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i , GENERAL NEWS NOTES OF THE DAY. Fifty-four labor leaders, contractors and others, indb ted Friday by the grand jury as a result of the investigation into lalior conditions in the city, appeared yesterday iK-fore Richard K. Burke, chief iti-tice of the criminal court, to seek reductions on bonds fixed by States Attorney Dajae. Mr. Iloyne and his assistant. Charles Center Case, Jr., who conducted tin- grand jury investigation, fixed the iKiuds at S5.00Q ii the conspiracy charges. ,000 on the charges of inali ions mischief, and ,500 on the charge of extortion. The indictments were so drawn that each defendant would be required to furnish . 1!I...ihmi if he gave bonds on each count. The total bonds on this basis would lie about B8.60tvMO and the amount of surety required to obtain tin- release of the men indicted 0,000,010. The December grand jury, whieh will lie convened soon, will continue tlie work of labor investigation, snid Mr. Iloyne. "These indictments are returned enly against the heads of the extortion trust. " he said. "Many others are implicated. We only got part of the officials of tin- unions involved, and others will be indicted by the next grand jury. There is no disposition to get the -small fry. We rvant the men higher up. and so far we have merely scratched the surface." Ill all. C.940 counts wen- contained in the indict meats, the penalties on oeiivietion ranging from six months in the house of correction or a fine of fBM to from one to 1 ten years in the penitentiary. One of the men indicted is known to have lied from the city, and to prevent others from departing, thirteen of the defendants were arrested by detectives sent out by States Attorney Iloyne before the indictments were . returned. The man who has disa- eared is Thomas , Crowley. He left Chicago Monday. The attorneys for the indicted men. who sought to have Ihe bonds reduced on the grounds that none would be able to lurnisli the amount required, were Frank Com-erfi.rd. Hem-diet .1. Short. James F.wing Davis, Seymour Colon and William C. Ciinnea. A dispatch ft , Mexico City via Laredo, Texas. says Tyohus fever, which has heea an epidemic among the lower classes in Mexico Citv anil vic-cinity for the hist two months, has grown to such alarming nn.portious as to terrify Hie entire pop- uhition. The deaths from this disease now ex d I 130 a day. and the number of cases is constantly growing. It is estimate,! ihat there are 11.00t , cases in the federal district and neighboring towns. The authorities seem unable to cope with the situa- tioo ami some of the large mltiing coinpanlea have I I t * J ] * J ! f J J ■ ] J J [ J I J I ■ i I 1 • i 1 . , I , I asked for and received jiermission to take steps to clean up the towns in their vicinities. :ls the disease threatens to decimate the imputation and leave them without workmen. In Mexico City _ the authorities are keeping the real situation from the public as much as possible. All of the funeral corteges of the capital are drawn by the tramway company. So great has the demand become on the street care system due to the deaths caused by s the epidemic "that funeral trains are run all night V long. In many of the cars from fourteen lo eight- A ecu iincoffincd bodies are carried to the cemeteries. V The sight at the various cemeteries is a most grew- I some one, for the supply of gravodigjrers is not sufficient to meet the demand and bodies often lie in the open for some time before bing interred. So far the foreign colonies have not sutTered severely, though a number of cases of the disease have been reported in the American colony. Physicians say the fever is transmitted solely by vermin. The high price of fuel has made bathing, never a popular pastime in Mexico, rarer than ever, so that many of tin- railway and street cars. . taxis, coaches, and other vehicles are infested with ; vermin. The stock of medicines in the city is low , and such as are to be had are so high priced as £ to be beyond the reach of any but the richer classes. Karl Buenz, George Kotter and Adolph Hachmmeis-ter. officials of the Hamburg-American line, recently convicted of conspiracy to defraud the lnite.1 States government, were sentenced yesterday to j serve eighteen months in the federal penitentiary at Atlanta. Joseph Poppinghatis was sentenced to j one year. The Hamburg-American line was fined . r All the defendants were admitted to hail pendi lg the suing out on a writ of error in their behalf. Bail was fixed at 0,000 in each case and was accepted from a surety company. Sentence was pronounced after Judge Howe had overruled motions by William Rand. Jr.. chief counsel for the defense, for dismissal of the verdict on the ground that it was contrary to the evidence and law in the case. «. In making his motion Mr. Rand said he had little j hope that it would be entertained by the cottr*. The Flitted States district attorney. H. Snowden Marshall, in moving for sentence, said it was "his painful duty to ask for substantial punishment. not so much for its effects on the defendants, but to serve as a warning to others." The nominal j tine imiiosed on the Hamburg-American company j was explained by Judge Howe as due to his wish j to free the case as far as jxissible from "the odor j of money." He said there was no evidence to show that the company, as such, had entered into any conspiracy. In sentencing Dr. Buenz. Judge Howe announced that if the sentence was confirmed in the higher courts he would be willing to support any niove to obtain clemency on the ground of the ad- vanced age of the prisoner. The maximum penalty j which could have lx-en imposed on the prisoners ] under each indictment was two years imprisonment t and a fine of 0,000. Each was indicted on two eaaata, but Judge Howe declared that he considered both indictments to cover one offense. A dispatch of yesterday from London says: The 1 British army in Mesopotamia is in retreat. Official announcement was made today that the forces of General Towushend were retiring to Kut-el- . Amara. The text of the official statement says: General Townshend remained in occupation of the battle field at Ctesiphon. beating off all counter- ; attacks, till he had completed the removal of his wounded and of 1.000 prisoners taken from the enemy: but in view of our heavy losses and the arrival of Turkish re-enforcements he then