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* K r r p f : r f r v^ f THE McHENRY PLAINDEALER, McHENRY, TL& ?Wv ^ 'J ;| Wm WILSON DEMANDS 3 WAR ON AUSTRIA S% ' • '• * j '0 ' i $ ' fn • . * JtosHfent Declares Our Sole Ob­ ject Now Is to Win I the War. V 'l UNITED TO GAIN VICTORY Cvery Resource of the Nation Must . Be Co-ordinated In the One Object t» Pursue the War to Ultimate V and Complete Victory. Washington, Dec. 4.--President Wil­ ton In his message to congress pledged America to war to victory and asked that Austria-Hungary be listed among America's enemies to remove this "em­ barrassing obstacle that stands in our way." The message follows: "Gentlemen of the Congress--Rtght months have elapsed since I last had the honor of addressing you. They have been months crowded with events of immense and grave significance for us. 1 shall undertake to detail or even to summarize these events. The prac­ tical particulars of the part we have played in them will be laid before you In the reports of the executive depart­ ments. I shall discuss only our pres­ ent outlook upon these vast afTairs, our present duties, and the Immediate means of accomplishing the objects we shall hold always in view. "I shall not go back to debate the causes of the war. The intolerable wrongs done and planned against us by the sinister masters of Germany have long since become too grossly obvious and odious to every true Amer­ ican > to need to be rehearsed. But I shall ask you to consider again and with a very grave scrutiny our objec­ tives and the measures by which we mean to attain them; for the purpose of discussion here in this place is ac­ tion, and our action must move straight towards definite ends, f Must Win the War. ' "Our object is, "of course, to, win the war; and we shall not slacken or suf­ fer ourselves to be^diverted until it is won. But it is worth while asking and answering the question: When shall we consider the war won? i "From one point of view it is not necessary to broach this fundamental matter. I do not doubt that the Amer­ ican, people know what the war is about and what Sort of an outcome they will regard as a realization of their purpose in it. As a nation we are united in spirit and intention. I pay little heed to those who tell me otherwise. I hear the voices of dis­ sent--who does not? I hear the criti­ cism and the clamour of the noisy, thoughtless and troublesome. I also see men here and there fling them­ selves in impotent disloyalty against the calm, indomitable power of the na­ tion. I hear men debate peace who underrtand neither its nature nor the way ic which we obtain it with uplift­ ed eye* and unbroken spirits. But I known that none of these speaks for the nation. They do not touch the heart of anything. They may safely be left to strut their uneasy hour and be forgotten. [ Ne Peace by Compromise. "But from another point of view I believe that it is necessary to say plainly what we here at the seat of ac­ tion consider the war to be for and •what part we mean to play In the set­ tlement of its searching Issues. "We are the spokesmen of the Amer­ ican people, and they have a right to know whether their purpose is oars. They desire peace by the overcoming of evil, by the defeat once for all of the sinister forces that interrupt peace and render It impossible, and they wish to know how closely our thought runs with theirs, and what ac­ tion we propose. They are impatient with those who desire peace by any sort of compromise--deeply and Indig­ nantly impatient--but they will f>e equally impatient with us If we do not imake it plain to them what our ob­ jectives are and what we are planning for in seeking to make conquest of peace by arms. Menace Mutt Be Crushed. ' "I believe that I speali for them when I say two things: First, that this Intolerable thing of which the masters of Germany have shown us the ugly face, this menace of com­ bined intrigue and force which we nota see so clearly as the German power, a Thing without! conscience or honor or capacity for covenanted peace, must be crushed and, If It is not utterly brought to an end, at least shut out from the friendly Intercourse of the nations; and, second, when this Thing and its power are indeed defeated and the time comes that we can discuss peace---when the German people have spokesmen whose words we can be­ lieve and when those spokesmen are ready in the name of their people , to accept the common judgment of the nations as to what shall hence­ forth be the bases of law and of cov- DATA ON WOMEN'S WAR WORK Committee on Public Information £a- tablithes Bureau to Gather Information. Washington. -- The committee on public Information at Washington has Inaugurated a new branch of Its serv­ ice, which is to serve as a bureau of Information on ail woman's war ac­ tivities. V- The r.ew bureau is acting Is a cen­ tralised medium of communication be- CHANCE FOR LEATHER EXPERT HBmfit Britairi'V Regulations Require ^ Lightning Judgment of Stoifek it jknd Values. London.