It will be noted that the President went further than "liners," and said "passenger and freight-carrying vessels."

In the note sent at this time the President said:

"No limit of any kind has in fact been set to the indiscriminate pursuit and destruction of merchantmen of all kinds and nationalities within the waters constantly extending in area where these operations have been carried on, and the roll of Americans who have lost their lives on ships thus attacked and destroyed has grown month by month until the ominous toll has mounted into the hundreds. Again and again the Imperial German Government has given this Government its solemn assurances that at least passenger ships would not be thus dealt with, and yet it has again and again permitted its undersea commanders to disregard those assurances with entire impunity."

OPPOSED TO SUBMARINE WARFARE.

During all the negotiations the Berlin Foreign Office looked to Count von Bernstorff to prevent a break. His attitude was represented as propitiatory from the viewpoint of the United States and opposed to the submarine warfare of Von Tirpitz. On several occasions he is said to have warned his Emperor personally that a continuance of the warfare against which the United States protested would surely lead to a break. Meanwhile the Ambassador's own position was embarrassed by the operations of German sympathizers in the United States plotting against American neutrality. Some of these operations were traced directly to the military and naval attaches of the embassy, who were withdrawn.

Germany's final note in the Sussex case, received in Washington on May 5, said that "the German naval forces have received the following order":

"In accordance with the general principles of visit and search and the destruction of merchant vessels recognized by international law, such vessels, both within and without the area declared a naval war zone, shall not be sunk without warning and without saving human lives, unless the ship attempts to escape or offers resistance."

Contending that the Imperial Government was unwilling to restrict an effective weapon if "the enemy is permitted to apply at will methods of warfare violating the rules of international law," the note expressed the hope that the United States would "demand and insist that the British Government shall observe forthwith the rules of international law." The communication added:

"Should the steps taken by the Government of the United States not attain the object it (the German Government) desires, to have the laws of humanity followed by all belligerent nations, the German Government would then be facing a new situation in which it must reserve to itself complete liberty of decision."

To any such reservations the United States demurred in no uncertain terms.

PRESIDENT WILSON'S REPLY.

"The United States feels it necessary to state," said President Wilson's reply, "that it takes it for granted that the Imperial German Government does not intend to imply that the maintenance of its newly announced policy is any way contingent upon the course or result of diplomatic negotiations between the Government of the United States and any other belligerent Government, notwithstanding the fact that certain passages in the Imperial Government's note might appear to be susceptible of that construction."

In completing the declaration that there must be no misunderstanding that rights of American citizens must not be made subject to the conduct of some other Government, the note concluded by saying: "Responsibility in such matters is single, not joint; absolute, not relative."

The climax came on February 1, 1917, when Count von Bernstorff, German Ambassador at Washington, handed to Secretary Lansing a note from Germany on the U-boat policy, supplemented by the "order" and declaration that the Imperial Government proposed to stop sea traffic in the "zones" which it marked as prohibited, by every means at its command. This is the restricted zone order:

"From February 1, 1917, sea traffic will be stopped with every available weapon and without further notice in the following blockade zones around Great Britain, France, Italy and in the Eastern Mediterranean.



"In the North: The zone is confined by a line at a distance of twenty sea miles along the Dutch coast to Terschelling fireship, the degree of longitude from Terschelling fireship to Udsire (Norway), a line from there across, the point 62 degrees north 0 degrees longitude to 62 degrees north 5 degrees west, further to a point three sea miles south of the southern point of the Farve (Faroe?) Islands, from there across a point 62 degrees north 10 degrees west to 61 degrees north 15 degrees west, then 57 degrees north 20 degrees west to 47 degrees north 20 degrees west, further to 43 degrees north, 15 degrees west, then along the degree of latitude 43 degrees north to 20 sea miles from Cape Finisterre and at a distance of 20 sea miles along the north coast of Spain to the French boundary.

"In the south (Mediterranean):

"For neutral ships remains open: The sea west of the line Pt des' Espiquette to 38 degrees 20 minutes north and 6 degrees east, also north and west of a zone 61 sea miles wide along the North African coast, beginning at 2 degrees longitude west. For the connection of this sea zone with Greece there is provided a zone of a width of 20 sea miles north and east of the following line: 38 degrees north and 6 degrees east to 38 degrees north and 10 degrees west to 37 degrees north and 11 degrees 30 minutes east to 34 degrees north and 22 degrees 30 minutes east. From there leads a zone 20 sea miles wide west of 22 degrees 30 minutes eastern longitude into Greek territorial waters.

NEUTRAL SHIPS' RISK.

"Neutral ships navigating these blockade zones do so at their own risk. Although care has been taken that neutral ships which are on their way toward ports of the blockade zones on February 1, 1917, and which have come in the vicinity of the latter, will be spared during a sufficiently long period, it is strongly advised to warn them with all available means in order to cause their return.

"Neutral ships which on February 1 are in ports of the blockade zones can with the same safety leave them.

"The instructions given to the commanders of German submarines provide for a sufficiently long period during which the safety of passengers on unarmed enemy passenger ships is guaranteed.

"Americans en route to the blockade zone on enemy freight steamships are not endangered, as the enemy shipping firms can prevent such ships in time from entering the zone.

"Sailing of regular American passenger steamships may continue undisturbed after February 1, 1917, if

"(a) The port of destination is Falmouth.

"(b) Sailing to or coming from that port course is taken via the Scilly Islands and a point 50 degrees north, 20 degrees west.

"(c) The steamships are marked in the following way, which must not be allowed to other vessels in American ports: On ship's hull and superstructure three vertical stripes one meter wide each to be painted alternately white and red. Each mast should show a large flag checkered white and red and the stern the American national flag. Care should be taken that during dark national flag and painted marks are easily recognizable from a distance, and that the boats are well lighted throughout.

"(d) One steamship a week sails in each direction, with arrival at Falmouth on Sunday and departure from Falmouth on Wednesday.

"(e) United States Government guarantees that no contraband (according to German contraband list) is carried by those steamships."

Immediately after the signing of the Congressional resolution declaring America at war, President Wilson ordered the mobilization of the United States Navy, and the Senate voted an emergency war fund of $100,000,000 for the use of the President. The forces of the United States on land and sea and in every country under the sun were notified that a state of war existed.

The entrance of America was regarded throughout the world as one of the most significant moves in the history of nations, and it filled the Allied forces with enthusiasm. Typical of the expressions on the part of the representatives of the Governments at war with Germany was that of Lloyd George, Premier of England, who said:

"America has at one bound become a world power in a sense she never was before. She waited until she found a cause worthy of her traditions. The American people held back until they were fully convinced that the fight was not a sordid scrimmage for power and possessions, but an unselfish struggle to overthrow a sinister conspiracy against human liberty and human rights.

"Once that conviction was reached, the great Republic of the West has leaped into the arena, and she stands now side by side with the European democracies, who, bruised and bleeding after three years of grim conflict, are still fighting the most savage foe that ever menaced the freedom of the world.

"The glowing phrases of the President's noble deliverance illumine the horizon and make clearer than ever the goal we are striving to reach.

DEMOCRACY, FREEDOM AND PEACE.

"There are three phrases which will stand out forever in the story of this crusade. The first is that 'the world must be made safe for democracy,' the next, 'the menace to peace and freedom lies in the existence of autocratic governments backed by organized force, which is controlled wholly by their will and not by the will of their people,' and the crowning phrase is that in which he declares that 'a steadfast concert for peace can never be maintained except by the partnership of democratic nations.'

"These words represent the faith which inspires and sustains our people in the tremendous sacrifices they have made and are still making. They also believe that the unity and peace of mankind can only rest upon democracy, upon the right to have a voice in their own Government; upon respect for the right and liberties of nations both great and small, and upon the universal dominion of public right.

"To all of these the Prussian military autocracy is an implacable foe.

"The Imperial War Cabinet, representative of all the peoples of the British Empire, wish me on their behalf to recognize the chivalry and courage which call the people of the United States to dedicate the whole of their resources to the greatest cause that ever engaged human endeavor."



CHAPTER XXIV.

UNCLE SAM TAKES HOLD.

MAKES WORLD'S BIGGEST WAR LOAN—SEIZE GERMAN SHIPS—INTRIGUE EXPOSED—GENERAL PERSHING AND STAFF IN EUROPE—THE NAVY ON DUTY IN NORTH SEA—FIRST UNITED STATES TROOPS REACH FRANCE—GERMANY'S ATTEMPTS TO SINK TROOP SHIPS THWARTED BY NAVY'S GUNS.

