sacrifice and effort that demonstrated how completely was the heart of
America in the war. Work in shops, fields, hospitals, Red Cross work
rooms and elsewhere was cheerfully and enthusiastically performed and
the sacrifices of food rationing, higher prices, lightless nights,
gasolineless Sundays, diminished steam railway and trolley service were
accepted with a multitude of minor inconvenience without a murmur.
Congress had a free hand in making appropriations. The country approved
without a minute's hesitation bills for taxation that in other days
would have brought ruin to the political party proposing them. Billions
were voted to departments where hundreds of thousands had been the rule.
[Illustration: Map of the United States]
THE UNITED STATES AN ARMED CAMP
The map shows the location of the camps where the National Army and
the National Guard were trained for war. Afterwards the entire forces
were known as the United States Army
The true temper of the American people was carefully hidden from the
German people by the German newspapers acting under instructions from
the Imperial Government. Instead of the truth, false reports were
printed in the newspapers of Berlin and elsewhere that the passage of
the American conscription law had been followed by rioting and rebellion
in many places and that fully fifty per cent of the American people was
opposed to the declaration of war. The fact that the selective service
act passed in May, 1917, was accepted by everybody in this country as a
wholly equitable and satisfactory law did not permeate into Germany
until the first American Expeditionary Force had actually landed in
France.
America's fighting power was demonstrated conclusively to the Germanic
intellect at Seicheprey, Bouresches Wood, Belleau Wood, Chateau-Thierry,
and in the Forest of the Argonne. Especially was it demonstrated when it
came to fighting in small units, or in individual fighting. The highly
disciplined and highly trained German soldiers were absolutely unfitted
to cope with Americans, Canadians and Australians when it came to
matching individual against individual, or small group against small
group.
This was shown in the wild reaches of the Forest of the Argonne. There
the machine-gun nests of the Germans were isolated and demolished
speedily. Small parties of Germans were stalked and run down by the
relentless Americans. On the other hand, the Germans could make no
headway against the American troops operating in the Forest. The famous
"Lost Battalion" of the 308th United States Infantry penetrated so far
in advance of its supports that it was cut off for four days without
food, water or supplies of munitions in the Argonne. The enemy had cut
its line of communication and was enforced both in front and in the
rear. Yet the lost battalion, comprising two companies armed with rifles
and the French automatic rifle known as the Chauchat gun, called by the
doughboys "Sho Sho," held out against the best the overpowering forces
of the Germans could send against them, and were ultimately rescued from
their dangerous position.
The training of the Americans was also in modern efficiency that made
America prominent in the world of industry. The reduction of the German
salient at St. Mihiel was an object lesson to the Germans in American
methods. General Pershing commanding that operation in person,
assembled the newspaper correspondents the day before the drive. Maps
were shown, giving the extent and locale of the attack. The
correspondents were invited to follow the American troops and a time
schedule for the advance was given to the various corps commanders.
In that operation, 152 square miles of territory and 72 villages were
captured outright. For the reduction of the German defenses and for the
creeping barrage preceding the American advance, more than 1,500,000
shells were fired by the artillery. Approximately 100,000 detail maps
and 40,000 photographs prepared largely from aerial observations, were
issued for the guidance of the artillery and the infantry. These maps
and photographs detailed all the natural and artificial defenses of the
entire salient. More than 5,000 miles of telephone wire was laid by
American engineers immediately preceding the attack, and as the
Americans advanced on the morning of the battle, September 12, 1918,
6,000 telephone instruments were connected with this wire. Ten thousand
men were engaged in operating the hastily constructed telephone system;
3,000 carrier pigeons supplemented this work.
During the battle American airplanes swept the skies clear of enemy
air-craft and signaled instructions to the artillery, besides attacking
the moving infantry, artillery and supply trains of the enemy. So sure
were the Americans of their success that moving-picture operators took
more than 10,000 feet of moving picture film showing the rout of the
Germans. Four thousand eight hundred trucks carried food, men and
munitions into the lines. Miles of American railroads, both of standard
and narrow gauge, carrying American-made equipment, assisted in the
transportation of men and supplies. Hospital facilities including 35
hospital trains, 16,000 beds in the advanced sector, and 55,000 other
beds back of the fighting line, were prepared. Less than ten per cent of
this hospital equipment was used.
As the direct consequence of this preparation, which far outstripped
anything that any other nation had attempted in a similar offensive, the
Americans with a remarkably small casualty list took 15,188 prisoners,
111 guns, many of them of large caliber, immense quantities of munitions
and other supplies, and inflicted heavy death losses upon the fleeing
Germans.
Two selective service laws operated as manhood conscription. The first
of these took men between the ages of twenty-one and thirty-one years
inclusive. June 5, 1917, was fixed as registration day. The total number
enrolled was 9,586,508. The first selective army drawn from this number
was 625,000 men.
The second selective service legislation embraced all citizens between
the ages of 18 and 45 inclusive, not included in the first draft. Over
13,000,000 men enrolled on September 12, 1918.
The grand total of registrants in both drafts was 23,456,021. Youths who
had not completed their 19th year were set apart in a group to be called
last and men between thirty-six and forty-five were also put in a
deferred class. The government's plan was to have approximately
5,000,000 men under arms before the summer of 1919. The German armistice
on November 11th found 4,000,000 men actually under arms and an
assignment of 250,000 made to the training camps.
A most important factor in the training plans of the United States was
that incorporated in the organization of the Students' Army Training
Corps, by which 359 American colleges and universities were taken over
by the government and 150,000 young men entered these institutions for
the purpose of becoming trained soldiers. The following are the
conditions under which the S. A. T. C. was organized:
The War Department undertook to furnish officers, uniforms, rifles, and
equipment, and to assign the students to military duty, after a few
months, either at an officers' training camp or in some technical
school, or in a regular army cantonment with troops as a private,
according to the degree of aptitude shown on the college campus.
At the same time a circular letter to the presidents of colleges
arranged for a contract under which the government became responsible
for the expense of the housing, subsistence, and instruction of the
students. The preliminary arrangement contained this provision, among
others:
The per diem rate of $1 for subsistence and housing is to govern
temporarily, pending examination of the conditions in the individual
institution and a careful working out of the costs involved. The amount
so fixed is calculated from the experience of this committee during the
last five months in contracting with over 100 collegiate institutions
for the housing and subsistence of over 100,000 soldiers in the National
Army Training Detachment. This experience indicates that the average
cost of housing is 15 to 20 cents per day; subsistence (army ration or
equivalent), 70 to 80 cents per day. The tuition charge is based on the
regular per diem tuition charge of the institution in the year 1917-18.
A permanent contract was arranged later under these governing principles:
The basis of payment will be reimbursement for actual and necessary
costs to the institutions for the services rendered to the government in
the maintenance and instruction of the soldiers with the stated
limitation as to cost of instruction. Contract price will be arrived at
by agreement after careful study of the conditions in each case, in
conference with authorities of the institution.
The War Department will have authority to specify and control the
courses of instruction to be given by the institution.
The entity and power for usefulness of the institutions will be
safeguarded so that when the contract ends the institutions shall be in
condition to resume their functions of general education.
The teaching force will be preserved so far as practicable, and this
matter so treated that its members shall feel that in changing to the
special intensive work desired by the government they are rendering a
vital and greatly needed service.
The government will ask from the institutions a specific service; that
is, the housing, subsistence, and instruction along specified lines of a
certain number of student soldiers. There will be no interference with
the freedom of the institution in conducting other courses in the usual
way.
The contract will be for a fixed term, probably nine months, subject to
renewal for a further period on reasonable notice, on terms to be agreed
upon and subject to cancellation on similar terms.
The story of the life of the American army behind the lines in France
would fill a volume. The hospitality of the French people had something
pathetic in it. They were expecting miracles of their new Allies. They
were war sick. Nearly all of them had lost some father, or brother, or
husband, and here came these big, hearty, joyous soldiers, full of ardor
and confident of victory. It put a new spirit into all France. Their
reception when they first landed was a scene of such fervor and
enthusiasm as had never been known before and probably will not be known
again. Soon the American soldier, in his khaki, with his wide-brimmed
soft hat, became a common sight.
The villagers put up bunting, calico signs, flags and had stocks of
American canned goods to show in their shop windows. The children, when
bold, played with the American soldiers, and the children that were more
shy ventured to go up and touch an American soldier's leg. Very old
peasant ladies put on their Sunday black, and went out walking, and in
some mysterious way talking with American soldiers. The village mayors
turned out and made speeches, utterly incomprehensible to the American
soldiers.
The engineering, building and machinery works the Americans put up were
astonishing. Gangs of workers went over in thousands; many of these were
college men. They dug and toiled as efficiently as any laborer. One
American major told with glee how a party of these young workers arrived
straight from America at 3.30 P. M. and started digging at 5 A. M. next
morning, "and they liked it, it tickled them to death." Many of these
draftees, in fact, were sick and tired of inaction in ports before their
departure from America, and they welcomed work in France as if it were
some great game.
Perhaps the biggest work of all the Americans performed was a certain
aviation camp and school. In a few months it was completed, and it was
the biggest of its kind in the world. The number of airplanes used
merely for training was in itself remarkable. The flying men--or
boys--who had, of course, already been broken-in in America, did an
additional course in France, and when they left the aviation camp they
were absolutely ready for air-fighting at the front. This was the
finishing school. The aviators went through eight distinct courses in
the school. They were perfected in flying, in observation, in bombing,
in machine-gun firing. On even a cloudy and windy day the air overhead
buzzed with these young American fliers, all getting into the pink of
condition to do their stunts at the front. They lived in the camp, and
it required moving heaven and earth for one of them to get leave to go
even to the nearest little quiet old town.
An impression of complete businesslike determination was what one got
when visiting the Americans in France. A discipline even stricter than
that which applied in British and French troops was in force. In towns,
officers, for instance, were not allowed out after 9 P. M. Some towns
where subalterns discovered the wine of the country were instantly put
"out of bounds." No officer, on any pretext whatsoever was allowed to go
to Paris except on official business.
The postal censors who read the letters of the American Expeditionary
Force were required to know forty-seven languages! Of these languages,
the two least used were Chinese and German.
The announcement of the organization of the first American Field Army was
contained in the following dispatch from France, August 11, 1918:
"The first American field army has been organized. It is under the
direct command of General John J. Pershing, Commander-in-Chief of the
American forces. The corps commanders thus far announced are
Major-Generals Liggett, Bullard, Bundy, Read, and Wright.
[Illustration: Chart]
Key
The state of German civilian morale.
Variations in Germany's military position
Decree of political unity in Germany.
The Food situation In North Germany.
Condition of Austria-Hungary.
U-Boat sinkings. (Monthly reports of tonnage sunk.)
SECRETARY OF WAR'S OFFICIAL CHART
This reproduction of Secretary Baker's chart, which hung in his office
at Washington, illustrates graphically Germany's success and failure
in the war.
"The creation of the first field army is the first step toward the
coordination of all the American forces in France. This does not mean
the immediate withdrawal from the British and French commands of all
American units, and it is probable that divisions will be used on the
French and British fronts for weeks yet. It is understood, however, that
the policy of organizing other armies will be carried out steadily."
This announcement marked a milestone in the military effort of the
United States. When the American troops first arrived in France, they
were associated in small units with the French to get primary training.
Gradually regiments began to function under French division commanders.
Then American divisions were formed and trained under French corps
commanders. Next, American corps began to operate under French army
commanders. Finally, the first American army was created, because enough
divisions and corps had been graduated from the school of experience.
An American division numbers 30,000 men, and a corps consists of six
divisions, two of which play the part of reserves. With auxiliary
troops, air squadrons, tank sections, heavy artillery, and other
branches, a corps numbers from 225,000 to 250,000 men.
