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"J?rV ' v Y" "r THE WASHINGTON HERALD I The Herald has the largest WEAIHKK -OEEOAST. Clearing to-day, probably pre ceded by snow in early morning. rooming- home circulation, arid prints all the news of the world each day, in addition to many exclusive features. WASHINGTON, D. 0.. MONDAY. JANUAKY 15. 1912. ONE CENT. NO. 1927. "-, $-7,J'aT' T""T 01 THE HOUSE Three Deaths in Twenty-foni Days Under Koof of Bra?e Policeman Much. TELLS UNCANNY TALE 713" I Street Has a Series of Happenings Almost Unique. .Owner Hot Superstitous. Denvlng superstitious beliefs and plac ing no credence in the supernatural. Policeman Joseph E. Much, of the Third precinct, & survivor of the disaster to the battle ship Maine and possessor of three gold medals awarded by Congress for conspicuous bravery In the Spanish' American war, last nleht related to a re porter for The Washington Herald the strange and almost uncanny story of the death of three of his relatives In the same house within twenty-four days. "13" a a Hoodoo. Di spite his declaration that he Is not eupeislitlous. Policeman Much pointed o t the fact that the number "13." vaunted as a hoodoo by the superstitious and supposed to always be accompanied b) evil, figures twice in the death of three of his relatives, and then, with a note of hopelessness In his voice, he said that the Grim Reaper seems to be hover ing oer the bed of bis wife, who critically ill of nervous prostration as a consequence of the three deaths at short- Is separated. Intervals In her family There was an Interval of thirteen days between the first two deaths, according to Policeman Much, and, though he does not ascribe the demise of his lelatives to anv 111 luck which may hang over his home, he called attention to the number of the house In which all of the deaths oicurred, 713 I street southeast. Police man Much, while protesting thet he did not believe the "13 in the number of the house has any significance, declared he Intended to move to another house n ithin a fortnight. Funeral Held To-day, t uneral services for Mrs. Geneva Thomasson, the last of the three to die, will be held at 1 o clock this afternoon from -713 I street. The body will be placed In the grave of her husband. Po liceman Marlon L. Thomasson. who died on January - His body rests In Con gressional Cemetery beside the grave of his wife's slstef, Mrs. Maud Haas, whose death occurred on December SX. Mr. and Mrs. Thomasson and Mrs. Haas died from different causes and were attended by different physicians. Ill UiUr -visited Policeman 'Much when he first moved In the nouse five months Bgo His daughter grew 111 and was at the point of death for weeks. She was at tended by tlentj-rhe specialists before she regained her health partially The child Is still In a frail condition, though she la able to attend school. Shortly after the child became III. Mrs. Maud Haas, thirty-four years old, a sis ter of Mrs. Much, grew seriously HI or cancer Just before Mrs. Haas died on December 10. her sister, Mrs. Thomasson, became ill of typhoid fever Mrs. Thomas son was In a critical cunaitlon when Mrs. Haas died, but she pleaded with physi cians to be removed- to the cemetery In an ambulance to see tne body of Mrs. Haas lowered to the grave. Flshta on Christmas. hrlstirths Day, Just five days after Mrs Haas died. Policeman Thomaeaon had a fight with three colored men while making an arrest, and in addition to breaking a finger. Is believed to have Injured himself Internally While at breakfast on New Tear's Day with Po liceman Much. Mr Thomasson grew sud denly III He was removed to Providence Hospital and an operation performed. Mr Thomasson died January 1 of a broken blood vessel of the stomach. Mrs. Thomasson seemed to be recover ing until the death of her husband, but from the time she was told she would never see him alive again she grew worse She was carried downstairs In tli arms of Bollccman Much and al lowed to gaze upon the face of the man to whom she had been married only elghte months Eleven dajs ter her husband died, Mrs Thomasson succumb ed to Internal abscesses Mrs Haas and Mrs Thomasson were Miss Maud and Miss Geneva Taylor. daughters of Stafford Taylor, yardmas- ter for the Washington Terminal Com pany Mrs Much, before her marriage. was Miss Edith Taj lor The deaths of her two sisters and the husband of one of her sisters -nere such a strain that Mrs. Much br-"-- down and Is now un. der the constant care of physicians. Much Telia Story, Policeman Much, telling of the strange sequence of death In his household, said: T do not believe my wife will recover unless she will consent to take a com' olete rest In the country until the sprlnr. The sorrow and excitement of the last month has sapped her vitality and left her a nervous wreck. 