18
HARRISBURG TELEGRAPH
.< NSWSrAPSK FOR THB HOMB
IHnndid list
Published evenings exoapt Sunday bjr
TIM TEUDGRArn PHJimWQ CO*
Telegraph Building, Federal Sqnnrfc
13. J. BT ACKPOLB, Prtt't & B4trJ-ChUf
F. R. OTBTER, Bnsinttt Manager,
OOS M. STEINMETZ, Managing Jtdtfr.
Member of the Associated Frees —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
dlspatohes herein are also reserved,
Member American
Ushers' Assocln-
Bureau of Clrca
yM'jWffijpCoHk latlon and Penn
jjv sylvanta Associ
ate! H m Eastern office,
*S* ren Story,
IffiSilt, wff Avenue Building.
Western office.
Gas' 07 ' Buinflng!
_ Chicago, 111.
Entered at the Post Office in Harris
burg, Pa., as second class matter.
By carriers, ten cents a
week; by mall, JG.OO
a year In advance,
— 1 " '■ — 1 11 ——?
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1917
There is no greater wisdom, than
null to time the beginnings and on
sets of things. —LOUD BACON.
GETTING NEARER
THE latest "peace terms" of the
Kaiser approach more nearly
the demands of the allies than
any yet submitted. They indicate
uvo things—that the imperial familyj
f'r.ds it increasingly necessary to put j
as good a faoe on Prussianlsm atj
home as is possible, while still main- j
tabling control of government, and j
.he tacit acknowledgment that
there is no hope of victory for Ger-|
many.
Every offer of Germany yields
something. First, there was talk of I
indemnities to be paid Germany, the
retention of the "lost provlncos," the
return of Germany's Afrlcau colo
nics, the annexation of all or part of
Celgium, and other impossibilities
of the kind. Now the humbled Kai
ser would let go his great African
empire in order to dodge financial
responsibility in Belgium and is will
ing even to talk disarmament. A
little later he will be willing to grant
still more, and by and by we shall
win all for which we are striving.
But let nobody be deceived. We
cannot talk peace on Germany's
present terms. Ono cannot make
' truce with a bear," much less a
saber-toothed man-eater. There is
the old rhyme of the lady who "went
out to ride on a tiger, but returned
from the ride with the lady Inside
and a smile on the face of the tiger,"
and we have no desire to play lady to
the Kaiser's tiger. President Wil
ton is fully acquainted with the facts
and very skillfully he has made pub
lic, just at the moment of Germany's
move to show the world how peace
fully inclined she is, the efforts of
the imperial government to stir up
trouble for us In South America.
Cine of the most statesmanlike quail
ties the President has displayed has
been his ability to checkmate Ger
man plots to win sympathy for her
self among Americans. He has not
only shown himself as keen-witted
as the cunning diplomats of Berlin,
but in every instance he has come
out of the encounter with honors
more than even.
MORE GERMAN' PROPAGANDA?
THE Telegraph Is in receipt to
day of the following letter with
the request to "please publish:"
Under the head of "Publish the
Disloyal," I would suggest the
ijrst one published should bo the
llarrisburg Telegraph. Your con
stant harpintf and criticizing the
conduct of the war is nothing
more than sedition and comfort
for Germany. Your news dated
Washington should be dated Lo
cust street; is nothing more than
trash written in your own office.
Be wise, or you may have some
callers you may not like.
"AMERICAN."
As was to be expected this letter
•was unsigned. The Telegraph would
1-6 only too happy to have this fel
low "call." The Telegraph would
l:ke him to explain why such a
"patriot" has not long ago donned
the uniform of his country. It
■would like to know, too, how many
Liberty Bonds he owns, how much
he has given to the Red Cross and
the Y. M. C. A. funds. It would like
to know also why such a heroic fig
ure should be willing to hide its
German-like threats behind an un
signed letter.
One man out of every five in the
employ of this newspaper is In the
service of the United States, and
more are preparing to go. Its work
ing force, from the highest to the
lowest, U in the Red Cross and Y.
M. C. A. war work. It has as a
lorporation and Individually sub
scribed liberally to each Liberty
Loan and it is prepared to do so
u.jain. Its employes have been
Ki anted leave of absence with fuli
P&y to take part in every war work
campaign that has been conducted
*ince the nation entered the con
liict- It has been a constant sup
porter of every war principle laid
clown by President Wilson. It yields
to none in loyalty or patriotism and
its record speaks for itself.
