Evening Star Newspaper, March 9, 1916, Page 1

il WEATHER. || perature about twenty-four degrees; | || tomorrow partly clou and warmer; || moderate winds, becoming southerly | | “Temperature for twenty-four hours |} ending 2 pm.: Highest, 39, at 4 pm. || | yesterday: lowest am. today. || ie port on Pp Full ry — Che Zvening Star. “From Press to Home | Within the Hour” Swerm Net Circulation, 1916, Daily Average, 50,250; Sunday, Month of February, a WASHINGTON, D. C.. © THURSDAY, MARCH 9, 1916.-TWENTY-TWO PAGES. * ONE CENT. FIFTEEN AMERICANS KILLED — WHEN VILLA AND HIS BANDITS RAID COLUMBUS, NEW MEXICO Men and Women Are Shot Down as They Rush From Burning Homes SIX U. S. TROOPERS ARE DEAD; LOPEZ, AID TO VILLA, SLAIN Members of Congress Talk Intervention, and’ Administration Officials Admit Possibility of Such Step. COLUMBUS, N. M., March 9.—Five hundred Mexican bandits, believed to have been led by Francisco Villa, crossed the interna- tional border under cover of darkness early today and attacked this town, killing more than a dozen Americans, including six United States soldiers and at least one woman. When the bandits fled toward Mexico some hours later they were pursued by United States troops, who are said to have crossed the border. Pablo Lopez, second in command to Villa, was killed. DEAD MEXICANS LITTER STREETS. A large number of Mexican dead were left lying in the streets) of Columbus, and at the border the Mexicans were subjected to a; flank attack by American troops and eighteen more of their number! killed. Several American citizens in Columbus declared they person- ally saw Villa directing his men, and a portmanteau discovered by a trooper contained Villa’s personal papers. \ The attack was a surprise. Villa was supposed to have been! forty-four miles away, having last night caused a telegram to be sent indicating his presence at a Nogales ranch. | WOMAN AMONG RAIDERS’ VICTIMS. | The number of slain American soldiers was placed at six. The number of civilian dead, including one woman, is placed at nine. Three other men and a woman are listed among the known wounded. Prior to the attack the Villa bandits hanged three Americans whom they had held as prisoners for some days, according to infor- mation received here. Their bodies were burned, the report said. Fifteen Known Dead. Nine civilians and six United States | 44% we their bodies troopers were the known dead early in| burned, to information re- the da nown civilian dead are: | ed here The hanging oc- s a | curred when the bandits raided the cat- | A! L. Ritchie, hotel proprietor. tle herd of the Bosques Grandes Walter Wather, United States eus- (py )¢p, toms rider. Jt Te merc pee on a ranch 2 one mile west, was killed. ee | A chauffeur driving atomobile Mr«. Milton Jamex. !with an El Paso lice ame un- 28: Dean pwn) was killed body CL 6. Milter, deus burnec Unidentitied ch 4. J. Moore, merchant. jee: Villa in Personal Command. WK. Walker, guest at Central Soldiers Hilled-and Wonsded. | nis cate teutenant! Pablo Lop e sts fe captured by the bandits last Sunday DEAD. | and who escaped dur the fighting Frank Kendvall, horseshoer. .| He told of the hanging of the Amer- Sergt. KEN. machine gun ican ranchers, McKinney, Corbett and Corporal Paul Sim: j American, whose name did not . Nlevergelt, ad. | know, had been hanged at the same « Jarry Winwal roop G. | time The Mex inform: suid WOUNDED. 4 and am hine gun platoon { Mexican told Col. Slocum t the Rosques Grandes made a Journe { o'clock yesterday 4 point on Boca tarted for the border Villa's Threat of Vengeance. north, hey, crossed th said the diteh mbu: Mexican, beer de toy F after they jrunning past the caval: Villa the bor A deep diteh par- | was in personal charge, and declared army camp, the the was to kill every American Ce ee aus American government did were |not tre right. Villa declared Car- Lopez u antes, Coil. rnandez and Kp blo ntageous | With Idings, | Lope As peo- | ¢ their homes they w ipers rio bs the Gen. Beltran.” Battle for Several Hours. elves and, to- States soldiers, several hours with erican from jand kill ns and soldiers “Death to Americans.” lured ets and then| ‘The 3 ) fugitive said that Villa From burning hotels and! addressed his men yesterday just. be- tures sons who it} fore ordering an » on Columbus or wounded th nd decla ord would be the retre Death to Am iding that the ‘killing of Americans was because 8 of t re re- Y} grave question whether such a raid as RAID ON COLUMBUS STIRS UP DEMAND FOR INTERVENTION Administration Officials Admit President May Be Forced to Act. | BANDITS TO BE PUNISHED, | I$ WHITE HOUSE EDICT Not Indicated Whether Reliance Will Be Placed in Carranza or U. S. Troops. PLOT BY VILLA Is SEEN Belief Expressed That Outrage Was Planned for Deliberate Pur- pose of Provoking Ameri- i can Action. | Faced by a new crisis in Mexi- can affairs by the Columbus mas- sacre, administration officials ad- mitted that President Wilson might find it difficult to refrain longer from actual interference. What the administration lead- ers who favor a “watchful wait- ing” course fear most