1 do not Indulge In superstitious beliefs, but I admit I am unable to explain the unusual fact of three deaths In one home In twenty-four dayC "There Is ono Inddentwhlcbr the super stitious might regard as significant, but Z have not attached any importance to It. "When the body of Mrs. Haas was being removed from the house, Mr. Thomasson aided the pallbearers to as sist in carrying the coffin down the steps. His watch chain caught In a handle of the coffin, and after the funeral he noticed the timepiece bad stopped at 1.15 o'clock. That was In the afternoon. His wife died about three weeks later in the afternoon exactly at 2.15 o clock." HEAEST WINS DT IIBEL SUIT. i Demurrer In Haskell Case Sustained by Jndce Mnnrer, of Omaha. Omaha. Jan. It. William "Randolph Hearst has won first blood in the suit for $00,000 which ex-Gov. Haskell, of Oklahoma, filed against him on a charge of criminal libel as the cu'growth of thj campaign of 1908 and of -charges made by Hearst against Haskell. In Federal Court here Judge Munger sustained Mr. Hearst's demurrer to Haskell's first cause of action, which was for 1100,000. and was' based on a speech delivered by Mr. Hearst at Memphis on September IS, 1S0S, during the heat of the campaign for the Presi dency. The demurrer was on the ground that the count did not allege facts suffi cient to constitute a cause of -action, the remarks charged to Mr. Hearst not being -slanderous, even If made as charged. SPANISH MINISTRY QUITS AFTER CLASH Madrid, Jan. It The Spanish cabinet! resigned following King Alfonso s action In granting reprieves to all of the seven men sentenced to death tat the murder of a magistrate and three other officials during the strike riots In Ounera last September. King Alfonso decided some time ago to grant reprieves to six of the prisoners, but Premier Canalejas urged him not to interfere with the sentence of Cbato Chuqueta, who, he urged, should be ex ecuted as an example. When the Barcelona radicals declared they would call a strike If Chuqueta was executed, Canalejas admitted that he bad made a blunder, and advised the King to grant the reprieve. The King granted the reprieve, and Canalejas handed In his resignation. SCHUMANN-HEINK TO ASK DIVORCE St. Louis, Mo., Jan. It Mme. Schumann-Heinle, the noted opera singer. known In private life as Mrs. 'William Rapp, wife of a former Chicago news paper man. Is preparing to sue for di vorce Mme. Schumann-Helnk and her husband, who is twelve years her Junior. have been separated some time, but up to to-night there has been no state ment of an Intended divorce. The great contralto to-night admitted the separa tion and said the divorce petition would be filed soon. The marriage of the singer, who has eight children, tc man twelve years her Junior and one not In the professional world, has not proved a happy one. ENGINES DAMAGED IN TUNNEL CLASH Passengers on Chesapeake and Ohio Train in a Panic. Panic reigned among scores of passen gers on Chesapeake and Ohio train : 305 jesterday afternoon when the two engines drawing the coaches collided with a Southern engine In the tunnel under Union Station, badly damaging the engines, blocking north and south bound traffic for more than an hour, and creating- excitement amongrallroad officials. fo one was Injured, passengers soon were calmed by the train crew, and in short time the coaches were drawn from the tunnel by a sniffing engine, while a wrecking crew righted the dam aged engines and later cleared tl track so that trains already late because of the abnormal weather conditions were al lowed to pass. The Chesapeake and Ohio train, con sisting of four sleepers and three coaches and drawn by two engines, left the sta tion at 4 o clock. A Southern engine was backing out of the tunnel, and because of the smoke and fog It Is believed the engineer passed a "red." As the Southern engine was passing over a switch about ISO yards, from the mouth of the tunnel the two engines on the Chesapeake and Ohio train collided with It. the -locomotlv es scraping against