PART ONE
NEWS SECTION
'"PlG23:i" TO 12 :
The
a Daily Bee
UMAfi
; THE WEATHER V ,
Colder
- - ;
1
j
VOL. XLVII. NO. 219
r i -1 i i -v r i i n n r n i i i v n -""v n n r v i r i
LODGE DENOUNCES PRICE
FIXING BY GOVERNMENT
: AS WORK OF AMATEURS
Massachusetts Senator Declares Food and Fuel Administrations
! Have Proven Abject Failures and Profiteering is'
General;' Caused Complete Paralysis of
Railroad Systems of Country.
- Washington, Feb. 27. Government price-fixing as a method
"of preventing profiteering has proved a failure, Senator Henry
Cabot Lodge of Massachuetts declared today in giving the sen
ate the conclusions he had drawn from the recent investigations
of the coal and sugar shortages.
In the case of coal, Senator Lodge said, price-fixing had
only served to curtail production, while the food administra
tion' price plan for sugar had kept western beet sugar from
the eastern states and in the meantime retoiters of coal and
sugar had profiteered. "
TJT Afl?C AMATTTTTPS 0 "
Blame for the coal shortage Sena
tor Lodge laid to the fuel administra
. lion's price-fixing plan, together with
railroad difficulties, and the closing
order he described as a "complete
confession of impotence and failure.'
He denounced the fuel administration
as an "unnecessary agency" which
was "composed largely of amateurs."
4 The senator dealt in a milder man-
her with the food administration, and,
f althbugh asserting the fixing the price
of sugar was a "mistaken policy" and
the sugar famine largely artificial, he
added: , : . .... - '
"In justice to Mr. Hoover, he made
every effort to get rail distribution
and get sugar. How much he was
thwarted by the, railroad situation
and the tangle priority orders I do
.iKsjiot JknowJtiiit I am certain that if he
. v had, beer e&.cientlyeninstead of
f ' being: crossed hy other commissions,
there could have been no sugar fam
ine in the eastern states. ''.' (
Fuel Administration -Failure. '
Discussing the procedure of the
fuel administration, Senator Lodge
said:
1 "They fixed a price which made, ft
s impossible to work many mines,
,' frightened the producer and tended
To reduce production. - - .
Z "Not content with , this, they also
set to work to change the whole sys
tem jpf distribution. No more reck
less experiment could have been bet
j ter caluculated to make railroad dif
ficulties almost insuperable. . At a sin
gle oiow iney partially paraiyzea an
the machinery of distribution. Only
ignorance of economic laws could be
ft offered, as an excuse.
"The result of the fuel administra
tion's policy was to add-to the, already
enormous railroad difficulties bv ere
ating chaos in distribution and adding
to all this suspense, alarm and uncer
tainty due to fixing an arbitrary price.
' "The system adopted by Mr. Hoo
ver had at least the merit of "main-
" taimhg production. The . system of
making a different coal price at each
mine was impracticable. Even if they.
, kept prices down, which, is purely
v guess work, they brought a coal fam
ine with this nominal fixed price.
. Incompetents in Control.
Declaring that he did not believe
the railroad problem could not1 have
Deen . solved, senator ' Lodge con
tinued:
"But nothing can be more certain
than -that the policy of the . fuel ad
ministration, its attempt to substitute
V new scheme of disnbution, its reck
less price fixing, brought on a coal
, (Continued on Page Two, Column One.)
The Weather
Fori Nebraska Fair; colder. ,
Temperatures at Omaha Yesterday.
Hour. . Dee;.
5 a. m !8
6 a. m 84
7 a. m 35
a. m 38
t a. m 38
10 a. m.. ........ 38
11 a. ra 39
12 m 42
. 1 p. m...,
2 p. m . .
3 p. m...,
4 p. m . . . ,
6 p. ra...,
' p. m....
7 p. m....
,. 42
.. 42
.. 38
,. 36
.. 33
,. 33
. S3
; 8 p. m. . .
