a] BY P. GRAY MEEK. INK SLINGS. — —————————— —April is nearly done and it has been a right pleasant month too. Centre county is resolving to do her level best to help solve the coun- try’s food problem. — Let us remember that raising flags isn’t all there is to patriotism. Raising crops is quite as essential. —_Nick must be still Roman-off. In fact off very far, for very few mes- sages are coming in about him these days. . —The Legislature promises rea doings in Harrisburg soon. They are going to have night sessions and stop the introduction of new bills. —Maybe the spirit of conservation will seize the fool automobile driver who thinks it smart to try to run down chickens on the public road. — Don’t kill the little pigs to keep them from growing up and making hogs of themselves. We'll likely need all the hogs we can raise by next fall. — In so far as it is possible every bit of work that is not productive of food stuffs ought to be suspended un- til every available foot of land is planted. : ____Of course when the British and French troops get into Germany the rules of civilized warfare will be fol- lowed but there will be yearnings for reprisals. < —Turkey has broken relations with the United States, and within the next month the country districts, es- pecially, of our broad land will be over run with young Turks. — Clinton county has been made a - separate judicial district and our friend Judge Bressler, of the Times, can soon sit astride his editorial tri- pod without the fear of spilling ink on the Judicial ermine. Whether the war is long drawn out or ends in the near future the Senators and Representatives in Con- gress who opposed the necessary preparations for service will be out of public life when their terms ex- pire. —The confluence of Spring creek and Logan’s branch was sufficient as the head of navigation on the West Branch of the Susquehanna to land Bellefonte a county seat, but wouldn’t it be awful if it were sufficiently nav- igable for a German U boat. —Don’t plant your garden too ear- ly. Many thrifty looking beans, for instance, have been nipped by May frosts and the gardener’s enthusiasm nipped as well. Mrs. Brown, of Lo- gan street, told the writer on Monday that the finest crop of beans she ever saw grew in her garden last year and they were not planted until after the 15th of July. —The government is endeavoring to stimulate enlistment by the threat that if conscription becomes necessary those who have been conscripted will be sent to the front first leaving those who volunteer now to bring up the rear. Also, the fellows who have got- ten married since war was declared will not be excused except for phys- ical defects. — While England’s distinguished commission is being accorded every honor ‘the States” can scarcely be censured for putting just a little bit more of heartfelt friendliness into their treatment of the representatives of our sister Republic, France. We always did love France and, besides, a grandson of Lafayette is among their number. This is the time of year when the danger of forest fires is the great- est and fishermen and others can greatly minimize the danger by ex- ercising good judgment and care when along the streams or in the woods. This is a duty that every person owes the State and the community in which he lives. In past years thousands of acres of timber land in Centre county have been burned over and much val- uable young timber destroyed. In addition considerable expense was in- curred by the forestry department in fighting and extinguishing the fires. Most of this can be avoided if the public will exercise due caution and - care. : —With sugar likely to be very much higher than it is now it might be well for the prudent housewife to save as many of her preserves and jellies as she can for next winter’s . use. This would decrease the sugar bill in the preserve season and give her the cans and jars in which to put up beans, beets, tomatoes, and the other food-stuffs that she can raise in her own garden and so rarely cans any more. The canned goods in stores are already advanced nearly twenty per cent. and by next fall are likely ‘ to be double the present price. Little economies of this sort might appear trifling to some, but they might prove to be just the trifle between plenty and want by the time next winter rolls round. pm ———————— VOL. 62. Conscription: Stimulates Volunteering. The conscription scheme will not and cannot interfere with or retard voluntary enlistments. On -the con- trary it is likely to stimulate that work. Every reasoning young man will come to understand, the moment the conscription law goes into opera- tion, that service in the army or na- vy is certain. That fact being fixed in his mind he