is an out- break in Congress, with its con- sequent effect upon the country. The Senate particularly, which contains many vigorous critics of the administration’s Mexican pol- icy, has just settled down from the flurry over the Cusi massacre of several weeks ago. ic) Edict From White House. At the W out was ite House the only word | steps would be taken to punish the Villa bandits, but i ti Jit w given that = not indicated whether Gen. Car- |ranza would be called upon to do so or | whether American troops would be sent lover the line. At the State Department it was said the s ua ion was “very serious,” | | | | | but that no announcement of what ac- tion id be taken would be announced until the official investigation was con- | cluded, } Memorandum to Carranza. | ‘The State Department is understood dum to Carranza based on the report of Gen, Funston. € memorandum is being prepared cause to Gen, Carranza. It probaby will be d efied along lines similar to the communication sent Car- |vanza on the Santa Ysobel massacre, but because of the more serious aspects | of the present Incident probably will be firmer than the previous one, President Eager for News. The President sent word to the War | Department that he should be notified immediately of all developments. Reports that American soldiers had i the border in pursuit of the { | t | j*lexieans were shown him. The con- I vietion prevails in official circles that | the aitack was a bold stroke on the part of Vil the U to force intervention by nited States, } Secretary Baker transmitted to Presi- {dent Wilson reports about the attack on Columbus as quickly as they were re- ceived at the War Department. It was \said at the White House that vigorous \steps would be taken to punish the bandits. The President directed Sec- retary Baker to do everything possible to protect Americans. Hard Blow to Carranza. While the policy of the administration so fur has been to look to the Carranza forces to deal with the bandits, some ottic I today that it was a that on Columbus was evidence of the inability ranza government to deal with the sit- tion to warhant sending American troops over the line. aid started a new agitation in where those who haye op- posed the administration's Mexican pol- icy openly charged that the attack was proof of their repeated declarations that the Carranza government was im- potent to deal with the situation, and not sufficient of the Car- fulfillment of their predictions’ that nother outrage like the recent Cusi mass, in which sixteen or more Americans were killed by Villa bandits held up a trai was only a ion of time. There were indica- tious early today that the Columbus massacre undoubtedly would be the {sions were committeed long be- signal for another outbreak in the [Senate. where the opponents of the pee es within | make i( stick in their throa jthe New Mexican Nation rd are Killed and Bodies Burned. Hose ming toda joine Arthur McKinley, eman of thel Phe k was a complete surprise, Palomas Ww m Corbett and (Continued ot venth Page.) (Continued on Second Page.) He ao Wish Sees: If the Borland extra-hour provision is adopted the government might adopt the expedient of a large manufacturing establishment and provide its employes with roller skates to insure early arrivals. BRITISHEMBASSY | “DENIES CHARGES Challenges: Substantially Ev- ery Accusation Made in Ger- man Memorandum. Interesting Facts About the Irish Immigrant. According to the United States bureau of immi- gration eight out of every 1,000 people in Ireland in 1907 emigrated to America; but in recent years Irish immigration has decreased astonishingly. Read this article in The Sunday Star. GERMANY DECLARES WAR ON PORTUGAL FOR SEIZURES substantial charge against Great mae! Chere Method of Requisitioning Teutonic Ships Britain obtained in the German} - memorandum submitted to Secre-| One Cause Assigned—Other Breaches tary Lansing yesterday by Count of Neutrality Are Cited. von bass BERLIN, March 9, by wireless to Sayville, N. Y_—Germany has declared war on Portugal, according to an announcement by the semi-official Overseas News Agency today. Germany’s declaration came at 3:39 o'clock yesterday afternoon and passports were handed to the Portuguese minister. “The German government therefore considers itself from this ; time in war with the Portuguese government,” is the conclusion of fore the British had issued the | a declaration handed by the German minister at Lisbon to the Portu- aioe aa guese government and in Berlin to the Portuguese minister, the news any other act whi agency announcement states. Vigorously challenging every Bernstorff, the British em- today issued a statement which, in substance, makes it ap- pear, first, that although German: asserts that her submarine wa fare was in retaliation for Brit- ish violations of international law, | many of the German transgre or committed h even the Ger- mans alleged was in violation of council “The German declaration.” the the war emblem set, while the admirals news agency, “emphasizes the fact that {Ship fired a salute. says law. : ‘this step was made