But if this unnamed "American"
iliinka that this newspaper is to be
frightened Into winking its eye at
official incompetence In high places
he la mistaken. When beef that
should bare gone to American ol-
FRTDAY EVKNTSrn,
dlers tn France U loft to rot in the
hold of a ship, whon wheat and po
tatoes are spoiled and thro n over
board, when a large percentage of
our boys in camp are left without
uniforms, when oniaial incapacity
results in our men depending upon
Prance for rifle* and maohlne (runs
and when lack of preparedness pre
vents the second draft frora being
put into effect because there is no
clothing for the soldiers, it does
feel called upon to raise its voloe in
protest The Telegraph would not
be true to its readers did it hide
these faots and it proposes to pub
lish them in full, so that inefficiency
at Washington may be discouraged
and our boys at the front and In the
camps given the fair deal to whltA
they are entitled.
Every error in the conduct o! the
war is costing the lives of our own
soldiers and those of our allies. Ev
ery publication of true conditions
aids In cvrrectlng mistakes. Nobody
questions the patriotism of Secre
tary Daniels or Secretary Baker.
Both are true blue Americans. But
they are not qualified for the places
thev hold. They have had ti learn
by experience and this is no time
to acquire knowledge in that way.
Tho biggest, most experienced men
in the nation, regardless of party,
are none too good for the work we
have in hand. The President should
be surrounded by the ablest men
of the land and the Telegraph, for
one, will be content with i;oth
ing less. As for the Telegraph's
Washington dispatches, they are
from the wires of the Associated
Press, the biggest, oldest and most
reliable news gathering association
in the world. They appear in thou
sands of newspapers and their truth
and integrity are unquestioned. Fur
thermore the investigations now un
der way are being conducted by the
President's closest friends and they
are men who desire nothing but that
the people know the truth so that
existing errors may be corrected.
To keep from the public knowl
edge that our soldiers in camp are
largely without arms and that the
clothing supply is insufficient for
those waiting to be called would be
merely to give aid to Germany.
Nothing would please the Kaiser
better than to have the American
people believe all is well with the
conduct of the war the while we
were committing colossal blunders,
and our letter writing critic lays
himself open to suspicion of being
an agent of German propaganda
when he threatens the Telegraph
for giving space to dispatches that
are appearing In every loyal news
piper in the land. If "American"
doeen't like this let him corns
around to the office with his objec
tions—but not at night with mask
and blackjack.
The Telegraph reprinted last night
from the Augusta (Ga.) Chronicle an
editorial under the head of "The Man
and the Job." The credit line was in
advertently omitted, but most people
will agree with the sentiments there
in expressed as to the sidetracking
of General Leonard Wood in the
present war.
A POTENTIAL FORCE
NOW that the powers and
periods of service of the volun
teer State police, the organi
zation of which was provided for by
the last Legislature, have been de
fined, it is expected that Governor
Brumbaugh will complete thq nam
ing of tho men who are to act In
aso of emergency in their home
communities. The volunteer State
lollcemen will be a body separate
rom the Reserve Militia, which is to
•eplace the National Guard to all
intents and purposes and which will
ho armed and equipped and given
-juarters in armories by the Com
•nonwealth, but It will be a fully
qualified body for sheriffs and chiefs
of police to fall back upon. Many
men of prominence in affairs have
been enrolled as members of this po
lice force, and as they will serve on
call, they will form a potential force
for the authorities when needed.
In a number of communities men
connected with home defense organ
nations have been commissioned as
members of the volunteer police, giv
ing the force the value of training
ind discipline and in many cases of
nilitary experience. There is a place
; n industrial Pennsylvania for the
volunteer police and as the powers
of government and men have been
carefully laid down there should be
within a few months organizations
cflected in every county.
AN ALT- THE YEAR GIFT
DO you want to give your boy a
Christmas gift that won't cost
very much, but which will be a
source of pleasure and benefit to him
constantly for fifty-two weeks and
which will leave Its Impress favor
ably upon his physical and spiritual
being all his life?
