The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat., April 18, 1918, Image 1

About The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922

Image provided by: State Historical Society of Iowa

                
1
The Telegraph Service of The
Daily Gate City and Constitu
tion-Democrat
is received over
our own leased wire.
VOL. 126. NO. 92.
t'9
SW III FACE
ih are Holding Their Own
French are Pounding Away
Guns.
*.lf frf
SENT BATTLE DECISIVE FOR GERMANY
Certain of Checking Offensive and Put
ting Prussian Army on Defensive and
Exhausted.
French apparently are concentrating the heaviest allied artillery
noe the German drive started, on a fifty-six mile front extending
I point south of the Somme, east of Amiens, to the Oise, in the
of Noyon.
his bombardment, reported in a United Press 'dispatch from Henry
covers every inch of the German positions and the rear areas for
back of their lines. Prisoners say that the cannonading has caused
German casualties and has prevented the enemy from digging in.
he points of the farthest German penetration in Picardy are includ
thia bombardment. It also includes the greater part of the south
leg of the Hindenburg triangle in this region—believed by many mili
critics to represent the most vulnerable part of the German advance,
next few hours are expected to reveal whether this cannonading is
~ratory to a major counter offensive by the allies.
"it the Flanders front, Haig claims to be holding his own. His of
roport today said there was "no change on the British front last
He reported the repulse of a determined enemy assault against
Kemmel from the direction of Wulverghem, and the complete break
of a German attack In the Bailleul sector to the southwest of Mont
Ha]g also reported heavy artillery fighting on the southern edge oV
"landers salient and the repulse of local attacks there. He empha
tfcs heavy OectheJT losses in the fighting abound Nieppe wood and
tote yesterday.
ho British withdrawal east of Ypres on Tuesday Is not dearly eut
Apparently Haig moved his lines back an average of about three
It would appear that they now run from about Zlllebeke, a mile an
«ast and south of Ypres, northward to a point just west of Lange
which Hindenburg claims to occupy.
The retirement must have necessitated a simllar slight retreat by the
"ns whose lines, according to an official communique, joined Haig's at
Thou rout railway, which runs northeastward through Langemarck.
Belgian report said a German attaok between this railway and Le
•rt pond was repulsed. This indicates an extension of the Fland
jhtlng to a point eight miles north of Ypres and less than three
«®uth of Olxmude. This city is less than ten miles south of the
where the west front touches the North sea.
i. W. T. Mason, wrftten for the
United Prees.]
W YORK, April 18.—Further
nlng of the British front today
"e* General Foch's reluctan-e to
up a large pait of his reserves in
*ive fighting to prot^i Ypres
Huebrouck.
Von Hindenburg's bloody effort
eh the channel ports can be
anentiy checked without disturb
the allies' reserves, the Germans
have met one of the most serious
~t« of the war.
will mean that Hindenburg has
to compel Foeh to accept the
an conditions for an allied of
ve. This unquestionably Is the
'n why Foch is showing such
•tent refusal to employ his re
along the northern end of the
front.
I* unreasonable to expect Foch
v«Jop at this time so overwheim
counter offensive as would force
Germans back to the positions
occupied before the present
began. When the Germans
their advance four weeks ago
were fresh and had spent all
•r preparing their plans and ac
litlng vast stores of munitions,
allies are now weakened because
elf defensive fighting and have
•way a large part of their re
ammunition.
Foch to use his reserves now
offensive purposes would be to:
pt to drive the Germans back f°rce«i iuw
the allies have probably ^not
than fifty par oent of
mum offensive efficiency. To
the offensive about Ypres and
rouck would mean fof Foch ae
a price in casualties for meag
1ns as Hindenburg Is now pay
Thls would suit Hindenburg ad
'y- He could then turn to the
people and declare that the
reserves had been enticed into
NCHING OF
With the Kaiser.
Br.
Today While
With Big
battle at the farthest point away from
German territory, and at a time when
the allies' efficiency was far from its!
potential maximum. I
Hindenburg recently said a battle,
is a living thing that takes time to
develop. Foch understands quite
well that this maxim holds true also
for a counter offensive.
Submarine Record.
LONDON. April 18.—British mer
chant ships sunk during the week end
ing April 15, included eleven of morej
than 1.600 terns, four of less tonnage
and one fishing vessel, according to
the admiralty's report.
This is the heaviest submarine toll
since the week ending March 25,
when (sixteen large ships and twelve
small ones were destroyed. The toll
for the week ending April 8, which
was next to the lowest since unre
stricted boat warfare was inaug
urated, Included four large ships and
two small ones.
What Has He Done?