Scarcely had the ink had time to dry on the Nation's command to begin war than Congress voted an appropriation of $7,000,000,000 for war purposes. This, the largest single appropriation ever made by a government in the world, was passed without a dissenting vote. Still later, a deficiency bill of $2,827,000,000 for war expenses was passed. Other legislative measures provided for the increase of the army and navy and for "selective conscription," although the latter was passed in the face of considerable opposition on the part of many who believed that in a democracy armies should be raised by volunteer recruiting. Many felt that compulsory service was not in accordance with the ideals of liberty.

The Conscription Act provided for the registration of every male citizen or resident in the United States between the ages of 21 and 31 years, and was enacted on May 19, 1917. Registration of these military available was made on June 5, when 10,000,000 names were entered on the rolls as subject to draft by the Government. The principle of "selective conscription" is that the authorities shall have the right to exempt from military duty among those registered such persons whose employment in civil life is necessary to the maintenance of the industries and business of the country, as well as those who, though physically fit, have others dependent upon them for support.

One of the first acts of the Government after the declaration of war was the seizure of the German merchant vessels interned in United States ports. These vessels had a tonnage of upward of 629,000 tons and were estimated as being worth in the neighborhood of $100,000,000. The seizure was notable in that it was the largest ever made by a country at war.

When the Government went to take charge of the vessels it was found that the German officers had destroyed parts of the machinery in many of them in an attempt to put them out of commission. The condition of the boats was such that all of them had to be put in drydock, and it was several months before some of them could be put in condition for use.

SIXTY RINGLEADERS ARRESTED.

Immediately the ships had been seized an order was issued by Attorney General Gregory for the arrest of sixty alleged ringleaders in German plots, conspiracies and machinations throughout the United States. The Department of Justice, which had long been gathering evidence in connection with the suspects, had complete reports about their activities. They were all German citizens, had participated in German intrigues, and all were regarded as dangerous persons to be at large.

They were all arrested, bail was refused them, and they were locked up for safekeeping. This was the first step in the general rounding up of the conspirators throughout the country. The men were placed in three groups: Those having previously been arrested charged with violation of American neutrality in furthering German plots of various sorts and who were at liberty under bond awaiting the action of higher courts; those who had been indicted by Federal Grand Juries for similar offenses and were at liberty under bond awaiting the action of the higher courts, and persons who, although they had never been indicted or convicted, had long been under surveillance by the Secret Service, or the investigators of the Department of Justice.

These arrests were the first of alien enemies made in this country in more than a century, under the direct order of the Attorney General without reference to the courts or obtaining warrants. Under an act of Congress passed in 1798 the President is empowered to adopt this course. The right had not been invoked, however, since the war with Great Britain in 1812.

ARREST OF GERMAN PLOTTERS.

The arrests were only the beginning of the work of the Secret Service Department in a complete investigation of the activities of the thousands of German reservists, stationed in the United States, and suspected of being connected with plots which daily were cropping out. These plots were being exposed constantly. Some were abandoned before being completely worked out, owing to the fact that the Germans suspected they were being shadowed. It was estimated that there were in the United States at the time of the discoveries of conspiracies between 15,000 and 18,000 German reservists in the prime of life, whose energies were undoubtedly being employed in the spreading of the German propaganda. It was upon this army that the Secret Service men kept a close watch, and who were generally found to have within their ranks the men wanted at various times in connection with the advancement of German plans.

Many of the Germans arrested were quasi-officials of the German government. Some of them, it is alleged, were the instrumentalities through which Captain Boy-Ed and Captain von Papen had carried out their activities in this country against the Allies. A number of those arrested were properly classed as spies. Camps were established for the sailors taken from the interned German vessels, and many of them were sent to Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, where they were held.

The far-reaching influence of the German spy system was at this time laid before the American public, with all of its startling ramifications. For months there had been stories of German intrigue and conspiracies, and the Secret Service had unearthed innumerable plots to destroy ammunition plants and industrial establishments, which would have the effect of making it difficult for America to supply ammunition to the Allies.

The most insidious scheme unearthed by the government was that which had to do with the attempt of Germany to secure the alliance of Mexico and Japan to make war on the United States.

Japan, through Mexican mediation, was to be urged to abandon her allies and join in the attack on the United States.

Mexico, for her reward, was to receive general financial support from Germany, reconquer Texas, New Mexico and Arizona—lost provinces—and share in the victorious peace terms Germany contemplated.

MACHINATIONS OF GERMAN MINISTER.

Details were left to German Minister von Eckhardt in Mexico City, who by instructions signed by German Foreign Minister Zimmerman, at Berlin, January 19, 1917, was directed to propose the alliance with Mexico, to General Carranza, and suggest that Mexico seek to bring Japan into the plot.

These instructions were transmitted to von Eckhardt through Count von Bernstorff, former German Ambassador.

Germany pictured to Mexico, by broad intimation, England and the entente allies defeated, Germany and her allies triumphant and in world domination by the instrument of unrestricted submarine warfare.

A copy of Zimmerman's instructions to von Eckhardt, sent through von Bernstorff, is in possession of the United States government. It is as follows:

"Berlin, January 19, 1917.

"On the first of February we intend to begin submarine warfare unrestricted. In spite of this, it is our intention to endeavor to keep neutral the United States of America.

"If this attempt is not successful we propose an alliance on the following basis with Mexico: That we shall make war together and together make peace. We shall give general financial support, and it is understood that Mexico is to reconquer the lost territory in New Mexico, Texas and Arizona. The details are left to you for settlement.

"You are instructed to inform the President of Mexico of the above, in the greatest confidence, as soon as it is certain that there will be an outbreak of war with the United States, and suggest that the President of Mexico, on his own initiative, should communicate with Japan, suggesting adherence at once to this plan; at the same time, offer to mediate between Germany and Japan.

"Please call to the attention of the President of Mexico that the employment of ruthless submarine warfare now promises to compel England to make peace in a few months.

"ZIMMERMAN."

BETHMANN-HOLLWEG'S FALSE STATEMENT.

This document was in the possession of the government at the very time Chancellor von Bethmann-Hollweg was declaring that the United States had placed an interpretation on the submarine declaration "never intended by Germany," and that Germany had promoted and honored friendly relations with the United States "as an heirloom from Frederick the Great."

Of itself, if there were no other, it is considered a sufficient answer to the German Chancellor's plaint that the United States "brusquely" broke off relations without giving "authentic" reasons for its action.

The document supplies the missing link to many separate chains of circumstances, which until then had seemed to lead to no definite point. It shed new light upon the frequently reported but indefinable movements of the Mexican government to couple its situation with the friction between the United States and Japan.

It added another chapter to the celebrated report of Jules Cambon, French Ambassador in Berlin before the war, of Germany's world-wide plans for stirring strife on every continent where they might aid her in the struggle for world domination, which she dreamed was close at hand. It added a climax to the operations of Count von Bernstorff and the German Embassy in this country, which had been colored with passport frauds, charges of dynamite plots and intrigue, the full extent of which never had been published.

And last but not least, it explained in a very large degree the attitude of the Mexican government toward the United States on many points.

UNCLE SAM NOT BOTHERED.

But the efforts of the German enthusiasts, which carried them beyond the bounds of reasonable safety in the United States, did not bother Uncle Sam much in the prosecution of his war plans. Within a short period after the declaration of war the country had written a chapter in national achievement unrivalled in the history of the world.

American destroyers were mobilized, outfitted and sent to the North Sea within a few days after the nation entered the conflict. With them went their own supply vessels and numerous converted craft adapted to naval use. Their number and the exact duty they have assumed never have been revealed, but that they have been recognized as a formidable part of the grand allied fleet was evidenced by the designation of American Vice Admiral Sims to command all the forces in the important zone off Ireland.

The fleet began actual duty in the European waters on May 4, and the presence of the vessels and the American sailors was the subject of official correspondence. The British admiralty announced the arrival of the American destroyers as follows:

"The British Admiralty states that a flotilla of United States destroyers recently arrived in this country to co-operate with our naval forces in the prosecution of the war.

"The services which the American vessels are rendering to the allied cause are of the greatest value and are deeply appreciated."

Vice Admiral Sir David Beatty, commander of the British Grand Fleet, sent the following message to Admiral Henry T. Mayo, commander of the United States Atlantic Fleet:

"The Grand Fleet rejoices that the Atlantic Fleet will now share in preserving the liberties of the world and maintaining the chivalry of the sea."

Admiral Mayo replied:

"The United States Atlantic Fleet appreciates the message from the British Fleet and welcomes opportunities for work with the British Fleet for the freedom of the seas."

GENERAL PERSHING IN ENGLAND.

Less than a month later Major General John J. Pershing, with his staff, were safely in England ready to take command of the first expeditionary force that ever set foot on the European shores to make war. General Pershing's personal staff and the members of the General Staff who went to perform the preliminary work for the first fighting force, numbered 57 officers and about 50 enlisted men, together with a civilian clerical force.

