davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The sun., 1917-12-30
GUSTAVE FOR FREE FINLAND.
King Says sweden sympathiHes
With Tinns' Dcsirrs.

STOCKHOLM, Dec. 29.--Synpathy with
Finland's movement Cor Independence
was expressed to-day by liing Gustave.
in addressing deputation or flnhisn
publicists. who appeared with an appeal
for recognition by Sweden Of an inde-
pendent Finland.
II assure you" said the King. that |
and my Government are following with
warm sympathy the efforts OF Finland
to attain complete independence. and
1t is our keen desire to recognize Fin
land as an independent state. The inn
portant thing In this question. however,
is the possibility Of an agreement be-
tween your country and Russia, but
hope for a favorable solution as the re-
suit of your efforts. Naturally the atti-
tude OF other Powers also must be con-
sidered."
The sun., 1917-12-30
SEVEN KILLED IN B. 60. WRECK
Twenty Others Injured ny Collision
in Indiana.

NORTH VERNON. Ind. Dec. gs,--Scven
are known to he dead and about twenty
injured as the result of a headon coll
Iision between q westbound and an east
bound Baltimore and Ohio train mile
east OF here tonight Al! the dead were
members of the crew.
The westbouud train carried several
soldiers. according to reports, but II Is
not known II any were among the in
jured.
The sun., 1917-12-30
MAJOR WIRELESS OUT OF ARMY
Judge Advocate Who Gave Draft
Trial Opinion IL Discharged.

ST. LOUIS, Dec. 29,--Major Joseph
Wheless. Judge Advocate. l., s. A.. at
Central Division headquarters in Chi
caEo, has been honorably discharged
from the army for writing an opinion
to the effect that drafted men who
failed to report when ordered should
be tried in the United States courts, and
not by army court-martial. The opinion
was given by Major Wheless at the re-
quest of the Department of Justice.
When the order for his discharge was
received hy him he went inmed Ia tely
I, Washington, where the question OF
his reinstatement. ar the issuance of a
new commission was taken up. and
Is now under consideration.
The sun., 1917-12-30
MRS. WHEELD0N IS RELEASED.
Dying "Hunser striker" Plotted
Poisoning OF Lloyd George.

LONDON, DOC. 29--Mrs. Alice Wheel
don. who with her daughter and the lat.
ter's husband was found guilty and
sentenced last March to ten years I'm
prisonment on the charge .f conspiracy
10 poison Premier Lloyd George. has
been released from prison at the Pre-
mier's request.
Mrs. Whee!don Is near death th!ous /
"hungcr strike
The sun., 1917-12-30
HARLAN AT CONFERENCE
F'ans Made to Relieve Congestion
in Metropolitan Area.

important steps were taken yesterday
70 relieve the railroad congestion and
hoive other railroad problems within the
metropolitan area at meeting OF the
JOINT committee, consisting Of Commits
slohers James S, Harlan OF the Inter-
STATE Commerce Commission. Ralph w.
-. Donges OF the New Jersey Public 9TH
'!es Commission and Travis II. Whitney
o' the Public Service Commission. Pres
'ht at the meeting were operating oiii-
c'als OF all the railroad lines connecting
Nl'h New York city, who discussed
plans Of coordination and made sugges-
IONS whereby the freight and passenger
problem may be treated as IA whole.
~ II said that an result Of this
meeting an interchang.ng system will be
The sun., 1917-12-30
Demands Called ExOrbitant.

