Evening Star Newspaper, March 20, 1940, Page 1

Weather Forecast Fair and colder tonight and tomorrow; lowest tonight about 32; fresh northwest winds, diminishing tomorrow. ' Tem- peratures today—Highest, 60, at 2 p.m.; lowest, 40, at 6 a.m. Established in 1852 Most people in Washington have The Star delivered to their homes every From the United Stares Weather Bureau report. I details on P Closmg New York Ma 88th YE AR. No. 35,022 age rkets, Page 20. ch WASHINGTON, 1050 (bl WITH SUNDAY MORNING EDITION British Resume “Air Attacks On Nazis' Sylt Island Base; _Dalad|er Out, Reynaud Called Bombers Reported Sweeping Over In Six Groups B the Associated Press. British bombers returned to | the German naval base at Hornum, on the Island of Sylt, today, dropping more bombs and blasting German defenses with machine gun fire after the big- gest British air raid of the war last night and early this morn- ing. British air ministry sources | said the bombers went back | principally to take pictures of the damage, caused by a fleet of | 30 to 50 planes, which partici- pated in the seven-hour raid. Reports from Tonder, Denmark, said that the British attacks today | were carried out with violence almost equal to the earlier raid. British Air Minister Sir Kingsley “Wood said that ‘many hits” were made last night on strategic jetty and railway points on the island, and that hangars and oil storage tanks were set afire. Only one British plane failed to return from - the raid and all came back from to- day's flight, according to the British. Sounds of Explosions Heard. The sound of exploding bombs | rolled in over Denmark’s coastal | settlements, leading to belief that many planes were in action, al- though accurate determination was impossible. Indications from the | Danish coast were that British bombers were sweeping back and forth over the narrow island in six | attacking units. The morning attack lasted 20 min- utes, with the concussion of explo- sions so intense that houses on the Danish coast were shaken. Nu- merous German pursuit planes later were observed flying to and from the | island to the mainland. Observers, unable to see clearly, | Judged the number of attacking units by the successive waves of bomb explosions accompanied by terrific anti-aircraft fire. ‘Watchers from the Danish shore gald numerous observation planes | flew over Sylt at 3 p.m. Machme‘ guns barked, but no fire of hesuer guns was noticed. When fog lifted at 4 p.m. <hore observers saw that one of four anti- | aircraft towers between the main- land and Sylt was missing. appar- | ently the victim of a direct bomb | hit. The towers are manned by | machine gunners. Machine Gun Attempt Reported. It was reported that an unidenti- fled foreign plane, fired on by Dan- ish anti-aircraft guns at Esbjerg during the first big British | later descended and tried to machine | Galeazzo Ciano, who presented him | gun the Danish gun crew. . A Danish naval vessel in the Esb- Jerg harbor fired on this plane. Br the Associated Press. PARIS, March 20.—Premier Ed- ourad Daaladier resigned today amid criticism of France's prosecu- | tion of war against Germany and | | President Albert Lebrun asked Finance Minister Paul Reynaud to form a “war cabinet.” M. Reynaud said he would give | M. Lebrun his answer tomorrow | morning. The President called in M. Rey- ful at his finance post, after M. | Daladier’s Radical-Socialist party announced the retiring premier’s refusal to attempt a new combina- tion. M. Daladier declined in conform- | ity with “parliamentary tradition,” it was announced. That meant he | ‘mtcrpreted as an expression of dis- | | | | a minority vote of confidence which the Chamber of Deputies had given | him earlier in the day. 300 Abstentions in Vote. Although the vote was 239 to 1 in his favor, there were more than 300 abstentions in the total chamber membership of 551. Some 300 Deputies thus showed | their disapproval of M. Daladier’ virtually dictatorial rule. His critics | have demanded a more extensive and vigorous execution of the war against Germany. M. Reynaud, who, parliamentary | circles thought, could speedily form the “action” government for which !all the press has been clamoring,' naud, who has been notably success- | ‘appw\al of his conduct of the war | 'French Government Resigns After Slim Confidence Vote 300 Abstentions in Chamber Ballot Show Dissatisfaction With War Conduct |entered the presidential palace at |4:45 pm, and still was conferring | with M. Lebrun an hour later. M. Reynaud as Premier was ex- pected to have the support of both Rightists and Leftists. Moderate Rightist. As he left the Elysee Palace M. Reynaud said: | “The President of the republic | has paid me the honor of