davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19

Washington, May 1S-Secretary oil
War Newton d. Baker, the baby
member of the Wilson cabinet. has
set forth some interesting views up
on the subject of federal participa
ton in the building of good roads i'll
a Letter recently written to Sen ittr
George +. Chamberlain of Oreg)l a
copy If which was made pubic ry
the M ional Highways Association.
The letter is in response to re.
quest from Senator Chamberlain fer
the War Departments views upon the
Shields-Small bill providing for a pre-
liminary investigation and report on
system of national highways The
report" provided for in the bill is
really a survey to be prepared ac-
cording to recognized principles of
engineering" and 10 describe high
ways to extend into or through all
the States of the United States" Such
highways are to be main or trunk
line highways connecting principal
centers of population. or places suit
ed to become focal points of communi-
cation, to be built and maintained
by the Federal Government"
Commenting upon this legislation,
Secretary Baker supports both the
safe and wise business principle Of
preliminary examination and report"
and "the' sound principles of central
control" His letter to Senator Cham
berlain reads as follows:
War Department, Washington, D.
c., March 13, 1916.
Hon George E. Chamberlain,
Chairman, Committee on Military
Affairs,
My Dear Senator:
II have the honor to present the
following reply to your request of the
18th ultimo.
"If Congress desires to enter upon
the construction of a system of ma
tional highways, the general features
of the plan presented in the bill are,
in my judgment. admirably adapted
to produce the facts necessary for
such a consideration. 1t proceeds up
on the safe and wise business prin-
ciples of preliminary examination and
report, thus giving Congress full in
formation collected by trained men
md the data so collected forms defi-
nite and essential basis on which to
found conclusions as to what extent
if any, and under that condition
he Federal Government shall emDa.k K
upon such a project
1t includes also the sound prin-
ciples of central control, thus insur-
ing standard and uniform results for
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
HELEN EMPEY,s BODY FOUND.
Daughter of Wealthy Idaho Sheepman
Foully Murdered.

Idaho Falls Idaho.-The decom-
posed body of Helen Empey, 12-year-
old daughter of F. M. Empey, wealthy
sheepman. was found Monday in Sand
creek, two miles from her home, by
J. w. Patterson, farmer, following
search of month. She disappeared
Sunday, April 16. when she left her
home to go to Sunday school, mile
distant.
She has been dead several days at
least. The body is badly decomposed,
and bears appearance of foul play, the
sheriffs Office says.
The sheriff's office is believed to
be without clews that will lead to the
apprehension of the murderer of the
girl. Because of the condition of the
body 1t is impossible to say how she
met her death.
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
is IN FAVOR OF
GOOD HIGHWAYS
Secretary of War Baker Thinks Con-
gress Could Do No Better

all sections of the country, and OF
committing expenditures to officers
directly accountable to the Fedora
Government, and alive to the fact
that the largest possible outcome foI
the money placed in their hands is
expected of thom
In addition to the advantages OF
the intelligent way of going at the
matter. and of the uniform and eco
nomical results to be expected from
the method in which appropriations
are to be applied, the plan makes
possible a special military advantage
in time of war through the fact that
officers of the corps of engineers, on
whom, in war time, the work of map.
ping out the theater of operations
and constructing roads therein, de-
pend. would have a wide knowledge
of our national communications, and
q valuable, practical experience In
road construction While all the Off
GERS of the corps receive thorough in
struction in the road making art. op-
portunities are now lacking for Civ
ing them the practical experience es-
sential to a quick and ready grasp of
the emergencies which would arise at
the outbreak of hostilities.
For these reasons, if Congress de
cides to embark upon a project of
this character, there will be many
advantages in conducting the work
under the engineering corps of the
United States Army.
with reference to the sum pro-
posed for defraying expenses. the in
formation available in the Depart
ment is insufficient to permit a posi-
tive expression of views as to wheth-
er $250,000 will suffice to prepare a
complete preliminary plan for the
whole United States or not. The re-
cent highway work for various states
has provided a considerable mileage
which will be available for connec-
ton between principal centers. 1t has
been computed, however, that the to-
tai length of roads in the United
States is something over 100000
miles, and considering the wide ex
tent of the national domain, and the
fact that in SO many instances alter
native routes between centers are
available. 1t will be seen that the plan
involves the consideration of thou
sands of miles of highways. The sum
mentioned, however, will doubtless
permit the preparation of preliminary
plans for large proportion of the
principal routes.
Very respectfully,
(Signed) NEWTON d. BAKER,
Secretary Of War"
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
TRAINING AT
SALT LAKE
Nampa to Boost Good Work
Now Started

