The Daily Alaska empire Newspaper, December 16, 1943, Page 1

THE DAILY ALASKA EMPIRE “ALL THE NEWS ALL THE TIME" A UNEAU, ALASKA, THURS VOL. XLIL, NO. 9525. DAY, DECEMBER_» 16, 1943 'MEMBER ASSOCIATED PRESS PRI([ TEN CENTS — " | JAP BARGE BASE IN SOLOMONS SMASHED Nazi Raiders Sink 17 United Nations Ships 1 THOUSAND HARD BLOWS Vinson Hits PERSONSDEAD! ARE STRUCK WageBoost, OR ARE HURT German Bombers Swoop Over BariHarbor, lfaly Early in Morning WASHINGTON, Dec. 16.—Seven- teen United Nations merchant ships, including five American vessels, were sunk by German bombers at the Allled port of Bari, Italy, on De- cember 2, and approximately 1,000 persons, among them 37 American Naval men, were killed or injured. Secretary of War Henry L. Stim- | son disclosed the details today at a conference of the newsmen after other sources of unquestionable authority put the the total vessels (Continued on Page Two) - The Washington Merry - Go-Round ByDBEWPEAflSON (mui-nlul-nufluam.) WASHINGTON — Former Gover- ror’ ‘Alf Landon of Kansas had ample opportunity to open up on, Wendell 'Willkie, had- he been so minded, at his closed-door meeting with freshmen GOP Congressmen. However, Landon diplomatically held his fire, much to the disap- polntment of anti-Willkieites pre- sent. Representative Howard Buffett of Nebraska blew the whistle on| Willkie at the very start of the, meeting, introducing Landon as ugl man who was neither a Socialist nor a Democrat before he received the Republican Presidential nom- ination, nor a New Dealer or bomd- er traveller afterward.” Landon first read a prepared and rather dull diatribe denouncing New Deal domestic policies and warning Republicans against endorsing Roosevelt's Soviet-collaboration “un- til we know all the facts about the Moscow conference.” Having finish- ed this, he was peppered with pro- vocative questions about Willkie. Representative Louis Ebenezer Miler of Missouri inquired if Lan- don “ever intended to write a tra- velogue.” The Kansan grinned this one off. He answered most other questions regarding Willkie in mon- osyllables and refused to mention Willkie by name at any time. How- ever, he uncorked one indirect blast when asked if anyone had the Re- publican nomination “in the bag,” a claim Willkie reportedly made when he addressed the GOP freshmen some weeks back. ~“That's perfectly absurd, and I don't care who sald it,” Landon re- plied. “No one can'say at this time who will be the party nominee in 1944.” , . ALMOST SECRETARY OF WAR Landon was his usual colorless self and the meeting dragged badly in spots. However, all ears pricked up when the Kansan gave an in- side account of how he was “almost appointed” Secretary of War dur- ing the 1940 campaign. He had recejved a feeler on the Cabinet appointment from Frank! NEW SECTORS Brenner Pass Bombed by | Allies Forces—Raids on Northern Italy ALLIED HEADQUARTERS IN ALGIERS, Dec. 16. — American heavy bombers striking in as great a force as Tuesday when 300 Fort- resses, and Liberators blasted air-| fields in the Athens area, hit tell- ling blows at enemy communications | on both sides of the Brenner Pass| yesterday. New sledgehammer blows were directed at rail facilities at Inns- \bruck in Austria, Bolzano and | Trento regions in Northern Itnly, ;allhough a fleet of bombers :md |escorting fighters approximately matched the armada that raided the Aegean area. Allied headquarters said that every one of the planes returned safely. These attacks, described as highly concentrated, were made on the main supply from Germany to Italy as the Bri- ‘Lb.h Eighth Army pushed ahead islowly in _an_ advance along the Adriatic Coast toward Pescara. The Fifth Army captured an im- | { | successfully | line | RR Workers | ! A | WASHINGTON, Dec. 16.