The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1918-02-07
BIG CROWDS
HEAR OFFICERS
TWO Big CHURCHES WERE FILLED
Overflow Audience Sent from Asbury
Church to Congregational Cana
dian Stories Impressive

| 0mcerS touring the state unuer the
auspices of the Oregon Council of De-
fense, the Asbury Methodist church,
selected for the meeting because of its
large seating capacity, was overflow.
ing Sunday, and the Congregational
church, was opened and filled to the
doors. 1t was hastily arranged for
each officer to appear alternately at
the two churches, and thus the mes
sage of both men were made available.
| The visitors graphic stories were
shortened when it was learned that the
late O..W. r. & N. train to Portland
had been annuled and the party would
have to cross the river and catch a
North Bank train at White Salmon.
The officer were accompanied by or
derlies, and their party was in charge
of Bruce Dennis, of Baker, secretary
of the Oregon Defense Council, who at
Sundays meeting stated that the or.
ganization asked the military depart
GERS that they might tour the state and
tell fathers and mothers of boys in the
service their story of actual conditions
at the front.
"'The mission of these high British
officers" said MIR. Dennis, "is not for
the purpose of promoting any specific
campaign, but to stimulate all work,
TO awaken the people of Oregon who
in some sections may be in dangerous
lethargy or indifference.
Coming first handed, the messages of
Capt. Cook and Maj. Edwards deeply
impressed the two Hood River audi
u ences.
Capt. Cook opened his address by
telling of the terrible wastage one saw
on first entering the war zone which is
four to 100 miles wide and 400 miles
long from the English Channel to the
Swiss frontier.
1.-The French peasants, he said, care
ideal farmers, and have been practic-
ing, perhaps, the most intense form of
agriculture known. Now those farms
are ruined. Towns in the zone are
hattened out. Some unfortunate resi-
dent on returning after the war may
find brick dust remaining from his for
mer home, but he will never find any
of his farm The face of the earth has
been changed by the shell fire. No top
soil remains, and the mass of she'll
pocked earth is filled with tons of shell
bits, unexploded shells and other de-
bris."
II Capt. Cook stated that he left Eng.
land, after training, open minded des-
pite the numerous rumors that he had
heard as to German atrocities, but that
arrival in France brought him face to
face with first hand evidence of the
fact that the Germans had we'll form
ulated policy Of warning not only on
armies, but on the civilian population
as we'll. He declared that his men
were filled with repugnance and
desire to revenge their wrongs after
hearing of the stories of wronged wo.
men and girls of the frontier. The
officer told how the Germans, firing
huge 1900 pound shells, wiped out vii
lagos, killing and manning hundreds of
women and children, although the con-
centrated fire had no military value.
"And am not telling you of isolated
cases." said Capt. Cook, "but of the
usual occurrence on the front. After
such experiences my opinion of Ger.
mans was altered and | have come to
the point where do not want to see a
German unless am armed with bay
onet and can stick him."
Capt. Cook ended his lecture with an
appeal to Americans to be willing to
make the same sacrifices that other
allied nations have made. He told Of
the English National Service work by
which every resource of the country
was put into play for winning the war;
n when you write your boys" he
said, "do not worry them with recitals
of petty annoyances of home. But
show them that you are back of them,
and support them by sending NUM-
tions, food and supplies. am made
blue sometimes by men asking when
the war will end. That is matter in
the hands of the individual. You do
your part and you will help end the
war all the quicker"
Capt. Cook praised the women of
England, who are entering into all
/ forms of war work. Large boaies of
\ women, he said, were now engaged in
\ France as carpenters.
\ Major Edwards won the hearts of his
audience at the outset when he said:
"As | travel about | find myself
watching the faces of the men trying
\ to Judge as to what kind Of soldiers
Il they will make. have looked into the
H faces of the Oregon boys and want to
assure you that Germans are going to
have a rough time when they meet
them"
1.-The men at the front are keen fol
\ letters, Mai. Edwards continued
"Just after dark, when the mess train
| comes up the boys, hungry as they are,
II always wait until the mail sack is
/ opened before they eat. There is 9
Il difference between the man who gets g
II letter and the one who does not. As
\ to parcels for your boy, allow me tt
make some suggestions. Send hin
socks, socks, more socks and then some
more socks. Make the socks long il
the leg and tighter at the top so thai
II they will not slip down over the calves
II Candles, the short kind, will always b.
II welcome and he will be glad to receive
III some hard cake chocolate"
III Mai. Edwards thrilled his hearers b!
III relating his experiences in trencl
~ battle. where hundreds of his brigade
were killed and where at one time hi
men were almost blinded by German
tear shells. Soldiers, however, ar,
n equipped with specially made goggle'
III for this gas that temporarily blinds tn
Il men, and the wearing of these relieve
II the pain and itching that almost drive
Il men insane. He told of how terribl
Il was the suffering Of men who wer
Il victims Of German poison gas, whic
Il tended to liquify the victims lungs
II Writhing in agony, he stated, thos
II who had breathed in the gas would spi
up their lungs in kind of froth. Tn
IL
HI agonies for two days.
iii Maj. Edwards, reaching a point o
HI climax, declared that Germany, bt
z& 80 thx, rv,h