[Illustration: Chart]
The main line in this graph--the heavy broken line--represents the
state of civilian morale in Germany.
German morale is arbitrarily regarded as standing at 100 % in August.
1914.
Zero, for the same line, is taken to be the point at which an
effective majority of the German people will refuse longer to support
the war.
The degree of movement of this line is determined mainly by a
consideration of the deflections of the secondary lines which
represent the forces exerting the greatest influence on the German
state of mind.
SHOWING GERMANY'S ROAD TO DEFEAT
Austria's fluctuations are indicated, as well as the morale, military
position, political and food conditions and undersea enterprises of
Germany.
The following were the general officers temporarily assigned to command
the first five corps:
First corps--Major-General Hunter Liggett.
Second corps--Major-General Robert L. Bullard
Third corps--Major-General William M. Wright.
Fourth corps--Major-General George W. Read.
Fifth corps--Major-General Omar Bundy.
Seven divisions and one separate regiment of American troops
participated in the counter-offensive between Chateau-Thierry and
Soissons and in resisting the German attack in the Champagne, it was
officially stated on July 20. The 42d, or "Rainbow" Division, composed
of National Guard troops from twenty-six states and the District of
Columbia, including the New York 69th Infantry, now designated as the
165th Infantry, took part in the fighting in the Champagne east of
Rheims. The six other divisions were associated with the French in the
counter-offensive between Chateau-Thierry and Soissons. These divisions
were the 1st, 2d, 3d and 4th of the Regular Army, the 26th National
Guard Division, composed of troops from the six New England States, and
the 28th, composed of the Pennsylvania National Guard. Marines were
included in this number. The separate regiment that fought in the
Champagne was a negro unit attached to the new 93d Division, composed
entirely of negro troops. It was also announced that the 77th Division
was "in the line near Luneville" and was "operating as a division,
complete under its own commander."
The 42d Division had the distinction, General March announced on August
3d, of defeating the 4th Division of the crack Prussian Guards,
professional soldiers of the German standing army, who had never before
failed. General March also disclosed the fact that another American
division had been sent into that part of the Rheims salient where the
Germans showed resistance. This was the 32d Division. "The American
divisions in the Rheims salient," General March said, "have now been put
in contiguously and are actually getting together as an American force.
Southeast of Fere-en-Tardenois our 1st Corps is operating, with General
Liggett in actual command."
The organization of twelve new divisions was announced by General March,
Chief of Staff, in statements made on July 24th and July 31st. These
divisions were numerically designated from 9 to 20, and organized at
Camps Devens, Meade, Sheridan, Custer, Funston, Lewis, Logan, Kearny,
Beauregard, Travis, Dodge, and Sevier. Each division had two infantry
regiments of the regular army as nucleus, the other elements being made
up of drafted men. The new divisions moved into the designated camps as
the divisions already trained there moved out.
The composition of an American division is as follows:
Two brigades of infantry, each consisting of two regiments of infantry
and one machine-gun battalion.
One brigade of artillery, consisting of three regiments of field
artillery, and one trench mortar battery.
One regiment of engineers.
One field signal battalion.
The following trains: Headquarters and military police, sanitary,
supply, engineer, and ammunition.
The following division units: Headquarters troop and one machine-gun
battalion.
[Illustration: Photograph]
Copyright International Film Service.
SAFE ON SHORE AT LAST
Arrival of American troops in Liverpool after defying the perils of
the submarine. Note the bulk of the packs carried by each soldier in
heavy marching order.
[Illustration: Photograph]
Copyright International Film Service.
THE FIRST OF THE TIDAL WAVE OF KHAKI
Beginning with the handful of American soldiers who landed in France
on June 8, 1917, the flood of troops poured across the ocean in
ever-increasing volume until at the end of the war more than two
million soldiers had been transported to France.
[Illustration: Photograph]
Copyright Committee on Public Information from Underwood and Underwood.
AMERICANS ATTACKING A GERMAN TRENCH POSITION
Company M and Company K of the 336th Infantry, 82d Division, advance
on Germans entrenched at the edge of a woods. The 307th Engineers, 82d
Division, clear the way by blowing up wire entanglements. The
attacking companies can be seen rushing for the point where the breach
in the wire obstacles has been made.
[Illustration: Photograph]
Photo by International Film Service.
AMERICA GETS INTO THE WAR AT CANTIGNY
On the morning of May 28, 1918, the 1st Division, A. E. F., launched
its first attack, which took place at Cantigny. Within 45 minutes all
objectives had been gained, serious losses inflicted on the enemy, and
200 prisoners taken. General Pershing personally directed operations.
This picture shows American troops going forward under support of
tanks.
A general order of the War Department providing for the consolidation of
all branches of the army into one army to be known as the "United States
Army" was promulgated by General March on August 7th. The text of the
order read:
1. This country has but one army--the United States Army. It includes
all the land forces in the service of the United States. Those forces,
however raised, lose their identity in that of the United States Army.
Distinctive appellations, such as the Regular Army, Reserve Corps,
National Army, and National Guard, heretofore employed in administration
command, will be discontinued, and the single term, the United States
Army, will be exclusively used.
2. Orders having reference to the United States Army as divided in
separate and component forces of distinct origin, or assuming or
contemplating such a division, are to that extent revoked.
3. The insignia now prescribed for the Regular Army shall hereafter be
worn by the United States Army.
4. All effective commissions purporting to be, and described therein, as
commissions in the Regular Army, National Guard, National Army, or the
Reserve Corps, shall hereafter be held to be, and regarded as,
commissions in the United States Army--permanent, provisional, or
temporary, as fixed by the conditions of their issue; and all such
commissions are hereby amended accordingly. Hereafter during the period
of the existing emergency all commissions of officers shall be in the
United States Army and in staff corps, departments, and arms of the
service thereof, and shall, as the law may provide, be permanent, for a
term, or for the period of the emergency. And hereafter during the
period of the existing emergency provisional and temporary appointments
in the grade of second lieutenant and temporary promotions in the
Regular Army and appointments in the Reserve Corps will be discontinued.
5. While the number of commissions in each grade and each staff corps,
department, and arm of the service shall be kept within the limits fixed
by law, officers shall be assigned without reference to the term of
their commissions solely in the interest of the service; and officers
and enlisted men will be transferred from one organization to another as
the interests of the service may require.
6. Except as otherwise provided by law, promotion in the United States
Army shall be by selection. Permanent promotions in the Regular Army
will continue to be made as prescribed by law.
CHAPTER XXXIV
HOW FOOD WON THE WAR
Food won the war. Without the American farmer the Entente Allies must
have capitulated. Wheat, beef, corn, foods of every variety,
hermetically sealed in tins, were thrown into the scales on the side of
the Entente Allies in sufficient quantities to tip the balance toward
the side of civilization and against autocracy. Late in the fall of 1918
when victory was assured to America and the Allies, there was received
this message of appreciation from General Pershing to the farmers of
America, through Carl Vrooman, Assistant Secretary of Agriculture:
AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES,
Office of the Commander-in-Chief, France,
October 16, 1918.
Honorable CARL VROOMAN, Assistant Secretary of Agriculture:
DEAR MR. VROOMAN:--Will you please convey to farmers of America our
profound appreciation of their patriotic services to the country and to
the Allied armies in the field. They have furnished their full quota of
fighting men; they have bought largely of Liberty Bonds; and they have
increased their production of food crops both last year and this by over
a thousand million bushels above normal production. Food is of vital
military necessity for us and for our Allies, and from the day of our
entry into the war America's armies of food producers have rendered
invaluable service to the Allied cause by supporting the soldiers at the
front through their devoted and splendidly successful work in the fields
and furrows at home.
Very sincerely,
JOHN J. PERSHING.
This tribute to the men and women on the farms of America from the head
of the American forces in France is fit recognition of the important
part played by American food producers in the war. It was early
recognized by all the belligerent powers that final victory was a
question of national morale and national endurance. Morale could not be
maintained without food. The bread lines in Petrograd gave birth to the
revolution, and Russian famine was the mother of Russian terrorism.
German men and women, starved of fats and sweets, deteriorated so
rapidly that the crime ratio both in towns and country districts mounted
appallingly. Conditions in Austria-Hungary were even worse. Acute
distress arising from threatening famine was instrumental in driving
Bulgaria out of the war. The whole of Central Europe indeed was in the
shadow of famine and the masses were crying out for peace at any price.
On the other hand, Germany's greatest reliance for a victorious decision
lay in the U-boat blockade of Great Britain, France and Italy. Though
some depredations came to these countries, the submarine blockade never
fully materialized and with its failure Germany's hopes faded and died.
The Entente Allies and the United States were fortunate in securing
Herbert C. Hoover to administer food distribution throughout their lands
and to stimulate food production by the farmers of the United States.
After his signal success in the administration of the Belgian Relief
Commission, Mr. Hoover became the unanimous choice of the Allies for the
victualing of the militant and civilian populations after America's
entrance into the World War. His work divided itself into three heads:
First, stimulation of food production.
Second, elimination of food wastage in the homes and public eating
places of the country.
Third, education of food dealers and the public in the use of such foods
as were substitutes for wheat, rye, pork, beef and sugar.
After long and acrimonious debates in Congress, Mr. Hoover, as Federal
Food Administrator, was clothed with extraordinary powers enabling him
to fulfil the purposes for which he was appointed. The ability with
which he and his associates performed their work was demonstrated in the
complete debacle of Bulgaria, Turkey, Austria-Hungary and Germany. These
countries were starved out quite as truly as they were fought out. The
concrete evidence of the Food Administration's success is shown in the
subjoined table which indicates the increase over normal in exporting of
foodstuffs by the United States since it became the food reservoir for
the world on account of the war.
TOTAL EXPORTS
3-year 1916-17 1917-18 July, 1917 to July,1918 to
pre-war fiscal fiscal
average. year. year. Sept. 30,1917. Sept. 30,1918
Total beef products, lbs..
186,375,372 405,427,417 565,462,445 93,962,477 171,986,147
Total pork products, lbs..
996,930,627 1,498,302,713 1,691,437,435 196,256.750 540,946,324
Total dairy products, lbs..
26,037,790 351,958,336 590,798,274 130,071,165 161,245,029
Total vegetable oils, lbs..
332,430,537 206,708,490 151,029,893 27,719,553 26,026,701
Total grains, bushels...
183,777,331 395,140,238 *349,123,235 66,383,084 121,668,823
Total sugar, pounds..
621,745.507 3,084,390,281 2,149,787,050 1,108.559,519 1,065,398,247
* Wheat harvest 1917-18 was 200,217,333 bushels below the average of the
three previous years.
Upon the same subject Mr. Hoover himself after the harvest of 1918 said:
It is now possible to summarize the shipments of foodstuffs from the
United States to the allied countries during the fiscal year just
closed--practically the last harvest year. These amounts include all
shipments to allied countries for their and our armies, the civilian
population, the Belgium relief, and the Red Cross. The figures indicate
the measure of effort of the American people in support of allied food
supplies.
The total value of these food shipments, which were in the main
purchased through, or with the collaboration of the Food Administration,
amounted to, roundly, $1,400,000,000 during the fiscal year.
The shipments of meats and fats (including meat products, dairy
products, vegetable oils, etc.) to allied destinations were as follows:
POUNDS
Fiscal year 1916-17 2,166,500,000
Fiscal year 1917-18 3,011,100,000
-----------------
Increase 844,600,000
Our slaughterable animals at the beginning of the last fiscal year were
not appreciably larger in number than the year before; and particularly
in hogs, there were probably less. The increase in shipments is due to
conservation and the extra weight of animals added by our farmers.