The party landed at Liverpool on June 8, after an uneventful trip on the White Star liner Baltic. The party was received with full military honors and immediately entrained for London, where it was welcomed by Lord Derby, the Minister of War; Viscount French, commander of the British home forces, and a large body of American officials.

In London General Pershing was later received at Buckingham Palace by King George.

He was presented to the King by Lord Brooke, commander of the Twelfth Canadian Infantry Brigade. General Pershing was accompanied to the palace by his personal staff of twelve officers. After the audience the officers paid a formal call at the United States embassy.

PERSHING RECEIVES ROYAL GREETING.

After the formal reception the King shook hands with General Pershing and the members of his staff, and expressed pleasure at welcoming the advance guard of the American army. King George chatted for a few moments with each member of General Pershing's staff. In addressing General Pershing the King said:

"It has been the dream of my life to see the two great English-speaking nations more closely united. My dreams have been realized. It is with the utmost pleasure that I welcome you, at the head of the American contingent, to our shores."

Major General Pershing's staff has been characterized as "one of live wires." Most of the officers are West Pointers, but there are among them some who rose from the ranks, including Major James G. Harbord, chief of staff.

General Pershing reached France on June 13, where he was given a tumultuous welcome. He landed at Boulogne in the morning and was met by General Pelletier, representing the French government and General Headquarters of the French army; Commandant Hue, representing the Minister of War; General Lucas, commanding the northern region; Colonel Daru, Governor of Lille; the Prefect of the Somme and other officials.

Among the latter were Rene Besnard, Under Secretary of War, representing the Cabinet; Commandant Thouzellier, representing Marshal Joffre, and Vice-Admiral Ronarch, representing the navy.

The scene in the harbor as General Pershing set foot on French soil was one of striking beauty and animation. The day was bright and sunny. The quays were crowded with townspeople and soldiers from all Entente armies, with French and British troops predominating.

The shipping was gay with flags and bunting, many merchant craft hoisting American flags, while along the crowded quays the American colors were everywhere shown as a token of the French welcome.

PERSHING RECEIVES AN OVATION.

A great wave of enthusiasm came from the crowds as General Pershing stepped upon the quay and as the band played the "Marseillaise" he and the members of his staff stood uncovered. M. Besnard, in greeting the American commander in behalf of the government, said the Americans had come to France to combat with the Allies for the same cause of right and civilization. General Pelletier extended a greeting to the Americans in behalf of the army.

General Dumas, commandant of the region in which Boulogne is located, said:

"Your coming opens a new era in the history of the world. The United States of America is now taking its part with the United States of Europe. Together they are about to found the United States of the World, which will definitely and finally end the war and give a peace which will be enduring and suitable for humanity."

General Pershing stood at parade as the various addresses were delivered and acknowledged each with a salute.

British soldiers and marines lined up along the quays had rendered military honors as the vessel flying the Stars and Stripes, preceded by destroyers and accompanied by hydroplanes and dirigible balloons, steamed up the channel. Military bands played "The Star-Spangled Banner" and the "Marseillaise" as General Pelletier and his party boarded the boat to welcome General Pershing.

After the representatives of the French authorities had been presented to the American officers, the party landed and reviewed the French territorials. The Americans then entered motor cars for a ride around the city. All along the route they were followed by crowds of people who greeted General Pershing with the greatest enthusiasm.

PERSHING IN PARIS.

The General and his staff were taken in a special train to Paris, where General Pershing was received by Marshal Joffre, Ambassador Sharp and Paul Painleve, French Minister of War. In the French capital General Pershing and staff were received by the populace with wild enthusiasm, and for several days they were feted and entertained.

There were, during the short period of entertainment, several incidents which will long be noted in history, as when General Pershing visited the Tomb of Napoleon and when he took from its case the sword of the world conqueror and kissed it, and again when he placed a wreath on the grave of Lafayette.

Within a few days General Pershing had established the army headquarters in the Rue De Constantine and began the work preliminary to the campaign on the firing line.

Second only to the enthusiastic reception tendered General Pershing and his staff was that accorded the first United States Medical Unit, which reached London in June. The vanguard of the American army, composed of 26 surgeons and 60 nurses, in command of Major Harry L. Gilchrist, was received by King George and Queen Mary, the Prince of Wales and Princess Mary, at Buckingham Palace.

The reception to General Pershing and the Medical branch was, however, nothing as compared to the popular demonstration which marked the arrival of the first of the American armed forces on European shores to participate in war. The vanguard of the army reached France on June 27. No official announcement was ever made of the number of men in the first expeditionary force, but it is an incident of modern history that the United States made a record for the transportation of troops across the seas scarcely equalled by that of any other country.

ABSOLUTE SECRECY OBSERVED.

All America knew that troops were being sent to France, but no information had been given as to the time of departure or as to their destination. The world was, therefore, fairly electrified when the announcement was made that in defiance of the German submarines, thousands of seasoned regulars and marines, trained fighting men, with the tan of long service on the Mexican border, in Haiti, or Santo Domingo still on their faces, had arrived in France to fight beside the French, the British, the Belgians, the Russians, the Portuguese and the Italian troops on the Western front.

Despite the enormous difficulties of unpreparedness and the submarine dangers that faced them, the plans of the army and navy were carried through with clock-like precision.

When the order came to prepare immediately an expeditionary force to go to France, virtually all of the men who first crossed the seas were on the Mexican border. General Pershing himself was at his headquarters in San Antonio. There were no army transports available in the Atlantic. The vessels that carried the troops were scattered on their usual routes. Army reserve stores were still depleted from the border mobilization. Regiments were below war strength. That was the condition when President Wilson decided that the plea of the French high commission should be answered and a force of regulars sent at once to France.

At his word the War Department began to move. General Pershing was summoned quietly to Washington. His arrival created some speculation in the press, but at the request of Secretary Baker the newspapers generally refrained from discussion of this point.

There were a thousand other activities afoot in the department at the time. All the business of preparing for the military registration of 10,000,000 men, of providing quarters and instructors for nearly 50,000 prospective officers, for finding arms and equipment for millions of troops yet to be organized, of expanding the regular army to full war strength, of preparing and recruiting the National Guard for war was at hand.

PERSHING SETS UP HEADQUARTERS.

General Pershing dropped quietly into the department and set up the first headquarters of the American expeditionary forces in a little office, hardly large enough to hold himself and his personal staff. There, with the aid of the general staff, of Secretary Baker and of the chiefs of the War Department bureaus, the plans were worked out.

Announcement of the sending of the force under General Pershing was made May 18. The press gave the news to the country and there were daily stories.

There came a day when General Pershing no longer was in the department. Officers of the general staff suddenly were missing from their desks. No word of this was reported. Then came word from England that Pershing and his officers were there. All was carried through without publicity.

Other matters relating to the expedition were carried out without a word of publicity. The regiments that were to go with General Pershing were all selected before he left and moving toward the seacoast from the border. Other regiments also were moving north, east and west to the points where they were to be expanded, and the movements of the troops who were to be first in France were obscured in all this hurrying of troop trains over the land.

Great shipments of war supplies began to assemble at the embarkation ports. Liners suddenly were taken off their regular runs with no announcement. A great armada was made ready, supplied, equipped as transports, loaded with men and guns and sent to sea, and all with virtually no mention from the press.

The navy bore its full share in the achievement. From the time the troop ships left their docks and headed toward sea, responsibility for the lives of their thousands of men rested upon the officers and crews of the fighting ships that moved beside them or swept free the sea lanes before them. As they pushed on through the days and nights toward the danger zone, where German submarines lay in wait, every precaution that trained minds of the navy could devise was taken.

A BRILLIANT CLIMAX.

The brilliant climax to the achievement was made public when it was announced that not only had the last units of the expeditionary force been landed on July 3, but that the American navy had driven off two German submarines, probably sinking one of them, when the transport ships and convoys had been attacked.

The last units of the American expeditionary force, comprising vessels loaded with supplies and horses, reached France amid the screeching of whistles and moaning of sirens. Their arrival, one week after the first troops landed, was greeted almost as warmly as the arrival of the troops themselves.

Many of the American soldiers crowded down to the wharf to greet the last ships of the expedition and the American vessels in the harbor, which had made up previous contingents of the force, joined in the welcome. The late arrival of the supply ships was due not only to later departure from America, but also to the fact that the vessels were slower than those which had come before. The delay caused little anxiety, although it worked temporary inconvenience to the troops, who had been waiting for materials with which to work.

Probably the happiest man in port was Rear Admiral Gleaves, commander of the convoy. From the bridge of his flagship he watched the successful conclusion of his plans with characteristic modesty and insisted upon bestowing the lion's share of credit for the crossing on the navigating officers of his command.

ADVANCE PLANS BRIEFLY SKETCHED.

