12 HARRISBURG TELEGRAPH A NEWSPAPER FOR THE HOME Pounded IS3I Published evenings except Sunday by THE TELEKRAFH PRINTING CO., Trlearraph Building, Federal Square. B. J. STACKPOLE, Pre ft <S- Editor-in-Chief R. OYSTER, Business Manager. CUS M. STEINMETZ, Managing Editor. Member of the Associated Press—The Associated Press is exclusively en titled to the use for republication of all news dispatches credited to it or not otherwise credited in this paper and also the local news published herein. !All rights of republication of special 1 dispatches herein are also reserved. I Member American Eastern office. Avenue Building, Entered at the Post Office in Harrls burg, Pa., as second class matter. By carriers, ten cents a week; by mall. $5.00 a year in advance. THURSDAY, DECEMBER 13. 1917 The love of the beautiful is be coming not only the possession of the rich, but the desire and pos session of the very poor. — JOHN BURNS. THAT POS7TAL SURPLUS THE local subsidized organ of the Democratic administration boasts to-day that the "post oflloo de partment closed its year with the largest surplus In Its history," $D,_ 836,211, and naively adds that "suah showing must bo extremely gratl tfylns to the publlo," It Is nothing of the sort, The public Is not Interested In postal ■profits; what it wants Is service, and •ervlce it Is not getting, The post office department was not created for the purpose of earning money. Jt wa brought into being to provide prompt and efficient transportation of all manner of mall matter, and this under the Wilson administration It Is not doing. There never was a -time In the history of the country ■when the post office department was po inefficient as now. Indeed, con ditions have become so bad that newspaper circulation managers In the East have taken unprecedented .measures to draw public attention to Its deficiencies In an effort to force Washington to do something other •than study the surplus columns. So far from being "pleased," the public Is angry and disgusted with the whole department, and it would much rather have a deficit with prompt and certain service than a aurplus, ever so big, piled up at the expense of the people for whose Ibenefit It was organized. The local post office forces are not to blame. Neither are the railway mail clerks. The nine million profits of which our contemporary boasts were earned by the sweat and blood of these men. Never has a faithful force of workers been so badly treat ed. Their work was hard enough at heit, but when Mr. Burleson took hold he Immediately cut down the crews and lopped off many post office employes. lie lengthened the runs of the mail clerks and cut off post office after post office. The result was that the efficiency of the men and the system was reduced. To make up for this rank mlsjudgment hoys and untrained men are now be ing brought in to tide the department over its rush. Postal employes with long service behind them and an unswering sense if loyalty to the government have stood this hardship with little com plaint. Any other lot of .men in pri vate employ treated so abominably ■would have been out on strike long ago. No. the public Is far from bolng "pleased." It is "mad" clean through and if the Demoerato organ doubts it th® proof lies with any business man It may chance to interview. Remember, Christmas Is the chil dren's holiday, and don't let the war Interfere with your celebration. Santa Cl&us doesn't care a hoot for the Kaiser. THE GARBAGE "HOI.D-UPS" SPECULATION as to the conclu sion of the garbage and ash problems in this city is about as full of doubt as guessing when the war will end. For months the municipal authorities have labored with the question and when there shall be a final deter mination it Is a reasonable hope that a practical solution will have been leached. Manifestly, the taxpayers are not going to be satisfied with any return to the system or lack of sys tem which has been a disgrace for several years. They have a right to expect that some plan be devised that will mean a satisfactory collec tion of the garbage and ashes at reg ular Intervals. Notwithstanding the frequent com ment upon the outrageous "tipping" which has been responsible for much of the failure of the present system, the handing out of lunches and money to employes of the present contracting firm continues in all parts of the city. This means that these employes deliberately ignore the who does not contribute THURSDAY EVENING, out of his private purse for what has already been paid for through his taxes under a municipal contract. Whatever system shall be finally installed there ought to be sufficient inspectors to stop definitely and ef fectively the "holdup" of the people by the wagon crews, who have boast ed in some instances that they have received more in tips than they did in wages. The citizen who is respon sible for these gratuities does not realize perhaps that he is helping to break down the efficiency of the entire system. Harrlsburg is too far along the way to longer endure the imposition and inconvenience that have result ■ed from the inadequate and indif ferent service under the existing con tract. There must be a change and no consideration shown