Guardian ll it ? -asfsrs-nv” _,__ _ ..~.\w=»»av -.»1.vr' -steer-K cfm- --4 'YIIIII --_:-- _ _ _ » agtortlang Phono .. .. ;...~. on as*-»--"H luhsorlptlosrllono .... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ....182-2 Noqossd Edit.. Day Phono .. .... .. .. ,.188 um me san.. night rmnu .. -- --182 4 1” _ -_l---l Hood Dfllco st Ghsrlottotown lrsneh Dfllco st lum- msrsids. Alhcrton, Bowls and ||o|\ta|l|I» London Oilloo, Marconi I-louse. Strsluh W- 9- Frosldollt ... ..... ...... ...-0 ...... ‘....A.A.lt|'\lof\ lsusgln Editor .... .... .. ........ ......J.R.l||r|\st\ WEDNESDAY, APRIL 21, 19l'5 'ras was rtsnol: ' A prominent citizen over the nom de plume Telllllel" ance. makes a suggestion in a letter published in another column which is well worth adopting, namely the present- ation to and wearing of a pledge button by all who sign the war abstinence pledge. Such a badge b8Sid€S BBYVIDB as a souvenir of the world's greatest war would be an open and public declaration of acqules cence in the move- ment and would do much to strengthen the purpose of all who sign the pledge, as well as a worthy example for others to follow. The war is by no means over, the end is not even in sight. but what the end shall be is certain. The Allies will win; the enemy will be defeated. and through ages to come the years ofthe war and the date of its ending will be an opoch in the history of the world. lt will mean something for the’ children of those now living to have souvenirs of these history-making years; much to have a record of the part taken in it by those who watched the struggle from day to day. who took part in it, either on the battlefield, or at homo by contribution or otherwise, even by making such a small sacrifice as abstaining_from intoxicating liqu- nrs while history was in the making.S uch a button as is sllggestecl by our correspondent. bearing the date, perhaps the P. E. island crest or some other device, would make at valued souvenir, becoming more valuable a.s the years roll on. We commend the suggestion to those who are working out the details of one of the most important moves under- taken in this generation. . a--A- OUR INSTITUTIONS Our country depends upon its xinstitutions. Our churches. our schools, our co-operative associations. our fraternal societies-all are inseparably connected with the progress of the country. These properly maintained, loy- ally supported and judiciously managed. general prosperity' and contentment are assured, » in this province co-operation is making steady and de- finite progress, but its most lasting en'ect.s will undoubted- ly result from the spirit ot' interdependence which it is fostering. We are gradually learning the great lesson that “no man liveth unto himself.” that each is dependent upon the other and that mutual assistance is the greatest possible help in every community. .»\ common interest in and a determination to help the school. the church, the farmers' institutes, the womenls institutes, the dairying associations, the egg circle. and every similar institution organized for the benefit of the community, and a healthy enthusiasm and optimism encouraged and fostered. pro- gress and prosperity would be assured. lt. is most encouraging to find that institutions for mu- tual helpfulness are multiplying in this province and that the spirit ot' co-operation is spreading. lt. is only by co- npcration that we can hope to make the province what its advantages and opportunities demand that it shall be. There. is no province in Canada that has more natural ad- vantages and none especially in which the farmer has as sure a promise of profitable returns for his labor. By making good use of these advantages and loyally support- ing all institutions we may hope to deserve the name we so proudly boast. the Garden ol'the Gulf. l:xAoo§nA1‘1oN it will be recalled that some time ago a good deal of sympathy was expressed for General Leman. the gallant defender of Liege, when it was announced that his two legs had been amputated as the result of wounds. The other day his daughter denied this statement. He had met with a slight accident necessitating the amputation of one of his toes. but of course he is s prisoner in the hands of the Germans. . This is perhaps a fair average sample of the work of that celebrated lady, Dame Rumour. From a toe to a foot. then to a leg. then to two legs in s few weeks is quite s. growth for a little item of news which set out into the world true, fresh. innocent. And the growth of a yarn like this is not the result of one person's exaggeration or prevarication. lt fell upon good ground. evidently, wherever it struck. and grew space. Had General Leman had a few more legs they would all probably have shared the fate of the only two he had. How do rumors grow? A person is reported to be indisposed; we next hear of him as being sick; later' he ls