AMSTERDAM. April IS.—"What
haven't I done to preserve the world
from these horrors," the kaiser is
quoted as saying during a visit to
the Armentleres battle iront, in a dis
patch to th« I»kal Anzeiger.
Attack Repulsed at all Points.
LONDON, April 18.—"German in
attasklng in three waves
back slightly at one point,
but a"counter, attack restored the situ-
Fieyd"
red
Marshal Haig reported
today. ...
"Shortly after mid-day the attack
had been repulsed at all points."
"In the Bailleul sector, the enemy
attacking thTee times before mid-day,
was completely repulsed.
"Our line yesterday was intact on
(Continued on page 2.)
PRO-GERMAN
WAS RESULT OF QUARRELjofflie"
German
Not Strung Up Be-j^TT
ttuse of His Sympathies a SSfreSrYto tttaX
a
I received a complete
feet from his investigators.
•. now
indictments of those
Ptess Leased Wire SerVtce 1 the lynching
VQO. April 18.—That Robert
the CoUlnsniie. 111., miner.!I ......
'Wfthed not iMoause of Us pro-1 Hons, said Brundaf®.
So Horrible and Wonderful
Like Some Monste
desertincr
WESTERN TRAINS
TO BE CUT OFF
One Million Miles Per Month
to be Clipped From Rail
ways West of Missis
sippi River.
SUPERFLUOUS TRAINS
Passenger (Traffic Must Be Given
Secondary Consideration While
America Speeds up
War Work.
[United Press leased Wire Service.] 1
WASHINGTON, April 18.—Director
of the Mississippi river. Details of
the remodeled train schedules are
practically complete and an official an
nouncement of the change is expected
I within ten days, it was learned at the
It
implicated la
I tyUCUlUg at
I am certain of the indictments and
am certain we will obtain convio-
oTthe' railway administration
there today.
The revolutionary change, besides
^fary'vllle'! ha'u^^^'a^necessitlesf'is^ir^tly'in
35"Pto? ^enger^erv^on a
I strictly war basis. One train practic-
The°MadlBon county grand Jury is ally will he doing the work of two,
In session at Bdwardsville and was said.
it
Constant calls for speed in handling
materials needed in the prosecntion
of the war has forced the transporta-
COontteQed on pace 2.)
mil Cflnstttutton-JBonotrat.
KEOKUK, IOWA, THURSDAY, APR. 18, 1918
AISER TO LOSE WORLD'S GREATEST BATTLE
Greatest Drama of all Times
Is Fierce Battle^fJow Raging
[By Wm. Philip Simms, United Press Staff Correspondent]
WITH THE BRITISH ARMIES NEAR BAILLEUL, April 17.—(night)—The fight
now progressing is the most spectacular of the war.
From a hill top near Bailleul it can be observed in pantomime as from a balcony seat.
Miles upon miles from around the Passchendaele salient—from which the British were vol
untarily withdrawn—to far southwestward of Bailleul, is visible to the naked eye. With field
glasses, infantry can be plainly seen on the move.
The battles of Cambrai, Verdun and Messines were all in a hill country, affording the
scantiest glimpses. But from elevations around Bailleul the war's most dramatic panorama
stretched out with scarcely a tree clump obscuring the view.
Across fertile miles of farms, men are visible going into action.
Sheila burst in pasture lands. Abandoned cows cease grazing and stare in mild aston
ishment at the strange eruptions. The sky is filled with black and white cloud puffs and
with low flying airplanes in contact with infantry, dropping signal rockets to point out tar
gets to the artillery.'
The rattle of machine guns and the bass thunder of heavy artillery, commingled with
the ear splitting, volleying "bangs" of field guns, is a worthy orchestra to the greatest
drama of ail times.
Flashes from guns and howitzers cleverly concealed, or frankly out in the open, leaped
daczingly, sometimes startlingly, near—while the horizon flickers like thousands of pocket
mirrors flashing in the sunlight.
In the foreground, a German shell crumps fairly into a farm house.
The former occupants probably are tramping along the roads, regretting they ever left
their home. The house gives off a white smoke for a few minutes, then a flag of flames
mounts toward the sky.
Gh\s shells flop into idyllic fields in full cultivation. Strangling vapors are trailing
heavily across the sprouting crops. An apparently fearless crow is due for the surprise of
his life.
The whole business looks unreal from this hill top. It gives the impression of a mon
ster open air spectacle in coaMnemoi^rtion of an important centennial. This is enhanced
when I see a gunner duck from a blazing battery, bucket in hand, and chase an ownerless
cow foraging for the supper milk, like an awkward stage hand engaged in some ridicu
Ions thing in the midst of an Irvingesque tragedy.
All the while you are standing in front of a tiny, white washed cottage, feeling alone
in a world where everything is soldiers, death and war.