Following his visit here last week,
E. G. Thomas, secretary of the re-
cruiting committee for the Citizens
Military Training Camp at Salt Lake
in August, appointed committee to
boost the camp locally and to per
suade as many Nampa people as pos
sible to attend. Members of this com.
mittee are c. r. Hickey, George van
de Steeg, and Frank Estabrook
A COSTLY POLICY
Ground down by the milftaristic
policies of the European nations, the
early settlers of America brought with
them the idea that large standing
armies were menace to the freedom
of the individual" said Lieutenant
Max B. CARRIER of the regular army
in talk to the small crowd that gath
cred in the city hall last Friday eve
ming to hear about the Citizens Mill
tary Training Camp at Salt Lake this
summer.
"As a consequence these early set
tiers went to the other extreme and
refused to provide an adequate forco
to insure national defense and safety.
To this fact may very largely be at
tributed the heavy toll in lives and
money that our wars have cost us.
Despite the fact that in every war
this country has ever fought we have
greatly outnumbered the enemy, we
have won some of them more through
luck and circumstances than any
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
LET'S HAVE A
BUSINESS MAN
President Should Be Man
Who Has Made Good

Why can't we have business man
in the Presidential chair next time?
Government is a business, and a
big business
Seagoing and overland commerce.
taxation, tariffs, rate regulation, mono
poly legislation. tho mails and parcel
post, conservation of resources, de-
yelopment and maintenance of water
ways, the huge payrolls of Govern
ment employees the courts of Justice,
The national revenue collectors and
police. the army and navy-what are
Ill these but pure business problems,
demanding the same trained and ca
pable business executive direction
that any great business concern de-
mands?
What board of directors would think
)f hiring a professor of Sanskrit to
be president of a great railroad?
What huge shipbuilding or engin-
eering concern would select a peripa-
tetic stump orator or lyceum lectur-
or to direct its activities?
Big business concerns select big
business men with big business brains
to be executive chiefs.
Big business concerns look about
for men who do things, not men who
talk things.
Now, here is this big business cor
pOratiOn in which every one of us,
big and little, is stockholder-the
United States of America. 1t does
more business, owns more wealth, col
lects more revenues. produces more
goods and expends more money than
all the railroads on earth. or all the
corporations, public and private, in
any country on earth.
1t is the BIGGEST BUSINESS CON
Germ the world ever saw.
And what do we do every four years
by way of selecting head for this
wonderful, gigantic business concern?
Why, we always select a man who
has never shown enough business abil-
ity to run one-horse draying con-
Germ.
In the fifty years that have elapsed
since Abraham Lincoln died, not one
of the eleven Chief Executives of this
colossal business corporation called
the United States has had the slight
est business training or any acquaint-
ance with the complex. varied, rami-
flying and inter-related problems of fl
nance, production, transportation and
world exchange upon which depend
the welfare and prosperity of the
whole people and of each individual
citizen.
Is it any wonder tnat our national
business is one long serial story of
stupid hindrance of prosperity, stupid
depression of commerce and trade,
stupid opposition to the forward i'm
pulses of business cooperation and
and of wasteful extra
vagance in expending the peoples
money to the tune of thousands of
Continued on page
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
RUSSIANS SUFFER
SEVERE REPULSE
e TWO HUNDRED THOU SAN o
TURKS THROWN AGAINST
NICHOLAS ARMY.
Desperate Attempt to Regain Lost
Positions Followed by Retreat. -
French Positions Violently
Bombarded at Night.

