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GENERAL NEWS NOTES OF THE DAY Some information for the kaiser. Incle Sam owns about si fifth of the worlds wealth. His possessions arc greater than those of France and Germany combined. 25,000,000,000 more than the en-tiro wealth of England and three times that of tlie whole Australian continent. With ids gold it would be possible to girdle the eartli at the equator with a band of gold one inch wide and nearly a quarter inch thick. Xo other nation on earth even approaches the record of his riches. The United States and Austria-Hungary went to war officially at noon yesterday and the two nations are now enemies. Although Congress will not act formally until Friday in making such declaration, the resolution declaring existence of war between the United States and Austria-Hungary, unanimously approved by the House foreign affairs committee, fixes specifically the hour and the date for beginning of the hostilities. While for the moment there are no infantry operations of great magnitude in progress on any of the numerous battle fronts, indications are not wanting that shortly the Cambrai sector in. France and the northern line in the Italian theater will again witness titanic struggles, with the Germans and Austro-llungarians the aggressors. Polygamy is indorsed in a pamphlet now being distributed by the German high command among soldiers at the front as a lfieans of augmenting the birtli rate and as a "duty to the fatherland," and will soon be openly advocated in Germany, according to a copyrighted cable received Wednesday by the Chicago"laily News. Hundreds of persons were killed and a thousand others injured and half of the city of Halifax is in ruins as the result of the explosion of an ammunition ship in the harbor yesterday. It is estimated that property loss will run into the millions. The north end of the city is in flames. Restriction of imports by the countries at war with Germany in order to free tandnnage for the transportation of American troops to the scene of conflict was one of the details of the agreement of the interallied conference at Paris. Eleven thousand Italians have been captured in the new Austro-German offensive on the mountainous front in northern Italy, it was officially announced in Berlin yesterday. Strong positions in the Me-letta region were captured. Directors of the Ford Motor Company are ordered in a final decree In the Dodge-Ford suit to declare within thirty days a dividend of 9,275,385 from accumulated cash surplus on hand .Inly 21, 1917. William K. Vamlerbilt has contributed 1,000,000 lire to assist the wounded and help the needy in Italy. The contribution was made through the American Ked Cross. Suspension of hostilities over the entire German-Uussian front for a period of ten days, beginning Friday, has lwen arranged, says a dispatch from Berlin. A telegram from Dawson says thermometers have dropped to 50 degrees below zero as a result of the first cold spell of the winter in the Yukon territory. The Russian ambassador to the United States has returned to the treasury the .,000,000 given him for advance to Roumania. The Allies arc spending 40,000,000,000 yearly in the piosecution of the war. Late dispatches place the number of dead at Halifax at 1,200.
