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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (June 17, 1917)
6 A THE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE: JUNE 17, 1917. COLONIAL TROOPS SHOW FINE SPIRIT Remarkable Stories of Hero ism Are Related of the Lads Who Fought at Hurtebise. (Correspondence of The Associated Press.) French Front, May IS. Some of the most dashing acts of heroism the great war are related in connec tion with the capture and holding, spite of desperate German resistance, ' liy the French colonial troops, of tin farm of Hurtebise. The place has been often mentioned in the official communications of the war office in the course of the recent battle for the possession of the Chcmin des Dames, or Koad of the Women, to the west ' ot Craonue. Ihe Associated rress correspondent, who watched the whole of the fighting in this vicinity, later came into touch with many of ficers and men who had distinguished themselves there, and heard from them stories of the series of actions, details or which were not obtainable in the thick of the engagements, Hurtebise farm, now as in 1814, when Blucher was turned out of by Marshals Key and Dronot under the eyes of Napoleon, is in reality the key of the position, since those who possess it are in command of all the observation points dominating the valleys. The Germans had decided to hold it at any cost, and they nad con structed a most skillful system of de fensive works, consisting of deep fields of barb wire entanglements, trenches and shelters, in which were disposed' dozens of machine guns. Notwithstanding all the difficulties of the task the colonial infantry, which formerly was the French Marine In fantry corps, stormed the position and took it on the morning of April 10, Relief la Sent. It was foreseen that the Germans would make an attempt to regain the position, so valuable to them, and during the night of April 17, a regi ment of zouaves was sent up to re lieve the colonials, who were ex hausted and had suffered much from exposure, after the fight, to cold winds and heavy snow and rain. Two battalions of the zouaves were deployed to the fight and left of where the farm had once stood, and on each side of the ruins of the mon ument commemorating the Na poleonic battle. They lay in the de rnolishrd German trenches and in shell holes with bodies of dead sol diers all about them, and as they lay iney acrapea up the, earth with their entrenching instruments so as to form aome sort of defense. A third bat talion was held in reserve. in tront ot tne zouaves was a stretch of ground interspersed with deep caverns and wooded ravines, which descended down to the valley of Vauclerc and the banks of the AHette river. There for seven davs the znuavea fought their wav inch hv inrh with hand grenades under a constant bar rage fire from the German big guns ana an tne time exposed to the sweep ing ahowers of machine arun bullets The Germans fought with determined vigor, sticking to every point until actually lorcea out. ' Finally Gain Advantage. The line was very uneven, some of the section of zouaves having ad vanced further than their comrades, and often islets of Germans held out and pestered the French troops from the flanks. Progress had to be made frbrff shell-hole . to shell-hole until, eventually, the zouaves, by capturing the German- Dusseldorf trench, were able to command an advantageous po sition and straighten and solidify their line. Even then the Germans did not give up hope and on April 25 opened a strong counter-attack, for which the First regiment of the Prussian guard was brought specially into line. The left of the French line held firm, but the right gave way slightly and a French counter-attack had later to be carried out to regain the ground lost. Some of the men of an Algerian tirailleur battalion had been almost cut off, but they were relieved by the zouaves and other battalion and some of the Prussian guard were taken prisoners. t , One zouave, who in pace times is a Parisian confectioner, while making his way across the sieve-like ground, fell among a patrol of Prussian guardsmen and was captured. He did not lose his wits, although some of his captors treated him with the greatest brutality. He was ordered to the rear through a communication trench and was accompanied in that direction by i number of guardsmen. His captors, who had come on the scene only that morning, soon lost their way in the maze of twisting trenches