Comparative Local Becord
1918. 1917. 191. 1916.
Highest yesterday.... 42 34 26 30
Lowest yesterday..... S3 16 17 17
Mean temperature.... 37 24- 22 28
Precipitation 08 .00 ' T. " .32
- - Temperature and precipitation departures
from the normal:
Normal temperature 27
Excess for the day.. ...... 10
, Total deficiency since March 1, 1917.... 114
:Norma4 precipitation .93 Inch
Excesf for the day 04 inch
Total precipitation since Mar. J 23.42 Inches
Deficiency since March 1 7.21 Inches
Deficiency for cor. period, 191 13.13 inches
Jjeuciency for cor. period, 1916.. 0.97 Inch
He port from stations at
1 P. M.
' tftmtloa and Stat .Tempi
High- Rain-
lx weatner 1p.m. est fall.
Chicago, cloudy ....... 18 44 .00
berenport, rain ........ 42 44 T.
XTInneapolls, clear 28 34 . .00
Des Moines, enow ...... 36 44 T.
Dodge' City, Cloudy .... 32 38 .06
St. Louis, cloudy ...... 40 42 ,21
, North Platte, snow .... 32 36 .04
Omaha, anew 33 42 - .06
Washington, cloudy .... 43 It .00
Sapid City, part cloudy 28 12 ,00
, Oklahoma, cloudy .... 90 94 .00
, Woorehead, cloudy .... IS 20 .00
f !?erldin, clear ...... 24 -32 .03
' iitpux City, cloudy .... 36 , 43 .00
Aatontlna. cloudy ...... 30 ' 36 .00
i "T" Indicates trace of precipitation. -1
A. WELSH, Meteorologist.
HEAD OF NASti CO.
VISITOR AT BIG
OMAHA CLASSIC
Motor Car Industry Most Im
portant of All in These
; Times of War, Says
C. W. Nash.
C W. Nash, president of the Nas$
Mtor mjay -andV one pf the .fctgv
gest men. in the automobile industry;
arrived ,1a rdrhah Wednesday morn
ing 'to attend the Omaha auto show.
Mr. Nash for .many years was the
directing genius of the1 General Motor
company, the -largest automobile con
cern in, the w.orld. 'Two years ago
he started the Nash Motor company,
manufacturing a complete line of mo
tor cars and trucks, and many stu
dents of the automobile business be
lieve that-in'due timethe new Nash
firm will rank on requal terms with
the-General Motor xompanv.
"The majority of the people do not
realize the importance of the motor
car industry m the-present war, 6aid
Mr. Nash. "It would be suicidal to
attempt to curtail the output of auto
mobiles in the United btates. . I am
confident from conversation with offi
cials in Washington that this is real
ized and no attempt will be made to
reduce motor car production..
Shortage in Army.
1 "The greatest handicap of the Amer
ican expeditionary forces in France,
l was informed in Washington a few
days ago, is the shortage of motor
transportation. Army ,t officers .in
charge of transportation in France in
formed me that the American gov
ernment was purchasing all of the
French and 'English -cars they could
get to relieve, this congestion.
"Our production of trucks is now
largely given to the fulfillment of gov
ernment orders. We are making
- vommuea on rage i wo, voinmn xnree.)
ManAct8A8Hi8 0wn
Lawyer in Federal Court
John Cammack acted as his own
lawyer before United States Com
missioner Neely to such good ef
fect that he was discharged. He
took two cartons of cigarets from
an interstate shipment at the Bur
lington freight , station, where he
was a trucker.
The box was under the platform
and already broken open and I just
went down there and took a couple
of cartons of "smokes" and put
them tinder cover and ' later took
them home. I'd like to know where
you can make a box car burglary
out of that," declared Cammack.