neces: by the Protest Is Registered. Also it is shown that one of|recent illegal seizures of German ships | ; a ia ae es 5 wiese rts, vhicl he} “Regarding events of the last few i pasons tl pti atereniee jin Portuguese ports, which is the} f the reasons the British refused to gravest! sort of breach ‘of neutrality |@¥8. it is further known that on Feb- {ruai the German minister to Portu- gal protested against the illegal seizure of ships in Portuguese ports. Never- theless the Portuguese government de- clared semi-officially in Lisbon news- papers that there had been no German | protest. accept the declaration of London regarding maritime warfare was because the Germans had insisted of special treaties. Germany. there- is obliged to give up her fermer attitude of forbearance, which she had maintained because of Portugal's awk- ward situation. “The declaration enumerates a long geries of breaches of neutrality by the | Portuguese government, such as the ipermission of free passage to English troops through the colony of Mozam- bique, the permission given, to English men-of-war to use Portuguese ports for a time exceeding that given neu- , the permission given the English to use Madeira as a naval base, al engagements - between, Portu- guese and German troops on the fron- upon having embodied a provision in the declaration that would have recognized the right of an enemy to prevent the civilian population of a country from re- ceiving food which was to be! treated as contraband. | The British Statement. existence of a German protest. The Portuguese minister of foreign affairs declared’ on his word of honor to a member of the staff of the Italian newspaper Secolo that Germany had entered no protest. “The German minister asked for a rectification of the semi-official dec! ration, but without success. It was only"on March 4 that the Portuguese jminister at Berlin handed to the foreign : i : tier of German Southwest Africa and|office a Portuguese note denying tne The British statement issued today | Angola, frequent insults to the Ger-| justice of the German claims, A’ copy is as follows: if man nation by members of the Portu-|of this Portuguese note was sent to the “According to the German statement,|Suese parliament, who never were|/German minister at Liskpn, together German. subminsine awactareswas. ans |rentimanded:soe" : with instructions to transmit. the al- ae sé “The declaration further points out|Teady quoted declaration to the Por- forced on February 18, 1915, as an act of reprisal against illegal acts of Great Britain. “The Admiral Ganteaume, with 2,000 unarmed refugees on board, mostly women and children, was torpedoed and sunk by a German submarine on October 26, 1914. Two British merchant tuguese government.” WATSON ADMITS DEFEAT. 2,744 of 3,177 Indiana Precincts Show New Leading for U. S. Senator that the seizure of- German ships in neutra] Portuguese ports February 23 was an act against the law and the treaties concluded between Germany and Portugal A German declaration regarding the requisition of German ships by Por- tugal has been sent to the Portuguese vessels were torpedoed without notice | government, the Overseas News é . B on January 30, and the British hospi- | Agency Sanounced today. INDIANAPOLIS, Ind., March 9.—With tal ship Asturias fired at with a torpedo “The declaration states,” says the a7 < ie on February 1. news agency, “that, according to the 4 of the 3,177 precincts of the state “The illegal acts complained of are|treaty between the two nations the{in, and with Harry S. New leading by seizure ought to have been preceded a apparently the non-aceeptance of the London convention of 1909, the en- Targement of the list of contraband, theh warning to merchantment as to mines in the North sea and the cap- ture of the Wilhelmina with foodstuffs on Febryary “The declaration of London of 1909 was never ratified by the British gov-| ernment, and was never binding on 8,202 votes, word was received at noon from James E. Watson that he admitted that he had been defeated on the first-choice votes in Tuesday's pri- by an agreement regarding the price to be paid the owners, and that the seiz- ure was only justifiable, in case of pub- lic necessity in Portugal, whereas the tonnage of the ships was evidently larger than that needed to remedy the scarcity of the tonnage at Portugal's disposal. It is further stated that the Portuguese government did not even today mary for the republican nomination for United States senator. them. One of the reasons of the non-| tg to enter into communication ‘with tena ie ratification of the convention was the | the German owners or the German gov- | The Vote was: New, 88,094; Watson, claim of the German government as to| ernment. 79,842, and Arthur R. Robinson, the the right to treat foodstuffs as contra. third candidate, 2 band. Vassal, Berlin Intimates. “The enlargement of the list of con- ——_—_—___ traband is an acknowledged bellige “The Portuguese: (government, by ent right; the warning to merchant ves-|these acts,” the declaration continues,| Snow Cleaning Costs $1,000,000. sels in November was due to the “openly gave evidence that Portugal] NEW YORK, March 9.