each other with a terrific noise and "locking." coming to a sudden standstill. but remaining on the tracks. In the con fusion which followed the tram crew experienced difficulty In controlling the passengers, some of whom wanted to break windows and Jump from the cars AMBULANCE LOSES RACE WITH DEATH race between death and the ambu lance of Casualtj Hospital ended In vic tory for the former last night before the course had been half completed, when eight! -one-) car-old Hiram Harrover. a policeman In the early dais of Washing ton, expired In the vehicle after leaving his home. K8 Thirteenth street north east. Had it been possible to get the aged man to the hospital, where stimu lants could have been administered, life probably would have been prolonged Harrover sufferea a fainting spell early yesterday evening Medicine administered to him "by relatives, stimulants that had always proven their worth In resusci tating him In previous spells, proved of no avalL The elgl t -one years had told on the old man and he gradually grew weaker. Then It was decided to send him to the hospital. "I'm getting old, and It's near my time, doctor," the aged patient told Dr. Teaser, who bundled a blanket about him. In the ambulance. The physician did not answer him. "Hurry the horse'" he called to the driver, as he felt the old man's pulse. The ambulance horse had struck out with full speed over the snow covered ground for nearly two blocks, when the driver heard the doctor say the race was over. Coroner Nevltt gave a certificate of death from old age, super Induced by heart trouble. NEARLY FREEZES WHEN OVERCOME Timely arrival of aid probably saved Theodore Nix, thirty-five years old, of si K. street northwest, from freezing to death last night, when, unconscious from the fumes or gasoline, he dropped to the noor or a staoie in the rear-C sou sixth street northwest, where he keeps tils automobile. Policeman TVatts, of the fifth precinct, who lives near the garage used by Nix, round tre automo blllat lying prostrate on the floor of the stable shortly after S30 o'clock. Kurorts to arouse the man -proved futile, 'The Casualty Hospital ambulance was summoned and Nix was removed to that Institution, There he gradually recov ered his senses after receiving treatment. and. according to the physicians who -..-..I. 1.1m will ,m.....l...l.. T from the effects of his experience it jna sequent developments prove that- he mt not suffer too greatly from the axpoama and cold. Nix, accordlnr to the - he told the doctors, was repairing a pteoe or mecnanism on nis auiomooilc When be suddenly grew faint 'from the fame of the gasoline In the tank of the machine nnd dropped unconscious before ha could summon help. , MERCURY TORES Cheerful Prediction Comes from Weather Factory Ron by Uncle Sam. COLD AND STILL -MORE l Lowest Temperature Thus Tar Ee corded in History of Washing ton Is Forecast for To-day. Temperatures at Weather Bureau. 1 a, su 6 below 3 a, n. P below 3 a, zo 11 below 4 a, m.. 13 below (I a, m. 13 belew 6 a, m 13 belew 7 au nu. 12 below 8 a, m It below 0 a. so. B below 10 a. m 3 above 11 a. nit 6 above 13 m 9 above I p. m 10 above 3 p. ok. IS above 3 p. bl. 18 above 4 p. m SO above 5 p, m., IB above 6 p. nu. 19 above 7 p. m. 18 above A p, m.. 17 above O p. nu 10 above 10 p. m IS above 11 p, m IS above 13 p. nu, IS above To-day ulll witness the lowest tem perature In the history of Washington, If the expectations of the forecast experts at the Weather Bureau materialize. Yesterday was the coldest day in Wash ington in thirteen years, the mercury dropping with unprecedented rapidity In this city to a minimum of U degree be W zero. Despite this remarkably low mark, tne forecasters In a late bulletin last night predicted that to-day will be colder than yesterday. To-morrow, the forecast continues In the unsentimental language of a govern ment report, will be colder than to-day, but the prognostleators hesitate to esti mate to Just what depth the mercury will sink. Get Spirit Tabes. Suffice to say that if the prediction Is accurate, few thermometers In Washing ton will record the minimum, "Is with few exceptions all mercury tubes hereabouts were not manufactured for the purpose of recording arctic temperatures. That big drop, the attainment of the lowest mark In the history of the city. Is predicted to arrive to-night, when a slump in the mercury, such as has not been recorded since the Weather Bu