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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1915-10-21, Page 6National Duty in War 1 ol11 The Relinel Table. III. London, Eng, Sept: 22. -The prin- eiple that we should set wider orders to the end of the war applies no loss A' to the industrial than the military sphere. It applies to every depart- ment of national supply—to the agri- culturist, to the transport worker, to the skilled factory band, to the em- ployer and his machines, to casual labor. The activities of 45,000,000 human beings can be co-ordinated and directed to a single end only through the impalpable cohesion which willing and loyal service gives. Discipline a essence is prompt and exact obedience to orders. And in wartime the nation, if it is to do its work properly, must, no less than the army, put itself under discipline. But on the industrial plane it can- not be done by law. The Government cannot give orders to every individual as to how he should employhimself to the end of the war. National ser- vice in industry must be introduced primarily by public opinion. The national unity of Germany or France, their efficiency and spirit, their subordination of all questions of person or class to the supreme busi- ness of war, is not due to statutes or to fear of punishment, but to a self- imposed national discipline, directed and encouraged by Government, but in its essence of popular origin. And in this country unity and efficiency will only come through national disci- pline similarly self-imposed. It is not until every worker, every employ- er, every farmer, resolves to do what- ever will serve his country best in this the day of its trial, whatever it may cost, that we shall get efficient orga- nization and inner peace. This spirit is specially difficult to introduce in the industrial sphere. Unfortunately the war has caught the British Isles at the crisis of the strug- gle between capital and labor. In- . dustry itself has become a sort of trench warfare in which positions are won or retained only after long and desperate fighting. In consequence, to a large proportion of the popula- tion duty to the State has been al- most forgotten m the more pressing claims of duty to their class. Sud- denly another and more real war has intervened, with an imperative de- mand on both sides to abandon their strife and bend all their energies to increasing the output of supplies. This they have so far been unable to do. The ill -feeling betweenemploy- ers and labor is not abated; neither side will make much advance towards compromise, and, in consequence, strikes still occur, and the output of supplies is grievously delayed. In the industrial sphere there is as yet no united front to the foe. It is mani- festly shared by both sides. And fundamentally the reason is the same. The war is not to be allowed to en- danger the positions they occupy on the industrial battle -ground. The rights of property are not to be seri- ously infringed, the rights of labor are not to be seriously impaired even during the war. Neither side, in fact, is willing to make the sacrifices which must inevitably be made if they are one and all to do their own full duty in the war. It is obviously difficult for two armies to suspend their quarrel • and to substitute spontaneous and ener- getic co-operation for competition and suspicion. It is, therefore, the business of the State to lay down the terms of a temporary settlement which, by guaranteeing to each side as far as possible the essentials of their own positions after the war, will justify it in calling upon both to combine to increase the output of munitions to the utmost possible ex- tent till victgry is won. The princi- ples of the settlement are not difficult to see. On the one hand, all special war profits, of whatever kind—that is, profits over and above the average of the pre-war rate—must be diverted from private pockets into the coffers of the State, so that every man should feel that if he is working harder, he is working for the State and not for private gain. On the other hand, the right to strike and regulations re- stricting output must be abandoned, so that the output can be increased to the maximum which efficient organi- zation and hard work can give. No settlement, however safeguard- ed, can be expected to restore pre-war conditions when the war is over. The war itself is changing them perma- nently. The totally new economic world in which we shall soon live will change them still more. With the best w g not only on men and munitions. It will, es Napoleon found, depend even more qn money. We have hardly be- gun to recognize this truth in prat- rice, We are spending more than the other nations and getting less, In another article the problem of econ- omy is examined in greater detail. Its eonelusion, amounts to this, that we cannot assume that give shall be uble to last out the, enemy unless we get far more for our expenditure than we do to -day, and unless we ef- fect ruthless' economics in our pri- vate expenditure, especially on im- ported supplies. The first aspect of the problem is mainly for the Government. They alone can decide where economies can be effected in our public expenditure. Not the smallest cause of waste is the prevailing idea that everybody and every locality has a right to make as much profit as they can out of the tremendous outlay of public money that is now going on. That idea is quite inconsistent with any true prin- ciple of national service. If national service were carried into universal effect everybody would serve the country for a living wage according to their .own standard of living, till the end of the war. But while any such drastic revolution as that is out of place in the middle of war, some steps can be towards it. Large savings, at any rate, can be made at the expense, not of the comforts' of the soldier, but of the profits of the stay-at-homes, by a ruthless cutting down of billeting rates and contract prices, and by careful economy of supe lies everywhere. os The second aspect of the financial problem is for ourselves. The Gov- ernment has already declared that drastic personal economy is necessary partly so that the savings effected may be invested in the war loan, partly so that, by reducing the quan- tity of foreign imports, we may les- sen also the bill we have to pay abroad. It is for us now to carry these orders out. If we are all to do our share to help to win the war, we must set about economizing in every possible way ourselves. In this all have a part to play. No economy is too small, whether it be in food, ma- terial like petrol and tires, or luxur- ies, for it not to affect the balance of 'RUSSIAN REINFORCEMENTS ON THEIR. WAY TO THWART ENVELOPING PLANS OR THE GERMANS /NOTOORAPK QNOERW000 m P. In the engagements around Ulna the Rus ian city taken by. the Germans, huge bodies of German cavalry endeavored to cut of the Russian armies retreating from the city In the vicinity of Dvinsk. which is now the centre of attack by the Teutonic forces. Countermoving the German plan. the Russians sent their cavalry with all haste to tae vicinity • of Dvinsk to defeat the plan of the. Teutons. WEIRD VISITORS AT THE WAR OFFICE HARD MATTER TO INTERVIEW LORD KITCHENER. The Strange Callers Who Try to See Members of the Cabinet. You have hard work indeed to get trade. And no sum withheld from i into the War Office nowadays when expenditure on some private pleasure you wish to see anybody important is too small to invest in the national I there. For a host of guards of one loan. In the aggregate the effect will sort of another have to be satisfied, be immense, and our conduct for the Passed, and propitiated ere you come rest of the war may determine whe- to the man you want to see. Nor is then we are able to last out an end this provision unnecessary, for every which is decisive. Months ago the day sees an eccentric man or woman Germans began to work for victory trying to get an interview with some in this way. We have now to make notability in the various Government up for lost time by still greater reso- lution in the task. Finally, in order to enforce econ- omy, as well as to. ease the industrial position, drastic new taxation may be necessary. This may mean—it probe - in London Answers. "I want to see Lord Kitchener, that's what I want!" exclaimed a re- cent visitor to the War Office indig- nantly, when he was stopped by a bly ought to mean—the sweeping of burly policeman, and asked to show all special war profits over and above his pass at the Whitehall Avenue en- trance. "No, I haven't any pass. But I've invented something which will drive all'the Germans out of Belgium in a fortnight! What is it? Never you mind what it is, young man!" went on the irate visitor. "Just take me to Kitchener's room, that's all! What? I can't see him? And this is called a free country! Well, then, I'll just go along to Buckingham Palace and see King George, and tell him about it, that's what I'll do i" Saved by Tact.. Whether the angry man went to the Palace or not the smiling police- man never learned. But it is certain that his chance of interviewing Lord Kitchener without some very special The following letter, which is appointment made long beforehand quoted in the London Spectator, is by was about as likely as his seeing in a young American fighting with the the flesh the present Shah of Persia! Allies:— Another crank did actually get into "I've been mixed up with the Bri- the Home Office some few weeks ago, tisk soldiers for some time now," he' though how yet remains a mystery. says, "and I tell you there is not a Re must have smuggled himself in cleaner fighter nor better gentleman somehow amongst a number of clerks, M theworld than the average Bri etc.,but nine a m when there was M or a - about the average pre-war rates into the coffers of the state, a tax on wages, a still higher income-tax, and new duties on