Minister of Marine stated that American warships had anchored off the French coast. The same day the flotilla of American destroyers under Rear Admiral Sims, who has been promoted to the rank of Vice Admiral, completed their first month of war service. In the course of a speech in the House of Commons, on May 25, Prime Minister Lloyd George referred to the work of the United States Navy in these words: We owe a very considerable debt of gratitude to the great American people for the effective assistance they have rendered and the craft they have placed at our disposal. Now that the American Nation is in the war it is easier to make arrangements for the protection of our mercantile marine than it was before. The American destroyers have been assigned to work hand in hand with the British squadrons, being virtually assimilated into the British naval machinery. A destroyer is usually out for four or five days, and then returns to port for two or three days while coaling and loading supplies. The Americans take their turn with the British boats in all routine work of patrol and convoy. The work, although largely routine, is interesting, and the Americans have never yet found time hanging heavy on their hands. The lookout must be constant, and eyes must be trained to an unbelievable degree of keenness. The young Americans take zealously to this business of finding the periscopic needles in the nautical haystack, and daily reports of submarines sighted, of observations made, of wireless warnings sent broadcast, show that the American boats are already making an average of results almost as satisfactory as the long-experienced English boats with which they are operating. An assignment to convoy a liner "from home "—that is, from an American port -is regarded as an especially choice morsel. A transatlantic liner which sights the American flag approaching to escort her to land never fails to respond with a great waving of flags and handkerchiefs from her decks, and there is a fine exchange of wigwag signals in lieu of handshakes. Admiral Sims, it was officially announced in London on June 19, had been appointed by the British Admiralty to take general charge of the allied naval forces in Irish waters during the absence of the British naval Commander in Chief. Admiral Sims accordingly hoisted his flag as allied senior officer commanding. By an act of Congress, approved by the President on May 22, the enlisted strength of the navy and Marine Corps was increased to 150,000 and 30,000 men, respectively. A substantial increase in the pay of enlisted men and a temporary increase in the commissioned personnel were provided for. Secretary of the Navy Daniels on June 8 said that the navy was so popular that recruits had come in far more rapidly than had been expected. Since Jan. 1 about 60,000 recruits have been added to the service. The Marine Corps has also made good progress. On May 16 it had 21,864 officers and enlisted men. PRE Food Crisis in the United States RESIDENT WILSON has exerted all his authority during the month to secure measures to cope with an impending food crisis in the United States. In a statement issued on May 19 he declared that it was absolutely necessary to place unquestionable powers in his hands to prevent hoarding and speculation, and generally to regulate the distribution and consumption of food. Herbert C. Hoover, whom the Presi dent has designated as Food Administrator, stated officially on June 2 that America's allies would require 971,000,000 bushels of bread and fodder grains out of the next harvest and, in addition, provision must be made for the grain ships destroyed by submarines. It would be impossible for North America, Mr. Hoover added, to furnish all of the 971,000,000 bushels, but the major load must fall on us. It At a conference in Washington on June 13, which was attended by Mr. Hoover, representatives of organized labor, and about twenty-five Congressmen, the statement was made that the present cost of living probably could be reduced about 30 per cent. in a comparatively short time if President Wilson received the powers he demanded. was said that hundreds of millions of dollars were being wasted in getting foodstuffs from the producer to the consumer; that speculators and illegitimate middlemen were getting the greater part of this wastage, and that poorly organized methods of transportation and distribution were to blame in no small measure for the rest. President Wilson made clear his decision in this matter by publishing a letter which he had written on June 12 to Mr. Hoover and which was issued on June 16: My dear Mr. Hoover: It seems to me that the inauguration of that portion of the plan for food administration which contemplates a national mobilization of the great voluntary forces of the country which are ready to work toward saving food and eliminating waste admits of no further delay. The approaching harvesting, the immediate necessity for wise use and saving not only in food, but in all other expenditures, the many undirected and overlapping efforts being made toward this end, all press for national direction and inspiration. While it would in many ways be desirable to wait complete legislation establishing the food administration, it appears to me that so far as voluntary effort can be assembled we should not wait any longer, and therefore I would be very glad if you would proceed in these directions at once. already The women of the nation are earnestly seeking to do their part in this our greatest struggle for the maintenance of our national ideals, and in no direction can they so greatly assist as by enlisting in the service of the