davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

hold of valuable franchises and tax sdodging was rampant
 Those who were affected by such inquiries as he had started. the re- forms he had instituted and the eliini- nation of the deaiwood which he had accomplished were resentful. They didn't like the idea of having their soft nest broken up and by means of the recall they hoped to put an end thereto. That the people Of Oakland were not in sympathy with such an attack is indicated by the result which sustained the mayor, but it makes it evident that where the recall was in tended as a benefit to community there are opportunities where 1t can not only be made a-great bother to the voters but where if sufficient strength prevails it can replace the good with evil. Fortunately the dis gruntled in Oakland were not success full in their effort.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
THE SURE ENOUGH PATRIOT

"The drummer boy stories always rouse the kids" laughed Wilkinson. "It makes no difference that drum ners are big fellows nowadays. The youngsters have besn brought up on the drummer boy legend and they have the old ambitions we used to have"
 ton money into a drum when I was a lad" said the out of town customer. T played 1t in secret till the neighbors complained of the noise in our barn and wss eIscSsessa sessas te didn't asins Mas confoundedly hard to play"
 "I never say anything more deceiv- ing than a drun," Wilkinson com mented. Tt looks so easy to play and
 My boy Jack has a small one the out of town customer said. But he isn't allowed to play it in town.
 When we go out on the farm we let funny thing is that he doesn't care much for it out there."
 q guess that's about it," the out df
 town customer acknowleaged. They
 both belong to the Boy Scout troop
 and Billy Is a sergeant, or whatever
 they call them. I am a little shy about using military ternls-it is such a bIunder to use the wrong one. Any
 way, he's some kind of head boy in the troop and he's great stickler for l because Jacks room is in bad order and it is very amusing to see how meekly Jack swallows it.
 Jack got even the other day, how ever pretty neatly. He's rather mus icaI in his tastes, so he's taking music lessons and besides he can play quite a lot of things that he picks out with one finger. It gets a little rnonoton- ous at times, but we hope it won't be long before he will learn to use al the fingers.
 -The other morning he began be- fore breakfast and kept it up until we came downstaifs. He was still play ing when we sat down and there came a howl from above. I went up to sec l what was wrong and found Billy hall dressed, his shirt half on, standing al salute. He'd been in that attit de 1 twenty minutes because Jack was picking out the Star Spangled Ban ! ner' on the piano. I call that real pa
 triotism."-Cbicago News.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
THE OAKLAND RECALL

That the recall can be turned to lad as well as good uses, even though the object aimed at is not attained is disclosed on frequent occasions where it is resorted to- The latest evidence of this character is furnished by the recall election recently held at Oak land, Cal, where opposition has been manifested toward reform admins tfation- Those who did not like the results which it was getting were de- lermined to eliminate the mayor, who had for the welfare of the community been wedding out a lot of figure heads .r the city government in order to reduce needless expenses and to create a more efficient conduct of city affairs. Oakland had apparently needed a housecleaning for some time
 Ccnditions were going from bad te worse Politicians were able to grt
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

ports of Denmark in 1914 amounting s to s213,oo,ooo, s71.ceo 900 were tre5s p,.i GeYmany. s3s, ,000, ,06G from Great bI1e E. tain and .$11, DOG, 900 from Russla. VI inc imports of Sweden in 1914 agsfe- eating s194, ,ooo. 900. sS4,o 900 ,ooo Weke Great Britain and s4.ooe, coo from Rus, s sia. Of the imports of NoTway III 1914 aggregating about $l5o,oDo.VuV, approximately 40.000,e00 worth Weae ne drawn from Germany, $S4o,ooo,oooo frem Great Britain and s6,ooo,VoV worth from Russia | Denmark's chief imports normally gre manufactures. foodstuffs and coal. The 1914 imports. the latest avaiiaple included textiles, approximately sIS,, GOO, 900, iron and steel $l8,0oo, ,opo, coal s1 5, ,O0O, 900 and cereals $z5 ,00O,ooo:
 Norways principal imports m ls1a were iron and steel manufactures. ap- proxinately S25, ,000,0 600; machinery sa5, ,OOO, 900; textiles s15,0oo. 900; coal S2O, ,OOO, GOO; breadstuffs S25, 100000 ana ether foodstuffs $15,0o0,000.
 Sweden's principal imports in lsi4 were raw textile material approxi- mateIy s15, ,000, ,006, increasing to $45,- COG, 900 in 1915; coal $50 .ooo, 900, in and flour s13,oo0 .oeo, increasing to ssf, oo0, GOO in 1915; the remainder chiefly manufactures.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
BARBARoUS GERMANY.

