THE SEM1-WEMKLY TRIBUNE, NORTH PLATTE. NEBRASKA.
STANDS BY ESTIMATE
Federal Agent Defends Government
Report on Nebraska Wheat. Pub
llclty Agent Over. Optimistic.
A. E. Anderson, Nebraska field
agent, fedoral bureau of crop esti
mates, declares that tlio government's
estimate of 4:1,000,000 bushels of wheat
for Nebraska this year was based
Upon reports from 2,000 crop corre
spondents and traveling field agents
and not upon guess work as charged
by State Publicity Director Maupin.
Mr. Anderson docs not agree with Mr.
Mauplu's estimate of more than 70,
000,000 bushols of wheat for Nebras
ka this year. Ho declared that the
state director exaggerated tho pros
pects, misquoted conditions and un
justly criticized the government. An
optimistic spirit may bo dcslrnblo for
tho stnto publicity agent, tho field
agent said, but the government pre
fers conservntivo estimates. Uncle
Sam did not like to promise tho allied
armies more wheat on Juno than Jus
tified by Juno 1 condlUons. Tho gov
ernment will raise Its estimates later,
If the condition warrants, ho said.
Nebraska's great record In support
ing all war campaigns la brought to
light In the quarterly report of Secre
tary Tooley of tho state bunking
board. Tho report shows that deposits
in the 020 state banks of Nebraska
liavo decreased since the date of tho
last call, February 25, nearly $2-1,500,-000
whllo loans have increased $10,
BOO.OOO. It is the first time in recent
years that deposits have failed to
show n gain.
W. Jr. Maupln, stato publicity direc
tor, says tho government estimate of
43,000,000 bushels of wheat for Ne
braska this year Is too low. Ho has
Just completed a crop survey of his
own and placed tho state's 1918 yield
of wlntor and spring wheat combined
nt around 70,000,000 bushols.
Nebraska has obtained ono substan
tial concession from tho federal rail
road admlnlstrnUon, according to word
reaching tho stato railway commis
sion. This is that carloads of brick,
cement, coal, coke, logs, gravel and
and wll not be required to bear a
minimum hauling chargo of $15.
Tho stato food administration hns
eut tho sugur allowances. The new or
der provides that In cities and towns
the purchase of sugar for tablo uso
shall be only two pounds, whllo in
rural districts tho purchaso may not
be for more than Ave pounds for the
eamo purpose.
Until tho end of tho present critical
wheat Hhortugo, tho opening of new
commercial bakcrlos will not be per
mitted, according to an announcement
of tho stato food administration. Any
ono intending to open a bakery Is re
quested not 'to apply for a license be
fore August 1.
An attempt to get a ruling of tho
attorney general's office at Lincoln that
might modify tho holding of tho dis
trict court of Dodge county barring n
German Catholic priest of Snydor
from teaching and proachlng, because
tie admitted a divided allegiance, hns
failed.
Tho Autelopo County Council of Do
fenso was ono of tho first bodies in
the dtate to call for registration of nil
Itlxons for farm work, preparatory to
aneetlng any emergency that would re
quire extra form labor. Registration
ira held at Nellgh.
There ara 1,105 tracts of land in Ne
braska upon which tho federal land
tank of Omaha holds mortgage, ac
cording to Secretnry Bernecker of tho
State Board of Assessment. The
raountu held by tho bank amount to
$4,401,840.
While tho extreme heat scalded po
tato vines considerably around Do
Witt, the damage was moro thun re
paid In tho almost complete extermi
nation of tho potato bug pest by tho
hot weather.
Erection of factories for making
starch from potatoes is contemplated
at Alliance and Hemlngford. Thoro Is
also considerable talk of a potato
flour factory in 'a western Nebraska
town.
Throughout western Nebraska crops
aro In excellent condition, nccordlng
to reports. Wheat and ryo prospecta
are tho best In years. Sugar beets aro
well started and aro of good stand.
Registration of all males from six
teen years upwards will start in Mndl
aon county soon in order that fnrmera
will bo assured of plenty of help dur
ing harvest senson.
Deputy State Superintendent Wood
ard Is urging school boards In Ne
braska to scan text books during this
summer and purge those of pro-German
leaning. .
