BY P. GRAY
MEEK.
INK SLINGS.
—The curse of Meroz is no longer
on the President. Teddy has hauled
it down and attached himself and his
sons in its place.
—No one in the United States to-
day wants war, but no one in the
United States will fail to bear his or
her share of the burden of it should
Germany force us into it.
—Why should the Allies hail our
severance of Diplomatic relations
with Germany on the theory that we
are to become their ally. We are the
ally of the neutrals, not of the Allies.
—The last of the American soldiers
have marched back into the States
from Mexico. Carranza and Villa
will have the show ail by themselves
while we get ready to entertain the
Kaiser, should he demand it.
—Germany and America have been
friends since the days of Frederick
the Great. The breaking of a friend-
ship that has been continued through-
out the entire existence of our gov-
ernment is not a trifling matter for
Germany or for ourselves.
—Count Von Bernstorff and his
suite, together with all German con-
suls now in this country will sail from
New York on February 13th. They
have been granted “safe conduct” by
the Allies, but they picked an un-
lucky day on which to start their voy-
age.
—The people of Bellefonte who are
operating their own steam plants are
just beginning to find out that the old
Bellefonte Steam Heating Co. has
been more or less of a philanthropist
for five years or more, even though it
didn’t give us more than half as much
heat as we wanted.
—Even the ground hog started in a
ruthless and entirely unnecessary
campaign on February 2nd. He didn’t
sow mines or scatter submarines over
the seas but he froze up the land in
such a way as to send the shivers up
and down our back-bones. Come to
think of it the ground hog legend is
of German extraction.
—The United States Senate has
passed the new immigration bill over
the veto of President Wilson. Presi-
dents Cleveland and Taft both vetoed
similar bills during their administra-
tion and, we believe that our Execu-
tives were right in their exercise of
the veto. While the bill will probably
exclude very few would-be citizens of
this country it is wrong in principle.
—Representative Phillips, of Clear-
field county, introduced a resolution
in the House at Harrisburg, Monday
night, calling upon Senator Penrose
to remain in Washington during the
“great emergency.” The Hon. Mr.
Phillips lacks a fine sense of discrim-
ination. Senator Penrose recognizes
the “great emergency” but from his
view point it is centered in Harris-
burg, not Washington.
—The Germans are tickled sick
with what the American envoys did
for them in the Ally countries. The
Allies are talking of raising monu-
ments to make the memory of our
diplomatic representatives imperish-
able because they did so much for
them in German territory. That’s the
kind of people we are, but they've
dragged us into the muss now and
Uncle Sam’s big helping hand regret-
fully closes into a clenched fist.
—Remember that every German
citizen of the United States is pre-
sumed to be just as loyal to the stars
and stripes as a native born. Don’t
by suspicion, innuendo or jest ques-
tion that loyalty. If it is not really
there it will be found out soon enough
and treated as it deserves. We as
Americans are today setting an ex-
ample for the world and we should
constantly have in mind a high sense
of dignity and a poise that holds us
well above any action that we might
later be ashamed to own.
—Take this tip from us. If there
is any clothing that you really will
need within a year buy it now. If war
should come our government will re-
quire nearly the entire output of all
American woolen mills for uniforms.
The government must be served first.
This will send the prices of woolen
goods to the sky. War may not come.
We hope it wont, but if it doesn’t
prices will not be any lower than they
are now for a year or more, at least.
This is not an advertisement. It is a
bit of good advice to you.
—Diplomatic relations with Ger-
many were broken at 2 o'clock on
Saturday. Exactly one hour later the
Pennsylvania Railroad Co. had a
guard on its bridge above the station
in this place, and, we presume, on
every other bridge on its lines. That’s
preparedness. That’s action such as
will show to the world that while we
have never thought it necessary to
burden ourselves with great armies
and navies when the emergency comes
we have the organization and equip-
ment at our command that can turn
out defenses like magic.
VOL. 62. _
Sena
BELLEFONTE, PA.
STATE RIGHTS AND FEDERAL UNION.
FEBRUARY
9, 1917.
J0.¢.
War With Germany Imminent.
