USA > California > Alameda County > History of Alameda County, California. Volume I > Part 31
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The nation was at war and the county must do its part. It was indeed several months before the magnitude of the task before the
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nation was grasped by the people of the Pacific slope, for during the early part of the war there were not the camouflaged transports and other ominous signs of Mars on the western Coast; but nevertheless, county officials and leaders in commercial and industrial life lost no time in taking measures to insure early cooperation with federal au- thorities. As will be pointed out in the following chapter, the National Guard started to mobilize even before war was declared, but the reality of the war probably did not dawn on many citizens until registration under the terms of the Selective Service Act in June.
The very day that war was declared, John L. Davie, Mayor of the City of Oakland, issued the following proclamation calling upon citizens to aid in the organization of a Home Guard:
"To the People of Oakland: The time has arrived for the citizens of Oakland to actually prepare for defense. The danger of our posi- tion must not be underestimated. At any moment we may be called upon to defend our homes.
"As mayor of the city of Oakland I hereby call upon every able- bodied man in this city to present himself at the city hall and register for the Home Guard.
"Regardless of position or station in life and the enlistment of our young single men in the regular army, Oakland must immediately muster a Home Guard. Business men, professional men, all men who are ablebodied, regardless of age or home ties, must register for this service.
"It is better to be prepared now than to be prostrated later.
"Let no one shirk Home Guard service."
A recruiting office was opened at once at the city hall and in the Northern and Melrose police stations, with Chief of Police Walter J. Petersen in charge of the campaign for enlistments. Within twenty- four hours several hundred men had taken the following Home Guard pledge:
"I, the undersigned citizen of the United States and of the City of Oakland, hereby pledge myself to aid the United States in the present war to the best of my ability, and will also aid the officers of the City of Oakland in keeping the peace and maintaining order when called upon."
By April 19, 1917, three hundred citizens had joined and an organ- ization meeting was held in the city hall at which Chief Petersen was elected colonel of what became known as the "First Regiment of Oak- land Volunteer Infantry." The first drill was held in the Municipal
JOHN L. DAVIE Oakland's War-time Mayor
THE PARR TERMINAL ON OAKLAND'S WATER-FRONT
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Auditorium on April 26th and the Home Guard was a reality. The following men were the first captains: W. S. Pimm, Company "A"; H. F. Taylor, "B"; A. Simpson, "E"; L. E. Westrich, "F"; Myron Harris, "I"; W. B. Moyle, adjutant and commanding "K" Company; Dr. Kirby Smith, Hospital Corps detachment, and W. Nat Friend, chaplain. .
Meanwhile other cities were taking the same precautions. In Ber- keley, initial steps for the organization of the Berkeley Defense Corps were taken on April 13th when twenty-eight citizens gathered in the office of Mayor C. S. Irving of the college town and laid plans for a mass meeting held in the Berkeley High School the evening of April 17th. H. B. Morrow served as temporary chairman. The committee in charge of the high school meeting at which the Corps was organized included Carl Bartlett, W. L. Mack, H. G. Offield, W. E. Cole, and George R. Knowles.
The appointment of the County Council of Defense, which followed closely that of the State Council, and its functions are described else- where in this chapter. But immediately non-official defense organiza- tions sprang up throughout the county. In Alameda, the night of April 9th, an executive committee of seven, headed by J. S. McDowell, was appointed to direct war work in that city at an enthusiastic meet- ing which packed the council chambers in the city hall. Addresses urg- ing Alamedans to support the formation of a local war and relief corps were made by Dr. C. P. Pond of the Chamber of Commerce, Chair- man C. L. Tilden, Judge George D. Shadburne, and Sylvester J. Mc- Atee. The following citizens were named to assist McDowell: E. J. Silver, R. E. Bosshard, L. M. King, Dr. C. P. Pond, J. G. Kearney, F. N. Delanoy. Eight days later the American League of Alameda, with a general committee of 100 men and women, organized in Elks' hall for the twofold object of backing the government and aiding the dependents of those at the front. Permanent officers elected were: Maj. C. L. Tilden, president; Dr. C. P. Pond, vice president; J. S. McDowell, secretary, and A. J. Samuel, treasurer.