The demands Of the drivers are looked
upon by the dealers as eNorbitant. All
dealers in New Jersey, As well as New
York, have received the request for wage
increases.
Michael EcX. business agent or tne
Coal Teams,ers Union. said The de-
mands are for an increase of s. a week.
y nine hour day and double time for
overtime. together with pay for All holt
days, The drivers making demands are
connected with Local No. 553 Of NIanhat-
tan and Locals Nos. GAL. 500 and Gl7 of
New Jersey. 4 general strike o: the
coal wagon drivers would involve from
5000 TO $1,000 tcams'ers in New York
and New Jersey. Most OF the coal han
dled by the coal dealers comes from New
Jersey into New York, The New Jersey
coal teamsters bring the coal into New
York, and the coal Is then distributed by
the Manhattan teamsters.'
Union men said yesterday that a gen
eral strike Of the coal teams'ers would
r,Nc the support OF the International
Brotherhood of Transfers and the local
4 teamsteys' unions.
As to tho actual supply of coal at
! tidcwa.cr, Mr., Whteley Of the conser-
! walton committee OF the Fuel Admins
| tration made Il partial report yesterday
in which he said that while there was
! far from 4 normal supply at New Jersey
! points there was a lot of coal across
! the river that ought to he rushed over
! here. He said the trouble seemed to
he with labor. Green hands had been
| employed to dig the coal from the cars
under 'ts frozen condition and after a
, day or two the strenuous work faled
to appeal to them and they r,ouid qui,
20 take ur other and more renunerativc
employment
Mr.. Whitee. said that h. found IA"
bitun!nous situation far worse than IN.
agthrr cite hu' thought that with the
The sun., 1917-12-30
Many ReEistrapts Can't Be Found
Special Despaich 10 THE Sun.

BUTTE. Mont. Dec. 29.---One out of
every ten questionnaires sent out from
the office OF the Joint draft boards in
Butte has been returned from the post
office AZ "undelvered." Change OF ad'
dress of regstrants and fictitious nd-
dresses given at the time of registra ,ion
are blamed for undeliverej question
naires
The sun., 1917-12-30

REC0RDSIN NY.
Weather FOrecaster Sees No
Relief From Frigid Wave
Before Tuesday.
DUE TO "ANTI-CYCLONE"
Police Aid Cases of Distress
Among Poor Death. =
Victims Of Exposure.
DUE TO "ANTI-CYCLONE"

New lork's csldest day. according to
the records Of the Weather Bureau, was
december 80. 1850, when the official
thermometer at the observatory recorded
degrees below zero. At 2 A. NJ. Sun.
day, December 80, 1917. the big ther-
mometer on Park Row near Brooklyn
Bridge slipped down to below
There is no reason 10 believe II
was any warmer at the top Of the
Whitehall Building, where the weather
man holds forth, and it may be as
snmed. therefore. tna, a record Of
th'rty-seven years s;andi.s has been
broken on its birthday.
Nor is any relief In sight; The fore
cast is Tor continued cold and clear
weather. foreboding several days Of grim
distress.
The city awoke yesterday morning
TO n lively consciousness Of suh-arctic
weather and empty coal bins. Overnight
the inevitable had finally swept In on
the breath OF the bitter north wind.
spreading discomfort.
Boreas grown weary of rafting his
sabre in the ice fields of the North.
reached Out at a critical moment cut
ting. slashing. locking city, State and
/ the greater part Of the nation in arms OF
ice.
Fears Of Coal Famine.
/ Discomfort, had arrived and needed
/ no Introduction. But that ordinarily
would have meant little in Father
knick's youns lie. Unfortunately i,
was no ordinary time Behind discom-
: fort was that greater evil. disQuieting
aprrehension--thc fear that the pool
might have their sufferings acutely In
tensified and that even the well to do. In
the absence OF coal, might taste Of rea
distress
At the time Of awakening New York
only vaguely vislalized all this. Keenls
conscious OF the present. however. tn,
city pulled the covers more closely abou
= its ears. wondered whether the alarm
I clock had gone of. listened hopefully
even desperately, for the faintest clanl
OF steam in the pipes and wished Il
coodness that the sheets had been blan
kets Of warm wool and rot the uncom
fort.ng concession TO an cffete c!v!liza
tiou that they were.
snow Adds to City's Distress.
Finally. having hurried through th'
usual matut:nal rreliminaries with NOR,
Or less spartan cleavage to the custom
AIRY programme. the Average Citizei
plunged out OF his more or less heated
domcilc into temperature that Il
scarcely expressed in terms Of zero. |
took 4. e. about three minutes to realz
in his own small way what old Bitter u
Eorcas rad done TO little old New York
\ light snow. dry as wind whipped
sand. had sifted down and crunched undc
foot as the city shiverei and STAMPED
and bleU uppn it's cold Stiftpnpi fingers
The sun., 1917-12-30
PLENTY OF COAL,
SAY0PERAT0RS
Anthracite Producers and
Shippers Reassurc L. S. Fuel
Administration.
SHORTAGE Is TEMPORARY
Freight Congestion Clearing:
New York Barge Capacity
27J.OOO Tons.