The action of the President on Sat-
urday may not lead to war with Ger-
many but it means that the govern-
ment of the United States is willing
to go to war in defense of honor. On
the 8th of April last the President
notified the government of the Ger-
man empire that “unless the Imper-
ial government should now immedi-
ately declare and effect an abandon-
ment of its present methods of sub-
marine warfare against passenger
and freight carrying vessels, the
government of the United States can
have no choice but to sever diplomat-
ic relations with the’ German empire
altogether.” The Imperial govern-
ment promised to abandon the meth-
ods complained of and kept the
promise until last week.
On January 31st the government
of the United States was officially
notified that the promise was with-
drawn and that beginning on the first
day of February the inhuman and
murderous methods of warfare com-
plained of before would be resumed.
That left the government of the
United States no alternative other
than that adopted by the President.
However other nations may disre-
gard obligations to the government
of the United States they are sacred
and the declaration of April 8th be-
came a pledge to act in view of the
proclamation of the Imperial govern-
ment on January 31. A trimmer
might have justified delay until an
overt act had been committed, but that
would have been dodging an obliga-
tion.
It is up to Germany now. It is
said that in the history of govern-
ments no such incident has failed to
produce war. Germany has recently
developed an indifference to the obli-
gations of honor and dismissed sol-
emn treaty obligations as “scraps of
paper,” while sidestepping other obli-
gations of equal importance. She
may withdraw her declaration of Jan-
uary 31° and renew her promise of
April last, thus averting war with the
United States. But if she fails to do
so war is inevitable and the Kaiser
and his advisers will discover that
the estimate of our preparedness
made by Theodore Roosevelt and
Gussie Gardner are as misleading as
they are mischievous.
False Alarm Concerning Foreigners.
Some statistically inclined alarmist
in Harrisburg published in one of the
Philadelphia papers on Sunday a
statement to the effect that “Penn-
sylvania, the heart of the nation’s in-
dustries and least defended of the
important States on the Atlantic sea-
board is facing the national crisis and
a possibility of war with a foreign
born population of 1,390,564.” The
obvious purpose of these figures is to
create the impression that in the event
of war with Germany this consider-
able army of foreigners would take up
arms against the government of the
United States. Nothing could be more
absurd. Less than a third of these
foreign born residents of the State
come from the central belligerents.
There are, according to this statis-
tician, “more than 400,000 persons in
the State over twenty-one years of
age who are unable to speak English.”
Of these 68,288 live in Philadelphia
and 38,047 in Pittsburgh. The third
class cities contain 25,000 residents
who cannot speak our language so
that “the woods must be full of them,”
for a good deal more than half the
total live outside of the cities. How-
ever that is less important than the
fact that more than half of them come
from countries affiliated with the
entente allies and the French, Italian
and Greeks, if they participated in
the war at all would, in all probabili-
ty, enlist on the side and for the de-
fence of their adopted country.
As a matter of fact the German-
American press is a unit in advising
citizens of this country of German
birth to loyally support the govern-
ment of the United States in the event
that the present critical condition
developes into war and the leading
German-American citizens have given
the same wholesome and sensible ad-
vice. There is no reason, therefore,
for the alarm which this writer has
raised in relation to the foreign born
residents of Pennsylvania. They are
not going to “get in Dutch” on ac-
count of their fealty to the German
Emperor for most of them came to
this country to escape the tyrannies of
his government and incidentally to
promote their own prosperity.
——Subscribe for the “Watchman”,
. oe = sess
i Juggling the Legislature.
The proposition to keep the present
Legislature in session until the ex-
piration of Governor Brumbaugh’s
term of office is too absurd to be con-
sidered seriously. Yet it has been
proposed seriously and discussed
gravely by Senator Penrose, who is a
lawyer, and others. The plan, as out-
lined by those concerned, is to take
frequent and long recesses to Kill
time but not adjourn finally until
January 1919 at which time the
gubernatorial term expires. Unfor-
tunately for the planners of this polit-
ical enterprise the terms of half the
Senators and all the Representatives
in the Legislature expire exactly a
month before that date. On the 1st
of December, 1918, the legislative
term ends.
