The Daily Alaska empire Newspaper, March 17, 1943, Page 1

THE DAILY ALASKA EMPIRE “ALL THE NEWS ALL THE TIME” S ———— VOL: LX., NO. 9293 JUNEAU, ALASKA, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 17, 1943 MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS PRICE TEN CENTS ————y NAZIS HIT SOVIETS WITH MASSED FORCES — Allies Blast Axis Convoy; Rommel Is Battered [ AIR FORCES HITTING OUT, NORTH AFRICA Heavy Rain Falling in Tun- | isia Sectors Reduces General Activities ALLIED HEADQUARTERS IN| NORTH AFRICA, March 17. — A/ mighty Allied air striking force has | blasted another Axis convoy in the | Sicllian Straits, attacked an air-| field near Gabes and pounded Rom- | mel's forces which have slug \ni positions in the Mareth Line. ‘ 1t is also announced the German | artillery opened upon the British | Eighth Army deployed before the French built fortifications in the| Medenine sector but made lmlc! impression. | Allied patrols are active along| the whole southern front the com- munique says, but bad weather has restricted flying in central and TWIN LIFEGUARDS 21, twin star swimmers, are lifeguards at a Beverly Hills, Cal., pool. (Continued (;;1 Pa;e ‘Three) The Washington Merry - Go-Round By DREW PEARSON (Major Robert S. Allen on active duty.) Buckner Revea visit with freshmen Senators and e Representatives was a rousing suc- | proving his shaky relations with | Congress. The 117 new members, | White House after partaking of! beer, cheese, crackers and a double | b To a man, they sang his praises, | and most of the singing was done‘AlASKA FooD the President and his Administra- | tion up hill and down dale in the Roosevelt entertained his guests | CO n t ra d'ds POS"ln'elll' variety of conversational - A B of gencer Report About cussion on the progress of the war | and his trip to Africa to light, ] I 17.—Sec- » and “pleasure driving. WASHINGTON, March cognghey comg get to know him |retary of the Interior Harold L. took turns :me:s.sesmp:;:e; l::ghuénomressiunm“other supplies sent to Alaska was i three separate groups of about ;‘;!of hardship and starvation” which each. This enabled everyone 10| .. { Ickes wrote to Alaska Delegate neck-craning. Meanwhile the others | ypyony J. Dimond denying a re- munched crackers and drank Deer |, made in the Seattle Post-In- And right here let it be noted | ajaska were not needed there. The that, though the President paid|paper said the shipment was left Representative -Winifred C. Stan-| The newspaper said this happened ley of New York—which some con- jon account of lack of storage facil- licized GOP colleague, Clare Luce The shipment was not just for the of Connecticut—he by no means“civilluns there, Ickes said, but “for | Western and Northern Alaska, nor- !mally cut off from their source of The President had a special quip | 4 rous .| year because of weather conditions. ik iy Claire, apropos “y .. 'termed the project as “fore- on, poat-war jaxihgen. \Whie sh"“‘m) those “unfamiliar with all of the was listening, he told the group detals.” war with Japan described as a|,jered through Paul Gordon who war of “attrition.” as “thoroughly familiar with Al- more tons of Jap shipping de-/ine Alaska Railroad. He said furth- stroyed, or airplanes shot dowh, er that there was no salad oil or closer, since -our production facili-| nor was salmon sent to Nulato or ties are much greater than Ja-|any other Yukon River point, as “The word the experts have for gencer. this is attrition,” he added. “But| ple do not understand what it means. Someone ought to think up 2 KE With a mischievous grin at Mrs.| SUFFERS SIRO Luce, the President added gayly: ALGIERS, March 17 — Under- of Congress. Some of you are very North Africa said Marshal Petain good at thinking up new words.” {cuffered a stroke several days ago d whose post-war views in Vichy. flff_’"___f___ 1 Petain’s illness has been kept (Continued on Page Four) WASHINGTON.—The President’s cess from the standpoint of im- ( K E S G ’ v E S most of them Republicans, left the | helping of Roosevelt charm. by Republicans who had blasted last campaign. topics, ranging from a serious dis- Nome Spoilage banter on Congressional “word- | — | Ickes asserted today that food and visitors before the President ineeded to “prevent the possibility | might arise from enemy action or hear him at close range, without| in other parts of the room. | telligencer that the supplies sent to special attention to Republican | spofling on the beach. strued as a slap at her more pub- |ities at. Nome. ignored ' the latter. | civilians of seven large districts of FIDUING CURER I | supply for nine months out of the ol {higr ant-Adpuitiegation. spesch | sighted,” and said the joke was only that he was tired of hearing the| rpe gecretary said the food was | wi He explained that with moreand |aga ” and through Harold Snell of victory over Japan is that muchvinegar included in the shipment pan’s. was asserted in the Post-Intelli- > . it is not a good word. Many wo.