Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 35, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 February 1918 — Page 2

QHE one hundred and eightyslXth anniversary of the birth of George Washington i reminds one of many things, and among them the fact that the cost of living was an eco- ' nomlcal problem in Washington’s day, as it is now. Further, the first president set an example which is being followed today in some sections of the country with all the acclaim of something new. The markets which are being opened for the purpose of bringing the fann products to the consumer, to the exclusion, of the middleman, are by no means a twentieth century Invention. Most people don’t know that George Washington essayed truck gardening and the maintenance of a market wagon, to the no small blessing but the social dismay, of some Alexandrians, but It Is a fact. We read so much of the “groaning board,” steaming joints of luscious fare of all sorts in the days of colonial plenty, that we think the period a time of feasting and unlimited abundance, and recall but few of the hardships, of which there were many. It was to provide variety and to make his neighbors more satisfied with their lot that Washington sent his market wagon just once in so often to Alexandria loaded with the products of the farmyard and the field of Mount Vernon. History does not tell us whether Washington reached the hearts of his associates more speedily by the short route of their stomachs, but there is no doubt that his wise forethought brought him both gratitude and substantial reward.

The Cart Goes to Town. Old Parson Weems, who has chatted so glibly about life in Adexandria, tells us that there was a time there when the town had more reason to boast of Its beauty than its capacity to gladden the inner man. To quote that reverend chronicler: The neighborhood of Belle Haven (such was Alexandria’s early name) was not a desert; on the contrary. It was in many places a garden spot abounding with luxuries. But Its in-' habitants, the wealthy, were not wise. By the successful culture of tobacco they had money. And having filled their coach houses ■with gilt carriages and their dining rooms with gilt glasses, they began to look down upon the poorer sort and to talk about families. Of course it would never do for such people to run market carts! Hence the poor Belle Havenites, though embosomed in plenty, were often in danger of gnawing their nails. And unless they could cater a lamb from some good-natured ‘cracker,’ or a leash of chickens from the Sunday negroes, were obliged to sit down with long faces to a half-graced dinner of salt meat and journey cake. "This was the order of the day, A. D. ’59, when Washington, just married to the wealthy young widow Custls, had settled at Mount Vernon, nine miles below Belle Haven. The unpleasant situation of the families at

Didn’t Seem Possible.

Reference in the lobby of a Washington club was made to the keen wits of the rising generation when this story was contributed by Representative Joseph B. Thompson of Oklahoma: ? There was a little Boy who used to call at the home of his grandma every Saturday afternoon, and as a reward for his constancy he was always given a slice of Cocoanut cake. One afternoon, however, grandma was expecting company, and wishing

How Washington. Solved Marketing Problem

that place soon reached his ears. To a man of his character, with too much spirit to follow a bad example when he had the* Iwer to set a good one, and too much wit to look for happiness anywhere but in his own bosom, it could not long be questionable what part he had to act. “A market cart was Instantly constructed and regularly three times a week sent off to Belle Haven filled with nice roasters, kidney-covered lamb and veal, green geese, fat ducks and gobblers, chickens by the basket, fresh butter, new-laid eggs, vegetables and fruit of all sorts. Country gentlemen dining with their friends in town very soon remarked the welcome change in diet. ‘Bless us all I’ exclaimed they, ‘what’s the meaning of this? You invite us to family fare and here yon have given us a lorn mayor’s feast.’ ‘Yea,’ replied the others, ‘thank God for sending a Colonel Washington into our neighborhood.’ “The cat was thus let out of the bag, to the extreme mortification of the ‘Little Great ones,’ that Colonel Washington should ever have run a market cart.”

