davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
Calls Hoidup Story Absurd.


Calls Hoidup Story Absurd.
81 do not believe his story" said
Captain Coughlin after Rokawicz had
been held TO the grand jury for muir
der and was lodged in the county jail
81 think he killed Papke. but his hold
up story is absurd. He knew Papke
well enough to have recognized him.
j am satisfied there was some other
reason. The murderer always In his
confession tries to Justify his act. In
the months that we have been investi-
eating this case we have been unable
10 find motive. I think Papke's dog
must have snapped at Rokawicz. An
argument followed. Rokawicz drew his
knife and stabbed Papke in the back.
''Rokawicz, 1 believe, is victim Of
a peculiar form of insanity
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
Quart of Whisky One Year In Pen.

Raleigh, N. C.-The lower house of
the North Carolina legislature unani-
mously passed bill providing that
any person caught with quart of
whisky be arrested on a charge of
blcckading and, if found guilty, be
given a year in the state prison and a
fine of $50, or fine of s25 and an
equal prison term for having whisky
in his possession. The measure as it
passed the house was amended so as
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
Go After Phone Rates.

Harrisburg, Pa.-The Pennsylvania
public service commission ordered
counsel to proceed against telephone
companies which have advanced rates
by order of the pOetmaster,general
The action will be either in the courts
or before the commission.
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
Postpone Health Sunday.

Chicago - The postponement Of
Health Sunday" from Feb. to Feb.
%, so as not to conflict with the Theo-
dore Roosevelt memorial services ar
ranged for the former date. was an
nounced by Surgeon-General Blue, Of
the United States public health serv-
ice
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
Persecution Continues.

Lima, Peru. Persecution against
the Peruvians is continuing in Chile,
according to refugees, 700 of whom
arrived at Mollendo 1t is alleged that
Chilean women who have married Pc
ruvfans have been forced to remain
in Chile when their husbands were
forced to leave that country
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
Nassau Grand jury Fails To Indict the
Slayer Of "Emperor Of Saraha."

Mineola, N Y.-Exonerated by the
Nassau county grand jury of first de
gree murder charge, Madame Jacques
Lebaudy returned to her home in
Westbury, where, on Jan. II, she sho,
and killed her eccentric husband. the
self-styled Emperor of Sahara"
She was accompanied by her 15-year
old daughter. Jacque.ine, for the pres
ervation of whose happiness more than
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
Fire SWeenS Plant

Charleston, S. C.-Fire swept the
acid chambers of the Etiwan Fertilizer
Company's plant, on the Cooper river,
near here, causing damage estimated
at $150,00O, partly covered by insur-
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
With Weather Below Zero.

Edmonton, Alberta.-Coyote hunts
in sub-zero weather are popular in this
vicinity, the last hunt at Bremner and
East Glover Bar attracting many auto
mobilists as we'll as horsemen. Ranch
ers are planning to continue the car.
paign of determination all winter
.1zzeutx.f,xe wplf bounds haxa heeu Oh
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
Bars Red EIao.

Boise, Idaho. = By unanimous vote
the Idaho senate passed bill which
would make it felony, punishable by
Imprisonment up to 10 years, to hoist
or display the red flag in this state.
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
ASK Mexican Purchase.

Sacramento, GAIA senate joint res
olution urging President Wilson to in
itiate negotiations for the purchase
from Mexico OF Lower California, a
strip Of the State of Sonora, contigu-
GUS to the COLORADO river, and the Cor
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31

HIGHEST DIGNITARY OF cATHO-
Lie CHURCH EVER TO VISIT
UNITED STATES.
PAYS TRIBUTE TO PRESIDENT
Archbishop BonaVentura Cerretti Says
Eyes of the World Are Turned
With Hope and Confidence
Toward America

