noyon, about
midway between Montdidier and Sols
sons. The enemy is throwing in re
serves from this base in an effort to
prevent, regardless of cost, the allies
from gaining control of the Noyon
Ham road, which is choked with ma
terial, guns and troops.
The Germans are expected to make
a desperate stand on the Roye-Noyon
to permit the columns which are re
treating in the direction of Nesle and
Ham to reach safety.
The resistance of the Germans is
stiffening against the fourth British
army under General Rawlinson. They
are reacting violently in the region of
Lihons, which changed hands twice
during the night but which was firmly
held by the British.
All the bridges across the Somme
between Peronne and Ham, a stretch
of about 15 miles, have been destroy
ed by allied aviators. The Germans
have been attempting to throw tem
porary bridges across the stream and
the allied airmen are now systematic-1
ally bombing these improvised struc
tures. All morning reports show extreme
'confusion among the enemy forces
in rheir precipitate retreat.
Among the prisoners taken are gen
erals, colonels and officers of all other
grades. Eleven divisions of Generals
von Huties and von Marwitz have
been identified by prisoners taken.
GERMANS DIGGING IN
ALONG THE VESLE RIVER
With the American Army on the
Vesle. Allied aviators have reported
that the Germans are digging in oppo
site the Franco-American line along
the Vesle. The observers also have re
ported that the enemy Is stringing
barbed wire along the hills northwest
of Fismes. Allied officers express the
belief that the Germans will not give
ground here unless they are deliber
ately pushed off the plateaus. -
The Americans learned from Ger
man prisoners that the enemy was
using an old rock quarry cave in the
region of Longuval, large enough to
conceal two regiments. He employed
it as a refuge for troops to rest. The
Franco-American heavy artillery shell
ed the cave all day and the Germans
wcie finally compelled to abandon It
as a hiding place.
The guns of the Franco-Americans
got the range of the entrance to.Uie
cave and kept up a continuous fire
all 'lay. Observers reported that the
cave had been considerably damaged
and was rendered very untenable.
The Germans . are digging trenches
along the line west and east of Longu
val and a'so In the valley of the
Perles.
COAL SHORTAGE IS
SOURCE OF DANGER
Washington. Coal miners and oper
ators were called upon In a proclama-;
tlon by President Wilson to give their i
maximum effort to the production of
coal to the end that the threatened
shortage next winter may be averted.
The president asked miners particu
larly to work full time and urged those
who are essential to the industry to
accept deferred classification ia the
draft.
SEVERAL VILLAGES TAKEN
BY THE FRENCH TROOPS
Paris. Notwithstanding res' stance
of Germans, French troops gained
further ground between the Vvre and
the Oise rivers, taking several villages
from the west and south of Roye to
the Oise. Further south on tha l'.ne.
the French have penetrated the wood-1
ed area between the Rivers Mat? and J
Oise, reaching in this region the envi- j
rons of LaBerliere and Gury. Moreui!
LaMotte has been captured.
ft - fev- I
ft tg-M-
A new photograph of Dr. Alonzo E.
Taylor, a member of the war trade
board and also of the House mis
sion to Europe. He was In charge
ef the feeding of French and English
In Germany before the United States
entered the war. In private life he
ranks as one of the leading food chem
ists and bioloalsts in the world.
IS PRAISED BY LLOYD-GEORGE
ALL POSITIONS PREVIOUSLY
GAINED STEADILY HELD
BY STIFF FIGHTING.
British Premier Praises Part Taken
in Present Offensive by the
American Troops.
The allied, armies have obtained
further successes over the Germans
in fighting in the Soissons-Rhelms
sector and to the north in tiTe Monf
didier region and still further north
in Flanders between the Lawe and
Clarence rivers.
East of the town of Braisne on the
Vesle River, midway between Sois
sons and Rheims, American andi
French troops after the stiffest kind
of fighting have crossed the river and
held all the positions gained. In ad
dition all. the positions previously
gained by the allied troops through
out the entire Rheims-Soissons salient
have been solidly held, notwithstand
ing counter-atacks and the heavy ar
tillery fire the enemy has poured
down from the heights north of the
vesie upon ineir auiaBumsm. icai (
where the Vesle enters the Aisne
east of Soissons the French have over
come the resistance of the enemy and
taken the village of Clry-Salsogne.