asking me to constitute a new government. I will give him my definite reply to- morrow morning.” M. Reynaud is a member Left Republican party, which is slightly to the right of center po- |litically. Tt is an alliance of 40 | Deputies headed by former Premier | Pierre-Etienne Flandin. M. Reynaud said “if T accept I hope to form a ministry rapidly.” M. Daladier previously had re- { fused to try to form a new cabinet jand a close personal friend said he | also would refuse any post in it. Chamber of Deputies sources who | considered M. Reynaud best fitted | to form a new “action” ministry to prosecute the war believed he would accept and form a cabinet including | all parties from the Socialists to the extreme right. M. Daladier had given notice that ' he intended to revise his government. The cabinet met early this morn- ing, six hours after the chamber's reluctant vote of confidence. __The ion, at the War Ministry, (See FRANCE, Page A-5.) ‘Duce Told Him Aims, Says Gayda American Fact-Finder Denies Receiving Peace Proposals | By the Associated Press. Welles Sails Home; |Edison Will Enter 'Race for Governor In New Jersey Annouhcement Is Seen As Indication Roosevelt- Will Run Again By G. GOULD LINCOLN. GENOA, Italy, March 20.—Sumner | Welles, fact-finder for President | Roosevelt, sailed for the United \ States today on the Conte di Savoia. | Mr. Welles’ train from Rome ar- at a hotel, where he joined Mrs. Welles, the American Undersecretary | UPOD in New Jersey as an indication | of State went aboard ship. He was accompanied by the sec- to a delegation of Genoese officials assembled to bid him farewell. Secretary of the Navy Charles Edison announced today he would | seek the Democratic nomination for | Governor of New Jersey. The an- nouncement was made at his home | rived at 6:30 am. After four hours | i, West Orange. The announcement was seized | President Roosevelt is likely to run ! | for a third term, the implication be- e |letarv of Foreign Minister Count | ing that Mr. Edison might not other- | wise have entered the race. However, in Washington the fact that Mr. Edison was being urged to the | Farley In‘sisis He Is in Race To Stay ‘And That's That,’ He Says in Bay State Announcement ROOSEVELT'S DENIAL OF RE- TIREMENT story stirs third-term talk. Page A-5 By the Associated Press. SPRINGFIELD, Mass., March 20. —Postmaster General Farley as- serted today, “frankly and without reservation,” that his mame would be presented to the Democratic Na- tional Convention at Chicago, and added “and that's that.” Mr. Farley's statement, during a time of continued speculation as to President Roosevelt's plans for 1940, was made to newspapermen as he arrived here to confer with a group of Massachusetts Democrats. Ques- tions directed at him centered main- ly on his action in entering the Mas- | sachusetts presidential primary on | April 30, “No Combination.” When asked also about reports he was teaming up with other candi- | dates. he replied: “Farley is in no combination with anybody. I am deeply grateful to | Chairman Burke (Willilam Burke, chairman of the Massachusetts State Democratic Committee) and | |the other Democratic leaders in | Massachusetts for the great compli- ment they have paid me. “It wouldn't be human if I did fhot appreciate their action. I hope /by my conduct in the future that | I will justify the confidence Massa- chusens Democracy has shown in ‘To clear up any misunderstand- ings, let me say that my name will be presented to the national con- vention at Chicago, and that’s that.” The chairman of the Democratic | National Committee paused after making this statement, added: “I am sure that any one who has known me during my political ca- reer will know that I make that statement frankly and without res- ervation.” Several weeks ago, Mr. Burke ob- | tained from Mr. Farley his power of attorney, required under Massa- chusetts law, to enter a slate of dele- gates pledged to support the Post- master General's candidacy. Subsequently, Mr. Burke and then | | an- belief that President Roosevelt | would not seek a third term, and | with the assumption that if he did, he wouid receive the support of “Mr. Farley and the Democratic party as a whole.” Mr. Burke's announcement created | widespread speculation over the pos- sibility that Mr Farley's move was designed to tie up the Massachusetts | | delegation’s 34 convention votes and prevent their capture by some other | candidate. At an earlier interview, Mr. Farley said the “accomplishments of the| Democratic administration will be the platform upon which the Demo- cratic nominee for President, who- ever he may be, will campaign this | fall.” He predicted success for the | ‘n)unced he took his action in the | — WE'RE WORSHIPING CERTAIN MEN BECAUSE THEY HAVE EXHAUSTED THE TREASURY—BUT [ WONT DO The Unreconstructed Dean of the Senafe ¢ Foening Star WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20, 1940—FORTY-TWO PAGES. %** 18} D. C. Sales-Income Tax Voted By House Commiittee, 8 to 6 Levy Would Be on Transactions of 5 Cents Or More; 10-Cent Li The full House District Commit- tee, at a special executive meeting today, approved the new Nichols tax bill calling for a combination 2 per | cent tax on retail sales of 5 cents or more and a tax on earned incomes in excess of $10.000 a year and on un- | earned incomes above $1,000. The vote, it is understood, was 8 |to 6. Names of those voting, how- ever, were not disclosed. Before approving the bill, the committee defeated a move by Rep- resentative Poage, Democrat, of Texas to kill the measure and also to repeal the existing tax on per- sonal incomes, which would have imit Beaten crease the existing $1.75 tax rate on real and personal property to keep the District government out of the red in the coming fiscal year. The Poage motion, it was said, was voted down, 11 to 3. 10-Cent Minimum Rejected. The committee also rejected a motion by Chairman Randolph which would raise from 5 to 10 cents the minimum base of the sales tax. Representative Randolph served notice, however, he would make a| fight on the House floor to prevent | (See D. C. TAXES, Page A-5.) Census Director Asks Tobey to Make Peace By Admitting Error Urges Him to Withdraw Charges, Especially One Stirring Up the Women By the Associated Press. Declaring “the little census blitz- kreig” had about spent its force, Mr. Welles thus wound up a mis- | become a candidate for Governor of | Democratic praty in Massachusetts, | William L. Austin, director of the During last night's raid six bomb- | sion which took him to Rome, Berlin, | New Jersey, to insure a strong Dem- | ers circled low over Hvide Sande |Paris and London and then back to | ocratic ticket there next fall, | Rome, (white sands) about midnight and dropped three large bombs on that | narrow strip of Danish soil about | midway the west coast. ‘ Several hours afterward another group of planes appeared over Hvide Sande and dropped several light bombs which apparently fell into | the water, It was reported also that bomb: fell inside Varde, a Danish city about 15 miles from the Danish coast, in the early morning. Sev- | eral craters were found, but no casualties were reported. Danish authorities began an in- - vestigation to determine nationality of the planes which dropped the bombs, and a formal protest was | considered likely. It was pointed out that the planes probably were British. Danish anti-aircraft guns again fired warning shots this morning as foreign planes flew over Danish ter- ritory. Arsenals and Hangars Hit, Say Britons Bs the Associated Press. LONDON, March 20.—The un- leashed Royal Air Force. its appe- tite whetted by a booming seven- hour continuous raid on the German fortifications at Sylt Island, returned to the scene today with bomb, gun and camera to work more havoc and prove it with pictures. Air Ministry sources said the main objective of the daylight flights over the 350-mile North Sea expanse was to make photographs, but reports {rom Tonder, Denmark, said Sylt vit ap- " (See RAIDS, Page A- Hitler Names Todt to Spur Arms Output BY the Associated Press. BERLIN, March 20.—Adolf Hitler today appointed Dr. Fritz Todt, builder of the Siegfried Line, as minister of munitions with instruc- tions to step up production by all feasible means. Dr. Todt. rated an able engineer, long has been Hitler's chief assistant in his most ambitious building proj- ects. He is largely responsible for Germany’s system of super-high- ways. In his capacity as inspector-gen- eral of highway construction, Dr. Todt directed a program which put nearly 170000 new cars on German roads during 1935 For his achieve- ments in highway and transport de- velopment, Dr. Todt was awarded in 1938 a German equivalent for the Nobel Prize, which citizens of the Reich are not allowed to accept. Early this year Dr. Todt visited the Russian border in the Caucasus g an advisory capacity, | informed Mr. Welles only of Italy’s for conferences with the heads of state in each country. He left America February arriving in Italy February 25. Informed of Italy’s Position. As Mr. Welles sailed today the | authoritative Editor Virginio Gayda, writing in Il Giornale dTtalia, as- serted that Premier Mussolini had \ iy position and aims in the war. He| further said that Il Duce had noth- | ing further to add to this after his Brenner Pass meeting Monday with | Fuehrer Hitler. The fact that Mussolini did not | have another talk with