and virtual ly left it to their prisoner to show them the way. Suddenly an idea of tricking them struck him and instead of turning to the right he turned to the left and soon he and his captors found them selves looking into the muzzles of zouave rifles. The prisoners shouted, "Fire, my lads." He threw himself on the ground and seized an abandoned rifle, with which he killed one of his captors. Most of the others sur rendered. Japanese Are Building Freighters for England (Correspondence of The Associated Press.) Tokio, May 31. In connection with the strengthening of the merchant fleet of the entente powers, the Kawa saki Dockyard company of Kobe has received an order worn Oreat Bri tain to build fourteen freiirht steam ers. , The individual tonnage ranges from 9.000 to 12,000 tons and the total value will be about $25,000,000. sixty-two steamers with an aggre gate of 292,000 tons will be com pleted in Japan before the end of the year, according to the department of communications. The government will grant a subsidy of $J20,000 as encouragement. Women Are Helping Italians Dig Trenches (Cam.poD.denc of Tin Associated PreM.) Rome, Mar 31. Several thousand women are digging trenches for the Italian soldiers along the Austrian front, according to the Giornale D'ltalia, -which adds 'that altogether the Italian war department employs 72,324 women, many of whom are in munition factories. In the government department of railroads and transportation there are 500 woman clerks, while 9,300 women are distributed along the railroad lines ' as cleaners -or, gatekeepers. Equalization Board Cuts Down the Raises Made by Assessor Fitzgerald None of the big business houses, stores, factories and corporations boosted to dizzy figures by County Assessor Fitzgerald have appeared be fore the County Board of Equaliza tion, but the majority of the individ uals whose taxes involve smaller amounts who have protested have been successful in obtaining satisfac tory reductions. Of the approximately 250 cases passed upon by the equalization board since it began its sessions in only a few instances have the county as sessor's boosts been sustained. Practically all of the protests made thus far have involved amounts from $50 to a few hundred dollars. The board voted to accept the schedules returned, though in many cases County Assessor Fitzgerald had dou bled and tripled them. A working man who returned a schedule setting forth one item as "automobile, $50" was raised by the assessor to several hundred dollars. He appeared to protest, taking par ticular exception to inference that the return on the car was too low. I'll tell you what I'll do," he said to the board, "if you can sell that so-called automobile for $50 for junk, I'll eat it." His assessment was compromised upon by the board. At the rate of the present board grinds, only a small per cent of the more than 5,000 tax payers receiving notices of boosts, which total millions, can be heard. The law provides that the board shall sit twenty days, beginning June Big business interests, known to be preparing to fight to the finish the wholesale increases made by the county assessor, are expected to swoop down upon the equalization board next week. "I do not see how it will be possi ble to hear even a small per cent of the protests on the thousands of no tices sent out in the remaining fifteen days, said County Clerk Dewey, a member of the equalization board, which, in addition to him, is com posed of the county assessor and the five county commissioners. It is taking as much as a half hour to hear protests on assessments of only a few hundred dollars. AMERICANS STILL DNDER POLICE RULE Must Register in England Just as They Did Before United States Entered the . World War. , NO REPUBLIC FOR BRITISH EMPIRE Commonwealth of Nations is the Idea Expressed by Gen eral Smuts of Boer War Fame. (Correspondence of Th Associated PreM.) London, May 30. General Jan Christian Smuts, who fought the British in Mhe Boer war and con quered German East Africa for Great Britain in this war, does not believe in making a republic out of the Brit ish empire. fie told JW members of 1'arliment this at a dinner in his honor the other night in the House of Lords. You cannot," Smuts said, "make reouhlic of the British common wealth of nations because you would have to elect a nresident. not on v here in these islands, but all over the British empire, in India, and in the dominions, a president who would be representative