That Germany has not changed its attitude towards humanity and that it is still determined to spread terror wherever its army goes, regardless of the manner in which it is received by the rest of the world, is plainly i'm Heated by the documents which have been found upon soldiers o3 that coun- try who have been captured by the Italians. These show that they have received instructions from their com lnanders to the effect that they should not yield to pity but must cast it aside when it comes to dealing with women and children.
 This of course means that they are to follow the same tactics that were pursued in Belgium where women and children were tortured, violated and murdered and where no effort was made to check the terrorism which was indulged in throughout the en- tire country whenever opportunity of- Tered.
 That the same practices should be used against the people Of Italy is therefore not surprising. It is only what might have been anticipated The Germans have apparently looked upon such policy as 2 means o1 making their offensives the more suc- eessful. They care nothing about what the world thinks Of such bar barisn so long as they can attain their object. It. is simply another case where anything that is done foi the kaiser is right regardless of the enormity of the crime.
 But if anything was needed to bring the people of Italy together in a firm determination to offer every possible resistance to such people that should prove sufficient and it is fully be- sieved that it will get such an inter pretation from the Italian people.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
WHY THESE IDLE INDUSTRIES

The needs of this country are such sin most lines of industry that there sshould be no idle hands, This is par sticularly true when the shutting down ssof any kind of a factory which is .inaking or can make supplies for the iarmy and navy is concerned. Atten- sSion is directed to this by the inves- stigations which are underway at Washington before the congressional committees where the lack of proper iequipment for the soldiers, including tclothing, has been brought to light, land by the fact that through some Misunderstanding between the em- ployers and employees in New York there is said to be so,- eeo clothing workers who are doing nothing when the government is 1n need of their product or could make excellent use of that which they are able to make.
 The situation there appears to be on a par with that in an Illinois town where eight hundred employees of a car. factory are out of work because the contract to supply cars to Russia has been abandoned. The very fact that we are not going to supply the bolsheviki with material which can be turned to the advantage of Ger many does not mean that this country and it's allies are not in need of the very cars which that factory has been making or can make We need cars here the worst way. The lack of them has been a serious handicap to the transportation systems of this coun- try and yet no effort appears to be made tp turn these very cars, for which we were willing to undergo sacrifices in order to furnish to Rus sia- to our own uses. If the inves- ugation committees can put an end to these inconsistencies they will at least accomplish something.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
STORIES OF THE WAR