In the Montdidier sector the French
south and southeast of the town have
further advanced their line on this
important sector which represents the
junction point of the armies of the
German crown prince and of Crown
Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria.
It remained for the Britsh, how
ever to deliver the hardest blow
against tha Germans. Following up
a previous advance in the famous Lys
sector northwest of LaBasse, Field
Marshal Haig's men pushed forward
their line over a front of nearly five
miles to a depth of a thousand yards.
David Lloyd-George, the Britsih
prime minister, addressing the house
of commons, spoke optimistically of
the status of the war from the allied
standpoint. He characterized the
present offens've on the Aisne-Marne
front as the most brilliant in the an
nals of the war and praised the part
taken in it by the American troops.
TO HURL ENTIRE STRENGTH
AMERICAN ARMY ON GERMANS
Washingon. Baclcd by a reservoir
of 5,000,000 American troops, Field
Marshal Foch, supreme comander of
the American and alied armies, is pre
paring to harl the entire united mili
tary strength of France, Great Brit
ain and the United States against the
Qermaas on the western front in time
te bring the war to a victorious con
clusion ia the shortest possible time.
Next spring will see the terrific con
flict, already In progress on the
Aisne-Marne line, in full swing with
Foch's armies striking with all their
power.
This was the impression gained by
members of the senate military com
mittee who heard General March, chief
of staff, explain in executive session
the war department's reasons for ask
ing extension of draft age limits to
Include all men betwen 18 and 45
years of age. They learned also that
the definite decision to enlarge the
American military program to an
army of five million men was reach
ed about July 30 and ia in acordance
with an agrement reched In Paris
shortly before that time.
TANKS, CARS, CAVALRY AND
INFANTRY ALL COMBINE TO
OVERWHELM FOE.
GREAT NUMBER OF PRISONERS
Allies Capture 17,000 Prisoners, More
Than Two Hundred Cannon and .
Other War Munitions.
Over a curving front of more than
20 miles the British and French
troops are continuing to sweep back
the Germans eastward across the
north of the Somme east of Morlan
oourt to the eastern bank of the Avre
northwest of Montdidier.
As on the first day of the offensive,
material progress "was made over the
entire battle front. Many additional
villages were captured; the bag of
prisoners was largely increased; nu
merous guns and great quantities of
war stores were taken, and heavy
casualties were inflicted on the enemy
by tanks, armored motor cars, the
cavalrymen and the infantry. The
losses sustained by the Anglo-French
forces are declared to be relatively
small.
To the allied forces there have
fallen 17.000 German prisoners and
between 200 and 300 guns, many of
them of heavy caliber and innumer
able machine guns, trench mortars
end kindred smal weapons.
Already having penetrated the
Picardy salient to a depth of nearly
13 miles in the center toward the
vicinity of the important railroad
Junction of Chauines, and at other
points along the arc, pushed forward
betwen five and seven miles, the
northern and southern flank3 of the
battle" front where th Germans had
Veen resisting desperately, gave way
before , the pressure respectively of
the British and French.
A CORRESPONDENT SAYS
GERMANY IS SCARED WHITE
London, England. Germany Is scar
ed white.
She's scared, first of all, ovei the
turn of things on the west front; over
the thousands of Americans regularly
outfighting her; over the hundreds of
thousands of Americans waiting to
?ot Into line; over the millions of
o'.her Americans "on the way."
This information comes from an al
lied source whose business It is to
know conditions In the enemy coun
tries. She's frightened about Austria. She
doesn't know what moment Austria
may blow up. She knows what is
known and conceded in oificial allied
sources that the Austrian economic
situation is worse now than it has
been since the opening of the war and
the people are bolder.
She's frightened about Russia. Al
lied warships and American troops
up north have puffed out her hope
of getting her hands on the hundreds
of thousands of tons of military
stores at Archangel, there since the
revolution; she can't take a step to
ward Petrograd or the northern rail
way lest these allies forces swoop
south; and for all she knows they
may be going to swoop south without
waiting for that menace; she can't
spare men from the west front.
GOVERNMENT. NOT DRAFTEE,
WILL DO THE SELECTING
Washineton New draft regulations
under which the government would
do the selecting rather than leaving
It to the registrant, are under consid
eration by the war department.
The war secretary made it plain
that he is not satifled with the pres
ent system under which the regis
trant must claim deferred classifica
tion, as many men with dependents
hesitate for patrioti' reasons to make
purh a ela'm. In th's connection. Mr.
