Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 191, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 August 1918 — Page 2

Give Your Boy a Chance

By BDWIN F. BOWERS,

of TitoVigßantu

Capt. Arthur H.‘ Samuels of the surgeon general’s department told me an Interesting story the other day. ft seems that once upon a time, long before the Mullah of the Hohenzollerns went mad —and slathered up the world —there lived a panhandler who was even more useless and no-account than the average bum of his species. This panhandler was practically illiterate, totally intemperate and utterly hopeless in the Job of being a man. One fine day, while laboring under the tmcorrelating influences of a “hangovert* from a large evening the night before, this poor derelict was shaken from his precarious perch on the brake beam of a “freight.” When the trackmen picked him up, he was minus a left hand —also a right hand and arm. Something occurred while he was in the hospital, something that brought about a rebirth in this tramp—worth possibly a dollar and a half a day from ids neck down, and nothing from his chin to his scalp. . Anatomically he was decidedly curtailed—spiritually he had grown great. For, provided with artificial hands, this reborn man started out to make something 'useful and creditable of himself. He sold papers, and became self-supporting. He hewed out an education, climbing slowly and painfully up from the pit of ignorance he had settled into by gravitation. One position after another he conquered—like the ancient Pistol, who vociferously insisted that “the world was his oyster.” Finally our hero —he was a hero by this time, although he himself never suspected it —qualified for a college course, took his B. A., studied law, hung out his shingle, and rapidly became one of the leading authorities on corporation law In his section. He interested himself in politics, and developed an enviable sphere of influence in his party. Raised a Family. Oh, yes—and he married a sweet Southern girl, and has two beautiful children. And they all lived happily ever after. ft’s a splendid and inspiring thing—this regeneration of a man —this growth of a soul. It kind of “gets you” —with a little catch in. the throat/ I tell the story as Captain Samuels told it to me, because some of the boys we are sending overseas will return disabled each year of the fighting. Many of -these will be crippled in arms, legs or eyes. They’ll need, first of all, a spiritual stiffening in their spinal columns. Then they’ll need some kind of vocational re-education —they’ll need to know, even though handicapped by the loss of members, how to do the thing they did before they went over to battle for a cause as high and nobl6 as ever enlisted the lance of a Bayard or a Galahad. If this rehabilitation is not possible, they’ll need to know how to do something else that will make them self-supporting—self-respecting. In this they are going to receive the help of Uncle Sam himself, and of the very best brains the old gentleman can enlist for this reconstruction service. In every section of the country, coordinating with a central agency at Washington, “curative workshops” for the treatment of those crippled In war will be established—together with a complete system of providing food, shelter, clothing and pay for the soldiers during the period of their re-edu-cation.

After the. boys are trained —reeducated to their old trade or else to one adapted to their capacities—thpy will be provided with a “job.” Those who show enough gold to the pan from the neck up will get a “position.” Here there is no limit to the possibilities. It’s up to the man himself. From his neck up he may be worth SIOO,OOO a year. * Practically every big employer of labor in the community is enlisted in the good cause to help the handicapped boy get all that’s coming to him. Which is all that any boy of real spirit could expect, or would accept • There’s po charity in this proposition —merely an honest sincere effort to make every man —no matter in what condition he may be —most useful to himself, his family, and to the economic needs of his community. Woman's Help Is Needed. 1 Now, here’s where we need the good help of women —the mothers, wives, sisters and sweethearts of the boys. It’s going to take a little time to do this work of re-education. Give the boys this time. Let them stay with their teachers in these schools until they are once more fitted to earn a living. ** The very greatest injury you could possibly put upon your physically injured boy would be to turn him into a psychical cripple—to suffocate him in maudlin rentimentallty. Don’t for the great love you bear him, don’t take him home, and make him a dependent. That you are willing to toll and slave for him is most praiseworthy in you. But your wellmeant efforts may transform a self-re-specting earnest man into an idler —a handicap to you and a terrible enemy to himself. It may put the “reverse English” in the little story Captain Samuels told me. Tn Germany, they are using from 85

to 90 per cent of all their disabled men back of the lines, while the remaining 10 to 15 per cent are entirely self-supporting. Take a lesson from these scientific savages. that your dear boy may come home to you safe and sound, but if he should be hurt give us a chance to bring out all that there is in him, to place him in the very best possible condition to work for his future, and for the future of those who love him. And so you will do most for him, most for yourself, and most for the country he gave so much to save.

M. D.

RED CROSS LEAGUE OF LOVE

. „of the Vigilantes. O League of Kindness, woven in all lands, You bring Love’s tender mercies In your hands: Above all flags you lift the conquering sign. And hold, invincible, Love’s battle line. O League of Kindness, in your far-fluni bands, , You weave a chain that reaches to God’s hands; And where blind guns are plotting for the grave, Yours are the Ups that cheer, the arm! that save. O League of Kindness, in your flag W« see A foregleam of the brotherhood to be In ages when the agonies are done, When all will love and all will lift ar one.

of the Vigilantes. If the war goes on (as it seems likely to do) we may come’ to Doctor Kellogg’s way of thinking and cut out the raising of pigs altogether. He estimates that it takes nearly ten pounds of corn to make a pound of pork, and that when we get the pork we are worse off than if we had none. This, I suspect, is true, for I, under orders of my doctor, have had no pork of any kind for three years. Kellogg is an extreme vegetarian, of course, and his statements must be read in the light of that fact And yet he has logic on Why continue to feed the most vital food of the human race to droves of animals whose flesh is admitted to be unwholesome to many people and without which all of us would be better off? Another curious reflection comes in when discussing the raising of any kind of flesh food. How much of the corn or oats goes to supply energy for exercise on the part of the animal? Every time a pig or steer takes a trot or a gallop around the yard a considerable amount of food is used up in a muscular action. This sounds like a Joke, but it isn’t, it is a serious observation on the part of vegetarians.

The Germans, with their usual efficiency, have taken these matters in hand. They have decreased the number of pigs not only to save food, but to preserve a certain balance In the ration. .We may yet come to Kellogg’s point of view and begin the reduction of pork raising to save corn, retaining only enough pigs to act as scavengers of the kitchen refuse. This much we can do, we can feed our hogs with care. .1 wonder how many Western farmers still feed their pigs as they used to do by throwing the corn into the pen? At that time, with com at 15 cents a bushel, it didn’t matter how much was trampled ipto the mire, but now the case is different. We are, careful to clean our own plates, and yet I am not sure that the farmers are making their cattle feed go as far as it might by careful rationing. Animals used to be overfed on our farms. Are they being scientifically fed now? Corn and wheat can win this war, and when the final choice is made pigs must go, cotton and wool be reduced in amount, and cattle be raised without exercise and in the most economical way. As I write these things I am suddenly taken anew with the wonder of the changes that have come to this America of ours. That we of all nations of the world should be seriously considering how to conserve our food supply, makes clearer than any other measure the appalling blight which the war, with its destructive agencies, has thrown over the entire earth. It is incredible but it is true. It is not only true, but is becoming each day more vital in our thinking. How shall we feed the allies, ourselves and the waves of the North sea? We must double production, we must save, and we must use with scientific precision.

By LAURA E. RICHARDS

of the Vigilantes. “Oh! isn’t It dreadful?" "the neighbor said; "Isn’t it dreadful?” said she; “To send your boy to be murdered there, Away across the sea! The boy you bore and the boy you nursed, In travail and pride and pain, the heart of you and the eyes of you. To be foully smitten and slain!” “Now hold your peace" said the Wat Mother; (And the sound of the guns in her ear!; “If these are the words- for you to speak. They are not for me to. hear. The half of my heart Is with my son, But the half that here must stay, It beats as high and it beats as proud As his own brave heart today. "Now hold your peace!” said the Wai Mother. (And the sound of the guns to her heart!) "My son and I stand side by side, However the seas may part. It’s he with the sword and I with th< word; God give us both to thrive! Come Me, come death, to our last b_.ea.th God grant us so to strivat”

By EDWIN MARKHAM

CORN VS. PORK

By HAMLIN GARLAND

STREET TALK

THE EVENTNO REPUBLICAN. RENSSELAER. IN3.

AFFECTED BY ICE DEPOSITS

Seeming Proof That Crust of the Earth Has Had Periods of Rising and Falling. The elastic character of the earth’s crust is one of thfe most certain facts of observation; great areas rise and fall under the action of varying pressures. It is, therefore-, reasonable to suppose that the accumulation in pleistocene times of vast continental glaciers one or two miles In depth would exert such downward weight pressure as to cause a subsidence of the great areas affected. This seems to be borne out by a marked and very apparent rise of land in the northeastern section of the North American continent, in comparatively recent times. H. L. Fairchild, writing in Science, states that this area, covered by the latest American ice sheet, the Labradorian glacier, stood much below its present position, relative to sea level, when the ice sheet melted off, and that a slow uplift brought the land to its present altitude. This is indicated by the presence of the rctnafns of sea animals and plants throughout inland parts, by beach formations In parts now away from the sea and general geological considerations. The region of this recent rise of land extends from New Jersey to Hudson strait and as far inland as Wisconsin.

COMBINE TRUTH AND HUMOR

Pithy Epitaphs on Tombstones in British Cemeteries Are Worth More Than Passing Notice. In a Search for the unusual, one would scarcely expect to come across it on a tombstone. But full Justice can in some cases be done to a deceased in a single word. There is a stone in Leamington cemetery dedicated to the memory of one J. T. Burgess, who before laying aside the trammels of this mundane sphere edited the Leamington Spa Courier. His career and end are adequately summed up in one word —“Resting.” A departed auctioneer who lived In the city of Worcester had inscribed on his memorial stone as an epitaph, “Gone.” Brief, economical and retrospective. In a Sussex graveyard may be seen a stone on which are chiseled, after the name and date of death of the deceased, Just two expressive words —“He was.” Surely a sermon In a nutshell. But two of the strangest as well as the briefest epitaphs are to be found on stones in Cane Hill cemetery, Belfast. On one of them, erected to the memory ‘ of a lazy fellow by one who evidently knew him well, are the words, -“Asleep (as usual).” On the other, “Left Till Called For.” A certain photographer has this inscribed over his grave, “Here I lie, Taken From Life.” —London Tit-Bits.

Diet for Weight Reduction.

■' Fuel is the main food requirement of the body. A certain amount of fuel keeps the engines of the body working normally and produces energy. The surplus of fuel derived from the food forms layers of fat. So it is evident that the matter of keeping the body weight where you'wish to have it is merely a matter of arithmetic, says Popular Science Monthly. Certain foods have an enormqus fuel value in comparison with others. For instance, it would require $9 worth of lettuce and tomato salad to furnish the amount of energy that 30 cents’ worth of butter or 10 cents’ worth of sugar would supply. No one would think of feeding exclusively on any of these foods, but it is easy to see that the limitation of butter and sugar and the introduction of such foods as lettuce,' tomatoes, celery, carrots, spinach and fruits, all of which have low fuel value, instea'd of fats, milk, cream and oil, pastry and sweets, would enormously reduce the fat-forming elements in the diet and yet fill the stomach and satisfy hunger.

Childish Selfishness.

Unselfishness is one of the virtues which has to be cultivated, for we are not born unselfish. We have to be, taught this virtue and of course the greatest teacher of all is love. I am inclined to think love is the only teacher. Henderson say», “To get chßtJren interested in impersonal things' is to make them unavoidably unselfish. Solitary children, only sons and daughters, are, as a rule, ■ extremely selfish, for the simple reason that their lives have been so overwhelmingly personal. The way out |s through group activities on the part of the whole family through pleasures as well as through service. If life is to be permanently successful, and happiness genuine and secure, the major interest must be impersonal, must have to do with something bigger than the little self, must concern itself with the abiding and universal things.”—Alice Barton Harris.

How to Remove Oil Stains.

To remove oil stains from leather and paper, etc., apply pipe-clay powdered and mixed with water to the thickness of cream, and leave it on for four hours. This will not injure the best colors. For boards, marble and other stones make a strong solution of carbonate of potash and water and add as much unslaked lime as it will absorb. Then stir it together and let It settle a few minutes; bottle it and cork tightly. Have some water ready to dilute It when used and scour the part with it. Don’t leave the solution too long on the boards or it will draw the color out of them. '

CAVALRY PLAYS A BIG PART NOW

General Foch Used French Horsemen to Advantage in Big Drive. PROVE GOOD FIGHTERS AFOOT . J ' Rides 80 Mlles In Day and Relieves Hard-Pressed British in Flanders —Makes New Place for Self In Warfare. Washington.—Skillful use of French cavalry has marked General Foch’s tactics ever since he took over control of the allied armies, as supreme commander, according to information reaching military circles here. The horsemen have played an important role in the whole battle of 1918, as the struggle which began March 21 with the first German drive has come to be known. The employment of swift-moving columns in the present counter-stroke from the Aisne-Marne line has been noted tn the dispatches. Again General Foch took advantage of the great mobility of the mounted artn to throw it in wherever his advancing Infantry units threatened to lose touch with each other in the heat and confusion of the contest. No gaps have been left where the enemy might strike back, for always the horsemen came up to fill the hole until the infantry line could be rectified and connected in a solid front.

The same tactics marked the first use of French cavalry in the battle.of Picardy, when the French took over 55 miles of front from the British to permit the latter t<? mass reserves at seriously threatened points of the line farther north. Cavalry Fights Afoot. A French cavalry corps complete with light artillery, armored cars and cyclists arrived first on the scene in Picardy and relieved the British. They fought it out afoot until the heavy French infantry arrived and tobk over the task. Three days later the horsemen were on the move again, this time hurrying to the front, where the enemy was hitting hard at the Lys line. The cavalry rode hard as the advance guard of the French infantry columns marched toward St. Omar. In the first 24 hours, despite the long strain of fighting in Picardy, they covered 80 miles without losing a man or a horse on the way. In 66 hours they had transferred their whole corps over 125 miles and arrived east of Mont Cassel. “It was a wonderful sight,” writes the chief of staff of a division. “The horses were in fine condition; the men were cheerful and went singing, in spite of the sufferings and privations they had to endure. “In truth, our boys looked a little tired, but they were all very proud that such an effort had been asked of them and all were bearing it cheerfully.” The cavalry corps stood in support of the British for ten days in April after the enemy had forced the line held by the Portuguese division. It maintained communication between two British armies and organized the ground from Mont Cassel to Mont Kemmel, while the French army moved up behind It. As the French infantry came into line the cavalry was drawn off to the left in the Mont Kemmel region, and for five days the horsemen, fighting afoot with two infantry divisions, withstood the terrific assaults of the Germans who sought to hammer a way through behln'd Ypres at any cost. They stood steady bombardment for days, and when the infantry was hemmed in on top of Mont Kemmel, the cavalry drove forward in counterattack and held off the shock divisions of the enemy while the French gunners got their pieces away. Later, at the battle of Locre, the cavalry also shared fully with the infantry, blocking gaps in the line, and the final definite occupation of the town for the allies was accomplished by a cavalry battalion. A sergeant and a handful of dragoons drove 40 Germans out of the town, and at another point a cavalry officer and 20

MUSTARD GAS WORST

Most Horrible Invention Huns Use in War. It Brings Tears and Causes Pa’nful Skin Diseases Among Soldiers. Washington.—The most dangerous kind of poison gas used by the Germans is “mustard gas,” or dichlorodiethysulphide. Mustard gas has a distinctive but not altogether unpleasant smell, more like garlic than mustard. It is heavy fend oily as a liquid. It boils at 217 degrees centigrade, and thus has properties whereby it can be distributed in the form of a spray on the Impact of a shell. Mustard gas Is a powerful producer of tears. After several hours the eyes begin to swell and blister, causing intense psin The nose discharges freely.

men backed up the infantry at a critical moment, the officer waving a pistol in one hand and a shovel in the other as he led the dash which restored the situation. Defend Compeigne. A few days later the same cavalry, after another long ride, met the enemy advance against VHlers-Cottefets woods In the Aisne sector, where the fighting today Is waging fiercely, and where the horsemen again are engaged. When the Germans drove forward in their effort, to get around the forest to Compeigne, the horsemen blocked the road between the wooded region and the River Ourcq. In view of this record for swift and dashing attack afoot, the cavalry appears to have established a new place for Itself in modern warfare. They

DEFECTS SPELL DEATH IN FLYING

New York. —Considerable concern has been expressed at the large number of fatal accidents reported from our American military and naval aviation training camps. Considering the risks the novice necessarily takes and the very special physiological and psychological factors that enter into the science of'flying, these fatal accidents are few in proportion to the number of men undergoing training, and they are not more numerous than those on the training fields of Great Britain, France an<J Italy. A perfect knowledge of all the rules of the game of flying will not save a man who .lacks confidence in .himself and is inclined to hesitate. A halfsecond of indecision may be fatal. Initiative, the sporting instinct and a certain irresponsibility, qualities inherent in American youth, have been found of far greater value in the air than the logical, scientific, severely disciplined character of the Germans, and account for the superiority of the allied aviators in general. The most eminent of British scientists have devoted special study to the psychological and physiological aspects of flying. One authority says that good eyesight, normal hearing, good “muscle sense” and equilibration are indispensable qualifications. But most important of all is the right temperament—not an easy thing for a medical board to examine. Of the types—the imaginative and the unimaginative—the imaginative youth is said to make the better pilot if he can keep his imagination under control. Surgical Operations No Bar. In the British air service previous history of wdunds and disease is thoroughly investigated. Persistent headaches, vertigo and easily induced fatigue are serious defects. But sometimes even a serious surgical operation is not regarded as important. Thus a doctor recently passed as fit for flying a man who had quite a large piece missing from the frontal region

FRENCH 155 FIRING FROM A COURTYARD

' This French 155 gun is shown firing from lts place of concealment in the courtyard of a country house.

and severe coughing and vomiting ensue. Direct contact with the spray causes blistering of the skin, and the vapor penetrates through the clothing. Gas masks, of course, do not protect against this. The symptoms are similar to pneumonia high fever, heavy breathing and often stupor. The damage done by mustard gas Is a slow and insidious development The breaking down of the affected tissues is slow, the height being reached from five to ten days after the burn is received. The painlessness Is also a marked characteristic. Healing is slow. Mustard gas besides being used in direct attack, is also used for “neutralization.” For instance, where supplies and ammunition are being brought up, a few mustard gas shells will result in dangerous confusion and delay. A part erf the infantry is “neutralized” hyhwvlng food and ammunition cut

FIDO’S BATH AND 3 MEALS ASSURED

Spokane, Wash. —One thousand dollars to provide three meals a day, a bath and a bed for her pet dog is' a provision of the, will of Mrs'. Quincy f?ur gess, recently admitted to probate. When the dog dies the will provides that it shall be buried beside its late owner. A “nice casket” is to ba used and the dog’s grgve Is to be properly cared for./.

are the light reserves; the men who are always hurled first into the point, of danger to hold until the slow-mov-ing infantry arrives. They have learned trench warfare completely,, and General Foch,is making use of them in any move that insures them 1 a glorious chance when the day comes for the allies to drive back all along the line. . •

of the skull. It is much more important that a man should have both arms intact than both legs. A clevert pilot who was killed on the western! front was Lord Lucas, who had an! artificial leg. Considerable importance is attached to the respiratory system. In addition to good, healthy lungs and vital capacity, the would-be pilot must pass a bteath-holdlng test. This gives an Indication of his capacity to stand the strain of flying at high altitudes, where the air Is rarefied and breathing is difficult. No ipan with a weak heart can hope to pass the tests. Self-baldncing is another test. The candidate has to stand on one leg with his eyes shut and his hands on his hips. There is also the old test for sobriety—walking a straight line heel to toe with eyes open and then turnipg round and walking back without losing balance. The importance of this test can be understood, seeing that an aviator flying in a dark cloud or in a fog becomes unconscious of his position and sometimes the machine is actually upside down. It is essential that he should not lose a second in recovering his balance. The throat, nose arid ear are carefully examined, for any defects might seriously handicap a man during the great strain that all flying imposes. With regard to the eyes, it is considered that pilots should have perfect color vision, in order to pick out the color or marking of hostile machines, and In recognizing signal lights and in judging the nature of landing grounds. Air Sickness Rare. A candidate who suffers from seasickness or train sickness would not be rejected on those grounds alone. Air sickness, caused by the'rolling and pitching of the airplane, is a very rare complaint, and sickness usually occurs immediately after landing. An unstable nervous system suggested by fidgety movements of the hands, feet or face, or biting the nails is a poor recommendation. .

down. If the shell hurts as well a# neutralizes, so much the better. The American mask to fight mustard gas is of the box respirator type. The hood is of rubber. Breathing is through the mouth, pincers shutting off the nostrils. The gas-charged air enters through the bottom of the canisters, where by means of neutralizing chemicals, it is purified. From the top of the canister the air is drawn into the lungs. There is a one-way shutter valve tn the hood through which the air comes out This mask is designed to last ten hours. For artillerymen the war department has made an oil suit which encloses the soldier bodily.

Rob Sewing Machine Bank.

Sharon, Pa.—Mrs. James Basel waited two weeks to report that someone had stolen $1,300 from her sewing machine drawer bank.

\ Mine fatalities in British Colurjofa for the first quarter of the present yeur totaled five, compared with seven in the corresponding three months la 1917.