--Government regulations in the leather trade have become so in­ tricate that one of the leading manu­ facturers has tlie following advertise­ ment In the imst issue of the British .ghoe and Leather Record; "Wanted --- A superman; to read tbivugb duty fill to government forms. enant for the life of the world--we shall be willing and glad to pay the full price for peace, and1 pay it un­ grudgingly. We know what that price will be.< It will be full, Impartial jus­ tice--justice done at every point and to every nation that, the final settle­ ment must affect? our enemies as well as our friends. * Final and Convincing Lessen. "You catch with me. the voices of humanity that are in the air. They grow daily more audible, more articu­ late, more persuasive, and they come from the*5 hearts of men everywhere. They insist that the War shall not end in vindictive action of any kind; that no nation or people shall be robbed or punished because the Irresponsible rulers of a single country have them­ selves done deep and damnable wrong. It is this thought that has been ex­ pressed in the formula 'No annexa­ tions, no contributions, no punitive in­ demnities.* Just because this crude formula expresses the instinctive judg­ ment as, to right of plain men every­ where, it has been made diligent use of by the masters of German intrigue to lead the people of Russia astray-- and the people of every country their agents could reach. In order that a premature peace might be brought about before autocracy has been taught its final and convincing lesson, and the people of the world put in control of their own destinies." Right as the Arbiter. "But the fact that a wrong use has been made of a just idea Is no reason why a right use should not be made of It. It ought to be brought under the patronage of its real friends. Let It be said again that autocracy must first be shown the utter futility of Its claims to power or leadership in the modern world. It is impossible to apply any standard of justice so long as such forces are unchecked and undefeated as the present masters of Germany command. Not until this has been done can Right be set up as arbiter and peacemaker among the nations. But when that has been dope--as, God willing, It assuredly will be--we shall at last be free to do an unprecedented thing, and this the time to avow our purpose to do It. We shall be free to base peace on generosity and justice, to the exclusion of all selfish claims to advantage even on the part of the vic­ tors. • To Win War Our Present Task. "Let there be no misunderstanding. Our present apd immediate task Is to win the war, and nothing shall turn us aside from it nntll It is accomplished. Every power and resource we possess, whether of men, of money, or of ma­ terials, is being devoted and will con­ tinue to be devoted to that purpose until it Is achieved. Those who de­ sire to bring peace abo»:t before that purpose Is achieved I counsel to carry their advice elsewhere. We will not entertain It. We shall regard the war as won only when the German people say to us, through properly accredited representatives, -that they are ready to agree to a settlement based upon jus­ tice and the reparation of the wrongs their rulers - have done. They have done a wrong to Belgium which must be repaired. They have established a power over other lands and people than their own--over the great empire of Austria-Hungary, other hitherto free Balkan states, over Turkey, and within Asia--which must be relinquished. Must End German Autocracy. "Germany's success by skill, by in­ dustry, by knowledge, by enterprise, we did not grudge or oppose, but ad­ mired, rather. She had built up for herself a real empire of trade and in­ fluence, secured by the peace of the world. We were content to abide the rivalries of manufacture, science and commerce that were involved for us In her success and stand or fall as we had or did not have the brains and the initiative to surpass her. But at the moment when she had conspicuously won her triumphs of peace she threw them away, to establish in their stead what the world will no longer permit to be established, military and political domination by arms, by which to oust where she could not excel the rivals she most feared and hated. The peace we make must remedy that wrong. It must deliver the once fair lands and happy peoples of Belgitftn and north­ ern France from the Prussian conquest and the Prussian menace, but it must also deliver the peoples of Austria- Hungary. the peoples of the Balkans, 'and the peoples of Turkey, alike in Europe and in Asia, from the impudent and alien dominion of the Prussian military and commercial autocracy. To Manage Their Own Affaire. "We owe it, however, to nnrselvpR to say that we do not wish in any way to impair or to re-arrange the Austro- Hungarlan empire. It is no affair of ours what,they do with (heir own life, either industrially or politically. We do not purpose or desire to dictate to them in any way. We only desire to see that their affairs are left in their l own hands. In all matters, great or^ small. We shall hope to secure for the peoples of the Balkan peninsula and i for the people of the Turkish empire the right and opportunity to make their own lives safe; their own for­ tunes secure against oppression or in­ justice and free from the dictation of foreign courts or parties. "And our attitude and ptirpose with tween writers and the publicity bu­ reaus of permanent and emergency or­ ganizations dealing with activities 'of women.