seriously sick and the doctors have given up all hope; then he is reported dead. and a few days afterwards we are surprised to meet him, still in the flesh. Did anybody wilfully lie? Was it a sympathetic fear that he was worse than reported? Or was it the too common practice of ex- aggeration? ' Exsggeration is a common vice. We speak of thou- sands when we mean tens or dozens. We describe things as the "biggest," the "smallest," the "best" the "worst," we had ever seen, but we do it thoughtIessly-perhap.s in- stinctively. now that the hgbit of exaggeration grows. We happen to meet a couple of deformed people on the street and weconclude the city is infested with crlpples; we see a drunken man on the street, and later another and we conclude that drunkenness is rampant in the city and we are not slow in declaring it the most drunken city in Canada. ' This hsblt of exaggeration ls one that the young. partl- cularly, should be expressly warned against. The old who -indulge are perhaps incurable and we ‘must learn the judi- cious use of the proverbial grain of salt when dealing with the products of their imagination. AFi‘sr iasvkk . s result of the be not only bil! will be less and an war the shorter. possessed but it must be remembered that, after all, only a com paratively small percentage of' those engaged in the war will be killed or even maimed Those who survive the war and ins horrors will he fitter both physically and mentally than if they had remained at home. lt is doubtful lf out side the actual war zone the ill effects will be perceptible in the next generation. The one thing possible, perhaps inevitable, is that those who have the misfortune of being orn amid the war's horrors and suffering and prlv_ation will be below normal both mentally and physically' but more especially mentally. To measure the physical deterioration by definite in- ches is assuming s. good deal more than science is usually willing to risk. War's losses, although numbered by thou- sands, and terrible to contemplate are on the whole but a comparatively small percentage of the number who go into battle. We need not concern ourselves lnordlnately about future generations. PARLIAMENTARY SESSIGN Not in the history of Canada has there been al more important session of Parliament than that closed last Thursday. One of the first acts was the voting of one hundred million dollars for actual war service and anoth- terest on war loans and to make up the deficit in revenue due to the effects of the war upon trade. The first passed through its stages as a matter of course and with a mini- mum of discussion. Ordinary party lines were not drawn. and the vote stands in a. rare way as the contribution ot’ the people of Canada through Parliament to the mainten- ance of the integrity of the Empire. On the measure for increasing the revenue there was division of opinion and debate. Liberal leaders denied in part that there was necessity for the new taxes, which were also assailed as burdensome and oppressive. and those collected through the customs service were further condemned as injurious to the trade of Great Britain. In spite of hostile criticism and in spite of the facts that new taxes are more than ordinarily disliked in times of trade slowness, the country has apparently accepted the situation and will make the best of it while it and the war lasts. Perhaps this is more natural because. while criticising the proposals made by the Government, the Opposition offered no suggestion as to what. were it put in power, it would substitute for thc imposts its representatives so condemned. The country. when its interest is aroused in a great issue, sees above and beyond the criticism put forth for crltlcism’s sake and forms its judgment on the merits of a measure or a policy; and in this case the Government can abide the result with confidence. it was a session of scandals, scandals with some foundation. but exaggerated far beyond their foundation. As an exchange well say: “History hardly goes back to ;the time when men were not found to grasp the opportun- ity oi war for making profit at the soidier's expense. These harpies at times have disgraced every country. lt was not to be expected that Canada would escape them now." But amid all that was exposed and all that was said about what was exposed, one wholesome fact, stood out. The grabbers had no friends of -influence. Neither ln the couutry nor in Parliament did anyone arise to defend or palliate what was clearly wrong. On this matter, as on the vote for war service, the country and Parliament spoke with one voice. And on the last. day of the session the Prime Minister passed a censure upon two members of the House of Commons. elected as his supporters, that should have the effect of compelling their retirement from public life. There has been given the promise, also, that if it can be established