VOLUME XIV. VALDEZ, ALASKA, WEDNESDAV, APRIL 12, 1916 NUMBER 87
VERDUN BATTLE
%
GERMANS MAKE MANY ASSAULTS
French Claim Ali Are Unsuccessful,
and Charging Germans Were Sim
ply Mowed Down by the Terrific
Fire of French Guns.
PARIS. April 12.—The war office
bulletin issued today states that he
battle about Verdun is increasing in
severity and that the Germans have
launched a number of savage attacks
against the French positions.
Along a six mile front northwest of
Verdun the Germans have made a
number of savage attacks, all of
which have ended unsuccessfully,
and the Teutons have been driven
back with terrific slaughter. The on
rushing Germans were simply mowed
down by a well directed artillery fire,
which raked the approach of the
Y French positions, and against which
nothing human could stand.
Every attack was repulsed and it is
expected that this week will end the
German attempt to take Verdun.
Prisoners taken by the French state
that the German officers had assured
them that they would be protected by
a heavy artillery fire and that there
would be comparatively little danger
in charging the French positions, but
that the fire of the German artillery
had failed to protect them, and that
whoje army corps have been wiped
out by the terrific fire of the French
guns.
BRIDE OF MONTH
HUES HER LIFE
NO CAUSE FOR RASH ACTION
Wile of Noted Actor and Composer
Shoot* Herself in Omaha—Was a
Former Countess and Daughter of
a Chicago Millionaire.
OMAHA, April 12.—Mrs. Joe How
wife of the prominent composer
and actor, committed suicide in the
bathroom of the hotel where she was
stopping last night, by shooting her
self.
Her husband, who was playing an
engagement at the Orpheum, was in
formed of the death of his wife dur
ing one of the acts of the play, but
he went through with his part to the
end.
Mrs. Howard was the daughter of
a Chicago millionaire and was for
merly a countess, having been previ
ously married to a foreign nobleman.
She bad been married to Howard just
a month, and when her husband left
her for the theatre she was apparent
ly in the best of spirits. No cause can
be assigned for the rash act. •
BIG HOME MCE
NOW UNDER WAY
NO CHANCE FOR NEW RECORD
Racers Start Out on a Soft Trail and
In Many Places It Has Been Blown
Bare of Snow—Number of Entries
•4 • Make Start.
r -■ - m
NOME, April 12.—The Non,6
Sweepstake race, the greatest rae:ng
event of the year, started this morn
ing with a number of entries. The
course from Nome to Candle and re
turn covers a distance of 412 miles.
All. hope of lowering the record has
been abandoned for the racers got
away on a trail that was soft, and in
many places over ihe route, has been
blown bare.
Pasteurized Whipping Cream and
I ure Buttermilk at Love-Whitley’s.
MINE INSPECTOR REPORTS
ON FOUR FATALITIES
Territorial Mine Inspector William
Maloney has submitted his report for
the month of March to Gov. J. F. A.
Strong. The report shows a total of
four accidents during the month. The
fatal accidents occured two, at Tread
well, one at Perseverance and one at
Kennecott.
Mr. Maloney reports that he in
spected several mines in this sec
tion and also calls attention to the
location of the Alaska Juneau pow
der magazine, which is under the
road between Juneau and Thane, just
outside of the city limits.
TO REMBURSE
CONTRIBUTORS
SENATE APPROPRIATES $60,000.
t
Money Subscribed to Secure the Re
lease of Missionary Mary Stone,
Captured by Turkish Bandits in
1901, Is to Be Returned.
WASHINGTON, D. C„ April 12.—
The Senate today passed a bill ap
propriating the sum of sixty thousand
dollars to reimburse the people who
contributed to the fund raised in
1901 to secure the release of Mary
Stone, a missionary in the Bdlkans.
Mrs. Stone was kidnapped by ban
dits and held for ransom, and an ap
peal was made for funds to secure her
release. The money was raised by
private subscription and turned over
to the bandits, w-ho then released her.
The fact that the government' did
not appropriate the money to secure
the release of Mrs. Stone was the
cause of considerable ^ unfavorable
comment at thd time,“ and a similar
measure has been introduced before
but has been sidetracked.