-. It has secured lists of the personnel of every organization which Is conducting women's war work In the United States, and of every com­ mittee and subcommittee under these organizations.. The new office is collecting, compil­ ing, collating and cataloguing all mat­ ter relating to women's war work, and will disseminate this Information through the press. It will also place Must be capable of marshaling figures, arriving at results and working out decimals with microscopic exactness and lightning rapidity. "Successful applicant must possess the patience of Job and the Infallibil­ ity of a pope, must be endowed with miraculous powers, capable of judging at sight with mathematical precision exact quantities, weights, qualities, sizes and' value of thousands of boots in various stages of manufacture. He must have Inexhaustible energy and be capable of working 24 hours a day rpgard to Ger.uany herself are of a like kind. We intend no wrong against the German empire; no Interference with her internal affairs. We should deem either the one or the other ab­ solutely unjustifiable, absolutely con­ trary to the principles we have pro-1 fessed to live by and to hold most sacred throughout our life as a na­ tion. German People Deceived. "The people of Germany are being told by the men whom they now per­ mit to deceive them and to act as their masters that they are fighting for the very life and existence of their em­ pire; a war of desperate self-defense against deliberate aggression. Nothing could be more grossly or wantonly false, and we must seek by the ut­ most openness and candor as to our real alms to convince them of its false­ ness. We are In fact fighting for their emancipation from fear, along with our own--from the fear as well as from the fact of unjust attack by neighbors or rivals or schemers after world empire. No one is threaten­ ing the existence of or the indepen­ dence or the peaceful enterprise of th German empire. Not Again to Be Trusted. "The worst that cam happen to the German people, is this, that If they should still, after the1 war is over," continue to be obligated to live under ambitious and Intriguing masters in­ terested to disturb the peace of the world, men or classes of men whom the other peoples of the world could not trust, It might be impossible to admit them to the partnership of nations which must henceforth guarantee the world's peace. That partnership must be a partnership of peoples, not a mere partnership of governments. It might be impossible, also, in such untoward circumstances, to admit Germany to the free economic Intercourse which must Inevitably spring out of the other partnerships of a real peace. But there would be no aggression in that; and such a* situation, Inevitable be­ cause of distrust, would in the very nature of things sooner or later cure itself, by processes which would as­ suredly set in. Wrongs Must Be Righted. "The wrongs, the very deep wrongs, committed in this war will have to be righted. That of course. But they cannot and must not be righted by the commission of similar wrongs against Germany and her allies. "The world will not permit the com­ mission of similar wrongs as a means of reparation and settlement. States­ men must by this time have learned that, the opinion of the world Is every­ where wide awake and fully compre­ hends the issues involved. No repre­ sentative of any self-governed nation will dare disregard It by attempting any such covenants of selfishness and compromise as were entered into at the congress of Vienna. The thought of the plain people here and everywhere throughout the world, the people who enjoy no privilege and have very sim­ ple and unsophisticated standards of right and wrong, is the air all govern­ ments must henceforth breathe if they would live. It is in the full disclos­ ing light of that thought that all poli­ cies must be conceived and executed In this mid-day hour of the world's life. People Have No Say. "German rulers have been able to up­ set the peace of the world only because the German people were not suffered under their tutelage to share the com­ radeship of the other peoples of the world either In thought or in purpose. They were allowed to have no opinion of their own which might be set up as a rule of conduct for those who exer­ cised authority over them. But the congress that concludes this war will feel tfie full strength of the tides that run now In the hearts and consciences of freedom everywhere. Its