The full effect of these efforts began to bear their best results in the
last half of the fiscal year, when the exports to the Allies were
2,133,100,000 pounds, as against 1,266,500,000 pounds in the same period
of the year before. This compares with an average of 801,000,000 pounds
of total exports for the same half years of the three-year pre-war
period.
In cereals and cereal products reduced to terms of cereal bushels, our
shipments to allied destinations have been:
BUSHELS
Fiscal year 1916-17 259,900,000
Fiscal year 1917-18 340,800,000
------------
Increase 80,900,000
Of these cereals our shipments of the prime breadstuffs in the fiscal
year 1917-18 to allied destinations were: Wheat, 131,000,000 bushels and
rye 13,900,000 bushels, a total of 144,900,000 bushels.
The exports to allied destinations during the fiscal year 1916-17 were:
Wheat, 135,100,000 bushels and rye, 2,300,000 bushels, a total of
137,400,000 bushels. In addition, some 10,000,000 bushels of 1917 wheat
are now in port for allied destinations or en route thereto. The total
shipments to allied countries from our last harvest of wheat will be,
therefore, about 141,000,000 bushels, or a total of 154,900,000 bushels
of prime breadstuffs.
In addition to this we have shipped some 10,000,000 bushels to neutrals
dependent upon us and we have received some imports from other quarters.
A large part of the other cereals exported has also gone into war bread.
It is interesting to note that since the urgent request of the Allied
Food Controllers early in the year for a further shipment of 75,000,000
bushels from our 1917 wheat than originally planned, we shall have
shipped to Europe, or have en route, nearly 85,000,000 bushels. At the
time of this request our surplus was already more than exhausted.
This accomplishment of our people in this matter stands out even more
clearly if we bear in mind that we had available in the fiscal year
1916-17 from net carryover and a surplus over our normal consumption
about 200,000,000 bushels of wheat which we were able to export that
year without trenching on our home loaf. This last year, however, owing
to the large failure of the 1917 wheat crop we had available from net
carry over and production and imports only just about our normal
consumption. Therefore our wheat shipments to allied destinations
represent approximately savings from our own wheat bread.
These figures, however, do not fully convey the volume of the effort and
sacrifice made during the past year by the whole American people.
Despite the magnificent effort of our agricultural population in
planting a much increased acreage in 1917, not only was there a very
large failure in wheat, but also the corn failed to mature properly, and
corn is our dominant crop.
We calculate that the total nutritional production of the country for
the fiscal year just closed was between seven per cent and nine per cent
below the average of the three previous years, our nutritional surplus
for export in those years being about the same amount as the shrinkage
last year. Therefore the consumption and waste in food have greatly
reduced in every direction during the year.
I am sure that the millions of our people, agricultural as well as
urban, who have contributed to these results, should feel a very
definite satisfaction that, in a year of universal food shortage in the
Northern Hemisphere, all of these people joined together against Germany
have come through into sight of the coming harvest not only with health
and strength fully maintained, but with only temporary periods of
hardship. The European Allies have been compelled to sacrifice more than
our own people, but we have not failed to load every steamer since the
delays of the storm months of last winter.
Our contributions to this end could not have been accomplished without
effort and sacrifice, and it is a matter for further satisfaction, that
it had been accomplished voluntarily and individually. It is difficult
to distinguish between various sections of our people--the homes, public
eating places, food trades, urban or agricultural populations--in
assessing credit for these results, but no one will deny the dominant
part of the American woman.
But the work of the Food Administration did not come to an end with the
close of the war. Insistent cries for food came from the members of the
defeated Teutonic alliance, as well as from the suffering Allied and
neutral nations. To meet those demands, Mr. Hoover sailed for Europe to
organize the food relief of the needy nations. The State Department,
explaining his mission, stated that as the first measure of assistance
to Belgium it was necessary to increase immediately the volume of
foodstuffs formerly supplied, so as to physically rehabilitate this
under-nourished population. The relief commission during the four years
of war sent to the 10,000,000 people in the occupied area over 600
cargoes of food, comprising 120,000,000 bushels of breadstuffs and over
3,000,000,000 pounds of other foodstuffs besides 20,000,000 garments,
the whole representing an expenditure of nearly $600,000,000. The
support of the commission came from the Belgian, British, French and
American governments, together with public charity. In addition to this
some $350,000,000 worth of native produce was financed internally in
Belgium by the relief organization.
The second portion of Mr. Hoover's mission was to organize and determine
the need of foodstuffs to the liberated populations in Southern
Europe--the Czecho-Slovaks, the Jugo-Slavs, and Serbians, Roumanians and
others.
To meet the conditions in Europe following the armistice of November 11,
1918, the employment service of the United States set to work laying
far-reaching plans for meeting the problem of world food shortage. The
demands after the war were greater than they had been during the
conflict but the nation that had fed the allies of civilization in war
time performed the task of feeding the world, friend and foe alike, when
peace at length came upon the earth.
CHAPTER XXXV
THE UNITED STATES NAVY IN THE WAR
Long before war was declared the United States Government had been
engaged in preparation. It had realized that unrestricted submarine
warfare was sure to lead to war, and though for a time it was preserving
what it was pleased to call "an armed neutrality" the President
doubtless was well aware what such an "armed neutrality" would lead to.
Merchant ships were being armed for protection against the submarine,
and crews from the Navy assigned to work the guns. The first collision
was sure to mean an active state of war. The Naval Department,
therefore, was working at full speed, getting the Navy ready for active
service as soon as war should be declared.
Secretary Daniels made every effort to obtain the crews that were
necessary to man the new ships which were being fully commissioned with
the greatest possible speed and called upon newspapers all through the
country to do their utmost to stimulate enlistment.
On March 26th President Wilson issued an order increasing the enlisted
strength of the United States Marine Corps to 17,400 men, the limit
allowed under the law. On March 29th a hundred and three ensigns were
graduated from the Naval Academy three months ahead of their time, and
on April 6th, as soon as war was declared, the Navy was mobilized.
Within a few minutes after Secretary Daniels had signed the order for
this purpose one hundred code messages were sent out from the office of
Admiral W. S. Benson, Chief of Naval Operations, which placed the Navy
on a war basis, and put into the control of the Navy Department the
naval militia of all the states as well as the Naval Reserves and the
Coast Guard Service. In the Naval Militia were about 584 officers, and
7,933 men. These were at once assembled and assigned to coast patrol
service. All of the ships that were in active commission in the Navy
were already ready for duty. But there were reserve battleships and
reserve destroyers, besides ships which had been out of commission which
had to be manned as quickly as possible.
At the beginning of the war there were 361 vessels ready for service,
including twelve first-line battleships, twenty-five second-line
battleships, nine armored cruisers, twenty-four other cruisers, seven
monitors, fifty destroyers, sixteen coast torpedo vessels, seventeen
torpedo boats, forty-four submarines, eight tenders to torpedo boats,
twenty-eight gunboats, four transports, four supply ships, one hospital
ship, twenty-one fuel ships, fourteen converted yachts, forty-nine tugs,
and twenty-eight minor vessels. There were about seventy thousand
regularly enlisted men, besides eight thousand five hundred members of
the naval militia. Many yachts together with their volunteer crews had
been offered to the government by patriotic citizens.
For the complete mobilization of the Navy, as it then stood, 99,809
regularly enlisted men and 45,870 reserves were necessary. About
twenty-seven thousand of these were needed for coast defense, and twelve
thousand at the various shore stations. Retired officers were called
out, and assigned to duty which would permit officers on the active list
to be employed in sea duty. The Navy therefore still lacked thirty-five
thousand men to bring it up to its full authorized strength at the
beginning, but after the declaration of war an active recruiting
campaign brought volunteers by thousands. The service was a popular one
and recruits were easily obtained.
One of the first phases of the mobilization was the organization of a
large fleet of mosquito craft to patrol the Atlantic Coast, and keep on
the watch for submarines. Many of these boats had been private yachts,
and hundreds of young men volunteered from the colleges and schools of
the country for this work. Many boat builders submitted proposals to
construct small boats for this kind of patrol duty, and on March 31st a
coast patrol fleet was organized by the government under the command of
Captain Henry B. Wilson.
The Navy took possession immediately on the declaration of war of all
wireless stations in the United States dismantling all that could not be
useful to the government. War zones were established along the whole
coast line of the United States, making a series of local barred zones
extending from the larger harbors in American waters all along the line.
These harbors were barred at night to entering vessels in order to guard
against surprise by German submarines. Contracts were awarded for the
construction of twenty-four destroyers even before war was declared, and
many more were already under construction.
[Illustration: Map]
MAP OF THE UNITED STATES SHOWING THE IMMENSE LENGTH OF COAST-LINE TO
BE DEFENDED
The growth of the Navy in one year may give some idea of the efficiency
of the Navy Department. In April, 1917, the regular Navy contained 4,366
officers and 64,680 men. In April, 1918, it contained 7,798 officers and
192,385 men. In the Marine Corps in 1917 there were 426 officers and
13,266 men. In one year this was increased to 1,389 officers and 38,629
men. In the organization of the Naval Reserves, naval volunteers and
coast guards there were in 1917, 24,569 men, in 1918, 98,319 men, and
11,477 officers.
While personnel of the Navy was thus expanding the United States battle
fleet had grown to more than twice the size of the fleet before the war.
When war was declared there were under construction 123 new naval
vessels. These were completed and contracts made for 949 new vessels.
Among the ships completed are fifteen battleships, six battle cruisers,
seven scout cruisers, twenty-seven destroyers, and sixty-one submarines.
About eight hundred craft were taken over and converted into transports,
patrol service boats, submarine chasers, mine sweepers and mine layers.
The government also seized 109 German ships which had been interned in
American ports. The Germans had attempted to damage these ships so that
they would be useless, but they were all repaired, and carried American
troops and supplies in great quantities to France.
As the fleet grew the training of the necessary officers and crews was
conducted on a grand scale. Naval camps were established at various
points. The main ones were those at Philadelphia, (League Island);
Newport, Rhode Island; Cape May, New Jersey; Charleston, South Carolina;
Pensacola, Florida; Key West, Florida; Mare Island, California; Puget
Sound, Washington; Hingham, Massachusetts; Norfolk, Virginia; New
Orleans, San Diego, New York Navy Yard; Great Lakes, Illinois; Pelham,
New York; Hampton Roads, Virginia; and Gulfport, Mississippi. Schools in
gunnery and engineering were established and thousands of gunners and
engineers were trained, not only for the Navy but for the armed merchant
vessels.
The training of gun crews by target practice was a feature of this work.
Long before the war began systematic training of this kind had been
done, but mainly in connection with the big guns, and great efficiency
had been obtained by the steady practice. With the introduction of the
submarine, it became necessary to pay special attention to the training
of the crews of guns of smaller caliber, and it was not long before the
officers of our Navy were congratulating themselves on the efficiency of
their men. It is not easy to hit so small a mark as the periscope of a
submarine, but it could be done and many times was done.
Twenty-eight days after the declaration of war a fleet of United States
destroyers under the command of Admiral William S. Sims reported for
service at a British port.
The American destroyer squadron arrived at Queenstown after a voyage
without incident. The water front was lined with an excited crowd
carrying small American flags, which cheered the destroyers from the
time they were first seen until they reached the dock. They cheered
again when Admiral Sims went ashore to greet the British senior officer
who had come to welcome the Americans. It was a most informal function.
After the usual handshakes the British commander congratulated the
Americans on their safe voyage and then asked:
"When will you be ready for business?"
"We can start at once," was the prompt reply of Admiral Sims.