London.-The Russian army in Asia
Minor has suffered severe repulse
at the hands Of the Turks. Constan-
tinople claims it; Petrograd admits 1t.
Field Marshal Won Mackensen has
apparently concentrated the main part
OF his reputed army Of 100000 Turks
against the center of Grand Duke
Nicholas's army. The Russian line
runs from Trebizond, on the Black
sea, to Bitlis. 1S0 miles south The
center has advanced about sixty miles
from Erzerum, captured February 10,
with Erzingan as it's objective.
1t is here that the Turks are max
ing their great fight.
The Turks have been massed on
the Kope mountains, northwest OF Er-
zerum, and on the 11th drove the
Russians from their positions on the
eastern slopes of this range. A series
of attempts of the Russians to regain
these positions have been repulsed, ac-
cording to the Turkish reports, with
heavy losses to the grand duke.
This repulse was followed by an ac-
tion In which the Turks took the Of
fensive. The battle was OF most
desperate character and lasted the
whole day and the Petrograd official
report announces that at its close the
Russians were compelled to retire.
French positions near Dead Man hill
on the Verdun front were bombarded
violently Sunday night, but there was
no infantry attack A German thrust
south of Roye was repulsed, the war
office statement announced.
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
Continued on page 6

ment will be about $50 per min ex-
elusive of transportation and uniform,
the latter to cost about S. II is hoped
that each city will be able to take
care of the expenses Of al, persons
that it sends to the camp but in case
it is unable to do so, Salt | AXE VIII
pay half of the expenses fion, a fund
raised for the purpose by patriotic
citizens of the Utah metropolis. A DILL
is pending in congress which, if pass
ed, will make s3.O00.000 available for
promoting the citizens camps through
out the United States This is suffi-
cient to pay practically al! tbs ex-
penses of persons attending ,as en-
campment
Ask IDAHO's HELP
I'VE have enough recruits in Utah
alone to insure the success of the
camp" said Mr. Thomas. $50 you see
we have no mercenary motive in ask
ing Idaho and our other sister states
in the intermountain country to help
make this undertaking a complete sue
cess. We believe it q great patriotic
work and one worthy of our best eff
forts"
Any man in good physical condition
between the ages of 8 and so who is
high school or college graduate or
who has had the equivalent to high
er education in the way of business
experience is eligible to attend the
camp. Everyone will be on equal foot
ing and under the instruction of OFF,
GERS of the regular army.
Mr. Thomas says that Salt Lake is
expecting Idaho to send at least 100
men to the encampment. Nampa
Leader-HeraId.
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
CRUSHED UNDER FALLING WALLS
Building CoIIapses and Eleven Per-
sons Are Killed.

Akron, O.-Eleven persons were
killed and nearly score injured ear
Iy Monday evening when the old Bea-
con Journal building, occupied by a
restaurant, collapsed as result OF a
blast of dynamite in an adjoining ex-
cavation.
A great pile of ruins. broken tim
bers, twisted steel and tons OF brick
and mortar, buried the victims, who a
moment before we're dining in the res
taurant
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19

Dublin.-A marked relaxation In the
enforcement of martial law in Dublin
has baen observed since the arrival
of Premier Asquith. An order issued
Saturday permits the people to be on
the streets until midnight and as ear
ly as 4 o'clock in the morning, giving
them many more hours OF freedom At
night. This concession is generally At
tributed to a suggestion from Mr.. As
Quith.
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
WARNING HAS ITS EFFECTS.
Dominican Rebels Evacuate City or
Demand Of American Minister.

San Domingo-The warning of the
American minister, W. w. Russell,
that the city of Santo Domingo would
be taken by force unless 1t was given
up by the rebels not later than Sun
day morning resulted In the evacua-
ton of the city Saturday night. The
rebel leaders, soldiers and rural
guards stripped the fort of guns and
war materials and withdrew from the
city, leaving the civil police in charge.
They notified Mr.. Russell of their with
drawal.
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19

Washington-Th nomination OF
George Rublee of New Hampshire as
a member of the federal trade COM
mission, was rejected Monday by the
senate Senator Gallinger, the Repub-
Iican leader, had opposed the nominee
for fifteen months on the ground that
Rublee was personally obnoxious to
him
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
FoREsEEs DEMOCRATIC DEFEAT.
Bryan Says Wilson Must Capture
Peace Element In Republican Party.