conclu­ sions will run with these tides. "All these things have been true from the very beginning of this stu­ pendous war; and I cannot help think­ ing that if they had been made plain at the very outset the sympathy and enthusiasm of the Russian people might have been once for all enlisted on the side of the allies, suspicion and distrust swept away, and a real and lasting union .of purpose effected. Had they believed these things at the very moment of their revolution and had they been confirmed In that belief since, the sad reverses which have re­ cently marked the progress of their affairs towards an ordered and stable government of freemen might have been avoided. "The Russian people have been poisoned b.v the very same falsehoods that have kept the German people In the dark, and the poison has been ad­ ministered by the very same hands. The only possible antidote is the truth. It cannot be uttered too plainly or too often. Freedom of the Seat. "From every point of view, there­ fore. It has sealed to be my duty to speak these declarations of purpose, to add these specific interpretations to what I took the liberty of saying to the senate in January. Our entrance Into the war has not altered our attitude towards the settlement that must come when it is over. When I said in Janu­ ary that the nations of the world were entitled not only to free pathways up- Its files at the disposal of the general public. The direct object in estab­ lishing the new bureau is to provide a live and efficient clearing house of information concerning war work be­ ing done by women. Youth No Bar to Love. Leander, Tex.--Quite a youthful wedding occurred here recently, the bridegroom being nineteen years old nnd wearing knee pants and the bride being sixteen years old and wearing short dresses. for weeks on end. Sleeping and meal tlmfl will be allowed him after the war." on the sea but also to assured and un­ molested access Jo those pathways I was thinking, atia I am thinking n6w, not of the smaller and weaker nations alone, which need our countenance and support, but also of the great and pow­ erful nations, and of our present ene­ mies as well as our present "associates in the war. I was thinking, and am thinking now, of Austria herself, among the rest, £S well as.of Serbia and of Holand. Justice and equality of rights can be had only at a great price. We are seeking permanent, not temporary, foundations for the peace of the world and must seek this can­ didly nnd fearlessly. As always, the right wtlj prove to be expedient. Declare War on Austria. "What shall we do, then, to push this great war of freedom and just to Its righteous conclusion? We must clear away with a thorough hand all impediments to success and we must make every adjustment of law that will facilitate the full and free use of our whole capacity and force as a fighting unit. "One very embarrassing obstacle that stands in our way is that we are at war with Germany but not with her allies. I, therefore, very earnestly rec­ ommend that the congress immediately declare the United States In a state of war with Austria-Hungary. Does it seem strange to you that this should be the conclusion of the argument I have just addressed to you ? It is not. It Is In fact the inevitable logic of what I have said. Austria-Hungary is for the time being not her own mis­ tress,5 but simply the vassal of the German government: We must face the facts as they are and act upon them without sentiment in this stern business. The government of Austria- Hungary is not acting upon its own initiative or in response to the wishes and feelings of its own peoples, but as the instrument of another nation. We must meet its force with our own and regard the central powers as but one. The war can be successfully conducted in no other way. At to Turkey and Bulgaria. "The same logic would lead also to a declaration of war against Turkey and Bulgaria. They also are the tools of Germany. But they are mere tools and do not yet stand In the direct path of our necessary action. 'We shall go wherever the necessities of this war carry us, but It seems to me that we should go only where Immediate and practical considerations land us and not heed any others. "The financial and military meas­ ures which must be adopted will sug­ gest themselves as the war and Its un­ dertakings develop, but I will take the liberty of proposing to you certain other acts of legislation which seem to me to be needed for the support of the war and for the release of our whole force and energy. "It will be necessary to extend in certain particulars the legislation of the last session with regard to alien enemies; and also necessary, I be­ lieve, to create a very definite and particular control over the entrance and departure of all persons Into and from the United States. "Legislation should be enacted de­ fining as a criminal offense every willful violation of the presidential proclama­ tions relating to alien enemies promul­ gated under section 4067 of the