Famous Carlyle House. The market where Washington sent his farm products lay right in the heart of Alexandria and upon a square about which stood some of the town’s most noted residences and landmarks. Among these was the Carlyle house, and despite the passage of time and the physical changes wrought in that quaint Virginia city, this historic home survives intact today. The. Carlyle house is intimately Identified with Washington’s career and particularly with the very beginning of his military calling. As the story goes, the bricks for the building were imported and so, too, the stone of w’hich it was built in 1732. John S. Carlyle utilized for part of the foundation a portion of an old fort, which many years earlier had stood guard against the Indians for the protection of English traders on Hunting Creek, as the place was then known. The barracks of that advance post of civilization became the cellar of the Carlyle house, and there in its cool shadows was stored the mellow wine that tickled the palates of those days. From the heavy beams overhead hung pendant the luscious hams for which Virginia is still noted. Another part of the old fort supports the plaza at the rear of the house upon which the main hallway ends. It was there, of summer evenings, that the Carlyles and their guests gathered, and it was there the men discussed the problems of the hour over a heartsome glass amid the soothing smoke of the fragrant Oronoko. Then, the gardens ran down to the river’s bank and overlooked the docks at which the trading craft were moored —vessels, that came from over the seas to barter the silks and 'riches of the far East, the products of Europe, and the tropic abundance of the West Indies in return for the famous tobacco with which Alexandria’s one great ware-

to save the cake for refreshment, none was forthcoming for Johnny. For a long time he patiently waited, and then rose to g 6. “I really believe, grandma,” he remarked, as he picked up his hat, “that I smell cocoanut cake.” The broad hint was fruitful, but not abundantly so. Going to the kitchen grandma cut him oft a small slice. “I thought so,” commented Johnny, as he took the dainty, “but doesn’t it seem strange, grandma, that I could smell such a very small piece?”

THE EVENING REPUBLICAN. RENSSELAER. INB.

housp was filled. Washington was a very frequent guest at the Carlyle house and one can easily imagine the part he played in that atmosphere of bounteous hospitality and courtly grace. Tradition has it that it was in that very house that Washington met one of his few defeats. On the right of the broad hallway is what was once a drawing room, said to have been finished originally in white and gold, and there on many occasions Washington took an active part in the social festivities —leading many a fair Virginian through the stately minuet and the less formal reel. The hallway, Itself, If tradition be correct, has its own sentimental interest, for it was at the foot of the beautiful staircase of solid mahogany that Washington awaited the coming of lovely Sally Fairfax upon a certain evening, and, while escorting her to the ballroom, offered that lady his heart and was refused. On the opposite side of this same hall is the “blue and white room,” which was John Carlyle’s particular retreat or sanctum. That room is of especial interest to us as a nation, for it w T as there that Washington received his commission as a member of General Braddock’s staff in 1755. What Washington learned upon that disastrous campaign against the Indians and with British soldiers taught him much which later he put to good service in behalf of his country. Braddock Took Possession. When Braddock .arrived he accepted the proffered hospitality of John Carlyle and established headquarters there. The little blue and white room became the military council chamber, and it was there that the plans were made for the campaign. Washington’s previous experience as a leader of Virginia troops against the savages made him all the more welcome at the conferences, and his keen judgment and practical advice earned for him Braddock’s admiration and won for him his colonelcy upon the general’s staff. We who count our dollars and make our purchases in hard coin but little realize the part the “vile weed” played in all commercial transactions in Virginia 150 years ago. The fragrant Oronoko tobacco had a fame which reached to Europe, and this was the common medium of exchange. The Incense of this leaf, as it were, bought the English bricks with which old Christ churcfr in Alexandria was built in 1773. The church was designed, so it has been said, by one James Wren, reputed to have been a relative of the architect of London’s famous St. Paul’s. Washington worshiped at Christ church. History tells us that it was within the shadow of that sacred structure, after services one Sunday morning in the summer of 1774, that he earnestly advocated the renunciation of allegiance to the king of England. Always deliberate and intensely devout, one can gather something of the spell which his words must have cast upon his fellow churchmen upon that occasion. There are many houses in Alexandria today that were in their prime when Washington was in their midst and closely identified with them not only socially but officially intermittently during his youth and just prior to his death.

CURIOUS CONDENSATIONS

Florida contains about 4,000.000 acres of land waiting to be reclaimed by proper drainage. Contracts for draining almost the entire Everglade region have been made. A dog in Hennifler, N. H., in pursuing a hedgehog, climbed from limb to limb of a tree to a height of 40 feet. It took the help of three boys to get him down. A compass invented in France for aviators shows the deviation from any set course in addition to pointing toward the north. A two-wheeled trailer with ,a capacity of a ton of coal and which can be hauler! behind a runabout automobile has been invented. An electrical device of European invention to enable a moving train to set a signal makes use of a slight sinking of a rail as a train passes over it. The use of the magnetic pulley to remove particles of-certain metals from nonmagnetic material in bulk has extended io 34 different industries,

ARMY PAY ROLL IS NOW NEARLY A BILLION A YEAR

Facts and Figures About Sums Paid Various Grades of Officers and Enlisted Men. HOW AND WHEN THEY GET IT S'. Wide Expansion of the Army Makes Task of Paying Off Intricate and Difficult—ls Quartermaster’s Job—Precautions Taken to Insure Meeting Pay Roll Promptly. Washington.—The actual pay roll of the fighting forces of the United States Is now nearly $100,000,000 per month. This sum Is disbursed by the pay officers of the army and navy In the form of checks or currency or by the treasury department In the form of family allotments as compensation for services rendered according to the scale of pay prescribed by law for the uniformed defenders of the nation. This figure does not Include “family allowances” which are paid by the government toward the support of the families of enlisted men, under specified conditions, nor does It consider any of the special compensatory features of the military and naval Insurance act, under which $176,150,000 was appropriated. For the purpose of Informing the public accurately as to the system of pay In the army the following authorized statement has been issued by the committee on public Information: Army Pay Nearly Billion a Year. The total pay of the United States army for the month of December was approximately $78,580,800. Disbursements on account of the pay of officers and men of the army are now at the rate of about $950,000,000 per year. These figures consider solely the pay disbursed by the quartermaster department and do not Include family allowances or compensation for disability of soldiers, provided for by the military and naval insurance act and paid by the government through the war risk insurance bureau of the treasury department. Following Is a comprehensive statement of the system of pay of the army authorized by the quartermaster general:

The quartermaster general of the army, under the direction of the secretary of war, Is charged with the duty of providing for the payment of the officers, enlisted men, female nurses, field clerks, and civilian clerks of the quartermaster corps on duty at places other than In the office pf the quartermaster general. Due to the lack of office buildings necessary to take care of the increased number of employees required to carry on the business of the army at Washington, it has been necessary to lease many privately owned buildings for office purposes. The finance and accounting division of the office of the quartermaster general is charged with the details of providing funds, and interior administration in connection with the payment of the army, and is now located in a large apartment house at the corner of Fifteenth and M streets NW. Intricate and Difficult Task. The Intricate task of paying the officers and men of the United States army, made more difficult by the wide expansion of the past six months, Is being satisfactorily accomplished. To prevent failure to meet the monthly compensation of every man in the service, no matter where he may be located, liberal sums are furnished the various disbursing quartermasters in order promptly to meet the army pay rolls with their extraordinary demands for funds. The officers and enlisted men of the army are paid at the end of each month, or as soon thereafter as possible, by the disbursing officers of the quartermaster corps, in cash or by check, at their stations or in the field. If on duty in France they are paid in French currency or by United States checks, as officers and men may elect. Pay of Enlisted Men. The pay of enlisted men depends on their grades, ratings, and length of service. From June 1, 1917, and continuing during the term of the war the pay of enlisted men is as follows: 1 Men receiving S3O: All privates, the army entering grade. Men receiving $33: First-class privates, men promoted to act In minor noncommissioned officer capacity. Men receiving $36: Corporals, saddlers, mechanics, farriers and wagoners, and musicians of the third class. Men receiving S3B: All s.ergeant grades in the line, which Include infantry, field, artillery, coast artillery and cavalry; cooks, horseshoers, band corporals and musicians of the second class. Men receiving $44: t Sergeants of the various corps of the engineers, ordnance, signal corps, quartermaster corps and medical department; band sergeants and musicians of the first class. Men receiving S4B: Battalion sergeant majors, squadron', sergeant majors, sergeant majors (junior grade), sergeant buglers, master gunners and assistant band leaders of the line. Men receiving ssl: Regimental sergeant majors, regimental supply sergeants, sergeant majors (senior grade), quartermaster corps, ordnance sergeants, first sergeants, electrician ser-

geants of the first class, assistant engineers and battalion sergeant majors and battalion supply sergeants of the engineers. i Men receiving $56: Sergeants, first class, of the medical department. Men receiving s7l: Hospital sergeants, master engineers of the junior grade and engineers. Men receiving $81: Quartermaster sergeants of the senior grade of the quartermaster corps, band leaders, master signal electricians, master electricians, master engineers of the senior grade and master hospital sergeants. Assignment to Special Duties. These are the established grades of the enlisted men, but they may variously be assigned to such special duties as chauffeurs, switchboard operators, cobblers, clerks, camoufleurs, sanitary inspectors, draftsmen, stevedores, accountants, plumbers and such other occupations and trades as are necessary to meet the requirements of army service. In addition to the rates of pay for enlisted jnen heretofore mentioned, supplemental jiay or allowances are made as follows: (1) Increased pay is allowed for continuous service, computed under what is known as “enlistment period.’* An enlistment period ordinarily represents a period of three or four years, dependent upon the law in effect at date of enlistment. There are seven such periods, covering a period of service of 1 year to more than 18 years provided for, and the Increases range from $3 to $24 per month, according to the grade and length pf service. Men in the grade of private calling for S3O per month are increased $3 per month during the second enlistment period, an additional $3 during the third enlistment period, and $1 per month for each additional enlistment period to include the seventh enlistment period. Men above the S3O grade and up to and Including the S3B grade are entitled to $3 per month additional pay for each enlistment period from the second to the seventh for each successive enlistment period. Men above the S3B grade hre entitled to $4 per month additional pay for each enlistment period from the second to the seventh. Some Additional Ratings. (2) Enlisted men of the coast artillery, below grade of mess sergeant, are entitled to the following additional ratings, according to established Individual qualifications: Casement electricians, observers of the first class, plotters and coxswains, $9 per month; chief planters, observers of second class, chief loaders, gun commanders and gun pointers, $7 per month; enlisted men of the field artillery—expert first-class gunners, $5 per month; firstclass gunners, $3 per monthand sec-ond-class gunners, $2 per month; enlisted men of the cavalry, engineers and Infantry—expert riflemen, $5 per month; sharpshooters, $3 per month; enlisted men of the medical depart-' ment surgical assistants, $5 per month; nurse (enlisted man), $3 per month, and dispensary assistant, $2 per month. (3) Enlisted men of the signal corps, while pn duties which require them to participate regularly in aero flights, assuming that they have rating of aviation mechanician, receive 50 per cent Increase In their monthly pay. . Housing and Subsistence. (4) All enlisted men, while on detached duty not in the field where there are no army quarters available, receive In addition to their pay sls per month to cover the expense of housing and also a suitable allowance for subsistence and for heat and light. (5) Enlisted men, if serving in a foreign country or beyond the continental limits of the United States (Porto Rico, Hawaii and Panama canal zone excepted) receive 20 per cent increase in pay computed on the base pay and service pay prevailing prior to June 1, 1917, when an act of congress Increased, for the “term of the emergency,” the pay of all enlisted men in amounts ranging from 50 per cent to 8 per cent. (6) Enlisted men attached to the United States Military academy are entitled to the same pay and allowances as other enlisted men of the regular army of the same grade and additional compensation provided for performing

ENTRANCE TO DUGOUT

His letter home ’may be composed rinder these difficult conditions and in a concealed “cranny** of this sort.