‘M‘RSHAl pEIAl“ | a new word.” “That's a job for you new members ground reports reaching French Vice President Wallace, who was and is probably dying in a hospital secret from the French people, i — Marian and Virginia Hopkins, Is How - Secret Fields Upset Invasion of Territory By EUGENE BURNS (Associated Press Correspondent at the Front) AN ADVANCED ALASKA BASE, March 15.-—(Delayed)--Gen. Simod B. Buckner disclosed in an inter- view nine and a half months after the Japs attacked Dutch Harbor that United States planes, striking from two secretly established bases, confounded the Nipponese com- mander and turned back an in- vasion force. “Even after Pearl Harbor,” Buck- ner said, “our so-publicized naval stronghold of Dutch Harbor did not have one protecting airfield within 800 miles and the Japs knew this.” Buckner said he selected Umnak, 60 miles beyond Dutch Harbor, and Cold Bay, 80 miles nearer the Al- aska mainland as satisfactory bases. Not Canning Salmon Alaska Japanese were immediately interned to prevent sabotage, and to help deceive the enemy, the new fields were named the Blair Packing Company and the Saxton Company —both nonexistent. Pretending these were Alaska sal- mon concerns, the Army had all sup- plies for the bases sent in those names. The engineers worked furiously to install steel landing mats before the Japs came two months later. The enemy brought two carriers, two to three cruisers, eight destroy- ers and four transports. Buckner said .the presence of the four trans- ports indicated they intended an occupation. | “However, in the midst of a well- planned assault,” he said, “the Jap | found himself attacked from behind | |by land-based pursuit planes, and | !bombed and torpedoed with land- ' based bombers. { Spy Work Failed “That upset their rickshaw. Their spy work which made Pearl Harbor possible had failed. “Apparently their deduction, and | a good one, was that where there | are land pursuit planes and bombers there is a good field, and where there is a field there is a fortitica- | tion, and where there is a fortifica- tion our ships are mortal danger. “And so the Japs turned back,” Buckner concluded. WASHINGTON, March 17—For- mer Representative John M. Hous- ton of Wichita, Kan, has been nominated by President Roosevelt tollay for a $10,000-a-year job as| a member of the ‘National Labor Relations Board. The 52-year-old Kansas Demo- crat ‘was defeated for reelection last year after serving four terms in the House. He would succeed | William M. Leiserson on the NLRB. : KISKA STRUCK SIX TIMES IN INPROGRESS, SINGLE DAY Series of Air Attacks on Jap Base on Monday Heaviest Reported WASHINGTON, March 17.—The | heaviest of a series of air attacks ever made on Kiska, in the Aleu- tians, in a single day, were carried ! out Monday, the Navy announces | American planes raided the base six times between dawn and dusk MARETH LINE ‘DNB Broadciastufrom Berlin Says British Eighth Army in Action BULLETIN — London, March 17.—A DNB radio broadcast frem Berlin picked up here said the British Eighth Army launched an attack on the Mareth Line tonight, but the but the results are not stated. DEGAULLETO CONFERWITH GEN.GIRAUD 10 Union of Frenchmen Fight- ing Axis Seems fo Be | Cerfainty ; LONDON, March 17.—The French | National Committee announced to- day that DeGaulle is expected to legve shortly for Algiers to confer with Gen. Giraud in cementing a |union of all Frenchmen fighting the Axis. | Gen. Giraud called for such a | conference last Sunday 'in a speech | repudiating the Vichy#German {armistice and repealing Vichy's op- | pressive laws. | The Committee of Fighting | Frenchmen announces that Gir- aud’s appeal was received at De- Gaulle’s headquarters with unqual- |ified satisfaction amd immediately (favorably answered. | It is also stated that the resig- i nation of Gen. Gergeret, former | Vichy Air Minister and Girau | Deputy in civil affairs, was received | with general satisfaction. LEGIVENTO - JAP BBQAD(ASTS ' About 100 Nippons Qut of 15,000 Escaped in Bismarckiea Fight WASHINGTON, March 17—El- mer Davis, Director of the Office |of War Information, told the news- men at a conference this afternoon that only five Japs out of 15,000 escaped death or capture in the battle of Bismarck Sea on,K March 2 when 22 Japanese warships and {other vessels were destroyed by the Allied air might. About 100 Japs escaped drown- ing and reached shore, Davis said kut out of this handful, only five _scaped. Davis gave the lie to the recent Japanese broadcasts that the U. S suffered serious naval losses in the South Pacific, declared that “every one of our naval losses has been |announced and by no stretch of the imagination can they be called serious.” DEFERMENT IS ~ APPROVED FOR ~ FARM WORKERS | | WASHINGTON, March 17 The |Senate voted today 51.to 24 on leg- islation directing local draft boards to defer military service to all |men ,employed substantially full time on farms raising essential war icmps. S| cargo “scale of fighting cannot be judged as reports are meagre, but indications are a major at- tack is under way.” - - THREE - SHI JAP CONVOY A.P.WALKER DISAPPEARS Vessels Bombed and Straf- ed by Allied Planes Are Turned Back ALLIED HEADQUARTERS IN AUSTRALIA, March 17.