—Econ- omic Stabilization Director Fred | Vinson reiterated his belief today |that the proposed general eight |cents an hour nation’s non-operating railroad workers constituted a major threat | to the wartime wage and price, sta- ‘hmmuon program and told the {House Interstate Commerce Com- \mmne “Every consideration by prudent | \suuwmamhxp, of separation of | powers, of general legislative policy, rof (m\smmmnal propriety, of econ- | omic and above all, of equal justice under the law, dic- tates the rejection of this unpre- | cedented propnsal" FIRST DIV. DEMOCRATS MEET HERE 'Convention Is All Set fo i NAZISLOSE | pay boost for the| portant hill in the Castel San Vin- | \cenzo area and six miles south of |Alfedena the Eighth Army cut a| road between Ortona and Orsogna | in three places and captured lhe‘ village of Berrati, three miles homlew Convention will open in. Ju- Ortona. The raid on Innsbruck was made:';;"" "11 ':9 i ;fln tog::rowmat by Fortresses from the 15th Air-| - "CEC P g o e force. They were the first blows to ke, o oot 'be delivered in the Australian Ty- man_snnounced , teday, Open at Noon in Union Hall The First Dlvislons Democratic | | | | HUSKIES LINING UP rol's. High explosives were laid Delegates from g fow First Dl across the rallway yards and ter- | SioN precincts were expected today S or tomorrow, while others will be | represented by proxy. | The first order of business will {be the appointment of the creden- FA T TR N tials committee after the chairman has been chosen and the confab | will probably recess for a short time {then while the committee does its ARE WRECKED, - § The Territorial Convention will be (held in Fairbanks the latter part MANY K I llED |of next mom.h LUMBERTON, North Carolina, GH’"NG I“ S“APE Dec. 16—Two streamlined passen- | | ger trains on the New York-Florida | | run, were wrecked near here early LOS ANGELES, Calif, Dec. 16— today with dead estimated from 50 Southern California's Trojans back-| to 70. Scores were taken to hospi- field men are down with the flu tals with injuries. |and others are sniffling through The two fast Atlantic Coast Line |light workouts in preparation for) trains, loaded with pre-holiday|the New Years Rose Bowl game travelers, many of them homeward“”“‘ the University of Washington. | bound servicemen, piled up in a| “I'm afraid to work the kids too double wreck at Buie, a village in hard as fatigue makes them more southeastern North Carolina, short- susceptible to colds and the flu,” 1y after 1 o'clock this morning. explained Coach Jeff Cravath. C. G. Sibley, Vice-President of| Backfieldmen Eddie Saenz and the line, said he believed the wreck |Chuck Page are absent from the was caused by a broken rail. |lineup. Don Hardy has returned The streamliner “Tamiama, West|after several days in bed. Coast Champion,” No. 91, south!| bound from New York to Tampa,| iwas partially derailed = about SEATTLE, Dec. 16.—With three o'clock this morning. ;candidau\s in uniform, Coach Ralph A few minutes later, “Tamiami|Welch is encouraged in the full- | East Coast Champion,” No. 8, bound back situation of the University oI\ for Miami to New York, plowed | Washington's football team whlch“ through the wreckage of No. 91 ana /Mects USC in the Rose Bowl. Al- wreckage was spilled over the par- %though cold weather continues to i | INITIATIVE, KIEV AREA ‘Valuhn s Army Withstands. All Attacks and Starts New Offensive MOSCOW, Dec. 16.—Gen. V’\'.u-’ tin’s First Ukrainian Army has gone | |over to the offensive for the second time this week in the battle of the |Kiev bulge. In a series of swift | counterattacks, they have driven the | Germans from several strong points along the Teterev River salient, 55 miles west of Kiev Marshal von Mannstein's ful armored divisions were unable to withstand the concentrated a tillery fire from the Russian posi- tions, a field dispatch said. Red Army guns, aided by Stormo- {vik bombers knocked out at least 48 German tanks and 97 armored cars in yesterday’s fighting, a com- | munique reported | | The fact that Gen. Vatutin's line ‘hcld against the enemy’s sustained frontal assaults suggested the Ger- | Imans have shot their bolt, at least for the time being, in their drive| | to recapture Kiev. South of Kiev, Red Army forees under Gen. Konev are reported g rapidly expanding their positions west of the Dnieper following the | joining of the Kremenchug and Cherkasy bridgeheads in yesterday’ operation, which gave the Russ control of the west bank for a 65 mile stretch between the two cities. Konev quickly exploited his vi tory and his troops stormed town of Byelozere, five miles north- east of Smela, placing that im- portant rail junction within easy artillery range of the Soviet guns R power- | ‘GERMANS ADMIT RUSSIAN GAINS IN KIEV BULGE LONDON, Dec. 16.—Berlin has ac- knowledged that the Russian forces have slowed the German counter advance in the Kiev seesaw battle larea, and have launched a strong offensive in White Russia. The acknowledgements bore out xhe Moscow reports that Gen V.