will realize that by volunteering he may select the arm of the service he prefers. If he is taken by force he will be obliged to accept such conditions as are presented to him while volunteers may elect the army or navy and the infantry, artil- ery or cavalry, if they choose army service. This is a strong inducement to volunteer. The only thing that retards enlist- ment is the foolish promise or pre- tense of spectacular service. Men who like Roosevelt and others hold out enticements to join them in spe- cial service in which heroism is the dominant hope to keep men who would willingly enroll themselves as volunteers if such expectations were absent, from volunteering. There can be no special service in a well regu- lated war. The forces must be mus- tered in the regular way and yield to the rules and regulations of the reg- ular military establishment. Holding before ambitious men the mirror of spectacular achievement because of | the temperamental’ peculiarities of the leader is a dampener upon volun- teer service. The idea of the administration in Washington is to enlist a vast force in the shortest possible space of time and equip and discipline it for effi- cient service. This result cannot be accomplished by the volunteer sys- tem. Our own government learned this lesson in the Civil war. Great Britain discovered it at the beginning of the present war. In both cases the experiment cost immensely in life and treasure. President Wilson and those wie cooperate with him in’ the work in which he is engaged does not desire to repeat the blunders. They have wisely determined that the best way is the cheapest and most satisfactory and are proceeding along the lines which promise results. Probably the Russian drive is simply an expedient to justify the re- treat in France. General Powell Hands Out a Jolt. The Penrose leaders of the General Assembly got something of a jolt, the other day, when they had Auditor General Powell on the witness stand with the view of exposing some of his official delinquencies. General Pow- ell’s official record is rather vulner- able, if stories widely circulated dur- ing the recent factional fight for the Speakership of the House are to be taken seriously. He had a habit of “eating up money” voraciously during his personal and official trips through- out the country and his successor in office elect thought he would have a good deal of fun in making Mr. Powell tell about such expenditures. But Senator Snyder met with only partial success in his undertaking. In reply to the first question sub- mitted the Auditor General declared that he had employed expert account- ants to go over the books of the De- partment during the period of his incumbency because he had been in- formed by a United States Senator that accusations had been “framed up” against him and that vouchers had been stolen from the office to sup- port them. That was certainly a grave statement and should have been supported by substantiai evidence. But Mr. Powell positively refused to go into details. He did intimate that he could go further in the matter of accusation if he desired but out of consideration for his successor he re- frained. His flustered inquisitors let it go at that. But it ought not to stop there. If the leaders of the Republican factions are entering into conspiracies to de- stroy each other by means of stolen vouchers and perjured testimony the public ought to be fully informed concerning it. Nobody cares much about Powell. He is the product of the political hysteria of 1912 that made Bill Flinn a considerable figure in the public life of the Commonwealth for a brief season and will be forgotten the moment he leaves the office he occu- pies. But the malice that is expressed in such attempts to traduce men should be rooted out wherever it has found lodgment. An honest commu- nity cannot afford to allow such evils to develop within its limits. sao STATE RIGHTS AND FEDERAL UNION. BELLEFONTE; PA. APRIL 27, 1917. Mr. John Price Jackson, Commis- sioner of Labor at Harrisburg, is loyal, at least. He may have a wrong notion of his obligations. That is to say he may believe that the Governor | is the government and that tenure of office should be determined by fidelity | to the Governor. That of course is a ‘ personal affair for him to reason out , with his conscience. During the Gov- ; ernor’s absurd campaign for the Pres- ' jdential nomination Mr. Jackson dis- | missed any employee who failed to ! sympathize with his purpose. In a statement before the Appropriations | Committee of the Legislature, the | other day, Commissioner Jackson ad- | mitted that he demanded loyalty to | the Governor, but protested that it "is not in a political sense. | Commissioner Jackson spoke