—A three ship Jap convoy has apparently been forced to'turn back from Dobo by Allied bombing and strafing at- tacks a communique announced this morning. “Reconnaissance of the seas north of the Aroe Islands has failed to lo- cate any enemy shipping. Air at- tacks of the previous afternoon ap- parently forced the convoy to re- tire without reaching its destina- tion,” ys the communique. Northwest of Australia, an Allied plane bombed and strafed a Jap- anese merchantman in Kaimana Bay, Dutch New Guinea. Heavy bombers attacked three ships at Cape Vandebosch but results are uncertain. In New Britain, an enemy build- ing at Ubili was attacked by a Unit- ed* States heavy bomber and one Jap bomber was shot down. Lae and Salamaua were both raided by Allied bombers again and huge fuel fires were started at the -e HOOVER IN WARNING ON FOOD STORES Says We Are—F;cing Short-| age-Agriculture Degenerating DES MOINES, Iowa, March 17— Herbert Hoover, in a speech at the conclusion of an agricultural con- ference here yesterday, asserted “there are symptoms that we are dangerously degenerating agricul- ture and that must be stopped.” To win the war for peace on the home front is equally as important as winning the war on the fightinz front, he said, asserting the nation 1s facing a food shortage. - Mahan Pefitions Alcatraz Release SAN FRANCISCO, March 17— william Dainard, alias William Ma- han, convicted of the 1936 kidnap- ing of George Weyerhaeuser in Ta- coma, has sought release from Al- catraz prisen by filing a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in Federal court here, BIG ATTACK U.S. Subs in Action in Pacific Send Down Jap Desiroyer, Other Ships WASHINGTON, March 17—The S. Navy reports that American subs in the Pacific have sunk a Jap destroyer and three non-com- batant ships, and have damaged three others. The list included sunk the destroyer, one large car- ’Debunking Job go vessel, one large transport and one® medium-sized cargo vessel The attacks raised the total to 199 Jap ships sunk or damaged by American sub action, including 138 among ”",se‘shlm sunk, 23 probably sunk, and, '38 damaged Handed Ouf by One Who Knows; Right Dope Is Given Now TAKES JAB AT H. RODEN Junior Senator Would Put Attorney General "On Spot” Senator A. P. Walker, recently under fire during the investigation of the Department of Labor, morning had Attorney General Henry Roden called to the Senate Chambers for questioning concern- ing the Attorney General's item in the appropriation bill which was considered this morning | (Continued on Page Three) | e eee - | Seeks Suspension '0f Assessment Work on Mines WASHINGTON, March 17. — Senator Pat McCarran of Nevada today introduced a resolution ex- tending for another year the sus- pension of the annual assessment work on mining claims due to the present war shortage of men and materials. > - INCOME TAX RETURNS IN SLOW MOVE WASHINGTON, March 17—The ‘Treasury reported today that in- |come tax receipts on March 15 to- ;ta]led $145,633,000 less than the jamount on the last day of the first quarter in 1942, | Treasury officlals said the re- ceipts listed March 15 are in no way reflecting the true picture of income tax payments since several weeks are required to process the 45,000,000 returns filed this year The Treasury indicated that last minute rush of taxpayers swamped | the collectors’ offices all over the country. R WASHINGTON, March 17 The Navy reports that in the South Pacific light naval surface craft bombarded naval positions at Vila and the Munda air base in the central Solomons. It is the third time American war vessels have penetrated an enemy sector in the Solomons and bombarded shore positions at or near Munda. . Good results are reported. D - BUY WAR PONDS By JACK INNETT WASHINGTON, March 17 — Charles E. Wilson, president of General Motors, did one of the most beautiful jobs of debunking Irecently that I have heard. Stories have been spreading about new designs of automobiles (and planes, refrigerators, ete.) which will be popped at the public as soon as the war is over. | These stories have -caused own- ers to consider their present mod- els already outmoded and to make them eager to get rid of their ‘old” 1941-42 model cars (the same applies to other products) in order to save up for the whiz-bangs that will roll off the production lines when peace comes. Now listen to Mr. Wilson. Con- fining himself to the motor car in- Lo speak for—he said “The industry, I feel quite cer- tain, is going back into production with very substantially the same cars” that they were producing in |the '42 models. 