withdrew. It is reported that our total casualties in these actions amounted to 4.507. No report is made of any particular officer lieing wounded, as was ai- ■ leged in the Turkish official statement. On the ; night of November 30-Deceniher 1 General Townshend fousht a rear-guard action against greatly superior Turkish forces. Our casualties in this action are estimated to liave been 150 of all ranks. Two river boats were disabled by shell fire and had to be abandoned. Their guns and engines were rendered useless. General Townshend remarks of the steadiness of the troops and states the retirement was carried out in perfect order. By the latest reports General Townshend was within a few miles of Kut-el-Amara. upon which position he is retiring. With reference to the Turkish official statement and the German wireless reports, it may tie stated that British troops never take their colors into the field. Rumors that Russians are marching across Roti-mania and that one Caeca has invaded Bulgaria still iiersists in London, but there is no confirmation of the various reports. Some persons just outsi.de official circles give credit to the rumors from the fact that last week Czar Nicholas was said to have promised Premier Pachitch of Serbia that a Russian army would invade Bulgaria within a v -ek. These persons, in an effort to bolster up their belief that the Russian invasion has begun, point to the reports that Austro-Germans are lieing concentrated at Rustchuk, Bulgaria, on the Danube, west of the Roumanian border. This city, they declare, is . to be their base for a possible invasion of Roumania and a drive on Bucharest in the event Rottinaiiia joins the entente. If the Russians really are in Roumania. it is declared by experts that the incursion will modify the whole aspect of affairs in the Balkans. It is contended that it will divert the Teutonic forces ivading Serbia to the Roumanian theater and give the allies in the south a chance to begin a flank movement, which, if carried on 1 with a sufficient number of men, would clear Serbia of the invaders. Mrs. Jospehine L. Busse, widow of Fred A. Bu«se. former mayor, yesterday submitted tin account to • the Probate Court of the liabilities, assets, disbursements and cash received by her as administratrix of the estate of her late husband. A recapitulation listed in the account shows that there was paid out of the estate 1,140.40: that there are liabilities unpaid, consisting of claims a Bowed j in the Probate Court, amounting to .7sl.! 4. that there are claims pending against the estate . aggregating 80,000; that the total disbursements and liabilities are s4.!i::5.s.S. That the total i personal property belonging to the estate amounts to 19. lis. 51. The deficiency of personal assets, the account shows, is 05,817.37. Field Marshal yon Mackensen, commander of the German army in Serbia, has issued the following 1 nroclaiuation to the Serbian people: "We are fighting against tin- army only, and not against the Serbian people. The life and property of Ifeaae who do not oppose the armies of the central powers ; will remain in security. Therefore, we call upon i you. Serbians, to return to your residences, resume your occupations and voluntarily subject yourselves to the directions of the military commanders. In i such cases it will be possible for us to help you i to regain your former status of well-being. VVe will see to it that damage which you have incurred 1 without blame will be recompensed." Renters Bucharest correspondent telegraphs tae • Roumanian military authorities have announced that all steamships, barges, tugs and other craft anchored in Roumanian ports, belonging to foreign or Roumanian companies, will he commandeered on Monday "in the interest of national defense." Premiir . Bratiano. the correspondent says, has informed tae Roumanian senate lie is unable to give explanations ; of the governments foreign policy or information i concerning military supplies. This information is i r* served "in the interests of national defense." The entente |iowers consider Greece is taking too long to retieet upon the answer to their de-ii amis and have decided to apply again the economic measures which were used with such effect a fortnight ago, says the Paris Figaro. Tin- newspaper declares orders have been given prohibiting ] • the departure from allied ports of all ships with cargoes consigned to Greece and stopping immediately the loading of Greek vessels. A report made by the French ministry of labor shows that 4o.7!i4 factories the number in operation 1 last year, decreased to forty-eight per cent of the total, but has now risen to eighty one per cent. The number of employed fell to thirty-one per cent ; ■ of normal last year, but now stands at seventy-four per cent. A dispatch from Switzerland quotes Italian reports telling of extremely violent fighting on the . Ionzo. particularly in the assaults on the Goritz : bridgehead, which are specially violent near Os-lavia. ■ northwest of Goritz. continuing for nine days I and nights. Tlie British cabinet now is considering a plan for a general reduction by one-third of ministerial I salaries, which probably will be followed by an invitation to members of parliament to give up a , third of their pay. says the London Chronicle. The amount paid in cash by subscribers to the third German loan in the list week of November . was about 2,000,000. This brooMhl up the total ! paid in to . OF.. 150.000. OT about SO per cent of the entire subscription. Many Serbian soldiers who retreated through Greek territory after the fall of Monastir were not t disarmed, but were treated with every consiilera- tion. says an Athens dispatch to the London Daily News. The Russians have taken twelve miles «f r trenches. 7 H prisoners and a large quantity of munitions and food supplies on the Tukuin road 1 west of Riga, iic.-ordinu- to a dispatch from Geneva. The Petrogr.-id correspondent of the London Daily Mail qu.tes M Alexandre*, one or the directors !; of the State Bank of Russia, as saying that the . new 00,000,000 Russian loan Is a great success. The Othrarrar newspapers say that the batteries at l.uropa point the point of Gibraltar exl ling j out into tlie straits sank a submarine which tried to pass Friday. The troopship Metagam. which sailed from Can-ada November 20 with 59 officers and 1.5M men ! ou board, has arrived safely in an English, port.