Mr. Welles after returning from the Brenner| was “indicative” of this, wrote| Gayda. He added that for the pur- | poses of Mr. Welles' informative | | tour, the two long talks he had with Mussolini February 27 and March 16 were sufficient. “In an atmosphere of great cordi- ality and frank sincerity,” Gayda | said, “were presented the positions, | opinions and tendencies of Italy in| connection with its vital interests as well as their connection with general European problems.” Peace Activity Denled. Mr. Welles last night finished hls‘ swift circuit of war-lashed Europe | with the firm declaration that he has neither received nor conveyed any peace plan whatsoever during his 24-day tour; yet he was believed to be in possession of an inside ac- count of what happened in Monday's meeting of dictatorc in the Brenner Pass. Mr. Welles, breaking the silence which he has maintained through- out the tour which brought him twice to Rome and took him to Ber- lin, Paris and London, said his task had been solely to gather informa- tion “for the President and the Secretary of State as to present con- ditions in Europe.” Text of Statement. His statement to the press, issued shortly before he left Rome, said: “In order to allay the flood of ru- mns about my mission, I wish to state categorically that I have not received any peace plan or proposals from any belligerent or from any other government; that I &m not conveyed any such proposals to any belligerent, nor to any other gov- ernment; nor am I bringing back to the President any such proposal.” Mr. Welles’ final fact-finding con- versation was with Ciano, who is be- lieved to have given Mr. Welles in- formation about Monday’s “parlor car” meeting between Premier Mus- souni and Fuehrer Hitler at Bren- nero. Mr. Welles declined to disclose how much Count Ciano had told him at a luncheon arranged by American Ambassador William Phillips shortly before Mussolini left for Brennero. However, he told correspondents he had talked briefly | | date. has | been known for a long time His candidacy is expected to build up | | strength for the ticket, whoever may be the Democratic presidential | nominee. Mayor Frank Hague of Jersey City, the Democratic boss of Hud- | son County and the State, was among those who strongly urged Mr. Edison to become a candi- | Mayor Hague is also one of the leading advocates of a third- term nomination for the President. From Miami Beach, where he is vacationing, Mr. Hague sent word that “the Democratic State organi- | zation will be 100 per cent behind | Mr Edison.” Mr. Edison is expected to re- turn to Washington late this after- noon. In making his announce- | ment he did not say whether he| intended to resign his cabinet of- | fice. From New Jersey, however, the report came that it was ex- | pected he would remain in the cab- inet until after the primary, May | 21, and for a long enough period | after that to wind up certain af-| fairs as Secretary of Navy. Davies Mentioned as Successor. Speculation as to a possible suc- | cessor to Mr. Edison as head of the Navy Department brought again to the fore the name of Joseph E. Davies, former Ambassador to Rus- sia and to Belgium, who is now a " (See EDISON, Page A-4) | Temperature Up, President Is Ordered Back to Bed By the Associated Press. President Roosevelt's temperature |was up again today and he was, | ordered back to bed. | His physician, Rear Admiral Ross T. MclIntire, said, however, he was | “not in the least concerned” about | the President's condition and that | his cold was “just one of those things that hangs on.” He said Mr. Roosevelt's tempera- | ture this morning was 99.4 degrees, nearly a degree above normal, and | two-tenths of a degree higher than | it was yesterday morning. The Chief Executive had appoint- ments with only. two callers in the White House residential quarters today. They were James P. Pope, director of the Tennessee Valley Authority, and an old friend, J. Douglas Brown, economist. Relief Rolls Shrinking The W. P. A. reported today a de- | crease of 4,575 in work relief rolls between March 6 and March 13, a | forerunner, officials said, of sharper cuts in April and May if rolls are | to reach the 1,500,000 figure sched- uled for the end of the fiscal year. March 13 enrollment totaled 2,- 318,812, compared with 2,323,387 on March 6. Summary of Page. | Amusements, Obituary B-20 | Radio _ B-18-19 | Society -B-3 Editorials __A-10 | Sports __A-16-18 Finance _._A-19| Woman's Page, Lost, Found_B-13 B-9 Page. A-12 B-18 Comics__ Foreign Welles sails home; Duce told him aims, says Gayda. Page A-1 British resume smashing air raids on Nazi base. Page A-1 French cabinet resigns, Reynaud new Premier. Page A-1 Will fight war in own way, Stanley tells U. 8. critics. Page A-3 Soviets oppose Scandinavian-Finn- ish alliance. Page A-12 Wang government to be established March 30. Page B-8 National Senate group votes to end buying foreign silver. Page A-1 Vandenberg to avoid stump, stand on record in Senate. Page A-2 House %1 up probes:sales to allies of U. S.