Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-04-25


artillery, ammunition and horses and
organizing the army for effective move
ment, we cannot safely figure on more
than fifty hours before the enemy Will
he ready to undertake important opera
tons. He will. no doubt, have occupied
Providence and Fall River at once."'
gunboat was lying at that moment
in the mouth of Taunton river. with
four-inch guns covering tall. smoky
Fall River Its officers were watching
the signalmen who had been left be-
hind by detachment Of marines that
had been sent in to occupy the river
streets.
Crouching behind a third-story win
dow of a square. multi-windoWed mon
ster of cotton mill. three men. rough
" clad, watched the bluejackets ap-
proach Il tell YOU" said one. lit is
no use-no use! Have you not read the
order? 1t is that we must not DO any
thing"
I'VE have been made citizens an
suered the other. ssvage1y. And shall
we not fight for this country Go.
then. you, if you fear. Peter ana | VIII
kill these men. Is It not SO. Peter
The man addressed nodded. silently
He had a bomb in his hand. The first
speaker Struggling his shoulder. hur-
ried out.
Now" said Peter His comrade
raised the window. and Peters arm
went out swiftly. He tossed the bomb
1t fell in front of the bluejackets and
burst. The detachment reeled. But
the smoke had not quite diSsipated be
fore the sailors were in order again.
running back, dragging their machine
gun and carrying two men, one DEAD
one wounded.
At the corner they stopped and aimed
the gun at the mill There was tear
10 20 sudden a
circular saw when it bites plank
stream of steel jacketed bullets blew
against the building. The windows
vanished with a clash of spllnterlns
glass Three men, their heads bent low
and their arms covering their faces as
if to breast tempest of hail and Wlnd,
ran out of the door. They had not
gone ten yards when they were Jerked,
dropped into a heap that might have
been nothing except a huddle of old
clothes.
The man at the machine gun grunted.
Squatting comfortably behind his nttle
demon. he turned it on the Factory
again like a man manipulating hose
Exactly as if he were sprinkling, he
famed the rows of windows. systemat-
ically.
men had learned by signal what had
occurred. Their guns opened fire on
the street Four steel projectiles
struck the brick buildings. broke
through them and tore up floors and
wallis and Orders AS the shells ex
ploded inside. the walls bent outward,
seemed to recover, and then suddenly
leaned out again and topped. win
smoke and dust mounting into a col
,,mn on a cyclone of their own max
ing.
Through the smoke and thick DUST
sped another flock of shells. A build
ing at the head of a street moved. IL
nj, tlx T.
ened man staggering backward. Then
there was building. There was
nothing but pile of stone and twisted
iron-with half a dozen men under it,
The gunboat lowered boats and sent
more men ashore. They rushed ma
chine guns into the town our men
have been attacked" said their com
mander, appearing at the city nan.
THE town is subject to punishment un-
der the rules of war Write procia-
nation to your people at once Inform
them that a single other hostile act
will cause your immediate execution
and the complete destruction of your
city
Fall River Destroyed" was the
news that went through the country.
1t was spread by men who had seen
the houses fall, and had run away in
terror with the roar of tumbiing walls
and exploding shells in their ears, and
who truly believed that they had seen
the entire city in flame and ruin.
Quick, Quick" shouted newspa-
per man in Providence when the news
came in. Get this on the street with
the biggest head you can and rush
copies to the madmen at the barricade.
It'll probably be the last thing we
print; but it may save Providence"
Behind the barricade, made of stones
and wagons and all the useless. piria-
BILE defenses that desperate men in des-
perate cities have always used, there
were a hundred or more men who had
lost their heads and would listen to
nothing but the voice Of their own
fury They were armed with old ri
fes taken from a plundered marine
stores establishment whose dusty cei-
lar was piled with condemned arms.
From the same place they had taken
four automatic guns on rusty tripods
I.ashing themselves to greater and
binder rage at every attempt at OPP
position or argument. they had sworn
to turn the weapons on their own po-
lice But the black headlines on the
extras that were tossed to them acted
like the shock of ice-cold water on d
drunken man.
When the enemy arrived there was
nobody to oppose the files of blue
Jackets and marines that marched past
the silent, gloomy crowds to occupy
the city for the troops.
Reports here that Providence is oc-
cupied," Washington telegraphed to the
army Send details.
The general laughed sarca stically
and tossed the dispatch to his aid.
"Blazes!" growled the latter. Since
they established their aviation camp
back Of their lines at Narragansett
Pier yesterday every reconnaissance
we've attempted has been just like
stirring up a nest of yellow jackets
I'm afraid that we've lost another ma
chine. sir 1t should have been back
here hours ago. If it's gone we have
only six left, and our crack aviation
SQUADRON from San Diego has been
whitfield down to fourteen officers and
ninety enlisted men. They simply pile
on top of every machine of ours with
half a dozen more of their own
The mounted patrols that we pushed
out toward the south last night got
good results" said the general
Yes. sir. But" the aid selected a
sheet of paper from the pile. Its like
trying to build up a monster from a
single bone. Look at this. sir. Here =
green patrol-piucky. too. for they
, got in farther than most But see
. what they give us. They report regi-
ment of infantry at Exeter. west OF
| WEXFORD. and they say that there Is
positively no artillery with it,
"Of course answered the general
"They didn't know where to look for
artillery or how II is concealed"
~ Inc