Norwich Bulletin Newspaper, December 31, 1917, Page 1

Norwich VOL. LIX.—NO. 313 POPULATION 29,919 NORWI CH," CONN., MONDAY, DEC! <R 31, TEN PAGES—70 COLS. BRITISH REPULSED ~ GERMANS AT YPR Teutons Made Attack Saturday Night, But British Were Waiting for Them SNOW IMPEDES ACTIONS ON THE FRENCH FRONT| wosnincton. e wwme Germans to Carry Out Raids on Small French Posts Near St. Quentin Resulted in Failure—In Italian Theatre Only Big Guns Are Being Used—The British Forces Continue Their Victorious March Against the Turks in Palestine. Aside from bombardments and re- | ,eiprocal artillery duels little is going ion in the major theatres of the war. iOn the French front the weather is ! still cold and this, with the snow that ! covers the grounfi everywhere, is im- I peding operaticcis_en rge scaie. The Germans Saturday night es- sayed an aftack against the British northeast of Ypres, where for several @ays past they had been laying down a heavy ipreparatory artillery fires The attack, however, was futile, for the British, ever on the watch, raked fhe Germans with their fire fpilsed them with considerabl - Likewise, attempts by the Germans fo carry out raids on small Irench pobsts_near St. Quentin, Dezonvgux and Vauquois resulted in failure, 3nd o _addition the enemy lost men made Brisoners. There is still considerable intermittent artillery activity lalong the entire French fromt. In the Italian theatre the infantry for the present is idle, but the big guns continue to carry ot mutual bombardments against opposing po- sitions in the hill region from the Asiago plateau eastward to the Piave river. This activity is particularly pronounced on the Monte Tomba sec- tor and a few miles to the east on both sides of Pederobba, near the up- per reaches of the Piave river. The British forces under General Allenby continue their victorious march against the Turks in Palestine. Considerable fresh progress has been made north and northwest of Jerusa- lem, particularly in the occupation of Bireh, about twelve miles to the north where the Turks offered stubborn re- sistance, but finally were overcome. OONGRESSIONAL LEADERS RETURN TO WASHINGTON | They Expect to Deal Promptly With New War Legislation. ‘Washington, Dec. 30 —Congre @l leaders were return ton today, cutting short tb foas holiday to prepare for work to be undertaken w reconvenes next Thursday. to deal promptly with new war legislation, par that desired by President V ection with government opera tion of the rallroads, which the pres import en ¢ fdent will outline in a special mes- | A mmittees investigating plap to. work throughout Week except for New Year's da the senate military commi will hear Major General Croz ehief of ordnance, in reply to eisms of Colonel Lewis, the Lewis machine gun. Baker also will be afforded fianity to make a statement on ma- ehine gun questions before the com- mmittee closes its ordnance inquiry a Investization resumed Th naval sub-comn s Inguiry into the ¢hant shipbuilling pro eontirue - tomorrow with Colby of the shippinz boarl stand before the senate committée. Preliminary study of fems will proceed tomor: the senate interstate commerce com- mittee, with further examination of Commerce Commissioner A contest is In prospect be- tween Senators Pomerene of Oliio Emith of Scuth Carolina over of = result of Senator Newland: On Wednesday the senate commit- fee investicating suzar and coal shortages plans to receive the jeferred statement of Food A Bt Hoover: ‘When congress reassembles Thur: day both houses will adjourn for the day out of respect to Senator New, de and Representative Rathrick o, who have died duriug the re- ARGENTINE TRANSPORT E PIMENTO DRIVEN ASHORE. Everybody on Board Was Taken Off Safely in Breeches Buoy. 'An Atlantic Port, Dec. 30.—The Ar- tine transport Pimento, under- to have on board members of an ecéonomic mission to the United States from Argentina, was driven ashore off the Atlantic coast during a last night and now lies high on beach. Everybody on board was off safely in a breeches buoy by guards. * The shipwrecked Argentinians are Boused tonight in the life saving sta- tlon. They hope to board their vessel k tomorrow if she can be floated, id the wrecking crews now standing g think this may be done if the storm A 50-mile gale was driving a heavy of snow when the ship lost her €ourse last night. e GUEST OF AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION. E. Smith, Attorney General of Great Britain. * Washington, Dec. 30.—Sir Frederick Smith, sttorney general of Great 1 tain, who has just come to this L ntry as guest of homor of the lerican Bar association. will speak the eeries of war conferences to be 1d under the auspices of the speak- & division of the comimittee on pub- information during the week Jan. . 