Re­ vised Statutes and providing appropri­ ate punishments; and women as well as men, should be included under the terms of the acts placing restraints upon alien enemies. It Is likely that as time goes on many alien enemies Will be willing to be fed and housed at the expense of the. government in the detention camps, and It would be the purpose of legislation I have sug­ gested to confine offenders among them in penitentiaries and other sim­ ilar institutions where they could be made to "work as other, criminals do« Go Further in Fixing Prices. * "Recent experience has convinced me that the congress must go further in authorizing the government to set limits to prices. The law of supply and demand, I am sorry to say. has been replaced by the law of unrestrain­ ed selfishness. While we have elim­ inated profiteering lu several branches of industry, it still runs impudently rampant In others. The farmers, for example, complain with a great deal of justice, that while the regulation of food prices restricts their incomes, no restraints are placed upon the prices of most of the things tliey must them­ selves purchase, and similar iniquities obtain on all sides. "It is imperatively necessary that the consideration of the full use of the water power of the country and also the consideration of the systematic and yet economical development of such of the natural resources of the country as are still under ,the control of the federal government should he Immediately resumed and affirmatively and constructively dealt with at the earliest possible moment. The press­ ing need of such legislation^ dally be­ coming more obvious. A Word to the Lawmakers. "The legislation proposed at the last session with regard to regulated com­ binations among our exporters, in or­ der to provide for our foreign trade a more effective organization and meth­ od of co-operation, ought by all means to be completed at this session. BRITONS OFFER CUPID BRIBE Old Man Drives Auto. Smith Center, Kan.--Word has come back that John Rochford, seventy-five years old, has reached the home of a daughter In Everett, Wash., after the long journey alone, from this place in a motorcar. He went through Iowa. Minnesota and;the Dakotas and during the entire trip*%lept at night In a tent he had along." Government Grant Additional Income Exemption of $250 to Encourage Marriage. London--When the British govern­ ment Is contemplating granting an In­ come tax exemption of $250 a year to married men does it mean they figure the upkeep of a wife at that amount? British wives are wondering if friend hubby is going to make them keep thvlr lingerie, candy, theater and other GENERAL'S SON IS A PRIVATE \ Young 8ibert Enlisted in the Army Without Knowledge of , Family. San Francisco.--The' Identity of Pri­ vate Martin D. Sibert, Twelfth United State infantry, increased greatly In prestige today following the discovery that he Is the son of Major General William L. Sibert. Young Sibert, without the knowledge of his family, enlisted at Manhattan, "And I beg that the members of the house of representatives will permit me to express the opinion that it will be impossible to deal In any but a very wasteful and extravagant fashion wltji the enormous appropriations of the public moneys which must continue to be made. If the war Is to be properly sustained, unless the house will con­ sent to return to Its former practice of initiating and preparing all appro­ priation bills through a single commit­ tee, in order that responsibility may be centered, expenditures standardised and made uniform and waste and du­ plication as much as possible avolded- "Additlonal legislation may also be­ come necessary before the present con­ gress again adjourns in order to effect the most efficient co-ordination and op­ eration of the railway and other trans­ portation systems of the country; but to that I shall, if circumstances should demand, call the attention of the con­ gress upon another occasion. Concentrate on Winning War. *lf I have overlooked anything that ought to be done for the more effective conduct of the war, your own counsels will supply the omission. What I am perfectly clear about is that in the present session of the congress our whole attention and energy should be concentrated on the vigorous, rapid and successful prosecution of the great task of winning the war. "W*e can do this with all the greater zeal and enthusiasm because we know that for us this as a war of high prin­ ciple. debased by no selfish ambition of conquest or spoliation; because we know, and all the world knows, that we have been forced Into it to save the very Institutions we live under from corruption and destruction. The pur­ poses of the central powers strike straight at the very heart of every­ thing we believe in; their methods of warfare outr.ige every principle of hu­ manity and of knightly honor; their Intrigue has corrupted the very thought and spirit of many of our people; their sinister and secret diplo­ macy has sought