Tho consolidated school In tho
Lewlston district has adopted plans
for the erection1 of a $40,000 modern
building.
Preparations aro being mado for a
homo guurd military congress at Nor
folk some thno lato this summer.
Jacob Thull, organizer for tho Non
partisan league, was arrested at Ord
a a charge of violating that sectlou
of the stato sedition law which re
quires all persons in the Mate must
be engaged in a useful occupation If
physically able. Thull is tho second
organizer for tho leuguo to bo arrested
In Nebraska on this charge.
Nineteen head of horses and seven
mules were burned to death nnd 400
tons of hay wero consumed when Are
destroyed tho A. Darling horso barn
at Grand Island. Tho loss Is estimat
ed at about $,10,000.
' Omaha and Lincoln linvo prohibited
the sale and uso of fireworks on the
Fourth of July. Tho stnto fire commis
sioner has asked tho people of other
cities nnd towns In Nebraska to follow
tho example. Mr. Itldgcll goes upon
tho theory that It would ho moro
patriotic to uso tho money for buying
Liberty bonds or thrift stamps or for
contributions to the Hod Cross.
The HulTnlo County Council of Dc
fonso has recorded Itself na favoring
tho assessment plan for raising future
Liberty loan and Ited Cross apportion
ments in the county and also other
war work funds, taking tho attltudo
that too many men of big caliber
financially wero biding behind a $50
dollnr Llborty bond or n mero Ited
Cross membership.
Ton thousand war savings stnmp
societies must be In active operation
In Nebraska by June 28. That Is t,hn
quota set for tho state. Nebraska Jin
been completely circularized with 40.
000 pamphlets, sent to ministers, Sun
daj school teachers, bankers nnd busi
ness men, preparing thorn for the ono
day drive, Juno 28.
Loafers In ScottfiblufC county will
find ono of their principal places of
habitation closed during tho early
hours of tho day hereafter. By orders
of the council of defense all pool halls
In the county must close except be
tween tho hours of C and 11 p. m.
In order to comply with instructions
sent out by the war department at
Washington fully, 'two-thirds of tho
draft boai'ds of Nebraska will have to
revise their classifications to deter
mlno if men hnvo been Improperly
given deforred classification.
That Omaha Is becoming n grcnt
milling center Is shown by orders re
ceived for twenty carloads of ground
alfalfa In two days by tho M. C. Pe
ters Mills Co. Tho stock food orders
wero from towns In twelve different
states.
Rush Hoy, Nanco county (fnrmer,
was instantly killed whllo mowing nl
falfa. The team with tho second
mowing machlno following him be
came frightened and ran over him
with tho machine.
More than 1,300 consumers wero
left without light and fuel at Beatrice
as tho result of the closing of tho
city's gas plant following refusal of
city commissioners to agreo to a 20
per cent rato Increase.
Tho nooso was put n little tighter
about tho German language In Buf
falo county, when tho council of de
fense Issued orders forbidding its use
in public places, at gatherings or over
tho phone.
Ernest Sundborg, tho Snyder car
penter who was found guilty by a
Jury at Fremont of violating the
state sedition law, was sentenced to
from one to live years in the peniten
tiary. Governor Neville received from tho.
Omaha Chamber of Commerce a res
olution expressing approval of the
work of the Nebraska state council 6f
defense and pledging Its hearty sup
port. Prof, H. F. noward, secretary of
tho Nebraska Potato Growers' associa
tion, estimates that potato acreage In
Nebraska this year Is about 80 per
cent of that planted in 1017.
Joo Stecker of Dodge won a fall
and the match from Wnldek Zbyszko
at Omnha and the right to meet Earl
Caddock fop tho word's championship
on Labor day.
According to statistics prepared by
government authorities at Washing
ton,' Nebraska led the country tho past
treason In tho production of sugar
boots.
Governor Novlllo Issued a proclama
tion calling on Nebraska women, quali
fied as nurses, to fill tho state's quota
of 1581 for service nt army canton
ments. Tho Johnson county council of de
fense condemned the nctlon of citizens
of Elk Creek for pasting nntl-German
placards on tho business streets of the
town.
Tho directors of tho consolidated
school at Vlrglnln, Gage county, have
dectdod to build n modern $40,000
school building.