elo- ' quently in praise of the employment "bureau in his department at the hear- |ing in question. Senator McNichol, who aspires to be a “watch dog of the | treasury,” intimated that “when em- | ployers were unable to get labor of any kind,” an employment bureau was ! a rather redundant luxury, so far as helping labor, and added that inas- much as the service cost $30,000 in | two years, it is rather expensive. | Other Senators made similar sug- gestions but the Commissioner dis- posed of all questions by protesting that “the bureau did a good work and placed many men in jobs.” It certainly provided a fat place for Jake Lightner who is not only loyal to the Governor but an efficient cam- paigner. Yee During the inquisition Senator Buckman, according to one of the press reports, brought out that Jack- son had dismissed a factory inspector who was efficient and filled the va- cancy by appointing another who was not. The Commissioner “owned the soft impeachment” but expressed the hope that the new appointee, though somewhat old, would learn. He might physical infirmities impair the zeal or diminish the effectiveness of politi- cians and that the old man though useless. as a factory inspector was worth his weight in gold as a political manipulator. Inviewof this factand inconsideration of Jackson’s notion of official obligations such questions should not have been raised. Press Censorship a Menace. At this distance from the seat of governinent it looks as if some of the statesmen who are striving to put a rigid censorship upon the newspapers of the country are more concerned to protect themselves from criticism than to shield the country from harm. That there should be no publication that would aid the enemy or even impair the efficiency of the army, goes without saying. But the aver- age newspaper editor or publisher is quite as patriotic as the average statesman and is no more likely to publish harmful statements than the statesman is to make them. Possibly there ought to be some form of cen- sorship during the war period, but it need not be drastic. The most cherished principle of this American Republic is the abso- lute freedom of the press. A muzzled press would be an anomaly in the land of liberty and even the smallest approach to that evil would work in- finite harm. The constitution and the laws define treason and an editor or newspaper manager who trans- gresses the law in this respect can be and ought to be punished to the full measure of justice. But because there are some men and some newspapers willing to give “aid and comfort to the enemy,” is no reason why all the newspapers of the country should be put under the ban of men who may not always be influenced by the prin- ciples of justice or patriotism. It is no reflection upon the present administration to set up a protest against any drastic press censorship. We have full faith in the justice and fairness of the President but Wood- row Wilson will not always be Presi- dent and excesses along this line which might happen under his admin- istration would stand as precedents for greater excesses later. Thus far the government of the United States has enjoyed singular freedom from abuses of civil liberty. But we may not always be as fortunate in the fu- ture. Therefore machinery to stifle liberty should not be encouraged and any legislation for press censorship at this time should be drawn with great care. 3 1 Impudent and Irrelevant Questions. i have added that neither age uct NO. 19. Our Distinguished Foreign Guests. The visit of Arthur Balfour and his British associates and General Joffre and his French colleagues is an im- portant event but hardly ®s overpow- ering as some of our emotional con- temporaries imagine. It implies very clearly a departure from the iselation of the past and the entry with full force into the affairs of world poli- tics, and, possibly, intrigues. Wheth- er that augurs good or evil is left to conjecture but it is certainly in con- travention of the desires of the foun- ders and fathers of the Republic. Washington admonished against for- eign complications and his successors in office for many years shared his ideas on the subject. But conditions are different and may justify the change. The purpose of the British and French visitors is to consult with and advise our authorities upon the con- duct of the war in which they have been involved for nearly three years and in which we are about to plunge. At the beginning of the war Great Britain blundered at nearly every step and each blunder cost vast- ly in life and treasure. France was better equipped for such an en- | terprise though the experience of service has been of immense value to our sister Republic. The hope of both, which