Victims of Austro- Hungarian Atro- Compelled to dig their own graves. drowned, burned alive, hanged, or shot down with machine guns the Serbians of Herzegovina, Bosnia, Istaria and Dalmatia were the victims of Austro- Hungarian atrocities, sur passing the human imagination, re- gently declared Dr. Tresie Pavicic, 8 Slav member of the Ausfro- -Hungar-
 tan Chamber of Deputies. Narratives of Serbians made prisoners in Aus trian jails and fortresses were re- lated in detail before the Austrian parliament by the Slav deputy.
 According to Dr. Pavicic, these out | rages were practiced upon tke civilian population, old men, women and chill dren when orders were given by Gen eral Potiorek, described as the auto crat of Bosnia, to remove all the Serb ians from the frontier districts.
 The inhabitants of the village of
 svico, young and old. were all led away and on arrival at Mount Rudo, were compelled to dig their own graves and to lie down each in his own. Many women, the deputy said, | lay down in their graves with chill then shot them one after another, the l living putting earth over the dead un- ] til their own turn came.
 l The ordinary method of executing l intarned said the Slav> deputy, was to hang them, but instead the whole l Eerbo -Montenegrin frontier had been transformed. into desert' Eighty two persons. he said. were hanged without trial at zubae. 103 at Trehin- | 10. Il at Foca and 300 at Tuzia- He gave the names of victims and the dates and localities of the outrages Of those who were not executed, he declared. the very young and the 1 aged died of destitution- It was the ! vigorous, competent and courageous ! who were arrested falsely accused. condemned, tortured and executed. The deputy was informed he said, that Dalmatia, Istria and Carniola- Dr. PAvicic was one of those arrested.
 herded with brigands. insnlted by
 Hungarian soldiers and beaten with 1 oners lost their reason and he saw
 one hurl himself from train under the wheels of another which was pass l Ing. Thousands of Serbians, he de-
 ciafed, were taken for internHnent to | Azestar, Herzegovina, to Doboi. Bos-
 nfa and to Arzd. Hungary.
 | Upon these uufortunates their jail
 | CTS inflicted peculiar punishments &C.,
 l vivers related by Dr. Pavicic. One oi
 these jaiieFs at Mostar was charac-
 terized i1 the speech as a "ferocious
 beast" who beat his prisoners with
 a hooked baton of iron which he call
 l ca .Kronpriuz." A priest named Tichy | afterward died at Arad. Hungary, as
 the result of the tortures this jaHer
 inflicted.
 I -h, these gathered at 6ostar sur- vived, they were transferred later to Arad where "thousands of living skei-
 etons were congregafed from Bosnia
 land Horxescvina," said the deputy.
 iFamished. naked. haN-dead from the | blows of rifles and kaxcnet thrusts
 they wxre driven to the cAsarnealtH of
 ! the Axad fortrezs- In f<s stabterraneau
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

livery man has some sort of pa
 triot to boast about, I suppose the
 out of towE customer told Wilkinson,
 these days when everybody's son has
 thing or other
 ''Surely," Wilkinson smiled. "It's
 getting to be such a very common
 thing that I have been wishing that
 could think up something new to
 boast about. There's Hudson, whose
 five sons are in the training camps,
 and Ferry, whose brother is colonei,
 and Fisher. who is doing work on his
 own account for the country, and
 Parker, who's on the exemption board, and Gordon, whose six daughters are
 in the Red Cross serVice-oh, and scores of others. I'm not boosting N because there are such scads of men who have done fifty times as much as I can ever de-"
 There was g. man on the train of us letter he had" the out of town customer said, enviously. He has a boy in France and ths letter was from him. It was q peach of let with envy. It's just like that all the tine-everybody's trying to get some tning more patriotic than his neigh Dor to tell about. Nobody tells fish ing stories any more, they see6 so tame in com pariSon with the tales they all can tell about their cousins in the ambulance division the sig nal corps or the secret service" ~Its my impression" declared VII kinson, that when "a man does some thing really quite notable he is i'm mediately adopted by a lot of people who never heard of him and is quoted as my cousin in France who did a neat thing the other day. A lot of fellows who ran away to war are pcasted of instead of scolded, now that we are in it."
 We've always been fairly patrio- tic,'' the out of town customer said ''My wife and I come of old Connec- ticut stock that. fought in all the wars and kept out of the courts; but now, can tell you, we are nearly bursting with the prevailing emotion, You see. I have & couple of small boys whom we have to sit on continually for fear they will think themselves old enough to go as drummer boys"
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
French Field Gun ExccIs.

German artiilerymen have not been able, in spite of all their s.efforts, to invent field gun which i'll any way approaches the French field gun in ac- euracy of aim or rapidity of fire. Since tie beginning of the war, however. they have greatly improved their three inch gun and have increased it's range by extending the length of the tube and fixing it on four-ineh- howitzer gun carriage, which gives it an ex- treme carrying distance. of nearly six miles. It's most effective range is still only between two-and-a7haf and three -and three quarter miles.
 In making these improvements. the German slInners have decreased the efficiency of the 6eld-gun at the short CT ranges, since the longer barrel causes the piece to heat more rapid ly than the old model and thus pre- vents the battery from maintaining quick fire for more. than short per iod.
 The shells fired by these guns are of five varieties, each battery being furnished with supplies of all of them for use according to circumstances. The various shells are:
 The long explosive eoncussion shell.
 The long explosive shell with an in stantaneous fuse formed of an aluni- mum bar an nch-and-a-haH in length which is inserted in the end of the projectile just before it is fired and causes the shell to burst at the slight est obstacle.
 The ordinary short shell with a de-
 The ordinary short explosive time fuse shell.
 The shrapnel shell.
 The shells most generally employed kind and shrapneI. All shells are now provided with a driving band made of an alloy as the supply of copper in Germany has become short. s.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
Views of the Vigilantes
CIVILIAN AMMUNITION.
By Clyde 8. Wilson of The visiiant