*tu- tin's Ukrainian Army has gone over | to the offensive again and has mass- ed the greatest artillery concentra-; tions for the “approaching climax.” ‘While admitting that Nazi counter- attacks are making less progress on | the White Russian front, to the |north the Germans also acknowl-| | edged the Nazi lines west of Krechev | on the road to Minsk were breached | | by a strong Russian attack launched funder an artillery barrage with flame thrower support. The Ger- mans claimed, however, th: the | and damaged. | turned ROOSEVELT BACK HOME BUL! IN—WASHINGTON, Dec. 16. — President Roosevelt has returned to the United States, the White House an- nounces. Presidential Secretary Early told the reporters: “I happily can tell you he has returned safely back to the United States I am not advised when he will reach Washington.” Early said he had no other de- tails on the President’s return from the international confer- ences in the Middle East. DU JAPS, YANKS, - TRADEBLOWS, AERIAL WAR Liberators Hit Sustained Blows at Marshalls- Nips Strike Gilberts PEARL HARBOR Dec, 16—Am- | lerican Airforce Liberators and Jap- anese bombers traded new aerial punches on the enemy-held Ma shalls and the American-held Gil- berts, Adm. Chester W. Nimitz an- nounced in a press release Liberators bombed the airdrome started fires in the hangar area of Taroa on Maloelap Atoll in the Marshalls. Seventeen Zeros intercepted and one is known to | have been shot down, and four | were probably destroyed, and five Three Liberators sus- tained slight damage, but all re- to their base The raids a- continuation of a sories moving into the second ! month. In retaliation for the almost daily strikes, the Japanese made nuisance |raids on the Gilberts at Tarawa on ! ments. December 12 and 13 and at Makin on December 13 and 14, the Navy, said, but no damage was done at Tarawa and Makin, although four men were wounded by bomb fra The Gilberts and Marshalls are approximately 300 miles apart. \ 4 PERSONS COME FROM HAINES VIA ALASKA COASTAL A flight was ma(lv yesterday to Excursion Inlet by an Alaska Coast- ‘al . Airlines plane with Murrall at count- | B0ggs as a passenger, and relumod‘ | erattacks restored the Nazi posi- to Juneau with Roy Dicicco, Otis | | tions. HIRST BACK FROM SOUTHEAST POINT Affairs, returned last e |E. Galli, Claude M. Hirst, General Super- Seeley, and returning were Charles cial confirmation of such a stop intendent for the Bureau of Indian Brouillette, night after Jard and W. L. a week’s absence during which tlmn‘ he conferred Hydaburg. at Ketchikan and! SIX '""M“D BY ELKS Mr. Hirst met with the Hydaburg| L. Armstrong, Lt. Col. H. P. Cmne. and Warren Caro. A return trip from Sitka brought *|in Irene Deveney, Harold McRobert, |bon said that President R.oosevelts‘ | plane made a forced landing in m’{reportmg in coveralls and leggings by almost continuous activity by and Charles Berg. Passengers to Haines were Mrs. C. Holmes and W. L,f Mr. and Mrs. Seeley. i i F. wil- LODGE lAST EVENING | ister Winston Churchill, who marked |his 69th birthday while |is suffering a |simo Chiang Kai-Shek, and Presi- { tion broadcast said that Churchill {east said the President was forced !down on the Island of Terceira due CHURCHILL 15 NOW ILL, PNEUMONIA Prime Minister Suffers Sec- ond Aftack in Year- Condmon Grave lb —Prime Min- { LONDON, Dec attending the three-power Teheran conference “patch of pneumonia | |in the left lung,” Deputy Prime Min- | ister C. R. Attlee told a hushed House of Commons today. Attlee indicated that Churchill is now somewhere in the Middle East. The bulletin was issued from Churchill’'s official residence and said The Prime Minister's con- dition is as satisfactory as can be expected.” It is the second attack of pneu- monia suffered by Churchill in less than a year The Prime Minister was reported as suffering from a heavy cold and a tempearture of more than 100 when he sailed from Britain to at- tend the conferences with President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Generalis- dent Inonu Cold Becomes Worse On his arrival in Cairo, the' cold became worse, and Churchill lost his voice, but insisted on continuing his arduous labors. Attlee said that highly qualified specialists are in constant attendance and added, “T can assure the House that every modern facility is available on the spot.” Condifion Is Grave A later announcement that daily bulletins on the Prime Minister's condition will be issued and these might be taken as an indication of the gravity of his illness. Supplies of the new drug penicil- lin are understood to be available if needed A British Broadcasting Corpora- and Greek Premier Tsouderos mctl Friday at Cgiro “to discuss the part Greece will play in the war in the light of r 1t events.” R Rumor Says FDR's Plane Forced Down ‘No Official Confirmation of Incident During Trip to Cairo LONDON, Dec. 16.