is shared by all our country- men, is that with their advice and suggestion we may be able to avoid similar blunders and prove as effi- cient as veterans from the start. Because of this purpose no less than for the other consequences of the conferences about to begin our for- eign visitors are welcome. They come to us as friends bearing mes- sages of good will and they will be treated with the consideration . to which they are entitled on account of their distinguished personalities as well as because of their benevolent intentions. Mr. Balfour, a profound scholar, an experienced stateman and “3 first rate sport, finds in President Wilson a congenial spirit and unless things go contrary to the usual, their conferences will redound to the com- mercial, industrial and social advan- tage of both countries. And there’s nothing too good for Joffre. The “Watchman” reporter evi- dently misunderstood the chairman of the Street committee when he made ! his report to borough council, at the regular meeting on Monday night of last week, regarding the failure of residents to pay for the oiling of the streets. Instead of few payments having been made all the oil that was put on Linn street, Allegheny and Bishop streets was paid for by resi- dents along said streets, and only a small proportion of the oil used in the town was not paid for. ——On Tuesday Governor Brum- baugh signed the Rich bill which de- taches Clinton from Cameron and Elk counties and makes it a seperate judi- cial district. The bill will become effective on January 1st, 1918. This means that after the termination of this year Judge Harry Alvan Hall will not preside over the courts of Clinton county. : ——Garden making was brought to a standstill on Tuesday by a regular cold snap. It was so cold, in fact, that overcoats were very much in demand. Wednesday morning ice was frozen in Bellefonte and various parts of the county but the cold was hardly severe enough to hurt the fruit, is the gen- eral belief. : ——The Governor has finally decid- ed to accept the conditions laid down by Penrose for the disbursement of the two million defense fund. Even with four or five others to share in it there may be a good deal of advan- tage extracted from the disposal of that much money. ——The Russian drive is on, ac- cording to press reports, and will be as cruel as it is possible to make it. But the capacity of the German em- pire for harm is diminishing as tHe war moves forward and the expecta- tion of damage in Petrograd may be disappointed. ——There is no danger of too much food stuffs however industrious the amateur farmers and gardeners may become. The proportion of non-pro- ducers in the world is greater than ever before and increasing. ——The labor strikes in Germany are ominous not so much of indus- trial paralysis as of decaying im- perialism. The Whole World A’kin. From the Lancaster Intelligencer. War! The word is uttered and men and women in thoughtful mood shud- der when they think- of shedding of human blood and the snuffing out of the lives of the best manhood of the land. But what does a retrospect of the last few years of war show? What has it shown to the people of the United States in the last few weeks? What is its continuance bound to do? =i bring nearer equality of man- In the many years of peace and prosperity that nations shared pre- vious to the beginning of the war, the world was inclined to divide the peo- ple into classes; there was a danger- ous trend toward putting men with the ability to garner wealth on a pinacle as “the best in the land.” But much of that class distinction, found- ed upon social fabric of sand, has gone aglimering or is soon to go that way. y oy . The world is awakening to the fact that a good farmer is worth more to the nation than many millionaires in a crisis; that the king of men is the machinist who is able to turn out guns and ammunition; ships and en- gines; that the miner delving deep in the bowels of the earth is a fellow worthy of eminence; that men who mould public opinion and keep the spark of patriotism burning "are worthy of a place in the halls of fame. What is a man of millions, compar- ed to a man who can furnish a thous- and bushels of wheat, two thousand bushels of corn; ten fat cattle and twenty fat hogs, to a ple whose existence today and virility in the fu- ture depends on good, wholesome food? What is the feminine social arbiter to the demure little nurse who goes afield prepared to care for the wounded and dying brother, stricken in the cause of democracy and man- kind ? Just a little while ago this nation was drifting toward long ago reach in Burope—distinctive classes and masses. Today there is a very definite feeling that in the fu- ture there are to be