WASH iNGToN, Dec. 2s.--Anthracite pro-
oucers and shippers to-day assured the
Federal Fuel Administration that with
the continuance of the present pro-
sramme for the clearing UP Of the freight
congestion the nation would get through
the winter with little privation from coal
shortage.
Washington officials are convinced that
New York will not suffer one-fourth t,
pr'vation II did in the cold snap Of De-
cember II to /, unless a protratted cold
wave Of seisnt or ten days bits the At
lantic seaboard. They say this view is
held also by Alfred H. Wiggin. New
York State Fuel Administrator, who
conferred viii officials here yesterday.
The general COMMITTEES of anthracite
operators with headquarters in Pni,ade!-
phia. is preparing an advertising cam
paign which it IS believed will snuff out
the series Of coal buying panlcs regis
tered in various sections OF the country.
For this campa ign a corps Of $50 statis-
ticians has been busy for weeks compil-
ing data Sowing the amount uf coal
consumed by various cities and districts
in 1915. 1916 and 1871. These figures by
cities and States. with the figures of the
! amount of coal to be delivered in the
first three months of 1915, will be pub
I lished by the general committee in news
paper advertisements throughout the
! country.
The sun., 1917-12-30

Tho Krupp armament press laments
the general acceptance Of the Bolshevik
proposals, and Is alarmed that Germany
may have committed fatcful errors in
showing excessive sympathy with Rus
sia The Dusseldorf GenerIidn;ciger
pictures millions OF readers dropping
their newspapers in pained surprise upon
reading the news.
Through no fault OF ours" says,
I'VE have been forced to sacrifice blood
and treasure to crush a powerful enemy
on one side, and we anticipate In 1918
lettering tho other disturbers of peace,
but II no reparation is to be demanded
| from the vanquished enemy at the ter
mination OF the war we will always be
! mourning dead heroes and will always
! have to pay threefold heavier taxes un-
der threefold harder conditions
Matthias Erzberger. leader OF the
Centrist party. IL positive that peace
soon will be declared between Russia
and Germany. He says:
"Only little differences remain regard
ing article in the Russian proposals
which states that national groups, which
before the war were not politically de-
! pendent shall be guaranteed the posi-
biity Of deciding by referendum the
question of belonging to one state oil
another, or enjoying independence. but
this difference will not prevent peace
because an opportunity will be given to
every state to decide In accordance witt
our principles that neither Russians oi
other peoples shall be hindercd In Great
The sun., 1917-12-30

In taking care OF passenger service
To- tho present the Philadelphia and
Reading viii provide ample service, but
al train schedules will he so rearranged
mat every seat in every train Will be
occupied.
The action OF the Philadelphia and
Reading il the first Of any OF the
standard railroad companies since the
Government took over control OF the
Igaif'ads, ana Il large order for print
Ing new schedules for the new year was
Cancelled to-day by the company.
i'N annulling many passenger trains
M are not absolutely essential. rail-
road officials expect rapidly to reduce
'Ae freight congestion throughout the
country and at the same time conserve
thousands of tons of coal just as the
so't coal shortage is becoming more criti-
ca
The sun., 1917-12-30
Near Riots Mark Efforts to
Buy Fuel in Many
Poor Sections.
DEALERS CLEANED OUT
Scores of Apartment Houses
Face Cold Snap With
Empty Bins.
LABOR SHORTAGE BLAMED
Child Dies Of Exposure in Tn
heated HOme-B. II. 7.
, Cars Hcatless.
LABOR SHORTAGE BLAMED