those re sponsible for failure of the present plan. It i all up to the councilmen, and we believe they are fully awake to the importance of speedily closing up the whole matter and preparing for something like modern methods in disposing of the garbage and ashes of the community. If this sugar shortage produces the enlarged crop of maple syrup that is promised, some of us old-fashioned folks may look upon it as a blessing in disguise. LET US HAVE AX END OE IT NOW that the final step Is being taken in the Hardscrabble controversy. It Is the hope of all good citizens that an end shall be made of the whole matter. All property owners In the district af fected must be dealt with fairly and there is no indication anywhere that there is any other disposition upon the part of the city authorities. Many of the owners of property, es pecially on the west side of Front street between Herr and Calder, have waited patiently for the settlement so that they may exercise options upon homes in other parts of the city. These have been subjected to real hardships, inasmuch as in sev eral Instances they have been un able to take advantage of opportuni ties which would have meant a con siderable saving to them a year or two ago. City Solicitor Fox lias a clear grasp of the situation and with judicial fairness proposes to conserve the rights of the city, while at the same time doing nothing to impair the in terests of the property owners. As every possible phase of the contro versy has been gone over at length since the beginning of the proceed ings, it would seem that the pres ent session of court should see the end of the dispute. Time was when Hardscrabble rep resented a considerable number of homesteads with family traditions and a history of many generations of the same name, but during the last few years there has been a gradual change of the situation and the houses are in many instances now occupied by comparative newcomers. Again we repeat that all con cerned should have a square deal, but no unreasonable attitude con templating any delay should char acterize the hearing this week. Let us have an end of the chapter. Who cares for a wlieatless day with buckwheat cakes ripe and ready for the plucking? CONGRESSIONAL INQUIRY NO matter what it may or may not reveal, the Congressional inquiry into the prosecution of the war will have salutary effects. The government has accomplished wonders in its preparations since the declaration of war last spring, hut it might have done more and it is not so much for the purpose of cen suring those who have been respon sible for errors and delays that the present probe Is desirable, as It to prevent similar happenings in the future and to spur every branch of the government to even greater effort. Many things will be brought out that will not be pleasant reading. The transfer of shipping from ex perts in that line to the inex perienced quartermaster's depart ment. the quarreling and quibbling over shipbuilding, the delay in get ting guns and other equipment for the Army, the shilly-shallying that has resulted, in a year when more coal was mined than ever before, in millions of persons suffering from cold; the blunders with respect to the railroads—all these will come out, no doubt, and the public will be hurt and angry. But the general result will be to cause those who have been under lire to put on steam with determination to make up for lost time. And promptness and ef ficiency are all the public desire. Congress is not head-hunting. j TOOK BT T IiTj BY nORNS GOVERNOR JAMES M. COX. of Ohio, took the bull by the horns yesterday and seized several trains of coal bound through his state to relieve a serious fuel shortage there. The Governor acted si gainst the instructions of the fed eral fuel administrator, but accord ing to his own best Judgment, and no doubt Ohio people will stand by him. There Is a growing suspicion that if the government had acted promptly last summer and had gotten the coal over the roads be foro It was time to start the move ment of crops and before the netds of the National Army and the ship builders became so urgent, there would be no serious shortage now. It is also open to debate as to whether or not conditions have been bettered by taking the distribution of coal out of the hands of experts and putting it under the control of men, many of whom know very little about It At any rate. Governor Oox has shown us a new way of getting coal when it is badly needed. Ck By the Ex-Commlttecm Auditor General Charles A. Sny der's declaration to some of the de partment chiefs of the state govern ment that he will not pay clerks re cently appointed as "extras" and paid out of contingent and emer gency funds of the state government unless he is shown that they are essential, bids fair to create a ruc tion in the state government and to disarrange many of the plans of the state administration to strengthen it self in advance of the next primary. The Auditor General has authority to inquire into necessity and does not seem to mind such things as law suits. The first place where the blow fell was In the State Insurance Fund where the bulk of the nine persons recently appointed to places, iclud ing some