The Harrlsburg Y. M. C. A. is the
thing.
The association has been rejuve
nated. Boys are welcome there now.
Special arrangements are made to
care for them. Gymnasium classes
are open to them. A boys' secretary
is In charge. There are rooms es
pecially fitted up for them. They
are taught how to take care of ihelr
bodies and live clean lives.
Every boy whose father is ab'.e to
Invest the price ought to be in the
association, and if you have no boy
of your own and do have the money
to spare, look about y<yi for a man
who has a son but who has not the
means. After that your duty is clear.
Mayor Keister has properly sought
to inform himself specifically as to
the real need of the people of Harris
burg of coal. When he called upon
the dealers for accurate reports of
those who want fuel and can't get it.
he proceeded in the right way to ac
quire definite information. Meanwhile,
the assurance that coal is on the way
for Harrlsburg will please those who
are suffering for the lack of it.
If this coal shortage keeps up, the
ash collection protnem will solve
Itself.
lly tho Ex- Committeeman
Reports that the history of the
Democratic gubernatorial campaign
of 1914 will repeat itself which have
been current at Washington, Phila
delphia, Pittsburgh and this city,
seem to have been well founded and
the word Is going the rounds that
the voters of Pennsylvania are to
have their Democratic ticket made
up for them again by a small coun
cil of machine bosses to be held at
Washington and that their action will
be approved at the White House
and sent to the Keystone state as the
desire of the national administra
tion. A little less than four years
ago half a dozen Democratic bosses
from this state did the same thing
at the National Capital and the re
sult was that Vance C. McCormlck
and A. Mitchell Palmer were put be
fore the citizens of Pennsylvania as
slated candidates only to be repudiat
ed by majorities running into the
myriads.
The last fortnight there have been
reports among the Democrats that
while the country was to be lulled by
intimations that talk of polities was
not patriotic, now the Democratic
bosses were to frame up their slate
for Pennsylvania on the banks of the
Potomac and then promulgate It
from the state windmill on the banks
of the Susquehanna. The Philadel
phia Evening Ledger thus sums up
developments: "A caucus of the
State Democratic leaders, to pick
candidates and decide upon the first
{ step of the gubernatorial campaign
for next year, was called to-day. It
will be held in Washington the first
week of January, when Congress re
convenes. Among those who will at
tend are Vance C. McCormick, na
tional chairman; A. Mitchell Palmer,
national committeeman from Penn
sylvania and Joseph F. Guffey, acting
state chairman. Coincident with the
notice of the caucus was the appar
ently authoritative news that Sec
retary of Labor William B. Wilson,
who has been mentioned by Demo
cratic state leaders all along as their
choice for the Governorship, has de
clined to run. According to several
state Democratic leaders who were
in Philadelphia to-day, he has told
the state committee that he much
prefers to stick to his present post.
Vance C. McCormick, who was de
feated for the Governorship three
years ago, probably will be the choice
of the caucus as the Democratic
standard bearer next year. The only
other man who is being considered,
according to the Democratic state
leaders in this city to-day, is Joseph
F. Guffey, of Pittsburgh. In the event
of the selection of McCormick as the
Democratic candidate for Governor,
Guffey, who has been acting as chair
man of the Democratic state commit
tee for more than a year in the ab
sence of William S. McLean, of
Wilkes-Barre, who has gone to war,
will be duly elected chairman of the
state body. Should McCormick de
cline to lead the Democrats of the
state in next year's battle, Guffey will
be the choice of the party leaders,
according to the advance informa
tion."
—The movement for the renom
ination of Superior Court Judge
W.lliam D. Porter, which has been
taking form at various meetings, of
county bar associations for some
weeks and which it is hoped will re
st It in the state escaping another
scramble \t the primary, was given
a big iippe'ue at Philadelphia yes
terday by prominent men without
regard to party or faction. The Phil
adelphia Inquirer says of.it: "Judge
William D. Porter returned to his
home In Pitcsburgh yesterday after
having received assurances that the
leaders of toth factions of the re
publican party in this city will sup
port hi, ennd'dacy to succeed him
self on the Court bench.