classes and masses—but the classes will be the men and women who can produce, whether ‘hey wear apron, jumper or a brim of straw; the masses, the peo- ple dependent on, but. necessary to, the producers, whether they be mil- lionaire or clerk. . . . ded War is doing . what nothing else could do. It is making world kin; the whole world demo- cratic and rendering unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s. : This is the great day for the man with the hoe; the man with the chis- el; the woman with love and charity in her heart and some ability to min- ister to suffering humanity. War is h , said Sherman in days gone by. Today the trend almost Seems towards the ‘biblical Armaged- on. All Americans. From the Omaha World-Herald. No more inspiring meeting has been held since war was declared than that at Hartington. The meet- ing had for its chairman, speakers, and chaplains men born in other countries. One of the speakers, Mr. Korpff, born in Germany, said that when he landed in this country he had in his pocket 5 cents and a piece of summerwurst. Now he owns a large farm, well improved, which he declared he owed “to God and the American government.” What thrill- ed the audience and will thrill every one who reads it, was a sentence in his speech, in which he said: ; “There is no such thing as a Ger- man-American. A man is either German or American, and I know the Germans in America are as loyal to the stars and stripes as the Am- erican born citizens. We have rear- ed twelve children, and when the government needs them it can have seven soldiers and five nurses.” Cedar county must be something of a melting pot. The Germans, Ir- ish, and English all joined in the meeting and among the guests at the occasion were fourteen young men who had enlisted for the war and would start the next morning to be- gin their service. The foreign born in that county outnumber the native born, but they are all Americans. They Should Apply to Wilhelm. From the Altoona Tribune. The “Tribune” feels sure that if Amos Pinchot and Jane Addams and Dr. Jordon and the other pacifists who continue their active exertions on be- half of peace were to direct their at- tention to the German Emperor they would commend themselves to the good will of sensible folks. The Unit- ed States has not made war upon Germany; the exact reverse is true. All the warlike measures taken by this nation have been forced upon it by the wanton aggressions of Ger- many. The United States is power- less to bring the war to an end ex- cept by fighting alongside the entente ally forces. It is only Wilhelm who has the power to prevent the further effusion of blood and it is to him that the plaints of the enemies of war should be addressed. The govern- ment of the United States has the best intentions possible, but it cannot win peace now. : ——Mr. Bryan has enlisted but not officially. That is to say he has filed his ‘application for service with the President instead of going to a whole 1 recruiting office. EE SPAWLS FROM THE KEYSTONE. —The report of the workers in the cam- paign for a new Y. M. C. A. building at Norristown showed a collection on Mon- day of $17,700, making a total pledged of $79,700. The amount sought in the ten days’ campaign, three days of which are ended, is $150,000. —If all the operators of soft coal mines were to follow the example set by H. B. Swoope, of Madeira, Clearfield Co., Uncle Sam’s navy could go for some time with- out spending one cent for coal. Swoope has offered to give the navy department one carioad of coal each month. . — For years a pile of waste from irid- jum, a material used in making fountain pens, was believed worthless by a com- pany with a factory at Bloomsburg. Sat- urday a stranger dropped in on the mana- ger and offered him $75 a pound, or more than $10,000, for it. It is used in the muni- tions industry. ‘ —Madeira, Hill & CCo. have abandoned their Stanton breaker at Maizeville, Northumberland county, and will prepare all coal mined there at the Lawrence breaker, at Mahanoy Plane. Due to young men enlisting in the United States army, Madeira Hill & Co. had to unite two breaker forces. —Rev. E. D. Parkhill, pastor of the Curwensville Presbyterian church, having tendered his resignation to his congrega- tion, the same was accepted at a meeting Wednesday evening, April 18. Rev. Mr. Parkhill has accepted a call from the Pres- byterian church at Lock Haven, and will go there later on. —While at work in a field near his barn Albert S. Stehman, a farmer of Conestoga township, + Lancaster county, noticed a storm approaching. He sent his seven- year-old son home and began unhitching his two horses. A few minutes later a neighbor found the man dead beside the team, which also