Presumably the purpose of this
rather complicated scheme is to de-
feat some purpose or confuse some
political plans of the Governor. As a
matter of fact it would have the con-
trary effect. The appointments made
by the Governor during the recess
among which are Insurance Commis-
sioner O’Neal, Highway Commission-
the expiration of the present session
of the Legislature unless voted upon
and rejected by the Senate. The Gov-
ernor is not obliged to send the names
of his appointees to the Senate until
the session is drawing to a close so
that his officers will have the right
to serve until the expiration of their
terms without the advice and con-
sent of the Senate.
To placate public indignation at
this misuse of the machinery of gov-
ernment Senator Penrose has an-
nounced that hereafter, during the
recesses, the three or four hundred
officials of the Legislature will not be
paid. Heretofore the pay of this army
of lame ducks or political pensioners
have been paid from the beginning
of the session to the final adjourn-
ment and the chances are that under
the law they will’ have a valid claim
against the' State which an obliging
future Legislature will recognize, and
they will be paid in full. But whether
they are paid or not this juggling
with the Legislature to serve the self-
ish purposes of a party boss is in-
tolerable and ought to be condemned.
Investigating the Governor.
On Tuesday evening the Senate
passed the joint resolution to inves-
tigate the Governor by a vote of
twenty-nine ayes to nineteen nays.
Last week, as stated in our last issue,
it was postponed, presumably to give
those concerned time and opportuni-
ty to compromise their differences.
During the interval overtures were
made by the friends of the adminis-
tration to compromise but public sen-
timent had asserted itself so strong
that Penrose was afraid. In the cir-
cumstances there was nothing to do
but pass the resolution. But it doesn’t
guarantee an investigation. Less
than two-thirds of the Senators vot-
ed in the affirmative and in the event
of a veto, practically certain, two-
thirds are necessary.
The debate leading up to the vote
on Tuesday afternoon was a specta-
cle. Ed. Vare in a South Philadel-
phia dialect scarcely understood by
his eolleagues tried to convert it into
a farce, or as he put it into a “three-
ringed circus.” He was followed by
Senator and Auditor General-elect
Snyder, who semed to be indulging
the same aspiration. That gentle-
man rambled aimlessly over centu-
ries of time to confess the iniquities
of his party leaders in behalf of him-
self and others. Senator Leiby, of
Cumberland county, injected some
dignity into the performance by pro-
testing against the manifest unfair-
ness of the measure and declaring
that he voted for it reluctantly be-
cause there was no hope of better.
It is said that the Governor has
been, during the month since the res-
olution was introduced, trading prom-
ises of office and other spoils of ad-
ministration for votes against the
resolution and he ma 7 succeed better
in the House than he did in the Sen-
ate. On the caucus vote for Speaker
the Penrose faction mustered less
than a majority of the entire mem-
bership and there is a possibility that
the measure may be defeated in that
chamber. It is said that there are
citizens willing to pay the expenses
of the inquiry, in which event a two-
third vote would be required and the
investigation might be ordered.
——If you find it in the “Watch-
man” it’s true.
| Killing of Destructive Deer Justified.
er Black and others will hold until
The decision of Judge Gillan, of |
Franklin county, justifying the kill-
ing of a deer by a farmer whose crops
it was damaging will have an import-
ant bearing upon the question of!
game propagation and preservation |
in the future. Complaints have come
from every section of the State in
which deer exist that they damage
crops to a great extent but the pro-
tective legislation was so strong that
few farmers have had the nerve to
kill them. Recently similar com-
plaints have come from the sections
in which imported elk were released
three years ago. The law provides
for the killing of rabbits that destroy
fruits and vegetables, but it leaves
no loophole for the escape of a far-
mer who kills a deer or elk.
The Caledonia game preserve in
Franklin county has made the far-
mers of that section special sufferers
from the four-footed vandals and
some time ago one of them, under se-
vere provocation, killed a doe while
at the work of destruction. This was
a double offense against the provis-
ions of the game law for it was in
the closed season and a female. The
State Game Commission with charac-
teristic zeal prosecuted him and ob-
tained from the Justice of the Peace
officiating a verdict for the full fine
and costs. In most cases that would
have closed the incident. But this
Franklin county farmer, Benjamin F.
Carbaugh, appealed the case and pro-
cured a reversal and restitution of
fine and costs.
* Hon. W. Rush Gillan is one of the
most capable and conscientious
judges in Pennsylvania and though
his decision works an important
amendment of the statute, it is likely
to be accepted by the Supreme court
as well as the other courts of record.