Bryan Says Wilson Must Capture
Peace Element In Republican Party.
Lincoln, Neb.-In a signed article
published Saturday w. ]. Bryan-de-
clares the Democratic party must In
order to win the coming campaign
move toward peace and thereby cap
ture the peace element in the Repub-
lican party.
He begins his article by quoting
from a Chicgao newspapers editorial
in which Mr.. Wilson is called a NIL
nority president, in that he received
fewer votes than Roosevelt and TAFT
combined, and says the Democrats
must face the fact that united Re-
publican party will enter the campaign
with a popular majority of 100000
votes.
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
WHY JUMP
ON VERDUN?
Frank Simonds Gives Rea-
son For Germany's Move

| Why did the Germans choose Yer
dun as their objective? In the minds
of most casual readers of history and
of war news, Vcrdun is accepted as
the bulwark of France, the gate to
Paris, and the chief fortress of that
great barrier which from Luxembourg
to Switzerland defended the eastern
frontier of the Republic. 1t was, all
things considered, the strongest forti.
fled place in Europe when the war
came. Why, then, did the Germans
elect to fight here?
The reason is simple. The first
months of the war utterly eliminated
fortresses from the reckoning. The
rapid collapse of Liege, Antwerp, Maui
failed to keep pace with the gun.
What was illustrated in the West in
the early days was finally demon
strated in the East last summer, when
the Russian fortresses followed the
path of the Belgian and the French.
Accordingly the French after the
Marne simply abandoned the forts OF
Verdun as defensive positions. They
took the guns out of them; they NOV
ed them to new, concealed positions
and the fort ceased to have real i'm
portance. Verdun was only a point
In the long trench line running from
the North Sea to Switzerland. The
forts, save that they provided protec-
ton for reserves, lost all value. They
entered into the system of trenches
and Verdun was defended by men and
by guns and by bitches, precisely like
Rheims or Arras.
In the second place, Verdun was
the most difficult place in the French
line to supply either with men or
munitions. Before the war two rail-
road lines of first Importance met
at Verdun-one a double track line
coming east from Paris in the direc
ton of Metz, the other coming north
along the Meuse valley from the Pa
ris-Nancy line. When the Germans
took st. Mihiel in September, 1914,
they cut the latter line. In the re-
treat from the Marne the Germans
halted at Varennes ana Montfaucon,
and from these towns their heavy
artillery commanded the Paris-Verdun
line by indirect fire and it ceased to
be available.
There was left to the French, then,
only one narrowgauge line coming
north from Bar-le-Duc, light rail
way, incapable of bearing the heavy
traffic because of the grades. Practie
ally, then, Verdun was isolated, so far
as railroad communication was con
cerned, and the army defending Yer
dun sector was dependent upon road
upon automobile trucks, OF
as the French say camions. This
was sufficient as long as
Verdun was held by relatively small
force and was only fraction of the
great front, but would it be sufficient
when the main attack was directed
at this sector and the Germans mass
ed two thousand guns and quarter
of a million mon on a narrow front?
Could France munition or supply an
equal number of men and sufficient |
guns to meet the storm? The Ger
mans believed not-Frcm "The Bat |
tie for Verdun as France Saw It, by |
Frank H. Simonds, in the American |
Review of Reviews for May, 1916.
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
Canada Yields Point.

Toronto.-A conciliatory reply to
the protest of the United States re-
rarding the taking CT more water
from the Niagara river will be sent TO
Washington in a few days by Ontario
through the medium of the dominion
government.
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
Balloon Falls Into Sea.