This rather took the breath away from the British commander and he said
he had not expected the Americans to begin work so soon after their long
voyage. Later after a short tour of the destroyers he admitted that the
American tars looked prepared.
"Yes," said the American commander, "we made preparations on the way
over. That is why we are ready."
Everything on board the destroyers was in excellent condition. The only
thing lacking was heavier clothing. The American uniforms were too light
for the cool weather which is common in the English waters. This
condition, however, was quickly remedied, and the American ships at once
put out to sea all in splendid condition and filled with the same
enthusiasm that the Marines showed later at Chateau-Thierry.
"They are certainly a fine body of men, and what's more, their craft
looked just as fit," declared the British commander.
One of the American destroyers, even before the American fleet had
arrived at Queenstown, had begun war duty. It had picked up and escorted
through the danger zone one of the largest of the Atlantic liners. The
passengers on board the liner sent the commander of the destroyer the
following message:
British passengers on board a steamer, bound for a British port, under
the protection of an American destroyer, send their hearty greetings to
her commander and her officers and crew, and desire to express their
keen appreciation of this practical co-operation between the government
and people of the United States and the British Empire, who are now
fighting together for the freedom of the seas.
Moving pictures were taken by the official British Government
photographer as the American flotilla came into the harbor, and sailors
who received shore leave were plied with English hospitality. The
streets of Queenstown were decorated with the Stars and Stripes. As soon
as American residents in England learned that American warships were to
cross the Atlantic they held a conference to provide recreation
buildings, containing sleeping, eating, and recreation accommodations
for the comfort of the American sailors. The destroyer flotilla was the
first contribution of American military power to the Entente Alliance
against Germany.
Admiral Sims is one of the most energetic and efficient of American
naval officers and to him as much as to any other man is due the
efficiency of the American Navy. During the period just before the
Spanish-American War Lieutenant Sims was Naval Attache at Paris, and
rendered invaluable services in buying ships and supplies for the Navy.
In 1900 he was assigned to duty on the battleship Kentucky, then
stationed in the Orient. In 1902 he was ordered to the Navy Department
and placed in charge of the Office of Naval Practice, where he remained
for seven years and devoted his attention to the improvement of the Navy
in gunnery. During that time he made constant trips to England to
consult with English experts in gunnery and ordnance, and became
intimately acquainted with Sir Percy Scott, who had been knighted and
made Rear-Admiral for the improvements he had introduced in connection
with the gunnery of the British warships. In 1909 he was made commander
of the battleship Minnesota, and in 1911 was a member of the college
staff at the Naval War College. In 1913 he was made commander of the
torpedo flotilla of the Atlantic fleet and in 1905 assigned to command
the Dreadnaught Nevada. In 1916 he was President of the Naval War
College. He was made Rear-Admiral in 1916 and Vice-Admiral in 1917 and
assigned to the command of all American war vessels abroad.
Immediately upon their arrival the American vessels began operation in
the submarine zone. Admiral Beatty then addressed the following message
to Admiral Henry T. Mayo of the United States Atlantic Fleet:
The Grand Fleet rejoices that the Atlantic fleet will now share in
preserving the liberties of the world and in maintaining the chivalry of
the sea.
Admiral Mayo replied:
The United States Atlantic Fleet appreciates the message from the
British fleet and welcomes opportunities for work with the British fleet
for the freedom of the seas.
It may also be noted, as a fact which is not without significance, that
the losses by submarine which had reached their highest mark in the last
week in April began from that time steadily to diminish.
One of the main duties of the Navy was to convoy transports and supplies
across the Atlantic. This was done with the assistance of Allied vessels
with remarkable success. For a long period it seemed as if the U-boats
would not be able to penetrate through the Allied convoy, but during
1918 four transports were torpedoed. The first was the Tuscania which
was sunk in February off the north coast of Ireland, with 1,912 officers
and men of the Michigan and Wisconsin guardsmen, of whom 204 were lost.
The Oronsa, which was torpedoed in April, contained 250 men and all were
saved except three of the crew. The Moldavia came next with five hundred
troops, of whom fifty-five were lost. On September 6th the troopship
Persic with 2,800 American soldiers was torpedoed but American
destroyers rescued all on board, and the Persic, which was prevented
from sinking by its water-tight bulkheads, was afterwards beached.
Several American ships, including the troop transport Mount Vernon, were
torpedoed on return trips and a number of the men of their crews were
lost, and several naval vessels were lost, including the destroyer Jacob
Jones, and the patrol vessel Alcedo. The Cassin was torpedoed, but
reached port under its own steam and later returned to service.
In September and October three more American transports were added to
the list of American losses. On September 26th the United States steamer
Tampa was torpedoed and sank with all on board, losing 118 men. On
September 30th the Ticonderoga was also torpedoed, eleven naval officers
and 102 enlisted men being lost.
In addition to these submarine losses several ships and a number of men
were lost through collision. The United States steamer Westgate was sunk
in a collision with the steamer American on October 7th, with the loss
of seven men. On October 9th the United States destroyer Shaw lost
fifteen men in a collision, though she later succeeded in reaching port.
On October 11th the American steamer Otranto was sunk in a collision
with the British liner Cashmere. Of seven hundred American soldiers who
were on board 365 were lost. At this time about three thousand
anti-submarine craft were in operation day and night around the British
Isles, and about five thousand working in the open sea. This was what
made it possible for the Allies to win the war.
Inasmuch as the illegal use of the submarine by Germany brought America
into the war it was extremely appropriate that she should take an active
part in the suppression of the submarine menace. The methods which were
used in fighting the submarines differed much in different cases. The
action of the government in arming merchantmen and in providing them
with trained gun crews did much to lower the number of such ships sunk
by the U-boats.
The submarine, which had formerly been able to stop the unarmed
merchantman and sink him at leisure, after a few combats with an armed
merchantman began to be very wary and to depend almost entirely upon his
torpedoes. It was not always easy for the submarine to get in a position
where her torpedo would be effective, and the merchantman was carefully
directed, if attacked, to pursue a ziz-zag irregular course, and at the
same time endeavor to hamper the submarine by shooting as near her
periscope as possible.
Along the sea coasts and at certain points in the English Channel great
nets were used effectively. Submarines, however, toward the end of the
war were made sufficiently large to be able to force their way through
these nets, and net-cutting devices were also used by them with
considerable effect. The best way to destroy the submarines seemed to be
in a direct attack by flotillas of destroyers.
By the end of the war the whole process of sinking or destroying
submarines had been thoroughly organized. Practically every portion of
the seas near Great Britain and France was carefully watched and the
appearance of a submarine immediately reported. As the submarine would
only travel at a certain well-understood speed during a given time, it
was possible to calculate, after the locality of one was known, about
how far from that point it would be found at any later period.
Destroyers were therefore sent circling around the point where the
submarine had been discovered, enlarging their distance from the center
every hour. In the course of time the submarine would be compelled to
come up for air, and then, if luck were with the destroyer, it might
find its foe before it was seen itself. Having discovered the submarine
the destroyer immediately endeavored to ram, dropping depth bombs at the
point where they supposed the enemy to be.
These bombs were so constructed that at a certain depth in the water
they would explode, and the force of the explosion was so great that
even if they did not strike the submarine they would be sure to damage
it seriously, sometimes throwing the submarine to the surface partly out
of water, and at other times driving her to come to the surface herself
ready to surrender.
In many cases it was not necessary to use the depth bomb at all. The
gunners on board the destroyers had become extraordinarily expert, and
though a shot might destroy the periscope of a submarine without doing
much damage, most submarines carrying extra periscopes to use if
necessary, yet it was soon found that it was possible by the use of
plunging shells to do effective damage. Plunging shells are somewhat
similar in their operation to bombs. Such a shell falling just short of
a periscope and fused to burst both on contact and at a certain depth
was extremely likely to do damage.
In the pursuit of the U-boat the airplane was also extremely effective.
These were sent out to patrol large districts near the Allied coast, and
also, in some cases, from ships themselves. It is possible in certain
weather conditions for the observer on an airplane to detect a submarine
even when it is submerged and the airplane can not only attack the
submarine by dropping depth bombs, but it can signal at once the
location of the enemy to the hurrying destroyers. Indeed, as the
submarine warfare proceeded the main difficulty of the Allies was to
locate the submarines. Many ingenious devices were used for this
purpose, and many of the English vessels had listening attachments under
water which were intended to make it possible to hear a submarine as it
moved. These, however, do not seem to have been very effective. The
submarine itself seems at times to have been fitted out in a similar way
and to have thus been able to hear the sound of an approaching ship.
Many thrilling reports of naval actions against German submarines were
given out officially by the British admiralty from time to time. In most
of these cases the submarine was both rammed and attacked by depth
bombs. In nearly all of them the only proof of success was the oil and
air bubbles which came to the surface.
One interesting encounter was that in which a British submarine sighted
a German U-boat, while both were on the surface. The British submarine
dived and later was able to pick up the enemy through the periscope and
discharge a torpedo in such a way as to destroy the German vessel. When
the British submarine arose it found a patch of oil in which Germans
were swimming.
Ordinarily, however, a submarine was of little service in a fight
against another for the radius of sight from a periscope is so short
that it is practically blind so far as another periscope is concerned.
This blindness of the submarine was taken advantage of by the Allies in
every possible way.
Merchant ships were camouflaged, that is painted in such a way that they
could not be easily distinguished at a distance. In the great convoys
ships were often hidden by great masses of smoke to prevent a submarine
from finding an easy mark. At night all lights were put out or else so
shaded as not to be seen by the enemy. The result of these methods was
the gradual destruction of the U-boat menace.
In the summer of 1918, while occasionally some ship was lost, the
production of new ships was much greater than those that were sunk.
During the month of June it was announced that the completion of new
tonnage by the Allies had outstripped the losses by thousands of tons.
During this period the United States had attained its full stride in
building ships, airplanes and ordnance.
[Illustration: Painting]
"HAIL COLUMBIA"
England greets the first American destroyer squadron to arrive in
European waters after the United States entered the war. The British
admiral asked Admiral Sims, who was in command, how long he needed to
refit and get ready for action. He replied "We are ready now."
[Illustration: Painting]
THE DAY'S WORK OF UNCLE SAM'S DESTROYERS
More than 2,000,000 men were safely landed in France guarded by the
destroyers, ready day or night whenever an enemy submarine threatened
a convoy, as was the case here in a trip over of the Adriatic loaded
with troops. In the foreground is the periscope of the attacking
submarine trying to submerge before she is hit.
Archibald Hurd, the English naval expert, said: "When the war is over
the nation will form some conception of the debt which we owe the
American Navy for the manner in which it has co-operated, not only in
connection with the convoy system, but in fighting the submarines. If
the naval position is improving today, as it is, it is due to the fact
that the British and American fleets are working in closest accord,
supported by an immense body of skilled workers on both sides of the
Atlantic, who are turning out destroyers and other craft for dealing
with the submarine, as well as mines and bombs. Some of the finest
battleships of the United States Navy are now associated with the
British Grand fleet. They are not only splendid fighting ships but they
are well officered and manned."
On May 13, 1918, in appreciation of some remarks which had been made by
Sir Eric Geddes, First Lord of the British Admiralty, Josephus Daniels,
the American Secretary of the Navy, addressed a letter to him in the
following terms:
"Your reference to the splendid spirit of co-operation between the
navies of our countries, and your warm praise of the officers and men of
our navy, have been most grateful to me and to all Americans. The
brightest spot in the tragedy of this war is this mutual appreciation of
the men in the naval service. Our officers who have returned confirm the
statements of Admiral Sims of the courtesies and kindness shown in every
way by the admiralty and the officers of the British fleet. I had hoped
to have the pleasure of visiting Great Britain and of personally
expressing this feeling of mutual working together, but the task here of
making ready more and more units for the fleet is a very serious one,
and my duty chains me here. The order in all the Navy is 'Full speed
ahead' in the construction of destroyers and other craft, and the whole
service is keyed up to press this program forward. Therefore I shall not
have the pleasure, until this program shall materialize, of a personal
acquaintance and a conference which would be of such interest and
value."
