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fjFTV-NTH YEAR. NO. 59 ( 7 THE ROCK . ISLAND . FirSt f L ARGTJ FJIIDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1909. PJilCE TWO CENTS. RpE UP LEAD SWEPT Ml BROUGHT VICTORY TO FORCES OF ESTRADA ccount of Battle of Shows Both Sides Courageous. SLAUGHTER TERRIBLE i Zelayans Made Last Stand on Rortified Bluff Assailed i from Three Sides. vi shlngton, Dec. 24. A rumor gain ed currency here today that President Madriz of Nicaragua has resigned. Ef forts to trace its source proved un availing, although representatives of Estrada here had word to the same effect. Won at Great Coat. Bluefields. Nicaragua, Dec. 24. An rmy annihilated, but a victory won at heavy cost, summarizes the recent two days' battle between Zt-laya's and Es trada's revolutionary army. Of Ze laya's army of 3,003 but 500 escaped. The killed and wounded on both sides 4 numbered 600 fktroops surrendered. Three Hotchkiss and four Maxims, 2,000 -rifles and 1, 000,000 rounds of ammunition were in cluded in the booty. Tito Generals In Lot. The prisoners include Generals Gon zales and Castrillo. General Vasquez. who "was returning to Rama from Ma nagua when hostilities began, did not reach the scene during the fighting. He wa a few miles distant when the Zelayans were routed and it Is possi ble 500 men escaped with him. Gonzales shares Estrada's quarters, the victor and vanquished eating from THE WEATHER Unsettled weather, with snow to night and Saturday; warmer tonight; colder Saturday. The minimum tem perature tonight will be about 25 de grees. Temperature at 7 a. m., 22; maxi mum in 24 hours, 22; minimum, 19. Precipitation in 24 hours, trace. Wind velocity at 7 a. m., 6 miles. Relative humidity, at 7 p. m. 92, at 7 a. m. 93. J. M. SHERIER, local forecaster. Dec. 24 In American History. 1737 Silas Deane. diplomatist of the Revolutionary era, born; died 1789 1745 Eenjamiu Rush, "signer," colo nial congressman and eminent medical practitioner, born; died 1S13. 1814 Treaty of peace between the United States and Great Britain signed at Ghent, ending the war of 1S12. 1003 Rear Admiral Edwin "White, TJ. -S. N., died; born 1S43. ASTRONOMICAL EVENT3. Pun sets 4:34. rises 7:19; moon sets C:02 a. m.; noon today, sun directly south. insurgents, cheers were heard in the distance and Mena and his scratched and bleeding men emerged from the lunele onto the battlefield. Without and 1.90O government j t - for orders and cheering wildly the reinforcements swept to the rear of the enemy and charged the hill. Advance From All Sides. The movement of Mena served as a signal for a general advance by the three armies of insurgents. The in surgents swept up the hill in the face of a furious fire. Mena was the first to reach the summit. At his heels were his determined soldiers. The defenders, depending on their rlflles only, were unable to repulse the attack. Suddenly abandoning the trenches, the government troops fell th same mess and evidently enjoying j back before Mena s men ana cnargea each other's company. Six Americans j the advancing armies under Cham participated in the battle, operating j crro and Diaz, rapid fire guns, and all escaped injury ah over in 10 Minutes, with the exception of one named Bash- j In 10 minutes it was all over but ford, who received three bullets in the i in those 10 minutes frightful execu leg. , tion was done. Scores were killed Driven to Stronjc Position. QjJfisM f-" ivmvndtxl . ritvaifK-th.e-1- The" first day"s fighting' "had driven i summit of the hill. Hundreds of the i the Zelavans back to Recreo, which enemy threw down their arms and J vas protected by trenches and barbed wire entanglements, making the gov ernment position unexpectedly strong. The tugs Pioneer and Blanca, upon which were mounted Hotchkiss guns half buried in sand, steamed up a creek tributary to the Mico river to Recreo and for hours they shelled the village, the gunners maintaining great ac curacy. Make Frequent Sorties. Zelaya's troops frequently left the trenches and, advancing through the jungles, met the insurgents in hand to hand conflicts with men under Chamorro, Diaz and Matuty. These dashes were followed in each instance by a retreat to the trenches and a for ward movement by the provisionals, who cut the wires with machetes. In these brushes many were killed or iwounded. Genernls