Harrisburgers, got informal notice that they would be paid for December, but after that their jobs would end. The same Is said to be true regarding some "extra" clerks appointed for other departments and whose use the Auditor General wants to know about. It is said that the Public Service Commission has been asked to do some explaining about its stenog raphic bills and to inform the Audi tor General why It cannot use Its own stenographers instead of hiring them from other cities. Mr. Snyder says he simply wants to know necessity. In previous ad ministrations of the Auditor Gen eral's Department sucl\ Inquiries were taken as a matter of course and he says he does not see why any one should get excited over being asked to tell why expenditure of public funds for a clerk are neces sary. Some of the state administra tion men say that the Auditor Gen eral Is going after recent appointees of friends of the Governor. In any event it is likely that there will be some dismissals of persons recently put on the payroll, which will add to the pleasure of everyone concerned. —lt is regarded as very likely that General Charles M. Clement will be named as a public service commis sioner. The central section, which was recognized In the appointment of Robert K. Young is after one of the places and as the General was one of the Governor's candidates for delegate who went down he is fa vorably considered. —Senator Boles Penrose last night at Washington outlined some of the plans'for the midwinter conference of the Republican national commit tee. He said: "The meeting In Janu ary will be to arrange an educational and publicity campaign for the con gressional elections. The Republican party hopes to be able to organize the House and Senate. While we have supported the administration In all Its war legislation, we do not propose that the party shall lose its Identity. The last election was lost by a fluke and now the prospects for the Re publicans are encouraging." Senator Penrose Intends to take a leading part In consideration of any legisla tion which may be proposed as a remedy for the railroad problem. Said ho: "I regard the railroad ques tion as the most pressing of the day. I understand the President will de liver a message to Congress upon It." —lt is said that Senator W. C. Sproul has accepted a number of In vitations to speak throughout the state this winter. Highway Commis sioner J. Denny O'Neil also plans to' speak extensively. —Governor Brumbaugh did not re fer to political matters In his speech at Scranton. He has declined to dis cuss an extra session. —lt is to be noticed that the State Grange is carefully keeping out of the controversy between the State Commission of Agriculture and the Secretary. —The Town Meeting party an nounced yesterday, after a meeting of its executive committee, that the contest for the election of Vare nom inees to the offices of Receiver of Taxes, Register of Wills and City Treasurer had not been abandoned in the Philadelphia courts. Steps were taken toward making the or ganization a permanent one by ar ranging to form ward committees which will work in conjunction with the Town Meeting partv executive committee. George W. Coles, secre tary of the party, was elected chair man. and Horace W. Rilley, formerly of the Committee of Seventy, was made secretary in place of Mr. Coles. —According to the Philadelphia Press, Keystone Congressmen were too busy to call one state's congress ional delegation together to hear the suffrage pleas for the adoption of the constitutional amendment at Wash ington yesterday. Senator Penrose did not arrive until late and the suf frage leaders were unable to get Senator Knox to assume the duty which, he said, devolved upon the Senior Senator. Representative Thom as S. Butler, dean of the delegation In the House, was not to be found by the persistent women leaders. They turned to Representative J. Hampton Moore next but he declined to assume the duty which naturally belongs to the chairman. As the re sult the Pennsylvania women who wanted to address Pennsylvania's membership as one, were compelled to reach them individually. They did not receive much encouragement from Pennsylvania's Congressmen and Senators. Both United States I Senators are reported against the suffrage resolution and fifteen of the I thirty-six members will vote against it- —The Philadelphia Record says that city's councils' finance commit tee "held a reform sessfon yesterday and while considering some addition al salary increases and other expen ses for next year, criticised the board of judges who want to pay janitors $1,200 a year, and stuck a probe into the salary juggling game, whereby salaried employes also receive extra pay from special items appropriated to the various departments. The at tacks upon some of the comb nations complained of were led by Selectman Charles Seger, in criticising the judges, and by Selectman Harry J. Trainer, who pried open the secret salary boost scheme. Mr. Trainer evidently succeeded In reaching by inference the persons upon whom he is seeking to serve notice, and at a meeting of the committee on Monday will ofTer a resolution that is designed to halt the practice." —Jn all