Sir Eric Geddes replied: "I am exceedingly grateful for your letter. As
you know we, all of us here, have great admiration for your officers and
men, and for the splendid help they are giving in European waters.
Further, we find Admiral Sims invaluable in council and in co-operation.
I fully appreciate how onerous your office must be and much though I
regret that you do not see your way to visiting this country in the near
future, I hope we may some day have the pleasure of welcoming you here."
Sir Eric afterward himself visited the United States and his visit was
made the occasion of a general expression of the high regard which the
United States felt for the splendid assistance which the great British
Navy had rendered in convoying its armies across the seas.
Secretary Daniels, in his report of December, 1918, said that American
sea forces in European waters comprised 338 vessels, with 75,000 men and
officers--a force larger than the entire Navy was before the war began.
From August, 1914, to September, 1918, German submarines sank 7,151,088
deadweight tons of shipping in excess of the tonnage turned out in that
period by the allied and neutral nations. That total does not represent
the depletion of the fleets at the command of the allied and neutral
nations, however, as 3,795,000 deadweight tons of enemy ships were
seized in the meantime. Actually, the allied and neutral nations on
September 1, 1918, had only 3,362,088 less tons of shipping in operation
than in August, 1914.
These details of the shipping situation were issued by the United States
Shipping Board along with figures to show that, with American and allied
yards under full headway, Europe's danger of being starved by the German
submarine was apparently at an end. The United States took the lead of
all nations in shipbuilding.
In all, the allied and neutral nations lost 21,404,913 deadweight tons
of shipping since the beginning of the war, showing that Germany
maintained an average destruction of about 445,000 deadweight tons
monthly. During the latter months, however, the sinkings fell
considerably below the average, and allied construction passed
destruction for the first time in May, 1918.
The losses of the allied and neutral shipping in August, 1918, amounted
to 327,676 gross tonnage, of which 176,401 was British and 151,275
allied and neutral, as compared with the adjusted figures for July of
323,772, and 182,524 and 141,248, respectively. British losses from all
causes during August were 10,887 tons higher than in June, which was the
lowest month since the introduction of unrestricted submarine warfare.
An official statement of the United States Shipping Board, issued
September 21, 1918, set forth the following facts:
STATUS OF WORLD TONNAGE, SEPTEMBER 1, 1918
(Germany and Austria excluded)
Deadweight
Tons
Total losses (allied and neutral)
August, 1914-September 1, 1918 21,404,913
Total construction (allied and neutral)
August, 1914-September 1, 1918 14,247,825
Total enemy tonnage captured (to end of 1917) 3,795,000
Excess of losses over gains 3,362,088
Estimated normal increase in world's tonnage
if war had not occurred
(based on rate of increase, 1905-1914) 14,700,000
Net deficit due to war 18,062,088
In August, deliveries to the Shipping Board and other seagoing
construction in the United States for private parties passed allied and
neutral destruction for that month. The figures:
Gross (Actual) Tone
Deliveries to the Shipping Board 244,121
Other construction over 1,000 gross 16,918
Total 261,039
Losses (allied and neutral) 259,400
America alone surpassed losses for month by 1,630
NOTE.--World's merchant tonnage, as of June 30, 1914, totaled 49,089,552
gross tons, or, roughly, 73,634,328 deadweight tons. (Lloyd's Register.)
The climax to Germany's piratical submarine adventure took place a few
days after the armistice, when a mournful procession of
shamefaced-looking U-boats sailed between lines of English cruisers to
be handed over to the tender mercies of the Allied governments.
CHAPTER XXXVI
CHINA JOINS THE FIGHTING DEMOCRACIES
The circumstances connected with the entrance of the Republic of China
into the World War were as follows: On February 4, 1917, the American
Minister, Dr. Reinsch, requested the Chinese Government to follow the
United States in protesting against the German use of the submarine
against neutral ships. On February 9th Pekin made such a protest to
Germany, and declared its intention of severing diplomatic relations if
the protest were ineffectual. The immediate answer of Germany was to
torpedo the French ship Atlas in the Mediterranean on which were over
seven hundred Chinese laborers. On March 10th the Chinese Parliament
empowered the government to break with Germany. On the same afternoon a
reply was received from the German Government to the Chinese protest, of
a very mild character. The reply produced a great deal of surprise in
China.
A Chinese statesman made this comment on the German change of attitude:
"The troops under Count Waldersee leaving Germany for the relief of
Pekin were instructed by the War Lord to grant no quarter to the
Chinese. On the other hand, the latter were to be so disciplined that
they would never dare look a German in the face again. The whirligig of
time brings its own revenge, and today, after the lapse of scarcely
seventeen years, we hear the Vossiche Zeitung commenting on the
diplomatic rupture between China and Germany, lamenting that even so
weak a state as the Far Eastern Republic dares look defiantly at the
German nation."
The breaking off of relations with Germany led to trouble between the
President of the Republic and the Premier. The Premier desired to break
off relations without consulting Parliament. The President insisted that
Parliament should be consulted, which was actually done. The next move
was to declare war, but here the Chinese statesmen hesitated, and their
hesitation arose through their feeling toward Japan.
They sympathized with the Allies, but to Chinese eyes Japan has stood
for all that Germany, as depicted by its worst enemies, stood for. The
Japanese Government was professing friendliness to China, but that
profession the Chinese could not reconcile with Japan's action in the
Chino-Japanese War, and on many other occasions since that war. In
Chinese hearts there was a strong feeling of distrust, fear and hatred
for their Japanese neighbor. There were other reasons also why they
hesitated to declare war. Indeed the devotion to peace, which is
deep-rooted in the nation, would be a sufficient reason in itself.
Moreover, China, like other neutral nations, was a strong center for
German propaganda. German consuls and diplomatic officers, who were
scholars in Chinese literature and philosophy, and who also had
sufficient funds to entertain Chinese officials as they liked to be
entertained, were actively endeavoring to influence Chinese statesmen.
The Chinese Government, however, was determined to declare war, and to
secure support the Chinese Premier summoned a council of military
governors to consider the question. The majority of the conference
agreed with the Premier, but a vigorous opposition began to develop. On
May 7th the President sent a formal request to Parliament to approve of
a declaration of war. Parliament delayed and was threatened by a mob.
The Premier was accused of having instigated the riot and support began
to gather for Parliament, and an attack was made on the Premier as being
willing to sell China.
Day by day the differences between the militants and democrats became
more bitter. The question of war was almost lost in the differences of
opinion as to the comparative powers of Parliament and the Executive. A
demand was made that the Premier resign. He refused to resign and was
dismissed from office by the President, who was supported in his action
by the Parliament. This was practically a success of the Parliamentary
party, when suddenly several of the northern generals and governors
declared their independence, and the movement gradually developed into a
revolution in favor of the restoration of the Manchu Dynasty. This
revolution was finally suppressed.
The Japanese declared themselves, not the enemies, but the protectors of
China in terms that suggested the appearance of a Monroe Doctrine for
Asia. They pledged themselves not to violate the political independence
or territorial integrity of China, and declared strongly in favor of the
principle of the open door and equal opportunity.
On August 14th China formally joined the Allies and declared war on
Austria and Germany. She took no great part in the war, except to invade
the German and Austrian settlements in Tientsin and Hankow, which were
taken over by the Chinese authorities. The Chinese officials also seized
the Deutsche Asiatiche Bank which had been the financing agent in China
for the German Government, and fourteen German vessels which had been
interned in Chinese ports. Thousands of Chinese coolies were sent to
Europe to work in the Allied interests behind the battle lines, and
China has in all respects been faithful to her pledges.
The official war proclamation of China which was signed by President
Feng-kuo-chang reviewed China's efforts to induce Germany to modify her
submarine policy. It declared that China had been forced to sever
relations with Germany and with Austro-Hungary to protect the lives and
property of Chinese citizens. It promised that China would respect the
Hague Convention, regarding the humane conduct of the war, and asserted
that China's object was to hasten peace.
On July 22d Siam officially entered the war and all German and Austrian
subjects were interned and German ships seized. The Prince of Songkla,
brother of the reigning monarch, declared that natural necessity and
moral pressure forced Siam into the war on the side of the Entente.
Neutrality had become increasingly difficult, and it had become apparent
that freedom and justice in states which were not strong from a military
standpoint were not to be secured through the policy of the Central
Powers. Sympathy for Belgium and the popular aversion to Teutonic
methods had left no doubt as to the duty of Siam. The motive of Siam had
a curious fitness, though there was a certain quaintness in her
expression of a desire to make, "the world safe for democracy."
The native name of Siam is Muang-Thai, which means the Kingdom of the
Free. Siam is about as large as France, and has a population of about
eight millions. Its people, who are of many shades of yellowish-brown,
have descended into this corner of Asia from the highlands north of
Burma and east of Tibet. The tradition among these people was that the
further south they descended the shorter they would grow, that when they
reached the southern plains they would be no larger than rabbits, and
that when they came to the sea they would vanish altogether. As a fact
the northern tribes are much taller than the southern.
The original population of the Siamese peninsula was a race of black
dwarfs, remnants of whom still dwell in caves and nests of palm leaves,
so shy that it is almost impossible to catch a glimpse of them. The
literary and religious culture of Siam comes mainly from southern India.
Buddhism is the dominant religion, but there are many Mohammedans also.
The accession of Siam to the ranks of the Allies did not make any great
difference from a military point of view, but it was another evidence of
the general world feeling with regard to the Germans and their
encroachments in all parts of the world. Germany had tried its best to
keep these nations from participation in the war, but not only had her
propaganda failed but the feeling of these Oriental peoples was strongly
anti-German. Much of this feeling, it is readily seen from their
statements and their private letters, comes from a personal resentment
of the boorish attitude of the individual German. By the end of 1918 the
Teuton influence in the Orient had completely disappeared.
CHAPTER XXXVII
THE DEFEAT AND RECOVERY OF ITALY
None of the surprises of the World War brought such sudden and stunning
dismay to the Entente Allies as the news of the Italian disaster
beginning October 24, 1917, and terminating in mid-November. It is a
story in which propaganda was an important factor. It taught the Allies
the dangers lying in fraternization between opposing armies.
During the summer of 1917 the second Italian army was confronted by
Austrian regiments composed largely of war-weary Socialists. During that
summer skilful German propagandists operating from Spain had sown the
seeds of pacificism throughout Italy. This was made easy by the distress
then existing particularly in the villages where food was scanty and
complaints against the conduct of the war were numerous. The propaganda
extended from the civilian population to the army, and its channel was
directed mainly toward the second army encamped along the Isonzo River.
As a consequence of the pacifists' preachments both by word of mouth and
document, the second army was ready for the friendly approaches that
came from the front lines of the Austrians only a few hundred yards
away. Daily communication was established and at night the opposing
soldiers fraternized generally. The Russian doctrine that an end of the
fighting would come if the soldiers agreed to do no more shooting,
spread throughout the Italian trenches.
This was all part of a plan carefully mapped out by the German High
Command. When the infection had spread, the fraternizing Austrian troops
were withdrawn from the front trenches and German shock troops took
their places.
On October 24th these troops attacked in force. The Italians in the
front line, mistaking them for the friendly Austrians, waved a greeting.