—With 10,000 that the Germans had sown mines the high seas, resulting in the destru: tion of many innocent merchant ves- sels. foreign as well as tish. The Wilhelmina, with a cargo of foodstuffs for Hamburg. was only stopped after men at work clear: inches of snow which fell here yester- day, Street Cleaning Commiasione: Featherston declared the cost of snow removal in New York city this winter would exceed $1,000,000. More than $100,000 was. paid-out yesterday-to la- borers who have been engaged in the work. onsiders herself England's vassal, & away the three whom England's interests and wishes paramount in comparison with other considerations. The Portuguese the German cruisers had destroyed the |sovernment seized the ships in a fash- Dutch vegsel Maria (September, 1914) |ion which must be considered as an in- and the Frye (January, 1915),’ which |tentional provocation of Germany. The were conveying grain from California |German flag was hauled down on board to Ireland.’ the ships and the Portuguese flag, with gf for are | The Portuguese minister of ! ‘justice, in parliament, also denied the | ———————— NOT ACANDDATE “INANY PRES, | ROOSEVELT SAYS Will Not Enter Into Any Fight for Nomination, Asserts Col- | onel, Now at Trinidad. 'TO PERMIT NO FACTIONAL STRUGGLE IN HIS BEHALF | {Declares It Would Be Mistake to| Name Him Unless Country Is in | a Heroic Mood. | | ae = Does Not Believe People Will Be Content to Change to One “‘Equal- ly Timid and Vacillating”’—The U.S. “Facing Grave Crisi NEW YORK, March 9.—Col. heodore Rovsevelt, who is at Trinidad, British West Indies, jin a statement given out today through the New York Evening} Mail, emphatically declines to be ja candidate in the primaries of Massachusetts or of any other state. “T will not enter into any fight for the nomination,” the colonel says, “and I will not permit any factional fight to be made in my jbehali. Indeed, I will go further, and say that it would be a mis- take to nominate me unless the country has in its mood some- thing of the heroic, unless it feels not only like devoting itself to ideals, but to the purpose meas- urably to realize those ideals in action. now i Rare Epocn in U. S. History. _ “This is one of those rare times which come only at long intervais in a na- tion's history, when the action taken determines the life of the generations that follow. Such times were those from 1776 to 1789, in the days of Wash- ington, and from 1858 to 1865, in the days of Lincoln. | “It is for us of today to grapple with the tremendous national and interna- tional problems of our own hour in the spirit and with the ability shown by those who upheld the hands of Wash- ington and Lincoln. | “Whether we do or do not accom- plish this feat will largely depend on the action taken at the republican and} progressive national conventions next jJune. Nothing is to be hoped from the ipresent administration. * * * AIL !that they offer us is a choice between degrees of hypocrisy and degrees of in- famy. But disgust with the unmanly failure of the present administratio I believe does not. and I know ough j hot to mean that the American peopie | will vote in a spirit of mere protest. ! | They ought not to and I believe they i will not be content merely to change jthe present administration for one | equally nid, equally —_vacillating, equally lacking in vision. in moral in- tegrity, and in high resolve. © * © Must Clarify Our Policies. “We must clarify and define our poli- cies. We must show that our belief; jin our governmental ideals is so real: {that we wish to make them count in} |the world at large. and to make the | necessary sacrifice in order that they shall count Surely. We of this great| republic have a contribution to make to} the cause of hu ty, and we cannot |make it unless we first show that we| ican secure prosperity and fair dealing | among our own men and women. “I believe that in a crisis so grave it| is impossible too greatly to magnify { the needs of the country, or too strong- | ly to dwell on the necessity of minimiz- ing and subordinating the desires of individuals. The delegates who go to Chicago will have it in their power to determine the character of the admin- ‘istration, which is to do or leave un- done the’ mighty tasks of the next four years. ‘That administration can do an incalculable amount to make or mar our country’s future. The men chosen to decide such a question ought not to be politicians j of average type and parochial outlook. } Still less should they be politicians controlled by sinister influences from within or without. They should be the very best men that can be found in our country, whose one great mission should be to declare in unequivocal | terms for a program of clean-cut, straight-out national Americanism, in deeds not less than in words and in internal and international matters alike, and to choose as a candidate a man who will not merely stand for such a program before election, but will resolutely and in good faith put it through if elected. * * * June ‘a Long Way Off.” “June is a long way off. Many things may occur betweeen now and then. It is utterly impossible to say now with any degree’ of certainty who should be nominated at Chicago. The crying, the vital need now is that the men who next June assemble at Chicago from the forty-eight states and mingle the views of the entire country shall act with the sane and lofty devotion to the interest of our nationas as a whole which | was shown by the original continental Congress. They should approach their task unhampered by any pledge, ex- cept to bring to its accomplishment every ounce Of courage. intelligence they possess. and integrity Former U. S. Senate Clerk Dead. CONCORD, H., March 9.