such articles as tea and tobacco imported from abroad. Of the actual measures necessary and the complementary steps which may be needed to deal with the unemployment drastic economy may cause, the Gov- ernment must judge. It is for us to accept .the burden cheerfully and without complaint. (To be continued.) A YANKEE ON THE BRITISH. Says That Average Britisher Is a Clean Fighter. said, "who told us he must see Sir Ed- ward Grey. It was imperative, as he could put him up to a thing or two which would just about make all America immediately send thousands of men to help the Allies at the Front! When we told the man he had better write the Secretary for Foreign Af- fairs concerning it he got very much annoyed, and finally wanted to know whether England wished to win this war or not. ' "Then he tried a new tack by ve- hemently declaring that I was pre- venting England from winning it by my stopping him there; and, finally, I had to summon another officer to re- move him altogether outside Palace Yard. Even when this had been done he stood beyond the railings shaking his fist at me for several minutes ere he finally departed." "Beg pardon, can,you tell me if this is Mr. Liyod George's house, sir ?" said a lady to me as I drew near to the Minister's residence, in Downing Street the other day. I happened to be going myself to see Mrs. Lloyd George on important business. "Yes, it is, madam," said I, as we came to the door. Then her eyes opened wide as she saw me ring the bell. "Oh, are you going to see Mr. Lloyd George?" asked she. I nodded. "May I come in with you? I very much desire to tell him something about tile drink question. I think he ought to know, as it is extremely ur- gent." She Lost Her Temper. I had to explain that it was quite impossible for me to ask her in with me; that she must.ring and ask for an interview on her own account. Whereupon she got very angry, called me many unkind names, and, as the maid admitted me into No. 11, this violent woman was told by a police- man who had just sauntered up that if she didn't quickly clear out of Downing Street, unless she kept quiet, she would have to be forcibly remov- ed elsewhere. It is ram indeed that any unauthor- ized person does actually get inside the sacred place, whether house or Government office, into the presence of a Cabinet Minister in this way. But it has been done. I recollect one of the former secre- taries' of a Prime Minister telling me •, how he, one noon, with amazement, ti her. They know how to win and quite a little crowd entering. Be that found a perfect stranger in a room they know how to lose. They never as it may, a clerk on arriving found founlose bya where was room forget they are gentlemen no matter this stranger in his room, and was a meeting theat CabinetbDowninghold- what they do, and they have the cour- blandly told by tits visitor that he was ing age that knows no ending. Napoleon waiting to be taken to Mr. McKenna, said—'The British nation is a race of with whom he had an appointment. lions led by asses,' and he was quite Luckily, the young official quickly right. They are thought to be snobs, grasped the fact that this man in his but I admire them. I have seen the room was at least "a bit off" it, if not 'snobs' out in France, and braver men altogether a lunatic, for he began to nor truer gentlemen never lived. say such strange things aS to rouse They share the hardships with the suspicions, men, and never ask them to do what So the clerk did a very smart thing, they wouldn't do themselves. The Instead of raising the poor fellow's men worship them, And will follow The stranger quite politely explain- ed that he was an American visiting London, who had thought he should like to see the famous house, had found the door open, strolled in to ask someone if he might look round, and had walked from room to room, never meeting a servant till he had some across this secretary. But, of course, ill in the world things can ne- temper by refusing to let him see the that curious ammo could scarcely ver again be as they have been, But them anywhere. I have yet to wit- then Horne Secretarythe clerk quite happen once in hail a century at or - even if they could, the risk that both I ness a German officer leading his men calm! asked the man, to follow him, dinary times, let alone when a Cabinet sides will incur of losing something in a charge. They follow after. But and led by devious stairs and tor- meeting was in progress, so thorough are the precautions which are taken against unofficial intrusions. TIIE MARVELS OF SHELL MAKING FACTS CONCERNING THE POINTS OF THE PROJECTILES. Some of the Miracles Wrought in the Manufacture of Monitions. Everybody' knows that the modern shell is one of the mast diabolical of man's inventions; but bow many of us realize that 'it is also ono of the mast delicate, and -complicated? Recently, some firms holding con- tracts for making high -explosive shell took upon themselves to "cor- rect" a detail a detail in the specifica- tion, and, as a result, a certain thread was "improved." 