Sketching briefly the advance plans whereby all units of the contingent had to keep a daily rendezvous with accompanying warships, he said, that, thanks to his navigating officers and despite overcast skies, which made astronomical observations impossible, each rendezvous had been minutely and accurately kept by each unit. The orders he issued at the outset, which comprised scores of details, were observed, the Admiral declared, with such exactness that the contingent units and convoying warships invariably met each other within half an hour of the appointed time.

A big contributing factor in the crossing, according to officers of both branches of the service, was the hearty co-operation between the army and navy. From the time of the departure until the landing there was not the slightest suggestion of friction, and co-ordination played its part distinctively in the success of the expedition.

The startling fact of the entire journey across the sea was that the Navy had won its first victory in driving off attacking submarines. The news of the fight was given out by the Navy Department and the Committee on Public Information, with the announcement of the final landing of the troops and the safe arrival of the supply ships.

The announcement, sponsored by Secretary Daniels, of the Navy, shows beyond the shadow of doubt that the Berlin Admiralty had been "tipped off" that the American expeditionary force was on its way, and had carefully planned to send the transports to the bottom of the Atlantic.

Realizing that an attack might be expected in the war zone, and that every precaution would be taken to ward it off, the Germans moved far out from land, in the hope of catching the American gunners napping. They were fooled. Uncle Sam's jackies were at the guns when the fleet of submarines stuck their periscopes above the waves and trained their torpedo tubes on the lines of transports.

WAVES COVERED WITH SHELLS.

The torpedo boats and other craft opened up and covered the waves with shells. The Germans soon lost at least one submarine and, having had enough of the fight, they disappeared. As the little destroyers dashed straight at the submarines and shot under water explosives in their wake as they submerged, the transports dashed through the night at top speed without having been scratched.

The extreme degree to which the Germans had prepared to destroy the American force is shown by the second part of the official announcement, which tells how another section of the transport fleet was waylaid under cover of darkness, but how the American gunners were too quick for the Germans.

The text of Secretary Daniels' announcement was:

"It is with the joy of a great relief that I announce to the people of the United States the safe arrival in France of every fighting man and every fighting ship. Now that the last vessel has reached port, it is safe to disclose the dangers that were encountered and to tell the complete story of peril and courage.

"The transports bearing our troops were twice attacked by German submarines on the way across. On both occasions the U-boats were beaten off with every appearance of loss. One was certainly sunk, and there is reason to believe that the accurate fire of our gunners sent others to the bottom.

"For purposes of convenience, the expedition was divided into contingents, each contingent including troopships and a naval escort designed to keep off such German raiders as might be met.

"An ocean rendezvous had also been arranged with the American destroyers now operating in European waters in order that the passage of the danger zone might be attended by every possible protection.

"The first attack took place at 10.30 on the night of June 22. What gives it peculiar and disturbing significance is that our ships were set upon at a point well this side of the rendezvous, and in that part of the Atlantic presumably free from submarines. The attack was made in force, although the night made impossible any exact count of the U-boats gathered for what they deemed a slaughter.

HIGH SEAS CONVOY.

"The high seas convoy, circling with their searchlights, answered with heavy gunfire, and its accuracy stands proved by the fact that the torpedo discharge became increasingly scattered and inaccurate. It is not known how many torpedoes were launched, but five were counted as they sped by bow and stern.

"A second attack was launched a few days later against another contingent. The point of assault was beyond the rendezvous and our destroyers were sailing as a screen between the transports and all harm. The results of the battle were in favor of American gunnery.

"Not alone did the destroyers hold the U-boats at a safe distance, but their speed also resulted in the sinking of one submarine at least. Grenades were used in firing, a depth charge explosive timed to go off at a certain distance under water. In one instance, oil and wreckage covered the surface of the sea after a shot from a destroyer at a periscope, and the reports make claim of sinking.

"Protected by our high seas convoy, by our destroyers and by French war vessels, the contingent proceeded and joined the others in a French port.

"The whole nation will rejoice that so great a peril is passed for the vanguard of the men who will fight our battles in France. No more thrilling Fourth of July celebration could have been arranged than this glad news that lifts the shadow of dread from the heart of America."

Upon receipt of the announcement, Secretary Baker wrote the following letter to Secretary Daniels, conveying the army's thanks to the navy:

"Word has just come to the War Department that the last ships conveying General Pershing's expeditionary force to France arrived safe today. As you know, the navy assumed the responsibility for the safety of these ships on the sea and through the danger zone. The ships themselves and their convoys were in the hands of the navy, and now that they have arrived, and carried, without the loss of a man, our soldiers who are the first to represent America in the battle for democracy, I beg leave to tender to you, to the Admiral and to the navy, the hearty thanks of the War Department and of the army. This splendid achievement is an auspicious beginning and it has been characterized throughout by the most cordial and effective co-operation between the two military services."



CHAPTER XXV.

A GERMAN CRISIS.

THE DOWNFALL OF BETHMANN-HOLLWEG—THE CROWN PRINCE IN THE LIME LIGHT—HOLLWEG'S UNIQUE CAREER—DR. GEORG MICHAELIS APPOINTED CHANCELLOR—THE KAISER AND HOW HE GETS HIS IMMENSE POWER.

The active participation of the United States in the war, as distinctly marked by the sending of troops to France, aside from giving needed inspiration to the Allied forces, may be said to have had a decided effect in Germany. While the German subjects are loyal, there has developed in the country, as in every other country, a large element of Socialists and progressives.

Something of a climax was reached in the affairs of the Hohenzollern dynasty just when the United States troops were preparing to take their places on the battle line in France and when the first of the conscripted forces of the country were being summoned to the colors.

With a suddenness that startled the entire world, Dr. von Bethmann-Hollweg, the German Imperial Chancellor, resigned on July 14, thus ending his career as the spokesman of the Kaiser, which he had maintained for a surprisingly long period. At the same time Dr. Alfred Zimmermann, Foreign Minister, who was responsible for the correspondence which revealed the fact that Germany was trying to induce Mexico and Japan to form an alliance against the United States, also quit his post.

The resignation of the Chancellor came quite unexpectedly, for von Hollweg, in the prolonged party discussion and heated debates of the main committee of the Reichstag which had been in progress, seemed to have triumphed over his opponents.

His opponents had been clamoring for his head, but he made concessions, and by the declaration that Germany was fighting defensively for her territorial possessions evolved a formula which for a time seemed satisfactory to both those who clamored for peace by agreement and those who demanded repudiation of the formula, "no annexation and no indemnities." In this position Dr. von Hollweg was backed by the Emperor.

The advent of the Crown Prince upon the scene—summoned by his imperial father to share the deliberations affecting the future of the dynasty—seems to have changed entirely the position with regard to the Imperial Chancellor. The Crown Prince at once took a leading part in the discussions with the party leaders, and his ancient hostility toward Dr. von Bethmann-Hollweg, coupled with his notorious dislike for political reform, undoubtedly precipitated the Chancellor's resignation.

APPOINTMENT OF DR. GEORG MICHAELIS.

The resignation of Dr. von Hollweg was followed by the appointment of Dr. Georg Michaelis, Prussian Under Secretary of Finance and Food Commissioner.

The fall of Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg removed the last of the statesmen who were in charge of the great Powers of Europe at the beginning of the war, and brought to an end a career which in successful playing of both ends against the middle was almost without parallel in recent history.

Chancellor von Bethmann-Hollweg, an aristocrat and personal friend of the Emperor, stood out strongly against democratic agitation before the war, and at times was sharply outspoken in his defiance of socialism and his rejection of any move toward making the Chancellor and his subordinates, the other Ministers, responsible to the Reichstag. Yet in the early stages of the war he became known as a moderate, and it has been generally accepted that his influence was usually employed against the breaking of relations with America and ruthless submarine warfare.

PRESERVES A JUDICIOUS BALANCE.

When the opposition of the parties favoring the most desperate measures became too strong for him, he conceded a little ground, taking up a middle position in which he balanced himself for a long time against both the Conservative Junkers and the National Liberal trust magnates on the one side and the radical Socialists on the other. Neither side could claim him; neither could interpret his ambiguous utterances as support of its policies, and between the antagonisms of the two he maintained his position until at last he was overthrown by the attack of Erzberger, leader of the more liberal wing of the Catholic party, the traditional holders of the middle ground.

Bethmann-Hollweg's agility was demonstrated by the fact that he survived Asquith and Grey, Viviani, Sazonoff, Berchtold, Salandra, Jagow, and all the rest of the statesmen who were in power in Europe in August, 1914.

In personality the Chancellor was studious, scholarly and pleasant, lacking the brilliance of his predecessor, Von Buelow, but generally regarded as one who was if anything too mild rather than too severe.

Dr. Georg Michaelis, the successor to Hollweg, was the first commoner to be appointed to that high office, without even a "von" before his name.