About 2,500 persons attended tho
Stato Kundny School convention at
Hastings. York was chosen for the
1017 convention. '
A total of 087 Nebraska youths
who have become of ago in the past
year registered for military service
Juno 5.
According to official figures Oma
ha's contribution to the recent Red
Cross drive amounted to nparly $2
per capita.
W. 13. Christopher of Trumbull had
a hog on the South Omuha market
that weighed 880 pounds and sold for
$132.03.
The state tournnmeut of tho Ne
braska Women's Stato Golf associa
tion will bo held at Omaha August 20.
A cotnpnny lias Incorporated for tho
purpose of publishing a now dully pa
per In Omaha.
Omaha has a population of 231,000,
nccordlng to tho new city directory
Just Issued.
Land owners In the vicinity of
Wood like, Cherry County, have been
granted permission to drain tho lake
by tho stato drainage board, lu order
to raise war crops. Tho lake Is a
famous fishing resort and will be re
duced In area from about 3.000 acres
to 500 acres.
Tho stato council of defense 1ms Is
sued an appeal to tho peoplo of Ne
braska to co-oporato "In an effort to
mako English tho solo medium of In
struction In schools privnto or public
tho language to ho used generally
In speeches and conversations."
1 Gorninn tank put out of commission and caniured by the nlltcH during the Murno offensive. 2 Putting
American wounded on bonrd a hospital truln In France. U American sailor proudly oscortlng Gennnn U-boat
prisoner along the deck of a destroyer.
NEWS REVIEW OF
THE M WEEK
Germans Push South Between
Montdidier and Noyon But
Again Are Checked.
BLOODIEST FIGHTS OF WAR
Americans Drive Huns Out of Belteau
Wood False Statements by Prus
sian Minister of War Gallant
Exploit of Italian Tor
pedo Boats.
By EDWARD W. PICKARD.
Aiming at Complegno and Estrcc St.
Denis, with the evident Intention of
forcing tho French out of the Noyon
salient, tho armies of Crown Prince
Ruprecht of Bavaria, under the Imme
diate command of General von Uutler,
started a great drive southward be
tween Montdidier and Noyon on Sun
day. The result was tho most desper
ate and bloodiest fighting of Jho entire
wnr, for tho French resisted fiercely
and slaughtered the enemy In tremen
dous numbers. By sheer weight the
Germans were able to push forward
down the valley of the Matz for several
miles, making their greatest advance
to the southwest, but by Tuesday thoy
wero brought almost to a standstill.
Then General Foch struck buck with
forco nnd on tho west; side of the ene
my salient drove tho Huns to the east,
retaking Courcelles, Le Fretoy, Mery,
Belloy wood and other strong posi
tions nnd reaching the edge of St.
Mnur. The defense of Courcelles, im
portant bocause of its commanding
heights, was especially heroic, the Ger
mans trying by every means to gain
and hold the village, in vain.
On the enst of the salient the Ger
mans, by tremendous efforts, were
able to force their wuy past Rlbecourt,
and by Tuesday they had reached the
Olse at Machemont and Bethancourt,
tho latter village being the scene of
especially sanguinary fighting. This
bo threatened tho Frdnch troops in tho
thin wedgo extending toward Noyon
that lu tho night they were quietly
withdrawn without the knowledge of
tho enemy, and tho line, thus shosj
ened and straightened, thereafter was
held. In this move the Carlepont for
est was abandoned and the new line
extended through Ballly, Tracy le Val
and Nnmpcel.
t With the west Jaw of the pincers
thus pushed down the Matz, the Ger
mans tried to shove tho other Jaw lu
from the cast, between Solssons and
the Marne, but there they apparently
wero almost unsuccessful, for the
French gave ground only slightly on
tho plateau west of the villages of Cut
ry and Dommlers nnd repulsed attacks,
against St. Pierre Algle and Amblcny.
At Haute Bray, north of .Solssons, the
Huns met a smashing defeat.
Further to the south, lu the region
of Chateau Thierry, the Americans
nd French continued their good work
of the previous week. Each day Per
shing's men struck at the foe hard nnd
by tho end of the week they had
scored considerable advances, the
most valuable gain being tho taking
of Belleau wood, which had been full
of machine gun nests. In the Cllgnon
valley, Just north of this, the Germnns
used up five divisions lu futile as
saults on tho American positions. The
French In this region occupied Mont
court nnd part of Busslares.
