Cheyenne record., 1914-12-31
STORY OF YEAR MARKED
BY SENSATIONAL EVENTS
Most Momentous Twelve Months of Modern Times
Reviewed Great European War; Mexican
Troubles and Other World Happenings.

lowed in rapid succession. until late In
the autumn, the greatly outnumbered
Teutonic allies began to show signs of
| declining offensive ability
The Japanese confined their military
operations entirely to Asia. They i'm
mediately proceeded against the German
forts at kiauchau, China, which were
| taken by assault after ten weeks attack
Russian and Turkish fleets have been en-
gagged in the Black sea. there has been
fighting on a small scale in Egypt, and
the Portuguese in Africa have made sew
| eral attacks upon German colonists. In
dian troops have been engaged with Tur-
kish forces In an effort to keep the Suez
Canal open.
From the first, there has been a prac-
tical deadlock in the naval situation. The
British fleet sailed under sealed orders Au-
gust 4, and a big naval battle in the
North sea was confidently expected by
the waiting world. 1t soon became ap-
parent that Great Britains purpose was
to deal a fatal blow at German commerce.
safeguard that of Belgium. France and its
own and render the enemy's fleet inopera-
| tive by holding 1t in the Baltic. A week
later, the port authorities Of New York
| were notified that the Atlantic lines were
unobstructed. and few days afterward
| the Pacific lines were pronounced open
and safe" Sixty British war vessels
| guarded the exit of the Kiel Canal and
| prevented the thirty German battleshps
| anchored there from coming out Within
few days. more than thirty of the great
German ocean liners were interned in
neutral waters and number of German
merchant ships were captured or de-
stroyed.
BY the middle of November more than
four hundred war vessels and merchant
men on all sides had been captured or in
termed in neutral ports The Emden In
the Pacific and the Karlsruhe in the
South Atlantic. two German raiders.
preyed successfully upon allied and neu-
| trail commerce until the former was put
out of action. During the past three
| months the Germans have destroyed a
| number of British cruisers by means OF
| torpedoes. In an action off the coast of
| Chile. a squadron OF five German war
ships sank, the Monmouth and Good Hope
! with all on board. On October Gal
| though it was not known to the public
| for n fortnight afterward-the British
| uper-drcadnaught Audacious was sunk
| by a mine off the coast of Ireland. Short
| ly afterward. the British admiralty de-
clared the North sea closed military
| area.
On December the German cruisers
| Scharnhorst. Gnesau. Leipzig and Nucrn-
berg. under Admiral Won Spec. were sunk
| by British squadron under Eice-Admiral
! Sir Frederick Sturdee, off the Falkland
/ islands. The German cruiser Dresden es-
! Ddhly lecelflDeT IL
| German fleet bombardcd the English coast
| towns of Hartlepool, Whitby and Scar
| borough killing $50 and wounding 300 citi-
zcns and causing much property damage.
! Three British merchant vessels We're sunk
by mines laid by the bombarding fleet.
At the close of the year operations in
the west seem practically at a standstill.
! December II the Germans reported Il VIC
tory in Poland.
| As n result of the immediate paralysis
| in the financial world due to the sudden
embodiment of the European nations.
| Americans abroad were subjected to
| great Inconvenience and not a little actual
| hardship. Much relief was afforded the
Belgian sufferers and large sums of
money for the purpose were raised all
| over the country.
The American Red Cross sent the relief
ship Red Cross to European waters
with n full equipment of physicians
nurses and supplies. on September T.
Chaotic Conditions in Mexico.
Early in the year foreign nations began
to be critical of the administration
"hands-off" Mexican policy and to insist
that the job of pacifying Mexico belonged
logically to the United States. Nicto-
riano huerta had held the provisional
presidency for a year and boasted in his
cups that lie would hold his office longer
than President Wilson would remain In
the White House. Meanwhile the bandit
chief Pancho Villa was steadily gaining
| ground in the north. The fiercest battle
of the revolution, which was fought fol
almost two weeks, ended in victory fol
the rebel forces.
There appalling loss of life II
this long continued fight, and more thai
four thousand fugitives crossed the Rit
Grande and took refuge in American ter
ritory. Here they were cared for by th
United States authorities.
| On February 3 President Wilson re
voked an order by his predecessor in of
flee to put stop to the shipment of arm
and ammunition into Mexico by citizens
OF the United States On April IA. Prcsi
dent Wilson instructed Secretary Daniel
to assemble an imposing naval force Il
Tampico. the Mexican coast. Thi
was due to the refusal of the Mexican
president and his military aids to salut
. the American flag as an essential featur
: of an apology for an unwarranted arres
and Imprisonment Of several American
, bluejackets who had landed on Mexica
soil to obtain n supply of gasoline.
Although the episode was the result o
misundersta nding in which all the par
ties concerned shared about equally.
was manifest that Huerta was in no moo
to comply with any request of the Wash
, ington authorities. however politely an
even delicately made. He refused to or
| der the salute, and the naval demonStra
tion followed
Congress passed a resolution sustainin
the president In the position which h
had taken. On April q Admiral Fletche
seized the custom house at Vera Cruz
The Mexicans resisted the occupation o
the custom house and the result was
fight in which 1e Americans were kille
and II wounded. General Mas. in com
mand of the garrison. withdrew and lef