By Clyde E. Wilson of The NtgHantes. Do you want to Bust the Kaiser? Then don't bust Business altogether. Here Is a Weapen for earh who wants to fight: Ecoromize-not at the Expense of your Neighbor; mot at the Ex- -pense of all Business Activity, But by Zane Sacrifice and Waste Elimination. Buy-don't Sauander: Eat-don't Gorge; Starve only the Garbage Gan; Eave-don't Miserize: Hooverize- don't Radicalize; Optimize- Pessimize. Buy Magazines often; Buy Theatre Tickets moderately: Go to War Moves frequently; Let the Wheels turn; but always remember the grim Busipess that is in the 5
 World today. Let all Classes
 Work and make Money; then
 we' can feed our Allies and OUT Soldiers, and Buy hIherty Bonds. Now we are coming to
 to the point: We
 Can Bust the r. Kaiser wide
 open with
 !. This TOR PIE D
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
SAFETY ON RAILROADS.

Investigations which are being con- dueted into that wreck at Shepherds vile, Ky. where many lives were lost when fast express train crashed iri- to an accommoda tien. which had just left the station, and pIoughed it's way through three coaches ought to deter mine twhere the responsibility lies without great trouble. If the flyer had the right sof way being due at a known time and making no stop at ShepherdsriHe it is hard to under stand why a slow train should have been sent. out ahead of it without talk ing the needed preeaution of warn ing the aneemins express. When the operator claims that lie left his key to help with the baggage after the &C., coninodation left his station it would appear that there was carelessness displayed in protecting the lives o1 the passengers on both trains. Short age of help may have required thi double duty of the. operator but ii that was the case the safety of hu- man life must be regarded as ofsmucf greater importance than the speedy moving of baggage.
 Until the investigations have beer completed, however. the real trouble will not be disclosed but if the road is guilty of lax operation Of it's trains t is time that immediate reforms were instituted. Such terrible acci- dents usually result in the employ ment of new methods or devices but it is most unfortunate. indeed thai there has to be such sacrifice Of life in order to bring about an under standing of the necessity of giving every possible protection to the tray. cling public.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

corridors they died in masses from typhus.
 Dr. Pavicic, "they took clothing from the dead to clothe the naked. The number of deaths at Arad is estimated at between 5000 and 4,0o0."
 At Doboj things were worse. Along with Serbian and Montenegrin prison CTS came crowds of civilian old men, women and children driven from home and forced to travel in open cattle trucks. Hunger was found to be the simplest and cheapest means of send . ing these people to another world. Of ten the mother would be dead when her Iittle~child shook her to ask fo.' bread. Trustworthy figures show that more than 5000 innocent victims met their death in these piaces.'
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
CHRISTMAS DAY.

Even though the world is involved in its greatest war. with this country included therein. we cannot overlook this great season of Peace on earth, good will toward men, Christmas s day should be made as bright and cheerful as possible under the exist ing leonditions. There cannot help being thoughts of those who are away, those who may be across the waters or those in the training camps of this country waiting to complete their training before going but such only emphasizes the lesson of peace and the need to continue the fight for the bringing about of conditions in those countries which are opposed to 1t and which will insure in the fu- ture the rights of humanity and the love of feiioWmen- This is. a time when those who love and desire peace are forced to fight for 1t instead of sitting idly by and acknowledging the supremacy of those who are deter mined to exert their crushing control whatever the cost may be.
 War Is to be deplored. but there are times when it is necessary even to secure peace, the meaning of which can be no better understood than at this very season and under the exist ing conditions
 Christmas day should therefore be a day of cheerhllness and joy. We can not overlook it- pn>the other hand we must use it as an inspiration in the carrying out of our programme. And as one has well said: May the sweet ness of giving ectuate us all. Let us remember Gods poor. Let us feel . within us the spirit of the Son of God who came upon earth to set us free 1, from the bondage of sin. A merry Christmas to all."
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
OTHER VIEW POINTS