Valorous, of Course. Chamorro fought with frenzied vigor, personally using a pistol, and invaria bly killing his man outright. Diaz walked erect amid a hail of bullets, di recting the fire of his men. Chamorro was in active command of the battle, Estrada having merely laid out the general plan. Looked Dark for Insurgents. As evening approached the enemy still held the trenches stubbornly re sisting repeated assaults. The situ- begged for quarter. Snveil Needless S In nc titer. Gonzales saw he was whipped, and to pave needless slaughter signaled sur render. Nineteen hundred prisoners were taken, among them many women who had fought courageously side by side with the men. The Americans es tablished hospital quarters ashore and the wounded of both armies are being cared for by nurses and surgeons from the cruiser Des Moines. Aid Sent hr Cruiser. Washington, Dec. 24. To relieve the starvation of the captured soldiers of the Zelayan army at Rama and furnish much needed aid to the soldiers of both i armies who were injured in the battle near Rama, the United States govern ment today ordered the cruiser Prai rie, now at Colon, to take on board $5,000 worth of staple supplies secured by the funds of the American Red Cross society and proceed with all pos sible haste to Bluefields. Madris Picks Home 47abinet. Washington, Dec. ? -The only bit of news received r... me state depart ment this morning came from Consul Caldera at Managua. The telegram stated Madriz was organizing a cab inet made up of liberals and conserva tives, mostly from Leon, his home city. This is assumed to mean Madriz is en deavoring to carry water on both i I j&-. JiAvi --;': . CjMBliaMaMMini mjajHajBW-s.iiuiiJaaaaiiM HOLY NIGHT. , . , . a .ill. vmv i n u1 DIE IN INTENSE WARM WAVE AND HEAVY RAIN MIDWINTER PHENOMENA IN EUROPE Floods Assume Propor tions of a Catastrophe in Spain. NUMBER OF LIVES LOST Temperature Suddenly Rises to That Usually Experienced in Summer. in study In New York, said he knew Cook Borealis club before even the pole finder left the comfortable cap ital of Denmark. A Danish law student, whose fath er holds high office under the gov ernment of the king at home and who Is at present spending some time that a hustling publicity man of Co penhagen, who, although a Dane, was thoroughly fluent in the use of Eng lish, had written for Dr. Cook in Co penhagen the long account of the jour ney to the pole which appeared in a newspaper in New York and one in Chicago during the month of Septem ber under Cook's name. Got His Pay. He added that he had seen adequate proof that thi3 publicity man was or dered by Cook to write this story, and had been paid for his services by the explorer. This report about the assistance which Cook received in the first liter ary labors would seem to bear out statements appearing In a Belgian newspaper In the month of October. Henry Arcktowskl, who was a com panion of Cook on the Belgian expe dition to the antarctic, is writing In criticisms of Cook's claims to having discovered the pole, stated that the whole Cook propaganda had been the work of a clever publicity agent in Copenhagen. Without this assistance, the critic said. Cook could not have encountered ,he well ordered public demonst ration , phononlen'on nor have been made the recipiont -A . ,f . . , so many private honors. NEAR NEW HORROR Mine Gas Explodes at Herrin, 111., Killinor J3ic Vi -nd Im periling: 400, OPEN LAMPS . THE CAUSE Prompt Action by Management En- able Hundreds to Get to Sur face in Safety. EIGHT ation was unfavorable to the revo-! shoulders with the probability he will IUIIUU13L9. tUAUlUIIU IUU LSlclA llcIU moved on the main fortifications at Recreo and Tatumble hill, and Mena was under orders to cover the lines of retreat from Recreo. Mena had moved up Rama river but his 600 men, weak from a long, hard march, failed to effect the expected juction with the insurgent armies when the assault began. Sends for Reinforcements. Though the enemy fell on every Bide Chamorro discerned that at best he was bat holding his own. and sent a messenger to Mena urging baste with reinforcements. Chamorro had been fought to a standstill and his men were wefl nigh exhausted. Over & field telephone Estrada was Inform ed that the situation was desperate. When Hoar Wu Darkest. Meantime Mena had vceived Chamorro'a message and