In the lnttor part of the week the In
domitable French struck heavy blows
nt tho Germans on tho eastern wing
of tho now front and drove them bnck
across the Mutz with sovere losses.
.Between tho Alsno and the Vlllors-Cot-tcrcts
forest tho enemy made somu
progress, but southwest of Solssons his
attack was broken.
ta-
Tho outstanding fact In last week's
flghtlug Is that tho Germans suffered
enormous losses, in return for which
they gained ground that Is compara
tively unimportant. Certainly nt tho
beginning of tho weok there wis a feel
ing of nervousness among tho allies
tho civilians, not tho soldiersbut this
quickly disappeared and was replaced
by the former confidence In the ability
of tho allied nrmles to resist the ham
mer strokes of the Hun fighting ma
chine. The German authorities cannot
deny their severe losses In this offen
sive, nnd, with General von Stein, Prus
sian minister of war, as their mouth
piece, hnve striven to reassure the
people by a series of falsehoods con
cerning tho allies. First they Issued
the statement that the Americans In
the battles about Chateau Thierry and
In Bcllcnu wood had been defented and
practically wiped out, though at tho
very time those same dashing marines
were driving the enemy further nnd
further to the west and north. Then
Von Stein, addressing tho reichstag,
asserted that Foch's reserves no longer
exist, having been thrown Into the
fight, together with the available
Americans, in vuin counter-attacks
after the crown prince's advance had
come to a halt on the Marne. The en
tente, he added, Is beginning to admit
heavy defeat and is comforting its peo
ple with having the help of America.
The German press ndds that the sub
marine raid In American waters stop
ped the sending of our troops to
France.
' The public may rest assured that all
of these statements are absolute lies,
easily refuted did space permit. They
probably are necessary because of the
growing distress of the German people
over their losses and their distrust of
their lenders.
The allied aviators gained new lau
rels during tho battle of last week, de
stroying several scores of German
planes, bombing their trenches nnd
munition stntions and Taking their
troops and transports with machine
gun fire from low altitudes. In this
the American aviators played an In
creasingly Important part, as weil as
doing fino work on their own especial
sector north of Tonl.
Not yet ready to start their new
drive In Italy, the Austrlans continued
to concentrate great masses of troops
there. The point of attack was not
revealed, but the Italians kept them
busy with big raids. On Monday the
Italian naval forces performed a nota
ble exploit. Two torpedo boats raid
ed an Austrian naval base near the
Dalmatian Islands, making their way
nniong the enemy vessels and torpedo
ing ono big battleship, which sank
with a loss of more than 80 lives. An
other battleship was damnged, and the
little vessels then returned to their
base In safety. It Is said the Italians
hnve built a "sea tank," long and nar
row, which can cut Its way through the
steel netting with which the Austrian
ports nre-protected. Possibly this was
used In the Dalmatian raid.
Having, ts they believe, completely
subdued Russia and most of Ukrnlnla.
and having made a friend of Klnlnnd,
tho Germnns nre reported to bo trans
porting rapidly to the west front all
their troops except huiuII detachments
left to keep order. But all of tho Rus
sians aro not crushed, for now the cen
tral committee of the constitutional
democrats, who were ousted by the
holshcvlkl, have appealed to America
and the entente powers to send an In
ternational army to Russia to combat
the Germans. The committee urged
that the aid be sent by way of Siberia
so that it might first co-operate with
General Semenoff, who is still fighting
on the Mnnchurlnn border, and then
with the Cossuek chiefs. The matter
was seriously considered, but lu Wash
ington It was announced that Presi
dent Wilson did not think the time
was rlpo for such action. He probably
bus definite plans In this regard, but
they have not been revealed to the
public. Japan Is preparing a declara
tion defining her attitude toward Rus
sia. If an allied army Is sent Into
Siberia, It probably will consist main
ly of Jnpanese and Chinese troops. In
deed, It Is snld Japan would object to
the presence of contingents from the
western nations as a reflection on her
honor.