reau began Its work twenty-seven years ago. Is expected. Snow may mark the early morning, followed by a clearing of the atmosphere, the prediction relates, and to-morrow, the coldest day of all. will be fair, Uncle Sam's high-salaried experts declare. No end of the cold wave has as yet been predicted. MUlmnm, Thirteen Deare. The minimum temperature yesterday, IS degrees below zero, was recorded at o'clock In the morning After that hour the mercury climbed rapidly, until at 4 o'clock in the afternoon the maximum of the day, at degrees above zero, was reached. After thin the quicksilver slid down, until at I o'clock this morning It was 1 degrees above Yesterday's minimum of 13 below and maximum of SO above, compared to minimum of 41 above and a maximum of (5 on the same day a year ago, gives an Idea of lust exactly how 3ld it was In this little village yesterday. If yester day's minimum of 13 below u to be rivaled by a lower temperature to-day, as predicted, the mercury must needs do 'some dropping. Abnormal weather conditions yesterday caused much suffering among the poor. So great was demand for aid that no less a person than Corcoran Thorn, vice presi dent of the American Security and Trust Company and president or the Associated Charities, visited hovels and shacks, car rying relief to freezing, suffering, and starving unfortunates. Plenty of Skatlnr. Record temperatures did not deter ice- skating enthusiasts, and hundreds of men. women, boys, and girls visited the nat ural Ice rinks In and about the city. Skating was somewhat marred by the snow, but this Impediment only slightly reduced the throngs which took advan tage of an opportunity seldom ottered this far south. Probably the lowest official tempera ture ever recorded in the instnct was reached at the Zoological Park yester day morning shortly before t o'clock, when the top of the mercury was level with the line Indicating 3 degrees be low zero. In February. 1SS9, during the blizzard. official registers at the Weather Bureau marked down 15 de- rrnr below zero, the lowest tempera ture recorded at the bureau since rec ords have been kept there. Twenty-live Below at llarrlsonbnrs;. Harrlsonburzg, Vs., Jan. It The gov ernment thermometer at 1 o'clock this morning stood at S degrees below zero, the lowest on record In this part of the valley. ,Half a dozen ranges exploded In the community and several persons had narrow-, escapes. The range at the home of Rev. J. J. Jackson, the Episcopal rector, was shattered; Walter Pence's kitchen apparatus was blown through a window, and several other homes are flooded with water from lesser blow-ups. G00D-BY, MINCE PJE! Cambridge, Mass, Jan. 14. Mince pie Is tottering on Its last legs In the land of Its birth. New England. WeUesley College, re cently barred the pastry, except on Thanksgiving and Christmas; Simmons College now allows It to appear bnt once a year, and an edict has just gone forth from the faculty of Mount Holyoke banishing the ancient dessert MM t. Jlnln feallM fArAVftr. T!A ceneral charges against mince HH Close agamsi mo i a", r """ general cnargea "J""" JrJ"' $ raised as though supplicating help, and pie are that It la hard to digest, -f 1 "eu ""L v . flames, havlnjr Is bad for the Complexion, and has -a tendencyto make the ltu dents sluggish. Driven Oat by Fire Baltimore. Jan. It. A fire that started In the cellar of the Hotel Theodore early to-day drove scores of guests, clad In the flimsiest garments, to tne snow-covered streets. Two alarms were turned In and the firemen succeeded In rescuing those pinned in tie winaows ny the dense smoke and in extinguishing the blaze without injury to the,gUesU and with UWe-. draace to tjw aU&sv I;... rr. SIX ARE KILLED AT GRADE GROSSING Party on Way to Church in Early Morning Is Hit by a Pennsyl vania Flyer. Philadelphia, Jan. 14. Five women and one man, all servants In the homes of the wealthy BIddle and Masaey families, were killed to-day when the carriage In which they were riding to church was struck by a Chicago to New York tiler, on the Pennsylvania, at the Linden ave nue grade crossing at Torresdale, twelve miles from this city The dead: MAST BODDT. traty jwrs old. NELLIE O'CONNOR. ttlortMB. BRIDGET iULLOCK. forty-tvo. aovxs OEBftrrr. tratr-oo. BOSB OALLAOUKK. rlsfctfen. CUABLE3 DAV ISON. twrotr. . Davison, acoachman for tbettlddles, was taking- the women to St. DomInlcks Church, at Holmesburg. to attend early