, Baltimore, Nd. - In an address. not
only eulogistic of Cardinal Gibbons.
but which also paid a tribute 10 Presi-
dent Wilson, Archbishop Bonaventura,
,Cerretti, papal under-secretary OF
state. last week presented to the car
dinal the congratulations Of Pope Ben
Iedict on the golden jubilee of his epis-
copate, Monsignor Cerretti also indi-
Gated that had he lived, Archbishop
Ireland, OF St. Paul, would have been
made a cardinal
Honors All America.
THE sovereign pontiff has sent me
10 express his love and admiration for
that great American whose name is
written with letters OF gold in the
hearts of the American yeople," said
Archbishop Cerretti. TO Cardinal Glib
bons. But in honoring you. your emf
nence, the holy father honOrs the
whole American church, honors Amer
lea. For in your eminence is repre-
scented all that is great and noble IN
American religious and civil life"
In speaking of the close friendship
which existed between Cardinal Glib
bons and the late Archbishop Ireland
Monsignor Cerretu said:
eff the archbishop of the west had
been spared, he would have rejOiCed
to be here; and we also would rejoice
were he with US today; especially
would we all have reiOiced in the near
1 may say without indis-
cretfon-when the great Archbishop
Ireland, whom the holy father es-
teemed so highly, would also have re
ceived the highest distinction within
the power of the sovereign pontiff 10
bestow"
Tribute To Wilson.
Continuing, MonsignOr Cerretti said:
1--WE are gathered together in a his
toric moment for America. The eyes
OF the world are turned with hope and
confidence toward this great republic
Your great President Wilson has enun-
ciated to the world the highest and the
noblest principles of humanity; he has
proclaimed, in the most eloquent
terms, the spirit and nobility of Amer
lean manhood
And we are indeed gratified to
know JnaL those great principles WHICH
the American people love, those prin-
ciples which President Wilson has
never ceased to expound. to develop
and to apply according as the events
Of the gigantic worlds struggle have
evolved we are gratified to know. J
say. are based upon the general out.
lines already traced by the holy father
during the critical period of the war.
It is we'll known that the holy father
proposed for the restoration OF the
world of a just and lasting peace, that
peace for which we, together with the
whole church, have prayed so ferv-
entity 1t was in particular these four
the right of might should
give way to the might of right. that
he just aspirations of natiOnalities
should be satisfied; that no nation
should be subjugated by another be
cause nations do not die; that there
should be a general disarmament OF
nations and an international court Of
arbitration established"
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31
FOR USE OF U. S. TROOPS

small propertie
The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-01-31

Corinth. = j. E. Mitchell, a we'll
known farmer residing few miles
from here, committed suicide near his
home. He was So years old. He left
his home about twelve o'clock and was
found hanging by a rope to a tree.
His mind had been unbalanced for
some time, and it is understood that
he had only recently been released
from an insane asylum.
Grenada.-The house of Albert
George, at Tie Plant, few miles south
of Grenada, was destroyed by fire. The
total loss was about $1,000, which was
partially covered by insurance.
Columbus John T. Wood was
elected president OF the Columbus Ma
tional bank to succeed the late 3. A
Weaver, who died suddenly last week
Mr. Mood has for 0rrrl her NJ vac -
Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-03-02
Colonel NEBRASKA Biz Hqy1OqrdDs Gun Story Of the
Fighting fifteenth and the Negro Boys KaLor in War