NOTED WRITER
PASSES AWAY
RIC’HARI) HARDING DAVIS DEAD
War Correspondent anti Novelist Suc
cumbs to Attack of Heart Failure
This Morning at His Home in the
Hills of New York.
MOUNT KISKO, N. Y.. April 12.—
Richard Harding Davis, the noted
war correspondent and novelist, died
here this morning from heart failure.
Richard Harding Davis was born
in 1864, his mother being Rebecca
Harding Davis, a well known novel
ist, and his father L. Clarke Davis,
editor of the Philadelphia Public
Ledger. He was educated at Lehigh
and Johns Hopkins universities. He
was correspondent for the New York
Times during the Graeco-Turkish and
the Spanish-Amerlcan wars, and for
the New York Herald in the South
African and Russo-Japanese wars,
and was in the Cuban revolution, the
Matos revolution in Venezuela, and
during the American occupation of
Vera Cruz.
He was the author of a number of
novels, among which Soldiers of For
tune, Ransom’s Folly, .Captain Mack
lin and the Dictator are among the
best known.
He was twice married. m
AMERICANS IN ITALY
CLAIM ARE MISTREATED.
ROME, April 12.—Thomas XNeison
Page, American ambassador to Italy,
has visited Baron Sonnino, the Ital
ian Minister of Foreign AfTairs to
make representations regarding cases
of Americans who complained of ill
treatment in Italy. Baron Sonnino
promised that all the cases mentioned
by the ambassador would be exam
ined again in the most friend’ly
spirit.
Card of Thanks.
The Civic League wishes to express
its thanks to those people who so
kindly donated clothing for the Cop
per River Indians when the call for
aid was made.
CLEANUP DAY COMING
> .
The past two days have witnessed a rapid disappearance
of the snow and it will not be long before “Clean-up Day” will
be announced. Valdez may take considerable pride in the fact
that this day is generally well observed, and that pride in the
appearance of the town is a strong sentiment among our peo
ple. The work of the Civic League to improve the appear
ance of the town during the past two years has brought re
sults that are freely commented on by those who have visited
the town after an absence of some time, and in this work the
League has been ably seconded by every member of the com
munity. It speaks well for a town when its people take a
pride in the appearance of its streets, yards and houses, and
it speaks well for Valdez that so much has been accomplished.
Though much has been done, there is still much more that
can be done. A coat of paint improves wonderfully even the
smallest cot. No fence at all is far preferable to a dilapidated
one. A few flowers in the yard help wonderfully, and it has
been demonstrated that they can fee grown luxuriantly. When
clean-up day comes around, let ufe make the work just a little
more thorough than ever before. Let us make the town spick
and span so that when the tourists and visitors come North,
Valdez will be the one town they will remember and talk
about. . >
MORAN’S TALE
FOUND UNTRUE
WAS PRISONER AT SAN QUENTIN
Man Who Confessed to San Diego Po
lice that He Was Implicated in Big
Mail Robbery Was in Prison at the
Time of the Deed.
LOS ANGELES. April 12.—The
sensational confession of James Mo
ran to the-poltce-of San Diego, made
a few days ago, in which he alleged
that he was an accomplice in a mail
robbery on the ferry between Jersey
City and New York, a short time ago.
in which the robbers secured securi
ties valued at two million dollars, and
that he had been double-crossed by
his accomplices and robbed of his
share of the loot, has been found to
be a fake.
Police here have been investigator -
Moran’s movements for some time
past, and have found that at the time
of the robbery he was serving time in
San Quentin prison, in this state.
FATAL ACCIDENT
ON ALKI TRESTLE
ONE WOMAN IS KILLED BV FALL
Freight Train Hits Loaded Street
Car, Knocking It From the Trestle
to the Tideflats Below Several In
jured May Not Recover.
SEATTLE, April 12.—A fatal ac
cident occurred this morning on the
Alki Point car line, resulting iri the
death of one woman and the injury
of ten other passengers.
While crossing the Alki trestle the
street car was struck by a freight
train, which was backing into one of
the wharves which line the water
front. The street car was thrown
from the trestle to the tide flats be
low, a distance of about fifteen feet.