mass. They reached the Linden avenue crossing at 7:3) o'clock. Davison wait ed for a freight train to pass, and then started the horses across the track be hind the last car. The next moment the pilot of the loco motive of the onrusblng express hit the carriage squarely, tossing It high In the air and throwing Its occupants ahead on the track. The women landed fn a heap, and before the train was brought to a stop all but the the last car had passed over their bodies, mangling them horribly. Davison, who was sitting on the front seat, was killed Instantly by the Impact and hurled to one side of the' tracks. The accl'dent caused a seml-panlc among the passengers on the express. Several women fainted and others went In hys terics, and the services of two physicians were required The engineer and fireman were the first to reach the six bodies, and summoning the other members of the crew they placed them aboard the bag gage car and took them to Tachny sta tion. The carriage was found stuck to the cowcatcher of the engine. The horse was unhurt. The coroner and the county officials began an" Investigation to-night of the al legation that there was no watchman at the crossing. The gates were up wnue the frelghttraln was passing, and Davi son had no warning tnat a train was coming on the other track, it was still too dark to see distinctly, and the noise of the oncoming train was drowned by the rumble of the aeparong ireigni. TWO MORE BODIES FOUND AMD RUINS New York. Jan. 14. The bodies of two more fire victims were discovered In to day's search among, the ice-covered ruins of the Equitable Life Assurance Society's building The bodies were those of Will iam Campion and Frank- Nleder, watch men for the Mercantile Trust uompanv Camnlon'a "body was uncovered after the firemen. In constant danger irom toppling debris, had cut through over thirty feet of ice. The body was press. been enveloped In ice omb "o are r-hH ih Mercantile vaultst Nleder's body la abut fifty feet from the body of Campion, but the inierreu."B ; o masonry -made Its removal Impossible until to-morrow; An expert admitted to the vaults of the Equitable Life Assurance Society, which contain rSWOM" t securities, pronounced tlum to be unharmed. No attempt will be made to open these stronr rooms, however. uotlF they are thorough ly cooled. -"r Florida Superior ervlce A'" " Coast Line" "N. Y. & Florida flpedal" leaves t3S v. TO. ltd. trato dally. Superior; roswa 1B9 Neat Ate, rw. STILL PROWLING AROUND. COLORADO I0HAN ODT FOR SENATE Candidacy of Mrs. Sarah Piatt Decker Announced in Capital Think Chance Is Good. Mrs. Sarah Platt-Deoker. of Denver, is a candidate for United States Senator from Colorado. Official news of her boom reached Washington yesterday, accord ing to her friends who are now in the Capital In the Interest cf her candidacy A campaign will be started to educate the people of Colorado to the importance of sending to the benato a woman of acknowledged high ability and pure mo tives. Under the operation of the primary law In Colorado It will be possible to place ura. uecxers name on the official ballot for the general election of 1312 without looking to party bosses to give her their indorsement- She can stand either as the choice of the women for the highest of fice within the giving of the people of the State or as a party candidate. The Democratlo party is spilt over the question of a successor to Charles J. Hughes. So hopeless Is the breach that the time has passed for any "get to gether" movement to be effective. The unexpired term of Senator Hugnes will De filled by some one who Is the second choice of the people. The real contest will be for the long term, succeeding senator Guggenheim. The primary law will." be operative In the next campaign, and every man and woman on the registration list In every town and hamlet In the State will have a chance to express a choice. Senator Simon Guggenheim has an nounced that his public life will end with the expiration of his term In March. 