The son of a Prussian official, he was born on September 8, 1857, in Haynan, Silesia. He received a university education, making the law his profession. In 1879 he became a court referee in Berlin, and in 1884 was attached to the District Attorney's office in that city. Several years later he went as professor of law and political economy to the University of Tokio.

Returning to Germany in 1889, he was chosen District Attorney for Berlin. His services won much praise and he was afterward sent by the government as an official in the provisional government at Trevas, Germany. In 1897 he was transferred to Westphalia, where he was Chief Councilor for the government there.

In 1900 he was made Provisional President of Liebnitz and in 1902 First Privy Councilor in Breslau. His work there won him an appointment as Under Secretary of State in the Department of Finance, which post he held in connection with his work as Food Commissioner.

Doctor Michaelis was selected for the post of Prussian Food Commissioner in February, 1917, after all efforts of Adolph von Batocki's organization—the food regulation board—had failed to lay hands on large supplies of grain, potatoes and other produce which the Prussian landlords were holding for the fattening of cattle and swine instead of making them available for general consumption.

GOVERNMENT ORDERS DISREGARDED.

The orders of Herr Batocki and the Central Government for the surrender of these supplies were disregarded or evaded at least, if not, as charged in Germany, with the actual assistance and support of the reactionary Prussian Minister of Agriculture, Baron von Schorlemer.

Doctor Michaelis was eventually selected as Food Controller as the result of an agreement between von Bethmann-Hollweg and the military authorities as a fearless, determined official, who would execute his mission without fear or favor and produce results if such were possible. The selection was justified.

The conditions in Germany which marked the ascendancy of the Crown Prince in the deliberations of the Imperial Government and brought about the upheaval in the Ministry are the logical result of the system under which the country is ruled.

There is, in the mind of the public generally, a theory that Germany with its Bundesrath and Reichstag has a government akin to that of England and even the United States, but the impression is an erroneous one. It is true that Germany has a dual system of government and independent state sovereignties. There is, however, nothing democratic about the system.

To begin with, the Kaiser is a constitutional monarch in his capacity as German Emperor, but as King of Prussia he is a self-appointed and arrogant ruler—all that he advertises himself to be in the way of a God-chosen ruler.

STATUS OF GERMAN SOVEREIGNTY.

To understand the difference in relationship between the King of Prussia and the German Emperor it is necessary to realize that the German constitution describes the Emperor thus: "The presidency of the Union belongs to the King of Prussia, who bears the title of German Emperor." On the other hand the King of Prussia, who happens to be the Kaiser, has his right to rule by birth. When the first king was crowned, about 1701, he placed the crown upon his own head, and that right has descended to King William. But as German Emperor the duties of the Kaiser are as clearly defined as those of the ruler of a modern democracy.

The difference between the Kingdom and the Empire is that the German Empire is a creation of sovereign states, ruled over by German Grand Dukes, Princes, and whatnot, who trace their lineage back to the days when might was right, and who won their power to rule by defeating their fellow men. At one time there were several hundred of these ruling princes. When Napoleon got through in Germany there were about twenty-two left. The German Empire today consists of these twenty-two states, and three free cities, comprising in all a group of twenty-five communities. It is a bond or association. It consists, in fact, of the twenty-five communities, of which it is composed, and represented by twenty-five kings, dukes, princes, etc., and not by the 65,000,000 population of the communities themselves. The sovereignty rests with the princes of the several states, who have bestowed a fixed power upon the Kaiser. As Emperor his office dates back to 1871.

The legislative machinery which has been devised for the use of these German sovereigns consists of the Bundesrath and the Reichstag. Sometimes the Bundesrath is likened to our Senate, or to the hereditary English House of Lords, while the Reichstag is compared to the House of Representatives or the House of Commons. But comparisons are odious.

THE BUNDESRATH.

The Bundesrath is an assembly in which the German kings, grand dukes, dukes, princes, etc., come together (by proxy) to direct the affairs of the Empire. Each of these sovereigns sends a specified number of delegates, in accordance with the provisions of the constitution. Thus the Kaiser, as the King of Prussia, sends seventeen delegates, while the King of Bavaria sends six. The total number of delegates is fifty-eight, so right in the beginning the Kaiser has a pretty good representation.

The delegations in the Bundesrath vote en masse—that is the "unit rule" prevails. The seventeen delegates from Prussia must vote as instructed by the Kaiser, and if there chanced to be but one member present he still would cast seventeen votes for the delegation. The members of the Bundesrath are referred to quite frequently as ambassadors. There is no need for discussion in the body since the delegations vote, in any event, as a unit.

The power of the German Bundesrath is, however, astonishing. Usually the lower house is supposed to be the one in which originates legislation, such as finance, affecting the people. But in Germany it is the Bundesrath which has the power to tax, and the lower chamber, the Reichstag, merely has the vetoing power.

This makes the taxing power in Germany primarily the privilege of the crown.

The financial program is prepared by the Chancellor, who is the direct representative of the Kaiser, and responsible only to him. In other governments members of the ministry are appointed by the legislative bodies, but the Chancellor is personally named by the Kaiser, and is not even a member of the Reichstag. He has the right, however, to address this body, as the privilege of a member of the Bundesrath of which, as the personal representative of the Kaiser, he is the presiding officer.

Since the Bundesrath, as already shown, practically controls the German Empire, and the King of Prussia, with his seventeen votes in the Bundesrath holds sway in that body, it is easy to see how the Kaiser is the dominating figure in the German Empire.

THE KAISER'S DUAL PREROGATIVE.

A unique provision of the German constitution is that fourteen votes in the Bundesrath can defeat any proposed amendment, and since the Kaiser controls seventeen votes, as King of Prussia, besides several others, he has a voting strength which can block any attempt to change the regime. Also, as King of Prussia, he can instruct his Chancellor to prepare laws to be introduced in the Bundesrath.

It is the power which the Kaiser possesses, as the King of Prussia, which gives him his control as the German Emperor. Prussia is the largest of the German states, and when the Kaiser, as King of Prussia, says that he is master in Prussia, he speaks the truth.

There is a ministry in Prussia, and the head of this body is usually the same person who occupies the position of Imperial Chancellor, and the Kaiser appoints this Minister as well as his associates, whom he can remove without reference to the Ministry as a body. There are two chambers in Prussian Ministry commonly known as the House of Peers, and the House of Representatives.

Just to give the King of Prussia a little more control, he has the right to appoint all the members of the House of Peers, and also to designate the number. The House of Representatives, on the face of it, is a popular body, because the members are supposed to be elected by universal suffrage. The taxpayers vote for representation in this chamber, but they do not vote directly nor on equal terms.

Members of the House of Representatives are chosen by an electoral college, and several hundred of these colleges are selected at each election. Though taxpayers vote for the electors, all the votes do not have the same relative value. The taxpayers whose combined taxes represent one-third of the whole amount of taxes in an electoral district choose one-third of the members from that district to the House. Those who pay the next one-third of the taxes choose another third of the electors, and the remaining body of voters choose the last third.



CHAPTER XXVI.

UNCLE SAM AND THE NEUTRALS.

PRESIDENT WILSON PUTS EMBARGO ON FOOD SHIPMENTS—SCANDINAVIAN COUNTRIES FURNISHING SUPPLIES TO GERMANY INSPIRES ORDER—THE DIFFICULT POSITION OF NORWAY, DENMARK, HOLLAND AND SWITZERLAND.

When America first declared its intentions there were in the United States thousands who held to the theory that "America in War" simply meant that we should shut ourselves within our borders, perhaps furnish supplies to the Allied forces, lend money to England, France, Belgium and Russia, use our navy to protect our merchant shipping and go about our business, leaving the fighting to the forces joined in conflict against Germany.

They were disabused when the English and French Commission and the representatives of Belgium and Russia made it apparent that it would be necessary for America to actually raise a fighting army and General Pershing was sent to France. But they learned, too, that mobilizing the forces of the country and waging warfare were not simple matters. The truth was brought home that the whole nation must fight; that it must use its brains, its money, its resources of every sort, its whole power, both in an offensive and in a defensive way.

Not only must its soldiers and sailors face the guns of the Teutons, but the machinery of government must be used to bring the arrogant Hohenzollerns to their knees. Some startling things were discovered, and the brains of the diplomatic force of the government were put to the test. International problems arose which were never before encountered in the history of nations.

England, with its blockade against Germany, and Germany with its submarine warfare against British and neutral shipping, developed problems which had to be solved relative to keeping Germany from getting supplies which would enable her to withstand the siege, and also as to the sending of supplies to England, Belgium, France and Russia, and particularly to our own forces fighting with the Allies in France.

A BIG FACTOR IN WAR.