The Berkeley Chamber of Commerce and similar bodies in the East Bay early went on record as being ready and willing to give the unanimous support of their membership to winning the war. The day war was declared the board of directors of the Berkeley body an- nounced that "the chief object of this organization shall be the un- divided and loyal support of the government in all its plans until peace shall have been won, with victory for the right."
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One of the most important contributions of Alameda County dur- ing the World war was the service of self-sacrificing citizens on the California State Council of Defense which included names well known in the civic, commercial and industrial, and intellectual life of the coun- ty. Especially commendable was the work of the women's committee, headed by Mrs. Frederick C. Turner of Oakland. The council, made up of thirty-three men and women appointed from all walks of life on April 5, 1917, by Governor William D. Stephens, was organized in accordance with a special war emergency bill passed to enrollment by the State Legislature on April 29, 1916.
The object of the council, as described in the act creating it, was "at once to take under consideration the effects of the occurrence of war upon the people of the State of California; to consider measures for the public defense and security, for the protection of routes of com- munication, for the betterment and protection of public health, for the public care and assistance of individuals and classes upon whom the hardships occasioned by war would fall most heavily, for the fuller development of the resources of the state, particularly those from which are derived the supplies of food and other commodities upon which the conduct of war makes especial drain; to encourage the military training of the citizens of the state; to examine into measures to in- crease the public revenue to meet war demands and to effect the elimin- ation of waste and extravagance; and to consider measures to be taken to meet the exigencies of all situations occasioned by war." Headquarters were opened at the State Capitol, with the governor as ex officio chair- man.
Dr. Benjamin Ide Wheeler, for many years president of the Uni- versity of California, was called upon by the governor to head the Com- mittee on Resources and Food Supplies, on which also served Miss Ethel Moore of Oakland. Dr. David Prescott Barrows, professor of political science at the State University, served on the important Com- mittee on Public Defense and Security, also on the Publication Com- mittee. Dr. John C. Merriam, another member of the University of California faculty, was chairman of the Committee on Scientific Re- search. James K. Moffitt of Oakland served as special commissioner in various parts of the state, representing the Military Welfare Com- mission appointed by the State Council at the direct request of Sec- retary of War Baker for the protection of enlisted men from exposure to venereal diseases and other evils resulting from prostitution and commercialized vice in proximity to camps. Ralph P. Merritt, Registrar
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of the University of California, later Federal Food Adminstrator for California, directed draft registration under the auspices of the council. California was one of the first two States in the Union to report to the President that draft registration had been completed.
C. L. Cory, Dean of the College of Mechanics at the University of California, was one of the six members of the "Shipbuilding Com- mittee" which registered upwards of 250,000 reserve shipworkers. The council was instrumental in organizing a State Farm Labor Bureau to provide adequate assistance in the harvesting of crops. Professor R. L. Adams of the College of Agriculture of the University of Cali- fornia served as Federal and State Farm Labor agent.
Professional and business men as well as civic officials of the county cheerfully gave their services as "Four Minute" speakers under direc- tion of the State Council. These "Minute Men" were organized under the direction of the Bureau of Public Information at Washington for the dissemination of the various messages of those responsible for the conduct of the war to the people of California and her sister States. Talks were given on "Food Conservation," "Maintaining Morals and Standards," "War Savings Stamps," and kindred topics. These speakers were also used in the Red Cross, Y. M. C. A. and other "drives," as well as in the Liberty Bond sale campaigns. Among those who assisted in promoting this work locally were Rev. William Nat Friend, Ford E. Samuel, and Louis Bartlett. The Berkeley "Minute Men" were especially active during the drive for registering reserve shipworkers in February, 1918. Speeches were made in moving picture and other theatres, in churches, in schools and before chambers of commerce and other organizations.
The State Council of Defense was instrumental in increasing crop production in Alameda County as well as in the other agricultural counties of California. The Alameda County Council of Defense, the county farm advisor, and the College of Agriculture of the University were all active in the work of food conservation. Alameda County as early as 1914 had followed four other progressive counties in estab- lishing a farm bureau under direction of a farm advisor. To cooperate with the Federal Government in stimulating crop production, in April, 1917, the Board of Supervisors increased the Farm Advisor's appro- priation $1,000 to provide for a permanent Assistant Farm Advisor. L. E. Haseltine was appointed in October, 1917, but he joined the Colors on May 15, 1918, to be succeeded by Clyde M. Seibert. But he, too, felt the call to enlist, and left the county service on June 15. On
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account of the scarcity of men the University was unable to fill the position until August, when G. W. Kretsinger was appointed.