probability York's new City Council will line up as follows: Mayor E. S. Huguentugler, superin tendent of public affairs; John R. l.afean, superintendent of accounts and finance; Dr. A. M. Grove, super intendent of nublic safety; Harry Head, superintendent of parks and public pri>nert>' George M. Bollin ger, superintendent of streets and public improvements. Messrs. Hug uentupler and are hold-over connci'men, and Mr. Bollinger is the only Democrat. It h. * een inti mated that one of the first steps of the new Council will be to abolish the Civil Service Board lately ap pointed by the present Council, and if this is attempted a storm is ex pected. TDCKKBSBTTRG TELEGRAPH A HANDY MAN AROUND THE HOUSE BYBRIGGS ( OH HFMRYLFL ( P HEIRY E WORVJ'T ROW \ R I FIX. THAT , ? () H PHYLLIS. / ~~ T P,AMO FOR LOOK- L CAN [ LOO* PHYLUS MG F ' TWO S V BO , T NOVAJ WATCH THLS .""V I KEYS AR(= / o *l • \ JVG OU-ST —H6R6 - 5 SOME ' \ -STOCK Y / • |\ GOT THE , TO,CK — !-- JT* O I\HANG OF ' V R .. F FRITMP V * P IT R~ > \s — r 7— \ \ GOOOR I —-, R [ NNHATSMMTCFT.'. ?)/ L TA^ TA / V / WAIT A ( T CAIHAT D'YA_ / S —l SR? <: . SS?7RI*? Z^— • A; U ,AU —RFS. >O V A ISNSR '■ %$P O^A BOOKS AND MAGAZINES Two Hooka of Verne —Two volumes of poems by Robert Underwood John son, who has become his own pub lisher, are shortly to appear from the DeVinne press. One is a new edition of his last year's volume, "Poems of Peace and War," with numerous addi tions. mainly of poems relating' to the great war, some of which will be re membered by audiences to whom Mr. Johnson has read them on patriotic occasions. Among these are: "The Sword of Lafayette," "To Russia New and Free." "The Victor of the Marne," "The Crowned Republic," "The New Slavery" (apropos of the civilan expa ration in Belgium), "The Answer of the Lord, rhe First Gun," etc. The second volume now published is a collection of pieces relating to Italy from Mr. Johnson's larger book. It takes its name from the longest poem. "The Italian Rhapsody," and in cludes "Browning at Asolo," "Love in Italy," "To One Who Never Got to Rome" (on Edmund Clarence Stedma), "Spring at the Villa Conti," "Come in April." "The Spanish Stairs," "Titian's Two Loves," "Farewell to Italy," and others, to which is added "The Crowned Republic," first published as a greeting to the Italian War Com mission on its arrival in New York. These volumes are to be had of the author, at 70 Fifth Avenue, New York. Prices, respectively, $1.50 and sl. SIGHED POTS And they took their Journey from Elim. and all the congregation of the children of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin. And the whole congregation of the children of Is rael murmured against Moses and Aaron. And the children of Israel said unto them. Would to God we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full: for ye have brought us forth unto this wilder ness, to kill this whole assemblage with hunger.—Exodus xvi, 1 to 3. KEEPING CHRISTMAS I write as your brothter; a big fam ily we. With task set before to whip Germany; A task far from pleasant, we'd rather forbear, But to fail In its doing we never could dare. We have entered this "Made in Ger many" fight With anything else but a sense of delight; But Humanity called us and we will not fail. Nor at homo nor abroad will Patriot quail. Our incomes go down and expenses mount up, Supplies are much simpler for plate and for cup, It pinches and hurts, but we're sure it won't kill, And sure the results will warrant the bill. We're all of us feeling the pinch of war tax. But sufficient of bread there's none of us lacks, While over the seas, under Ger many's heel. Many thousands the pangs of hung er now feel. Since we have enough and plenty to spare Of the good things of life, who is there should care The dalntieA and luxuries now to forego, A common world brotherhood Int'rest to show? The Germans, true vandals, laid Belgium low, In France were brutal and savage, you know; For legalized warfare, regard they have none. Their name as a by-word through ages will run. Let our pity go out to those in dis tress; Let's save in our food, our pleasures, our dress; And the money we'd spend if these things we'd buy, Let's give it up gladly their needs to supply. Great gladness and Joy it will bring to the heart Of each who in saving of others takes part; Much greater, indeed, than any Joy bought In pleasing one's self, with others forgot. If thus we keep Christmas, the Father above Will recognize in It some kin to His love. That gave up His Son to save a lost world. And over us all His banner un furled. B. E. P. PKUCrH, Harrlabnrs, Pa. New Form of University Extension By the REV. DR. JOHN FOX AN EPISCOPAL. Bishop is quot ed jtist now as saying that the camps and cantonments are really great universities. It is an apt characterization. The chief text book in these universities is the Bible, and especially the New Tes tament. The Library Fund will pro vide other books of many kinds and various values; and the more good books there are, the better. The Book of books is in the fine phrase of the old dramatist: "Infinite riches in a little room." It is, to be sure, a sign spoken against. It always has been. In every age it is under