‘SMILEAGE’ BOOKS WILL CHEER THE SOLDIERS

Camp Devens, Ayer, Mass.— “Smileage books” for the soldiers is the latest device for making the man-ln-khakl’s life as cheerful as possible while at cantonment camps. “Smileage books” are Issued by authorities in charge of camp amusements and are guaranteed to contain 100 good times for any recruit fortunate enough to possess one, which will cost $5.

certain duties upon detail therefor Id orders. The Pay of Officers. Officers of the army are paid according to rank held by them. A second lieutenant receives $141.67 Initial pay per month; first lieutenant, $166.67; captain, $200; major, $250; lieutenant colonel, $291.67, and a colonel, $333.33, with an Increase of 10 per cent known as longevity pay- for each period of five years of service, provided that such increase shall not exceed 40 per cent The ’ pay of q. brigadier general is $6,000 per year; major general, $8.000; lieutenant general, $9,000, and a general, SIO,OOO. These officers receive no increase for continuous service. All officers are entitled to be furnished public quarters, with fuel and light, byt if these cannot be provided the officers receive a commuted money value of the same. The allowance for quarters for a second lieutenant is two rooms, or $24 per month; for a first lieutenant, three rooms or commutation of $36 per month; a captain, four rooms or commutation of S4B; major, five rooms or commutation of S6O; lieutenant colonel, six rooms or commutation of $72; colonel, seven rooms or commutation of SB4; brigadier general, eight rooms or commutation of $96; major generat nine rooms or commutation of $108; lieutenant general, ten rooms or commutation of $120; and a general, eleven rooms oi* commutation of $132. All receive a suitable allowance for heat and light, dependent upon the locality of their stations and the season. While on foreign service officers receive an increase of 10 per cent of their base pay and longevity pay. Aerial Flight Increases. Aviation officers of the signal corps, or officers attached to the signal corps, while on duty which requires them tot participate regularly and frequently in l aerial flights, are entitled to an Increase in the pay of their grade, under* their commissions, as follows: Aviation officers, 25 per cent; junior military aviators, 50 per cent; military! aviators, 75 per cent. Each junior military aviator and each military aviator duly qualified and serving has the! rank, pay and allowances of one grade! higher than that held by them under their commissions, provided that the ranks under thplr commissions are not higher than that of captain. For deeds of valor, recognized by acts of congress, officers and enlisted! men receive certificates of merit which! entitle them to an additional compensation of $2 per month. Allowances at Retirement. Enlisted men can apply for retirement after 30 years of service. They* are * retired on 75 per cent of the monthly pay drawn at the time of retirement, and $15.75 a month additional in lieu of allowances. Officers are retired for disability or after sixty-four years of age, and receive 75 per cent of the pay of the grade held at date of retirement. An enlisted man in active service has no necessary personal expenses except" for barber and laundry. Uniforms, underclothing, shoes, hats, quarters, medical attendance and subsistence are supplied them at government expense. Such materials as tobacco, postage, cohfectionery and incidentals of individual taste may be purchased at the post exchange at cost. Officers, while in hospital, are charged $1 per day for subsistence. They are not entitled to clothing or equipment and are required to subsist themselves, purchasing their supplies either from the quartermaster on through the ordinary channels of trade.

RETURNS AFTER TEN YEARS

Wanderer Cornea Back to Old Home In Army Uniform and Then Leaves for France. Chicago.—After ten years of wan-' dering, away from all communication with his family, Howard Clarke, scion of one of the oldest and most distinguished Chicago families’, returned to visit those he left behind for probably the last time. He returned In the uni-, form of a United States soldier. He is now Capt. Howard Clarke, and after a few days here, left to rejoin his regiment at a Pacific port, and his latest! adventure will take him to the battlefields of France.

She Finds Money In Rat Hole.

Kansas City, Mo,—Mrs. Ralph Wildbauhm will buy a Liberty loan bond with $142 which she. recovered from a rat hole recently through the efforts of Arthur Leppert, a patrolman. Mrs. Wildbauhm had placed the money In a hole in the wall of her home. Recently she decided to buy a bond with It, but when she went to get the money it was gone. The police were notified and Patrolman Leppert was sent to investigate. .He heard a scratching noise in an adjoining room, investigated and found a rat hole in the floor. When the flooring was removed he found the rat’s abode lined with currency, but were there.