It will have the effect of abating a
gave evil from which the farmers of
is and adjacent counties have suf-
£. >A with such patience as they were
able to summon, for many years. Of
~courseit will be taken ‘advantage of
by pot hunters’ to kill game if the
farmers are not alert to prevent it.
But the average farmer is a genuine
sport and together they may be de-
pended upon to take care that deer
are not wantonly killed.
— If the German Emperor had
paid less attention to Theodore Roose-
velt and Gussie Gardner and more to
actual conditions in the United States,
there would have been no occasion to
sever diplomatic relations. Those
traitors made him believe that we are
too weak to resist outrage, however
flagrant it might be.
——If the force which General
Pershing has brought back from the
punitive expedition in Mexico is call-
ed upon to encounter an enemy it will
prove that the expedition was worth
what it cost even though its purpose
was not fulfilled.
——The law providing for a non-
partisan ballot to elect judges didn’t
provide a non-partisan bench. It sim-
ply made it easier for the dominant
party machine to select its own fa-
vorites and if it is repealed nobody
will grieve much.
——Possibly $25,000.00 a year isn’t
too much salary for a Governor
though mighty good Governors have
been glad to serve for less. But if
the salary is fixed at that figure the
contingent fund ought to be cut out.
—Wonder if there will be enough
Swiss people to look after the inter-
ests of the various belligerents at the
various points where they are now
incapable of looking after their own.
——1It is always pleasant to read
the words of William H. Taft in an
emergency. He invariably proves
that it isn’t absolutely necessary for
an ex-President to be a jackass.
——Now that the Philadelphia
“Ledger” has given unqualified ap-
proval to the Federal Reserve bank
law we can see no reason, present or
future, for sadness.
——It is encouraging to learn that
Republican leaders in the Legisla-
ture are developing some respect for
the constitution. It is also more or
less surprising.
——Colonel Roosevelt again offers
to enlist as a Major General and if
commissions for that rank are to be
given to crazy men we don’t know a
fitter one.
——TFor high class Job Work come
to the “Watchman” Office.
| Roosevelt's Hope.
¥rom the Mallet and Planer.
I hate to be a kicker
For it does not stand for peace
i But the wheel that does the squeaking
Is the one that gets the grease.
The Break With Germany.
| From the Harrisburg Star-Independent.
The inevitable outcome of Ger-
many’s recent declaration to violate
' her pledge given the United States in
| the conduct of the former’s subma-
rine warfare could have no other re-
' sult than the breaking off of diplomat-
I ic relations between the two countries,
as was done Saturday morning by the
+ Washington authorities taking the
initiative in giving Ambassador Von
| Bernstorff his passports and recalling
Ambassador Gerard from Germany.
It had been hoped that such a cause,
though it had been perilously near
several times in our previous relations
with Germany during the European
i war, would not be resorted to, but the
Kaiser’s declaration to continue a
ruthless U-boat campaign against
neutral merchant shipping made the
step imperative and the United States
could no longer preserve her dignity
by doing otherwise than severin
friendly intercourse with the Imperia
Government.
What will result from the diplomat-
ic break with Germany is conjectural.
The severance of relations between
the two countries is not necessarily a
declaration of war, but today’s action
has precipitated a crisis so grave that
its meaning is portentious. It is
! reasonably sure that any overt act on
the part of Germany that will abridge
American rights is bound to result
in war being declared on the Imperial
Government. This step, however much
it may be deplored by a great ma-
jority of the citizens of the United
States, is as sure to come as night
will follow day. It can only be avert-
ed by Emperor William condticting
the war against the Entente Powers
in such manner as not to infringe
upon the rights of America or Ameri-
can citizens. Whether he can and will
do this is problematical.
Now that the critical moment has
arrived, there is nothing for the great
body of American people to do but
stand by President Wilson in a crisis
where it is necessary that all citizens
of this country should be a unit re-
gardless of religion, politics or nation-
ality. Whatever course the Pré¢ (dert
may choose to pursue he will be'back-
ed by that unanimity of spirit so
characteristic of all true Americans
when the honor of this nation is as-
sailed and the Flag of the country
attacked. .