to take our very ter­ ritory away from us and disrupt the union of the states. Our safety would be at an end, our honor forever sullied and brought Into contempt were we to permit their triumph. They are strik­ ing at the very existence of democracy and liberty. Cause Is Just and Holy. "It Is because it is for us a war of high, disinterested purpose, in which all the free peoples of the world are banded together for the vindication of right, a war for the pretervatlon of our nation, and of all that It has held dear of principle and of purpose, that we felt ourselves doubly constrained to purpose for Its outcome only that which Is righteous and of Irreproach­ able lutentlon, for our foes as well as for our friends. The cause being just and holy, the settlement must be of like motive and quality. For this we can fight, but for nothing less noble or less worthy of our traditions. For this cause we entered the war and for this cause will we battle until the last gun Is fired. "I have spoken plainly, because this seems to me the time when it is most necessary to speak plainly, In order that all the world may know that even in the heat and ardor of the struggle and when our whole thought Is of carrying the war through to its end we have not forgotten any Ideal or principle for which the name of Amer­ ica has been held in honor ainong the nations and for which It has been our glory to contend in the great genera­ tions that went before us. A supreme moment of history has come. The eyes of the people have been opened, and they see. The hand of God Is laid upon the nations. He will show them favor. I devoutly believe, only if they rise to the clear heights of his own Justice and mercy." The Mystery Explained. Clifton Hess, nn employee of the Pennsylvania railroad at Shelbyvllle, Ind„ relates" the .Indianapolis News, looked out the window of the freight depot the other day and noticed a woman. A half hour later he looked again and still saw the woman. She had changed her position only slightly, moving down the railroad track a few feet. She seemed to be strolling leis­ urely along, covering about a foot a minute. Curious to determine the reason for her actions, Hess walked outside to get a better view. Then it was all explained. The woman had a big Rhode Island Red rooster with a string tied to his leg. There had evidently been a leaky car of wheat «ir»n«» the railroad, and the rooster, ob­ livious to all else, was calmly filling his craw while the woman kepjt up with the procession. Later on during the day the good news must have spread, for there ap­ peared on the scene several other chickens with owners attached to them by strings. As the ground be­ came clean the procession slowly moved from view. Punishment for Greedy Millers. The uilliing committee of the food administration recently announced that it will punish flour millers who boost their profits above the figures ap­ proved by Commissioner Hoover. personal expenses within that amount, But. speaking seriously, the govern­ ment's contemplated change is said to be Inspired mainly by the desire to en­ courage marriage. Post-war man-pow­ er is dully becoming a mutter of more serious consideration. He Got Them. The Major--A penny fa!* your thoughts, Johnny. Johnny--That'll leave me four cents short. I was thlnkln' of goln' to the movies. Kan., and will be written down as un- assiuned recruit for service In the Phil­ ippines. When his paternity was dis­ covered he was sent to the Twelfth Infantry as a full fledged private. Si­ bert Is Just old enough to qualify for service, It was said. DAWN OF ILLINOIS' CENTENNIAL YEAR Event Is Properly Observed With Banquet at Spring­ field. SPEAKERS PLEDGE LOYALTY Skeptical. "Say, can our new preacher preach without notes. Si?" "I hope so, Eph. I hope I aln' a goin' to be asked to endorse an fer him." Patriotism Marks Ceremonies Attend­ ed by State Officials--Celebration of Historic Event Planned for Next Year. 'Springfield. -- Illinois is in this war for a fight to the finish, with no quarter asked or given. The state supports the government in the prosecution of the war with her men and her resources to the utmost limit. Her people are dedicated to a unity of patriotic action that admits of no. criti­ cism OF question. ' That is the message that Illinois sent out to the nation and to the world as the state's centennial year plat­ form. ; Illinois was admitted to the federal Union ninety-nine years ago, At one of the most notable' functions in the str.te's history the one hundredth year of statehood was Inaugurated. 