The car was totally wrecked and all
the passengers received serious in
juries, one of the passengers, a wom
an, being instantly killed.
Help was Instantly summoned and
the work of rescue undertaken. The
passengers were taken out of the
wreck, and removed to a hospital in
this city, whre their wounds were
dressed. Several of the passengers
sustained internal Injuries from
which they may not recover.
NOTED AUTHOR NAMED AS
ASSISTANT SECRETARY WAR
WASHINGTON, D. C., April 12.—
Newton D. Baker, Secretary of War,
today named Meredith Nicholson,
the noted author, as Assistant Secre
tary of War.
Subscribe for the Prospector.
MUNITION PLANT
LARGEST IN WORLD
WILL EMPLOY 18,000 WORKERS
Remington Arms Co. Plant at Bridge
port, Conn., is Working Twent.v
four Hours per Day on War Orders
for the Belligerents.
BRIDGEPORT, Conn., April 12.—
Tl^e Remington Arms Co., plants in
this city are running full capacity
on orders from the European bellig
erents and the United States Govern
ment. The present force consists of
8,000 persons, and are employed in
three shifts. When the machinery in
the new $8,500,000 factory extension
has been installed, the company will
increase the force to 18,000 persons.
The thirty-eight buildings which now
compose the plant have a floor space
of 1, 538, 000 square feet, and is one
of the largest plants in the world de
voted exclusively to the manufacture
of small arms and munitions.
EMPEROR HAS
NARROW ESCAPE
SHELL WRECKS HIS MACHINE
While Directing Attack on Verdun
Emperor Wilhelm is Thrown from
Car by Explosion of Shell and His
Automobile Is Wrecked.
LONDON, April 12.—A dispatch
from Paris received here today states
that the German emperor narrowly
escaped death yesterday near Ver
dun.
The report states that the Emperor
was personally directing the attack
against the Verdun defenses when a
shell exploded close to the automo
bile in which he was sitting. The
machine was badly wrecked and the
Emperor thrown to the ground, but
escaped without injury, except for a
severe shaking up.
Weather Fine in Interior.
The Signal Corps reports interior
weather fine, and the mercury rising
a few degrees daily. The trail is get
ting bad in spots, and in many places
is totally bare. At Wortraan’s where
66 inchies of snow were reported two
weeks ago, there is now but ten in.,
and the trail is rapidly becoming
bare.
The last trip of the Watson took
the first shipment of copper ore, ever
sent south by the W. A. Dickey mine
at Irish Cove in Fidalgo Bay. This
shipment gave smelter returns in ex
cess of $1100.00 and is the source of
much encouragement to the owners,
who have spent a largo sum of money
in opening up the mine.
AEROPLANES CAN
ASCEND BACKWARD
After three years experiments an
aeroplane now has been perfected
that can rise strenwards and can
travel astern at the rate of fifty miles
an hour. The final experiment took
place at Pensacola, Fla., recently and
proved to be perfectly successful. An
other improvement which has been
made is that the airsi.ip while travel
ing backward is so arranged that it
does not obstruct gunfire and the in
vention is for that reason regarded as
one that will have a great effect on
future air battles in war.
GILL DISMISSES
CHIEF OF POLICE
FIRES LAND FOR DISOBEDIENCE
Mayor Orders Prisoner Released or
Brought to Trial—Lang Holds
Man Hoping to Secure Confession
as to Where He Bought Whiskey.
SEATTLE, April 12.—Mayor Hi
Gill this morning fired Chief of Po
lice Lang, and appointed Charles
Beckinhain, politician and former
county commissioner to succeed him.
The dismissal of Lang came thru
his arresting and holding in jail a
young man who had refused to tell
w'here he purchased the whiskey he
got jagged 'on. The mayor had or
dered that the man be released or
else brought to ...a. on some specific
charge. Lang continued to hold the
prisoner, hoping to get a confession
from him as to where the liquor was
being sold, and his defiance of the or
ders of the mayor led to his removal
from office this morning.
Beckinham, the new chief, an
nounced that he would make every ef
fort to enforce the prohibition law
and put down the bling pigs operat
ing in the city.