'They will never do anything of the kind again, because all their work was rejected. The ap- parent absurdity—it is, in fact, an absolute absurdity, from an engineer- ing point of view—is designed of set purpose, says London Answers. With a Soft Nose. There is a somewhat similar anom- aly in the big shell fol• penetrating armor plating, Which was introduced in consequence of an accident. One day a test shell was fired at a piece of armor -plating from the soft side, and the projectile went clean through it, and exploded after impact; where- as, a similar shell fired against the front—the hardened and.tempered side—shattered, and left an indenta- tion of only a few inches.. This singular incident set somebody thinking, and; in consequence, the MERITS OF CERTAIN WATERS. high -explosive armor -piercing shell is — now given a soft nose. To the hard Baths That Have Made Men and point is attached a cap of soft metal, Cities Famous. with which addition it will go through • the toughest piece of, armor -plate. The act of bathing has usually been What happens on impact seems to be looked upon as merely prosaib and this. The cap spreads, holding the necessary, but not a few baths have. attained to fame either because of some incident which took place while the bather was engaged in the act of ablution or from some other circum- stance connected' with it; while there have been some famous baths in fie - point, and so enabling it—remember that the shell is .ret'olving rapidly— to force its way unbroken through the hard face of the plate by a sort of boring action. No less curious is another fact con- cerning the points of such projectiles. tion, such as the one which Alfred After the heads have been worked, Jingle took after his match with Sir . the shells are left for weeks before Thomas Blazo, after which he "had a they undergo the next stage, because, bath and went to dinner." Then there strong as they look, they are liable to snap. Steel is Easily "Tired:" Why? Think of the razor. Con- stant stropping twists the grain, with the result that the steel gets "tired," and will not yield a keen edge. But if you put the thing away for a few weeks the grain will return to its nor- mal state, and you can get a satiss factory shave. In a similar way, the grain of the steel is affected by work- ing, though, of course, to a much greater extent, and till it is "set," the makers must go cautiously. Steel shows a like eccentricity in the making of test -gauges. Some of was the bath taken by 'Arthur Pen- dennis, to which . he treated himself after he had "met men of a low set," and which he had scented in order to make it more efficacious. Bathing has been the custom among primitive peoples from the earliest times, and indeed the animals recog- nize the necessity of keeping their skins healthy by cleansing them con- stantly in some way. It was said that the merits of the Bath springs were first discovered by Prince Bladud, who suffered from a skin disease, by watching a sick pig wallowing in the mud. Sick animals, too, led the traveller to discover the merits of certain wa- the measurements of shells are very tens in Africa for curing fever, for fine, and the instruments employed the banks of rivers bordered by cer- are so delicate that they have to be tain shrubs become impregnated with used quickly, lest the heat of the their juices; the extreme value of qui- hand causes the metal to expand. nine as a remedy for malaria was first Now, when a groove is cut in a discovered, it is said, by watching the piece of steel which is to be used as recovery of several animals who a test -gauge, the work is• laid aside drank of the waters which flower past for weeks, perhaps months. Why not the bushes. finish it at once? Because the groove, Baths among :some nations of the though dead true when cut out, may East have come to be recognized as be otherwise in a short time, even curing mental ailments, and the pil- though it has been absolutely un - grim who sought everywhere for the touched. "River of the Arrow" firmly believed that, when he had bathed in it, all his sins would be washed away. Bathing in the Ganges is credited with the of what they have fought for all the British officer always leads his riders until he found himself shown these years, by absolutely suspending men, and so does the French. through a side door into the street. their own industrial battle for the "For an example of the average What the demented one said when war, is precisely the sacrifice which ] British officer let me tell you of my that happened the clever clerk did not they ought to make for the sake of company commander, Lieut. Scott. wait to hear. But certainly the eccen- their fellows and their Allies and the He is only a boy of twenty, and a trio visitor did not pass. the keen door - cause for which we stand. So long as direct descendant of Sir Walter Scott. keepers