German machine guns and rifles replied with a deadly fire, and the great
flanking movement commenced. So well had the Germans played their game
the Italians lost more than 250,000 prisoners and 2,300 guns in the
first week. The attack began in the Julian Alps and continued along the
Isonzo southwestward into the plain of Venice. The Italian positions at
Tolmino and Plezzo were captured and the whole Italian force was
compelled to retreat along a seventy-mile front from the Carnic Alps to
the sea. The most important point gained by the enemy in its early
assault was the village of Caporetto on the Upper Isonzo where General
Cadorna held a great series of dams which could have drained the Isonzo
River dry within twelve hours.
[Illustration: Map]
AREA OF THE FLOW AND EBB OF ITALY'S MILITARY SUCCESS FROM THE CARSO
PLATEAU TO THE PIAVE LINE.
The Italian retreat at places degenerated into a rout and it was not
until the Italians, reinforced by French and British, reached the Piave
River, that a stand was finally made. The defeat cost Cadorna his
command, and he was succeeded by General Armando Diaz, whose brilliant
strategy during the remainder of the war marked him as a national hero
and one of the outstanding military geniuses of the war.
The order for a general retreat was issued on October 27th. Poison gas
shells rained blindness and death upon the retreating Italians and upon
the heroic rear-guards. The city of Udine and its environs were emptied
of their inhabitants; and Goritzia, which had been wrested after a
desperate effort from the Austrians, was retaken on October 28th.
That the entire Italian army escaped the fate that had come to the
Russians at the Masurian Lakes was due mainly to the third army
commanded by the Duke of Aosta. During the long running fight, it faced
about from time to time and drove the Germans back in bloody encounters.
By November 10th the Italian forces had come to the hastily prepared
entrenchments on the west bank of the Piave River. The Austrians and the
Germans dug in on the east bank from the village of Susegana in the
Alpine foothills to the Adriatic Sea.
Here a long-drawn-out battle was fought, resulting in enormous losses to
the Germans and Austrians. By this time reinforcements had come up from
the French front and every attempt by the enemy to gain ground met a
bloody check. The hardest fighting was on the Asiago Plateau. There,
although the Italians were greatly outnumbered, the concentration of
their artillery in the hills overlooking the great field completely
dominated the situation.
A factor that was of the utmost value in checking the Austrians was the
system of lagoon defenses running from the lower Piave to the Gulf of
Venice.
From November 13th, when the Austrians in crossing the lower Piave in
their headlong rush to Venice were suddenly checked by the Italian
lagoon defenses, the entire Gulf of Venice, with its endless canals and
marshes, with islands disappearing and reappearing with the tide, was
the scene of a continuous battle. A correspondent described the fighting
as absolutely without precedent. The Teutons were desperately trying to
turn the Italian right wing by working their way around the northern
limits of the Venetian Gulf. The Italians inundated the region and
sealed all the entrances into the gulf by mine fields. The gulf,
therefore, was converted into an isolated sea. Over this inland waterway
the conflict raged bitterly. The Italians had a "lagoon fleet" ranging
from the swiftest of motor boats, armed with machine guns, small cannon,
and torpedo tubes, to huge, cumbersome, flat-bottomed British monitors,
mounting the biggest guns.
The Italian vessels navigated secret channels dug in the bottom of the
shallow lagoons. Only the Italian war pilots knew these courses. Even
gondolas straying out of the channels were instantly and hopelessly
stranded. Not only this, but as the muddy flats and marshy islands did
not permit of artillery emplacements the Italians developed an immense
fleet of floating batteries. The guns ranged from three-inch fieldpieces
to great fifteen-inch monsters. Each was camouflaged to represent a tiny
island, a garden patch, or a houseboat. Floating on the glasslike
surface of the lagoons, the guns fired a few shots and then changed
position, making it utterly impossible for the enemy to locate them. The
entire auxiliary service of supplying this floating army was adapted to
meet the lagoon warfare. Munition dumps were on boats, constantly moved
about to prevent the enemy spotting them. Gondolas and motor boats
replaced the automobile supply lorries customary in land warfare.
Instead of motor ambulances, motor boats carried off the dead and
wounded. Hydro-airplanes replaced ordinary fighting aircraft.
Along the northern limit of the Venetian Gulf, where the Austrians,
having filtered into the Piave Delta, sought to cross both the Sile and
the Piave, the enemy each night hooked up pontoons. At daybreak every
morning one end of a huge pontoon structure was anchored to the east
bank of the Piave and the other flung out to the strong current, which
soon stretched the makeshift bridge across.
The moment this happened, the enemy infantry madly dashed across.
Simultaneously the Italian floating batteries opened a terrific fire.
Practically every morning the Austrians tried the trick, and every
morning they failed, with heavy losses, to effect a crossing. At last
they gave up the attempt as hopeless, and the armies remained locked on
the Piave for several months.
CHAPTER XXXVIII
REDEMPTION OF THE HOLY LAND
From the beginning of the war the German General Staff and the British
War Office planned the occupation of Palestine and Macedonia. Germany
wanted domination of that territory because through it lay the open road
to Egypt and British prestige in the East. Turkey was the cat's paw of
the Hun in this enterprise. German officers and German guns were
supplied to the Turks, but the terrible privations necessary in a long
campaign that must be spent largely in the desert, and the inevitable
great loss in human life, were both demanded from Turkey.
Great Britain made no such demands upon any of its Allies. Unflinchingly
England faced virtually alone the rigors, the disease and the deaths
consequent upon an expedition having as its object the redemption of the
Holy Land from the unspeakable Turk.
Volunteers for the expedition came by the thousands. Canada, the United
States, Australia and other countries furnished whole regiments of
Jewish youths eager for the campaign. The inspiration and the devotion
radiating from Palestine, and particularly from Jerusalem and Bethlehem,
drew Jew and Gentile, hardy adventurer and zealous churchman, into
Allenby's great army.
It was a long campaign. On February 26, 1917, Kut-el-Amara was
recaptured from the Turks by the British expedition under command of
General Sir Stanley Maude, and on March 11th following General Maude
captured Bagdad. From that time forward pressure upon the Turks was
continuous. On September 29, 1917, the Turkish Mesopotamian army
commanded by Ahmad Bey was routed by the British, and historic Beersheba
in Palestine was occupied on October 31st. The untimely death of General
Maude, the hero of Mesopotamia, on November 18, 1917, temporarily cast
gloom over the Allied forces but it had no deterrent effect upon their
successful operations. Siege was laid to Jerusalem and its environs late
in November, and on December 8, 1917, the Holy City which had been held
by the Turks for six hundred and seventy-three years surrendered to
General Allenby and his British army. Thus ended a struggle for
possession of the holiest of shrines both of the Old and New Testaments,
that had cost millions of lives during fruitless crusades and had been
the center of religious aspirations for ages.
[Illustration: Map: The Jordan river from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead
Sea.]
HOW THE TWO WINGS OF THE BRITISH ARMY TRAPPED THE TURKS.
General Allenby's official report follows:
"I entered the city officially at noon December 11th with a few of my
staff, the commanders of the French and Italian detachments, the heads
of the political missions, and the military attaches of France, England,
and America.
"The procession was all afoot, and at Jaffa gate I was received by the
guards representing England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Australia, New
Zealand, India, France and Italy. The population received me well.
"Guards have been placed over the holy places. My military governor is
in contact with the acting custodians and the Latin and Greek
representatives. The governor has detailed an officer to supervise the
holy places. The Mosque of Omar and the area around it have been placed
under Moslem control, and a military cordon of Mohammedan officers and
soldiers has been established around the mosque. Orders have been issued
that no non-Moslem is to pass within the cordon without permission of
the military governor and the Moslem in charge."
A proclamation in Arabic, Hebrew, English, French, Italian Greek and
Russian was posted in the citadel, and on all the walls proclaiming
martial law and intimating that all the holy places would be maintained
and protected according to the customs and beliefs of those to whose
faith they were sacred. The proclamation read:
PROCLAMATION
To the Inhabitants of Jerusalem the Blessed and the People Dwelling in
Its Vicinity.
The defeat inflicted upon the Turks by the troops under my command has
resulted in the occupation of your city by my forces. I, therefore,
proclaim it to be under martial law, under which form of administration
it will remain so long as military consideration makes necessary.
However, lest any of you be alarmed by reason of your experience at the
hands of the enemy who has retired, I hereby inform you that it is my
desire that every person should pursue his lawful business without fear
of interruption.
Furthermore, since your city is regarded with affection by the adherents
of three of the great religions of mankind and its soil has been
consecrated by the prayers and pilgrimages of multitudes of devout
people of these three religions for many centuries, therefore, do I make
it known to you that every sacred building, monument, holy spot, shrine,
traditional site, endowment, pious bequest, or customary place of prayer
of whatsoever form of the three religions will be maintained and
protected according to the existing customs and beliefs of those to
whose faith they are sacred.
Guardians have been established at Bethlehem and on Rachel's Tomb. The
tomb at Hebron has been placed under exclusive Moslem control.
The hereditary custodians at the gates of the Holy Sepulchre have been
requested to take up their accustomed duties in remembrance of the
magnanimous act of the Caliph Omar, who protected that church.
Jerusalem was now made the center of the British operations against the
Turks in Palestine. Mohammed V, the Sultan of Turkey, died July 3,
1918, and many superstitious Turks looked upon that event as forecasting
the end of the Turkish Empire. The Turkish army in Palestine was left
largely to its fate by Germany and Austria, and although it was
numerically a formidable opponent for General Allenby's forces, that
distinguished strategist fairly outmaneuvered the Turkish High Command
in every encounter. The beginning of the end for Turkish misrule in
Palestine came on September 20th when the ancient town of Nazareth was
captured by the British.
A military net was thereupon closed upon the Turkish army. The fortified
towns of Beisan and Afule followed the fate of Nazareth. In one day's
fighting 18,000 Turkish prisoners, 120 guns, four airplanes, a number of
locomotives and cars, and a great quantity of military and food supplies
were bagged by the victorious British. So well did Allenby plan that the
British losses were far the smallest suffered in any large operation of
the entire war. It was the swiftest and most decisive victory of any
scored by the Allies. It ended the grandiose dream of Germany for an
invasion of Egypt in stark disaster, and swept the Holy Land clear of
the Turks.
This great battle on the Biblical field of Armageddon was remarkable in
that it was virtually the only engagement during the entire war offering
the freest scope to cavalry operations. British cavalry commands
operated over a radius of sixty miles between the Jordan and the
Mediterranean, sweeping the Turks before them.
By September 25th the total bag of Turkish prisoners exceeded 40,000.
Munition depots covering acres of ground were taken. Whole companies of
Turkish soldiers were found sitting on their white flags waiting for the
British to accept their terms. Two hundred sixty-five pieces of
artillery were captured.
Damascus was captured on Tuesday, October 1st, after an advance of 130
miles by General Allenby since September 1st, the day of his surprise
attack north of Jerusalem. During that period a total of 73,000
prisoners was captured.
Palestine's delivery from the Turks was complete. Official announcement
was made by the British War Office that the total casualties from all
sources in this final campaign was less than 4,000.
Plans for the government of the people of Palestine were announced
immediately. Their general scope was outlined in an agreement made
between the British, French and Russian governments in 1916. Under that
arrangement Republican France was charged with the preparation of a
scheme of self-government. The town of Alexandretta was fixed upon as a
free port of entry for the new nation.
[Illustration: Photograph]
Copyright Underwood and Underwood, N. Y. British Official Photo.
JERUSALEM DELIVERED
On December 11, 1917, the Holy City was entered by the British forces.
Following the custom of the Crusaders, General Allenby, commander of
the British and Allied forces, made his entry, with his staff and
Allied officers, through the Jaffa Gate, on foot.
[Illustration: Photograph]
British Official Photograph.