in the courts that men deliberately undertook to defraud the country in connection with the purchase of supplie,an effort will be m ade to put them be- hind the walls of a penltentiary. This. was in pleasing and promising contrast to former methods when, if a supporter came under suspicion his political friends rush- ed io his rescue and endeavored to cover up his guilt. It was fitting that when so many of our fellow countrymen were risking their lives for the Empire the ghouls who attempted to profit by the war should be brought to book. Premier Borden and his ministers, without exception may well look back upon the session with pride and satisfaction. They have all added to their laurels and have entrenched themselves more securely than ever in the confidence of the people. Notes A The "Sllll¢l8," have caused the greatest stir in Halifax slime me Will began- The good impression they have made in their first appearance will be deepened on further acquaintance for the contingent under Captain McKinnon and Lieut Bayer is just as good s bunch of fellows and smart soldiers as will be found anywhere in this broad dominion. -_-_...__ The Patriot is still sadly befogged in its attempts to criticize the Government's surplus. It argues that had the Government paid indebtedness not due till 1915 it would have had a deficit. This fs on a par with Mr. Rlchard's .sage peroration that had the present Government the same revenue as the Liberal Government and had they insisted Dll Spending at the same rate as they now do, the deficit would have been enormous. -_.___ But due after another they (the German warshi s) ll have all gone-into hiding or into the depths. And the triumph of England's sea power is complete. Once more Brltannia>ls undisputed mistress of the seas. Only the submarines, stealthy and unseen. occasionally strike a quick, nervous blow and run for cover. The battle fleet that cost Germany hundreds of millions of dollars has hidden since the first day of the war. Engla'nd's navy is slowly strangllng her to death. That is the answer to lh0 fluestlon, “What has I3ngland's navy done?"-New York Press. . --*A0-_-_.___ Avlators' raids from Germany over Great Britain are |ll°l'°B8|llB ill ffetlllellcy. and possibly will be continued. The old observation that they do not give returns equal to the risk run hy those in chsrgo of the craft still applies, and ls likely to apply all throughdile war. Psris, which first of the larger cities suffered from their attacks. soon came to regard them with curiosity rather than terror, and English communities within their .zone of operation are Billmon!!! passing _through the some experience. Even ln s closely built city the unoccupied ground is greater thsn that actually covered by buildings. md after it is- droppod it ll a msttor' of chance whether s bomb will fsll on s housror in s or I yard. and wherever it strikes bf them- sro llltot-' ., v. over the r upon cooling 'generation professor of biology ,S The oafuusrlag blockade sllorift mischief elosrsllhtodnlll. not of judgment and depthof `Thst into the next generation sud the next will psy` ' _ for the present war. As the average stature of the people. of Central Europe is now given ss five feet five inches, it would be most unfortunate if any sucn physical result should follow the war. And of course, a lowering of the Premlor Borden ln Statement at Closing Sitting of House of Commons, general intelligence would be still more deplorable. c|“,.|y 3,” |,-'nh °°"mm.M.. P°’m°” M R`.-mm” t° ‘Thou ‘mm With s considerable percentage of the most physically ` '» ‘ ’ 1 t P , fit men ln so many of the European countries engaged in H." sum" ° 'PM u”'*ll‘|¥ ln War contracts the war Dr. Walter’s conclusion is perhaps anatural one. """'**--#.- b er the making of provision for revenue to pay in- lu the House of Commons after Mr H B Morphy had moved that the final report of the Public Accounts Committee be adopted, Sir Robert Borden rose to speak. He pointed out that the committee had been engaged in investigating matters not yet re- ported by the auditor general tg the House, and these therefore were un- der consideratlon a year in advance of the timethey would be considered un- der ordlhary circumstances. Certain correspondence had been moved for and brought down in the I-louse. lt was suggested that it should be refer- red to the committee for investigation. There were two courses open to the Government. They might have relied on technical consideration and rules and declared to the House that such' matters ought to be investigstedin the usual manner. The other course. and the one they thought the right course. was no throw open wide the doors for investigation and inquiry. They deem- ed it only right and their duty to in- vestigate and to find out if any frauds had been perpetrated on the Govern- ment. They understood in so doing that there was only one possible result. Bc- cause. if any matters were brought forth, the natural result would he that the facts would be magnified and the public would be excited. But these considerations should not weigh with any government and they did not weigh with him. “My directions," declared the Prime Minister. “to the members of the Gov- ernment on the Public Accounts Com- mittee were to make the fullest pos- sible inquiry. That cour-se has been pursued to the fullest extent." DREW PARALLEL WlTH PREDECE- 88085. Sir Robert said he would like to re- mark in passing that this was not the course followed during the sixteen years preceding his Government's com- ing into power. 