LIEUT. MOOT IS
FOUND GUILTY
PUNISHMENT IS VERY LIGHT
Courtinartinl Kinds Officer Disobeyed
/
Orders in Crossing Border and He
Is Sentenced to Receive a Light
Reprimand.
SAN ANTONIO, April 12.—Li-ut.
John E. Mort has been tried by court
martial for .leading a detachment of
his across the Rio Grande to rescue
two American soldiers captured by
the Mexicans. He was found guilty,
in fact he stated he was. He was sen
tenced to be mildly reprimanded, but
in view of the extenuating circum
stances will not lose any counts. The
court martial officials in view of the
circumstances found him guilty and
were forced to make some sort of
sentence.
PUNISHED FOR FAILURE
TO FIRE ON AEROPLANE
GENEVA, April 12.—The Colonel
of a Swiss regiment at Porentrey has
been sentenced to six days in jail and
removal from his command for fail
ure to fire on a German aeroplane
which shelled a town recently, doing
considerable damage. The govern
ment made this anonuncement to this
effect today. The ' Colonel, whose
name is deleted, admitted that the
aeroplane was near enough for him
to bring down but that he was afraid
he would be. working against peu
trality if he did so.
INTRODUCES BILL FOR
WIRELESS AT SEWARD.
WASHINGTON, D. C„ April 12.—
Delegate Wickersham of Alaska, has
introduced a bill in the house provid
ing for the establishment of a wire
less station at Seward, Alaska.
John Wilson, wno nas been a visi
tor in town for several days, will
leave in the morning for his home in
I.ntouche.
POLICE CLAIM
WHOLESALE PLOT
OWNER OF BEER 18 ARRESTED
Russell Claims Thousand Cases of
Beer on Scow Were for Employes
at His Cannery at Ketchikan—Po
lice Do Not Believe Story.
SEATTLE, April 12.—William
Russell and two laborers were taken
into custody by the police this morn
ing when they commenced to unload
the scow contining one thousand
cases of beer, found by the police
Monday night when making a raid
along the waterfront.
The police had not been able to
trace the ownership of the liquor, and
were keeping a watch upon the barge.
When Russell and his men commenc
ed to unload the barge this morning
they were arrested on the charge of
violating the prohibition law in bring
ing a prohibited quantity of liquor
into the State.
After his arrest Russell claimed
that he had not violated the law and
that the liquor was only in transit
through the state, being intended for
the laborers at his cannery at Ketch
ikan, to which point it was to be
shipped on the first steamer.
The police challenge Russell's
story, and state that they have un
covered a wholesale blind pig plot.
FOREMAN STRUCK
MINE MYSTERY IS CLEARED UP
Wounded Foreman of Ready Bullion
Mine Recovers Consciousness and
is Alleged to have Accused a Fel
low Workman of the Crime.
JUNEAU, April 12.—Alphonse
Brussiferrii, who was seriously in
jured while working in the ISOO-foot
level of the Ready Bullion mine a few
days ago, and who was unconscious
in the hospital for some time follow
ing the injury has recovered con
sciousness, and is alleged to have
stated that Joe Sereno, who was
working with him was responsible
for his wound.
Brussiferrii is said to have stated
that Sereno struck him over the head
with an iron bar. According to the
story Sereno was scraping down and
when asked to work in another part
protested and in the scrap which fol
lowed struck his adversary down, in
flicting injuries which are consider
ed serious.
Sereno, who has been held in the
federal jail here on suspicion, re
fuses to make any statement.
FORTY MILLION
PORK-BARREL
RIVERS AND HARBORS BIRR
Rower House Pusses Measure Appro
priating Forty Millions—Original
Amounts Were Considerably Cur
tailed Before Passage.
WASHINGTON, D. C.. April 12.—
Tbe House today passed the Rivero
and Harbors bill carrying an appro
priation of forty million dollars. The
bill has been pruned down in many
of the items, and the appropriation is
only about sixty per cent of the origi
nal sura carried by the measure.
Mr. J. H. Harvey is repairing his
launch preparatory to making a trip
down to Mummy Bay on Knight isl
and. where he has extensive copper
holdings and on which he is planning
development work this season.