ironed his men through swamp and jnngle. When the hour was darkest for the meet with a catastrophe. HOW DELIGHTFUL OF THE WEATHER HAN Agrees to Give Us Several Varieties for Christmas Take Your Choice. KANSAS BANK GUARANTY LAW IS KNOCKED OUT Topeka, Kan., Dec. 24. Judge Pol 'ock. In the United States district I court here, today decided the Kansas bank guaranty law invalid. Judge Pollock granted two injuno Uom in ruling out the law. , 1 y y """" " ' "' l . f Washington, Dec. 24. Christmas day weather is to be varied, according to wherever the celebrants happen to be located. In the northwest there will be snow and nipping cold, although there will be no extreme temperature. From the Mississippi river to the Rocky mountains snow will fall in the north, and in the central portion there will be a combination of snow and rain that will quickly turn to slush. Storms are predicted for the upper lake region and the Ohio valley. 484 BALLOTS ARE FUTILE Convention to Nominate Successor to De Armond Deadlocked. i Butler, Mo., Dec. 24. Determined efforts to break the deadlock in the Sixth district democratic convention called to nominate a successor to the late Congressman De Armond met with failure yesterday. Three sessions were held and after the 484th ballot the situation was substantially un changed. There, are four candidates. Charleston, 111., Dec. 24. Putting on the guise of Santa Claus, includ ing a heavy false beard, to amuse the children of Charleston, Miss Clara MeClory drew too near the candles of a Christmas tree, her beard caught fire and today she is in a serious condition from the burns. ElKbt In Knmllr Il. Hillsville. Pa., Dec. 24. The ex ploding of an oil lamp in the home of Santano Cierbo this morning caused the death of at least eight persons, wiping out Cierbo's entire family. The dead are: Santano Cierbo, wife, three children and three board ers. Two other boarders were ser iously burned. The fire was caused by the break- WHISKERS; ONE HOUSE ing of a burning oil lamp in a hall way, which, in some manner dripped from the shelf and exploded. Burn ing oil was scattered over the nar row hallway and before the occu pants knew their danger, they were trapped.- Those who escaped plunged from the windows. The house was completely destroyed. Phone Operator Asleep; Darned. St. Francisville. 111., Dec. 24. Fire this morning destroyed nine bus iness buildings, causing a loss ,of $25,000. Irma Browne, telephone operator asleep in the exchange was perhaps fatally burned. Guy Jor dan, who dashed into the burning building and carried Miss Browne out, was seriously injured. AGAIN COOK'S PROOFS FAIL Explorers' Club of New York Unable to Sustain Mount McKinley Claim. ANOTHER WROTE HIS STORY Said That Danish Press Agent Pen- ned Vivid Tale of Polar "Discovery." DENY THEY DISCRIMINATE Roads Reply to Cliairman of State Board's Charges of Favoritism. Springfield, 111., Dec. 24. Chair man Berry of the site board of rail road and warehouse commissioners is in receipt of telegrams from the general managers of the Chicago and Alton. Illinois Central, Chicago and Eastern Illinois, Chicago, Burlington and Quincy. Wabash, Vandalia and Big Four railroads, in answer to his dispatch to the general managers of the coal carrying railroads of the state sent them yesterday. Mr. Berry's dispatch stated that charges of discrimination on their part in furnishing coal cars to mines in which their companies were in terested and failing to furnish the cars to other mines had been made to the board and requested them to report to him nt once on the matter. Each of the general managers de nied any intent on the part of his railroad to discriminate against any mines, and each declared his com pany was serving all alike, and in specific instances were furnished them by the board they would investigate. FAIL TO REACH AGREEMENT Railroads and Switchmen, However, Will Continue Negotiations. St. Paul, Minn., Dec. 24. At a conference yesterday in the office of Governor Eberhardt. attended by rep resentatives of the railway council jpf the American Federation of Labor, representatives of all the twin-city lines affected by the switchmen's strike, the governor, state railway commissioners and Labor Commis sioner McEwen, propositions were made by the railroads and the switchmen towards a settlement. No agreement was reached, but it