Unfortunate as it may seem, one of the biggest factors in waging successful war is to prevent the enemy from getting food supplies. It is a frequently repeated truism that "an army travels on its stomach," and in the pleas for conservation and efficient management the leaders in every country declared frequently that "the war would be won by the last loaf of bread," or that it was not a question of ammunition, but of wheat.

One of the serious problems which the government was therefore called to face within a very short period after the American troops were first landed in France was that of dealing with the food situation, both at home and abroad. At that time the German U-boats had sunk merchant ships having a total of more than 5,000,000 tonnage, and the food situation was precarious in the Allied countries. Germany, on the other hand, because of long preparation for the struggle, coupled with efficient management and practices, was more largely independent of other countries.

At this time it was learned that Germany was securing large quantities of foodstuffs through the medium of some of the neutral countries. America was, therefore, called upon to take steps to prevent the Germans getting supplies from this country, through the intermediary of Holland and the Scandinavian countries. As a result the government placed an embargo on a long list of articles including fuel, oils, grains, meats and fodder. The embargo, which was made effective by a proclamation of President Wilson, forbade the carrying of such supplies as were mentioned from the United States or its territorial possessions to neutral countries.

The purpose of the embargo was not to prevent the neutral countries from securing foodstuffs from America for their own consumption, but to prevent their reselling such supplies at a profit to Germany. The position of the government was made plain in the statement of President Wilson, who said:

DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN NEEDS.

"It is obviously the duty of the United States in liberating any surplus products over and above our own domestic needs to consider first the necessities of all the nations engaged in war against the central empires. As to neutral nations, however, we also recognize our duty. The government does not wish to hamper them. On the contrary, it wishes and intends, by all fair and equitable means, to co-operate with them in their difficult task of adding from our available surpluses to their own domestic supply and of meeting their pressing necessities or deficits. In considering the deficits of food supplies, the government means only to fulfill its obvious obligation to assure itself that neutrals are husbanding their own resources, and that our supplies will not become available, either directly or indirectly, to feed the enemy."

While the conservation of our resources had a great deal to do with the issuing of the embargo, the action was partly taken as the result of information lodged by England that Holland, Sweden and Norway had been supplying Germany and her allies with food, despite the latter's hostile action in sinking ships owned by the neutrals. The government made an investigation and discovered that the shipment to these neutral countries had become abnormally large. It was reported, particularly, that many Holland business men had become fabulously wealthy by trading in the supplies which came from America, and which they resold to Germany.

The embargo became operative under a method of license procedure, so that all shipments could be watched by the government authorities. The order compelled all persons seeking to export goods to make application for a license to the Secretary of Commerce, or bureaus designated in various parts of the country.

In support of the contentions that the neutral countries were supplying Germany, Great Britain furnished the Government with the following table as representing the minimum of food exports from Scandinavia and Holland to Germany in 1916: Butter, 82,600 metric tons; meat, 115,800 tons; pork products, 68,800 tons; condensed milk, 70,000 tons; fish, 407 tons; cheese, 80,500 tons; eggs, 46,400 tons; potato meal, 179,500 tons; coffee, 58,500 tons; fruit, 74,000 tons; sugar, 12,000 tons; vegetables, 215,000.

These figures are most impressive, it is asserted, in relation to fats, the scarcest thing in Germany. Fat, it is claimed, is the only food seriously lacking now in the diet of the German people. Imports of this food, the British declare, furnish one-fourth of the daily German fat ration.

NATIONS WHO SUFFER FROM EMBARGO.

There are five neutral countries whose positions were anything but enviable during the war, and it is perhaps worth interpolating a little something about them at this particular point. Norway, Sweden, Holland, Denmark and Switzerland were the neutrals at the time the embargo was placed on foodstuffs.

Switzerland, as all the world knows, is one of the most picturesque countries in Europe, and is a republic in the west central part of the continent, bounded on the north by Baden, Wurtemburg and Bavaria; on the east by the Tyrol, on the south by Italy and on the west by France. There is no national tongue, three languages being spoken within the boundaries of the republic. Where it comes in contact with the French frontier, the French language is largely spoken; while Italian is the language spoken in the southern part, where it is bounded by Italy. In the northern section the German language is spoken. The country has an area of 15,992 square miles.

In the main, Switzerland is mountainous, the chief valley being that of the Rhone, in the southern part. The most level tracts are in the northwestern section, where there are a number of mountain-locked valleys. Mountain slopes comprise about two-fifths of the area of the country, and practically all of the rivers are rapid and unnavigable. The forests are extensive and consist of large trees. Cereals, along with hemp, flax and tobacco, are raised, and the pasture lands are fertile and abundant. Hence, the dairy products, as well as hides and tallow, are produced in profusion. Fruits of the hardier varieties grow well and profitably.

A FEDERAL UNION.

The republic consists of twenty-two States or Cantons which form a Federal Union, although each is virtually independent in matters of politics. The Swiss Constitution, remodelled in 1848, vests the ruling executive and legislative authority in a Diet of two houses—a State Council and a National Council. The former consists of 44 members—two from each Canton—and corresponds in its functional action with the United States Senate. The National Council is the more purely representative body, and is composed of 128 members elected triennially by popular suffrage. Both chambers combine and form what is called the Federal Assembly.

The chief executive power is exercised by the so-called Federal Council, or Bundesgericht, which is elected triennially. Its governing officers are the President and Vice President of the republic. International and inter-cantonal questions are discussed before and adjudicated by the Bundesgericht, which serves as a high court of appeal. The army consists of 142,999 regulars and 91,809 landwehr; total, 231,808 men of all arms. Every adult citizen is de facto liable to military service, and military drill and discipline are taught in all the schools. The Protestant faith forms the ruling form of religion in 15 of the cantons, Roman Catholicism prevailing in the rest. Education is well diffused by numerous colleges and schools of a high grade; and its upper branches are cared for at the three universities of Berne, Basle and Zurich.

Denmark, whose home possessions comprise 14,789 square miles, is, by the way, barely one-half the size of Scotland. It consists of a peninsular portion called Jutland, and an extensive archipelago lying east of it. It has a number of territorial possessions in the Atlantic ocean, among them the islands of Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe islands in the north.

GERMAN AMBITION FRUSTRATED.

One of its possessions in the West Indies was purchased by the United States almost at the time America entered the war, and created a situation which was not calculated to inspire the friendship of Germany for the little country, since it was intimated that Germany would liked to have had the island for a base. The islands cost the United States about $25,000,000. Including the colonial possessions, the total area of the Danish possessions is 80,000 square miles, the population being 2,726,000 persons.

Copenhagen is the capital, the other chief cities being Odense, Aarhuus, Aalborg, Randers and Horsens. For administrative purposes Denmark is divided into 18 provinces or districts, besides the capital, nine of these making up Jutland and the other nine comprising the island possessions. On the south Denmark is bounded by Germany and the Baltic, on the west it is washed by the North Sea; while to the north lies Norway, separated by the Skagerrack, and on the east lies Sweden, separated by the Cattegat and the Sound.

The line of seaboard is irregular and broken, and the low, flat nature of the country necessitates the construction of dykes, in many places, in order to prevent the ocean from making inroads. There are few rivers, and these are small and not of value commercially. Timber is not abundant, and minerals are scarce and of little value. The climate is generally moist and cold, fogs are frequent and the winters generally severe. Cereals, potatoes, wool and dairy products are the principal products. Cattle raising is carried on extensively, much of the beef being exported.

The Danes, physically, are sturdy, and represent the truest physical characteristics of Scandinavian types. The people are brave, sober and industrious, and the sailors from this country are among the leading navigators of the world. The government is a constitutional monarchy, with the executive power vested in a king and a ministry, who are held responsible to the Rigsdag, which is the parliament.

LANDSTHING AND FOLKSTHING.

This parliament consists of a Senate, or Landsthing, and a lower house, or Folksthing. The Evangelical Lutheran Church is the State religion, but all other persuasions are fully and freely tolerated. Education is compulsory, and is largely disseminated. The army consists of 60,000 men, while the navy is quite small, having a personnel of about 4000 officers and men.

The authentic history dates from 1385, the year of the accession of Margaret, the "Semiramis of the North," and wearer of the triple Scandinavian crowns. The latest monarch, Frederick VIII, came to the throne in 1906.

Holland, the most picturesque of the neutral countries, aside from Switzerland with its wonderful scenery, is credited with having profited very largely by the war. It rests along the North Sea and adjoins the German Empire on the east and borders Belgium on the South. It contains about 11 provinces, with a total area of 12,582 square miles and a population of about 6,000,000.

Always one thinks of windmills, dykes, fat cattle, butter, eggs, ducks and green farms when Holland is mentioned, and it is in many respects one of the most highly developed commercial countries in the world. The country manufactures many articles of world-wide distribution, including chocolate, linens, fine damasks, pottery, chemical and pharmaceutical products, and Amsterdam is a center of diamond-cutting.