New lofk's coal supply again appears
to be in danger Of being exhausted.
Among the developments Of yesterday
giving basis for grave concern were:
The coolest weather Of the winter. q
double meance because 1t increases con.
sumption and cuts down the supply.
A strike vote by 5000 coal wagon
drivers. They want 81 to S. more a
week. and say they will quit hauling
fuel after New Years.
Labor shortage at mines. hoists and
in the harbor The men will not work
in severe weather. and many Of them
VIII lay off over New Years to spend
the high wages they have been earning.
Cellar dealers and their customers in
the tenement sections of the greater
city were practically cleaned out yester-
day. The plight OF the poor was de-
scribed TO the fuel administrators as
pioful.
Less than 10000 tons came across the
harbor from New Jersey to satisfy a de-
mand estimated at 26.oo0 tons to co 900
tons. Sunday and Tuesday will bring
even less. 1t is predicted The miners.
it also is reported, will lay on for the
holidays.
Eighty apartment houses in The
Bronx reported t. Joseph A. Hail, fuel
administrator for that borough that
they were without a shovelful of coal!
The situation became so serious in til q
poorer sections Of Staten Island that
Otis Williams, borough administrator.
unable to get coal for dealers. appealed
to wealthy friends and hauled small
lots from their cellars in his own auto
mobile to the neediest families, lie was
At his work until after dark.
ST N'ncents Hospital ran out Of coal
yesterday but finally got enough 10 last
through Sunday.
The sun., 1917-12-30
This Annual Output Needed
for U-Boats' Defeat. Is
English Estimate.
HOPE RESTS ON AMERICA
Transportation Problem Ut
Gravest POint-Analysis
of Situation.
Special cable Desbofch 10 TuE Sun.

toDgfiDH', I'I,. az rOhs frseJted
LONDON, Dec. 29.--In consequence OF
recen. reports OF American dissatisfac-
ton because OF British tardiness in ship
building. the correspondent OF THE SrN
has received from authoritative sources
an analysis OF the shipping situation.
which is admittedly the gravest aspect
OF the war.
Merchant shipping continues to be the
vital problem the loss OF tonnage be-
came a serious factor late in 1916 and
has been increasing In seriousness since.
as the Allies strength industrally has
been turned in other directions making
1t difficult to cope with the situation
and necessitating increased American
effort
The submarine campaign. unless de-
feated. may nul.ify the efforts Of the
Allies in every direction and result in
an unsatisfactory peace. America. which
is the greatest industrial and engineer
ing country. is able to meet and defeat
this menace by subordinating every
thing else to this paramount necessity.
Nine million tons gross of shipping
annually would insure Il satisfactory
conclusion Of the war.
The sun., 1917-12-30

Arthur i. Rice OF the Merchants AS
ISOLATION said yesterday that the city
Nad lcss than 4 twenty four hours sup
ply on hand, with little prospect of aug
mehtIng this owing 10 the sudden change
IN the weather
Meanwhile Alfred IL Wigsiu. Fuel
Administrator of New York State told
conference IN WASHINGTON that the
city was safe unless the cold spell was
prolonged. The conference agreed that
the mines and roads were doing their
part. giving New York 10 to 40 per cent.
more this season than last, and that
the halbor has lighters enough. but that
the problem is TO got the stun across
the harbor
One Of the first East side organiza-
tons TO take up the work Of relief has
been the thildren's tid Society. which
promises to distribute eighteen tons OF
Goa! daily from its nine relief stations
Oh the East Side. which would mean
temporary Sucyor 10 more than 1000
families
More than 1000 drivers of coal yyayo,s
have made demands upon their emplov-
ers for s. Z week wage iucr. ase and
arc threatening 10 strike Monday or
| Tuesday II tn" dealers fan 10 grant their
demands. Tile dealers say that such "A
! wage increase cannot ho granted. and
tho problem has hcea pa ssed on 10 ,ne
Federal Fuel administration
Michael Cashel chairman Of tn.
Greater New York District Courril of the
International brotherhood Of Teamsters
said yesterday that the Fuel Commits sion
Will conduct a hearing and committee
! ot the coal dealers and the Food Commis-
! sion Will meet committee OF the drivers.
! No dates, he said. have been set FOR the
| hearing ana conferences. but they must
| be held soon to relieve the situation.
an times Ike these" said Michae! y.
! Burns OF Barns Brothers Coal ,'om-
! pany. any 'irup IN the movement of coal
would be criminal But such problems
are now In the hands OF the Government,
and II Is probable that the Government
will straghtcD them out"
The sun., 1917-12-30