You turn to go and halt—startled. Peerinsr through a little sauare paned window, you
see outlined against the darkened interior the white face of an aged woman. Behind her's is
that of a bent'old man, staring fixedly toward the plains. They have lived in that cottage
too loner to leave it.
A little way down the slope a German shell bursts above a similar cotta ge. Bits of red
tiled roof fly in every direction. Now the enemy's artillery is reeisterino- on the hill.
A tabby cat, licking a discarded "bully t-eef" c^n, scampers off through a hole in a,
hedffe. Even she is
No News Whatever of Missing
Ship Which Disappeared
Like a Puff of
Smoke.
I SEARCH IS CONTINUED
General McAdoo Is about to clip 1,000,- wife of Commander Says Something! ica may soon wear a "Liberty loan
pee
ted Within a
Day.
HraBESffi? '.v
[United Viess leased Wire Service]
WASHINGTON, April IS.—The lost
collier Cyclops was sailing into the I tan shoe will go
void of unexplained mysteries today. I
No hint, or suggestion of what fate I ra#Jp
the 11,000 ton navy ship met, or where,
1 it Seems Unreal, More
yen air Spectacle
the old ula.ee. But inside the cottage the old man lavs his
hand on the woman's shoulder. Together they watch the fields below.
You move away. "hut. something makes you walk on tip toe. For these folks, and those
they symbolize, the end of the world seems to have come.
LIBERTY SHOES
fii WAR SUITS
All Americans May Be Forced
I TAN SHOE MIGHT
1 War Industries Board Takes Up
problem Which is Becoming
Quite a Serious
One.
WASHINGTON, April 18.
age Traveled^ytpasse™gerCtrains west! Sensational Maybe Ex- ^cture^at Tow coet*on a large^Mle si'ppf to aid the transportation prob-, ditions are good.
I and with very few shapes.
Thp standard war
Jn a fpw d(
The possibility that she had by resulting from the tremendous war
some mishap, accidental or planned., orders which are usurping the out
disappeared into one of ty lnnnmer-jput of clothing and shoe Taxtones
able inlets or sounds about the is-1 make necesaary firm action by the
{Continued on pace 2.) (Continued on psc* 2.)
[United Press Leased Wire Service.]
WITH THE AMERICAN ARMIES
IN LORHIAINE, April 17. (Night,)
The American artillery on this front
already has reduced the German artil
lery by two-thirds, silencing enemy
batteries with only a few minutes'
bombardment. The TYench are amaz
ed at the Yankee gunners' accuracy.
A lieutenant commanding one gun
spotted a German "rolling kitchen."
"By gosh! I'll bet I can splash one
in Heinle's soup," he exclaimed.
The first shot was too "long." The
second was too "short." The third
spilled the soup.
This is just an example of the ex
tremely small targets the Amerioan
artillerymen are capsible of hiiting.
The Americans are now the mast
ers of No Man's Land on this sector.
Every night five to eight patrols
Scurry from the outpf^^ Hid smash
the enemy's dugouts," iistenini: posts
and machine gun neBts.
An officer and twelve men raided
five machine gun nests, a field tele
phone post and some snipers' hiding
places without loss. They spent five
hour's mapping the entire area before
that section of the American trenches.
Important Development Foreseen
[By Carl D. Groat. United Press Staff
Correspondent]
WASHINGTON. April
1
aT1fl
TV T„„
to Dress Alike and Pay
Same Price for
Outfit.
18—
Wytschaete
npar
YPrPs.
may compel further British
GO
1
1
the
the'
„itR will lie
,9igns
ar
when or how, had yet been forthcom-,
ing, although scores of naval craft still.
swept the Atlantic in vain search. Rapidly rising prices on necessaries
and of stand
materials and with a retail price
THE WKATHKll
Showers and colder. Local
temp—8 p. m. 58 8 a. m. 46.
French Are Amazed at Accuracy of Yankee
Gunners Who Are Complete Masters
of No Man's Land.
MAKE SUCCESSFUL HMD EVERY
Every Possible Cubic Foot of Ship Space to be
Crammed With Troops and Sent
Across.
Military
men here today looked for important
developments following the arrival of
French reinforcements on the Flan
I ders battlefield. That it might be the
forerunner of a vast strengthening of
the British, as mentioned by Haig
several days ago, was the thought
1 here.
aml
^Prman,
rft'rR- re8t
ment. The German apparently wishes
to reach Cassel arid his strokes have
aided him materially. 'cere devotion to duty."
However, the arrival of the French __
may cheat him of the strategic ad-1 Highest at Camp Dodge.