fire, as Christianity itself has been, but no weapon formed against it pros pers. Never was it so successful as it is today, never so certain a win ner—the best seller; the most trust ed ally; eyes to the blind; crutches and feet to the lame and halt; a pil low for the weary; medicine, yes, and a surgeon's knife to the woun ded; the only sure comfort to the dying: a passport that will open the gates of everlasting bliss. Mr. Choate, who has so recently left us, in the very height of his eloquence, on a great public occasion in New York, cried out with passion, "If we can have but one book, O spare us that!" People are saying continually, "What good can anyone see to come outvof this dreadfullest of wars!" Is it no good that today millions of boys, some sincere Christians, many others careless, wayward, in the past; some, alas, wicked, are begin ning now, under the shadow of their impending baptism of fire, facing not only death, but "The dread of something alter death. "That undiscovered country from whose bourne "No traveler returns," — all these are quietly and humbly be ginning to search the Scriptures and finding new light as to what they mean. What is there more moving ARTISTS AND THE MOON The erratic behavior of the moon in the sky has been a pitfall for artist and poet; the mistakes have provided much amusement to the astronomer. Turner, the artist, has painted the sun setting in the east in his picture of the old Temoraire. Hogarth's picture of "The Last Stake," now gone to America, in which Mrs. Thrale claimed to have sat for the lady's model, is in tended to draw a moral on sitting up gambling all night, with the moon looking in reproachfully at the window. But the astronomer recognizes a winter new moon, and the hour is about 6 o'clock tea time, so we may imagine the other mem bers will be knocking at the door and asking, "When are you two coming in to tea?" We still speak of new moon and old, and so perpetrate the ancient theory of Pythagoras that the moon is not a celestial body coming round every month, biit a sort of magic lantern shown on the sky. This doc trine of Pythagoras is still the ortho dox theory in TurVey to-day, and, to prove it, the national emblem of the Orescent shows a star shining through the moon; and Coleridge, in the lirst dratt ol' "Christabel," Is reported to have seated a star in the horns of the crescent. —G. Greenhill In Nature. AMERICAN HUMOR The irrepressible ebullience of the Yankee soldier rises above the terror of war and bubbles in sparkling ef fervescence over the battle front. On devastated fields, where he toils to restore some semblance of civiliza tion, he erects signs that indicate his eternal optimism and defiance of fate. These signs are not grim in irony or threatening in aspect as are some erected by the enemy, but are full of the spirit of hope and pur pose. The ripple of laughter that tlows from them may strike some of the more serious-minded as in some soßse out of place, but they really show no lack of reverence. They are expressive of indomitable resolve to revise and make useful what the foe has sought to destroy. Daring death with a Jest and flouting at physical peril in characteristic of the light hearted men who are going with all their souls into the thickest of war'? inferno. They work while they laugh and bring an example of cour age and hope to a land that needs it most. American humor is an in separable companion to American pluck and determination and always "the bravest are the tenderest, the | loving are the daring.—Omaha Bee. than to see such a sight as a young lad with memories of home, or, if you please, without memories, look ing through this astronomer's glass into the heavens, and discovering as never before God in His heaven, the better country, the Cross of Christ, salvation now and thereafter, as he sits on the rude benches or In the ruder trenches of this new univer sity? Captain Bertrand, of the Chasseurs Alpins, who bears in his body marks of several wounds, writes, "Nothing can draw you nearer to God more than war. Four or live millions of young Frenchmen with eager curious spir its are there ready to receive the Word." All this imposes a great re sponsibility on the Bible Societies of the world. There are other agencies, and good ones, but naturally the heaviest burden must and does fall on these Societies. The British and Foreign Bible Society has issued more than six million Scriptures for soldiers and sailors in sixty lan guages. The American Bible So ciety is well in its fourth million and if the war goes on, must far pass the six million mark. Not all its out put went to our soldiers. On behalf of the World's Association, who col lected nickel gifts from the children, half a million or more went abroad. People are troubled about overlap ping. It is an evil, but there is a much worse evil, for some not to get any Testaments, and this hap pens sometimes. It is now officially announced that there are five rifles ! ready for every American soldier in I France. Rifles get out of order, and ! in the confusion of battle are lost, i Many Testaments likewise are lost lor destroyed. The American Bible Society is asking for $400,000, dur ing the period