—A DNB dis- patch purporting to come from Lis- Azores while on the way to Cairo and Teheran conferences. No offi- was made while the President was/ enroute to Cairo. The agency said a Berlin broad- to a damaged engine in his air- tldfl U.S. Forces |ately on the beaches against Am- Laurng north of Finschafen in New ARAWE GETS | RIPPED OPEN: BY BOMBERS. - American A|r For(e Drops: 356 Tons-Enemy Cruis- er Spo"ed Raided PHOENIX, Anmnu. Dec. 16.—“ ALLIED HEADQUARTFRq IN L. D. Brewer, Phoenix radio ama- | THE SOUTHWEST PACIFIC, Dec. teur, said that he heard two broad-|16. — American heavy and medium | casts from Tokyo this morning by’bumbcrx ripped Arawe, New Britain, [a Jap communique saying that Am- |Tuesday, with the heaviest bomb erican forces had invaded New (load ever carried on a single mis- Britain Island and desperate fight- |Sion in the Southwest Pacific. ing had occurred along the beaches.| Air Force bombers, supported by “Japanese forces on New Britain | 8ttack planes, and numbering more Island continued to battle desper-|than 100, loosed 356 tons of ex- plosives on the Japanse barge base. [Not even the big enemy base at Rabaul at the northeastern tip of the island ever received so massive a weight of explosives in a single day. Rabaul had held the previous rec- ord of 350 tons dropped on Octo- ber 12. Allied planes lashed at Arawe throughout the day, Gen. Mac- | Arthur’s communiqgue said, and also sprayed more t 174,000 rounds |of machine gun ammunication. No Planes Lost There was no interception from enemy fighters and little ground fire. . None of our planes wers. lest.. . The assaults cenfered on” Amulut | plantation and a smail chain of Reported on a3 Invasion Now Tokyo Broadcasts Report| Americans on New Britain Island erican invasion forces," the broad- cast said. The Tokyo radio claimed that in one sea engagement two ‘“enemy torpedo boats” were hit, one was sunk and the other was left in flames, “and it no doubt was also sunk.” In another naval battle three enemy torpedo boats were hit, lhe Jap announcer said. No dates were given in any of the events described. The sea en- gagements were said to have oc- Guinea. NW. GERMANY days After RAF Attacks During Last Night LONDON, Dee¢. 16.— American heavy bombers, giving the battered northwest Germany only a two day respite after Monday’s heavy at- tack, renewed the assault in an- other daylight raid today. layoff, also attacked targets in west- ern Germany last night, for the fifth time in six nights. No planes were lost. Specific objectives are closed. not dis- WEE, SO G TERRITORIAL GUARD IS MEETING TONIGHT; ial and should be equipped with rifle and ammunition belts. Demonstration and instruction in hand-to-hand fighting will make | up the program, given by men of the U S. Army. Guardsmen are asked to make a ing tonight and many items of - U. 5. BOMBERS AGAIN RAID Planes Start Out Early To-| Royal Air Force Mosquito bomb- | ers, taking the air after a one night LAST ONE THIS YEAR' The Juneau unit of the Territor- | Guards meets tonight at 8, o'clock in the Elks Hall, members| special ‘effort to attend the meet-| | islands guarding the harbor. Bhrges, installations, personnel stores and communications are believed de- stroyed or devastated. . An enemy crufser off* Kavieng, New Ireland, was hit'by two 1,000~ pound bombs by a’ Navy Ga#talina, Adm. Halsey's headguarters in the Solomons said. The Japanese air- | fields at Bougainville were bombed to such an extent that American | bombers are now monopolizing the air and concentrating on supplies and ground defenses. The Amer- icans of the Solomons air foree dropped 150 tons of explosives in | 200 sorties on Monday, the Japanese {air force not making a single re- | taliatory blow, a Halsey spokesman | said. Position improves The. pet result. is “a continued improvement in our position.”