200,000 Men Under Arms. With 2(H),000 of the state's own sons under arms In a half-dozen army camps, It was no time for mirth or laughtej-. Governor Lowden and three of the four living ex-governors--former Governor Deneen failed to be present --and 500 men and women represent­ ing each of the counties of the state approached the birth of the eentennKl year with a spirit that was almost de­ votional. From the moment Governor Xowden opened the oratory as toastmaster the dominant idea was that Illinois enters upon a year of sacrifice and of stimu­ lation to duty that Is demanded by the history of her ninety-nine years; by the record of the men of Illinois in Mexico and In the Civil and Spanish- American wars; by the lives of Liu- coln and Grant. It was this feeling that the repre­ sentatives of the counties were asked to take back home with them in ar­ ranging for the local and county ob­ servances of the centennial year that will come to a climax with the state pageant and formal celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the state's birth in Springfield a year hence. Notable Men Attend. All of the state officers, the full bench of the Illinois supreme court, committees representing the senate and house of representatives of the general assembly, many of "the judges and county ofticluls from over Illinois and scores of the state's best-known men In private life were at the tables, Joseph W. Fifer of Bloomlngton, "Private Joe," who was governor from 1888 to 1892; Richard Yates of Spring­ field, executive from 1900 to 1904, and Edward F- Dunne of Chicago, Gover­ nor Lowden's immediate predecessor, were the speakers of the evening. Plans for Next Year. The centennial of the state will be observed during 1918 under the direc­ tion of the centennial commission. The $50,000 statue of Abraham Lincoln, made by Andrew O'Connor of Worces­ ter, Mass., nnd the $25,000 statue of Stephen A. Douglas, made by C. P. Riswold of Chicago, will he unveiled as features of the celebration.. . These statues ure being erected on the state house lawn. The cornerstone of a mil­ lion-dollar memorial building will be luid, a state centennial exposition will be held and a ceremonial, to which the incident of the United States, gover­ nors of other states and diplomats from foreign countries will be invited, are -other events scheduled to occur early in the fall. In addition there will be local celebrations in every county of the state. The Chicago Commercial association Is taking lip plans for a celebration in Chicago. State Tax Rate. The state tax rate for Illinois has been fixed at 90 cents. This figure Is an increase of 10 cents over last year and Is the exact rate urged by Gover­ nor Lowden upon the outgoing admin­ istration last December, previous to his inuuguratiou. From the rate made, 63% cents will go to the general reve­ nue fund and the remainder to the uni­ versity. schools and waterway funds. The increased tax rate fixed this week is not merely Cor future expenses of the state, but also to make up a defi­ ciency In revenues created before the appropriations for-tUe-hieuninm 1917- 19 came into effect. Tax Amendment Failed. «' The decision of the supreme court that the tax amendment voted on at the lust general elejttlon did not pass is final. Grants Permit to Company. The state public utilities has granted permission to the Urbana-Champaigni Railway, Gas and Electric company to Issue $137,000 of its capital stock. The commission also granted permission to the Danville Street Railway and Light company to Issue $81,000 in gold bonds, and the Decatur Railway and Light company to issue $150,000 bonds. The Southern Railway company of Illinois was. granted permission to purchase from the Southern Railway company of Virginia all railroad property, lands, lots, etc., iu Illinois. Help Conserve Fuel Supply. "Every consumer of fuel," says the federal fuel administrator of Illinois, "must realize how vitally his interest and comfort depend upon the efficiency and self-sacrificing patriotism of the local fuel committeemen of his county. The fuel situation in many localities during the coming winter will make heavy deiusuids on the good citixeus who have assumed this burden of re­ sponsibility. The fuel administrator is keenly anxious that in every district ; here should be at least one man on the committee to assume full charge. War Savings Plan. ^ ^' The war-saving plan provided for In- ^ the bond act of September 24, 1917„ r> Sw­ ims been formulated and announced ,d| by the treasury department, and went -^§1 Into operation on Monday, Decern- ^fl ber 3. . The plan pnts it easily In reach of every American citizen to save money .1 rj and at the same time aid the govern- v ment by supplying it with the sinew* ' of war. fn Two Denominations. . |?f| Stamps, which are the government** : ̂ certificates of indebtedness, are to be sold in two denominations--thrift- <1>| stamps which cost 25 cents each, and »' r. j war-saving stamps, which cost from . $4.12 to $4.23 each, according to the -*| month in which they are purchased. ^ u With the first thrift stamp the pur- s,® chaser Is given a thrift card with , spaces for 16 stamps. When 16 thrift ^ stamps have been purchased and af- fixed the thrift card can be exchanged for a war-savings stamp by paying the * * J difference between the $4 the thrift stamps represent and the current value of a war-savings stamp, which In De­ cember, 1917. and