He said he has taken his physical
examination for the draft The com
missioner, ordered him to report
weekly to the United States attor
ney's office.";
Balfour Sees Nothing But War
In Speech of
(By Associated Press.) '
London, Feb." 27. Foreign Secre
tary Balfour.' replyine today to the
speech of Count von Hertling, the
uerman imperial, cnanceuor, regard
ing the doctrine of the balance of
power, said that until German militar
ism had become a thing of the past,
and until there was in existence a hall,
or cotart, armed with executive powers
making the weak as ' safe as the
strong, it would never be possible to
ignore the principles underlying the
struggle for the balance of power.
Mr. Balfour told the House of Com
mons, which he was addiessinor .' that
he was unable to find in von Hert
ling's speech, any basis for fruitful
OMAHA, THURSDAY. MORNING, FEBRUARY 28, 1918
BREAK BETWEEN
CENTRAL POWERS
BELIEVED NEAR
Dispatch - Refers to Meeting
Between Emperors and Says
There Is No Doubt of
Serious Conflict.
Washington, Feb; 27. Further evl
dence of the growing strain in re
lations between Germany and Austria
over the refusal of the latter to particl
pate in the renewed attack upon Ru
sia is given in an official dispatch re
ceived here ' today from France. It
quotes the Austrian premier as formal
ly reiterating on February 20 that
Austria-Hungary will take no part in
military action against Russia or Rou
mania, and will not send her troops
into Ukrainia.
MAY USE VIOLENCE.
The dispatch refers to the meeting
between Emperors Charles and Wil
liam, February 22, and says there
seems little doubt that a serious con
flict has arisen between the two na
tions which Germans is determined
to settle by violent measures if neces
sary. The dispatch follows:
"Charles I. paid a visit to William
II. the 22d of February. Ludendorf
was present atthe interview. If we
are to judge from the tone ' of the
Interview jt must have been lacking in
cordiality;,? There seems to be
little doubt but what a serious con
flict has broken out during the week
between-the courts -of Vienna and
Berlin and which Germany is deter
mined to settle if need be by violent
measures.
Distinguishes Policies. V
The sin ter national .sUuaUo'niM;aV
.dual monarchy is such that. the '-Viv
ennapvernment ia order t averts,
catastrophe has' been obliged to-distinguish
by means of public- declara-",
tions its own policy from that of Ger
many; The report that at the con
ferences of February 14, Hertling and
Ludendodf had decided to pay no at
tention to the Russian demobilization
and to prepare to begin aga.in.the
conflict -on' the east front caused a
great stir throughout Austria.! It was
not simply the dissenting nationali
ties, the Czechs, the Slovenes, or the
Poles who do not desire to. fight any
more, but it is the r ass of the popu
lation of German origin who refuse
to sacrifice themselves any longer' to
assure the triumph' of Prussian im
perialism. "An official note of the ISth had
announced that Austria for her part
would continue to consider the war
as terminated with Russia and would
abstain from taking part in the op
erations planned by the German com
mand. A second note of the 19th re
peated the same statement. When
asked to give further-particulars at
the sitting of the chamber on the
22d the Austrian premier formally
stated: -
Words Are Inexplicit.
"The words uttered by different
deputies have proved that the expla
nation which has been furnished up to
the present by me, has not, been suf
ficiently exxplicit. I repeat, therefore,
that Austria-Hungary ' will participate
in no way in the miltary acton which
is now being .carried on by Germany
asrainst Russia. I repeat thatt the
armistice exists between Austria-Hun-
xary and Rumania and that we are
only considering entering as early as
possible into peace conversations with
ths country.
Ihese declaratons are serious.
Without a doubt in his speech on the
19th of February, Seydler pleaded
his fidelity to the alliance. But more
and more Germany runs the .risk of
seeing Austria, and after her Bulgaria
and Turkey take a positive attitude
and practically withdrawing from the
struggle and witness as spectators the
continuation of hostilities. '
Many Officials Will Try
To Continue in Office
Aurora, Neb.. Feb. 26. (Special.)
state Representative Ferry Reed ex
pects to be a candidate for state sen
ator this year. He will be opposed
in the republican primaries by former
Mate Representative W. I. rarley,
Sheriff James Howard and County
Attorney Whitney will be candidates
to succeed themselves.