of all these peonies: and here I say you would be facing an absolutely insolu' le problem." At this gathering General smuts broke bread beside Lord French, who led the British forces against him in the Boer war. During his speech he gave a little hitherto unrecorded his tory of his struggle with the forces of the British general. Lord French as Freight. "On one occasion." said the general "I was surrounded by Lord French's forces and was practically faced with disaster. There was nothing left to me but the most -diligent scouting to find a way out. I did some scouting myself with a small party in a place called 'Murderer's Gap,' and was the only man to come out alive. Two days afterward I broke through and came to a railway. A train approached and was suggested that it should be topped, but I gave the command in let it pass. The train passed. Later I learned that the onlv freight it car ried was Lord French." Reverting to the question of gov- ernmenc ot tne British empire, Gen era! Smuts said he preferred to call the British Isles and their possessions " a British commonwealth of nations, rather than an empire." The speaker said that he believed the future British government was an entirely new problem. I do not think," he said, "that the system of the United States of Amer ica would work, because we do not want to standardize the nations of the empire. There is onlv one olu. tion, and that is supplied by our past traditions, traditions of freedom, of self-government and of the fullest de there are two important factors that we must rely upon for the future. The first is our hereditary kingship. I have seen some speculation recently in the newspapers about the position of kingship in this country, specula tions by people, who, I am sure, have not thought of the wider issues at stake. "The theory of the constitution is that the king is not your king, but the king of all of us, ruling over every part of the empire; and if his place should be taken by anybody else then that somebody else will have to be selected under a process which will pass the wit of man to devise. "We have a kingship here which is really not very different from a repub lic. I should not be surprised if the time came when our royal princes, instead of getting their consorts from princelings in Europe, will seek their consorts in the outlying portions of the empire." Italian Forces Capture Strongly Fortified Post Rome (Via London), June 16. Italian forces have carried Corno Cavento, a strongly fortified Austrian position in the eastern Trentinol, the War department announced today. (Correspondence of The Associated Trees.) London, May 31. Many Americans in London were surprised and disap pointed when they learned that, when the United States entered the war, they were not automatically relieved of the necessity of observing the Brit- isn police regulations affecting aliens. This is especially true of the -Americans who have arrived here since the early part of 1916. These must report uicir movements to the authorities just as all other aliens, whethe.- allies or neutrals, are required to do. There is a considerable amount of red tape involved in the police regu lations and, no sooner had the United States thrown in its lot on the side of the entente allies, than many Ameri cans got the impression that they would be relieved of this war-time necessity. When they found out that their status in this respect remained unchanged by the turn of events many of them appealed to the United States embassy and consulate for further in- lormation. lhey were told that there was no indicationof any change. Must Be Identified. Every American who has arrived nere since the early months of 1916 must have an identity book. Besides name, nationality, date and a signed pnoiograpn, it must Pear the signa tures and guarantees of two British supjects, property owners, who have, at the same time, seen the holder of the Book sign his name to it. Before the book is received, a signed photo graph must be left at the police sta tion. In some instances two months elapses before the applicant is able to uuiain nis nooK. Permit to Sleep. When an American moves from nne part of the city to another he must re port to the police stations in both dis tricts and have his book stamped by ii.c aliens oincer. niucn tne same pro cedure is required when he goes on a visit to another city. In every town where he stays over flight he must re port io the police, giving all particu lars as