was agreed to continue negotiations. New York, Dec. 24. The Explorers' club this afternoon accepted by unani mous vote the report of the committee which Investigated Cook's Mount, Mc Kinley claims, and he was .expelled from membership. New York, Dec. 24. The committee of the Explorers' club, that has been Investigating Cook's claim that he reached the summit of Mount McKin ley, today reported to the board of governors of that club that, after an exhaustive investigation, it failed to find any evidence to support Cook's claim. Another Wrote Story. New York. Dec. 24. Captain Loose, the competent navigator, who made affidavit a few weeks ago that he took Dr. Cook from Bronxville to th? pole and back again without causing tne explorer the discomfort even of putting his foot outside thfc door of the Gramatan inn, cannot, claim priority to the discovery of Dr. Cook. .A young Danish Journalist and publicity man saw him first, accord ing to information developed yester day, and embarked on a literary and scientific jot under the flag of the L-Jicrxln... JIL.. X)ec24--EishX. men were killed and the lives of 400 others were imperiled by an explosion of gas in mine "A" of the Chicago & Carter ville Coal company late yesterday. Open lamps carried by the mine's engineer and his assistants caused the disaster. There were three men and a boy in this party and all lost their lives. Prompt action by the management of the mine resulted in the safe exit of the hundreds of men who were at work below ground. Within five min utes of the first reports of the explo sion the miners in the immediate vi cinity of the accident were started to ward the surface and on the return trips of the cages rescuers were low ered to entries Nos. 7 and 8 west, where the catastrophe took place. List of the Dead. The dead are: EUGENE BARRETT, assistant en gineer. SALVATORE GREECO, miner. THOMAS HARBER. miner. W. T. PIERCE, mine engineer, PIETRO ROMEO, laborer. GEORGE SNYDER, miner. THOMAS WILLIAMS, assistant man ager. Other Oodles Found. Herrin. 111., Dec. 24. The bodies of W. T. . Pierce and his party, whose open lamps caused the gas explosion in the colliery last night, eight deaths resulting, were recovered this morning. The bodies found are those of Pierce, his two helpers, Eugene Barrett and Gordon Schaffer, and Thomas Wil liams, one of the assistant managers of the mine. Madrid Dec. 21. Heavy rair-a near the Portugese frontier have caused floods, the destruction of which has assumed the proportions of a catastrophe. At Ciudad Rodrigo at least 11 persons were drowned and hundreds are homeless. Fifty houses collapsed and many others are submerged. In the valley of the Tormes, bridges were swppt away, roadbeds washed out, cattle kiiied end crops ruined. Warm Ware General. Ixndon, Dec. 21. A meteorological it is alleged, has not been known in 150 years. Is being experienced in parts of western and southern Europe. The temperature has risen with astonishing suMenneis, under the influence of a southern wind, to a summer level. The contrast has been most marked in Spain, France, and Switzerland, but has betn great farther north. Concurrently with a gale In Oreat Britain Wednesday the mercury in London rose In the course of a few hours from 27 to 55 degrees. Even last night the temperature was above 50 degrees. In Paris the thermometer registered GO degrees. Farther south 70 degrees is common. This temperature is universal in Switz erland, where the ice and snow are melting with summer speed, causiDg floods which threaten .to be serious. Show" has disappeared from the moun tains to a height of 4,ooo feet, stopping skiing, tobogganing, and other winter sports. Gaeafa "welter la Hotels. The guests at the hotels are swelter ing in their winter clothing, glad to. doff their coats outdoors. In Madrid the temperature Is 73. The change in the weather has been accompanied In many parts by exces sive rains, causing destructive floods. A gale wrecked the Italian legation at Lisbon, destroying the minister's val uable collection of works of art. LORIItlER TRYING TO OUST NORTHCOTT Would Make Place as District Attor ney for Ex-Gnt'ernor Yates Who Is Jobless. ' LEAVE IT TO CANNON TO PLAN VINDICATION OF BALLINGER BY TAV. (Special Correspondence of The Argus.) Washington, Dec. 22. That any committee appointed by "Uncle Joe" to investigate the