January, 1918, will be $4.12, and thereafter 1 cent for each succeeding month -during the year 1918. , Exchange Thrift for Savings. With the first war-saving*' stamps obtained by purchase or exchange the owner Is given a war-savings certifi­ cate containing spaces for 20 war-sav­ ings stamps. If the 20 spaces q$e filled during December, 1917, or Janu­ ary, 1918, the cost to the purchaser will be $4.12 for each stamp, or $82.40 for the full certificate, and on the first of January, 1923, the government will redeem the certificate at $100, giving, the holder a net profit of $17.60 lot the use of his money. Maturing January, 1923. Although these Investments do not mature until January 1, 1923, provi­ sion is made whereby upon ten days* written notice after January 1, 1918, such certificates will be redeemed by postmasters at their cost to purchasers plus 1 cent a month on each war-sav- V " Jy ings stamp on the certificate. %^ New Tax Valuation. • jj Showing an increase of $211,776,668 ;*1 over 1916 in assessment of lands in , - Illinois, the state board of equalize- . "l!m tlon before adjournment announced M the new assessed valuation of property In the stgte. Substantial increases 't were given to many of the large Chi- . ^ cago public utility corporations. St. • 'I Clair county companies were also ma- ^ terially affected. A special increase of . , - 1 per cent was ordered In the coun- h ^ ties of Carroll, Jo Daviess, Stevenson, Whiteside, Henderson, Douglas, ' Brown, Calhoun. Cass. Greene. Jersey, ^ Mason, Menaord, Morgan, Pike, Scott, j Christian, Macoupin, Montgomery, i 'j- Sangamon, Clinton, Crawford, Effing- ham, Fayette, Jasper, Jefferson, Law­ rence Marion and Wabash. Richland county receives a 10 per cent increase. An increase of 4 per cent in Gallatin and Jackson counties was ordered, Lee and Ogle counties get a reduction of 1 per cent and Saline county a re­ duction of 5. A- uniform raise of 3 per cent on the equalized values of all lands of the state was ordered which alone means an Increase of $63,071,388. The total valuations with increases for the state are as follows: Town and city lots, $3,210,958,725; personal prop­ erty, $1,620,177,909; lands. $2,165,451,- 033; steam and electric roads, $600,- 975,237; capital stock other than rail­ roads, $79,474,692. In Chicago, the Chicago Telephone company was in­ creased $4,633,914; the Commonwealth Edison company, $1,675,032; Chicago Title and Trust company, $1,000,000; the Pullman company, $735,837, and the Street Railway companies an ag­ gregate Increase of $6,213,113. The St. Louis Bridge company in St. Clair county was Increased $1,800,000, and the St. Louis, Electric Bridge company $1,050,000. The two companies oper­ ate bridges across the Mississippi river from East St. Louis to St. Louis. Begin State Road Survey. With but two counties, Madison and Macoupin, still to vote on the proposition ^o issue bonds to complete their share of the government road ^ from Chicago to St. Louis, engineers ' , ^ of the division of highways of the state government started making a survey for the road. Present plans of the engineers call for starting the work early next spring unless recent orders issued by the in­ terstate commerce commission neces­ sitate a delay. The commission recently held that open-top equipment, such as is used for hauling coal by the railroads, may not be used for carrying road-bulldlng material. ^ The fact that the road will touch on three government training camps. Camp Grant, ..Great. Lakes Naval . Training station and the aviation field *|| at Belleville, may cause the interstate commerce commission to rule that thft u construction of the road Is an essential *. ^| military necessity and permit the highway division to use o£so-to^ t equipment. Plan for Farmers' Institute. patriotism and conservation of th® state's food resources will be the key- notes of the Illinois Farmers' institute „ ^"-4 meeting to be held at Bloomlngton „*i| February 19-21. The anuual meeting, N ** which promises to be the largest In the history of the state organization, was -v.-fp&jg, to have been hekFat Greenville, Bond ^ county. It was transferred to Bloom- . ingtou by the directors, after a consul- 1 tntion with the state council uf de- , fense. because of the central location of Bloomington and because larger tp space can be secured for the exhibits. Secretary Attends Conference. Secretary H. E. Young of the Faro- ;ag ers' Institute says: "The meeting at J| Bloomington, which has been trans- ferred from Greenfield, promises to b* * J-ff the largest in history. Sj»eakers of na- *iA tional reputation will »ttend and de- vjj liver addresses. Patriotic meetings n£j will be held and the state council of #|| defeuse will lend Its efforts to make 'J? the gathering a memorable one." Got*. fe? f| Frank O. Lowden will be invited to at- teud t£e meeting and deliver an ad- dress. Two patriotic meetings will I* ^ held according to *b» prop** ,,f . . . • " - " - - s w ­ at night. -;'SfhSi' Its! i. H