1 (Continued on Page Two) ALLIES IN BURMA HOLD ON GRIMLY } NEW DELHI, March 17. — The Battle in Burma today flared into |greater intensity as the British |headquarters reported 30 hours of uninterrupted [fighting along the |Mayu River, 12 miles north of | Rathedaung. radios, | RED ARMY IS PUSHEDHARD, SOUTH FRONT |Germans B;fl;ring Along | Donefs-Russians Ad- | vance in North | (By Associated Press) | The Russian Red Army has {smashed another wedge westward ‘|toward the German key base at Smolensk the noon communique at | Moscow states, and further said |the capture of the railroad station |at Igorievskaya and the district center of Vskhody is officially stat- led. To the south however, the Ger- {mans have smashed a great num- ber of tanks and motorized tanks supported by a strong force of dive bombers in a major effort to cross | northern Donets. South of fallen Kharkov, furious fighting is reported throsgh a small elbow in the river near Izyum, 70 | miles southeast of Kharkov. It is stated there is reason to as- sume the German tank force is | battering ,the northern Donets line as strong if not stronger than the junits that figured prominently in the Kharkov region. A Weather and land conditions are reported good for mechanized war- fare. It is indicated that the present struggle is as fierce as anything that has taken place in months. The German communique said “enemy forces are encircled south- |east of Kharkov and compressed in the narrowest area and ap- ! proaching arnihilation " The Germans also claim advances this dustry—which he is most qualified|!? the Belgorod area where heavy fighting in the Lake Elmen area is engaging with the “Soviets vainly surging against the German front |for several entire days.” | By taking Igorievskaya, 25 miles \north of Durovo on the spur rail- |way branching off the main Smo- | lensk-Vyazma line, the Russians 'added another town to their tri- |umphant march west of the Dniep- | er River. Durovo is midway between | Vyazma and Smolensk on the main | rail line. > — ABSENTEEISM T0 " BE CHECKED: LAW HITS ALL WORKERS | WASHINGTON, March 17. — A | measure aimed at curbing absen- |teeism of war plant workers has | been approved 19 to 7 by the House ‘Naval Committee. The measure would tighten the | Selective Service Act and provides | | While American fliers ranged far '3t an employer seeking defer- and wide over Jap conquered ter- | Ment of an essential worker must ritory ‘to bomb railway bridges, | highways and truck convoys, the {Japs are reported attempting to in- | |tiltrate through the jungles and! {swamps to the British positions not furnish the draft boards with a record of how many times the work- er has been absent from his job, and also requires the War, Navy and Merchant Marine Departments (and all war contractors to supply far away. |the Department of Labor with the * Inland along the Bay of Bengal, names of all workers absent with- the British communique reported a'out prior authorization. series of clashes on the east bank' - - STOCK QUOTATIONS of the Mayu River, where the re- inforced Jap troops are attacking Gen. Wavell's forces. | 5 The communique stated there js NEW YORK, March 17.—Closing quotation of Alaska Juneau mine stock today is 4, American Can 717, Anaconda 28, Bethlehem Steel no change in the general situa- tion, indicating that the British 62%, Commonwealth and Southern Imperials have stiffened after min- or withdrawals, India's Troops 11/16, Curtiss Wright 8%, Interna- Several days ago Wavell declared Tional Harvester 63%, General Mo- that India’s volunteer army is now 'Ors 47%, Kennecott 32%, New 2,000,000, “in position to meet and|¥York Central 13%, Northern Pa- |cific 11%, United States Steel 53's, ‘Pound $4.04 Dow, Jones averages today are as follows: industrials 12949, rails 32,08, utilities 17.32. defeat any attack against her soil The U. S. Tenth Air Force head- quarters said today that American planes are hitting at the Jap sup- ply lines in widespread attacks striking a series of strategic bridg- es, notably the Mytinge span near Mandalay, and strafing enemy truc! columns. DIMOUT TIME The communique said = further Dimout begins tonight that for 48 hours U. S. planes have e at sunset at 7:04 o'clock. bombed and machine-gunned the @ Dimout ends tomorrow Japs without the loss of a aircraft. single ® at sunrise at 7:08 a.m. © Dimout begins Thursday at ® sunset at 7:06 p.m L L B B B B B D e | BUY WAR BONDS