The Omaha Daily Bee
PART ONE.
NEWS SECTION
PAGES ONE TO TEN
THE WEATHER
Rain or Snow
VOL. XLVI. NO. 269.
OMAHA, SATURDAY MORNING, APRIL 28, 1917. TWENTY" PAGES.
SINGLE COPY TWO CENTS.
FRENCH BELIEVE DANGER WORLD WILL STARVE;
NEBRASKA CROPS BENEFIT MILLIONS BY MOISTURE;
125 MEN CUT JKJ IN BURNING MINE; WAR PLOT:
BLAST ENTOMBS
SCORES BENEATH
TRINIDAD SHAFT
Scores, Alive or Dead, Trapped
by-Explosion in Smoke-Filled
Levels Thousands of Feet
Below Mountain.
RUMORS OF A WAR PLOT
Company Officials Discredit
Report, Attributing Dis
aster to "Gas."
MINERS' FATE UNKNOWN
Trinidad, Colo., April 27. One hun
dred and twenty-five men caught in
the Hastings mine of the Victor
American Fuel company, by an ex
plosion at 9:30 this morning still were
entombed tonight while rescue squads
slowly were working their way through
the smoke-filled slope to the main
workings 3,600 feet under the moun
tain where the unfortunate men were
believed to be imprisoned.
Whether any of the men arc alive is
unknown, but company officials are
hopeful that they escaped the effects
of the explosion and will be able to
hold out during the resulting fire and
smoke until the rescuers reach them.
Evidence of Gas Explosion.
At last reports the helmet squads,
led by Superintendent Cameron, who
re-entered the mine after the first
group of unprotected recuers had
been forced to retreat, had penetrated
the main slope to a depth of 1,200 feet.
Evidence of a gas explosion was
found at this depth, but there was
no trace of the men, all of whom are
believed to be in the main workings,,
nearly Z,200 feet further in.
Rumors that -the explosion was the
"result of a bomb plot were discounted
by company officials, who pointed out
"that the mine was ktuswn as a "gas
mine" and that a similar explosion
had occarred in 1913 V J,
Company officials insisted ibat the
explosion was slight and that" the
greatest danger to the men was from
the fire and smoke. The ventilating
system apparently was damaged and
the fans were kept working pumping
fresh air into the workings.
v Ninety Are Miners.
-Niiitv of the men caught in the
mine are miners, the others being
company men. Among the latter are
Mine Inspector David Reese, David
Williams, pit boss, and H. J. Millard,
fire boss.
Besides the rescue squads of the
Victor-American company in Hastings
canyon, rescuers were called from the
camps of the Colorado Fuel and Iron
company's camp in Berwind canyon,
just across the hill from the scene of
the accident.
The Hastings mine is situated three
miles p Hastings canyon from Lud
low, which stands at the entrance to
the Hastings and Berwind canyons,
twenty miles from Trinidad. The
main slope of the Hastings mine is
driven straight into the mountaiw,
with only a slight pitch, to the pres
ent workings, which re back some
3,600 feet from the entrance. The
mine normally employs about one
hundred mm to a shift and has a ca
pacity of 1,000 tons a day.
Can't Be Heard on Surface. .
In holding nut hope that the men
caught in the mine might have es
caped instant death, company officials
asserted tint the explosion apparent
ly was slight. It was not of sufficient
force, they said, to be heard on the
surface. -
'The first indication of trouble was
a cloud of black smoke which bil
lowed from the mouth of the slope.
Superintendent Cameron hastily or
ganized a rescue force of five men
and entered the slope, but the smoke
and heat from the fire within was so
intense that they soon were forced to
retreat.
Another rescue force was organized
ana equipped witn oxygen helmets.
These mc-i, eight in number and
again led by Mr. Cameron, re-entered
the mine determined to reach the im-
pnsunea men. w neuier aeons trom
the explosion was blocking the slope
farther back had not been determined
at last reports.
Duke of Abruzzi to
Head Italian Party;
Marconi a Member
Rome, April 2X. (Via Paris.) The
duke of the Abruzzi, cousin of the
king and admiral of the navy, will
head the Italian mission to the United
States. Sentor William Marconi also
will be a member.
Illinois Regains Lead in
Regular Army Recruiting
i- Washington, April 27. Illinois re
gained first place in army recruiting
yesterday, with a total of 182 men on
April 26,, against 142 for Xcw York
and 131 for Pennsylvania.