Baker said, he was Inclined to the
otjinlon that the marriage rela
tion will in itself constitute deferred
classification.
VILLAGE ANO PRISONERS
CAPTURED BY AMERICANS
Paris (Havas Agency). American
troops have captured the village of
Fisraet. on the north bank of the
Vesle rivr, a short distance north
wt of Fmes.
Th official communication says th;
British and French troops continued
their advance and won rew victoria
French trcops took 4.000 prisoner
tesi'Jes a lare quantity of war mat:
rials.
TO PROMOTE AGRICULTURE AS
A PURELY BUSINESS
PROPOSITION.
STATE BANKERS TO ASSIST
Movement Expected Soon to Cove
the Entire State of North Caro
lina. Resulting from the speech by Carl
J. Baer, of Chicago, before & gather
ing of Charlotte men at a luncheon at
the chamber of commerce may be a
campaign for the promotion of agri
culture from a business standpoint
to be inaugurated here and broadened
to include the entire state.
Tenatlve plana for such a oampaign
have been made. The Charlotte cham
ber of commerce, which will foster
the local efforts and the state cam
paign, with the co-operation of the
North Carolina Bankers' Asoclatlon
and the state commercial secretaries,
will endeavor to get Mr. Baer to re
turn here probably in September r
October to direct the activities.
'it is considered that the time is ripe
for a state-wide campaign. The
state bankers have expressed aa
earnest desire for such a campaign
and the commercial or sanitations
throughout North Carolina would be
glad to join in such a movement.
James A. Gray, of Winston-Salem,
president of the North Carolina
4 Bankers' Association, has received
communications from 131 bankers la
the state, in reply to letters he wrote
asking if they would aid in a state-wide
agricultural campaign, and each el
the 131 bankers expressed hearty ap
proval of the proposed movement.
At the annual meeting here last
spring of the state commercial secre
taries a resolution was adopted urg
ing that a campaign such as is new
planned be waged, and it was recom
mended that the Bankers' Association
Bupport the campaign.
Mr. Baer, In his address made a stir
ring appeal for greater agricultural
development, that diversified farming:
be undertaken.
New Ideas on Concrete Road.
Charlotte. The suggestion that the
Charlotte to Wilmington highway be
extended Into the "great, rich, rapidly
developing mountain section f south
west Virginia and western North Car
olina extending from Roanoke, Va
to Ashevllle, which Is now traversed
by a single grade road," was made
by H. W. Horton, secreaary of the
Wilkesboro Good Roads Commlssloa,
Wllkesboro, in a letter received by
Col. T. L. Kirkpatrlck. director of the
highways bureau of the chamber of
commerce.
Mr. Horton said the Idea occurred
to Mm that the highway, after reach
ing Charlotte, should be extended.
That section of the country has no
railroad except one from Marlon t
Johnson, Tenn., the letter stated. "So,
as a military enterprise, a cross con
nection between these mountains
would be, In my opinion, of vital Im
portance. Traffic from a large terri
tory embracing east Tennessee, south
west Virginia, most of Kentucky and
beyond, in order to travel into central
North Carolina or reach a port at Wil
mington would have to go either
around by Roanoke, Va., or Morris
town, Tenn., and thence by Ashevllle.
A direct route would cnt out several
hvndred miles of distance and besides
three counties of North Carolina west
of the Blue Ridge have contributed
their wealth to the people of Virginia
and Tennessee because of th fact '
that they could not come across the
Blue Ridge.
Fayetteville Camp Site.
Southern Pines. Surveys indicate
that the new camp in Cumberland and
Hoke counties will Include an area of
above 100.000 acres, and cover the
country from Lakewood. near Fayette
ville, to the Moore county line about
three mllea- west of Southern Pines.
For Norfleet Bridge. -Halifax.
The business mn of
Scotland Neck, went to Halifax In
force and induced the county commis
sioners to appropriate $40,000 and the
county's share of the national high
way fund (t?lj)00). to build a bridge
rver the L'oanoke river near Norfleet.
The route la Norfleet Is said to be
the shortest route from Scotland Neck
to Norfolk and also from Raleigh,
Rocky Mount, Tarboro and Wilson. It
als opropored to bnfld a bridge over
-'he Roanoke at Wmiams'nn,