ANCIENT AND MODERN WARFARE MINGLE IN THE HOLY LAND
The distinctly modern British soldier uses the camel, that extremely
ancient beast of burden, to get him over the desert in Palestine. The
Imperial Camel Corps gave valuable service in the campaign that led to
the capture of Jerusalem.
CHAPTER XXXIX
AMERICA'S TRANSPORTATION PROBLEMS
When America entered the war there was a very great increase in the
volume of business of the railroads of the country. The roads were
already so crowded by what the Allies had done in purchasing war
supplies, that a great deal of confusion had resulted. The Allies had
expended more than three billion dollars in the United States, and as
nearly all of their purchases had to be sent to a few definite points
for shipment to Europe, the congestion at those points had become a
serious difficulty. Thousands of loaded cars had to stand for long
periods awaiting the transfer of their contents to ships. This meant
that thousands of cars which had been taken from lines in other parts of
the country would be in a traffic blockade for weeks at a time. The main
difficulty appeared to be that of getting trains unloaded promptly.
The declaration of war by the United States made the situation very much
worse. Not only did the railroads have to handle the freight destined
for the Allies, but there was a very large addition to the passenger
movement on account of the thousands of men that were being sent to the
various training camps, and the immense masses of supplies that had to
be sent to these camps. This included not only the ordinary supplies to
the men but thousands of carloads of lumber. Moreover, all over the
country mills and factories were now being handed over to the government
for war work; and to them, too, great quantities of raw material had to
be sent, and the finished product removed to its destination.
A vigorous endeavor to meet the new difficulties was instituted by the
railroads themselves. They themselves named a war board, which was to
co-operate with the government and which was to have absolute authority.
But this arrangement soon proved unsatisfactory. Each government
official would do his best to obtain preference for what his department
required, and to obtain that preference a system of priority tags was
established which became a great abuse. The result was that priority
freight soon began to crowd out the freight which the railroads could
handle according to their own discretion, thus seriously interfering
with business all over the country.
Naturally, the railroad executives and the government authorities
studied the question with the greatest care, but they could not reach an
understanding among themselves, nor with the Administration. At last the
President settled the matter by announcing his decision to have the
government take over complete control of the roads. The President
derived his power from an Act of Congress dated August 29, 1916, which
reads as follows:
The President in time of war is empowered, through the Secretary of War,
to take possession and assume control of any system or systems of
transportation, or any part thereof, and to utilize the same to the
exclusion, as far as may be necessary, of all other traffic thereon, for
the transfer or transportation of troops, war material and equipment, or
for such other purposes connected with the emergency as may be needful
or desirable.
The proclamation went into effect on December 28, 1917, and the
President declared that it applied to "each and every system of
transportation and the appurtenances thereof, located, wholly or in
part, within the boundaries of the Continental United States, and
consisting of railroads and owned or controlled systems of coastwise and
inland transportation, engaged in general transportation, whether
operated by steam, or by electric power, including also terminals,
terminal companies, and terminal associations, sleeping and parlor cars,
private cars, and private car lines, elevators, warehouses, telegraph
and telephone lines, and all other equipment and appurtenances commonly
used upon or operated as a part of such rail or combined rail and water
systems of transportation.... That the possession, control, operation,
and utilization of such transportation systems shall be exercised by and
through William G. McAdoo, who is hereby appointed, and designated
Director General of Railroads. Said Director may perform the duties
imposed upon him so long and to such an extent as he shall determine
through the boards of directors, receivers, officers and employees, of
said system of transportation." President Wilson issued an explanation
with this proclamation in which he said:
This is a war of resources no less than of men, perhaps even more than
of men, and it is necessary for the complete mobilization of our
resources that the transportation systems of the country should be
organized and employed under a single authority and to simplify methods
for coordination which have not proved possible under private management
and control. A committee of railway executives who have been cooperating
with the government in this all-important matter, have done the utmost
that it was possible for them to do, but there were differences that
they could neither escape nor neutralize. Complete unity of
administration in the present circumstances involves upon occasion, and
at many points, a serious dislocation of earnings, and the committee
was, of course, without power or authority to rearrange charges or
effect proper compensations in adjustments of earnings. Several roads
which were willingly and with admirable public spirit accepting the
orders of the committee, have already suffered from these circumstances,
and should not be required to suffer further. In mere fairness to them,
the full authority of the government must be substituted. The public
interest must be first served, and in addition the financial interests
of the government, and the financial interests of the railways, must be
brought under a common direction. The financial operations of the
railway need not, then, interfere with the borrowings of the government,
and they themselves can be conducted at a great advantage. Investors in
railway securities may rest assured that their rights and interests will
be as scrupulously looked after by the government as they could be by
the directors of the several railway systems. Immediately upon the
reassembling of Congress I shall recommend that these different
guarantees be given. The Secretary of War and I are agreed that, all the
circumstances being taken into consideration, the best results can be
obtained under the immediate executive direction of the Honorable
William G. McAdoo, whose practical experience peculiarly fits him for
the service, and whose authority as Secretary of the Treasury will
enable him to coordinate, as no other man could, the many financial
interests which will be involved, and which might, unless systematically
directed, suffer very embarrassing entanglements.
President Wilson's proclamation stirred up great excitement on the stock
market. Speculators rushed to buy back railroad stocks which they had
previously sold short, and the market value of such stocks was raised
more than three hundred and fifty million dollars as a result. The
Federal Government's assumption of control of the railroads was
generally recognized as the proper act under existing circumstances, and
the guarantee of pre-war earnings made them a good investment.
The railroad system in the United States consists of 260,000 miles of
railroad, owned by 441 distinct corporations, with about 650,000
shareholders. It employs 1,600,000 men and represents a property
investment of $17,500,000,000. The outstanding capital in round numbers
is $16,000,000,000, $9,000,000,000 of which is represented by a funded
debt. The rolling stock comprises 61,000 locomotives, 2,250,000 freight
cars, 52,000 passenger cars and 95,000 service cars. All this was now
under the charge of William G. McAdoo. On January 4, 1918, President
Wilson explained his plan to Congress, and recommended legislation to
put the new system of control into effect, and to guarantee to the
holders of railroad stocks and bonds a net annual income equal to the
average net income for the three years ending June 30, 1917.
The wise recommendations of President Wilson were at once approved by
Congress; provision was made for guaranteeing the railroads the income
which he recommended, and for financing the roads. The railroads' war
board was abolished and Mr. McAdoo appointed an advisory board to assist
him. This board consisted of John Skelton Williams, Controller of the
Currency; Hale Holden, President of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy
Railroad; Henry Walters, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the
Atlantic Coast Line; Edward Chambers, Vice-President of the Santa Fe
Railroad and head of the transportation division of the United States
Food Administration; Walter D. Hines, Chairman of the Executive
Committee of the Santa Fe. Specific duties were assigned to the various
members of this committee. Mr. Williams was to deal with the financial
problem; Mr. Holden to assume direction of committees and
sub-committees, and other phases of the work were allotted to other
members. Mr. Walter D. Hines was made assistant to the Director General.
Mr. McAdoo's first order was to pool all terminals, ports, locomotives,
rolling stock and other transportation facilities. Another order had as
its object to end the congestion of traffic in New York City and
Chicago. It gave all lines entering these centers equal rights in
trackage and water terminal facilities. This wiped out the identity of
the great Pennsylvania Terminal Station in New York, and gave all
railroads the use of the Pennsylvania tubes under the Hudson River.
The effect of government control of the railroads was felt from the very
first. Coal was given the right of way, giving great relief to such
sections as were suffering from fuel shortage. Many passenger trains
were taken off, more than two hundred and fifty of such trains being
dropped from the schedules of the eastern roads. This permitted a great
increase in the freight traffic. Orders were also given that all empty
box cars were to be sent to wheat-producing centers, so that wheat could
be moved to the Atlantic sea coasts for shipment to England and France.
These orders preceded the adoption of the railroad control bill, which
was not passed by Congress until March 14th. A feature of the bill is
the proviso that government control of the railroads shall not continue
more than twenty-one months after the war. After the passing of the
bill plans were made to make contracts with each railroad company for
government compensation on the basis provided in the bill.
The action of the government in thus assuming control of the railroads
very naturally led to wide differences of opinion, some of which were
sharply expressed in the Congress of the United States. On the whole,
however, public opinion decided that the government acted wisely.
Certain inconveniences to the traveling public were easily excused when
it was realized that the movement of troops throughout the country to
the camps, or from the camps to the ports which were to take them across
the sea, from "Texas to Toul," was being accomplished with great
success; that the movement of war material was now possible, and that
the gigantic railroad system was working without a hitch.
Many details, in connection with the railroad management, were not at
once worked out, and many months passed without complete agreements
regarding the railway operating contracts. But this was a matter of
greater interest to the owners than it was to patriotic citizens,
anxious for the winning of the war. Governmental control of the
railroads, was only a beginning. On July 16th President Wilson took
control, for the period of the war, of all telegraph, telephone, cable
and radio lines, signing a bill on that day passed by Congress
authorizing such action.
The transportation of the American army across the ocean was the
greatest military feat of its kind ever accomplished in history. The
transportation of English troops during the Boer War meant a longer
journey, but the number of troops sent on that journey was but a small
fraction of America's army.
The railroads in existence were not sufficient. The ships that were
necessary could not be found in America's navy. It was necessary to
build new roads, new docks, new terminals, new bases of supplies in
America, and to send abroad thousands of trained workmen and experienced
railroad engineers to build similar necessities in France. To convey the
millions of men across the water England had to come to the rescue, and
though hundreds of American ships were built with a speed that was
almost miraculous, they were in constant need of the assistance of the
Allies. But wonderful men were put in charge of the work, wonderful
organizers with wonderful assistants, and the great task was
accomplished.
As soon as the army was trained it was sent across--first by thousands,
then by tens of thousands, then by hundreds of thousands, until before
the war was over more than two million men had made the great trip "over
there." And throughout that whole trip they were watched over as
carefully as if they were at home. Every want was supplied; food,
clothing, munitions were all where they were needed. Even their leisure
hours were looked after, their health attended to. Books, games,
theaters, classes for those who cared to study, all were there.
It was a wonderful performance, and the whole movement was conducted
with clock-like precision. On such a day at such an hour the trained
soldier would start. At such an hour he would report in some Atlantic
port. At such an hour and such a minute he would board ship, and with
equal precision that ship would sail upon the appointed moment. Perhaps
on the journey over some submarine might delay the ship, but the
destroyers were there on the alert, and the submarine was but an amusing
episode. On the other side the process was carried on with equal
efficiency. Before the American doughboy could realize that he was in
France he was in his quarters, just like home, in the base camps behind
the fighting line and it was this miracle of transportation that won the
war.
A study of transportation construction in other countries showed that
actual construction of railroads had been suspended in some cases, and
in others retarded, but in not a few instances hastened by the war.
Brazil experienced a more nearly complete suspension of railroad
building than any of the other countries, but preparation was made for
prompt resumption of construction, with the return of more normal
conditions.
The Chinese building program also had been affected unfavorably by the
war. Nevertheless, there were important additions made, aggregating
approximately 800 miles during the war. Of the lines completed in 1917,
two are of especial significance. One of these, a 140-mile section of
the Canton-Hankow line, a link in the route between South China and
Peking. The other is a 60-mile feeder of the Trans-Siberian Railway in
Manchuria. A line was extended from South Manchuria into Mongolia, the
first railroad to penetrate this territory. Financial arrangements were
made for the early construction of a line across Southern Manchuria and
for another connecting the Peking-Hankow and Tientsin-Pukow lines.