Anyhow, we get from the senate's investigation of war department af fairs that 1t will take 10000 of the officially adopted Browning machine guns to arm the first million soldiers and that the factories will not begin deliveries of the guns until April i.
 After delivery of the guns. the men will have to be drilled in the use of them, of course.
 Evidently, the allies would do well not to rely on us for an army of a million men before April 1.
 It feels good to get definite, straight information as to a date or a fact, in this war, even when there isn't much glory in that fnformation.-Bridgepor Standard
 There are miles of sidewalks fin this town today where the only path for a pedestrian is a marrow ridge beat en down by passing feet. On each IS as good as that in a country vii. .agc- There are other miles where the snow is cleared away down to a smooth ice. upon which there is not a Much of this is in front of occupied houses. There are few houses that do not contain occupants capabie of making narrow footpath along the front. and none which have not an abundance of ashes. even if they have not clean sand. The conditions could be made 50 per cent. better without unreasonable requirement. of residents. The bad conditions depend entirely on their neglect or indifference, and on the indifference of the police. Side walks cannot be made clean and safe such weather as this. but they can be made, cleaner and safer. and that, too, without asking Of people any more than an eficient, energetic city gov crHmert ought ao ask of them and get--Waterbury American.
 The econonica1 potstonlce depart nBent delivers to 1s today a report of the United States tariff commission which bears on it's face perrnission to print it Dec. 10, a week ago last Men- day The Congressional Record. this session, is arriving about seven days after publication which Is (from the Erfssun point of view) an irnpfcye- ment over the last eessfoa. when il averaged only about four dnSs Iate.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
Law of a Sensible State.

A Connecticut man was recently sent to prison for a term of from six to ten years for killing a. man while driving an automobile in an intoxi- cated condition. law of this sensible state making it a felony when drunk enness of an autoist causes a fatal accident. It is not until such laws are general and are enforced that "un- avoidable accidents" will cease. Till then, they will continue to be unavoid-
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

Three New York school teachers found guilty of spreading disloyal propaganda in their class rooms have been dismissed Such was a wise step but it wouldn't be a bad idea to still keep an eye on them.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

Even though there has been a hitch in the first efforts at a German -bol- shsviki peace. the kaiser will get Le- nine and Trotzlzy to eliminate a little thing like Russian opposition to Ger man plans.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

Now, that the keel of the first steel ship has been laid at Newark it isl 70 be expected that all efforts will now be bent toward beating the time required in constructing the first steel ship on the western coast
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

Even at the Christmas dinner it i. always well to remember that ther, are other days coming.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

After an inventory of the presents has been made the stores can antici- pate big business making exchanges of misfits.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

The Westinghouse company begs for sugar to keep its big plant going, but that appeal is no more insistent than that from the yoangater who has constituted himself committee to dissolve all the Jumps.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

Guadeloupe coffee planters will har- vest a crop much larger than that ot ceed the normal production of 1878, o0o pounds.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

The very fact that you have enlist. ed in the Red Cross army of mercy should. make your Christmas happier
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

We are told that the egg market is wobbly but the consumer will not bs satisfied until the Humpty Dumpty stage is reached.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

The man on the corner says: After the worst has happened there is more room for improvement.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

Anyone who has had muck expert. ence doesn't have to be reminded thaa the shortest days of the year are those just before Christmas
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

Those who' get the greatest pleas- ure out of the Christmas toys are not always the children.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25

Now that the Red Cross member. ship campaign has ended there ought to be a vote of thanks tc those whose efforts have made it such a success.
Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-25
EDITORIAL NOTES. merry Christmas.

Let the Christmas spirit prevail for more than one day,