So multifarious were the services performed by the Alameda Coun- ty Council of Defense, working under direction of the State Council, that it is easier to state what it did not do than to list the many things that it did. Acting as a liaison agency between the Federal and State Governments and the people of the county, the council assisted in draft registration, in food conservation, and in the distribution of informa- tion concerning scores of war activities. Its members engaged in secret service investigation of cases of suspected disloyalty, collected geo- graphical and other data which might be of service to the military and naval authorities, and made a survey of all industries in the county which might be useful for war purposes. George E. Gross, County Clerk, directed the work of registration in the county under the Selec- tive Service Act. The Alameda County Council included T. W. Harris, presiding judge of the Superior Court, who acted as chairman; Ezra W. Decoto, district attorney ; Sheriff Frank Barnett; Daniel J. Murphy, chairman of the board of supervisors, and County Clerk Gross. Be- sides these members ex officio, the council included Mrs. Frederick C. Turner, chairman of the county women's committee of the national and state council of defense.
During the war the county had its share of pacifists and conscien- tious objectors. As early as April 15, 1917, certain Berkeley women sent a telegram to Congresswoman Jeanette Rankin in which they pro- tested against an alleged "abridgement of their rights" when they were prevented from organizing a local branch of the "Congress of Open Forums" in Berkeley. The women had obtained permission to hold an organization meeting in the rooms of the Board of Education, but when the Berkeley school authorities learned that the "Congresses" were being organized under direction of a nation wide association headed by the Rev. Percy Stickney Grant of New York City for the discussion of conscription, they withdrew permission to use the Board rooms. The telegram to Miss Rankin was signed by Anita Whitney as secretary of the organization. This episode signalized the initial ap- pearance of Miss Whitney in print in connection with the pacifist stand which later brought her afoul of the United States Government.
About the same time, in Oakland, Mayor Davie was having his difficulties with the "Women's Protective League," an organization of Oakland women which had obtained permission from the City Coun- cil to use the Auditorium for a meeting. When the Mayor learned
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that the meeting was being arranged by Mrs. Hattie J. Anderson and others as a demonstration against the sending of American troops to the trenches, he forbade the use of the Auditorium for such a pur- pose and threatened to use force to prevent the meeting if necessary. The Mayor at the same time took occasion to charge certain merchants with lack of patriotism because of their failure to display flags. For this latter action he was criticized adversely by the Oakland Tribune.
The resistance to the draft of Carleton Beals, an East Bay youth at one time said to be under the jurisdiction of a New York draft board, provided a number of stories for the papers in the late winter of 1917- 18. Beals was imprisoned for a while by the army authorities but finally succeeded in weathering his war-time tribulations and after the war became a globe-trotting magazine writer.
Early in 1918 all enemy aliens in Alameda County were compelled to register. Chief of Police J. H. Nedderman of Oakland acted as registrar for the district, assisted by Corporal V. J. Coley, of the De- tective Bureau. Each alien was required to submit his photo, a thumb- print, and signature. In January of that year there were 4,750 German alien males over fourteen years of age in Alameda County, according to statistics compiled by United States Marshal James B. Holohan, who directed registration in the Northern District of California. Of these, Oakland had 3,000, Berkeley 400, and Alameda, 150. There were 1,200 in the county outside of these cities.
Reporting on the activities of the local Council of defense in deal- ing with pro-German sympathizers and pacifists, Judge Harris made the following statement at the State War Council held in San Fran- cisco March 5-6, 1918:
"Alameda County has its troubles the same as other portions of the state. Here and there pro-German sentiments crop up and it be- comes necessary to deal with them, but we have been able to hold them in check without any serious conflict. The sheriff and district attorney and other officials have been alert, vigilant and always ready to respond to any call of duty.
"In all of this the County Council of Defense has had the cordial cooperation and support of the commercial and civic bodies who have responded to every loyal cause and appeal.