Judge Porter's term expires next
year an.l his successor will be elect
ca next November. It is tha aim
o? the supporters of Judge Portei
that ho shall receive more than fifty
per cent, of the vote cast at the
primaries on May 21 next on the
Nonpartisan ballot, which would
mean that his name would be print
ed on the fall election ballot without
a competitor, the primary vote vir
tually re-electing him. Judge Por
ter is finishing his first term of ten
; ears on *.he Superior Court bench.
He had previously been a Common
Pleas Court judge in Allegheny
county.
—Senator Boies Penrose, who
spent part of the day in Philadel
phia yesterday, said last evening:
"I shall be pleased to vote for the
re-election of Judge Porter to the
Superior Court. He has made a very
creditable record and I believe that
he will be supported by members
of the bar generally throughout the
state, irrespective of their political
affiliations. I have always favored
the re-election of the judges of the
Superior Court, and in the case of
Judge Porter I am particularly
pleased to advocate his continuance
on the bench."
—The Philadelphia Record tells'
this interesting story about some
political events in Philadelphia yes
terday: "Penrose forces put the
Smith-Vare administration sup
porters "over the ropes" in a test of
strength in Select Council yester
day in what is recognized as the
first skirmish for control of Coun
cils since the serious break of almost
two years ago, when the Mayor lined
up with the Vares against the Pen
ro3e-McNichol faction. The attack
was somewhat obscured by the fact
that the fight was made upon a bill,
passed by Common Council without?
opposition, to reimburse the Amer
ican Bridge Company, for $22,-
290.47 for loss due to delay by the
city in providing concrete founda
tions for the steel Work the company
was under contract to erect for the
Frankford elevated line. There
were 40 of the 4 8 members of the
chamber present, and four did not
vote, while 23 voted for the meas
ure and 13 against. The bill re
quired a two-thirds vote of 32 in
the affirmative. If the measure had
merely required a majority vote,
which is 25 members, it could not
have passed. , The result to sig
niflcant that, while the majority
vote Is held by the Vare-Smith fac
tion, it is not sufficient to control
financial legislation."
—Altoonn, which recently adopted
the city manager plan Is furnish
ing some excitement. Yesterday
sweeping salary raises for all offi
cials and employes of the city police
and (Ire departments were author
ized by the City Commissioners,
who have but a few days more to
hold office. The Increases add
$15,000 annually to the city payroll.
Chief of Police Ttllard was advanced
from SISOO to SIBOO. while $lO was
added to the monthly stipend of
every officer and fireman.
—Pittsburgh's council has started
to trim its budget. The city coal
mine proposition will cost SIOO,OOO
it is claimed.
Johnstown has created a city
recreational bureau.
—Representative Fred C. Ehr-
' 7
BAMKiHßiiHcftlftgiaaapa
'AIN'T rr A GRAND AND GLORIOUS FEELIN'7
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WHEM ojvi MOKfPAV You -• FTNO on TUESOA/ Te ANTD VOO <SO TO \
ATT6NJD A 5 CHAIRMAW 'Trte' weeni_Y CHAMBER OP ( THE ROTARY ccue
PUBLICITY CoMMiTTeej • COMMERCE LuwcueoM ow WEPNESwY
- ■
AND OBJ THURSDAY A AND OM FRIDAY A ,F OKJ VO_> MAD
SPeecM A~r The AD CLUB LuMCneoM AT Thp 1 datc awd yoo
srsss- a' athlet " CLua mm Th-H- bb B;V- *,# r
hardt is talked of for registration
commissioner to succeed Mayor-elect
A. T. Connell in Scranton, but his
membership .in the House bars that.
However, if Representative John E.
Arthur can take a municipal job in
Philadelphia, Ehrhardt's friends say
they do not see why he should be
barred. Registration places are
within the gift of the Governor.
—Erie councilmen threaten to cut
down salaries rather than increase
the tax rate.
■ —Governor Brumbaugh has three
Judges and two public service com
missioners to name. There may be
some Christmas gifts.
—Ex-Representative H. W. Ber
gey, of Montgomery, has left his edi
torial desk and gone into the Army.
—Ex-Sheriff G. K. Fegley, of Sha
mokin, is dead. He was long prom
inent in Northumberland affairs.
—Fred T. McDonald, a£out whose
affairs In Chester county there has
been much noise in the North
American, says that if he owes the
county money it will be paid as he
does not want what does not be
long to him.