Count von Hertling
conversation or hope of peace. The
chancellor's attitude concerninir Bel
gium, said Mr. Balfour, was complete
ly unsatistactory and his lip service
to President Wilson's propositions
was not exemplified in German prac
tice. .
"I am convinced tha.t I should be
doing an injury to the cause of peace
if I encouraged the idea that there
is any use in beginning those verbal
negotiations until something like a
general agreement is apparent in the
distance and until the statesmen of
all the countries see their way to that
broad settlement, which, it is my hope,
will bring peace to this sorelv trou
bled world."
Caught!
mOLUTlONWIWFlGHtfOX
Ml m DEFENSE OF RUSSIA
Petrograd Official Statement
fused: to Grant Armistice; Declares Readiness to
Sign "Peace Usurpation;" Predicts Revo
lution in Germany
London, Feb. 27. The Russian revolution will defend
itself against Germany, says an official Russian statement sent
out by wireless, and which announces that Germany has re
fused to grant an armistice. The announcement reads:
VESSEL DRIVEN
BEFORE GALE IS
BROKENTO BITS
Thirty Officers and Enlisted
Men Are ' Believed Drowned
' in Wreck Off Dela-
' ware Capes.
Washington, Feb. 27.Thirty offi
cers and enlisted men of the naval
tug Cherokee are believed to have
been lost when the vessel foundered
yesterday morning in a fierce gale off
Fenwick island lightship, 22 miles
from the Delaware capes.
Ten survivors who got away on the
first life raft were safely landed; four
other men got away on another raft,
but two were washed overboard and
drowned and the other two died,
probably of exposure. The four bod
ies were taken into Philadelphia.
The Cherokee formerly was a tug
of the Luckenbach steamship line and
notlong ago was requisitioned by
the government.
The Navy department made public
the names of ten survivors landed at
Philadelphia. They are:
Boatswain E. M. Sennott, U. S. N.
R. F Boston, Mass.; L. P. Acker
man, seaman; H. P. Poynter, fireman;
R. J. Hall, seaman; C. E. Barker,
chief machinist's mate; R. A. Kozeck,
fireman; P. H.'Warmack, fireman; A.
A. Wailim, oiler; G. L. Gudgel, fire
man;' B. F.'.Brumfield, radio elec
trician. '
$25 Reward
For the arrest and conviction of
George . Nelson, , who has been
fraudulently collecting money for
subscriptions to The Omaha Bee,
He is not and never has been, an
authorized agent for The Bee.
He is dark complexioned, has
brown eyes, is short in stature and
a stylish dresser.
Has been operating in central
Nebraska.
BEE PUBLISHING CO.
TWENTY-FOUR PAGES
Announces Kaiser Has Re-
GERMANS REFUSE ARMISTICE.
"A peace delegation is now on the
way to Brest-Litorsk. We expect any
moment news that it has arrived at
the place appointed for peace negotia
tions, but there is no armistice. The
German government has formally re
fused an armistice and German de
tachments continue to advance.
"We, are prepared to' sign their
peace of usurpation. We have al
ready declared this, but there are
many indications that the German im
perialists do not desire peace at the
present moment, , but rather an im
mediate strangling of the workmen's
and peasants' revolution.
"Resistance to the German hordes
thus becomes the principal task of
the revolution breve, heroic, obstin
ate and pitiless resistance. Every po
sition, every railway station, every
locomotive must be defended. Every
possible obstacle must be put in the
way of the enemy.
,. "Our greatest strength is in our
wide territories. Enemy detachments,
still very small, have occupied Reval
and Pskov. Even Petrograd itself,
which is still far distant, can in no
way decide the destiny of the revolu
tion. Use Russia's Strength.
"The government of the people's
commissaries can, and if needs be
must, retreat, must gather its forces
and must appeal to the country to
use its whole strength for the defense
of the revolution. Should the threat
(Continued on Face Two, Column Three.)