. On the lnst big Japanese Solomons base barring, a frontal approach Lri R~ baul, the spokesman reported, *“a steady deterioration of Jap supply positions, especially their perimeter supply lines, supply staging points, heavy ~anti-aireraft batteries and theavy mechanical equipmént.” Chennaulf's Sky Dragons Aid Chinese | i | i | | CHUNGKING, Dec. 16 Aided Chennault’s sky dragons, Chinese uoop\ in the Rice Bowl area west lof Tungting Lake in pressing ef- |forts surrounded Jap,, rémnants lemn are still refreating from Changteh. Ay = | The Chinese command aniounced | several Jap detachments were trap- ped near Lihsien and declared that “their annihilation is metely a matter of time.” B BUY WAR BOND > Altchul of New York, relative of former Governor Lehman. When Landon evinced interest, Altschul, according to Landon, arranged a ‘White House luncheon at which the matter was to be talked over. Howevér, Landon chose this mo- ment _to issue a public blast against ————— MILLERS HERE Mr. and Mrs. Bert J. Miller, here allel double track line. put a crimp in the physical condi-|City Council and plans were made rtance will be taken up. Tonight' B tion of the team members, light by the Council to finance that com- | B non P SoReA the next held on January 6. | Gail Bruce, madeover end of employing a manager instead of|the Elks Lodge last night at a (HRBIMAS TREE Is i u" ' ’13“ year's freshmen eleven, has|contracting with anyone for Hnnnc-‘?meeunu in the Elks Hall, one of the p ' E Io v Bml I"G o S"ow practic?. and fullback Marv Smith,}in previous years. ! Washington, Lodge. | u l" Pu( DA STO(K wo"“ous Bobn Moore, other prospects, appenr: >> i During the session, Frank l)u-‘ BY lYBE(K A“D (Rm v NEW YORK, Dec. . 51 aithird term for Roosevelt and the|beginning to appear. Colored lights ;e |aska G { % - 18 —Olrs Ipctwn way g of are glimmerring along the marquee ) z:‘;‘d 2 5lcw:t;db wtl:le“;u: E.knhn lu(; thealo:mcwil;lmrg:“o:. tll,mw“l(:d. ~Bhe's & loagt, boys, sud 10 e stock today is 8, American Can 84% y i { employ y the ] oal ge s Antlers, The i e 1 iy This was in June, 1940, shortly|of the Shattuck Building on Seward take.” That was what passerbys said | o 00onq, 2435, Bethlehem Steel | retary of the Na: d He: Stim-|tends from the Parsons Electric ternal call on the Elks at the meet-|and were presented through coop- tendent Bert Lybeck and his crew mr:ecme s!:crv:t::y Gt Wek. Ao | Blore atong thie marques of the Wini}|/T0m Strawberry Botnt, are TERRIING 1abt night. |eration of the Washington State| were hoisting the Community Christ- | Harvester 1%, Kennccott 41%,' Buildi d Street to the ered at the Gastineau. > Game Commission. | mas tree in place at the corner of New York Central 15%, Northern!| cording to Landon, Knox authorized ing on Seward S Pacific 14%, United States Steel| AT GASTINEAU Office of Price’ Administration, re- E. E. Lincoln for the Kelso Lodge be str n the t d thi that both he and Landon would re- House. ¢ ge ung on the tree and everything fuse Cabinet appointments. A very pretty Christmas tree is| Harry Townsend, well known Se-|turned last night from Ketchikan and 8. G. Stevens, W. R. Peterson, will be ready for the community| DOW, Jones averages today are| Shoppmg DGYS already glowing in the lobby of the |attle mining man, is in Juneau. He|where he has been for several weeks|A. W. Erickson, L. D. McMullen exercises next Sunday afternoon at|as follows: industrials 13519, ralls promreere g Foun) 3216, utilities 2163, Till CHRISTMAS A meeting will be the last this year, DKO 'nous ARE |work is being done. >mumtys cannery next year, and| Six candidates were initiated I)y‘ ¢ begun to show speed in signal ing and managing as has been done group heing initiated for the Kelso, | Christmas decorations are already |t be fully recovered from leg in-| Stanley R. Duke left today to re- | fresne, Executive Officer of the Al-| quotation of Alaska Juneau mine before Frank Ki was named Sec- | Street and also a string of lights ex- | Commission. He made his last fra-|antlers were mounted by Ed Peyton (pjs morning when Street Superin- 56%, Curtiss Wright 5, !nlernatlannll ¢ a statement stating|corner of Uggen's Alaska Music e — Ernest Oberg, investigator for t: Candidates last night included: | Front Street and Seward. Lights will 50%, Pound $4.04. ‘him issue %, Pirst National Bank. is a guest at the Gastineau. an official business. 'and F. Berge for the Juneau Lodge. 14 o'clock. X