The battle situation daily hammers
turned to making existing tonnage
'shoe and "war suits"—to be manu-j great traffic cut west of the Missis- surgeon general, general health con-
by the war industries board. While lyUVUL- V. ni r*.
board officials said neither is initnin
lent, ultimately the country must pre
I pare for the standardization. If thej
example of England Is followed, the'
DODGE CAPTAIN
Found Guilty of Taking $312
of Company Funda While
He Was in Command.
[United Press l.eased Wire Servicel
WASHINGTON". April is.— Captain
4Alfred Knapt, 337th Meld Artillery,
'v?ih
EIGHT PAGES
NIGHT
lem and the whole teaAssay la to
cram every possible ooWo toot of ship
space with troops.
On CaMMW Usee. -i?
OTTAWA, Out, Afrll lt^—Til# fol
lowing Americans are mentioned in
today's Canadian casualty Itata:
Killed in action:
XL EL Magrea. MayCeld, Ky.
Missing:
T. F. Bent, DeUatont. Pa.
Wounded:
L. M. 'Bramobt, III.
Ill:
W. Morttm
Mod:
F. Romsna, Onw Colorado.
i".'
aer, tDatratt
Five Brave OMrdamen.
WASHINGTON, April 18.—Five
armed guardsman standing extra
watch foe several days in a drifting
llfebo#€*rtroT8h tfc* «*e»rlned slfeam-*
er Acta
eon were oosnm
ended today
for bravery by Secretary of the Navy
Daniels. The Aetaaon was sunk No
vember 24. For several days there
after the survivors drifted while part
of them were ill.
The five commended stack to the
ship to the last, then cared for the
men in the life boat, as well as they
could, standing extra watch during
the drifting. They were:
John A. Carroll, Washington, D. C.
Osmond P. ErsMne, Bath, Maine.
William J. Hennessy, Cambridge,
Mass.
Henry E. Barl, Hopedale, Mass.
Albert F. Oanielson, Minneapolis.
Secretary Baker's Letter.
WITH THE AMERICAN ARMIES
IN FRANCE. April 18.—Secretary
Baker, In a letter to the American ex
peditionary force, made public here
Army men recalled that Haig then
said the French were coming up "rap
idly and in great force" to aid the today, promises to "speed up the trans
hard pressed Britishers. It is as-' port of the remainder of the great
sumed here that Foch is playing: a' army, of which you are the vanguard.
game that will not permit the situa-j "After a thorough Inspection of the
tion to get out of hand. I American forces," the letter said, "I
The Flanders battle is admittedly am returning to the United States
in an unpleasant tage for the British, with fresh enthusiasm to speed un
ibut armv men thus far are thoroughly the transport of the remainder of the
confident that the German will not I great
army,
achieve his object of breaking the guard."
British armv or of ploughing through! General Pershing
to the channel ports. i«ng statement In connection with the
The bloody fighting for Met feme "'^di^" to^Ty'own
cl^i_rT!.„0f
capture of poelcapelle and Lange- fleers
marck all formed a situation which
ft
of which you are the van-
l9«ned
the tion"ot'the splendid spirit of the army,
the follow-
vour commander-in-chief wishes to im
and men with a
kepn
.en6e
of
ing upon them, while giving fresh
8ura
nces
of my
vour
am0ng
.home the need for more American jng for the week ending April 12, Sur
troops on the battle line. Secretary
geon
Baker has given President Wilson a Deaths for the preceding week were
comprehensive view of the man power 090. The highest death rate was re
problem and every effort is now'
4
tbe^ serious obligation*
complete confldenoa
joyalt
an
vantage thus far gained, and it Is I fx^nited Press Leased Wire Service!
deemed quite likely the next few days WASHINGTON. April 18.—Pneit-
will see the tide turning against him. imon]a caused 171 of the 185 deaths
,j courage and si»
the American troops in train-
General Gorgas reported today.
portn(
available for troop transport and to claiming thirty-two.
turning out new tonnage. The national army death-rate in-
[ITnited Press Leased Wire Service.] The non-essentials are falling be- creased somewhat with 165 ^aOis as
Amer- fore the demand for the
vitals—men.
against 129 deaths fo. the previding
Director McAdoo will soon order a *eek, but on the whole, repor
by Camp Dodge, Des Moines.
jowa,
with thirty-four, pneumonia
GOES TO PEN TWO YEARS
•w
tried by court martial at Camp Dodge. i,
Iowa, is dismissed from the service
and sentenced to serve two years in
tht- iiited States penitentiary at Ft.
Leavenworth, Kansas. He was found
guilt of "frauduh ntly converting
his own use" $:m of the company's v|
fstnd of the headquarters company of -8
(lie 33"th field artillery, of which he ,•
was the commaudlns officer. He al
so was absent without lvaw, fo' tout
'days.
1