of December 1 to 15 and this amount at least is needed; and if the war goes on, it really should have a million dollars. Dr. Fox is corresponding secretary of the American Bible Society, in i charge of this campaign. HEALTH IN THE ARMY Under modern scientific manage-, mcnt of the army camps, only four, kinds of infectious disease are giv-i ing the medical officers trouble. For i the last week for which the surgeon' general's report is available, the I week ending November 16, pneu-j monia, vice infections, meningitis and measles were the chief offend ers. In no case were the conditions alarming. Thanks to vaccination the two worst scourges ol' armies of the past, smallpox and typhoid, were virtually eliminated from consideration. Among the 1,065,000 men in training there were only sporadic cases of typhoid, while smallpox is so nearly negligible that it is no longer men tioned in the army reports. In con trast with army conditions are those in Kansas City where indifference to vaccination has permitted a small pox epidemic to get under way.— Kansas City Times. THE REAL TEST There is one striking and impor tant i'act about the United States which must be remembered by all who consider the status of this na tion and the Ltate of mind of the American people in regard to the war. It is the fact that although we have been at war for eight months, we have not yet begun to pay the penalty in blood. There lias been a few scattering casualties here and there, of course, but so few as scarcely to make an impression on the mind and soul of the people. This condition —perhaps unique in history—unquestionably has a bear ing upon the attitude of the people toward the war. Precisely what its effect la may not be easily deter mined, but that there will be some sort of change in the spirit of the neonle. when t'nc first casualty list from our first big battle comes in is certain. That list may carry 2,000, 5,000, perhaps 10,000 names. This will be a new experience for our people. Nothing like it has come to us so far. Yet it is the most vital of all the experiences and con sequences of yar and for the nations of Europe it has long been the prin cipal factor in the lives and thoughts of the people. Until this experience has come to us also and the nation has reacted to it, we cannot soy that our war spirit has been fully re vealed. For this is the real test— although we know 1 each other too well to feel any doubt that the country will meet it as it should an .' must be met. —Charleston News and CoadMt 1 Tree rkitts, 1917. LABOR NOTES Richmond (Va.) painters have se cured a reduction of one hour in the work day and wage increases of '75 cents a day since April 1. In nearly all the shipbuilding plant in England and Scotland women are employed in large num bers. One plant alone employs over 6,000 of them. Lawrence (Kan.) contractors are accepting the new wage contract of Carpenters' Union. Rates are ad vanced from 37% to 45 cents an hour. Railway men of Dublin, Ireland, indorsed the action of the Trade Union Congress in deciding to send delegates to the Stockholm Confer ence. A strike of the employes em ployed in the Junior Army and Navy Stores, Dublin, Ireland, has been settled by giving the men an ad vance of $1 a week. Australian Federal and State gov ernments have adopted comprehen sive plans for the employment and land settlement of returned soldiers and sailors. The British Government has made a pledge to British labor that every employer shall, after the war, "rein state the working conditions of his factory on the prewar basis." Fort Smith (Ark.) teamsters and chauffeurs have organized and affil iated with the International Brother hood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Stablemen and Helpers. During the second quarter of 1914 there were 7,265 women employed in German mines, of whom 5,785 were in Upper Silesia. During the fourth quarter in 1916 there were 37,563 so employed. OUR DAILY LAUGH | LACKED PERBEVER- J \/A ANCE. / C It I ask you / Wk once to marry fl f /j\ \ f/p me and you say Vj V jjjm "No" I'll never jURk \|ll flfflfl •k you again. You won't? *1 Well, I see now | why you didn't ly succeed as an I Insurance agent. j I SPgf TIVE HALLS. HjT Did you see K was she doing when you saw MBT She was pow derlng her no**. TROUBLE. How is your !B. •. .-Tjia wife? Her head troubles her a W Jt> 7*3^ great deal. Vr V Do you think \v ' she has neu- jfL ralgla? O/ No; she can't / 1 '"A decide upon the / /I. kind of new hat I ff she wants. \?) SURE WOULD. fl\ I see Mr. MM Prtc * * liL ' doesn't Bmttng (Cljtrt Some very, very queer ideas about* military service are cropping up at' the meetings of the district appeal draft board at the State Capitol these days and the abrupt manner in which the board is acting uponf some of the requests for exemption from military service should carry their own lessons. In one instance a farmer from a nearby county camti in and asked exemption from tbe ; draft for his son who was Just within the draft age and whom h declared was essential to him in th conduct of his farm, which, of course, was vital to the food supply of the nation. I low many sons have you' ?' wu asked. Seven," said the farmer. •It