“Give Mexico A Thrashing.”
From the Johnstown Democrat.
“Give Mexico a thrashing,” said
Senator W. J. Stone the other day.
Eventually, of course, we could give
Mexico a thrashing because we are
big enough (and Mexico would say
ugly enough) to do it. = But what
would be happening to us while we
were giving Mexico that thrashing?
‘What happens to the man who goes
into a home where the husband is
beating his wife?
Here’s what would happen:
It would be necessary to send all
our regular army, all our national
guardsmen and a hundred thousand
more soldiers across the border. It
would be necessary to spend a few
hundred million dollars, necessitating
more taxes to pay. It would be neces-
sary to put the families of half a mil-
lion soldiers in suspense. It would be
necessary to wage a war of extermi-
nation on the Mexicans—even more
thorough than was begun at Vera
Cruz. It would be necessary to put
many thousands of wives and mothers
and sisters and daughters of Amer-
ica soldiers in mourning. It would be
necessary to buy tombstones and
cemetery lots; and ask the undertaker
please to hold off on his bill just as
long as he could. It would be neces-
sary to find ways to feed and rear
the children of men shot in battle
with the Mexicans we were thrashing.
And all for what?
Merely to give Mexico that thrash-
ing. Merely to put Mexico on her
knees, so that avaricious Americans
with valuable concessions in the re-
public might farm their concessions
without trouble.
In other words, Senator Stone would
have us hang crepe on the United
States so that our concession men
might swell their bank balances.
He’d have us go in debt for coffins
and shrouds, to pay freight for men
whose soul object is to milk Mexico.
The Senator would crush the roses
from the cheeks of mothers and
daughters and sisters so that Ameri-
can concessions in Mexico might be
worked to the limit. He'd make Mex-
ico an abattoir and the United States
a butcher and international yeggman.
He’d thrash Mexico—just like that!
A Party Without Leaders.
From the Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader.
The Republican party in the nation
is painfully shy of leaders. Wash-
ington shows the best example of this
lack. There the representatives of a
great party are floundering around
not knowing what to do and filling in
time by merely nagging and resist-
ing. Not an issue, not a plan, oppose
President Wilson in all he does, just
party opposition, no reasons for their
action. It’s a humiliating spectacle
at Washington and doubly so at Har-
risburg, where the time is spent in
washing the dirt Bepublican linen.
Is the “Grand Old Party” on the
rocks? Today it is surely a decadent
party,
SPAWLS FROM THE KEYSTONE.
—As the result of a fight near Lockport,
Indiana county, the other night, two mem
were killed and two badly hurt. All were
foreigners.
—Judge Bell at Clearfield on Friday
heard arguments on the motion for a new
trial for M. W. Dennery, convicted of the
murder of John Rowles. The Judge will
make his decision later.
—The Standard-Quemahoning Coal Co.
which has large operations in the vicinity
of Boswell, has closed a deal for 1,300
acres of land at Thomas Mills. The land
was owned by Herman Thomas.
—Announcement was issued at the Mt.
Union plant of the Aetna Explosives com-
pany that it will shortly start work on a
$3,000,000 contract for smokeless powder
for the United States government.
—Representative Ananias David Miller,
of Mt. Pleasant, Jefferson county, put up
a decided remonstrance when his name
appeared in the Legislative Directory as
A, David Miller. He isn’t ashamed of the
“Ananias.”
—Te powder house and warehouse of
the Maderia Hill Coal Mining Co. in
Barnesboro, were destroyed by fire Friday
night at 7:30 o'clock. There was very
little powder in the building at the time.
No one was injured.
—A warrant has been issued for the ar-
rest of Miss Gertrude Lindahl, the Olanta
girl charged with killing her week-old
babe at the Clearfield hospital om the
morning of February 1st. While the girl
denies her guilt, the evidence against her
is very strong.
—Small-pox discovered among Negroes ,
brought to Johnstown to work in indus-
trial plants has resulted in two being
placed in the Municipal hospital, fourteen
under quarantine in the heart of the city
and 100 others under quarantine on the
outskirts of Johnstown.
-—Apprehension exists concerning the
possibilities involved in the big ice jam in
the Susquehanna at McElhattan and be-
yond Glen Union. Some folks are fearing
a jam will cause a back water flood, while
others are apprehensive of possible dam-
age by the ice jam once it gets in motion.