to birth, nationalitv of self and parents, a description of physical fea tures, etc. ai tne notei at which he stays he must repeat all these same details on a large sheet of paper which Our Price for This Complete PLAYER PIANO OUTFIT la Only Latest Model Player, 88 Note, Beautiful Mohogany, Walnut or Oak case, bench, drape and $10 worth of Music Rolls, your own selection. Regular $500 value; sold on terms of $2.00 Per Week Our extensive resources and connections were enlisted to achieve this unprecedented offer ot modern players and complete accessaries at this price. Let us deliver one of these Beautiful Player Pianos to your home. It brings you the gift of musicianship. Schmoller & Mueller Piano Co. 131 MS Farnam Street v Headquarters for Player Rolls to fit all Players, 15c and Up. Store Hour Till Sept 1st: t P. M, Excepting Saturday, 9 P. M. 1 Would rather beRighttha bePresiBenf TO kava die ri&ht standard and faithfully live up to it, thia is the working motto of the Firestone Organization. Since Mr. Firestone founded the Company seventeen years ago, there has been no swerving from this crudity rule. Success has come because the Firestone standard is ' right" and every member of the Organization upholds it. In the case of the Firestone super-size Cord Tire you will find that standard far above anything you have experienced. Strength and sturdiness are combined with a most responsive pliancy. The easy glide, the long coast mean the ride de lightful, economical and sure, c 11,000 Firestone employes are stockholders, owning, shares in1 the business. It is to their advantage to make Firestone Tires "right," in all details of manufacture and sale. Firestone Tire and Rubber Company 2566 F.rnara Stmt, Omaha, Neb. Horn Office and Faetoryi Akron, Ohio. Branches and Dealer Everywhere. he is required to sign again before he can leave the hotel. In certain sections of England a new rule has just been put into efi'cct which requires aliens to first present themselves at police headquarters be fore they will be given a room in a hotel. The police issue a permit en titling the holder to stay at the hotel. A party of American business men from London were required to do this recently upon their arrival in Liver pool. Their train brought them into Liverpool around i a. ni . They were tired and hungry and the trip to the police station consumed another hour. But all went through with the red tape good naturedly, realizing that to be al lowed to travel at all in any of the bel ligerent countries at this time is somewhat of a privilege. English School Wins in The Nicosia Track Meet (Correspondence of Tho Associated Press.) Nicosia Cyprus, May 23. The an nual spring track meet between the hnghsh school of Nicosia and the American school at Larnaca resulted this year in a victory for the English school by thirty points to twenty seven. The English team thus gains possession of the challenge cup pre sented by Sir Hamilton Gould-Adams, the high commissioner of Cyprus. Must Treat Customers Right Or Get Out of Business (Correspondence of The Associated Press.) Schauffhausen, Switzerland, May 30. A recent pronuciamenlo of the Bavarian ministry of the interior re ceived here, though couched in polite and fatherly language, contains a threat to all food storekeepers that unless they treat their customers ci villy they will be debarred from con ducting their business in the future. Countless complains about the arro gance of the storekeepers, who are variously described as having become the "lords of creation," "autocrats" and "dictators" are responsible for the order. ' The ministry's' proclamation re minds all who sell food of 'any kind that, because of the war and the state of affairs it has brought with it, they have become in a way public servantj. They are no longer purely private individuals, but members of the communal economic machine. That being the case, continues the order, each storekeeper must subordi nate his own interests to those of the state. He, is not allowed to ridicule his patrons, ignore their wants, nor be impolite to them. "Accordingly." continues the proc lamation, "it becomes the duty of (he communal organization to remove the merchant, butcher, baker, etc., who fails in his duty to his patrons, to refuse to apportion any further goods to him. On occasion he may ever be debarred from trading under the regulation of the Bundesrat, which covers undesirable and irresponsible persons in business." Bee Want-Ads Produce