Fighting tkelr way westward through
Russia nnd Siberia as did the little
band of Belgians who recently pnssed
through tho United States, some 15,000
Czecho-Slovok troops are striving to
reach the Pacific coast. The bolshevik
authorities hove ordered them disarm
ed, and they are having almost con
tinuous battles with the sovlot forces.
sa
Addressing the graduating class of
tho United States Military academy,
Secretary of War Baker on Wednesday
said that more than a million American
men would soon be In ervJco In
France. A day or so br.foro he stated
that more thnn 700,000 had disembark
ed on French soil. An English corre
spondent at the front asserts that the
American army Is prepared, If neces
sary, to make a greater sacrifice than
that Involved In tile brigading of Amer
ican troops with tho British nnd
French. This cryptic statement, may
mean that if the plans of the allies de
mand it tho Yankee troops will be sent
to the fighting front almost immediate
ly on arrival in France, without wait
ing for the preliminary training they
have been receiving back of the lines.
So far only n few of the Americans
have been used In the real fighting, nnd
in operations relatively small. As the
conflict hns changed Its character, be
coming more open, It may be tho Amer
icans nre considered fit to take part
after their training lu this country.
jsa
Several Important probabilities con
cerning the Nfltlonnl army came to the
fore last week. Representative Kahn
said' the war department intends to ask
congress at the winter session to amend
the draft law to Include all men be
tween the ages of eighteen and fjty
nine. Provost Marshal General Crow
der decided to recommend the exemp
tion of professional ball players until
tho end of the season. Director Gen
eral McAdoo asked the exemption of
all railroad men, and the coal mine op
erators asked the same for miners.
Ga
llic comparative failure 'of the Ger
,mnn drives so far, tho splendid resist
ance made by tho French and British
and the excellent showing made by
the Americans must not lead the
American people Into a dangerous 'com
placency nnd a feeling that "it is all
over but the shouting." Those who
know the truth realize that the war
is far from ended may last four or
five years longer, indeed and that
the future holds for us tremendous
sacrifices. We must put into its suc
cessful prosecution every ounce of
energy we possess, even as do our
fighting men on the other side of the
ocean. There is no doubt that the war
will bo won finally by the forces of
righteousness, but until it is won noth
ing else matters much but the winning
of it, for if it were not wont nothing
else would matter at all. The people
of Great Britain and of France real
ized this long ago, and the people of
America must realize it soon. It can
not be too sttongly urged, upon then
that the man power of the central
nations is still tremendous nnd that
they are still determined by- every
means to force their will upon tho rest
of the world. The British nnd French
troops, battered and wearied, doubt
less can bold the lines until the nu
tumn, but they look to our millions to
uehleve 'the victory, nnd this they can
do only If they are given every pos
sible support by those who stay nt
home. This will be given with a will
If only the peoplo fully recognize the
seriousness of the situation nnd the
urgency of the demands on them.
P
Owing to the fact that tho German
submarine raiders sank a number of
vessels ladeu with sugar from Cubit
and to tho Interruption In tho traffic
with the Island caused by those opera
tions, Food Administrator noover has
asked that further restrictions bo
placed on the sale and use of sugar
for n time. He also asks the people
to place themselves on a limited beef
allowance until September 1 next In
order that the needs of the soldiers
and civilians in France, Great Britain
nnd Italy may be supplied.
Two great conventions opened In tha
United Stntes last week, and each did
Its pnrt In urging the carrying on of
the war to victory. The first was flint
of tho American Federation of Labor,
to which President Wilson sent n mes
sage making it clear that tho workers
bad It In their power to bring victory
or defeat. President Gompers address
was a thundering deflnnce of the Huns,
nnd during the week there were devel
opments that showed the great major
ity of tho delegates would not coun
tenance anything that savored of dis
loyalty or even of undue pacifism.
In Chicago hundreds of tho most
eminent physicians nnd surgeons of
ho country, together with some fa
nous ones from nbrond. assembled for
the meeting of the American Medical
association. Tho nddress, tho discus
sions and the work of these men were
almost wholly related to tho wnr. and
the words of the leaders were hearten
ing In the extreme.
RESERVES TO WIN ;
THEJUATTLE
General Foch Says Offensivo Is;
Necessary for Viotory.