—Hazleton's police force is down
to eight, a loss of six, in spite of
increase of salaries.
—Reading city council is trying
to see if it can vote money for coun
sel fees to fight fare increases.
—The taxable real property In
Allegheny county was assessed at
$1,270,129,260 in 1917, according to
the report of County Treasurer E. D.
Friebertshauser on the taxes col
lected during the past year. This is
an Increase of $20,000,000 over the
1916 valuation. There was a much
greater increase in 1917 in the val
uation of personal property subject
to tax, which includes stocks, bonds
and money at interest. In 1917 this
wa sassessed at $340,510,792, an in
crease of more than $50,000,000 over
1916, when the personal property
valuation was $289,865,640.
BOOKS AND MAGAZINES
"In the National Army Hopper." i
(J. B. Llppineott Company. 25 cents j
net). The boys in camp are going j
to find this little book just the thing j
to send home to their people, to give j
a vivid realization of what they p.re
doing from day to day. And the peo-1
pie at home are going to want the \
book, in order to understand that 1
new world into which they'have sent;
their sons, brothers, fathers andj
sweethearts.
Written by a noted Army officer,
who knows his subject from A to Z,
it is surprising to the Inexperienced
or the outsider to find how much of j
this information is practically new, j
In that few of us have had any op-!
portunity to get a complete detailed
survey of the soldier's life and duty, i
The new soldier is so busy ea' n-j
ing new things that he has little time}
to 'hang heavy' over his he&d. In
fact, he Is, our author assures us, 1
ready for the most popular amuse-!
ment In camp, 'hitting the hay,' when'
taps sound across the night air, Andj
insomnia is practically a lost art
among the soldiers of the Army at
home or abroad.
LETTERS TO. THE EDITOR
A PREACHER'S MAIL
To the Editor of the Telegraph:
Do you care to have a glimpse at
a preacher's mail? Here is an in
teresting, and suggestive letter which
I take pleasure in handing to you.
It may serve to help you see how
much some people think of us; and
some other things.
"As there are at least 1,500 fami
lies in Harrlsburg without fuel, coal
in small quantities selling at $21.00
a ton, a tremendous number of peo
ple are starving, while the loafer
priests and preachers are drawing
big salaries and rendering no re
turn. Following precedents, would
it not be in order for your next ser
mon to be on the text, 'The Lord
Tempers the Wind to the Shorn
Lamb?'
"What idiocy and folly It all Is.
Now be henest. You need not &peak
it from the pulpit, because you would
lose your Job. Don't you really
know that this church business, and
preaching is the greatest farce on
earth?"
It isn't worth while to say that the
writer of this letter offers a text
from Sterne's "Sentimental Jour
ney." rather than from the Word of
God. I am sure that my brethren
among the priests and the preachers
wish that we could relieve the coal
situation, and some other situations
which are more threatening.
Sincerely,
G. E. HAWES,
Market Square Church.
Dec. 20, 1917.
War Expenditures and
Their After Effects
IT is a pretty common thing, now
a-days, to hear of expenditures j
that run into the billions so
common that most of us pay little at- j
tention to it any more.
But how much is a billion dol- i
lara? To get an idea of just howl
enormous a sum it is, stop to think
that since the birth of Christ, or in'
other words, since the year one, only!
a little over one billion seven million j
minutes have elapsed.
And then to think that the crops!
of 1917 put approximately ten bil-i
lion dollars of new wealth into the
country and that the United States
and her allies will spend between fif- I
teen billion more for war supplies. |
That's a total of at least twenty- j
two billion dollars that will be!
thrown into circulation in this coun-'
try—as many dollars as there tire*
minutes in 41,856 years—think of it. j
The tremendous sums that have,
been expended in this country since
the beginning of the war are all that
have caused the present prosperity
and high prices. Nothing else has
put the price of farm products where
it is, nothing else has put the price
of labor where it is—nothing else has
put the price of lumber where It is.
we have the money—naturally we
invest it to make more—that makes
LABOR NOTES
Frisco waitresses ask an increase
of $1 a week.
There are 1,000,000 Mexican la
borers in this country.
Telephone girls at Moose Jaw,
Canada, have formed a union.
