The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-08-08
WAR ECHOES

noted bacteriologist, wno served as an army surgeon in the civil war, discussed | last night the report from London that 1 three French army surgeons had been
 caught by the GeSnans in an attempt to
 introduce cholera bacteria in wells from
 which German troops would use water in
 traversing the country He said such a
 method would be one that could not be detected at once by the taste, but in view of the modern advances in sanitation in
 the armies of the world he was inclined to doubt that any serious results could fol- low poisoning of wells unless it were carried on on a wholesale scale. "Stories of attempts to poison wells are familiar in the history of the world, said pr. Baruch but there is no cffec- tive liquid poison that cannot be detected on tasting the water The only way to poison a well without it's being detected is to introduce typhoid or other bacteria. Although the story is plausible and the thing can be done it would have no very dangerous effects because it would be dis covered in less than h week. The cases could tbe isolated at once. One well or even many wells could not supply even one regiment Usually armies use springs or get their supply from large reservoirs Springs would wash away the bacteria and they would. have no effect "The attempt may have been made, but even if 50 cases resulted that would not be serious. Army surgeons are not afraid of cholera or typhoid any more. l sup pose the fiends expected to produce a cholera epidemic which would, of course, cripple an army but 1t could not be pro- duced by poisoning wells unless it was done on very large scale. In olden times, perhaps, such an attempt would have been serious because then people did not understand how to treat such cases, but now all that is done to protect the rest of the troops is to isolate the cases and remove their cause, which would be discovered at once by an examination of the water, food and milk supply by bac- teriologist which every army corps now adays takes along.
 Tn most armies in camp or on the march inspection and analysis are made of the food, milk and water before the troops are supplied. I believe the Japa- nese army boiled the water given to the troops in the war with Russia It would take millions of bacteria, however, to poison enough wells to do any serious harm. As far as liquid poisons are con cerned, arsenic, strychnine and other sub stances even when introduced one grain to 500 parts of water. are detecble in the taste"
 r-s.. of European war the offer of the United States of its good offices for mediation throws ray of hopeful light.
 Dispatches from Washington to F'inan- cial America several days ago stated that our representatives at the capitals of the now belligerent countries had. been directed to make cautious inquiries in an effort to sound the attitudes of the va rious involved governments relative to a possible offer of the good offices of the
 United States as medium for mediation The presumption seems reasonable, in view Of .the fact that such an offer now mas been made directly, that this sound ing revealed an attitude not altogether opposed to the position which the United States was prepared to take. Surely if opposition to it had been unmistakable, il seems likely the direct offer would not have been made.
 Everyone will hope with all sincerity that the offer now made by President Wilson will prove a means for causing a subsistence of the terrible hostilities under of the European wars and an honora ble settlement.
 We are at least encouraged to believe that the offer means there is now more 1 hope for a settlement than has been en- | tertained for some days.
 | Washington Cor New York Sun: Mili- tary experts here regard the probable cost of the conflict impending in Europe so vast as to be beyond reckoning. They assert that it is quite impossible to make
 even guess as to the aggregate ex- | penses.
 | The American civil war expenses on i the union side were ordinarily reckoned
 at s1,oO0,Ooo a day for 5000O0 men in the l field. Another estimate that is often
 made is that of 5000 year per man in
 the field.
 | <ASSohiihS thdt SSnerdl COnfllct will call into the field a maximum of ao,0OO,-
 GOO soldiers, this basis would bring the
 total military expenditures alone up to
 s20, Oe0, 100000. or about $50, 900 day.
 Army officers point out that the military
 expense of such a conflict is only q por- l tion of the actual cost. The shrinkage 1 in security values, the stoppage if agri- culture, the dminution of manufacturing
 and other industries and the interference with trade and foreign commerce must
 all be included to arrive at any approxi-
 mate estimate of the vast cost of a war I in Europe.
 New York Times: Word was re- ceived here by several whosesale
 meat shippers that England was taking drastic action for the preser-
 vation of her meat supply to meet the demands of her army and navy. and that this action would force the prfee of American beef to jump soon. Two ship
 pers said they had heard on good au- thority that England had sent instruc-
 tions to packers in both Australia and Argentina to forward all meat to Eng
 land. One shipper said several boats
 loaded with beef en route to New York had been ordered to change their course
 and to take their supplies to the Lon don market
 A report was circulated Wednesday might that the wholesale prices of heef