SURPRISE, MASS AND SPEED
Final Attack With These Characteris
tics, by Troops Carefully Prepared
and Then Thrown In Without
Regard to Losses.
London. Battles can bo won In tho
end only by the army which takes the
offensive. This is tho significant dec
laration roado by General Foch, com
mander in chief of the allies, In an,,
article contributed by him to tho wcek-j
ly Journal, the Field, in which he "dls-J
cusses the problem of tho soldier ondj
tho way to victory.
"Modern warfare, to arrive at it
end and to impose its will on the en-'
emy," General Foch says, "recognizee
only one means destruction of tho
enemy's organized forces.
"War undertakes and prepares this
destruction by battlo, which brings
about tho overthrow of the adversary,
disorganizes his command, destroys his
discipline, nnd nullifies his units as
far as their fighting power is con
cerned. ' I
No Victory In Defense.
"Our first axiom must be that toj
achieve its object a battlo must not bet
purely defensive. A purely defensive)
battle, even well conducted, does not
result in a victor nnd a vanquished. It)
is simply a game that must be begun.
over again.'
"From this it is an obvious corollary
that an offensive, whether started at
tho beginning of nn action or whether
it follows the defensive, can only give
results, and, in consequence, must nl-j
ways be adopted at the finish.
"To maintain our position is not'
synonymous with being victorious andr
even prepares for a defeat If we re-(
main where we arc and do not pass toj
the offensive to fix the direction of at-f
tack, to guard against the plans of the;
enemy, and prevent him from carrying!
out the same maneuver, we must un-j
dertake to carry on and sustain numer-j
ous combats, each with determined
aim.
All Depends on Reserve.
"But since there remains no doubt
that decisive attack is tho very key-j
stone of a battle, all other actions
which make up a battle must be en
visaged, considered, organized, pro
vided with forces in the measure in
which they will prepare, facilitate, and.
guarantee development of a decisive
attack characterized by its mass, Its
surprise, Its speed, and for which, in
consequence, it Is essential that there
shall be the maximum reserve force
possible of troops of maneuver. I
"Tho resorve that is to say, the
prepared bludgeon is organized and!
kept carefully instructed to execute;
the single act of battle from which re-j
suits are expected namely, the de
cisive attack.
Surprise, Mass and Speed.
"Reserves must be husbanded with)
tho most extreme parsimony so that
the bludgeon may be strong enough to
make the blow as violent as possible.
Let loose at the finish, without any,
lurking idea of saving them, with ai
well thought out plan for winning the
battle at a point chosen and deter-,
mined, reserves .are thrown In all to-2
gether in an action surpassing 1b vlo4
lence and energy all other phases of
battle, an action with proper charac
teristics surprise, mass, and speed.
All our forces really participate, wither
by preparing It or by carrying It out.
"In this, our supreme aim, we mush
not be deceived by appearances. Al
though theory falls when applied by
feeble hands and when accessories ob
scure the main principle, history andi
reason show us that in battle there Is
a single argument which is worth while-
namely, decisive attack, whtch Is.
alone capable of assuring the desired!
result the overthrow of the adver
sary." Praying for a Miracle. .
Thomas A. Mott, superintendent of,
the city schools at Seymour, tells thej
story of a little girl who had beem
taught to believe in miracles. Ono
night, following a hard examination nt
school, she went to her room and be
fore climbing into bed she offered her;
customary prayer. Her mother was
standing near and was surprised when,
the girl prayed: "Please make Bos
ton the capital of Maine." When the
prayer was finished her mother askeU
her why she wanted Boston the capital
of Maine.
"Well, mother," she replied, "I wrote
It down on my examination paper that
wny this afternoon, nnd I want to have
It correct." Indianapolis News.
Belgian Queen Visits Hospital.
"There Is never a day when the,
queen of Belgium does not visit tho1
hospitals and comfort tho wounded
at the front. She encourages all am
bitious amoug tho soldiers and has,
organized a symphony orchestra for
their entertainment." A cablegram
says:
"Paul Glnlsty, of the Petit Pnrlslnn,
Just visited a Belgian school nt the
front where 000 little wnr victims find
refuge. These children have sufforod
greatly and everything Is done to mnka
them happy. Tho hours of work are
arranged In accordance with their
years. In the dormitories on onch bed