14-13. He is to ba one of 'the party which will travel and speak with Sec- ¥ .2y Lane at these meetings. FELL DEAD WHILE DELIVERING AN 'ADDRESS > e:1. Charles Bigelow of New. Haven i Succumbed at Houston, Tex. £ . - s Houston, Texas, Dec. 30.—While an address on the war here afternoon, Colonel Charles Bige- , a lecturer of New Haven, Conn., | to the plaiform and died within minutes. Apoplexy was given the cause of his death. v 3. [Cn the Ground That the Railroad COLD WAVE WILL LAST UNTIL TUESDAY, AT LEAST. Higher Temperatures Will Accompany Snow T Washington, Dec. 30.—Little relie?| Tuesday or Wednesddy from | before the bitter cold wave that has swept out of the west to the Atlantic coast in New England and New, York were lowered. today and extreme cold was reported from throughout the south. Coincident with the movement of the cold area. towards the Atlanti the Mweather west of the Mississippl moderated to an extent where normal temperatures for this season now are being’ registered. The lowest temperature recorded throughout, the country today was at Northfield, Vt, where the mercu iropped . £0 ° Deston and 13 below at ht, all records for the us at those cities were broken, d in the coast states, south of New the cold was severest since 1880. Snow is forecast for the northern ssippi valley and lake regions | v and for the middle Atlantic and New England Tuesda: temperatures will accompany ew STA is Now Government Property. New London, Conn, Dec. 20.—ij Twelve men of the Stamford coast | ery company which is stationed 'ort Wright, arrived here on an afternocon train without having paid any fare from their home city on the way back to the fort. They made the jof the mised tonight by the weather | COmPany Records for low temperatures | ™ below. With 14 below } Jew York | local | Cabled Paragraphs Bessarabia Declares Independenc: Petrograd, Saturda, sarabia has declared its indc as the Moldavian republic, ic, part of the Russian federated lc. reptb- Bessarabla is southwestern Russ mania. About hall. the inhabitants are Rumanians. Tae population is in the neighborhood af 2,000,000. Kishinev is the capital of Bessarabia, which has an area of aboat 10,000 square miles. ernment of adjoining Ru- MUST REPORT QUANTITY OF FOODSTUFFS ON HAND. All Deafers, Manufacturers, Hotel Men and Others Having $250 Worth. —All dealers manufacturers, warehouse men, hotels and other institutions having on hand more than $250 -worth of foodstuffs must report to the bureau of markets of the department of ‘aszricuiture, siv- ing a detailed 'statement of their hold- ings tomorrow, Dec. 31, with a com- parison of holdings on the same day last year. A statement tonight by Charles J. Brand says every effort has been made to send schedules to the firms and dividuals who handle the food supply of the country, but that failure to receive a schedule does not exempt anyone from complying wtik the regu- lations. If schedules are not re- ceived by Jan. 2, application should be made to the bureau of m. ets or one of its branch offices. Failure to report holdings malkos the offender lia- ble to prosecution The bureau is makix survey of food supplie: ment’s use in plann: utilization and produ: TO RQUTE THROUGH FREIGHT AROUND CHICAGO 2 a nation-wide for the zovern- conservation, on. To Cut Dowr Time of Ooast to Coast Service Ten Days. Chicago, D with the ord director zener: of all roads ent meet tomorrow steps in routir 1 freight around Chicago insteaq of throush the city. 2 It is expected down the time o vice between ten ¢ OBITUARY. compliance —In 3 MeAdoo, that this “will cut “oast to coast and two weeks Brig.-Gen. Anson Gcorge McCook. 29.—Brigadier Gen- Vi eCook e Aaw Publ: e A na died at h pleuri General McCook benville, Ohio, Oct to_ Pittsburzh when s old nnd successively bee: e a.cl taught school and worked-cn the Wayne railroad. In tle to California, pector there for five ‘When the war started he ormanized a volunteer company that hecame part of the Serond Oh saw ae- tion in several retired in 1865 volunteers. / General MeCoo ghth New Yor from 1877 to 1s83. Law Journal w 1872 as the D: A widow, Lieutenant G Brigadier Gen Camp TUpton, vive him. Mrs. Mary L. Woods. Conn., Dec. 30.—Mr: . Woods, 80 years old at her home at East Windsor s. She was the widow of Dr. Wil m Woods, an ardent collector of ds’ nests ‘and eggs. His life accu- lation of such articles is_ now at the Morzan Memorial and is said to be the finest of its kind in America Mrs. Woods was the daushtér of the crt 534 he drove cat- old pros., brigadier zeneral of ted the New ' York s started by him in late Frastus Elisworth, who built the | Hartford Theological = Seminary in claim that the road was now gov- ernment property and on that account declined to pay. The conductor took their names, allowing them to 'ride, and will report them to the com- mandant at the fort. CHURCH AT MERIDEN DESTROYED BY FIRE | The Immanuel Lutheran—Loss is Es- | timated at $50,000. i Meriden, Conn., Dec. 30.