was dead. All had been killed by lightning. —Angered because he could not find his watch, Michael Uptic, aged 21, a farmhand working near Vandegrift, on Tuesday morning shot and killed Mrs. Vladislaw Szpulsky, wife of the farmer who em- ployed him, probably fatally wounded two of Szpulsky’s sons, and was prevented from shooting four other children when his revolver broke. He was captured by Chief of Police D. P. Walker, of Vande- grift, and a posse. —The buildings of the North Star Tan- ning company, at Tyrone, erected in 1871, are being torn down. The tannery was built by D. P. Ray, Sr., and after his death, his sons, J. K. Ray and D. P. Ray, Jr., and J. W. Howe, continued the busi- ness, which finally became merged with the Elk Tanning company, who control most of the tanning interests in Pennsyl- vania and New York, and who, several years ago abandoned the Tyrone branch. —John C. Cosgrove, a prominent Johns- town coal operator, has just purchased from Irvin Wolf and Edward E. Miller of Rockwood 22514 acres of coal land in Black Township, Somerset county. The consideration was $70,000. The same tract sold less than two years ago for about $10,000. The tract is ome of the best in that section of Somerset county and, it is understood, will be extensively developed by the Cosgrove mining interests. The land lies along the Casselman River. ~—Fear of an epidemic of smallpox in Everett has thrown a fright into the citizens: of the town, -and into many farmers who have been in the habit of trading there. It is said that a full- fledged case of the disease was brought to Everett by one of the residents of the town who had been at Saxton. It is supposed that the disease. was contracted at Saxton, but it was first noticed and pronounced smallpox when an" Everett physician placed in quarantine one of the residents of the town. —It has been announced that employes of the Pennsylvania in this section will receive a part of their overtime pay when the car next visits here, and will receive the balance at the pay day following. When the Adamson law was held to be constitutional it followed that the rail- road companies would be required to pay for all overtime at the rate of pay ana a half and back pay would be due the men. They had received full pay for their over- time and the half-pay would still be due them. The Pennsy is distributing this in two pays. A considerable sum will be re- quired to meet the overtime. : —Mrs. Catherine Goss, one of the oldest residents of central Pennsylvania, ‘quietly celebrated her 101st birthday on Wednes- day, April 18, at Osceola, where she makes her home with her daughter, Mrs. Nettie Pardonner.. Mrs. Goss was born in Half- moon valley, this county, April 18th, 1816, her maiden name being Miss Catherine Gearhart. The sons and daughters who still live are Mrs. Rachel Shoff and Mrs. Nettie Pardonner, of Osceola; Lloyd and Abram L. Goss, of Bellwood; Allen Goss, of Philadelphia, and Mrs. F. E. Hilliard, of Altoona. Her general health is fairly good, and she retains her mental faculties to a remarkable degree. —Fearing tuat he would commit murder Bartoli Aveni, aged 37 years, residing at Clearfield and employed at the Harbison- Walker Refractories Co's brick plant, a few weeks ago requested the Clearfield authorities to put him in jail. They did so and physicians, who later examined him, pronounced him mentally unsound. He was taken to the county home and Sunday at noon a friend secured his re- lease. On Monday at noon Aveni, while at the home of his cousin, Samuel Cadile, was seized with the murder desire and killed Cadile. Aveni, failing to escape the mob that chased him, shot himself, but not fatally. Cadile was about forty years old and both men have families. —Hoping to get greater efficiency from both plants under one management, the Paxton Brick Company, whose general office is at Middleburg, has purchased the controlling interest of the Watsontown Brick Ccwpany. With both plants under one management the business will be han- dled by ene set of managers and the com- bined capacity of both plants will enable the company to handle much larger con- tracts. Edgar Summers of Milton is presi- dent of the company and J. C. Fowler of Middleburg is secretary and treasurer. Five of the directors of the Paxton Brick Company, Edgar Summers, J. C. Fowler, W. E. Fowler, W. H. Hill and Charles E. Fisher, were placed on the board of the Watsontown Brick Company. While all the details have not been worked out, it is apparent that this deal is an important one for Watsontown. The main office of the company will probably be located at Watsontown. Bellefonte capital is invest- ed in the Watsontown plant.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers