St. John's Daily Star, 1918-12-26

              The St. John's Daily Star Newfoundland VOLUME IV. ($3.00 per Annum) <^&»] THURSDAY, DECEMBER 26, 1918. (PROBS : S. W. to N. W. Gales; Rain or Snow) No. 286. No Neutral Delegates at The Peace Conference Allies May Keep German Shipping off High Seas KING SAVED SITUATION Obviated Possibility of Riot Over Place Arranged for Haig in Foch's Reception Procession. PLANS WERE VETOED BY HIS MAJESTY tioning the king's name, intimates i that his majesty vetoed plans for j having Field Marshal Haig here when j Field Marshal Foch and Premier I Clemenceau recently attended the \ inter-allied conference saying: "The genuine warmth of Haig's \ greeting must have made him smile ! at the proposal made to i \sim a few weeks ago. Field Marshal \Jflaig, commander-in-chief of the j British army, was invited by tele- Im to drive in the fourth carriage i the Foch procession, behind j ons Orlando and Sonnino." Df course, Haig. who before all j igs is a loyal soidier, was ready run after the tenth carriage if he 5 ordered to do so by the war incil. Happily a very august perwho was in France, at once oed the arrangement which would bably have provoked a riot. i w i  Armed Clash In Berlin Daris, Dec. 25—Details of a clasTi ween the sailors and government ops in Berlin on the night of Denber 23-24 are given in a Berlin ■patch received by way of Berne, orts were made in vain to induce marines to leave Berlin and e?-:ially the castle where they have ablished themselves from the bening of the revolution. Huns Retain Big U=Boat Have Yet to Surrender Biggest and Best Submarine. Paris, .Dec. 24—(Havas)—The Germans have not completely complied with the clause of the armistice providing for the delivery of all their :übmarines, according to The Matin. The newspaper points out particularly in this connection the presence at Trondhjem, on the Norwegian coast, cf submarine cruiser U-157. This is a vessel of the most recent type displacing 1800 tons, credited with having made a cruise of four months and a half without making port. Aided Huns Were Fined American Shipping Men Are Penalised in U. S. Court. San Francisco, Dec. 23—C. D. Bunker and R. Swayne, shiping men, (were fined $10,000 each by Federal (judge Van Fleet to-day for connec! tion with a conspiracy whereby the I steamer Sacramento provisioned Gertman warships at sea in violation of I American neutrality. George and James Flood, shipping men, also were fined $5,000 each, Heinrich Gauffman, Chancellor of the former German Consulate, 2,--000, and T. W., Anderson, Captain of the Sacramento, $1,000 for their connection with the conspiracy. The s.s. Earl of Devon will sail at ,6 p.m. tomorrow on this going to Tilt Cove direct. The ship takes a 1 large freight and a full passenger list. SPAIN AFTER GIBRALTAR Count Romanones, Spanish Premier, To Urge Conference to Return Fortress to Spaniards. TO OFFER CEUTA AS AN EXCHANGE DARIS, Dec. 25.—During the recent • visit here of Count Romanones, the Spanish premier, extended consultations are reported to have been held by the premier with French and American statesmen regarding the Moroccan question, which was discussed in both its military and financial phases. The future status of Gibraltar is said also to have come up for consideration. On his arrival at Madrid, Premier Romanones is understood to have expressed great satisfaction over the result of his conferences. It was reported in Paris on Dec. 23, that Premier Romanones planned to return to Paris in the near future to confer with allied and American representatives over questions vitally concerning Spain in connection with the status of Gibraltar. It was declared in some quarters that the Spanish premier contemplated raising the question of its return to Spain, that country expressing willingness, if necessary, to concede Ceuta on the Moroccan side of the [Strait, to Great Britain in exchange 1 for Gibraltar, holding that possession of Ceuta by the British would afford equal strategic advantage in modern warfare. t m* *  Memorial To Wilson Paris, Tuesday, Dec. 24—Italian deputies of the redeemed provinces, who represented their districts in the Vienna and Budapest parliaments, and who come to Paris expressly for the purpose of submitting their case to the American mission have been received by Col. E. M. House. Through Colonel House the deputies presented a memorial to President j Wilson. The Home is at Lewisporte. The Kyle left Port aux Basques at 7 a. m. 275,000 FRENCH  OUT OF CAPTIVITY  ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft * ft Paris, Dec. 25—Two hundred and seventy-five thousand French prisoners have returned from Germany. There still remain in Germany 200,000 Frenchmen, a large number of whom are already homeward bound. MAKE KAISER PAY  WAR INDEMNITY  Basel, Dec. 24 (Havas)— Seizure of property owned by the Prussian royal family, the Hehenzollerns, would produce immediately the sum of 900,--000,000 marks, according to figures compiled by The Frankfort Nahrichten. ' Admirals Dismissed Hipper and Colleagues Are Fired From German Navy c Copenhagen, Dec. 24—Vice-Ad> miral Hipper, commander of the r Baltic fleet, and Capt. Hinke, director b of the dockyards at Kiel, have been 1 dismissed, according to a telegram • from Berlin. 5 Vive-Admiral Hipper was one or ' the commission which arranged the plans for the surrender of the German ships to the auies- H_ succeeded Admiral Scheer a_ head of the high seas fleet. « . Admiral Bachmann had been m command of the Baltic fleet for several years. • m* 9 Police Are Exonerated Sydney, Australia, Dec. 25—(via Reuters Ottawa Agency)—The roy-i al commission investigating the police of this city have exonerated the police from concocting false evidence in the I. W. W. case and have also found that no fresh facts have been elicited to raise doubts as to the; guilt of those convicted. RUSSIA AND ITS AFFAIRS * * Contradictory Views of Intentions of * Entente. * * ' * **„•* ►***#** * ********** No Intervention? DARIS, Dec. 25.—The allied governments have decided against further intervention in Russia, at least for the present, according to indications from official circles. Great Britain and the United States, it is represented, while recognizing that Russia should be assisted in a way to permit her getting back to normal conditions, point out that military intervention on a large scale would involve difficulties and dangers of all kinds. Stephen Pichon, the French foreign minister, explained that situation at length to the committee on foreign relations yesterday. He said, the solution at present favored was to guarantee moral support to the governments which have sprung up at various points on Russian and Siberian territory. Prince Lvoff, who is the guest of Basil Maklakoff, Ruscian ambassador to France and who is participating in the leftgthy conferences being held here by Russian statesmen, discussed his views of the immediate future in- Russia with the representative of the associated press. He said additional entente military forces are r.p-essary to re-tore order and check ■ i » riots in Russia. It is impossible for a disorganised country to right itself."I am not a military expert," he said when asked how many troops would be necessary," and my opinion on that subject would be of little value, but in my judgment 200,000 soldiers would be adequate. The opposion is weak. Petrograd pracitcally has ceased to exist and could be taken with slight reiistencc." i No Interference? Paris, Dec. 24—(Havas)—Important services in an effort to find a ground for co-operation between the allies and United States on the one hand and the order-loving patriotic elements in Russia on the other, were held yesterday at the Russian embassy here, newspapers report. The entente governments, the press accounts declare, are completely in accord in a decision to undertake a military expedition into Russia. It is considered the part of Russia herself to get together her orderly elements which when united, it is declared, ■ will be sent support and practical help by the allied nations and the American republic. NEW .BORDEAUX TO ODESSA TRANS-EUROPE RAILROAD PLAN BEATS BERLIN TO BAGDAD Berlin to Bagdad isn't the only way to link east and west through Europe. " Bordeaux to Odessa is the newest trans-continental railroad i project. It is to be undertaken in a spirit Of co-operation, instead.of being pLumed as a monopoly. With the huge docking facilities created during the war, France will have the greatest fcorts of call in Europe. Through her ports, then, will go the commerce of many nations. I The proposed railroad would pass through Lyons, from Bordeaux, cross Italy, through Turin, Milan, Verona and Venice, touch Trieste, the port on the Adriatic now claimed by both Italy and the Jugo-Slavsv pass through Agram to Belgrade, in Servia, and thence to Bucharest, in Rumania. Thence to Odessa, it would nnd>* terminal on the Black Sea, in Russia. «! I From Bucharest to Constantinople, another line woul'* give connection with Arabia and tho Orient. # _- KEEP ENEMY VESSELS OFF THE HIGH SEAS Drastic Suggestions of London Chamber of Commerce. FULL RESTITUTION I ONDON, Dec. 23—A special committee of the London chamber of commerce dealing with trade during and after the war considers the necessity for imperial preference slronglay than ever. It recommends that the government bs urged to guarantee for a series of years continuance by subsidy or otherwise the i.ew or "key" industries. It recommends also that the peace terms should compel Germany to make the I fullest restitution for all allied ton\ nage and cargoes sunk by enemy acj tion, such reparation to be made in ships, Westphalian coal or money. The committee would compel Germany to enrich France with coal until the deliberately destroyed French mines are re-established and to compensate the relatives of all seamen and passengers murdered at sea. The committee also proposes that as an act of justice to the allies, enemy vessels be not allowed on the sea until the fullest reparation has been made, that no financially controlled enemy tonnage be allowed under neutral flags and that no coaling stations owned or controlled by subjects of enemy countries be permitted in British allied ports or possessions.BRITISH TACKLING ECONOMIC PROBLEMS Official Report On Business Reconstruction After the War. MONEY MATTERS JONDON, Dec. 23 (via Reuters Ottawa Agency)— There will be an increased demand for credit facilities during the reconstruction period and the ability of trade and industry generally to provide for itself in all needs will depend largely on the amount of reserves it has been possible to accumulate, says the report of the committee of the provision of financial facilities for trade after the war issued today by the ministry of reconstruction. The committee is under the chairmanship of Sir Vassar Smith, chairman of Lloyd's bank. There are three main divisions under this head, the repoYt says. They are firms engaged upon war worK from a date soon after the beginning of the war, firms who became engaged en war work at a later period and new firms created as a result of the enormously increased demand for war material. The chief financial difficulty, according to the report, will be in connection with the third group. Uncertainty is the greatest determent to industry and the belief is expressed that the government should announce its future fiscal policy and also make known its stand concerning the rationing of raw materials and the priority of essential industries. There ye also the questions of the determinationLABOR WANTS  SHORTER WEEK  London, Dec. 24—(British wireless service)—Labor unions throughout the United Kingdom are agitating for a forty-four hour week. This would mean eight hours a day on five days of the week and four hours on Saturday. Now Demand More Food Hungarian Statesman Says Allies Have Violated Armistice. Budapest, Dec. 24.—Count Karolyi, the Hungarian leader, in addressing the people's assembly today complained that the allies were not carrying out their part of the armistice agreement. He declared that it was impossible to maintain order while the food necessities of the country remain unsatisfactory. Count Karolyi told the assembly he had sent a message to President Wilson expressing adherence to the president's principle;; and protesting against what he declared were violations of the conditioi s of the armistice he was confidently awaiting the president's decision, he added. APPEALS FOR UNIFICATION German Democratic Socialist Party Outlines Progressive Policy for National Affairs. STRONGLY OPPOSED TO REACTIONARIES fOBLENZ, Dec. 23—(By the A.P.) —Appeals for the union of all the liberal parties which desire a republic and do not wish the new Germany to fall into the hands of either reactionaries or socialists, were made at a meeting Sunday of the German democratic party which assembled m Coblenz to adopt a platform. The party desires a united I Germany including German-Austria, equality before the law of citizens of all classes, male and female, freedom of thought and religion, a free press and a free speech and no arbitrary attacks oon the right of the church. Families with many children, it is declared, should be protected from excessive taxation, so that the burdens may be borne. Strong industry and healthy trade are necessary, as well as freedom of trade from the fetters of war industries. The abolition of war industries is de sired. The party advocates the living of free peasants on free soil. Officials must be insured a livelihood in order to insure good service. There must be sympathetic care for the war wounded and for the dependents of the fallen soldiers which would be made a point of honor in the new government. No Neutral Delegates? Only Representatives of ■lligerents at Peace Conference. : , Dec. 26.—Allied representatives have decided that neutral nations will not be admitted to the peace conference, according to newspapers here. Neutrals may address their claims to belligerents, however, [ and any demands thus made will, be referred to a special body which will be created by the peace conference. It has been decided, it is reported, that neutrals will be allowed to participate in the deliberations incident to the formation of a league of na- TRADE RULES ARE ALTERED _,nairman lvicv^oiiiiiCK, v. S. War Trade Board, An-1 nounces Abolition of Restrictions.SHIPPING IS ONLY HINDRANCE NOW man McCormick of the war trade board, announces a sweeping relaxation of restrictions of exports of Klstuffs, fodders andffeeds to all he pan-American nations. He states that applications for licenses for the exportation of all articles covered by these three classifications with the exception of a brief list will now be received' by the board subject only to the import requirements of the country of destination and to shipping facilities, and that recommendation can be made by the war trade board that all necessary transportation arrangements be made for moving exports to the seaboard.The countries mentioned in the order are Canada, the nations ofi Central and South America, Mexico, i Cuba and the West Indies. The list of j exports names only wheat and white flour, corn, coffee, sugar, butter, creese, eggs, linseed meal and cakes, and cottonseed meal and cake. » m* »  