Nevada, first to complete its quota,
continued to increase its surplus
above the 102 men it should supply,
having now enrolled 186 men since
;.pril I.
t The total number of recruits for
April 26 was 1,375, . slump from the
; 2.000 daily average lor the last ten
' days.
CONORESSWOMAN CHEERED
AS VOTES ON DRAFT.
ft 1 ,
JEANETTE RANKIN.
Missoula, Mont., April 27. "Ham
ilton overwhelmingly favojs conscrip
tion as only fair method for democ
racy; Ask' you and other represen
tatives of Montana to stand firmly bv
the president in his plans, if need be
alone."
So the Hamilton Chember of Com
merce today answered a telegram re-ceived-
from Congresswoman ..lean
nette Rankm, which said:
"I have heard of no one in the
house who is supporting the presi
dent's conscription bill. Do you wish
me to stand alone for this?"
Butte, Mont., April 27. "Stand
alone if you have to," Rotary and
Pan-Hellenic clubs of this city have
wired Miss Jeannette Rankin, repre
sentative in congress from Montana.
Miss Rankin wired a half dozen or
ganizations in Montana, asking their
opinion regarding conscription, tell
ing them that she had heard of no
one in the hoife who was supporting
the president's conscription bill and
asking if she should stand alone for ft.
DEFEAT ROOSEYELT
ARMY AMENDMENT
Debate is Resumed at Noon
and Leaders Hope to Pass
Bill Soon;
KENYON FOR AMENDMENT
Washington, April 27. By a vot"
of 170 to 106 the house today refused
to amend the army bill so as to per
mit Colonel Roosevelt to raise a vol
unteer force for service in France.
Miss Rankin of Montana was
among those who voted ' for the
amendment. As she passed between
the tellers members on both sides of
the house cheered her.
An agreement to vote when the
house meets tomorrow on an amend
ment to restore the draft feature, as
originally proposed by the adminis
tration, was reached this evening.
Debate on the war army bill
reached final stages in congress to
day. In the house general debate was
concluded after a session which lasted
until 2:30 o'clock this morning.
Forty-Three Speak.
When adjournment was taken
eighty-one members had spoken in
favor of the selective draft system
and forty-three members in opposi
tion to it.
'The house was to meet at noon to
day to hear summing-up speeches by
Chairman Dent of the military com
mittee on behalf of the volunteer sys
tem, and by Representative Kahn for
the selective draft plan. After that
speeches were to be limited to five
minutes. House,, leaders hoped to
reach a Tote tonight, although this
appeared doubtful.
In the senate the bill was taken up
under an agreement to reach a final
vote by tomorrow night. Sixteen
senators still were to be heard.
Jones Opens in .Senate.
Debate in the senate was opened by
Senator Jones, republican of Wash-
(Continued q rage Two, Column One. I
Would Gladly See Kaiser Killed,
Letter Says;, Vriter Has Been Shot
"Your sister was shot this morning."
This terse line in the bold scrawl of a German soldier is appended to
a letter received by a German housemaid in the home, of i daughter of
ohnN. Campion, 614 Maple street, clerk for the Woodmen of the
The letter came from the Fatherland.i It told of war conditions there.
"There are thousands here who would gladly see Kaiser Wilhelm
killed. .1 myself would like to tie the rope around his neck,"-one para
graph reads. ' y
It was after this-paragraph that the German censor wrote that the
writer of the letter had been shot.
Mr. Campion received news of the letter from his daughter, who Uvea
in Los Angeles.
TIMcrfSNOW IS
GREAT HELP TO
GROWING CROPS
Heavy Fall Throughout Ne
braska Does Immense
' Amount of Good to All
Kinds Farm Products.
FRUITS ARE NOT INJURED
Gardeners Report Moisture
Will Help Bring Out Spring
Vegetables.
MILLIONS IN BENEFITS
Snow and rain started to fall in
Omaha and all over the state Tuesday
morning and cotitinued twenty-four
hours. There was nearly an inch of
precipitation in Omaha and more out
in the state,
Experls says that it will be wortb
millions and millions to the growing
crops and to the corn which is yet
to be planted.
Horticulturists dechrc that unless
the present spell of wintcrish weather
ends with a freeze noninjury will
be done to the fruit crop. They point
! to the, fact that several years ago
there was a heavy snowstorm late in
April and that that year the fruit
crop was the best in the history of the
state. '
Fruit Not Far Advanced,
It is contended that, due to the
backward spring, fruit is not as far
advanced as normally and that there
is little danger of anything except
perhaps some of the berries being
slightly nipped through the southern
section of the state.