again that day, we look at the problem from the point He was an only son of oneof the Only if you have a letter on you, of view of our own interests we shall proudest families in Scotland. When showing the actual appointment made, never do our duty. Those who have there was any risky wont to be done do you get admission to the room of a gone to the front have offered their ail. It is for those who are left be- g p to -ciao When I recently had to pay hind to offer no less. It is not until we approach the industrial problem in the spirit that we will do whatever will most help to win the war, that • difficulties will vanish and the straight and narrow road which leads to victory will become plain. There is a third spheno in which we 4. Government Factories in Japan. The British. commercial attache at Yokohama reports that the Japanese government •has_ recently appointed tt commission selected from the high officials of state, to consider the ques ho would not shift it off on to a ser- Minister at the House of Commons tion of transferring to private own - volunteers, or corners! but would ask for - ership, the various government fac- volunteers, and -when he had these he a visit to Dr. Macnamara, of the Ad- tories. The factories include the wanted would lead himself. His un- miralty, in his room at the House, the wool, army clothing, steel, wood and flinching devotion to what .he consici- policeman on duty there, after being printing works. end his zloty and quiet courage in the satisfied on seeing my credentials, performance of that duty was some. thing told me about the trouble they had Wise is the man who realizes that baa Frill is used by ,jewellers under the every week beautiful to witness." with unauthorized visitors almost he is a fool and tries to live it down. About the only difference in babies Did Win? have already to a,o on national ser— setting of precious stones, to add England Want -.to le in the personal opinionson their vice, Victory la this war, will depend a lustre to them. "One came a month or 50 back," ha mothers. From the elle West BETWEEN ONTARIO AND BBTU, `IISR COLUMBIA. Items From Provinces Where Many Ontario Boya and .Girls Are Living. The Dingman qil well' at Calgary is now down over 8,600 feet. Winnipeg uses au average of 8,000s, 000 gallons of city water a day. The new police alarm system of Calgary will cost the ,city $4,477 a year. Regina, citizens have paid' $65,000 to the Patriotic Fund 1n less than a year Regina asks. a license fee for ped- dling of $76 a year, and there are pro- tests. In one week at Melfort, Soak„ 22 dogs were poisoned by unknown parties. Edmonton cannot afford to run. night schools this year, according to the School Board. Licensing of 140 grim vending. ma- chines brought $1,750 to the civic re- venues of calgany. J.W. Fleming, Mayor of Brandon, has been appointed clerk of the Mani- toba Legislature. Six mail clerks on the C.N.R. Prince Albert run have donated $58 to a' field . hospital fund. The Government of Saslcatchewan gave. $1,500 to buy band instruments for the 68th Battalion at Regina, Prince Albert, Sask., has contribut- ed a thousand volunteers to the Cana dian contingents for the front, Since the outbreak of the war 21 members of the Regina City Hall. Football Club have joined the colors. The BoardofManagement' of the German school at Riverside, Alta., has voluntarily locked the doors, and closed down. There were 167 rural telephone companies organized in Saskatchewan lust year, making an increase' of 4,743 phones in operation: The Customs officials of the Pro- vince of Alberta will unite and donate enough money to buy a machine gun for the overseas forces. . Instead of a surplus of $52,588 in the waterworks department, the spe- cial audit of Regina civic accounts really show a net deficit of $28,728. Pte. Stuart Fox, back from St. Jul- ien,'is working on a ranch near Mun- son, Alta., with a mechanical hand, replacing the one blown away. In Saskatchewan the war has caused a large falling off in mar- riages. In August, 1915, there were 281 marriage licenses issued, against 326 for the same month in 1914. At Kerrobert, Sask., an auctioneer assaulted an editor because the latter hinted that the former ran a gamb- ling joint. The editor got a broken nose and two black eyes, and the auc- tioneer a $6.50 fine. Residents of Alida village and.dis- trict, in Saskatchewan, are asking the Railway Commission and the C.P.R. for an agent. They claim an out shipment of one hundred and seventy thousand bushels of grain alone. 