1313. The Republicans are divided no less than the Democrats. Therefore, Mrs. Decker's friends ty her chances are more than good. PASSENGERS TELL HARROWING TALE Chicago, Jan. It With forty members of the crew of fifty suffering from froz en noses, ears, and fingers, the steam ship Indiana, of the Goodrich Transpor tation Company, docked to-night at 7 o'clock, after 'being frozen four days In Hake Michigan, three miles off Edge water. The nine passengers declare that they did not expect to reach port alive and told, a story of suffering rivaling the suffering endured In the arctic re gion. MTOWTTISGLAD .TO BE BACK HOME tVllkeibarre, Jan. it 'Tm back and I'm broke, "but Ive had. my filng and I'm satisfied. Take It from me, there's nothing to this high, living. I hope my taste for prunes Isn't forever spoiled." John Jav MrTJ lit. .nllllnnnlr onrf high roller for a day. Is 'plain McDevitt again. He Is back In Wllkesbarre much wiser and much poorer,. The man from Wllkesbarre who went over to New York on a -special train last Friday to spend his money In ascertaining the sensations attending the day as a millionaire re turned to-day. He traveled to New Tork in a Pullman and waa accompanied by several newspaper men, his valet, and his Physician. AU were dismissed Immediately upon arrival" here to-day. McDevitt reached In bis pocket and dug up rLta. "Here, porter." ie aald as he left the train, "this Is the last cent I have, but I am back to earth again and, home In the good old town, and I'm glad to be here." Te "Vest Poctcc Essay" Will He Fom . Jaxe Three To-fsiys. J SOCIALISTS SHOW PREDICTED GAINS WU1 Hare Fully 100 Seats in Next Beichstag Is the Present Indication. Berlin. Jan. It Complete returns of the general elections, together with the pros pects for additional victories In the re- ballottlng. make It almost certain that the Socialists will have, more than 100 seats In the next Reichstag, thevnumber which they predicted they would win during the campaign The Socialists won sixty-four seats, and It la conceded that they will capture that many In the reballottlng. Herr Lleb knecht. the most radical Socialist In German), stands an excellent chance of being elected to represent Potsdam, the Emperor's summer residence town. The Socialist gains were the heaviest In the urban constituencies. The result of the election was a great disappointment to the Emperor, who had expressed his confidence on the eve of the ballottlng that the people would give nun a Reichstag that would enable him to carry out In detail his plans for In creasing the armaments According to the London Dally Express correspondent, he expressed himself bitterly while'lunch Ing with the American Ambassador. John G A. Irishman. The great Socialist victory was won al most entirely at the expense of the lib erals, who are already active in bargain ing with the other parties to keep the Socialist gains as low as possible on the reballottlng AH the Liberal and Liberal National papers are calling upon the party leaders to unite with the blue black block In the next Reichstag against tho red forces. 3R0CK-A-BYE.BABY," ON THE DON'T LIST Chicago, IIL, Jan. It City nurses who took charge of the "Little Mothers'" classes In thirty-two public schools In Chicago have just decreed that the "Rock-a-bye stuff" must be barred In the care of Infants "Even If a baby does gurgle with de light, don't excite It." said the nurses In a uniform lecture all over the city. Don't throw baby over the shoulder like a sack of flour "Don't lav baby face downward acmas vouV knees and beat a drum call on Its back. "Don't rock baby to sleep af night." Playing with their toes was recom mended as healthy sport for the young sters. Washable dolls were used In nearly all the .schools in demonstration In dressing and bathing, but in one school a real live baby was obtained from a nursery. ROBBER SELECTS ONLY DIAMONDS A thief with a lust for diamonds and an apparent 'disgust for 'other gems and valuables entered t he residence of Miss Mary drier, at tX Seventeenth street northwest, yesterday and robbed a Jewel box In a third-floor "room of S0 worth of her favorite gems. The thief obtained rne solitaire diamond ring, valued at JliO, a ting containing- .several smaller diamonds, valued at H60. and a number of less valuable little' brothers and sis ters of the "Hope" gem. Detectives Emorey and Messer were assigned, to the case., and on Investiga tion were puzzled at the neglect ot the robber to nppropiiate other valuable Jew elry and slUerware. No clew to the Identity of the thief could be obtained by the detectives, but renewed effort to run few th robber win b. $34 tp-6yt HITCHCOCK ASKS p. iwm Would Haye the Government) Takeover All Wirelines of the Country. TAFT NOT IN ACC0J Postmaster General Springs Baring Scheme Which Proves Surprise to Official Washington, Postmaster