Results. ECZEMA can be cured Address a letter to J. C. Hutzell, Druggist,1540 Main St., Fort Wayne. Ind. lust say "Prove it to me without cost." Sign your name, address and age plainly. That's all. A special treatment for infants and children. IDC K Wagon aOI I Umbrellas V Logwood Flower Boxes, 49c 1887 1917 30 ANNIVERSARY SALE SECOND WEEK OF OUR GREAT THIRTI ETH ANNIVERSARY SALE Additional val ues have been added so as to make this week more interesting. Remember, these valuable prizes that we are giving away are for the purpose of showing, in a small way, our appreciation to the buy ing public of this vicinity who have made the success of this store possible. You are cordially invited to visit our store. You will be surprised at the im mense assortments shown and the lowness of our prces made possible by our INEXPENSIVE location, LOW OPERATING EXPENSE and IMMENSE buying power. Prizes are now on exhibition in 6ur 16th street show windows no pur chase necessary in order to win one of the prizes. 6- HANDSOME AND USEFUL ARTICLES TO GIVEN AWAY, ABSOLUTELY FREE BE FIRST PRIZE A High Grade $35.00 Sewing Machine FOURTH PRIZE $25.00 Columbia Grafonola SECOND PRIZE Beautiful 9x12, $34.50 Axminster Rug THIRD PRIZE $24.50 Direct Action Gas Range FIFTH PRIZE $22.50 White Enamel Gurney Refrigerator SIXTH PRIZE A 50-Pound, $15 Elastic Felt Mattress ; :i GURNEY-MADE REFRIGERATORS Have patented cold air circulation, pat ented drip cup, consequently use leas ice and are therefore more economical. One like illustration, with large ice chamber, lower vegetable compartment and two shelf provinion com- jf g np p.Th .?." P 1 0.75 Other makes, it $8.50, $10.75, $12.50 JUNE BRIDES OH, THE TOY OF A HOME ALL YOUR OWN! What shall it be boarding or a cozy little place furnished ac cording to your own ideas? Re member that in selecting fur nishings for your own home, you are not actually spending money you are investing it. Call and see the tasteful assort ments of up-to-date furniture that comprise our charming and complete home outfits. 3 Room Apart- it Pi 50 ment Outfits, Pj'l... A Room Apart' " ment Outfits, if p77... 4 Room Outfit, (MOP Very Complete,)) 1 Ltd DIRECT ACTION GAS RANGES The only gas range on the market to day where you can put your baking into the oven as soon as lighted. No aide walla in oven to rust out, no heavy oven platea to heat, hence Direct Action Gas Ranges are absolutely guaranteed to cut your gas bills fully one-third. Many other special gas-saving features, many styles, all very moderately priced. P1! i Solid Oak Chif. foniers, like cut, i 5 roomy drawers, i our low price $5.25 Buy Your Rugs and Draperies Here at Lower Prices Seamless Tapestry Rugs, in 6x9-foot sizes, of an extra heavy and splendid quality; our low C 1 1 OB price J 1 1 aa&d Seamless Tapestry Rugs, in 9xl2-foot size, in all the latest patterns din PA and designs, our low price. V X O.Ol Lace Curtains, pretty designs l f Q and patterns, per pair V 1 1 Velvet Rugs, In Sill-foot slses, splen (17 AC did wearing rug. Our low price Princess Axminster Rugs, in sis. 8-3x10.6, a very lift If Adjustable Cur tain Stretchers. Our nr-i-a. 75c pretty parlor rug. Our low price Goods Sold Out of Town On Easjr Payments. Freight Paid 200 Miles. four Old Stove or Refriger. ator Taken in On Exchange for a New Gas Stove or Refrigerator. Colonial Drewer, like illustration,, and sub stantially made of solid oak. Large Colonial de sign base, our price $12.95 We Save You Fully 25 On Your Porch and Lawn Furniture fits it iii'u "SMS,- ,'ulo im Mi u w i XksleiW WMlaisnt. See Our Line sSBtpT1"''1 f ".-' 1 Four-Passenger Lawn Swinga, like cut, substantially made and strongly braced; . tfJO QC our low price J)O.I7eJ Child's size, only $2.25 This Solid Oak Porch Set, just like cut, and consisting of a porch swing, chair and rocker, djj OC complete J0.00 Sold Separately Swing, 91.85) Chair or Rocker, $2.25 Reed Go-Carts With Reed Hood. Just like cut, and made of selected reed, upholstered in Bedford cord, our low price, $16.25 Your wife wants a Columbia Graf onola. We have them in many dif ferent styles, sizes and finishes, and priced, from $10 to $200 Free daily concerts of all the late Columbia Double Disc records, including many patriotic pieces. Closing Out Our Entire Stock of Adjustable Dress Forms. Here's an opportunity for you to secure a splendid dress form at less than wholesale price, your jchoice of any style, only $5.95 SS "The People's Store" Opposite Hotel Rome