Toulon.-A dirigible balloon which
passed here recently from Paris fell
into the sea on the Sardinian coast
The SIX persons aboard all appear to
have perjshed. The Italian autnori
ties sent a rescuing party which re-
severed four bodies:
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19
Outbreak Among Prisoners.

Cochrane. Ont.-An outbreak among
Austrian prisoners Of war in the inter
ment camp at Kapuskasing last Fri
day was quelled by the militia author
tiles after one Of the prisoners was
killed, nine seriously wounded, sew
eral fatally and four slightly injured,
1t was learned Monday.
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19

Brownville. Texas.-Two hundred
Mexicans at San Benito who have ex-
pressed a desire to form battalion to
deht for the United States in the event
of trouble with Mexico will not be mus
tered into the Texas national guard,
but will hold themselves in readiness
to answer call Of the United States
government
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19

WashinFton.-The Glass rural cred
It's bill, providing for federal farm
loan board and system Of twelve
land banks. passed the house on Mon
day by vote OF 295 to 10. A similar
measure already has passed the SEN
ate and the differences probably will
be worked out soon in conference.
The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1916-05-19

thing else. The school histories pic
ture us as a great nation-a conquer
ing race-but the war department re-
cords tell shameful story of inef.
ficiency and laundering campaigns.
Had President Lincoln a trained
army of 10000 men at his command
in 1861, the Civil War could have been
crushed in the very beginning. But
then, as now, the people would not
spend the money for standing army,
so the war dragged on for four years
costing hundreds of thousands of lives
and billions of dollars The immense
sum that has been spent since the
war in pensions would have kept a
considerable army for a considerable
time.
"The military policy of the United
States has been short sighted and
costly in the extreme. The pages OF
history are irrefutable evidence that
to depend entirely on unframed citi-
zen soldiery and to wait until war
is upon us to make preparations is
not economy"
GENERAL WOODS PLAN
E. G. Thomas. secretary of the re-
cruiting committee for the camp at
Salt Lake, told how General Leonard
Wood had conceived the idea of Cjti-
zens Military Training Camps as a
means of partially supplying the great
need for officers that would exist in
case of national emergency
"Of course said Mr.. Thomas, "wc
do not believe that a month of inten-
sive training in one of these camps
will fit a person to be an officer aud
to take command of troops, but it
will give him a grounding in the fun
damentals of military science and
make him competent to act as drill
master and assist the regular officers
in whipping raw recruits into shape.
EXPENSES LIGHT
Expenses for tho entire cncamp-
Norwich bulletin., 1916-02-16
HUMOR OF THE DAY

O'Brien-Oi can say wan thing
Dim a self-made man.
Casey-Is 1t boastin' We are, or
apologizin' Irish World.
He's terrible failure as a dog,
The limit 1 call him Dardv -
that's short for Dardanelles" Life.
Why did everybody cry in that last
death scene?"
Because they knew the actor
wasn't really dead."-Topeka Journal.
isn't it distressing to think of all
the poverty in the wor1d?'
Il never do; confine myself ex-
cIusively to thinking of my own"
Life.
Yes, we pay spot cash for every
All! I often speak to my hus-
band about the time when we had to-
Puck.
Knicker-what happens when you
go on a vacation?
Bocker-Your firm goes over your
books and your wife goes over every
thing else.-New York Sun.
Whisper-Professor, someone is using
crib in your class!
Prof-Sh-h-h, How do you know?
Whisper looked for it in the
library and it was gone! - Punch
Bowl.
He-"Can't you find anything pleas
ant to say about the members of my
! family?''
She-'wer, I remember they were
all opposed to our marriage"-Rich-
mond Times Dispatch
The harder it rains the better I
like it," observed a cheerful individ-
ual.
Chronic optimist, eh?" remarked
a bystander.
"optimist, no! I'm an umbrella
salesman. '-Columbia Jester
Jack. I wish you'd come to, see me
occasionally"
why, Vanessa, I thought you were
engaged to Algernon Fftzwhistle?"
NO; but l think I could be il l
could organize little brisk competi-
tion."-Buffalo Courier