Continued on Third Page.
The sun., 1917-12-30

Figures OF shipments to New York
city are not completed, but from data at
hand fuel officials say that with an in
creased production of about = per cent.
in anthracite the Norti Atlantic states
have receive from 10 to 40 per cent.
more anthracite than in previous years,
their increases being made up at the
expense OF some Of the Southern dis
tricts, where sos. coal mas been subst!
tuted To great degree in many com
muuities
Another step In the plan more fuuy
to apprse the public of the fuel sltua =
ton was announced to-day when Al
fred Smoot. president OF the National
Retail Merchants Association, headed
:, ,i..csa;;on from tha. o"gan'7at'on AT
conference with Dr. CARRIED. The
delegation announced that II would open
headquarters In Washington in charge
~ Samuel Il. Crowcll, of Philadelphia.
This branch will TAX" up with the Fuel
Administration problems of distribu-
tion This will give every retailer
prompt action i. he hnds his disuict is
suffering from lack of fuel
The Fuel Administration. although
much cheered by it's conference with Mr..
Wiggin. admits that New iork's prob
| lem of obtaining sufficient coal Is AZ
| serious n in former years.
The sun., 1917-12-30
WOuld Hasten Peace.

IT Germany were once assured that
her enemies we're able and determined
to carry out such a programme she prob
ably would accept a reasonable peace
at an early date instead Of lighting to
the last extremity Of exhaustion without
the prospect OF winning finally.
Half OF the British mercantile marine
il used for military and naval purposes
leaving only half OF 1t to supply Great
Britain and the Allies. far less than is
r.eded. The most drastic measures
have been taken to obtain ships. to re-
iucc home consumption and to increase
home production.
Shipowners are getting profits averag-
ing less than before the war and for
eign trade in many directions has been
entirely abandoned. for instance be-
tween North and South America. be-
tween New York and the Far East. the
coastal trade OF china and :he Fast
Indies. and the British export OF tex
tiles to the Far East.
Whether the submarines vii, be able
to win the war for Germany depends
entirely upon what the Allies and par
t!culariy America can do. II America
and the Allies unite TO cope with the
supmdrlne. dispensing with luxuIies. re-
, ducing consumption. and increase their
building immensely, the submarine will
be defeated.
The sun., 1917-12-30

Steel in the form of ships sunk by
the submarines annually aggregates a
little more than one-tenth of the annual
steel production of the United States.
The Allies devoted most OF their
strength in the first two years of the
war To multiplying their armies and
navies and munitions. Only in the third
year did the losses at sea make shipping
u vital problem. At this stage America
entered the struggle.
Ii America gives her full strength
to the solution OF the shipping problem
as the other Allies have dealt with the
problems OF armies. navieS and muni-
tons. her contribution TO the war will
be decisive. The sooner shc shows that
she il determined to accomplish this the
sooner will Germany recognize defeat.
The military and naval activities OF
the Allies and also the sustenance Of the
civil population are now dependent on
shipping, which already is barely suf.
ficient and Is constantly diminishing
The Germans recognize this as thu
weakest factor in the. Allies position
therefore. II is the Germans chief hone
and Germany is concentrating hei
strength upon II.
The sun., 1917-12-30