Baton Rouge (La.) painters have
secured an eight-hour day.
Railway signalmen have 17 local
stations and a membership of 855.
British co-operative societies did
a business of over $800,000,000 last
year,
Virginia labor unions demand the
elimination of convict-made goods.
THE FERMENT
People everywhere are learning
some things from war which makes
them critical. The experts were
wrong. They said Germany and
England could not raise five or six
billion dollars a year each for three
years running. Germany and Eng
land have done it. The authority of
expert judgment Is weakened.
The established scheme, taking it
by and large, got the world into a
frightful calamity. There is less re
spect for the established scheme.
With half of her best male labor
cut of the country, and merely con-,
sumlng, England is producing prac
tically as much food, clothing, luel,
iron, steel, and such basic neces
saries, as ever; and In addition Is
producing mountains of guns, shells,
a,nd powder, which are immediately
destroyed. . ,
Of course people are saying: What
if we produced at this rate with all
the soldiers working, too, and all
turning out useful goods? Would
there be any excuse for any lack ot
useful goods anywhere in the coun
try ?
They see that this, increased pro
duction was brought about by a
searching reorganization, which
largely cast aside the old scheme of
competitive individualism, co-ordin
atlng Industry to broad common
ends. Of course they are
How much of this reorganization
shall we retain in peace? llow shall
it be directed and applied?
And all the while one hears the
slightly muffled voices of the old or
der. Labor Is mtiQh dlssat sfied—
apparently, on the whole, liking the
new organization less than the old.
Shipowners are grumbling at the
wav the Government manages the
merchant fleet. The food trades
protest against this or that regula
tion. Everywhere you see a sub
dued but restive straining at the
leash. Evidently only the tremen
dous emotional appeal of war In
duces acquiescence In the new ar
! rangement.
I It would be astonishing, and very
discouraging, if all that the war has
taught aa to the value of broader
economic organization and better ar
ticulation of industry should be
abandoned. We have no Idea that
It will be. Neither have we any Idea
that the old economic and political
organization Is to be thrown into
the melting post and recast. Big and
permanent social changes do not
come about in that way. —Saturday
leveeing Posk
the demand and the demand forces
I prices upward.
I But the twenty-two billion dollars
i to be expended now is far in excess
| of the expenditures made up to this
! time and it, therefore, naturally fol-,
i lows that great prosperity, higher
| prices for labor and materials will
' prevail, at least until after the war.
And then, you ask, what about
! after the war? In the case of lum
: ber, prices are certain to Jump etill
I higher. In the first place, since the
! war began, our exports of building
: material have fallen off $38,000,000,
almost half. If our exports only re
turned to their normal level, ther©-
i fore, there would be a greatly in
creased demand for building mater
| ial in this country and you know the
demand regulates the price at every
i turn of the road. But there is the
. reconstruction of the vast areas that
I have been devastated by the war,
! that must be considered—the re
building of the hundreds of towns
and cities that have been laid flat.
That means an unusual European
demand—it means an increase In our
exports that will far surpass the nor
mal level—it means a drain on Amer
ican building materials that is cer
tain to cause prices to soar for years
to come.—By H. V. Scott, Daven
port, lo\ya. •
TRACTORS FOR FARMERS
Our stocks of horses have been de
pleted by the demands of war. The
supply of labor has been made Insuf
ficient by the same cause In almost
every field of Industry. The fanners
feel both these shortages more than
any other class. England has had
the same experience in an even
severer form, and she has found re
lief in the greatly increased manu
facture and use of steam tractors.
Farmers are rather slow to make
changes, but in this country, be
cause farm labor has generally been
scarce, the farmers have been quick
to adopt labor-saving machines. The
sickle and the scythe gave way to
the reaper and the mower as soon
as these appeared, wbile the use of
the once familiar flail is unknown
in these days of the steam thresher.
The farmers, particularly in the west
make free use of the automobile. It
is but a step further to the steam
tractor, which will do the work of
several teams and requires the em
ployment of fewer men.
This is appreciated by the farm
ers, and a new demand for farm
tractors Is the result. The manu
facture is checked by the difficulty
of getting sufficient steel. This
should be remedied. The govern
ment should wake up to this special
situation, which seems to have es
caped its attention. For unleM it
takes the matter in hand and grant
priority to steel for the manufac
ture of tractors, the American farm
er qannot do his part as he should
in sustaining the country In this
period of exhausting war.—Phila
delphia Press.