Ballinger-Pinchot controversy include at least one pro gressive republican who is publicly known to be in sympathy with the honest administration of the gener.il land office, will be demanded by friends of Mr. Pinchot. That the proceedings be public, will be contended for as equally, if not still more Important. - ' No Assnranee. Other-wise. Otherwise, it Is being "pointed out, the public will have no assurance that an investigation of the alleged mlscon- duct of the land office will not be a repetition of the "congressional inves tigation" of the Lilley submarine boat scandal. The investigation of the Lil ley charges that the government had been made to pay more than $1,000,000 in excessive charges for submarine boats "waa made by a committee espe cially selected by Speaker Cannon, which makes it hardly necessary to add that the "investigation" was a farce . throughout, and ended with a "whitewash." . , . Worthy of Xotloev Tbef action of the republican leaders In reversing their attitude as to the appointment of a committee of. inves tigation in the Balllnger case is not TT surprising to close students of the sit uation. This is probably due to the fact that the charges against the con duct of the general land office have not been anonymous, but on the other hand have been made by men of un questionable standing whose efforts to protect the government against fraud have earned them the bitter hostility of public land thieves. Nor are the men ' who make the charges against Mr. Ballinger's administration of the land office civilians unacquainted with the government's side of the case. Some of Mr. Ballinger's accusers hold positions with the government which T (Continued on Page Eight.) Washington. D. C. Dec. 24. Sen ator Lorimer of Illinois is "'moving heaven and earth" to obtain for hit friend, Richard Yates, the appoint ment of district attorney at Spring field, for which office William A. .N'orthcott was renominated last Mon day by President Taft. This was cne of the three Illincis reappointments sent to the senate by the president without the express ap proval of both senators, and 'which DAUGHTER OF MARK TWAIN DIES IN BATH Redding. Conn., Dec. 24. Miss Jean Clemens, daughter of Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain) was found drowned in a bath tub in the Clemens home here today. It is believed Miss Clemens suffered from an attack of epilepsy while in the bath and was drowned while in a convulsion. She had suffered from epilepsy a number of years. Mr. Clemens, announcing his daughter's death, stated she had been an epileptic and that, not com ing to breakfast, a maid went to hr room and found her drowned in the bath tub. HARRIMAN VALUE SHORT Recent Appraisal of KMate Was fF.'O, OOO.OOO Too low. New York, Dee. 24. Edward H. Har riman was really worth af the time of his death more than $200.otfl,oii, h1 t'jough a recent appraisal of nis estate placed its value at $149,fK(.Oif). Th discrepancy between the ariual and the appraised value of the Harritn.au estate, it was learned on trustworthy authority, is due to the f;ict th.it Fhortly before his death Mr. Harrim.m transferred to his wife and hi eldest Bon securities valued at more than $50.0NVrf)fl. Since Mr. Harriman's dath bin es tate has profited by a rise in market values and it is stated that the wealth of Mrs. Harriman may be conserva tively estimated nt $22').0!;'miO. which makes her probably the richest woman. In th3 world. Bryan III, But Improving. Jacksonville. Fla.. Dec. 24. The con- Attorney General Wickersbam has of- dition of W. J. Bryan, who was taken fered to withdraw if Senator Lorimer i ill here yesterday, was no greatly lm insists. t proved this morning he will leave If the appointments are withdrawn j during the afternoon for Miami. when congress reassembles it will be j because the Junior senator cannot re concile himself to allowing Northrott to retain the job which Richard Yates covets. This information was obtained from a source of Indisput able authority. Keeps Leopold's Cabinet. Brussels, Dec. 24. King Albert has asked members of the cabinet to retain their portfolios. A NEW OPERATION FACES ALFONSO Paris. Dec. 21. Gil Bias today print3 a private communication from Madrid stating the condition of King A'.frmnn has created the kmm' anity lu court cireJ."ABotncr operation U ira- ' prratlre. it t