&varplanes. Page A-3 Amendments delay Senate action on farm bill. Page A-5 Archbishop lifts interdict on Cleve- land parish. Page A-14 Washington and Vicinity with Count Ciano before the lunch- eon and “considerably, afterward.” District Committee considers bill to abolish income tax. h‘e A-1 Today’s Star Truck helper is District's 16th traffic victim of year. Page A-2 Murder plot. exposed by policeman posing as “killer.” Page B-1 Engineers dynamite 9-story apart- ment for War building. Page B-1 D. C. budget to provide funds for snow equipment. Page B-1 Editorial and Comment This and That. Answers to Questions. Letters to The Star. David Lawrence Alsop and Kintner. Frederic William Wile. Charles G. Ross Constantine Brown. Sports Rumored trade would bring Bonura back to Nationals. Page A-16 Infield defense seen as biggest prob- lem for Browns. Page A-16 G. U. has great prospect in Dieckel- man, clouting pitcher. Page A-17 New champs due in Fort Myer’s final indoor horse show. Page A-18 Page A-10 Page A-10 Page A-10 Page A-11 Page A-11 Page A-11 Page A-11 Page A-11 Miscellany Service Orders. Vital Statistics., Nature's Children, Bedtime Story. Letter-Out. Winning Contract. Uncle Ray’s Corner. Cross-Word Puzzle. Page B-13 Page B-13 Page B-13 Page B-18 Page B-18 Page B-18 Page B-19 S | census, appealed today to Senator ‘Tobey, Republican, of New Hamp- shire to make peace by admitting that he had erred in his denuncia- tion of questions to be asked in the enumeration. The census director made public a long letter to the Senator, who re- cently won the Senate Commerce Committee’s approval of a resolution asking the Census Bureau to aban- don proposed inquiries about per- sonal income. Senator Tobey ap- pealed vainly yesterday to Senator Barkley of Kentucky, the Demo- cratic leader, for an agreement that the resolution would be taken up in the Senate before the census started April 2. Mr. Austin wrote: “Now that the little census blitz- kreig which you led so gallantly seems about to have spent its force, and since we are approaching the Easter season when the spirit of charity and forgiveness should prevail, I am writing to ask you to join with me in binding up the wounds.” Bill of Particulars. In the interest of “a good census,” the director added, Senator Tobey should: ‘Withdraw an allegation that cen- sus-takers would ask people whether they had ever been divorced and explain that they would ask only, as in every census since 1890, what the present marital status of each person was. Withdraw a statement that oc- cupations would be asked only of men and “be generous enough to admit, therefore, that this ques- tion has no relation to mobilization for war, but is intended simply to get basic statistics on the Nation’s | industrial and occupational skill.” Admit that proposed questions on personal income would apply only to wages up to $5,000, and not to other income. Admit that the Census Bureau had never, in 150 years, violated the confidential nature of the cen- Sus answers. Should Pacify the Women. As to the question to be asked con- cerning marital status of citizens, the census director said: “Each person wil be listed as ‘sin- gle’ ‘married,’ ‘widowed,’ or ‘di- vorced.’ If a divorced person is re- married, he or she will simply report ‘married’ and there will be no prob- ing into previous marital history. There will be no question on ‘how many times divorced’ as you stated over the radio.” Mr. Austin asked Senator Tobey to explain that “you were in error in needlessly arousing the ire of many women, resulting in many violent protests to membess of Congress over a question which is not even in the schedule.” To arouse public resistance to the census through incorrect statements, the director added, was “taking a desperate chance with public wel- fare.” . 