'i FIND CURE FOR HAY' FEVER. Constantly Inspected. As a concrete proof of the elabor- ate nature of projectile making, take the case of the shrapnel shell. The same virtue by the Hindus, while vial- steel portion undergoes about a score tors to the Pool of Siloam in Biblical days believed that no ailment' could of operations, and the brass cartridge- ' in its waters. Many case attached to the base requires survive washing holy wells are credited with still about sixteen, counting from the disc stranger virtues, since those who plunge into them are said to obtain their wishes if the proper forms are observed. Stories have been woven round certain bathers which gild their act of bathing with romance. The bath taken by Archimedes, owing to overfilling by a servant, led to the dis- covery of specific gravity. The absent- minded philosopher, leaving the bath abruptly, rushed through the streets of Syracuse shouting "Eureka!' THE DUAL EMPIRE. Unless Germany Wins the Empire Is Doomed. There is no doubt that the pro- foundest discontent with the war per- vades the high mixture of people known as the "Dual Empire," and un- less Germany wins a sweeping victory the Empire is doomed. The Empire is made up of probably two score of different nationalities, each selfishly straining to get the advantage of the other and tugging at the leash which holds them together. On top of this is the decadent old aristocracy, with the senile- Emperor at the head. The "idiot Archdukes" of Austria has long, been a byword in Europe. They have only succeeded in maintaining their. ascendancy by playing off one race and one religion against another. Now when they areusing the sons of the people as mere "kannonenfuter" —cannon fodder—the anger and re- bellion of the people grow hotter every day. One brieklayer can lay about 1,500 or 1,600 bricks in a day of ten hours, leaving the joints rough. of sheet brass to the finished article. Then there is the fuse, the delicacy of the work in which resembles watch- making. Altogether, the shell is subjected to. about forty inspections, and may be rejected' at any stage. After a shell has survived this or- deal it ought to be, one would think,. perfect; but a test shell is taken from every 120, and actually fired from a gun into a bank of sand. It is then again examined, and if the contour about the powder is expanded, away goes the whole batch, because if they were fired the grooving might be torn out of the gun. Perhaps the most striking illustra- tion of the minute care 'exercised in projectile making is that every shell is weighed over and over again. If you produce an eighteen -pounder high -explosive shell, it must be only a few drachms over or under its nor- mal weight; otherwise it is rejected. A Crack Rifle Shot. A. good story is told, of a certain colonel in connection with an inspec- tion of a creek rifle corps which he commanded. The inspection passed off satisfactorily; there were no com plaints, and the regiment was evi- dently in good order. "But," said the inspecting general, "I am bound to tell you, colonel, that rumors have reached me of gambling being carried on extensively among your officers." "That may have been the case, sir," said the colonel, "some months ago; but I can assure you that nothing•of the kind is: in vogue now, because I've won all the ready money in the regi- Mont, and I. would not ailoW any gambling on credit." Calcium Salts Spell Relief for Many Thousands of Sufferers. The successful treatment of hay fever by calcium salts is the subject of a .short sketch published in the current number of the American Re- view of Reviews. Two Munich scientists, Drs. Em- merich and'Loew, have ree'ently been studying the effects of these salts in various specific diseases, says the ar- ticle, which then mentions an account in a Berlin newspaper. This is sum- marized from another paper. Tho article says that assimilation of food is essentially increased by an abund- ant provision of calcium salts, which can be due only to an increased for- mation of enzymes. A quotation is • given as follows:— ' "But this is an activity of the cell - nucleus as proved by the experi- ments of Hofer. Further results thereof are the strengthening of the body, an increase in the bactericidal action of the blood known as the phagocytosis and in general an in- fluences tending to produce .illness. Calcium salts also soothe the height- ened irritability of ` the nerves and the tendency to sneezing, etc" "According to the article in ques- tion," says the Review, "there are very few of the so-called constitu- tional diseases which can be so quickly ,controlled by any curative process as can hay fever by calcium chloride, a fact which will spell re- lief for many thousand sufferer's, for whom the golden -rod and other pol- len -bearing weeds and flowers which line our roads in late summer and early fall are signals of hardly borne torment or hardly won immunity by flight." The concluding paragraph says that many other investigators are publish- ing evidence as to successful handling of diseases of the most diverse char- acter by the calcium treatment—in short it is claimed that this treatment is highly effective on nutrition. Australian bower birds construct galleries under hanging branches, which they adorn with highly -colored feathers, rags, shells, bones, etc. These !towers are used for mating in the breeding season.