They hold, however, that sufficient
coal viii be shipped TO New Jersey
shipping points. and that New York must
take steps to handle the coal from that
point to the consumer. Anthracite ex-
perts insist that. given LABOR, the rail-
roads will get plenty OF coal into harges
opposite New York unless a week S
siege of zero weather sets in They con-
tend they can do no more than get coal
to Shipping points. and that it is up 10
New Workers. to surmount obstacles of
transfer.
The seven railroads with the agen-
cies that sell the coal shipped over them
to New York, and the location of their
New Jersey docks are ontario and West
ern, Dixon and Eddy, Guttenburg. y. j.
Erie. Williams and Peters. Edgewater
y. J. Lackawanna, D., l.. and W. Goa
Sales Company. Hoboken, n. j.. Central
Railroad of New Jersey. Lehigh and
| Wilkesbarre Coal Company. Port John
son, n. j.; Philadelphia and Reading
| Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron
| Company. Port Reading. n. !. Lehigi
! Valley Railroad. Lehigh Valley Goa
| Sales Company, Perth Amboy, y. j,
| Pennsylvania Railr6ad, NJ, 4. Hanna
Company, South Amboy, n. J,
| These companies each day report tc
| Fuel Administrator Wiggin the amount
Of coal shipped. or in cars at thni)
ports. There are in New York har
bor enough box bargcs 10 carry 275,No,
| tons Of coal. The normal daily con
| sumption of anthracite for the New Yorl
| districts is set at 26.0oo tons one Goa
dumDing machine will load fiom on,
| dock 10 ,000 tons OF coal IN "A day. Som,
| of the railroads have trsstlc systems l.,
| which thn coal can hH dumped int,
barses At . much fastor rate
The sun., 1917-12-30
One Reason for shortage.

one reason for the shortage of ton
mage is that the Allies are compelled
to bring supplies from countries further
away than America. II it We're pos
siole to bring all supplies from America
the saving in shipping would more tha
offset the .osses by submarines for many
months and create Immediately n re-
serve oS ships.
Germany has given virtual proof Of
her ability :, live within herself The
resources OF America and the Allies
together greatly exceed those of Ger
many which has imported practically
nothing since the war began. The most
remarkable thing learned. both in Ger
many and Great Britain. has been the
, extent of possible economies In civilian
consumption.
The answer to the submarine depends
upon three things: First, devoting the
( resources of all the countries arraycd
against Germany, especially OF Amer.
lea. to war purposes second. increased
shipbullding third. economy in civilian
consumption. In both shipbuiding ant
I reducing consumption Americas actor
! will be decisive, as she Is the creates
/ producing country for nearly all sup
! plies required in war, the creates
wheat, oil. cotton. lead, copper. iron ant
steel country.
The sun., 1917-12-30

Continued on Second Page
The sun., 1917-12-30

Continued on Second Page.
The evening world., 1917-03-22
THE GERMAN RETREAT.

~ EASQNS given for the great German the
TX front TO pretty much everything short of the simple
explanation that Germany may be giving up territory
longer has the strength TO hold.
Nobody failed this conflict
because forced to- Berlin told and then that
division under pressure back positions
previously prepared, according to pNn meanwhile inictng
culinary losses the enemy That the accepted announcing
repuc and loss Of ground 1t doe, exactly the public
but the style a shock absorhcr.
In similar fashion, bu different scale big
French territory bound be reported Berlin "strateg
causing millions and millions Of dollars loss pursuing bat
terribly dismaycd and discouraged Allies who would rather
thing than thousands of square miles of French
for which they have been fighting
After ALL victorious do give up territory at the
astounding that has marked the German may
trap, but until there. proof Of it perhaps may be utterly
unwarrancd that the strcgh Allies began to Tell
before offensive under and German
forces the field y either confident rcssurcd
by conditions prevailing in the lhcrand they the begin
ming Of last spring