'Man Leaps Into River, Drowns Despite Rescue Efforts Victim Is Identified As Charles F. Pace, Senate Financial Clerk The body of a man identified as | Charfes F. Pace, the chief financial | clerk of the Senate. was taken from | the river at the tip of Hains Point shortly after noon today. Firemen worked over the body for | half an hour in an attempt to revive | the man. They were unsuccessful, however, and an Emergency Hospi- tal ambulance doctor pronounced him dead. Arthur R. Olson of Silver Spring, Md., told Park Policcemen O. A. Salmons and M. T. Clark that he saw the man jump in. He rushed to the water's edge, grabbed a life presérver and threw it into the where the man was struggling. Mr. Olson pulled the body in. He said the man made no attempt to hold on to the preserver. help of others, he pulled the body from the water. The Fire Rescue Squad was summoned and adminis- tered first aid. At Mr. Pace’s office in the Capitol it was said that he had been absent from work for several months be- cause of poor health. He had lived at 1851 Columbia road N.W. with a sister, it was said. Mr. Pace had been employed at the Capitol since he came to Wash- ington from Florida in 1913. He was a graduate of Georgetown Univer- (See PACE, Page A-5.) forced the Commissioners to in- | choppy water beyond the point | With the| evening and Sul inday morning. THREE CENTS. v Vo] b‘(/ ”j’ 'Senafe Group Backs | 'Ban on Purchase 0f Foreign Silver Townsend Bill Approved | Despite Opposition By Morgenthau | | | By the Associated Press. By a vote of 14 to 4. the Senate Banking and Currency Committee | overruled Secretary Morganthau to- day and approved legislation to end all Treasury purchases of foreign silver excepting those covered by ex- isting contracts. Chairman Wagner. one of the four who opposed the bill by Senator ‘Townsend, Republican. of Delaware. | told reporters that the top-heavy | committee vote indicated the Sen- | ate and probably the House would pass the legislation this session. He said the bill would not affect “special arrangements” which Sec- retary Morganthau told the commit- :lee yesterday applied to China and | Canada. Senator Wagner added that the total amount of silver remain- ing to be purchased under these agreements was “about 16,000,000 ounces and relatively insignificant.” Aided Many Countries. Secretary Morgenthau, reporting nearly 2,000,000.000 ounces of foreign silver, said this buying had brought stability for silver prices and aided | many countries “with whom we have friendly relations.” He contended a might result from curtailment of {Iormgn purchases, would cause such countries to suffer and to curtail their purchases in this country. Replying, Senator Townsend said this country had no need for addi- nations had been paid premium prices for silver and that many na- tions unfriendly to the United States had benefitted. “It would be more in this country’s | interest to give away American prod- ucts at home than to exchange them for silver which can never be resold abroad except at a great loss,” Sen- ator Townsend contended. Senator Wagner said that he, Ma- jority Leader Barkley and Senators Bankhead, Democrat. of Alabama and Smathers, Democrat, of New Jersey voted against the bill, Vote on Measure. Senators voting with Townsend included Glass, Virginia; Adams, Colorado; Maloney, Connecticut; Radcliffe, Maryland: Brown, Mich- | igan; Hughes, Delaware; Herring, Iowa; Miller, Arkansas; Clark, Idaho, Democrats, and Frazier, North Dakota; Tobey, New Hamp- shire; Danaher, Connecticut, and Taft, Ohio, Republicans. The two remaining committee | (See SILVER, Page A-3.) Is Frustrated by By WILLIAM H. SHIPPEN, Jr. Dugan, in all the innocence of his Antarctic origin, is a confirmed lover of mankind. his back, pat him on the head and hand him fish. The first man he ever saw came ambling over the snowy wastes of Little America at a time when Dugan was pretty lonely. His fam- ily and friends had gone some- where, and Dugan was just stand- ing around talking to himself—one solitary penguin in a vast desola- tion of ice and snow. ‘The man tickled the feathers on Dugan’s head and wrapped him in a warm blanket. He carried him back to a ship which had pulled in at the ice pack, and Dugan made himself at home among the men of Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd’s United States Antarctic_expedition. It was the first time Dugan ever got so many fish without diving for them. That was two months ago and Dugan since has sailed many a stormy sea, beating up to the coast of Chile aboard the expedition's supply ship North Star and trans- shipping to a passenger liner which came through the Panama Canal. In all that time Dugan never lacked for friends or fish. Now that he has been instdlled in a refrigerated, glass-fronted home at the Zoo, however, Dugan is to miss his former free To Dugan, men are those invari- | ably amiable creatures who scratch | Dugan, Zoo's Friendly Penguin, Plate Glass who scratched his back and gave him fish. For a time Dugan re- fused to eat unless somebody scratched his back first. Being the only Emperor penguin in the United States, he was feeling pretty blue. True, there were other penguins in the cage, but they were preoccupied with domestic affairs, alternately sitting on two nests. Be- sides, they