SOMEWHERE IN FRANCE
She stands alone beside the gate.
Where oft with him she stood
before,
And seems to hear his voice relate
Life's sweetest story o'er and o'er;
A hand she feels upon her own,
Unconsciously a tender glance
She gives, then starts and stands
alone,
The lover sleeps—Somewhere In
France.
She could have kept him If she
would—
His heart and soul were all her
own—,
But true love knsw and understood
Thai Honor is its own true throne,
She heard the bugles' blaring sound
And whispered,—"Go and take
your chance,"
There 'mid the scenes of war he
found
Eternal peace— Somewhere In
France.
She knows not where that spot may
be
On barren plain, In hidden dell.
On wooded hill, beside the sea—
The lips that would will never tell;
'She knows not what his last vords
were,
The thoughts that come with
Death's advance,
\nd yet, she feels they were of her,
Those last fond thought®—Some
where In France.
—By De Roy C. H—derion In Car
toons Wigiiliw.
DECEMBER 21, 1917.
Over tfwc
IK "peruou
<*_ _ —>
"Smile when you pay your in
come tax: it means a tear for ihe
Kaiser" is the slogan to be posted
over Pennsylvania to quicken the
grudging taxpayer. "Liberty tax or
war indemnity, which would you
rather pay? Every dollar of your
income tax goes to the boys in the
trenches. Help them to an early vic
tory."
"What is the name of that hand
some prisoner?" asked the impres
sionable young woman.
"No. 2206, miss," replied the
guard.
"How funny. But, of course, that
is not his real name."
"Oh, no, miss; that's Just his pen
name."
* • •
It used to be such fun for me
To see our old coal bin
Jus' bustin' out with tons and tons;
We'd look at it and grin.
But now there's nothing there at all,
My pop, he's mad as sin.
He says it was a bin for coal.
Now it's an old has-bin.
®
Button, button, who hasn't got a
Red Cross button?
A gentleman named Mr. Fyffe in
a western state recently married a
Miss Drum. Bango! When little
Cymbal arrives there will be music.
IOUR DAILY L/OJCH |
MATTER OF OPINION.
Maude —Do you write poetry?
Frank—The editors sw not.
MERCENARY.
"She's marrying him for his
money."
"That so? I know a man who's
marrying a girl for her ten pound*
of sugar she lias hoarded."
NO OHAWCE FOR ACQUITTAL.
"What was Quill convicted of?"
"Writing three consecutive Jokea
with the word camouflage in each."
DISPOSED OF.
"Briilicnt ideas, Dobbins has."
"Yea,' I understand ho burns
Christmas cigars on his tree Instead
of candles
Bmttag fflljat
James s. Auter, th* Oovemor'i
messenger who knows mora men In
the publlo life of Pennsylvania! than
any one connected with the state
government. Is going to celebrate his
twenty-third anniversary as the of
ficial Santa Claus' of the Keystone
state on Tuesday next. He will five
an example of methods in maintain
ing discipline among a crowd of sev
eral scoie of youngsters in front o|
the Executive Mansion, see that evn
eryone gets a package of candy and
goes away satisfied. The custom of
distributing candy at the Executive
Miuuion, which was Inaugurated by
Dnniol H. Hastings when he fiilejl
the Governor's chair, is now one oi
the events of the great holiday In
Pennsylvania's capital. And James
S. Auter has been the boss of the
job ever since the big man from
Bellefonte bought half a wagonload
of candy and Invited the kids tc
come around and see him on Christ
mas morning. It was a great morn
ing and the Governor enjoyed it sc
much that he had it repeated ever}
Christmas while he occupied tht
mansion. Governor Stone took t
hand in distributing candy himself
but took orders from James wher
It came to handling the crowd. Th<
late Governor Pennypacker said tha
it was a custom that should be pre
served and saw that it was, while i
naturally appealed to Edwin S. Sfu
art and John K. Tener, both bii
hearted men. Governor Brumbaugl
had heard about it before he cam
to Harrisburg and the youngster
found him a bountiful provider. Th
other day the Governor issue*
Christmas order No. 1 in his owi
handwriting. It was to James t
Auter and commanded him to be th
otllcial dispenser of candy to th
youth of Harrisburg on Christma
morn. And it will be worth watch
lng.
Friends of Thomas H. Garvlr
chief clerk of the State House o
Representatives, who has been her
so much that we almost think of hit
as a Ilarrisburgcr, ara hearing: wit
interest of his experiences as a fui
administrator for Delaware count:
Mr. Garvin is a man of affairs an
large acquaintance. His friends hav
endeavored to make him apprecial
the honor conferred upon him. Tl:
other evening several of them
him on the telephone. The conve
sation ran about like this:
"Mr. Garvin, why can't I get son
coal? I am freezing. I have nil
children and my wife is very 111."
"Where do you live?"
Some mythical address given.
"All right, I'll look it up—sa
what street did you say? isr
any stieet by that name in that thw
Another conversation was th
way:
"Mr. Garvin, please. Mr. Garvin
"All right, all right. What is it'
"Can't you send me a ton of coa'
I am a v/ldower with four children,
just buried my mother-in-law ai
my wife is very Bick."
"Widower, eh! And your wif(
sick? That'll do."
And the genial Garvin says th
people do not appreciate what pu
lie service means In this solemn ho:
when they make him write down
page full of data and then tell hi
they hope he's enjoying the Job.
•
A news story from Camp Ha
cock has this to say about a form
National Guardsman who Is w
known here and who was a mem!,
of the staff of the late General
I'. S. Gcbln In the Spanish-Americ
war and who was placed in coi
mand of the Pennsylvania Enginec
at the outbreak of war: "Lleutena
Coloi el Frederic A. Snyder, coi
mander of the One Hundred a
Third United States Engineers,
Wiliiamsport, Pa., is himself a ci
engineer of high repute and one w
has had considerable military exj
ricnce. He retired a Class A ma,
to become attached to the Instri
tion Cadre of the Fourth district
Montreal, Canada, in 1914, where
served the Canadian Army fn
lvi.4 to 3 917, when a state of v
was declared to exist between (
t'nltert States and Germany. He tli
resigned to accept a commission
lieut 0n t colonel in the Unil
Siaio., Army and assumed comma
of the One Hundred and Third I
gineers. There is no better discipllr
unit in the 28th Division than i
103 d Engineers and Lieutenant C
onel Snyder maintains this dlscipl
through an application of the hoi
system.
George S. Fowler, who is direct
the Christmas drive of the Red Cr
from Washington, has written a ]
ter to Governor Brumbaugh in wh
he thanks the governor warmly
the proclamation in behalf of
Red Cross, and says that he fe
confident of Pennsylvania maklni
great showing.
4 •
Secretary of the Commonwea
Cyrus E. Woods yesterday recel'
a letter from a very irate farmer v
picked on him because he had
long title. This farmer wrote a 1
ter demanding justice on a wea
He sajd that the "varmint" as
styled him, had been killing
chickens and he wanted "justt<
As proof of his assertion he
closed the skin of the weasel. '
secretary is interested in the fai
of Pennsylvania only from a dista
and opining that the outraged 1
mer wanted a bounty for the wei
he passed the letter and the ]
along to Dr. Kalbfus, the Sta
guardian of the birds and the bea
1 WELL KNOWN PEOPLE
'—General J. E. Kuhn, comma
ant at Camp Meade, is giving pr
for athletic events among his m<
—Gilbert Kulp, well known
many Harrisburgors, bagged a
bear on his annual hunting trip.
—C. Laßue Munson, noted \
liamsport lawyer, was here yes
day at the hearing of a Publics I
vice Commission case.
—Mayor-elect Arch .Johnson,
Bethlehem, does not want any el
orate inauguration,
i —William H. Wilson, Phlladelr
safety director, was presented v
a silver service by bureau chiefs.
DO YOU KNQVT~
That Hnrrlsburg tin is betn
used In the Orient?
msTomo HARKisnuno
John Harris used to pasture i
tie where Market Square is locati
WE'D LIKE TO MEET H
We take it for granted the 1
who picks names for Pullman
has been adding to his reserve r
since the war began putting t:
European unpronounceables on
map.—From the Minneapolis 1
une.