War Department Spreads Areas
For Training to Prevent Accidents
Washington, Feb. 27. Immediate
steps to reduce the number of col
lisions by student aviators by spread
ing out the training areas are about
to be taken by the War department.
. It is planned to lay out flying fields
in various directions from the train
ing camps to which the student avia
tors would fly eaeh ' day in a pre
viously arranged schedule. It is be
lieved this will eliminate crowding in
the air.
All things taken into consideration,
however, War department officials feel
that the number of accidents have not
been unduly large. In order to hasten
the government's aircraft program,
authority has been given to comman
deer spruce in the northwest wher
ever it may be found.
The trees are being split where they
lie, so that delivery to the govern
ment cut up mill, near Vancouver bar
I'MJtWl SINGLE COPY TWO CENTS; 'J
RUSS CAPITAL TO
FALL EASY PREY
TO GERMAN ARMY
Soldiers Flatly Refuse to Fight and Declare They Have
Had Enough of War; Workmen Prepare to Resist, ;'
But They Are Unorganized and Without
Military Training; Outlook Gloomy. ,
London, Feb. 27. If special dispatches from Petrograd
gauge accurately the situation there, the Germans are likely to
find little difficulty in occupying the city with trained troops.
Russian soldiers frankly refuse to fight and say, "we have
had enough of fighting. If the Germans come let them take us."
GERMANY PLANS
TO DOMINATE ALL
CENTRAL EUROPE
British Press Says Von Hert
ling's Peace Talk is Hypoc
racy in View of New War
on Defenseless Russia.
London, Feb. 27. As far as the
British public is concerned the mild
words of Count von Hertling concern
ing Germany's . pacific intentions and
Ms partial acceptance .'of President
Wilson's btsi for lasltng-'world peacs
tail, upon .almost deal ears. , , . v
,-A few weeks, even a few days; ago
their reception would have been dif
ferent, but German speech is judged
here by German acts.
' All details of the new. war against
helpless ' Russia ' rob German states
men of their stock in trade the plea
that Germany is waging a war of self
defense. .
1 The British press is virtually unan
imous in the belief that the whole
eastern situation has been cleverly sr.
ranged and plotted with a view to
bringing eastern and central Europe
under German domination and for the
vital immediate purpose of getting
food from the Ukraine.
The most important newspapers
which lean toward peace by negotia
tion,' notably the Westminster Ga
zette, and the Manchester Guardian,
seem to have undergone a change of
outlook as the result of the events
of the last week. .
No Hope for Peace.
The Daily News today, although
condemning the entente for aiding
Von Hertling's argument that the en
tente,' and not Germany, is the real
obstacle to peace, because the allies
have not jointly formulated war aims,
says, in effect,-that no hope, can be
drawn.fronrthe chancellor's speech.
The evening newspapers see little
hope for peace in Van Hertling's
speech. ' s .
- "With what face, one wonders, can
(Continued on Ttgt Two, Column Two.)
Army More Peaceful
Than Home, Hubby Says
Martha Dargacewski charged in
police court Wednesday morning
that her husband, Peter, had urged
her to have a previous decree of di
. vorce annulled so that he might re
turn and live with her, and thus
claim exemption in the draft.
But, she said, that after living a
short time together, he had de
clared: "The army beats this; there's
less fighting over there," and de
serted her forthwith.
Police Judge Fitzgerald asked
Peter if he had any witnesses who
would dare to say he worked. Peter
replied that he dia not. tie was
bound over to district court under
$500 bonds.
racks, may be facilitated. Recently
one tree of spruce was felled which
was 260 feet long, IS feet in diameter,
20 feet from the ground and 160 feet
in length to the first limb. The tree
was split and hauled 15 miles over a
mountain range to the railroad.