Railroad men say that the rain and
snow is worth millions to Ntbraska.
Omaha grain men go them one better
and Ax its value at many millions.
The precipitation was from one to
four inches and in many places more
of it was falling when the morning
reports came in. . .
According to the railroads, temp
eratures through the state Thursday
night were from 32 to 45 degrees
above zero and risim as the day
advanced.
Heavy Fall in Sand Hills;
The precipitation was greatest up
through the sand hill country, where
there was six to seven inches of snow
and rain mixed. At Dunning it was
six inches; at Columbus, five; Palmer,
Schuyler, Ord and St. Paul, four to
four and a half; while all the way
across the. state along the Northwest
ern, Union Pacific and Burlington it
was two to three inches.
South of the Platte river and far
down into Kansas there was a steady
rain all afternoon and night, clearing
in the morning.
, Railroad stockmen are of the opin-
ion that, while the storm will be se-T
vere on sheep recently shorn and cat
tie that are in. poor condition, losses
will be light if warmer weather comes
within the next day or two.
The consensus of opinion is that
the heavy fall, will improve the con
dition of all winter wheat fields
where the plant was not entirely
killed by the cold winter. It is con
ttnded that it will bring out the
spring wheat, oats and barley and
practically assure a full crop.
The moisture is going to put the
ground in the best possibly condition
for corn planting and also will be of
material benefit to the pastures.
As to fruit, vegetables and garden
truck, men on the market assert that
no damage will result unless a freeze
follows. They say that the weather
was not cold enough last night to in
jure anything except, possibly, the
most tender plants transferred from
the hotbeds to the open fields.
Subseas Surely
T i..' "n , I
DeStrOyinff Lnem V
.. . " . .P "
Ships i Savs Berlin
f J
Berlin, April 27. (Via London.)
A confidential statement in regard
to the progress of submarme war
fare has been made by Vice Admiral
von Capelle, minister of navy, to the
Reichstag's main committee. An offi
cial statement regarding the fninis
ter's communication was given out
here today, showing that he told the
committee the success of the subma
rines continued to be great and their
losses small. Reports already at hand
showed that a favorable result could
he expected for the month of April.
The reduction of tonnage at the dis
posal of hostile nations, he said, was
taking place with mathematical cer
tainty, thereby increasing the lack of
foodstuffs, while the want of pit
props had made itself ielt in the
sharpest manner.
In the Way
4roW some, sotttty. NfrV
ore ihaiialk 'Mlsf'
Goes wrfk me ! J mMV
f HURRAH iiWf JkA
i
LABOR CLASSES
OF GERMANY ARE
READY TO STRIKE
Chancellor Issues Appeal and
Warning : Against Further
Interference With Mu
nitions Work.
MINE REGION IN FERMENT
Serious Outbreaks Also Feared
in Great Manufacturing
Districts.
fjflTJCH DISCONTENT IN ARMY
,
Copenhagen, April 27. (Via Lon
don.) German newspapers today in
dicate widespread apprehension of a
possible May day strike.
A proclamation from Chancellor
von Bethmann-Hollweg, addressed
formally to the federal states, but
really to labor, contains both appeal
ajid i stern warning against further
interference with the munitions work.
- Fear Violence Among Miners.
A manifesto from four of the big
miners' unions warns their members,
against reckless and regrettable ac
tion because of unsatisfactory food
conditions. "Don't permit yourselves
in these grave times to be dragged
into rioting and strikes," is the key
sentence of the manifesto, showing
that not merely an orderly demon
strative walkout, but actual violence
is fCared in the great mining and
manufacturing districts of West Falen
and Silesia.
Finally there is another official an-
I'ouncAncnt that a great combing out
of the war industries is necessary to
,., fnr tl, m,v Ttiis eriv.e ihr
svcrnm(,nt neQ,,ei justification tor
sending to the front munition work
ers who yield -tp temptation. ,
Laboring Masses in Ferment.
All in all, a strong ferment is evi
dent among the' laboring masses,
caused by food conditions, including
the reduction of rations and the ex
treme cost of living and weariness
of war. This view is confirmed bv
an American business n n, who has
just succeeded in leaving Germany
and who, though ignorant of the in
dications given by the German news
papers of yesterday and today, told
'he Associl.ted Press, correspondent
that Berlin was still seething with
strike feeling and that the impression
was widespread that there will be
another strike outbreak on May dav.