—As Dominick Mani stood shaking hands
with Fred Peliti, of West Berwick, on Sun-
day, the latter pulled his gun from his
pocket with his left hand and fired three
times at Peliti. Two of the bullets went
through the rim of Peliti’s hat and the
other through the side of his head. Mani
escaped. Peliti may live.
—The libel suit of Thomas D. Stiles
against John F. Short, of the Clearfield
Republican, scheduled to have come up
in the Clearfield court this week has been
continued until the May term on account
of Hon. Chas. H. Rowland, one of Short’s
chief witnesses, being detained at Wash-
ington by his congressional duties,
—John Welty, of Rockton, Clearfield
county, had his right hand cut off while
feeding a corn husker, Wednesday after-
noon, January 31, about 5 o'clock. His
hand caught in the feeder and was so bad-
ly mangled that amputation was necessary.
He was taken fo the DuBois hospital and
the amputation performed. Although Mr.
Welty is 72 years of age, his condition is
reported as being as well as can be ex-
pected.
—The Standard Steel Works company,
Burnham, has purchased the Yeagertown
athletic field, consisting of twelve. acres .
of meadow land lying between the Kish-
"acoquillas creek and the mountain, at the
western section of their present scrap
yards. The tract will be utilized for the
present in extension of their scrap yards
and for the storage of several thousand
tons of coal, and later for an extension of
the big plant.
—A prosecution brought by S. M. Book-
man, proprietor of the Portage hotel, Dun-
cansville, for the theft of a three-cent beer
mug from his bar, was dismissed by the
magistrate and the costs, amounting to
$10.41, were placed upon Blair county.
When the cost bill was presented at the
court house a few days ago, County Con-
troller T. W. Tobias refused payment, de-
claring it was the most trivial prosecution
ever brought in that county.
—Steve Wargo, a Slavishman, employed
as a miner by the Corona Coal Co., and
who lived in a small shanty near the
mines, owned by the company about two
miles distant from Madera, committed
suicide about 7:15 Monday morning by
throwing himself in front of the P. R. R.
passenger train as it was approaching the
Madera station on its first trip from
Osceola. No reason con be assigned for
his committing the rash act other than
that his shanty, with most of its contents,
had burned about 1 o'clock in the morn-
ing.
—Rey. James E. Dunning, pastor of the
Louther Memorial Methodist church in
Johnstown, formerly of the Sandy Ridge
charge, was presented with a pastor's
individual communion set, consisting of a
small tray and six gold-rimmed glasses,
by the members of his Bible class, on Wed-
nesday evening, January 31, the occasion
of his birthday. Mrs. Dunning served a
birthday dinner in his honor at the par-
sonage which was a pleasant affair. Prior
to entering the ministry Rev Dunning
was a teacher in the Bellefonte High
school.
— After several months of comparative
inactivity, the gang of robbers that has
stolen thousands of dollars’ worth of gold
and platinum from the dental offices in
DuBois, Clearfield. Indiana, Ridgway and
Punxsutawney this winter, made another
successful haul at Punxsutawney some
time Saturday night. The offices of three
local dentists were visited and a total of
$150 worth of metal was procured, the haul
being the smallest they have made yet and
was due to the fact that the dentists had
most of their precious metal in their safes
for over Sunday. The losers were Dr. G.
W. Newcome, Dr. G. R. Bell and Dr. 8. J.
Hughes. The robberies were discovered
Sunday morning when the dentists visited
their offices, and found that the doors into
their workshops had been forced.
—Bristol, Bucks county, now has a
“own Manager.” He was appointed and
started work on February 1, under a 3-
year contract. Although he will draw a
salary of $2,000 per year, his job will be
no sinecure, for he will be expected to
conduct the affairs of Bristol under a
purely business administration and to get
the highest point of efficiency and satis-
faction from the money invested in the
municipality. The appointee is John Rob-
erts. Im inaugurating the new system,
Bristol is the first town in a large eastern
area to put practically all the really im-
portant departments of borough govern-
ment under the supervisiom and direction
of one man, and the new movement wil
be closely watched by all other municipal
ities in the eastern part of the State.