"Warnings have been issued from time to time that have had a re- straining influence upon those who are disposed to sow sedition or create a disturbance and at times an effort has been made under the
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guise of loyalty to vent personal spite upon others; and we have declined to permit the County Council of Defense to be used for such purposes.
"These questions of disloyalty and sedition are federal offenses and therefore we cannot take very drastic measures for suppression but usually a note of warning will answer the purpose and prevent the growth of such sentiments.
"Alameda County has no complaint to make against the State Coun- cil of Defense as there has been cordial cooperation at all times and we have, whenever called upon, responded immediately to the utmost of our ability.
"There is so much that a county council can do, not of a spectacular character, but in building the sentiment of fidelity to the flag and our institutions and to smother all adverse suggestions. As the war pro- gresses the demands will become more and more exacting and a personal responsibility and duty will be laid upon every individual as well as upon the officials, and it behooves us to consolidate our forces in support of the government in every effort to support this war to its conclusion.
"Alameda can be relied upon as a county, and working through the Council of Defense, to do its full share at all times."
As the months went on, the gravity of the situation confronting the country was brought home to Alamedans in many ways. At a patriotic rally attended by thousands in the Oakland Auditorium the night of June 13, 1917, Governor William D. Stephens, California's war time chief magistrate, warned his auditors of the seriousness of the crisis and pointed out that before the war was over the people of California would have to make sacrifices as great as those of the French. The meeting, at which State Senator Arthur Breed presided, was conducted under the patronage of the Native Sons and Daughters of the Golden West. Mayor Davie delivered the address of welcome to the Governor; other speakers were Postmaster J. J. Rosborough, Joseph R. Knowland, and Judge Harris. The Oakland Boy Scouts gave a demonstration in first aid.
DRIVES FOR FUNDS
Throughout the latter part of 1917, as has been pointed out in the chapter which follows, the departure of contingents of drafted men brought the war close to home. The failure of the first Red Cross drive in the early summer of the year was an indication, however, that the county was not yet awake to the need of a great financial sacrifice,
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despite the fact that the first Liberty Loan was over-subscribed. But the county redeemed itself when the second Red Cross drive was made in 1918, sending the total quite "over the top" of Alameda's quota.
The first drive for funds for raising Oakland's $200,000 allot- ment of subscriptions to the American Red Cross was made under chairmanship of Joseph H. King, president of the Oakland Chamber of Commerce, following the call of President Wilson for nation wide support of a $100,000,000 Red Cross fund. This money was to be de- voted to the purchase of the enormous quantity of supplies needed in carrying on humanitarian work among the Allied armies. France and England were exhausted and the Allies were without doctors, nurses, hospital equipment, and medicines. An ambulance lasted only from four to six months at the front. The American Red Cross had already sent six complete base hospital units with 1,500 men and women to France; at least fifty, and perhaps more were needed.
The drive was launched the morning of June 20th, following a series of campaign meetings held at the Hotel Oakland. By proclama- tion Mayor Davie had set aside the week of June 18th for the drive and final plans were laid at a mass meeting at the hotel the night of June 20th, when Harrison S. Robinson, presiding, and Otto Irving Wise, San Francisco insurance man, urged the citizens of the county to give liberally.
For nine days volunteer workers strove to raise the money. Among the division captains under whom more than twenty-two team captains conducted the soliciting, were Frederick Kahn, H. C. Capwell, Joseph R. Knowland, Postmaster Rosborough, and H. C. Taft. The slogan was "Save our wounded!" Subscriptions totals were wired nightly to the national headquarters at Washington where money collected was turned over to William Gibbs McAdoo, Secretary of the Treasury. In Berkeley the same sort of work was carried on under E. F. Louideck, president of the local Chamber of Commerce. Berkeley's quota was $75,000. In Alameda, canvassers labored under direction of Thomas H. Haskins to raise the $25,000 allotment of that city.