Persons here -familiar with condi
tions in Germany, however, express
the bc1iff,that the German autlufi
ties will be able to cope with the sit
uation. s ..
Soldiers Are Discouraged.
General von Stein. German minister
of war, admitted before thi Reichstag
military alfairs committee yp.itcrday
that field post letters from soldiers at
the front showed a certain amount of
discouragement, but tint in general
1 he spirit of the troops was good.
The committee then sent assur
ances of solid support to the annv.
which the radical-socialist member
of the committee alone refused to
sign. The comniittce-rcjcctcil a radi
cal socialist proposal to establish a
committee parliamentary control to
supervise the conduct of the war.
Herr Stneiklcin, a social'st, ' com
plained that men were sent to the
front as a punishment
of Contrast
Germans Lose .
Quarter Million
; ftlen Along Aisne
Paris, April 27. The German
losses in men in the recent fight
ing, along the Aisne are estimated
it "more than 200,000 With the.
probability that the total reached
235.000.
These figure Include killed,
wounded and prisoner!, and ton"
stitute . one of the most formid
able totala of the present war.
The number of German prisoners
aggregate! approximately 20,000.
'The capture of 130 gum alio is
recorded.
MUST REINSTATE
MRS. MANCHESTER
'
Supreme Court Upholds Its
First Order in Woodmen
Circle Case,
MRS. LA ROCCA IS OUSTED
(From a Staff Correspondent.)
Lincoln, Neb., April 27. (Special
Telegram.) Pending an investigation
of the merits of the case, the Ne
braska supreme court has ordered
Mrs. Emma B. Manchester reinstated
as supreme guardian of the Woodmen
Circle. ,
The order amounts to an ousting
of Mrs. La Rocca, elected head at the
Memphis convention a few weeks ago.
Mrs. Manchester brought action for
contempt, on the strength of a court
order issued a few mouths ago re
quiring that she he not molested in
conducting the alfairs of her office.
She charges that a "rump" conven
tion elected Mrs. La Rocca.
The referee will consider the merits
of the case, including the charge of
contempt.
Prison Sentence of
Millionaire Upheld
By Supreme Court
St. Paul, Minn., April 27. The con
viction of Joseph W. Bragdon, a Min
neapolis millionaire, charged with an
offense against a girl, was upheld to
day bjf the state supreme court. He
was sentenced to from one to seven
years in prison and pending the su
preme court decision was released on
$J5,0fl0 hail.
Hill Line Adds One
Million to Pay Roll
St. Paul. Minn., April 27 Salai?
increases, in some cases as high as
25 per cent and aggregating more
than $1,000,000 annaally, will be grant
ed May 1 to screral thousand em
ployes of the Great Northern railway,
"Such as clerical forces and others
that have not in the past received
general advances," it was announced
by President L. V.' HiU here today.
Parliament to Consider
Enlisting of Americans
I.cindog. April 27.-Lord Robert.
Cecil, minisler, of blockade, tnld the
House of v ommons today that there
would be introduced shoMly a bill
dealing with the enlistment of friend
ly aliens of military age. He did not
say whether Americans would be included
ALL NATIONS OF EARTH NOW
IN DANGER OF STARVATION.
FOOD ECONOMIST TELLS U. S.
Hunger Looms As Fate of Peoples As Result of Break
down of Forces of Production and Distribu
tion Through War, Council Informs
American Government.
WORKERS ARE WITHDRAWN FROM THE FIELDS.
ailroad Stock Exhausted and Ocean Transportation Dis
' organized Through Activities of Commerce
Destroyers of Belligerents.
PLEAD FOR MORE SHIPS TO CARRY SUPPLIED
' Washington, April 27. Members of the economic section
of the French mission believe there is danger of a world famine.
One of the foremost purposes of the mission, revealed late
today authoritatively for the first time, is to impress upon the
American government and people the serious food situation in
Europe.
The economic section of the mission is prepared to submit
evidence that all the world is seriously threatened with famine
because of the withdrawal of men from agriculture, the lack
of fertilizers, and the derangement of transportation facilities.