Captured German airplanes brought
to this country for study by aviation
experts revealed that the Germans are
using materials very inferior to the
standards set for American planes and
apparently are very short of spruce
and linen. ,
The wing beams of the captured
German planes were made of thin
pieces, some of them less than an inch
in thickness, which had been put to
gether with glue and nails. Specifica
tions for American planes require a
solid beam of the finest and toughest
spruce. Wings of the German planes
are covered with fiber cloth, instead
of the approved linen.
V LUGA IS CAPTURED.
Luga, half way between Pskov and
Petrograd; has. been occupied by the
Germans. , ,f
A number of British subjects have
left, Petrograd for home during the
last week. The embassies still re
main. " . ;,'
The Bolshevik contnue extremely
busy engaging men, gathering and
shipping arms and supplies and in
other defense activities.
A dispatch from Moscow says that
70,000 revolutionary troops bave been
sent from Moscow toward Bologoie.
A German detachment has appeared
at Savage, half way between Luga
and Pskov. ' This is the nearest the
invaders have approached to Petro-
grad, where factory workers, men and
women are enrolling for the defense
of the capital. ' . ,
WORKMEN WILL FIGHT. ,
There is a stiff er attitude among
the workmen, from whom, if at all,
resistance to the Germsns must come.
Even though for lack. it-training
their resistance should prove of little
value, .they are said to be enrolling
with enthusiasm in response to the
call of the bolshevikl leaders.
: The correspondent of the Daily
News, writing Sunday, says: ' i .
t' "Russian troops almost without ex.
ception have refused, flatly to fight.
A division which was supposed to be
defending Narva has arrived at Gat
china. Ensign Krylenko protested.
They replied they did not .intend to
fight. - - - -r iiA .
"Immediately the . first few : Ger
man troops - appeared the' Russian
peasant soldiers, who being peasants,
not industrialists, . were interested
merely in the land question and cared
nothing for the revolution; started
eastward in an uncontrollable wave,
threatening to sack all the towns on
the way. . j-: ' ' ' -
"The Russian army was Germany's
st. ongest weapon. ... In driving '-it
towards Petrograd they were driving
a herd of stampeding cattle which
would trample down everything in it
way. ; - .
Army Like Cattle. ,
"The revolutionary workmen could
have put up a real fight against .he
Germans, but they could do' nothing
against the Russian army, which must
disappear before the revolution can
begin. to create any real military force
for itself. The workmen of the towns
are eager .to fight"
Some correspondents describing the
bulk of the population as lost in be
wilderment and apathy; .' think such
resistance as- may be offered will
amount to little. They say no amount
of talk by the bolshevik leaders can
cover the plain facts of the situation.
"All sorts of preparations are in
progress," says the correspondent of
the Daily Express. - "One cannot help
thinking, hovever, that the state of
siege in Petrograd will be merely
techincal, as Germans, with or with
out uniforms, are already in the cap
(Contlnoed on Pt Two, Column Two.)
THIRD LIBERTY
LOAN DRIVE TO
BE S TARTED SOON
Rumblings of preparation for the '
third Liberty Loan campaign in
Omaha and Nebraska are already be
ginning to be heard.- Speakers, who
will make public talks boosting the
campaign are called to meet. in the
Omaha Chamber of Commerce rooms
Tuesday afternoon, March 5. Ray
mond G. Young, director of, the
speakers, has called the meeting.
Dr. E. E. Violette of Kansas City,
director of the speakers' bureau of
the Liberty. Loan committee of the
Federal Reserve bank of Kansas City,
will speak at a public affairs luncheon
at the Chamber of Commerce on that
day. :". ' ' ' Vv '.
At the afternoon meeting plans will
be outlined for the speakers' part in
the Liberty, Loan drive.. . The speak
ers will appear at mass meetings, in
churches and elsewhere, where they
will co-operate with the four-minute
men, whose speaking is confined to
the theaters v. -
Mr. Young has' issjed :a call for
volunteer speakers. He. wants men .
who will speak either in their own
community or who will tour a county, -a
district or the state. Men who can
devote three or four days or a week
to these tours are fn narticnlar do
mand. , -'s-. ' . :-. ".