General Hitchcock an nonneed last night that he will reoom mend to Congress that the goveramenS acquire all telegraph lines of the country to be operated by the PosKfflce Depart men. He has dug up a statute enacted by Congress forty years ago. under which, he contends, the government ean take over the wire serylcoof the country and conduct It as an adjunct of the Post office Department. It Is estimated, unoffl daily, that this gigantic nndertaktnat would cost Uncle Earn about StCO.000.000. f Surprise to Waablnarton. To say that the Postmaster GeneraTa announcement was a surprise to official Washington 's putting It mildly. The most Interesting thing about It. though. Is that It apparently was a great surprise slso to President Taft. The White House was Informed early In the evenlnar ot the statement that the Postmaster General had Issued, but up to a lata hour last night there had been no offi cial Intimation that the President had authorized his Postmaster General to make such a recommendation. Clrcura stances pointed to the fact that the White House was considerably concerned over the statement which Mr. mtoheock had put out. Recently reports have- been circulated from sources that cannot be Ignored that the President and his Postmaster General are not In as close accord, especially oa politics, as they once were. On at least one occasion recently, Mr. Hltfhcock was accused of taking a stand against the wishes of the President. This waa at the meeting ot the Republican National Committee, when the Postmaster Gen eral was charged with supporting South ern Republicans in their opposition to the naming of Harry New as the chair man of the committee on arrangements. lliy Be EnibarraastoaT. If Mr. Hitchcock's statement In regard to the government ownership of tele graph companies has been Issued, a seemed likely last night, without! the in dorsement of the President.' It may lead to a further embarrassment. The first thing that members of Congress wantsd to know last night when they heard at Mr. Hitchcock's statement, waa whether President Taft was advocating govern ment ownership. These men will ton-' dlately turn to the President, and he will be obliged to make his views known on the proposition. Mr. Hitchcock says In his statement that the Poit-offlee Department has fa cilities for doing a wire business, and that it would. In his opinion, cheapen the cost to the public of telegrapbla servo lce Under the law to which Mr Hitchcock, refers. Post-office Department officials ap- WABTS UHCLE SAM TO ETJH AIL TELEGRAPH LOTE9 FRANK If. HITCHCOCK. parently believe the only legislation njo essary In order for the government to take over the telegraph tines would be an authorization for an Issuance of bonds. Besides Involving an amount almost as much or more than the Panama Canal will cost when completed, the taking over of the telegraph lines ot the coun try, with their thousands of employes, would mean the establishment ot an other huge political machine. What Il'trheoek Says. The Postmaster General's, statement, in part, folio s: 'Among the recommendations Pott- master General Hitchcock 'will submit to Congress during the present session la one that the telegraph lines be acquired by the government and operated- as a part of the postal service. He believes .that such .a consolidation would result la Important economies arid permit the adoption of lower telegraph rates. Post- offices are maintained In-numerous places not reached by the telegraph systems, and the proposed consolidation would therefore afford a favorable opportunity for the wide extension of telegraph fa cilities. In many small towns where the tele graph companies have offices the tele sranh and mall business could be readily handled by the. same employes. The Sep-. arate maintenance of the two service' under present conditions results In a needless expense. As a matter of fact, the first telegraph. In the United States was operated from 1M4 to 1ST by the government under authority from Con gress, and It is most desirable that the government control be resumed. Method la Prescribed. "A method has been already prescribed! for the taking over of the telegraph line by section fSSi of the Revised Statutes, which provides-that the government may. for postal, military or other purpose) Continued oa Pa -4r flovfcna'-a.-Jk M sHllKildCsrf'iA bIsIsHtMsIB BaaaHKViifHR miiiissiiiB ' r f J3& jaaj-iltky'ar. wt --j-a-a-i.