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GENERAL NEWS NOTES OF THE DAY. Yesterday General Funston reported to Washington from General Pershing, dated from San Geron-imii ranch. March 30: "Colonel Dodd struck Villas command, consisting of 500 men. at 6 oclock March 29. at Guerrero. Villa, who is suffering from a broken leg and lame hip. was not present. Number Villas dead known to be thirty, probably others carried away dead. Dodd captured two machine guns, a large number of horses, saddles and arms. Otir casualties, four enlisted men wounded, none seriously. The attack was a surprise, the Villa troops being driven in a ten -mile running right and retreated to the mountains northeast of the railroad, where they separated into small hands. A large number of Carranzista prisoners who were being held for execution by the Villa troops were liberated during the fight. In order to reach Guerrero. Colonel Dodd marched Hfty-five miles in seventeen hours and carried on the right for five hours. Eliseo Hernandez, who commanded Villa troops, was killed in the fight. With Villa permanently disabled, Lopez wounded and Hernandez dead, the blow administered is a serious one to Villas band." At Paris yesterday the war office report said: In the Argonne district we have repulsed two attacks with hand grenades directed against our position to the north of Avocourt. To the west of the River Meuse the bombardment of Maloncourt has gone on with redoubled violence. Last night the Germans delivered a series of attacks in massed formation. They advanced from three sides at a time upon the village which formed the advanced salient of our line and which sheltered one of our batulions. After furious fighting all night long which entailed considerable sacrifices on the part of the enemy, our troops evacuated the ruined village, but we still hold its outskirts. To the east of the River Meuse the night passed quietly. In the Woevre district the Germans endeavored on three separate occasions to capture from us the work to the east of Haudio-mont. but all their advances were repulsed. There has been no occurrence of importance on the remainder of the front. The German official statement at Berlin yesterday says; Western theater: Artillery activity on both sides in many frontal war zones increased considerably during the clear portions of the day. West of the Meuse the village of Malancourt and French defensive estublisliments on both sides of the village were taken by storm. Six officers and 322 un-wounded men were made prisoners. On the eastern bank of the Meuse the position is unchanged. Brief encounters at close quarters developed around French trenches south of Fort Douaumont. In an aerial fight in the region of Arras and Bapaume the British lost three biplanes. Two of their occupants were dead. Lieut. Immelmann thus accounted for his thirteenth enemy neroplane. Eastern theater: The Russians yesterday limited their activity to subjecting those parts of our fronts which they previously had attacked to very heavy artillery bombardments. Balkan theater: The situation is unchanged. From the field headquarters of the American expeditionary forces at Colonia Dublan. Chihuahua. Mexico. March 20. by motor truck to Columbus. March 30. it has been learned that Francisco Villa nearly lost his life a few days ago on the Corralitos ranch, a short distance from this place, where he tortured and put to death five Mexicans. One of his victims leaped upon him and was strangling him when the Villista officers beat him senseless with the butts of their guns. Mucin Polanco was the name of the Mexican who almosa succeeded in ending Villas career. The murder of five members of the Polanco family was said to have been intended as ji warning to other Mexicans against having dealings with Americans. Investigation showed that the Polanco family was involved with no political faction in Mexico, but that they had a record of nniform honesty and reliability in dealing with the American managers of the Corralitos ranch, where they were born and reared. Charging that American manufacturers are endeavoring to force the navy department to pay for an inferior quality the price of high-grade armor-piercing projectiles. Secretary Daniels declared to the house naval committee that the only solution of the problem was for the department to own and operate its own projectile plant. "The navy wants armor-piercing projectiles, but it does not want an inferior quality, such as American manufacturers are willing to sell." he said. "The manufacturers, although they have ample capacity, and although they know that projectiles in accordance with the requirements can be produced, are unwilling to undertake their production, but are trying to force the department to pay the same price for an admittedly inferior product. A determined fight was begun in the Senate Thursday by Senator Underwood of Alabama to incorporate in the army reorganization bill a provision looking to the establishment of a government plant to make nitrogen from the air for the manufacture of explosives. Efforts to incorporate such legislation in the House bill was defeated. Senator Underwood declared that no national defense program would be complete without such a provision. He attacked the Du Pont Powder Company and its agents, charging them with exerting influences to defeat such legislation because of a desire to control all the powder business in the United States and to prevent the government from entering the field. An investigation by the attorney general to determine whether a criminal conspiracy is buck of the rise in the price of gasoline is directed in a resolution introduced by Senator Martine and adopted by the Senate. A preamble to the resolution, which declared that the oil market was controlled and the price fixed by a trust, the Standard Oil Company, aroused vigorous opposition, and finally went over without u final vote. A motion to table the preamble was defeated, thirty -five to twenty -three. In the meantime, though actually adopted without opposition, the resolution techni- M cally remains before the Senate awaiting disposi- W tion of the preamble. The Burnett restrictive immigration bill, placing a literacy test on immigrants, passed the House Thursday by a decisive majority. On a record vote the literacy test was carried in the bill. 2St* to 107. This vote in favor of the literacy test is more than the two-thirds vote necessary to carry the legislation over the veto of President Wilson should the latter veto it again. Democratic leaders say the President will not again veto the bill, taking the position that as it has passed Congress in three successive sessions, it undoubtedly expresses the will of the majority of the people. An order in council was issued in London Thursday night "that neither a vessel nor her cargo shall be immune from capture for a breach of blockade upon the sole ground that she at the moment is on her way to a non-blockaded port." The order sets forth that, subject to certain modifications and omissions, the government has put in force the declaration of London respecting the capture of merchant craft during the war. The German consul at Saloniki. who was deported from that port, has been detained by the French government at the request of the British government pending the release of the British consul at Shiraz. Persia, it was brought out in the house of commons yesterday. The British consul, with other British residents of Shiraz. is being held at Ahram. Persia, by German emissaries, it was declared. By order of the state live stock board in accordance with a federal order served at Springfield yesterday, all foot-and-mouth disease restrictions are removed from the state. This is the first time since November 1, 1914, that cattle movements have been unrestricted. The recent federal order requiring inspection is rescinded. %ยป