turned out that three sons wer*' working on the farm and three were helping other farmers between times when there was no work on the home farm, while the seventh was a mere lad. Another, instance puzzled th members of the board for a whilfc. An undertaker claimed he needed a son within the draft age more than the members of the board had any idea. In fact from his remarks it would be impossible for people to die in his section without the assist ance of the aforesaid son. Ques tions developed that the son ran the automobile. Finally it came out that there was another son and he was working in a furniture factory. "Why don't you have that son come and run your car? He is not of draft age, and then the other could go to the Army," was sug gested. Well," replied the undertaker, you see I couldn't pay him what he is getting- at the factory. No, it wouldn't do at all. It would not pay him." A butcher asked exemption on the ground that he was needed to con serve the food supply. It was sug gested that he would be a fine man for the comissary department In a camp. He is. The meeting to be held at th Capitol about January 12 in com memoration of what Pennsylvania has been doing to aid the country in the war will be a patriotic event such as has seldom taken place in Harrisburg if the plans are carried out. A speaker of national fame is being urged to make the address and the gathering will be of state wide significance. The Pennsylvania State Society is in charge of the ar rangements. The Pittsburgh Gazette-Times has this to say of a man who is well known here and who years ago be gan a work whose importance is just being realized: "The plan for Americanizing our undigested for eign population outlined by Dr. H. H. Wheaton here on Saturday eve ning is practical—and many peo ple who have given the matter stu dious attention will be constrained to say, "at last." There has been much generalization about Ameri canizing the foreigner and every body concedes it ought to be done; but up to now little of a practical nature has been accomplished out side of the public schools. The Fed eral plan to enlist 1,000,000 workers, each of whom will pledge himself to influence one foreigner to begin the study of English will work, and its possibilities for safety (Dr. Wheaton made his plea on the pow er for danger to America represent ed by our unassimilated aliens) are limitless. If, as Dr. Wheaton said, and we all believe, the enemy is working against us here by propa ganda, a good propaganda of our own ought to be pretty effective, especially so as we are going to win and Germany isn't." "We are just beginning to appre ciate the importance of our high- ways as adjuncts to railroad trans portation," said C. W. Burtnett, chairman of motors and motor transportation of the Committee of Public Safety in Dauphin county in discussing with a Telegraph re porter the other day the call of Saturday night for volunteers to help clear the roads. "The motor truclc and the passenger motor have come to stay as means of cross country transportation and he is a wise man who takes them into con sideration." Mr. Burtnett has found in Ezra Hershey, treasurer of the Ilershey Chocolate Company, a will in.? worker in the eastern part of the county and through him has procured a complete list of owners of motor trucks, passenger auto mobiles, the kind of cars they have and their willingness to serve the government in times of stress. !n the lower end of the county similar information has been gathered and preparations are being made to get a caru index of upper end automo bile owners. All over the state sim ilar information is being gathered and the automobiles that would come voluntarily into the temporary use of the government if needed would crowd the thoroughfares all over Pennsylvania. It is a big work that is being quietly and effi ciently done, this mobilization ot the motor forces of the common* wealth. Some of the men who are home from the camps are enthusiastic ovei< Army life and the difference in bear-, ing of some of the boys proves it. One young man who WHS home over the week seems to have gotten the idea that his flrst duty while homs was to recruit because he has been busier than a marketmaster collect ing rents on a crowded day. Another young man spent hours instructing some of his pals In the rudiments of military training. 1 WELL KNOWN PEOPLE —Jay Cooke, the Philadelphia food administrator, comes of a fam* fly long active in state affairs. —Joseph Hollister, new vice-ooiv. sul at Glasgow, is a Mount Carmel lawyer. —John A. McSparran, the master of the State Grange, is urging farm ers to do their utmost in a series of addresses he is delivering. —Dr. J. W. A. Haas, president of Muhlenberg College, is one of the members of Allentown's new civil service commission. —Major J. A. Moss, author oC military textbooks and well known here, has been detailed to the Fifty fifth Regiment. DO YOU KNOW That HanWmrß people among the earnest supporter's of the Government in the flotation of the Civil War bonds? HISTORIC HAKUINIUmO Early political gatherings us<l to be held on the River Front .times at Harris Farrjv • |
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers