Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (June 25, 1917)
The Omaha Daily Bee THE WEATHER Fair VOL. XL VII. NO. 6. OMAHA,. MONDAY MORNING, JUNfi 25, 1917. 0 TniM, tl H.nii SINGLE COPY TWO CENTS. U. S. TO SQLVEXARTAGE PROBLEM; PREDICT POUGE SHAKE UP OimHA CLEAR DECKS FOR GENERAL POUCEME Commissioners Expected to Be gin Department Investigation at Once; Maloney Trial to Come Later. Change of venue, ganted at Chad- ron in the conspiracy to blackmail case, and setting a date of trial Oc tober IS, clears the decks for a gen eral police investigation and the com pletion of the Maloney hearing be fore the city council. Because of illness of Mrs. Margaret Melson. a necessary witness in the Maloney hearing, it is probable theJ city commissioners will Begin tne orV-nral nnlire invectipattrm without delay and complete the Maloney trial as circumst: -ces permit. The city council committee of the whole Mon'ay morning will discuss the situation and announce a date to begin investigation of the police de partment. . Take,Up all Badges. One action contemplated by the council ij to order all police badges worn by persons not authorized, taken up. The charge has been made that during the last few years it has not been difficult to get an old star-shaped police badge and reports of abuse have been received at the city hall. Sentiment among the city commis tnissioners tends to favor Mayor Dahlman's plan that the seven city commissioners assume responsibility for the police department and appoint a chief of police who will be given complete authority, answerabl to the entire city council. The present plan is td reappoint Henry Dunn, give him charge of the detective department and abolish the office of chief of de tectives. Suit Against Kugel. There is substantial authority for the statement that suit will be brought against Superintendent Ku gel of the police department to re quire bjm, to return to the public treasury $2,000 expended in three years for services and expenses of special in estigators in which ca pacity Paul Sutton worked for eight months before he was appointed a regular member of the police depart ment. These investigators were given. carte blanche as to expense money for "entertainment" while sitting in at places where they were obtaining evidence for the morals squad to work upon. Parks Is Suggested. Friends of City Commissioner Parks have been promoting the idea among the commissioners that he should be given the police depart ment. Parks i-ays he is not seeking the place, but if other commissioners insist, then he may think it over. , Somebody launched a rumor that Steve Maloney intended to resign, but Maloney denied he had such in tentions. . t "What's going to happen to Ma loney and Sutton?" is a question fre quently heard, and the echo answers: "And what is going to happen to Al Kugel?" The council has some hard work ahead. Two charges are pending against Maloney, one charge against Paul Sutton and a general police in vestigation is scheduled. And vacation time is coming on apace. ' Lutherans to Raise Fund for Army and Navy Chicago, June 24. Plans to raise $25,000 for work among men in the nay and army were made today by the general synod of the Evangelical Lutheran church in the United States in epeeinn hpre. Lutheran churches throughout the country will be asked" to take contributions lor tne iunu. Lansing' Is Host to Belgian War Mission Washington, June 24. The Belgian war mission was entertained by Sec retary Lansing at a lawn fete yester dav at the Pan-American grounds. The guests included the president and Mrs. Wilson. The Weather Temperatures at Omaha Yerterday. Hour. Dei. S a. m 64 (i a. m Krr ! s a! m 70 f - AR 10 a. m 77 11 a. m 13 iu 1 p. !TI , 2 p, ID.. U p.' m.. 4 p. in.. & p. in.. C p. m.. 86 p. in . Si s ComjiBreUv Loral Record. I&17. 19U. 1915. 1914. Hifl.Mt VMierdty... 88 HI 82 Love vcslfliday 64 68 XI :u lmipmture. . . 70 70 72 84 Preli.tUtitn .0") Temutiaturo tnd precipitation departures from the norma Normal temperature 74 Excess for the day 2 Total deficiency elnce March 1, 1917.... 2X1 Normal precipitation IS Inch Deficiency for the day is men Total rainfall since March 1....1S.61 Inches Kxceaa since March 1, 1917 63 Inch Deficiency for cor. period 1916.. 4.89 Inches Deficiency for cor. period 1916.. 2.18 Inches or cor. penoa jsio.. ... intn., L. A. WELSH, Meteorologist. , WAML I Omaha Oversubscribes Money for Red Cross RED CROSS TOTALS. Saturday collections $ 34.S17.78 Boy Scouti 8,734.27 Previously reported 200,689.05 Collections, all sources $243,938.10 Omaha oversubscribed the Red Cross campaign fund by $33,938.10. Although $210,000 was apportioned as its share of the nation's con tributiona, the goal was reached early Saturday, twelve hours before the whirlwind campaign closed at the noonday luncheon of team csp taint at the Fontenelle. - DEFENSE BOARD OF NATION TELLS OF AID IN CRISIS One Hundred Highly Trained Men on National Council Line Up Country's Resources for Work During War. Washington, June 24. Accomplish ments of the Council of National De fense, its advisory commission and its committee since the council was final ly organized last March, are set forth in a comprehensive report made pub lic tonight by Director Gifford. Only eighty persons, according to Director Gilford's report, are drawing salaries and most of these are clerks and Stenographers. , More than IUU highly trained men, says the report, are giving their en tire time to the council without re muneration. Several hundred more, it ays, are giving free a large part of their time. The chief accomplishments of the council are summed up by Mr. Gifford as follows: "Mobilization of the 262,000 miles of railroads of the country for the government's defense. Uose-knit organization ot the tel ephone and telegraph companies of America to insure to the government the most rapid and efficient, wire Communications. ... "Settlement of the- recent threat ened railroad (trikes. "General acceptance bv tabor and capital of the suggestion of the coun cil that existing labor standards should not be changed until the need for such action has been determined by the council with the steadying in fluence on industry growing out of such action. Get Copper For Army. "Procurement of 45.000.000 oounds of coooer for the uses of the armv and navy at less than one-half of the then current market price a saving to the government of approximately $10,000,000. similar accomplishments as to steel, zinc and aluminum. "Completion of an inventory for military purposes of 27,000 American manufacturing plants. Money saving to the government, through appointment over the coun try of committees of business men to assist the quartermaster's department of the army in the economical and ef- hcient purchase ot supplies. "Saving to the government of mil lions of dollars by the co-ordination of purchases through the agency of the General Munitions board. To Rule the Air. "Creation under the medical sec tion of the council of a general med ical board of many of the most highly qualified surgeons and physicians of the country. "Selection by the same section of thousands of doctors specifically qualified for membership in the medi- (CoDtlnned on Pas. Two, Column One.) Numerous Disasters In German War Plants Paris, June 24. Several disasters have recently occurred in munition plants in Germany, according to the Zurich Correspondent of the Matin. The correspondent telegraphs that he has learned from private German sources that the hand grenade arsenal at Spandau exploded June 16 and that seven ammunition shops at Marien hall were destroyed by fire on the 18. Some ammunition factories at Nuremberg, also have been burned down, according to this authority. Spandu is nine miles west of Berlin. Large goevrnment munition works are there. Nuremberg, rich in his toric traditions, is more noted for its varied industrial plants than as a munition making center. By (Marien thal in Saxony may be meant. Company G of Fourth Leaves for Fort Crook Alliance, Neb., June 24. (Special Telegram.) Company G of the Fourth Nebraska, recruited by J. B. Miller at Alliance, left here tonight in charge of Captain Miller for Fort Crook, where they have been ordered. Alliance and Scottsbluf citizens have donated a substantial purse for the company fund and will give the members a farewell reception at Alli ance tonight. H. M. Hundley, Jr., Assigned To Field Artillery Service Mrs. H. M. Hundley has just re ceived word that her son, H. M. I Hundlev. ir.. has been assigned to the w - - neiu aruuery ai i-uit oucinug. KING OF SPAIN REPORTED WON TO REPUBLIC King Alfonso ha yielded to the forces of discontent at work in his kingdorn, according to reports from Madrid, and- has agreed to abdication and the establishment pf a Spanish republic. It is said that Alfonso has even offered to serve as the first president, which would not be impossible in view of the mon arch's democratic character and his popularity among the people. ; , l -. V-Vi Vi ft - A 8 J ITALIANS HOLD BAZAR; PARADE FOR RED CROSS Raise Considerable ,Sum for Relief Work Among the w- Italian Soldiei atv the Fronti Headed by "Uncle Sam," "Italia" "Columbia" and "Liberty," who rode majestically-in a large automobile, 700 Italians of Omaha marched through the streets of Omaha Sunday afternoon in a magnificent Red Cross demonstration. , They formed at Washington hall, marched through the principal streets, entered the Auditorium and there shortly after 3 o'clock opened the big bazar, which before midnight had netted them nearly $3,000 for the Italian Red Cross relief work. The narade and bazar were the out come of hard work by a committee of some 150 Italians who have worked on the Red Cross work and in prep" aration for this day's demonstration and bazar for some two months. Louis Piatti was chairman of the committee. Julius Cautoni was secretary, and Sebastian Salino, treasurer. Prior to yesterday's activities, the committee had already raised some $2,000 for the Ked Cross worn in the Italian armies during the present war. This money) will go directly to the Ked cross ot the Italians, but will mean just that much less of a burden to' the Red Cross camDaiens now general throughout the country and the world, as it will mean that much less to be alloted to the Italians out of the gen eral subscriptions' of America and the allies. Represents Uncle Sam, Vincent Saitta, in striped trousers, white whiskers, and star-spangled hat, represented Uncle Sam. Esther Lauranzana and Giselda Lauranzana, respectively, represented "Italia" and "Liberty." Marie Gillotte represented "Columbia." Following this group in the auto mobile came the Italian band, often known as the Christopher Columbus band, of some twenty pieces. American soldiers from the various regiments stationed about Omaha, marched ' in the parade carrying (Continued on Page Two, Column Three.) as- Special Buttons for Omaha Men Who Enlist in the Sixth Nebraska Every man who enlists in the Omaha battalion of the Sixth Ne braska Volunteer regiment next week will be given an honor button a little blue button containing a red 6. The button was designed by one of Omaha's popular young society girls whose brother is in the service of the United States. "The blue stands for loyalty to the government," she explained to Lieu tenant Kenworthy, in charge of Sixth Nebraska headquarters. "The red in the figure six represents unflinching courage. When the people of Omaha see one of their young men wearing this button they will know that he has voluntarily offered his services tof the state and government and that he possesses the courage of a true blue, red-blooded American." Several hundred of these buttons have been obtained and will be given out next -veek when the big drive for recruits for the Sixth starts. Omaha is expected to furnish 600 'j DIKING P& f f a pjamcE, of J, I i 5 , ;sj a ti-v -"-" : mT.-i-S.:-" t vi . t " 'ft. vsr c ".-t.& -a ill BOMB EXPLODES BIG MAGAZINE IN' CUBANFORTRESS Infernal Machine Placed Against Wall of For,t Thought " to Have Been Cause of Death and Injury. Havana, June 24. An explosion in the - magazine of Cabanas fortress, across the bay from Havana, at 9 o'clock tonight, shook the entire city. One person is known to be dead and many wounded. It is believed a bomb was exploded. Among the injured were two per sons whose sight was destroyed by the flash. It is said that the bomb had been placed against the maga zine. Magazine No. 4, which was stored explosives used in firing sa lutes, exploded, opening a wide breach in the fortress wall on the side iacing the city. A sentinel pacing his beat on the wall was not injured, but his rifle was blown out of his hands. Stones fell in the city injuring three soldiers, two of them seriously, nd six laborers. The damage to shipping apparently was confined to a few sailing vessels. No evidence has been found pointing to an attempt to release the military prisoners confined in the fortress. The fortification of Cabanas occcu pies an elevated site on the hill across the harbor from Havana. The land rises 100 feet abruptly from the water's edge, where there is a moor ing place for shipping. The building of the fortress con sumed eleven years, from 1763 to 1774, and the cost was $14,000,000. The ramparts command the city of Havana, the sea and the encircling hills. Gbanas, however, has never fired a shot in defense of Havana, its chief use in its long history having been that of a barracks for Spanish troops and a prison house and execu tion ground for political offenders, Russ Scouts Renew Work Along the Austrian Front Petrograd, June 24. Lively scout ing operations between the Russian and Austrian lines in Galicia is re ported in today's war statement. men for the new regiment. More than a third of this number is already in sight. The War department at Washing ton has authorized the formation of this new regiment. It will be strictly a volunteer organization. The men who enlist the coming week will con tinue their regular work until the fed eral government calls them into serv ice. The men enlisting in the Sixth regiment will serve only during the war emergency. The Sixth regiment will be mus tered into federal service along with the Fifth regiment. Twenty-five towns out in the state have made application for companies in the new Sixth regiment. During the past wee:, recruiting stations have been opened in most of these towns. Omaha headquarters for the Sixth regiment are at 1612 Farnam street. Lieutenant Keating has opened head quarters in South Omaha in the old Gas building. , Q i j Debtor Pays. When Finds Debt to Be Paid Red Cross Chicago. June 24. Ignats Ebner and Frank Bodach argued be fore the Legal Aid society over a disputed bill. "I will not pay you $12," declared Bodach with finality. "I psid you $6. Two more dollars will I add, . not another cent." "Well," sighed Ebner, "if that's all you'll pay, I'll take it to the Red Cross.'1 "Red Cross?" queried Bodach with new interest. "If it's Red Cross, I'll pay the $12." They each purchased three $2 memberships In the war relief or ganisation and shook hands over the bargain. HODSE ACCEPTS , FOOD MEASURE BY BIG MAJORITY Strong Prohibition Amendment Written Into Administration Measure Passed by Vote of 365 to 5. Washington, June 24. The admini stration food control bill, giving the president broad authority to control the distribution of food, feed and fuel for war purposes and appropriating $152,500,000 tor its enforcement and administration, was passed by the house last night after far reaching prohibition provisions had been writ ten into it. The vote was 365 to 5, Representa tives McLeinore, Sla'yden and Young of Texas, democrats, ' and Meexer, Missouri, and Ward, Nfw York, re publicans, voting in the negative. The prohibition provisions adopted would prohibit the use of foodstuffs for the manufacture of alcoholic beverages and would give the presi dent authority to take over for war purposes all liquor now on hand. They were put into the measure dur ing the evening in committee of the whole and when the bill came up in the house proper, the anti-prohibition faction did not demand that they be voted .os agajn; - .J.. Bill Goes to Senate. The bill now goes to the senate where it probably will be substituted early next week tor a similar measure already under consideration. Lead ers hope to get the measureJo confer ence by July 1. . Few important changes were made by the house outside the prohibition section. The control powers of the president were limited to articles specifically mentioned in the bill in stead of giving him blanket authority; voluntary aids in control work were made subject to the penal provision; all persons in the food administration except those servjjig without com pensation were placed under civil s-rvice; and the president was re quired to make an annual report on the operation of the bill. There was a hot debate over the prohibition features. Wets and drys accused each other of unfairness and Representative Meeker of Missouri, a republican, and Representative Kelly of Pennsylvania, democrat, got into such a row that their friends sur rounded them to prevent s physical encounter and then had the words they exchanged stricken from the record. Reject Keating Change. When the house returned to con sideration of other sections of the bill, an amendment by Representative Keating of Colorado, providing that nothing in the bill shall be construed as repealing or affecting the labor ex emption provisions of the Sherman anti-trust law. quickly was rejected, 45 to 162. Mr. Keating read a letter by Herbert C. Hoover to Chairman Lever, endorsing the amendment, but Mr. Lever insisted that a combination of men in time of national distress might attempt to limit the manu facture of food necessaries if such an exemption were made. An amendment was adopted provid ing that all persons employed in the administration of the food law except those serving without compensation, shall be appointed under the civil service law. In the senate virtually no progress wa's made on the bill during the day. The leaders were unable to hold a quorum and consented to an adjourn ment after a short session devoted mostly to routine. Conferences con tinued looking to a compromise on most of the contested issues, but it is unlikely that final vote can be reached before late next week. Box Butte County Gives More Than Share to Red Cross Alliance, Neb., June 24. (Special Telegram.) Reports received today from the five teams appointed to so licite Red Cross war funds in Box Butte county show that the county's proportion is ncarly"$l,000 oversub scribed. Work by the teams will con tinue up until the last minute tomor row, when it is believed the fund will reach $10,000. German Government Takes Over Field Crops Amsterdam, June 24. The German Federal council, according to a Berlin dispiatch today, has decided that dur ing the coming harvest year not only bread gains, but barley, oats, peas, beans, buckwheat and millet wilt be requisitioned in their entirety for con trol and distribution by the Imperial Grain Bureau, OMAHA STORES MAY DELIVER ALL PACKAGES BY PARCELS POST; BURLESON'S NEW PLAN Associated Retailers to Con sider Proposal of Postoffice Department; Will Cut Cost of Service. Extension of United States parcels post facilities to local deliveries of merchandise from retail stores to pur chasers is among the possibilities for Omaha in the near future. The plan has the indorsement of Postmaster General Burleson as a conservation measure. , The Department of Labor will make a survey ofjvery large American city that adopts the plan and each city will be given the benefit of the expe rience of other cities. A cursory observation by the post master general has convinced him that there is a vast waste of money, effort and material in the delivery systems of American , cities, This waste is due to duplication of labor on account of many firms making scattering deliveries with equipment which is not worked to the "satura tion point." It has been noted that in an Omaha neighborhood one day last week eight delivery trucks from as many business houses made deliveries which easily could have been made with one ve hicle. Fanning Will Co-operate. The new plan is to use the machin ery of the parcels post system and to district the city into zones, with de liveries made to zones by the parcels post . organization, rather than by scores of business trucks scurrying over the, city and crossing each oth er s paths many tunes a day. The force of this was strikingly il kistrated in Omaha here within the month. Driven ot delivery wagons of two business houses covered the same area. They tried the experiment ot splitting up, one taking part ot the other's goods along one route and the other doing likewise. They discovered they could s:ve from half an hour to an hour by the interchange. The driv ers were "found out" when a woman telephoned to a store where she h?d made a purchase to inquire why the delivery truck of .another concern brought her goods. "I am ready to co-operate with our retailers on this proposition," said Postmaster Fanning. "We have the parcels post system here working on the zone basis and it could be en larged without much trouble. I can see the logic of the postmaster gen eral's arguments and it appeals to every thinking person in these days of conservation of our resources and our energy. "The details of a city-wide parcels post delivery system could be worked out and I am willing to do what I can to assist our merchants and con sumers to take advantage of this op portunity." Hayden Says Plan Feasible, Joseph Hayden, head of the institu tion bearing his name, was enthusias tic over the plan. He appreciates that the retail distribution system of the average city is a big factor in the cost of living and he agrees that the du plication of effort is enormous. "The plan is feasible and there would be no more earnest supporter than myself toward any movement to carry into effect the postmaster gen eral s plain I have thought more than once of the wasted effort in deliver ing packages within our city. I do not maintain that it is all waste, but there is much duplication of effort, and the same results might be, ob tained by some such a plan as the parcels post system applied to city deliveries," were remarks by Mr. Hay den. ' Thomas F. Quintan, general man ager of the Brandeis stores, was equally impressed with the plan. Quinlan Favors Change, He said: "You would hardly believe how much consumers of Omaha pay for the delivery of their retail merchan dise. Each store takes pride in its own delivery system. We have a sys tem which is more or less elaborate and despite our best efforts mistakes in addresses will occur. But neces sarily the consumer pays for the de livery in the end. That is obvious. I would be pleaed to enter into the consideration of a parcels post deliv ery system here." In the absence from the cijy of Louis Nash and Thomas Redmond of Burgess-Nash stores, Treasurer Tay lor in substance voiced the sentiments of others who were asked for opin ions. ' "As a matter of practical economy it is evident that the parcels post city delivery plan would be feasible," said Mr. Taylor, "In Los Angeles I have in mind a private coucern which col lects all packages from a group of large retail -tores and makes two de liveries every day. This central de livering firm does the work at a cost considerably less than the group of firms could do it, and there is a profit left for the delivering firm." The plan will be considered by the Associated Retailers at an early date. U. S. Postmaster General Says Use of Federal System Would Affect Enormous Saving to Retail Merchant Washington, June 24. Retail and department store merchants in the large cities throughout the country have only to formulate their propos als for local deliveries of merchandise by United States parcels post to start the reform in city cartage. ' ; Postmaster General Burleson said ' today, discussing the matter, that if the merchants' organizations would submit their requests they would re ceive serious consideration at once. There is no doubt that the result would be affirmative. ' , , "The whole matter," continued Mr. Burleson, "is illustrated by what may u. oven an; muiiiiiiK; iiuim me win dows of my home. I counted this morning for instance, seven millc wagons delivering along our block. Why seven? Why not one? "The cartage bill of Washington alone is $8,000,000 a year, and it is conducted very much like the delivery of milk. There is no doubt whatever of the feasibility of the' plan to de liver merchandise by parcels post. The Postoffice depatment could save not only merely thousands, but many hundreds of thousands of dollars to merchants in every city in the coun- .,j uy lamiig viri iciau utnvcijr. First in Washington. The trial of the proposed delivery by parcels post will be made first in Washington, where it will have ths advantage of s local survey of the delivery problem by the Department of Labor. It was shown by a study of the methods, means, and costs ol merchandise delivery here that, not withstanding the excellent pavements and the general use of automobiles, the percentage of cost of delivery was higher than anywhere in the United States. The general average was found to be 8 per cent on the value of goods sold and delivered. ' The genera plan for government delivery for city stores has not been worked out in detail; but the idea is to place competent postal officials in the stores to sytematiie the methods of sorting packages with reference to routes'of delivery and then co-ordinate the delivery of any number of stores, making one single run of an automobile sufficient over any one route to deliver the goods sold by all the stores. C Under New Plan. ' , Weighing will be in the bulk and the rate a flat one-zone rate, which will simplify matters greatly. It is be lieved that present methods and standards of . secule wrapDinsr will nrnv fiiifTirtnr Mr thf. nrnrw,cr! postal delivery, although ' there will need to be certain safeguards as to breakage and loss which Under pres ent practices are not maintained. The Postoffice department will take over a part, at least, of private equip-, ment, for parcel delivery, but much of that now in use will not be avail able or needed in the better co-ordination of the service. The aim will be to combine with the delivery of store inercnannise an tne parcels post mat ter carried by the postal service. The stores will therefore have the benefit of more frequent tleliveriea during the day than they now can af ford to maintain. The obvious neces-' sity of the late evening deliveries will bring to the Postoffice department the opportunity to deliver general parcels post matter for the public at a later hour than it now undertakes to do. . In the Larger Cities. The new system will be gradually introduced in a few cities under ex pert parcels post officials, in order that a demonstration may be made of what the department can do. When losses in management and operation have been gradually eliminated and local peculiarities and difficulties have been studied and overcome, a force can be developed to extend the sys tem to other cities. No estimate has been made of the cost of the new system, but it is as- serted by expert postal officials that there can be no doubt as to the economy of the plan. At the present regular parcels post rates, the stores would save a very large proportion of the cost of delivery under the pres ent methods, and the Postoffice de partment procure a large amount of business as profitable as any now handled by the parcels post service. California Students to Do Farm Work Berkeley, Cal., June 24. More than 18,000 high school students of Cali fornia are willing or already have ar ranged to engage in farm work this summer. This announcement was made yesterday at a meeting of rep resentatives of the State Board of Education and of the Council for De fense. A survey of 142 high schools, it was stated, showed that 11,947 boys and 6.694 girls were prepared to un dertake the work, much of which will be supervised by 400 men and women . school teachers, who have offered their services.