without removing the Croix) he sa-
luted again and did an about face,
leaving the lieutenant speeehless.
Then there was the time Ger
man raiding party captured one. of
our lieutenants and four privates
back in August in the Champagne,
and was carrying them of when a
lone colored man, Sergt William
Butler, one of those Indoor chauf-
feurs" or elevator men, covered them
from a shell-hole. He calmly spoke
to the lieutenant and the lieutenant
spoke back to him. Then the lieuten-
ant signalled to the four other pris-
oners to make run away from the
Germans. AS they started to flee
Butler yelled:
Look out, you Bush Germansl
Yere we Gomez And he let go with
his pistol. He killed one boehe officer
and four privates, and OUR men es-
capped back to our position. Later
we captured the German officer who
had been in charge of this raiding
party and also got his written re-
port. In this he had said--the lying
scoundrel-that he had been obliged
to let his prisoners go because he
was attacked "by an overwhelming
number of blutlustige schwartz
maennerp This overwhelming num-
Der consisted of Elevator Operator
Bill Butler alone.
/ really believe I was the first all
lied officer to reach the German riv-
er. | was made administrator over
a territory of nine and one-half kilo-
metres, which included five towns,
and all these German towns were
guarded and patrolled by the old
18th. Here, as at Thanh, our boys
had a chance to spend those German
marks they had got at low rate
from the Moroccans.
We left Blodelsheim just before
Christmas and went to Belfort On
December 80 we moved to lie Mans,
where we turned in our French
equipment, and then in few weeks
later we started home. VIII.
For various activities III menu
bers of the regiment were cited and
given the Croix de Guerre, and the
regimental flags were decorated with
the medal, too. This was for taking
Sechault. The army citations were
signed by General Gouraud, the
corps citations by General Hely
dOissel, and the division citations
by Generals lie Calais and lie Bouc.
And so, in the middle Of February,
1919, we came back to our home
town into a marvellous welcome.
Now let New York carry on, as the
boys have done. and have a perma-
nent 18th, with an armory wherein
these badges of honor and myriad
othsl souvenirs may be preserved for
generations.
Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-03-02

teau-Thierry and that district. Gour-
faud, in my belief, turned the tide OF
the war, and | am proud that the
colored boys had share in that
vital fight.
Right here l may say that this
orphan, urchin regiment of ours
placed in the pathway of the boche
| in the most significant fight battle
the world has ever known, had only
| 81 commissioned officers, and four
of those wounded, had to be carried
in stretchers to their positions in
the trenches in order to direct the
| fighting.
ward does not set down the fact
that he was in a hospital himself
with a broken leg, and, disregarding
the orders of the surgeons, went to
the front line himself on crutches,
bobbing up and down and encour-
aging these black buddies he COM
manded.
For three or four days then, the
old 18th was kept busy retaking
what were our old front line trench
es, for the boche, despite his terrible
losses, chung to them.
When bayonet fighting was neces-
sary, they were among those present,
but they were not the blood-thirsty,
cutting, slicing scrapers the Germans
believed them to be. Whether there
was any razor-work l don't know
many persons have asked me-but
there probably might have been
few cases where the trusty blade"
was called into action.
We had casualties, of course, but
onlthe whole | think they were rath-
err light. / would prefer not to give
the figures, since that duty belongs
to the army authorities.
In and about this district we held
half a dozen different sectors, with
only one week of rest up until Sep
TENDER 26. Our week was at St.
Ouen, and we were supposed to re-
main there a month, but after seven
days there was an alarm of some
sort and we were rushed back in
camions to our position.
There were some periods during
this tour of duty near the Butte de
Mesnil when we lost a man an hour
and an officer a day from the accu-
rate shell fire of the boche. Any one
who says the German artillerists do
not know their business has never
been along that line which, running
west from Bots de Hauzy, includes
the Main de Massiges, Maison en-
Champagne, and the Butte de Mes
nil.
The German gunners handling the
us were so expert along this line
that it was unsafe for lone man
to show himself in bayeau in our
trenches. A solitary soldier would
actually be "sniped" by a German
canuoneer.
Traded Money.
To the left of us, facing the Butte
de Mesnil, in those September days,
were the Moroccan Frenchmen, col
ored like (yet unlike) the Old Fif-
teenth. | have actual knowledge
of this transaction; the Moroccans
had all taken from the pockets of
German prisoners and German dead
a lot of German money. OF course,
this was of no use in France. So our
boys started trading with them, and
they traded very shrewdly. They
Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-03-02