ROLLING STOCK WEARING OUT. '
Rolling stock of railroads in Europe is rapidly being worn
out through the lack of lubricants, it is declared, and more
railway supplies are urgently needed. t ,
The growing scarcity of transportation facilities on the
seas makes it imperative, the Frenchmen believe'; that the Unit
ed States carry out quickly its plan for large fleet of wooden
ships to assist in the struggle against Germany. '
i . The mission believes it a fallacy to assume that even peace
would greatly alter food conditions, for those now on the verge
of starvation will need great quantities of food before they can
produce it themselves.. ' k ' ' -,.
It is felt that the seriousness of the situation is increased
by almost universal crop failures. ' " . .. '. ,
CENTER EFFORTS AGAINST GRAIN SHIPS.
It is said that the Germans, recently have made extraor
dinary efforts to send to the'bottonTvessels carrying grain toi
the allies. Second choice for sinking is said to be boats carry
ing steel and after them the Germans have tried to 'sink coal)
laden ships.
Won't Insure Sail
Ships in War Zone
Washington, April 27. Secre
tary McAdoo announced today
that hereafter the government'!
bureau of war risk insurance
would decline to issue Insurance
on sailing vessels and auxiliary
sailing vesselU through the war
tones.
Bulletin
Washington, April 27. Loans
totaling at least $200,000,000 will
be made by the government to
France and Italy within I week.
The Italian loan probably will
be announced within forty-eight
hours.
Sinking of Sussex
Act of War, Holds
French Civil Court
Paris, April 27. The civil tribunal
of the Seine has' handed down a de
cision that the torpedoing of the Sus
sex constituted an act of war. The
tribunal therefore gave judgment
against the heirs of one of the vic
tims who sought to recover from the
insurance company the amount for
which the victim was insured.
The English passenger steamer
Sussex was torpedoed in the English
channel without warning on March
24, 1916. There were thirty Amer
icans among the 386 passengers and
the incident proved one of the most
important factors in bringing matters
to a crisis between the United States
and Germany. No American lives
were lost, but several members of
other neutral nations were among the
victims.
Demurrage Charge
On Freight Cars to
Be Doublei May 1
Washington, April 27. The rail
roads of the country and the chief
shippers represented in the National
Industrial Traffic league hav agreed
upon a 100 per cent increase in demur
rage charges over the irate in effect
l.rior to December 1 last, when emer
gency, rates were prescribed by the
Interslatc Commerce commission.
Hie new rales, which will go into
effect May 1, provide charges of $2
per day on each car detained for un
loading after arrival at its destination
for the first four days and $5 per day
thereafter.
TEUTON WARSHIPS
SHELLRAMSGATE
Destroyers Which Attacked
Kentish Town Driven Off
by Land. Batteries.
TWO CIVILIANS ARE KILLED
London, April 27, German destroy
ers attacked Ramsgate last night, the
war office announced today. A Urge
number of shells were fired, but the
destroyers were driven off by land
batteries..
The official statement follows:
"The damage and casualties occa
sioned by the enemy during the bom
bardment of the east Kentish coast
last night are: Killed, one man and
one woman; injured, one man and two
women. - v
"Damage was done to twenty-one
dwelling houses and two stables. One
horse was killed."
' Although the bombardment was
the heaviest Ramsgate has experi
enced in various attacks during the
war, the damage was relatively small,
says an Exchange Telegraph com
pany dispatch. More than one hun
dred shells fell in the town, but only
ten houses were seriously damaged.
The night was dark, but the town
was illuminated by the shell fire.
British Army On
Tigris Takes Strip
TcNorth of Samara
London April 27. A further re
tirement of the Turks in Mesopo
tamia for 'a- considerable distance
northof . ijamara, recently captured
by the British, is reported by General
Maude The 'Thirteenth Turkish
corps is entrenching in the foothills
of the Jebcl Hamrin range, between
the Tigris and the Diala, where the
British are in touch with it.
Warning Shot Smashes
Lifeboats of Thekla,
Copenhagen, April 27 (Via Lon
don). The Norwegian bark Thekla
owes its escape fTom sinking in the
war zone to the fact that the "warn
ing shot" from a German submarine
smashed both of the bark's lifeboats.
This led the submarine commander,.
who was un; ble to take the crew on
board, to spare the vessel.
The Germans are said to be em
ploying along the British -coast a new
system of Siamese twin mines, re
sulting in a double explosion, which
is said to insure the instant destruc
tion of any ship, no matter what its
size.