food administration and cheerfully accepting its direction and advice. By so doing they will increase the surplus of food available for our own army and for export to the Allies. To provide adequate supplies for the coming year is of absolutely vital importance to the conduct of the war, and without a very conscientious elimination of waste and very strict economy in our food consumption we cannot hope to fulfill this primary duty. I trust, therefore, that the women of the country will not only respond to your appeal and accept the pledge to the food administration which you are proposing, but that all men also who are engaged in the personal distribution of foods will co-operate with the same earnestness and in the same spirit. I give you full authority to undertake any steps necessary for the proper organization and stimulation of their efforts. Cordially and sincerely yours, WOODROW WILSON. The extent to which speculation had been rife since the beginning of 1917 was described by Mr. Hoover when he appeared, on June 19, before the Senate Committee on Agriculture to explain the Food Administration bill. In the last five months, he said, on the item of flour alone $250,000,000 had been extracted from the American consumer in excess of normal profits. Mr. Hoover then uttered this warning: We now have a high cost of living beyond the abilities of certain sections of the population to withstand and to secure proper nourishment from the wage levels. Unless we can ameliorate this condition and unless we can prevent further advances in prices, we must confront further an entire rearrangement of the wage level, with all the hardships and social disturbances which necessarily follow. We shall in this turmoil experience large loss in national efficiency at a time when we can least afford to lose the energies of a single man. President Wilson, it was announced on June 19, had decided to exercise in full the powers conferred upon him by the. embargo clause in the espionage law and thereby make it impossible for neutral countries or the allies of America to export from this country so much as a bushel of wheat or the smallest quantity of any other essential commodity without obtaining a license and the approval of an Exports Council, to be composed of Herbert C. Hoover and representatives of the Departments of State, War, Navy, and Commerce. The statement to this effect was made through Secretary Redfield of the Department of Commerce: The procedure of issuing an export license will be about as follows: The President's proclamation will designate the particular articles under control and countries to which such controlled articles may be exported under license. The quantity of the particular commodity to be exported under license will be decided by the Exports Council, and upon the advice of the departments concerned, and with such facts as may be presented by the trade expert dealing with that particular commodity. After the amount has been determined, the Division of Export Licenses will then restrict the amount licensed to the amount determined upon by the Exports Council. President Wilson has assumed full responsibility for the decisions which are to be made, and in reaching his conclusions he will have at his disposal all of the information and advice of Secretary of State Lansing and Mr. Hoover. THE The First United States War Loan HE first popular offering of bonds for the war-in the sum of $2,000,000,000-closed June 15, 1917, in a large oversubscription, the total amount subscribed exceeding $2,900,000,000. There were nearly 3,000,000 individual subscribers. It was the largest bond offering in the history of the United States, and the individual subscriptions exceeded several times the largest total ever before recorded in this country. The loan was known as "The Liberty Loan." The interest rate was 31⁄2 per cent., and the amount was limited to $2,000,000,000. Allotments were made of the sums expected from each of the twelve Federal Reserve Districts, and in every case, with one exception, these amounts were largely exceeded. The official figures have not been issued at this writing, (June 20,) but semi-official reports show the following subscriptions in the various Reserve Districts: The last days of the loan campaign were marked by picturesque propaganda. In many cities bells were rung and whistles blown to indicate progress of the subscriptions; enormous clocks were conspicuously placed to show how the totals were mounting; women and men all over the country delivered addresses at street corners and in public places, advocating subscriptions; flaming and appealing posters were everywhere displayed, and all the newspapers inserted large advertisements gratuitously. The Liberty Bell at Independence Hall in Philadelphia was rung for the first time in half a century on the last day, and as the broken bell pealed the sound was taken up at the same time by other bells in all parts of the country. Secretary of the Treasury McAdoo visited the leading cities in advocacy of the loan, and everywhere met with an enthusiastic reception. Large corporations, railroads, industrial, commercial, and banking institutions made subscriptions for their employes, allowing them to subscribe on the installment plan, in this way giving the loan a wide distribution. Banks and bond houses all over the United States put all the machinery and energy of their sales organization behind the loan without charge, and this one fact contributed in no little degree to its success. There was much gratification over the large oversubscription, and especially because of the large number of individual subscribers. |