It has a large mercantile marine and was at one time a tremendous maritime power, doing an immense trading business in many waters. It still has rich and extensive colonies, including the Dutch possessions in the East Indies, comprising the Sunda Islands, except a portion of Borneo and Eastern Timor, and New Guinea. Java and Madura are two of the richest of the group and have a population of more than 30,000,000. There are also possessions in the West Indies and in South America.

A SMALL BUT EFFICIENT ARMY.

The Dutch army has approximately 40,000 officers and men and is regarded as one of the most efficient armies in the world of its size. There is also a colonial army in the East Indies with 1300 officers and 35,183 men. Its navy has 4000 officers and men and has about 200 vessels of all sorts, none of them of the modern dreadnought or super-dreadnought type.

The history of the rich little country is one of the most interesting in literature. It was originally part of the Empire of Charlemagne. Subsequently, it became divided into a number of petty principalities, and by heritage became a possession of the Austrian monarchy. In the long struggle against the Spanish power it became one of the Seven United Provinces. The country made rapid progress, and during the 17th century withstood the power of Louis the XIV of France, but later was overrun by the French, and finally in 1806 was made a kingdom by Napoleon, in favor of his brother Louis. Under the Treaty of Paris Belgium and Holland were united to form the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and this arrangement remained until 1830, when Belgium broke away. Holland attempted to reduce the revolting province by force, but the powers intervened and an adjustment was made. The last King was William, III, who died in 1890, leaving his daughter Wilhelmina, then but 10 years old, Queen.

Of the neutral countries none endured more than heroic Norway. With a long coast line practically undefended and with the full force of the German navy anchored but a few hours away, and a none too friendly country on her land border, possessing an army greater than her own, Norway's position was extremely difficult.

Had she flung herself into the war with the Allies when the breach came she would have been of little help to them, for she would have placed them in the position of being called upon to help defend her long coast line. It is probable also that a break with Germany would have let loose the Swedish army on the side of the Teutons.

BETWEEN TWO FIRES.

The little country was between two fires, and she suffered great strain. In the first place, while Norway attempted to maintain her export trade and her shipping, the Allies inspected her import invoices and subjected her to much annoyance, while Germany, without provocation, ruthlessly attacked her merchant ships and sent many of them to the bottom of the ocean.

There were intimations that Germany's real intent was to precipitate a rupture which would justify her attack on the little country, which she would be able to subdue with ease and seize the rugged coast and ports of vantage. But Norway remained neutral, and was not at all pleased with the embargo placed upon shipments by the United States, though it developed that the restrictions would not prevent the country from getting its share of grain and other supplies from America.

Norway is the western portion of the Scandinavian peninsula, and has an area of about 125,000 square miles. Its northern coast is washed by the cold waters of the Arctic Ocean, and against the northeast is Lapland, while Sweden bounds it on the east and the famed North Sea on the south and the broad Atlantic on the west.

The rugged country is separated from Sweden by the Kiolen, or the Great Scandinavian chain of mountains, and in the hills and mountains are found the wonderful Norway spruce and fir trees familiar in commerce. Its fisheries and shipbuilding industry are also of great importance in the world of business.

DEMOCRACY OF NORWAY.

The constitution of Norway is one of the most Democratic in all Europe. Although a monarchy, its executive and legislative power is vested in the parliament, called the Storthing, and the King has merely a nominal command over the army and navy, with power to appoint the governor-general only. The latter has a limited right to veto acts of the parliament. Hereditary nobility was abolished in 1821.

Under the treaty of Vienna in 1814, and following the defeat of Napoleon, it was arranged that Denmark must give up Norway, and the two countries were united under the Swedish Crown. Norway demanded a separate consular service in 1905, and the Storthing declared the union with Sweden at an end. Prince Charles of Denmark then became King, reigning as Haakon VII.

The country has a population of 2,340,000, and her full military force mobilized for war is only 110,000 men.

Sweden, Norway's next-door neighbor on the Scandinavian peninsula, in contradistinction to the latter, is a constitutional monarchy, with extraordinary powers vested in the King, who is assisted in the administration of affairs by a council of ministers. The Diet, or legislature, consists of two chambers, or estates, both elected by the people.

Like Norway, the country is very rugged. Lapland and Finland are at the northeast, and on the east is the Gulf of Bothnia and the Baltic, and on the south the Baltic, the Sound and the Cattegat. It joins Norway on the west. Its area is 172,875 square miles, and its coast line is more than 1400 miles long.

Sweden, while it does not have a first-class navy, possesses a score of armored vessels of small displacement, besides torpedo boats, destroyers, etc., and has an army of 40,000 at peace strength. The country is particularly rich in minerals, and some of the finest iron ore in the world comes from its mines. Nickel, lead, cobalt, alum and sulphur are also produced in large quantities; while it gives to the world, too, immense quantities of lumber and larger quantities of hemp, flax and hops.

The reigning monarch is King Gustavus V, who succeeded his father, Oscar II, who died in 1907. The population of the country is about 5,000,000.

Of these neutrals, both Holland and Switzerland did a great deal for the suffering Belgians when Germany pounded through the country of King Albert, sending money for the relief of the sufferers and offering refugees shelter.



CHAPTER XXVII.

THE ACTIONS OF THE WAR.

FROM BOSNIA TO FLANDERS—MARNE THE TURNING POINT OF THE CONFLICT—THE CONQUESTS OF SERVIA AND RUMANIA—THE FALL OF BAGDAD—RUSSIA'S WOMEN SOLDIERS—AMERICA'S CONSCRIPTS.

The end of August, 1917, found twenty-one nations in a state of war and five in what might be termed a condition of modified neutrality, with nearly 40,000,000 summoned to arms and 5,000,000 killed in bitter warfare.

This was the fiery reflection of the shots which caused the death of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand, of Austria, in the quiet little town of Serajevo, the capital of Bosnia, in June, 1914. And so, with their backs to the wall, Austria-Hungary, Germany, Turkey and Bulgaria faced Servia, Russia, France, Belgium, Great Britain, Montenegro, Japan, Italy, Portugal, Rumania, the United States, Cuba, Brazil, Greece, Siam, China and little Liberia, while Guatemala, Panama, Haiti, Uruguay and Bolivia stood by in a position of neutrality, but for the most part indicating a willingness to help the Allies.

And in those elapsed three years after the Bosnia tragedy an Emperor of Austria had died; a Czar had stepped from his throne, and a King had been compelled to toss aside his crown. Prime Ministers and Ministers of War in all of the principal countries, who held the confidence of their peoples when the war started, were no more.

Cabinets had been dissolved and new ones set up, statesmen brushed aside and commanders of the war forces compelled to step out that others might carry on the battles.

Though it was Austria's ultimatum to Servia which precipitated the world-wide struggle, it was Germany that took the first step and crossed the French frontier with its armed forces. After Servia refused to accede to all of the demands of Austria-Hungary and war had formally been declared by the latter country, Russia began a partial mobilization of her armed forces, since she had given warning that she would extend protection to Servia. Germany retaliated by calling together her warring forces and declaring war on the Czar; France came to Russia's aid. Then when Belgium refused to permit the German army to pass through the country and Germany disregarded international treaties and invaded the territory, Great Britain declared war upon the Kaiser, and Montenegro aligned itself with the Allies.

GERMANY'S DESIGNS ON PARIS.

Germany's action and subsequent events prove that the war lords had planned to capture Paris by a swift attack from the north, before France could gather her forces to resist and before Russia was prepared to assist. Belgium, however, proved a stumbling block. The natives, battling like demons for the protection of their homes and honor, held the Teuton hordes at Liege for several weeks, or until the famous fortifications there were reduced, and then the terrible machine of the Germans swept forward until the soldiers were within fifteen miles of the French capital.

It was here, within a few hours' march of Paris, that the French and Allied troops showed their real metal. General Joffre met the German hordes beside the River Marne and with his troops began the battle which was to guarantee the security of the French capital and result in the routing of the army of Von Kluck, regarded as the pick of the Prussian forces. In the famed battle of the Marne there were fought a number of separate engagements, which have been termed the battles of Meaux, Sezanne, Vitry and Argonne.

The German forces were driven back step by step to the north bank of the Aisne, where the army was able to entrench itself and the Germans and the Allied forces began digging themselves into the ground in a manner that had never before been practised in warfare.

While Germany was striking at France, the Russians had invaded Austria, capturing Tarnapol and Lemberg and investing the great fortress of Prezemsyl. Austria was compelled to call upon Germany for assistance and four German army corps, under Von Hindenburg, were drawn from East Prussia and went to the rescue. Instead of trying to stem the progress of the Russians, he made a counter offensive with Warsaw as the objective. Russia was compelled for a time to abandon its positions and retreat, and Von Hindenburg got within seven miles of Warsaw before the Russians rode down upon his forces with 100,000 horsemen and compelled retreat. Von Hindenburg's strategy had, however, been successful, and his action on the Eastern front at this time marked the first step toward his pre-eminence as a military commander.