'From the time of the hrst inquiry' in 1898. down to the last inquiry into the N. T. R., there was at refusal for proper investigation and a disposition to restrict investigations within the narrowest possible confines. Sir Robert drew attention to reso- lutions asking for further and fuller inquiry in the Public Accounts Com- mittee voted down by the Liberals at various times, and also quoted testi- mony before the committee to show how they had blocked inquiry and shielded witnesses. He quoted one case where an important witness was protected, when Hon. W. S. Fielding and the Minister of Justice were both present and aided in preventing fron and full inquiry. . "If there was any wrong doing ` in connection with the public accounts the members of the government, and particularly myself and the Minister of Militia. wanted to know it. I spoke to the Minister of Customs, a mem- ber of the committee, ln the presence of the Minister of Militia, and he most heartily endorsed my views that we wanted an inquiry of thc widest scope and we proposed if wrong do- ing was discovered to compel restitu- ll0ll and to prosecute.” Sir Robert then quoted from the re- ports of the committee to show that time and again the Minister of Cus- toms had repeated that these were his instructions and he had pursued these instructions to the last. DIBBELIEVES COL. JONES MADE STATEMENT. The Prime Minister, referred to the case of young Powell. the clerk of %HhM hlutr snscnons For srltnrns or me eunnml _¢_v.s- Furnlohsd liy .\ilI. I. Louson. BE JOYFUL. (By Walt Mason.) You'd better be joking than kiekllll or croaking, you'd better be saying that life is u joy,' than folks will ca- ress you and praise you and bless you, and say you’rc A peach and s broth of a boy. Yon'd better M M160- .ry, not _drooling and dreary, from the time you get up till you go to your couch; or lo will-hate you and roost and bers you-they don't .like the msn the hangover grouch. You’d be 'leaving tho groaning and Wll0 have 'woes of know that your as bubbles, they are of a colicky mind. while UUIII, IUIU' | IH’ 6050 the Carleton Drug Co., turned first to the statement of Shaver. the represen- tative of the Chicago Drug.Co., that he was informed by Col. Jones, dir- ector ofgmedlcal service. that the Government did not desire to purch- ase direct from the manufacturers and; producers, but through middleman.. The evidence given by the director of contracts. the Deputy Minister, Quar- termaster General and other officials of the Militia Department, all was that no such principle had been laid '_(Contlnued on page even.) TIIE VIII! PLEDGE Sir.- The inauguration of the move- ment for total abstinence during the war at Sunday nlght’s splendid meet- ing in the Drill Shed and the earnest eloquent and enthusiastic addresses de- livered by His Lordship the Bishop of Charlottetown. Premier Mathieson. Revds. Canon Simpson, J. L. Dawson and Dr. Fullerton must be very grati- fying to every P“F\'I°' uc citizen and particularly so to every Temperance W0l‘kel` Bild friend of temperance throughout the Province. With such a capsule. 8Ctl\€ and energetic organization. commit.ee as the gentleman above named ami those whom they will associate with them in the work, a united press and theundlvlded sympathy and sulllwrt of all creeds and classes. U10 Success ot’ the movement is assured. Never before in the history of our Province was such an opportunity given Olll' Clergymen to enrol their congrega- tion under the temDBl'llll¢0 \la““°l` and drive King Alcohol from our. shores. never again to return to , spread want. misery and suffering throughout the land or destroy by ills blighting presence the peaceful, hap- py, prosperous homes of our people. The present total abstinence move- ment if carried to a successful issue. as I have no doubt it will be, will form the brightest page in the history of our fair Province, a page which will be read with pleasure and pride by the. children yet unborn. From Sun- day night's meeting I gathered that the voluntary abstinence pledge will be signed by the different denomina- tions in their respective ch\ll‘Ch€B~ Then, I would say. let there be “1a“d` able circulation among the