But when the drive was over, to the chagrin of the workers, Oak- land had a deficit of about 50 per cent of the total. Only $106,000 had been collected of the $200,000 allotted by the national committee, ac- cording to the report of the auditor, John D. Holmes, manager of the Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Company, executive secretary of the Red Cross for the district. As the Oakland Tribune regretfully an- nounced the evening of June 28th, "The steady click of adding ma-
SUN PORCH, RED CROSS CANTEEN ON OAKLAND MOLE WHERE ALAMEDA COUNTY BOYS AND THEIR BUDDIES "WARMED UP" BEFORE CROSSING THE BAY TO THE PRESIDIO OF SAN FRANCISCO
OAKLAND : ALAMEDA
ALAMEDA COUNTY RED CROSS WORKERS BIDDING LOCAL BOYS "GOOD- BYE" AS THEY LEFT FOR CAMP LEWIS, WASHINGTON, IN THE SUMMER OF 1917
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chines and the scratch of pens at the now deserted campaign head- quarters of the Red Cross war fund committee is all that marks the aftermath of Oakland's historic battle of dollars, which failed of its objective through the main financial sector, when the volunteers were rolled back to defeat before the intrenched indifference of apathetic citizens." Various reasons were assigned for the ignominious finale. Some said the drive had followed too closely on the heels of the First Liberty Loan, others said that many subscriptions which should have been made in Oakland had been credited to San Francisco, which had gone over the top. But Chairman King declared that the drive had failed because the very wealthy had not given with the same liberality as the poor and those of moderate means.
The story of the second Red Cross drive, made in Oakland the latter part of May, 1918, was a different tale. The entire city united to wipe out the deficit, and on May 30th, at the end of the drive, Oak- land had rolled up a total of $310,000 in subscriptions. The city was more than $100,000 over the top. Perhaps it was the casualty list which had been bringing the trenches closer to the East Bay, perhaps it was the long parade of women which filed appealingly through Oak- land's streets on May 18th, singing
"We need your money, we need your money; The wounded are dying over there."
Whatever the reason, there was a new spirit, and men who in the first drive had given $200 grudgingly now gave $1,000 joyfully.
The parade of women was one of the most impressive spectacles ever witnessed in the East Bay region. There were 10,000 Red Cross workers in 137 divisions, garbed in white and blue, lined up for a solid mile. Some of them were grey-haired women who had served during the Civil war in the Sanitary Commission, the precursor of the Amer- ican Red Cross. Others were young girls who served at the Oakland canteen. Thousands of them bore white service flags with red stars, symbolic of the sacrifice that someone was making "over there." One big service flag was dotted with stars representing every man from the county who was with the Colors.
The appeal of these mothers, sisters, and wives was not in vain. When the returns came in, R. B. Ayer, chairman, of the drive, and Harry East Miller, chairman of the Oakland Chapter of the Amer- ican Red Cross, announced that victory had succeeded the defeat of the first year.
For the four Liberty Loans and the Victory Loan, the record of
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the county and its three principal cities was a brilliant one. In each case, local communities exceeded the quota assigned to them. W. W. Garthwaite acted as chairman of the first Liberty Loan drive, which took place in April, 1917. For this loan Alameda and Contra Costa County together exceeded their quota of $9,010,000, Alameda County banks contributing $7,942,650 of the total. The second Liberty Loan, floated in October, 1917, was for a minimum of three billion dollars to be sold throughout the nation, although subscriptions up to five billions were encouraged. With a quota of $10,546,826, Alameda County went well over the top with subscriptions totalling $10,873,800.
For the third Liberty Loan campaign, general headquarters of the Oakland Division were established at 1444 Broadway, while the county executive committee occupied two rooms in the Syndicate building. W. W. Garthwaite served as chairman of the general county committee, Joseph H. King as chairman of the executive committee, while Glenn C. Barnhart was chairman of the County publicity committee. The conduct of this campaign was typical of that of the others. The drive began on April 6, 1918, the anniversary of the entry of the United States into the war. The county was divided into 130 districts, each of which contained from 200 to 600 names of persons to be canvassed by about 10,000 district workers who operated under 400 captains. A supplementary canvass of business houses was made by experts in order to preclude the possibility of missing any opportunities for sub- scriptions and a careful check was made of the attitude of individuals and firms toward the purchase of Liberty Bonds. The county exceeded its quota for this loan, which was for three billion dollars throughout the United States. With a quota of only $9,143,966, the county sub- scribed $11,687,450. The bonds were bought by 246,131 persons, or 34 per cent of the population.
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