—The Im- manuel Lutheran church, built in 1899, was totally destroyed by fire to- night. Neither Rev. Paul Kirsch, the pastor, nor the janitor, who banked the furnace for the night at 9.30 o'- clock, could account for the orizin of the fire. The loss is estimated at $50,090, most of which is covered by insurance. AN UNKNOWN STEAMER STRANDED OFF COAST. Reports Indicate That the Crew Has Been Saved. An Atlantic Port, Dec. 30.—An pn- known steamer stranded off the coast here last night during a snowstorm and a northwest gale estimated at from 60 to 80 miles an hour. A life saving crew had got a line to the vessel and reports late today indicated that the crew had been saved. Two unidentified steamers and a tug, supposed to be the 'W. B. Keene, with two barges, were forced to anchor. They were reported in good shape. TELEPHONE OPERATORS GRANTED WAGE DEMANDS. Threatened Strike of N. E. T. C. Em- ployes in Boston Averted. of telephone operators of the England Telephone company. in this city and nearby districts was averted tonight when the principal wage de- mands were granted by the company. The settlement was announced after conferences between a federal medi- ator and representatives of the com- pany and the young women of the ap- erators’ union. Four Persons Killed by Escaping Gas Pawtucket, R. I, Dec. 30. — Four members of the household of Dan: tiste Viguell, including his wife, ' his two small children and Henry Dan- toni, a boarder, were lilled by escap- ing gas in their tenement on Cato avenue early today. v It is estimated that the Victorian wheat yield this season exceeds 38.: 660,000 bushels. 1834 in Windsor which has long been vacant because of the removal of the seminary headquarters to Hartford. David Bonner. New York, Dec. 30.—David Bonner, for more than half a century a prom- | inent figure in the horse world asroad rider, breeder and official in harness racing and horse shows. died of pneu- monia at his home in this city toda fleMwalu; 81 years old. g r. Bonner was regarded as one of the best known judges of trotting horses, and was, acknowledged by sportsmen as one’ of the foremost fig- ures ‘in the development of the trot- ting 'race. CEe s Russian Fort Blown Up. London, Dec. 31.—One of the forts at Kronstadt, the naval base near Petrograd, ‘has been blown up by an extremely violent explosion, accord- ing to a Petrograd despatch to the Times. There are no details. Miss Will Allen Drumgoole of Nash- ville, Tenn., is the only woman who wears th> uniformn of an officer " in the United States navy. Widely e has. bt Semtoting AEhs r, she sen \ navy' in obtalning recruits. the heads | t in congress | died ! |BY THE POLICE AND THE POST- | MASTERS 'THE WEEK OF FEB. 4 Registration Will Give Details of Bus- With Photograph and Finger. Prints—All iness and Habits, Together to Be Treated Courteously. .—The weck of “ebruary 4 was set aside by the de- partment of justice today for regis- ration of the half million unnatural- ized Germans in the continentaj Unit- and postmasters esident Wilson’s proclamation directing s a means of minimizing r from enemy United States rlier pians for administering the registration in the eastern cities first nd gradually extending it to the en- tire country were abandoned because of the fear that some Germans mizht avoid registration by moving from istrict to district. Points of Registration. i: involve the gat information con- ing ness relations 'pd habits of every German, together with .is photograph and finger prints. Af- ter registering he must carry a cer- tificate card, and may not change his of residence without approval police or posimaster. Viola- tion of the regulations will be pumsh- able by internment for the war. Orders do not apply to German wo- men mor to any persons under 14 years of age, becausc these are not ciassed as alien enemies by law. Sub- jects of Austria-Hungary are not re- quired to register. In announcing the regulations to- Gay, the department of justice took care to void creating the impression overnment looks on each 1at the German with suspicion. To Reccive Courteous Treatment. ” -ants are not to be treated sons of evil disposition,” said ctions to T strars, “and the n officers are urged to deal with them in a courteous and friend- ¥ manner.” federal marshals and asents al authorities are expected to cooperate in the roundup during registration weel, and to mvestigate and check up each fact reported by the registrants. q Certificate Cards. Certificate cards will be issued only |after a_complete verification is made. The inigrmation obtajned wiil. be of Valie to' o s 4n runninz down enemy plots and Dropaganda, and in discovering what Germans bear {close watching. The task will Dbe |ereat in cities whers the German { population is large and newspapers una, citizens will be asked to assist. 3 of 5.000 or more popula- ensus, {lis the depart- | police in_the vlace of the lent of a county, will ration officer to ga- om the others and forward them to the United States and the department of jus- es the work will be | marshal jtice. In { done by Triplicate Affidavits. Every German is required to go to the registrar and malke out triplicate affidavit information aks, and to furnish four*photographs ot himself— cne for each affidavit and one for his registration card. Tke photograph must bear his sigrature writtcn across the front, and mus: not be larger than three inches square. It must be on thin paper and have * light background. The afiidavit provides for recording name, address, age, place of birth, occupations and residence since Jan- uary 1, 1914, date of.arrival in the United Sfates, whether married, the names amd azes of children. whether, the registrant has, or has had any nale relatives in arms against the United States, whether registered for. the draft, military training, natural- ization conditions and similar infor- mation. Iull descrintion of the msn and the prints of .each finger must be iken by the registrar. The regis- trant must 'swear to the affidavit be- fore the registering officen Small postoffices not equipped with finger print apparatus are advised. to borrow a small quantity of printer's k and a roller from the town print- and to make the impression upon the ink spread on a pane of slass. - One of the friplicate records is to be kept by the registration agents, one sent to the United States mar- shal, and one to the department of ijustice at Washington. Germans not at their place of resi- dence during the week of February 4 may register in the district in which they happen to be. Registration plans will be made la- ter for the Philippines, Hawali, the Panama Canal Zone, -Alaska, Birgin Islands, Guam and Samoa. Several million’ registration blanks and other forms are being prepared by the de- partment of justice and wiil be dis- tributed within the next few weeks. The registration is under the direc- tion of John Lord O’Brien, special as- istant to Attorney General Gregory, and a staff of lawyer's appointed - for war work. ®, BULGARIA HAS ACCEPTED RUSSIA’S PEACE PROPOSALS. Premier Has Sent Message to All Provincial Prefects. Amsterdam, Dec. 30.—The Bulgarian premier, Vaseil Radoslavoff, according to a Sofia_despatch, has sent a mes- sage to all the provincial prefects to the effect that Bulgaria has accepted the Russian proposals—first, that the war between Bulgaria ended; second, that the s bellum with respect to troaties and consular and other con. ventions be re-established; fhird, re- garding the Danube question, that this be decided tomorrow-..at ‘a- plenary _meeting of all the delegations,. garia to have a repre: Danube commission. . . The premier's message ad parties m congratulated tus quo ante each other ‘mpathizers | ntative on the | 13 Below Zero in | New York Gity COLDEST WEATHER IN THE HIS- TORY OF BUREAU 3 DEATHS DUE TO COLD| | Scores of Persons, Suffering From Exposure and Frostbite, Were | Treated at Various Hospitals—Many Took Refuge in Police Stations. 20.—New York city xperienced the coldest weather in the history of the local weather bureau | today when the temperature at 8. a. m. went down to 13 dezrees below zero. IExcept at 3 and 4 o'clogk this| ternoon when it stood at mercury hovered between 6 | degrees below. Suffering was general throughout the city because of the coal shortaze, Lowest Ever Recorded. The weather bureau announced that the record, 13 below, was degrees more than the mercury had ever dropped since the bureau had been in existence. On only four occasions had it ever gone to 6 below. After 8.30 o'clock the temperature slowly rose, but at 5 o'clock in the afternoon an- downward trend was perceptible. hope of relief before Tuesday held out by the bureau, which icted another day of extreme cold tomorrow. Three Deaths Due to Cold. Three deaths due to the cold were reported. A taxicab driver was found frozen to death in his machine in a garage in Jersey Cit A baby found dead in its crib this morning is said to have succumbed to the severe coild. and a traction employe was killed when he became numb and fell to the pavement in front of a street car. Scores Treated at Hospitals. Scores of persons suffering from ex- ure, and frostbite were treated at various hospitals, Dense clouds of vapor, caused, har- bor men said, by the water being warmer than the air, rose from tk rivers and bay throughout the da tually suspending harbor trafiic. ice the rivers for the first time in many years threw ferryboat schedules out of any semblance of regularity and tugboats were kept busy during the day breaking ice in the slips. Took Refuge in Pclice Stations. Hundreds of men, women and chil- dren, driven from their homes when their coal supplies ran out, took refuge in police stations. Many stations were crowded throughout the day. Missions and lodging houses were kept busy providing shelter for the New York. Dec. e demands were not near =o heavy as in past years, duc to the comparatively small number out of work. Record for Fire Alarms. Fire Commissioner Adamson an- nounced tonight that all daily records {for fire alarms were broken. Ma iof them were false alarms, caused by {frozen valves and etandpipes, which ! disrupted the signal mechanism, he {said, but most of them were due to overheated furnaces and accidents with oil stoves. iCONNECTICUT SUFFERED FROM THE COLD imantic Sends the Low Record, 30 Degrees Below. | ! wi New Haven, Conn, Dec. 30—Con- necticut today had one of its coldest days for the month of December since the institution of weather bureaus in the state. Suffering in many places was made greater by the lack of scar- city of coal. Upstate, the coldest rec- ords were made but _temperatures along the coast were but slightly less rigorous than inland. At New Haven the harbor was frozen over, except for the main chahnel, an unusual phenomenon so ezrly in_the winter. Numerous fires were eaused by care- Jess use of flames to thaw frozen pipes and one woman was seriousl burned while warming herself at a portable stove. In Orange a barn owned by Robert J. Woodruff was burned through the agency of an electric heater, causing the death of a horse and a pony In Willimantic the low record, un- was 30 below zero and nu- merous thermometers showed temper- atures of 20 to 25 below. Two cases |of children receiving frostbites were reported there. Danbury reported a low of minus 16, the city’s coldest day in thirty years. At New Fairfield it was 20 below and nearby towns showed equally low records. Winsted récorded a low of 12 below, zero being its warmest point. Su- burbs of Winsted showed in ' some cases a drop to 25 below zero and at Satan’s Kingdom it was 20 below without a hod of coal in the place. Neighbor assisted neizhbor in cutting wood so that all might be warmed. Waterbury had its coldest day since 1887,. the range being from 13 below zero to 2 above. It was 3 below at 8 in the evenine and growing colder. In Meriden 8 below was shown and at the city reservoir at Broad Brook | fl below and 22 below at Kensing- on. Hartford recorded a low of 18 helow zero and a high of one below. Near- by towns reported the cold as being ceveral degrees helow these points. In the city of Norwich the official low record was 9 below zero with| piaces near showing lows of from 10 to 15 below. Norwich had a high of 3 above. New London's lowest record was 11 below zero with a hizh of 2 above. Here thrée fires were started by ex- ploding stoves. In each case the damaze was slight. $ . Middletown had a record of 20 be- { wherf German submarines | Rosenthal in Beriin. low zero.and here four of the town's largest churches voted to consolidate services 'to coms~rve coal during the remainder of t winter. Mysterious Firc at Newark. Newark, ., Dev. 30—In & mys- after dark this evening, an immense commercial | office” building and a, storage house dents. of the contracting firm of Post and McChord,. at the Federal Shipbuild- ‘Co. yards on the Kearney adows near .the Hackensack River, o i SO ymbs. Liave been discovered in 8 indows of two police where there bances. Condensed Telegrams | Onions are five cents a pound in New York. The Red Cross drive in Manhattan has obtained 450,600 members. All the politicai parties in the State of Wisconsin have united to crush dis- Thirty Norwegian sailors were lost sank five One man vras killed and nine injur- » collision between electric car anton, Ohio. The death Tageblatt American painter. Berlin of the reports the Tohy Underfeeding and overwork are mak- ing I.ondon's hor skinny nags and sad-looking animals. Steel manufacturers have arrived in Washingion to confer with the Govern- ment officials about steel prices. Dr. George M. Forbers, of the Uni- versity of Rochester, oposed teaching of German in elementary schools. When the New York night schools reopen a special course wili be given for women in machine shop work. Miss Mary Robinsor, 82, masgazine writer and author of book of travel, died at Suffield, Conn., of pneumonia. Count Julius Andrassy, former Hun- garian Premier, declared that, “the United States must save the Entente.” A Dutch steamer from the West In- dies brought the body of Captain Mar- tin of the United States Marine Corps. America’s first soldiers to arrive in Italy were a number of young aviators, who arrived in the southern part to train. The exceptionally cold wave in north- ern France has been shifting to the southern part where it is - generally warm. Several persons were killed in an ex- plosion of a blast furnace in the plant of the Tnland Steel Co. at Indiana Harbor, Ind. Americans serving in the . French army may apply to American camps in France and be transferred to the American army. The American army now has its mil- itary ‘police operating in Paris. This |is the thra miitary polce force to op- erate in that city. A fire, thought to be of incendiary origin, burned a {obacco shed con- taining the crop of one and a half acres at Windsor, Conn. The question of extending conscrip- tion to Ireland will be considered at the next meeting of Parliament after the Christmas holiday. Hyman Borrok, a shirtwaist manu- homeless, but'it was stated that the | facturer, of New York, pleaded guilty to a charge of hoarding’ His sentence was suspended. The American cavalrymen who pur- sued the Mexican bandits into Mexico killed 50 of them and took oll the loot and plunder the bandits had. Twenty-nine of the thirty govern- ment motor trucks manufactured at Detroit sent to Baltimore under their sugar. fown power have arrived intact. It was announced in Rome that the German and Austrian troops have tak- en all art objects that could be re- moved {rom the northern part of Italy. It was announced in London that White Russia has established an in- dependent Republic. A rada or legis- lative body has been assembled at Minsk. A corporal of the American en- gineers was killed and a private was wounded by a German shell dropped ; " PRICE TWO CENTS Earthquakes Ruin Guatemala City SERIES OF SHOCKS COMPLETED THE DESTRUCTION. 125,000 ARE HOMELESS A Number of Persons Were Killed by Falling Walls—Colon Theatre Col- lapsed—Naval Vessels on Being Rushed There With Assistance. gton, De capital of the ican republic of { been laid in ruin: carthquakes beginning and culminating la hocks which Guatemala e Central Guatemala, has a series of Christmas day night in violent completed the work of struction. A gram to the navy Gepartment today said 125,000 peqple were in the streets without shelter and that a number were killed by falling walls. Sending Assistance. Naval vessels in Central American waters have been ordered to the stricken city to render all possible as- sistance. Following is the brief despatch which brought the news of the catas- earthquake yesterday, finished the work of others. Everything in ruins and beyond cription as a re- sult of* last nigh shock. One hun- dred and twenty-five thousand people are in the etrees Parts of the coun- try are very cold and windy. Tents are needed badly. Quite a number killed yesterday by falling walls.” The ock probably occurred ‘be- tween 5.57 and 7 o'clock last night. Violent quakes were recorded at thal timc by the siesmographs of the Georzetown university ohservatory, and the .distance was estimated ' at 1,900 miles from Washington. Red Cross Takes Hold. The machinery of the American Réd Cross has been set in motion to re- lieve the earthquake sufferers. In re- sponse to an appeal for asststance from Alfred Clarke, chairman of the Red Cross chapter at Guatemala City, a preliminary appropriation of $10,000 has been authorized for the purchase of relief supplies. Materials for tem- porary shelters are being assembled, jbut mildness of the climate in the de- vastated region minimizes K fears of suffering likely to be caused by ex- posure. At a gulf port large quantities of flour, potatoes, crackers and other sta- ple foodstuffs, as well as disinfectants and stores of galvanized iron for tem- porary buildings, already are being loaded on a vessel to sail for Barrios on the east coast of Guatemala. As soon &s news of the first. guaks reached Washington the Red Cross cabled an offer of assistance to the president of the republic. The Amer- ican .minister aleo was asked to or- ganize a committee of relief workers among the American residents. ' Fur- ther relief plans will.be made as-soon as the relief committee forwards a statement of its needs. cn Hospitals and Prisons Damaged. Various hospitals and asylums: and the prisons werc badly damaged and many patients and prisoners were Killed. The railroad depot, the. sugar mills, the postoffice, the American and Brit- ish legations, the United States con- sulate and all the churches in the city have been levelled. Fissures Opened in Middle of City Deep fissures opened in the middle of the city. # The inhabitants in panic have fiéd from the capital. More tham $0,000 persons are homeless.. The -stock “of provisions in the city is scant and.aid near a party of American cngineers on Christmas Eve. Temporary use of the Laurel, Md., race track for engineer troops has been arranged by the War Depart- ment. This will not interefere with the spring races. Mrs. Elizabeth C. Paul, “Queen of Ireland.” who insisted she could bring about the “abdication” of President Wilson, was sent to the Washington Asylum Hospital. For three days snow has been falling intermittently at the American train- ing camp in France, and many roads and passages have been made impas- sable by the drift. Morris D. Bradford, an instructor, pleaded guilty to murder in the first degree at Laconia, N. H., and was sen: tenced to life imprisonment. He kille2 Miss Alice Black, a teacher A recruiting officer at Dallas, - Tex., was confronted with a serious puzzle when a man ‘physically fit and who said he Had no name or place to call | home, aplied for enlistment. The 27th division United States Tn- fantry is going to have a big, shake- up in officers in command. Fifty of- ficers will ‘be dropped because of un- fitness physically for overseas dufy. President Wilson directed that max- imum prices previously fixed upon-iron ore coke, pig iron iron, steel and steel products be_ continued in_effect until March 31. They were subject to re- vision' January 1. Charles Lloyd, a veteran of ' the Civil war, who lived alone in a house near the Farmington river. was found dead there late yesterday, When foun the body was frozen dnd it is sulx:’ sed that he perished of the cold.. Joel G. Foster, an azed contractor of Danbury, had a close call last night from death when he was overcome by smoke while in bed. His home had caught fire from an overheated fur- nace apd_firemen found Mr. Foster nearly suffocated. Two officers’ trai G camps will be opened at Chickamauga Park - next Saturday instead .of one, as at first contemplated. Announcement was made that a_second camp wouid be d Russia be |terious fire that was discovered just|Organized at Fort Oglethorpe and that 2,000 men would be entered as stu- Degrees Below Zero. i Glens Falls, N. Y., Dec. 30.—Unoffi- 1 reports from the noriern section ‘Warren county state that the tem rature this morning ranged from 52 to 69 degrees Dbelow . zero, the- lowest mark beins recorded at Thurman Station. Just cutside the city of Glens Falls it was 40 dasrass halaw. o | acrEE is _required . promptly. The Salvadorean government has suspended the official New Year Ccele- bration and. entered into mourning in Is:,~mpathy with Guatemala. ¥ COLON THEATRE COLLAPSED; WAS FILLED WITH PEOPLE. There Were Many Casuaities Among the Audience. San Salvador, Dec. 30.—Guatemals City. capital of the republic " of Guatemalp. has been completely - de- atroyed py an earthquake. Many persons were killed ‘in the - disaster, some in their homes and’ others in the: streets, The Colén theatre, which was Alled with - people, collapsed. There were many. casualties among the audience. MENTS REACHED 5o ag AT PEACE CONFERENCE Include - Liber: and Resumption. of Commercial ‘R, lations. s ES Brest . Litovsk, Friday, Dec. 28, Berlin' and - London, Dec. 40.—Provia- jonal agreement on a series of impor: tant - points, including liberation of war prisoners and resumption of com. mercial “ rélations, was reached today by the delegates of Russia and the Central Powers in discussion of “is- sues “which, in the event of a general peace, would have to be settied among the nations represented in the negp- tiations ‘here. This provisional dis- Cussion was terminated today, ths basis of 'an agreement being adcpted under the reservation that it was to he examined by the governments rep- resented by thé delegates. In respect of treaty relations, an understanding was arrived at regard- ing the restoration of the situation as it existed when the war. began. v It was provided that certain laws adopted during the war shall be can- celled, and that those affecied there: by shall. be restored to their previous rights or indemnified. X The rules in regard to payment of war costs and damage were defined In greater detail. Provisions were made concerning damages - sustained by cl- vilians outside the war area. An agreement in principle was reached regarding the reciprocal lib- cration and return to their homes of war . prisoners snd interned civilians and also for tre return of captured merchant vesseis. Speedy ~resumption of diplomatie and consular ‘relations Is embraged. in the understanding. It is set forth that there shall be immediate stoppage of economic \warfare, establishment _of commercial intercourse and the or- sanized { exchange of commodities.. | A” substantial understanding was arrived at on which the basis of eco- nomic relations shall be wsettled per- Tmaneatle | R