BRITISH AND GERMAN FORCES COMPARED.

During 1915 the Allied forces were able to do little more than hold their positions. Lord Kitchener had builded up a British volunteer army in which great hopes were placed, but in the matter of offensive military tactics they could not cope with the formidable German forces, nor had the Allies developed an offensive which would win without terrible sacrifice, and in the encounters the very flower of Great Britain's manhood, as well as thousands of the best fighting men of France, were lost to the world forever. It was in this year, when Germany made use of asphyxiating gas for the first time, that Canada received its most stinging blow. The famous Princess Pats, the finest military body of the Dominion, was practically annihilated, and in the final formidable attack of the year made by the French against the Germans in September, the latter were driven back several miles, but at a cost of more than 100,000 French lives.

In this year, too, the Germans succeeded in capturing much territory and a number of valuable positions which had been taken by the Russians, and the combined forces of Von Hindenburg and Von Mackensen finally conquered Poland. Warsaw was evacuated in July, and in August Prince Leopold led the Bavarian into the Polish capital. On August 19 the great stronghold of Kovno fell, and the conquest was made complete with the surrender of Brest-Litovsk.

CONQUEST OF SERVIA.

The conquest of Servia by the Teutons also marked the year 1915. Among the first shots of the war were those fired by the Austrians when they bombarded Belgrade, the capital of Servia, and made an attempt to invade the country. The Servians and Montenegrins almost annihilated Austrian troops which attempted to cross the Danube into Servia, and the Austrian invasion fell. But the combined Austro-German forces invaded the country later as part of the Prussian program to conquer all the territory from the Baltic to the Bosporus. The Entente Allies made an effort to save the little country by landing troops at Salonica, but it was too late. Just before winter set in, the Austro-German forces and the Bulgarian forces, invading from opposite sides, met, and the conquest of the country was complete.

It was in 1915, too, that what is conceded to have been one of the most disastrous and futile campaigns of the war was attempted by England. Constantinople was to be captured and the Turks crushed, with a view of opening communication with Russia by way of the Black Sea. The British fleet was sent out to bombard the Dardanelles, and the now famous Anzacs—Australian and New Zealand troops—were landed on the peninsula of Gallipoli to strike at the Turkish capital from behind. The campaign was waged through the summer, but with little hope of success, and finally abandoned after the British had lost more than 100,000 of its most daring, hard-fighting and loyal Colonial soldiers.

After this came "Verdun"—that conflict in which France won immortal glory and the German's attack upon the French fortress town of Verdun was successfully repulsed. The battle raged for four months, beginning in February, 1916. The German troops, with the German Crown Prince in command, captured two forts close to Verdun, but little by little the French troops drove them back, and finally, in command of General Nivelle, with General Petain looking after the defense of Verdun, the French, co-operating with the British, made an attack on the Somme, and the Germans were compelled to abandon the Verdun offensive. In the Verdun campaign the Germans lost more than 500,000 men, while the French lost not half the number.

RUSSIA'S CONQUEST OF ARMENIA.

Russia's conquest of Armenia was one of the features of 1916. The troops under General Brussiloff renewed their endeavors in Galicia and for several months made great progress; then Rumania entered the war and the Russian forces in Galicia slowed down. In Caucasus, however, Russian troops gained Erzerum, one of the Turk fortresses, and captured the seaport of Trebizond, practically gaining Armenia. Like the Germans in retreat from Flanders, the Turks practiced unspeakable horrors. Their cruelties were such as to almost exterminate the race.

The tragedy of the Balkans in 1916 was Rumania. With an army of more than half a million men, she entered the war with the approval of the Entente and entered Transylvania. But the Germans began a counter-attack in Dobrudja, and the Rumanians were compelled to withdraw some of their forces from Transylvania. The German commander then threw his forces across the remaining Rumanians and drove them across the border, after which he swung his own troops through the mountain passes into Rumania. The two German forces invading Rumania met at Bucharest, and the Rumanian capital was occupied.

Another fiasco was that of the British expeditionary force which was sent from India by way of the Persian Gulf and up the Tigris river to Bagdad. General Townsend succeeded in getting within 15 miles of Bagdad, but he was defeated by a superior Turkish force and compelled to fall back to Kut-el-Amara. Here his inadequate force, lacking medical and transport facilities, was fairly starved out before he was relieved. He was finally compelled to surrender the last week in April, 1916.

Little more than a year after the collapse of this expedition, however, the famous old city of Bagdad was captured by the English after a well-directed campaign under General Maude.

ITALY'S HELP TO THE ALLIES.

Italy, having begun active warfare with the Allies in 1915, waged war along the Austrian border, compelling the Austro-German forces to concentrate a larger body of troops for duty on the Italian frontier, and to that extent materially assisted the Allies. At the same time the Italians fought their way up over the mountains and won more than 500 square miles of territory and took nearly 90,000 prisoners.

The final alignment of the Greeks with the Allies marked the progress of affairs in the middle of 1917, when Constantine was forced from his throne in favor of his second son, and Venizelos was returned as Premier. But the entrance of the Greeks did not materially alter the situation.

The two most important events of 1917 were the entrance of America into the conflict and the revolt in Russia, which caused the abdication of the Czar and turned the great country into a republic. The ultimate in Russia's history is still to be written, but the change was fraught with disaster. The people let free, and unaccustomed to self-government, could not be controlled, and the army became demoralized.

The element which had been loyal to the Romanoffs refused to fight for liberty, and the Germans, taking advantage of the situation, drove the Russian troops back over the frontiers and gained all that the Russians had once taken in conflict. And out of this grew one of the most picturesque incidents of the entire war. Russian women and girls, filled with ideals and with a deep sense of the responsibilities which rested upon the nation, formed a corps, and, dressed in full military costume, went to the front and attacked the German troops. No soldiers of any nation have shown more heroism, or more capability, for the women faced the bullets, and, while they were being mowed down by the German guns, they urged their men to face the enemy and fight—fight—fight.

BRITISH NAVY AN EFFECTIVE ASSET.

While there have been few of the picturesque battles on the seas, which the world has long regarded as a necessary adjunct to a successful war, the work of the British Navy has proved through the period of the conflict to be one of the most powerful and effective assets of the Allied forces. Through the operation of the British fleet, later augmented by an American war fleet, the German ships have been corked up in their home ports and chased from the seas.

The first naval battle of the war was an engagement between portions of the British squadron in the Pacific and a superior German force. The engagement occurred off the coast of Chili in November, 1915. Two British vessels were lost and a third badly damaged. However, a few months later, the German squadron, in command of Admiral von Spee, was met off the Falkland Islands by a second British squadron, and in the engagement four of the German vessels were sunk and a fifth damaged. This vessel was later sunk.

The most important naval engagement was the battle of Jutland in May, 1916, when Admiral Beatty met a German fleet in the North Sea. The German boats made a dash from the Kiel canal and engaged the British off the coast of Denmark. Both England and Germany claimed victory, the former declaring that Germany lost eighteen ships, while the German Government claimed that the British lost fifteen vessels. Berlin admitted a loss of 60,720 tons and 3966 men, while England conceded a loss of more than 114,000 tons and 5613 men. But the English fleet which engaged the German fighting ships was but a small portion of the force on guard outside of Helgoland and the Kiel Canal, and the effect was to keep the German navy from venturing forth again.

These are the main events which had punctuated the action of the world's fighting machines at the close of August, 1917, when America was preparing to thwart the German U-boats in their destruction of the world's shipping, and had under actual call to arms more than 1,000,000 men, a minor part of which had been safely landed in France.

WORLD'S AWFUL MARITIME LOSS.

In the three months prior to August the German underseas boats had sunk 464 vessels, or an average of 426,000 tons of shipping a month, while America, working with her fleets in conjunction with the British Navy to foil the submarine in its endeavors, was also building more than 12,000 cargo-carrying craft and submarine chasers with which to flood the traffic lanes of the sea.

Likewise, contracts had been awarded for 10,000 flying machines with which to drive the "eyes of the German army," as the air machines are called, from the heavens. Finally, as the Allies in the closing days of August were driving the German hordes back under avalanches of shells, 629,000 of the youth of America, called to fight under the conscript act, were preparing to move to camps in a dozen different sections of the country to train themselves for invading foreign countries and facing the brutal Teutons. Likewise, some 20,000 picked men were training to officer these civilian forces, and half a million men of the National Guards of the various States, formally mustered into the service of the country, were moving by orders of the Government to points whence they would find their way to the side of the loyal French soldiers and the sturdy English, Scotch, Canadian, Australian and virile Italian fighters.