—Clarence Johnson, who served as executive clerk | of the United States Senate from 1901 Ito 1910, has died at his home, in East | the FORT VAUX TAKEN ALONG WITH TOWN, GERMANS REPORT French Counter With Claim of Complete Defeat for the = Enemy. FIGHTING TO NORTHEAST OF VERDUN IS HEAVY Teutons Make Several Heavy At- tacks, Accompanied by In- tense Artillery Fire. SUCCESS AT BETHINCOURT Repeated Assaults of Kaiser's Men West of Meuse Reported Futile. Anxiety of French Capital Is Lessened. LONDON, March 9.—The vil- lage and armored fort of Vaux, northeast of Verdun, has been captured by the Germans, the German war office announced to- day. The announcement says that in addition to the village and fort of Vaux numerous adjoining jor- tified The assault positions were captured made in night by Posen reserve regiments. According to Paris, the Ger- mans have been repulsed between Douaumont and the village of Vaux after several heavy attacks, accompanied by intense artillery fire and violent infantry assaults. Paris declares the at completely defeated after having penetrated the village of Vaux. On the Verdun sector, west of the Meuse, the French have re- pulsed repeated attacks on the vil- lage of Bethincourt, according to a Sermi-official statement in } The French, b was the kers were aris. a strong coun- ‘ter attack, have succeeded in driving the Germans irom the greater part of the Corbeaux wood, which they occupied Tues- day, and, according to the French official statement. the Germans now hold only the eastern ex- tremity of this wood. “The Ger- mans, however, have reoccupied the Hardaumont redoubt. Tension Is Relieved. PARIS, statemen tension are now even vinced that the Germans able to take Verdun. Military observers lief that the Germans ¢ tended a frontal attack on March The s hay much to r here. Press than done and public ever con- be more will ny the Uy Verdun, be- in- exp ing | which was to be accompanied by tw+ flank attacks, one in the W meant be pushed home. and th other on the west ban which might attac De a premature announcem £ the « ture of Dotrumont, the Crown Pr kept 200,000 men on the ri the river, against the advice of generals, who insisted that they be better employed on the other Now that the Germans have the flank attack the French critic it is too late by ten days. to velop how ring. Fierce Artillery Action. Artillerymen on both sides are living up to the reputation alr jlished for the battle of Ve greatest artillery duel of the war. Many sectors of the French front on Sunday and Monday last received an average of 190,000 shells in twelve hours. Whole woods were reduced to kindling material. ‘The little river at Forges disappeared altogether, been dammed in half a dozea p and thirty feet of the crest of Hill 2 near Forges, was blown away ‘The first attack on Bethin: on Tuesday was preceded by hours’ terrific bombardment. ‘Then the in- fantry came on from three sides, al the road from Gercourt to Bethincour from Forges Village and from th slopes of Hill French officers esti- mate that the attacking forces were not fewer than 20,000. Fifteen different battalions were identified Fight to Gain Footing. All day long the Germans fought to gain a footing in the important village of Bethincourt, which lies in a hollow com- manded by both sides. When night f the last attacking column was thrown back by the French, who fought with great determination against hostile torces double their number. The position on Cote de L’Cie was similar. The were held in check as long as art made ravines in Corbeaux wood, they m: to force a way up a narrow lane le: to Cumieres wood, which stands on top of the ridge linking L’Oie and Mort Homme hills, only to be driven out of the greater part of their conquest by a French counter attack Wednesday. Generals Lead Men, The German losses in officers Is par= ticularly heavy, according to state- ments made by prisoners, and this fact is believed to be the explanation of the unexpected spectacle of German officers Northwood, at the age of sixty-five years. He was editor of the Concord up to the rank of general, by order of the emperor, leading their men into Monitor from S$ to 1892. resigning | actior stead of following them. This to go to Washington as priyate se sight hi not been witnessed, it is said, retary to Senator Willlam M Chan-| for many months. dier, Zeppelins are active behind the f