course, suffered a good many casu-
alties. We had thought the July
party very severe affair, but this
was far worse. We were relieved on
October /, 1918, but stayed eight
days more with the French, waiting
for units to the right and left of us
to catch UP to the point which we
had reached in our advance.
We were pretty well shot up.
There were only enough men in a
battalion to make a company. ]
know, / made a provisional battalion
out of what had been three. But at
that we got off lighter than the
French. l know that where we had
1000 men hit the French had 200
There certainly was in use, dur
ing this engagement, lot OF what
is called at the front hardware
shells. Fortunately, the Germans
must have run out of mustard gas,
for our boys didn't get much OF that
burning stuff. But we had plenty
Il mean the French artillery, and
they gave the boche fine dose of
his own medicine.
Editorial Note-Though he didn't
write about it, Col. Hayward was
severely gassed while at Bellevue
ridge while in the forefront of the
fighting. 1t is for that casing he
wears his wound stripe. His voice
still is lost, occasionally, because of
the phosgene.)
Hen-ner-y John-son's Pride.
cannot say too much Of the fight
the Old 18th put up during these
four days. Every one has heard, of
course, of the exploit of Henry john
son, who really first put the regi-
ment on the map, that time he did up
half a company of boches with his
comrade Needham Roberts, who was
wounded early in the game. Henry
was one of our star performers, as
New York realized when it saw him
last week riding alone in an auto
mobile with his medals and flowers.
New York decided that Henry
wasn't one of those modest heroes.
And he isn't.
Not long after Henry had got the
Croix for his killing of four and
wounding of score or more of Ger
mans, he was was walking about one
night with his medal pinned to his
cap, so every one could see it. A new
white lieutenant approached him
and said:
what do you mean by that viola
ton of the regulation? Take that
medal off your cap at onceP
Henry saluted politely and said:
II guess you don't know, sir, who /
am"
mo, I don'tI Who the hell are
you? Take that thing Off
why, L Use Hen-er-y John
sonp said the medalwearer. And
Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-03-02
Col. Bin" Hayward'5 Fighting Face

Col. Bill" Hayward's Fighting Face
The boys called it the Million Dol
lar Raid, because the preparatory
barrage, they thought, must have
cost all that. They gave us all the
hardware they had-77s, 150s, trench
mortars, minenwerfers and every
thing. Then they came over,
probably believing they'd find our
outfit scared stiff. But the colored
lads let them have grenades, which
they sped across like they pitched
base balls on the Harlem lots, rifle
fire which was good and straight,
and a hail from some concealed ma
chine gun nests.
Sergt Bob Collins had placed
these nests, and in the midst of the
fight he jumped on top of the para
pet and stood there to see what eff
feet they we're having.
They're making those Germans
look like a bunch of Swiss cheese"
he exclaimed, regardless of the stuff
that was bursting about him. He
got the Croix later for his dispo-
sition of the machine-guns.
Bellhops Protected Paris.
While we were holding this sector
of Hauzy Wood, we were the only
barrier between the German army
and Paris. There was nothing be-
hind us. Does not that sound odd
a collection of New York bellhops
and chauffeurs and elevator men and
the like standing between the kaiser
and the French capital?
One of our men, hearing that we
were the only thing between the
boche and Paris, scratched his head
a bit and commented. "Yas, thass
the only thing between
us and Berlin is the German armyW
About this time every one in the
allied armies knew that the supreme
German effort was about to come.
And it was felt as surety that the
brunt of the drive would fall upon
the Fourth French army, of which
we were a part. This army was
holding a line of so kilometers long,
between Rheims and the
Argonne Forest. 1t was the inten-
ton of the Germans to capture
Chalons and then proceed down the
Marine valley to Paris.
Our regiment was set to work
Strengthening the trenches and barb
ed wire entanglements, and we work.
Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-03-02