Aerial Merchantmen Paris, Dec. 25—Disarmed German i Zeppelins will be converted into aerTai merchantmen to ply between New York and Hamburg, according to The} Echo de Paris, which says that it has j' received its information from a reli-i, Germans Make Restitution Paris, Dec. 25—The Germans' i have returned stocks from the banks j: in Northern France amounting ap-j< proximately to six billion francs. |1 HUN EXILE'S CHRISTMAS William Hohenzollern, His ' Family and Retinue, Spend Season Quietly in Holland. FORMER KAISER'S HEALTH IMPROVES Holland, Dec. 25— William Hohenzollern's health] shows a marked impiovement, but hi is still compelled to exercise thei greatest precautions owing to thai penetrating damp and cold weather* Since Saturday the former emperoij has not left his suite of apartments! in Amerongen castle, but has been able to join the members of his retinue at all meals. He occupies otheii periods of the day in reading hun« dreds of letters reaching him from)-all parts of the world. He receives only an occasional telegram, ancj ;hese rarely evoke a reply. Several days during his illness the saw only his wife and! rr.mediate attendants. The former-i mpress remains in her apartments, 101 even going to the gardens within he surrounding moats. This morning a Christmas treo, vas brought into the castle for tonight's celebration, which wil lbe a most unpretentions affair. These participating, besides the ex-emperor mi empress, will be a sumber of officers who resigned their commissions in the. German army in order to remain in the vicinity of their former ruler's retreat, and household servants and orderlies. Several of these officers were busy throughout the day arranging details cf the celebration in which count yon Bentick will participate. They purchased presents which the former emperor and exchange according to custom, and also gifts for ihdjr attendants. The ex-emr.eror is as yet undecided about making a public declaration and still declines to receive and correspondents. » » ■  GOT BIG HAUL OF PRECIOUS STONES Robbers Get Big Collection of Diamonds in Montreal Office. Montreal, Dec. 23—Diamonds with some rubies and emeralds to the cost value of $75,000 and worth upwards of $100,000 to-day was the net bag made by robbers who blew i open the safe at the office of L. J. Michaelson Sons, Bth floor, Eastern Township Bank Building, in the city in the early hours of this morning. The entire contents of the safe were cleaned out, while another safe containing $10,000 worth of diamonds was left intact. The loss is such that the firm and the insurance companies are making every effort to , trace the thieves.  THRILLING EXPLOITS OF E=14 BRITISH SUB., ARE DESCRIBED Last Daring Trip Was Made Up Dardanelles, Wher* She Was Destroyed A fter Sinking Ammunition Ship. 'Ed a heavy fire but did not hit her. She submerged to a hundred feet and continued on her course, but became unsteady and kept diving, so she was brought to the surface as she •:ould no longer be relied upon under v«-ater and only three bottles of air were left. A heavy fire immediately opened from both sides of the straits and a shell hit the hull just over the wardroom destroying the upper steering gear. An E-14 survivor says: "Orders were given to steer from below and we ran the gauntlet for half ah hour, only a few shots hit- a ting us. The captain seeing- it was1 hopeless to escape, ran towards the shore. His last words were: 'We are in God's hands." Only a few seconds! later I looked for him and saw his body mangled by shell fire roll into the water and go under. The last shell hit the starboard saddle tank killing all I believe. The submarine) soon afterwards ran into a sandbank close in shore and the Turks picked] up th_ survivors." -■*-*'—*i-i~ ,*****' [OiNDON, Dec. 25 (via Renter's Ottawa Agency)—The finest of all tales of the achievements of British submarines in war time is now completed by the official story of the sinking of the famous submarine E-14 off the Dardanelles early in 1918 with the loss of her new com-| mander, Lieut.-Commander Geoffrey j White, and all except seven of the: The E-14 left Mudros on the even-! ing of January 27th and proceeded up the Dardanelles to search for the; Goeben. After diving under submar-j ine nets, she found the Goeben,! which the enemy had moved a few, hours previously, had gone, so commander White turned back, keeping a sharp look-out for enemy craft. A torpedo was fired at a ship which it transpired carried the Goe-j ben's ammunition, causing a heavy explosion which extinguished the submarine's lights and sprung the forehatch. Leaking badly, the submarine rose to within fifteen feet of the surface. Forts immediately open-j {Continued on Page 4) ;pl!U!llllllllllllllllllllll!l!lill!lil!!llll!lll||||||||lll!||||||||H I SANTA CLAUS I I HAS COME TO I I Bowring's | With a Big Assortment J XMAS TOYS f I For The Kiddies. j |All New And | I Up-to-Datej I Come Early | H  J For Your | I Selection. | I Bowring Bros., Ltd. I I Drapery Department | lii<i!lll<l!l!lH!!!lilii:i!i;ill!!lll]llli!!l!ll!lill!i!l!lll!i!ll!li!l!ll!ll!!IHlllilllll!llil