Construction in Siberia proceeded rapidly. The completion, in 1915, of
the Amur River division of the Trans-Siberian in the east, together with
the extension in 1913 of the Ekaterinburg-Tiumen line to Omsk in the
west, gave virtually a double track from European Russia to Vladivostok.
The notable achievement in Africa was the continuation of the southern
rail link in the Cape-to-Cairo route. This line was completed to Bukama
on the navigable Congo, 2,600 miles from Capetown. The railway in German
East Africa, was extended to Lake Tanganyika on the eve of the war,
making a rail-water line across the center of the continent. The
railroad from Lobito Bay was extended eastward to Katanga, a rich
mineral region of the Belgian Congo, and, with the road already reaching
the Indian Ocean at Beira, gave a second east and west transcontinental
line. A permanent standard gauge railroad was laid by the British
Expeditionary Forces from Egypt into Palestine.
Despite the magnitude of the Australian contribution to the Allied
military and naval forces, the east and west transcontinental railway,
begun in 1912, was completed in 1917. In all, more than 3,500 miles of
track were built in the commonwealth in the years 1915-17.
In Canada, the work of providing two transcontinental railroads was
completed; feeders were added, and a line from La Pas to Hudson Bay was
under construction. From 1912 to 1916 more than 10,000 miles of track
were put in operation, nearly 7,000 of which were added in the first two
years of the war.
CHAPTER XL
SHIPS AND THE MEN WHO MADE THEM.
When the United States of America entered the World War she was
confronted at once by a serious question. The great Allied nations were
struggling against the attempt of the Germans, through the piratical use
of submarines, to blockade the coast of the Allied countries. It was
this German action which had led America to take part in the war. It is
true that America had other motives. Few wars ever take place among
democratic nations as a result of the calculation of the nation's
leaders. The people must be interested, and the people must sympathize
with the cause for which they are going to fight. The people of America
had sympathized with Belgium, and had become indignant at the brutal
treatment of that inoffensive nation. They had sympathized with France
in its gallant endeavor to protect its soil from the inroads of the Hun.
This feeling had become a personal one as they reviewed the lists of
Americans lost in the sinking of the Lusitania, and this sympathy had
gradually grown into indignation when the Germans, after having promised
to conduct submarine warfare according to international law, again and
again violated that promise. When, then, the Germans declared that they
would no longer even pretend to treat neutral shipping according to the
laws of maritime warfare the people with one accord approved the action
of the President of the United States in declaring war. The Germans at
this time were making a desperate effort to starve England, by
destroying its commerce, and it was in the endeavor to accomplish this
purpose that they thought it necessary to attack American ships.
The first effort of Americans, therefore, was naturally to use every
power of the navy to destroy the lurking submarines, and in the second
place to use every means in their power to supply the Allies with food.
But America had for many years neglected to give encouragement to her
merchant fleets. Her commerce was very largely carried in foreign
bottoms.
Ships were needed, and needed urgently, and one of the very first acts
of the American Government was to authorize their production. Congress
therefore appropriated for this purpose what was then the extraordinary
sum of $1,135,000,000 and General Goethals, recently returned from his
work in building the Panama Canal, was appointed manager of the
Emergency Fleet Corporation and entrusted with the execution of the
government's ship-building program.
The Emergency Fleet Corporation, however, was then independent of the
United States Shipping Board, of which Mr. William Denman was made
chairman, and friction between General Goethals and Mr. Denman at the
very start caused long delay. The difference of opinion between them
arose over the comparative merits of wooden and steel ships. The matter
was finally laid before President Wilson and ended in the resignation of
both men and the complete reorganization of the board and the Fleet
Corporation, in which reorganization the Fleet Corporation was made
subordinate to the Shipping Board but given entire control of
construction.
Rear-Admiral Capps succeeded General Goethals, but was compelled to
resign on account of ill health. Rear-Admiral Harris, who had been chief
of the Navy's Bureau of Yards and Docks, then had the job for two weeks,
but resigned because in his opinion he had not enough authority. Then
came Mr. Charles Piez, who held the position for a longer period. Mr.
Edward N. Hurley had been made chairman of the United States Shipping
Board, and under the direction of these two men much progress was made.
In the spring of 1918 the boards themselves were not satisfied with
their progress, and on April 16, 1918, Mr. Charles M. Schwab, chairman
of the Board of Directors of the Bethlehem Steel Corporation, was made
Director General of the Emergency Fleet Corporation. Mr. Schwab was one
of the most prominent business men in the United States and one of the
best known, and his appointment was received all over the country with
the greatest satisfaction. His wonderful work in building up the
Bethlehem steel plant not only showed his great ability, but especially
fitted him for a task in which the steel industry bore such a vital
part. The official statement issued from the White House read as
follows:
Edward N. Hurley, Charles M. Schwab, Bainbridge Colby and Charles Piez
were received by the President at the White House today. It was stated
that the subject discussed was the progress and condition of a national
ship-building program. The carrying forward of the construction work in
the one hundred and thirty shipyards now in operation is so vast that it
requires a reinforcement of the ship-building organization throughout
the country. Later in the day Chairman Hurley of the Shipping Board
announced that a new office with wide powers had been created by the
Trustees of the Emergency Fleet Corporation. The new position is that of
Director General and Mr. Schwab has been asked, and has agreed, to
accept this position in answer to the call of the nation. Charles Piez,
Vice-President of the Emergency Fleet Corporation, recommended that the
post of General Manager of the corporation be at once abolished, so that
Mr. Schwab as Director General should be wholly unhampered in carrying
on the large task entrusted to him. Mr. Piez, since the retirement of
Admiral Harris, has been filling both the position of Vice-President and
that of General Manager. Mr. Schwab will have complete supervision and
direction of the work of ship-building. He agreed to take up the work at
the sacrifice of his personal wishes in the matter. His services were
virtually commandeered. His great experience as a steel maker and
builder of ships has been drafted for the nation.
Although the fact that production during the month of March had not been
as great as had been hoped probably brought about this change, it should
also be said that those who had been responsible deserved much credit
for what had actually been done. They had been handicapped constantly by
poor transportation and shortage of materials, but had worked faithfully
and with what under ordinary circumstances would be regarded as
remarkable success. The call upon Mr. Schwab was simply an effort to
draft into the service of the country its very highest executive
ability. Mr. Schwab's name had been mentioned before for more than one
government post, and it was thought that here was the place where his
talents could have the fullest play. It was stated in Washington that he
would receive a salary of one dollar a year.
Mr. Schwab at once proceeded to "speed up" the shipping-program. It took
him just one day to arrange his own business affairs and then he began
his work. His first day was spent in going over the details of his task
with Chairman Hurley and Mr. Piez. He then received newspaper men,
beginning the campaign of publicity which turned out to be so
successful. He was full of compliments for the work which had already
been done. "It is prodigious, splendid, magnificent!" he said. "It is
far greater than any man who hasn't seen the inside of things can
appreciate. The foundation is laid. That task is well done. We are going
to get the results which are needed and I should be proud if I could
have any part in the accomplishment. All I can say for myself is that I
am filled with enthusiasm, energy and confidence. Mr. Hurley and I are
in full accord on everything, and we are going to work shoulder to
shoulder to make the work a success, but the large burden must fall upon
the people at the yards, and they are entitled to any credit for
success. I do not want to have any man in the shipyards working for me.
I want them all working with me. Nothing is going to be worth while
unless we win this war, and everyone must do the task to which he is
called."
One of the first steps that Mr. Schwab took to speed up ship production
was to establish his headquarters in Philadelphia, as the center of the
ship-building region. Chairman Hurley remained at Washington, and the
operating department, which included agencies such as the Inter-Allied
Ship Control Committee, was removed to New York City. It was stated that
nearly fifty per cent of the work in progress was within a short radius
of Philadelphia.
The year before the war the total output of the United States shipyards
was only two hundred and fifty thousand tons. The program of the
shipping board contemplated the construction of one thousand one hundred
and forty-five steel ships, with a tonnage of eight million one hundred
and sixty-four thousand five hundred and eight, and four hundred and
ninety wooden ships, with a tonnage of one million seven hundred and
fifteen thousand. These of course could not be built in the shipyards
then in existence. New shipyards had to be built in various parts of the
country.
In the first year after the shipping board took control, one hundred and
eighty-eight ships were put in the water and through requisition and by
building, one hundred and three more were added to the American merchant
fleet. By April, 1918, the government had at its service 2,762,605 tons
of shipping. During the month of May, the first month after Mr. Schwab
began his work, the record of production had mounted from 160,286 tons
to 263,571. American shipyards had completed and delivered during that
month forty-three steel ships and one wooden ship. Mr. Hurley, in an
address on June 10th, said:
On June 1st, we had increased the American built tonnage to over
3,500,000 dead-weight tons of shipping. This gives us a total of more
than one thousand four hundred ships with an approximate total
deadweight tonnage of 7,000,000 now under the control of the United
States Shipping Board. In round numbers and from all sources we have
added to the American flag since our war against Germany began, nearly
4,500,000 tons of shipping. Our program calls for the building of 1,856
passenger, cargo and refrigerator ships and tankers, ranging from five
thousand to twelve thousand tons each, with an aggregate dead-weight of
thirteen million. Exclusive of these we have two hundred and forty-five
commandeered vessels, taken over from foreign and domestic owners which
are being completed by the Emergency Fleet Corporation. These will
aggregate a total dead-weight tonnage of 1,715,000. This makes a total
of two thousand one hundred and one vessels, exclusive of tugs and
barges which are being built and will be put on the seas in the course
of carrying out the present program, with an aggregate dead-weight
tonnage of 14,715,000. Five billion dollars will be required to finish
our program, but the expenditure of this enormous sum will give to the
American people the greatest merchant fleet ever assembled in the
history of the world. American workmen have made the expansion of recent
months possible, and they will make possible the successful conclusion
of the whole program.
In the wonderful work that followed his appointment Mr. Schwab
constantly came before the public, mainly through his addresses to the
working men of the different yards. His main endeavor was to stimulate
enthusiasm and rivalry among the men. A ten-thousand-dollar prize was
offered to the yard producing the largest surplus above its program, and
he traveled throughout the country urging the employees at all the great
yards to break their records. The result of his work was that it was not
long before it was announced that the monthly tonnage of ships completed
by the Allies exceeded the tonnage of those sunk by the German
submarine. The menace of the submarine, which had seemed so formidable,
had disappeared.
The most important of the great shipyards which were producing the
American cargo ships was at Hog Island in the southwest part of
Philadelphia. This shipyard may indeed be called the greatest shipyard
in the world. Before Mr. Schwab became Director General much criticism
had been launched at the work that was going on there, and an
investigation had been made which resulted in a favorable report. On
August 5th the new shipyard launched its first ship, the 7,500 ton
freight steamer, Quistconck, in the presence of a distinguished throng
among whom were the President of the United States and Mrs. Woodrow
Wilson. The ship was christened by Mrs. Wilson, and the President swung
his hat and led the cheers as the great ship glided down the ways. The
name "Quistconck" is the ancient Indian name of Hog Island. The crowd
numbered more than sixty thousand people, and special trains from
Washington and New York brought many notable guests. President and Mrs.
Wilson were escorted by Mr. Hurley and Mr. Schwab, and apparently
thoroughly enjoyed the occasion. An enormous bouquet was presented to
Mrs. Wilson by Foreman McMillan, who had driven the first rivet in the
Quistconck's keel.
Shortly after the armistice it was announced that the Hog Island plant
would be acquired by the United States Government. The real estate,
valued at $1,760,000, was owned by the American International Ship
Building Company, and the government had invested about $60,000,000 in
equipping the plant. At the time the war ended thirty-five thousand
persons were at work and a hundred and eighty ships were in various
stages of completion.