gave one French franc, worth APP
proximately 20 cents, for five Ger
man marks, which were worth then
perhaps 10 cents each. In other
words they snapped 20 cents for 90.
"But where are you boys going
to spend those marks?" one of our
white officers asked. They gazed
at him astoundedly.
why, in Germany, of course,
Lieutenant, sir" they answered.
"Ain't that's where we're going?"
Take Butte de Mesnil.
They were right. They did 60 TO
Germany, at least to Alsace. and
there they spent the marks. Perhaps
they felt they had to win in order
to cash in on their investments.
Anyway, they won.
There is another incident l re-
member with amusement about the
Moroccans. They are light colored.
They had sort of feud on with the
Sengalese, who are quite dark. One
day we sent over a message from
the Old Fifteenth, who was very
black chap. The Moroceans glared
at him, then went into their dugouts
and reappeared with ears, fingers,
bones and one thing and another
they had taken from their enemies,
and they shook them viciously at
our man to indicate what his fate
would be if he approached closer.
The messenger came back and said:
Excuse me, sir, but / amt well
come over there. Better send one
o. them light-colored Harlem
lounge-lizards to deal with them
Moroccan birds. I'm through
The Germans had concrete pill
boxes" with concealed machine
guns, tremendously thick barbed
wire, hidden positions from which
they could rake US.
But the Moroccans and Major
Loriliard Spencer's battalion of our
outfit attacked the hill, and fighting
foot by foot they won their way to
the top of it. The rest of the Old
Fifteenth took Maison en- Dormouse
over the river and then Fontaine en-
Dormouse. Major Fred Cobb's bat
talon of the Old Fifteenth attacked
Bellevue Ridge, north of Fontaine,
supported by Major David L'Esper-
ance's battalion.
Sechault Shot to Pieces.
Sechault at this time had not been
harmed much by the war, but when
the Old Fifteenth took it and then
went on beyond over the plain near
ly to a wood called Petit Rosiere,
where there was battalion of Ger
mans, the boche saw the jig was up
and then shelled Sechault to pieces
IN very short time.
The New York buddies were four
days in the assault wave, and. of
Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-03-02

third attempt IN a blizzard, and col
lided with a tanker before clearing
the harbor. But our own mechan-
les patched up a hole in our bow
and off we went at last. We reach
ed France on December 81.
Orphan Regiment in France.
In France, in addition to being an
urehin regiment, we became an or
phan regiment, for we were not at
tached to any American division. as
we had expected, but were sent to
join the French as a single unit of
infantry, American in personnel, but
French in everything else, including
construction and equipment.
33oth Stopped the German.
Drive.
We-now the Three Hundred and
Thirty-ninth infantry, u. S. A
were attached to the Sixteenth di-
visicn. Eigth corps of the Fourth
French army. We had Lebel rifles,
French packs, French gas masks
and French everything else. We
got our needed enlisted men from
colored draft requirements, but we
never did get a sufficient replace
ment of officers.
For several months the regiment
did pioneer work about St. Nazaire,
making roads, helping construct
buildings, completing a reservoir,
and doing all sorts of odd jobs.
Then we we're sent toward the
front, at last-and it was a happy
bunch of colored boys who faced
the prospect of real action. From ST.
eVazarie we went to Givray-en-
Argonne, and there, in three weeks,
the French turned us into regula-
ton French regiment. By this
time many of our boys were chat-
tering the language of the land we
we're in, and they had become
great friends with the soldiers Of
our ally. ILL.,
On April IL, the Three Hundred
and Thirty-ninth took over a sector
of So kilometers in the Bots de
Hauzy, on the left of fringe Of
the Argonne forest. This was a
position into which the Germans
had dug themselves after their re-
treat following the first battle of
the Marine. 1t was one of those
sectors which have been called
quiet" but it was important enough
to have been held by a whole
French regiment. The lines of the
French and Germans had been
stabilized there for more than three
years.
There we stayed until July l.
There was no violent fighting in this
sector, but there were raids back
and forth by the colored boys and
the Germans, and rifle exchanges,
and occasionally some artillery ac-
ton, we being supported i'll this by
French batteries behind us. But no
prisoners were taken OH either side
and there were few casualties.
The mention of prisoners brings
to my mind the boast of the old
Fifteenth that not a man of its
ranks ever surrendered or was cap
tured. | understand that the official
lists declare that one man of the
regiment was taken prisoner. Per-
haps so, but / do not know who he
was or ewhen he was taken. Some
were on our missing lists, but u.s.
ually they were men who were so
blown to pieces that they could not
be identified.
This characteristic-fghting to
the death rather than giving them
selves up-won for the men of the
old Fifteenth the German title of
"blutlustige schwartzmaenner," or
"bloodthirsty black men," and when
they came to know that they felt
that no Germans could ever lick
them-and no Germans ever did.
There was one big party June u,