were no more than knee- high to the Emperor, who was dis- posed to ignore such small fry. Dugan is still trying to associate with the men he can see all day in front of his cage. A hundred times a day he tries to stroll over #nd join the party, and as many times he is brought back on his heels by a hard, invisible wall he can no more un- derstand than he can see. Dugan had seen a lot of ice.in his day, but this was his first encounter with plate glass. The thing has Dugan stumped. His keepers say he is be- ginning to have a frustrated look. All day, while lesser penguins argue over eggs and such, Dugan walks a solitary patrol in front of the plate glass. Being a sociable soul at heart, he keeps trying to walk right out of his cage and shake hands with the boys. And having been born and reared s0 far from the haunts of man, he is probably the only bird in the United States who thinks everybody he sees is & friend. that the Treasury had purchased | | decline in world silver prices, which | tional monetary stocks, that foreign | association with his pals—the men | Allen Resigns As District Commissioner Returns to Insurance Concern; No Hint Of Succassor By J. RUSSELL YOUNG. George E. Allen will give up his position as a member of the Board of Commissioners of the District on April 15 to resume his duties as vice president of the Home Insurance Co. of New York, with offices in this city. " This was announced at the White House today. The President was represented as being reluctant to | lose Mr. Allen’s services but as real- izing that circumstances make it necessary for him to return to his private interests. In announcing Mr. Allen’s retire- ment as Commisisoner, the White House made public his recent letter asking the President to relieve him, and the President’s response in which he reluctantly accepted the resignation and praised him for the work he has done as Commissioner. In the fall of 1938 the President “drafted” Mr. Allen from his in- surance work to take charge of the President’s plans for reorganization of the government of the District of Columbia. Commissioner Allen's | work is virtually cmpleted and the time has arrived when he feels it is imperative to return to his duties as an executive of the insurance company. No Hint of Successor. The White House said today the President has no one in mind for appointment to fill Mr. Allen’s | vacancy on the Board of Commis- sioners and has actually given the matter no consideration. Commissioner Allen’s resignation under date of March 19 follows: “Dear Mr. President: “It is with sincere reluctance that I again submit my resignation as one of the Commissioners of the District of Columbia, effective April 15, 1940. “You have been aware of my de- sire to return to the Home Insurance Co., and it is only this considera- tion which moves me to submit this resignation. “I have greatly enjoyed working for you and for the people of the District of Columbia. Even after I leave public office. I shall always retain a keen interest in public af- fairs, and gladly assist whenever my services might be considered of value. “With deep appreciation of your confidence, and many kindnesses, I remain, “Respectfully yours, “GEORGE E. ALLEN.” The President’s Reply. In accepting the resignation, the President wrote as follows in a let- | ter dated today: | “Dear George: | “My feelings are not different than they were somewhat less than two years ago when the urge to | return to private business prompted you to tender your resignation as a Commissioner of the District of Columbia. Although I can under- stand your desire to return to pri= vate business, I accepted vour res- ignation with sincere regret. | “Afterwards a situation arose in which I needed your active co-op- eration in plans involving reorgani | zation of the government of the Dis- trict of Columbia and our mutual friend, Harold Smith, agreed—in | banking parlance—to ‘a short term | loan. ] “You have about completed the | work I had in mind and it remains | only for me again to assure you of my appreciation of what you have done and especially of the personal sacrifice you made in order to return to the service of the District gov- ernment temporarily. “As I have no alternative, T accept your resignation tendered under date of March 19 and effective April 15 next. “With all good wishes “Very sincerely yours, “FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT.” From President to President. The Mr. Smith referred to by the President is the president of the Home Insurance Co. When the Pres- ident wrote to him in 1938 asking him for the “short term loan” of Mr Allen, he said in that letter, “I | address you as one president'to an- | other.” If District Building chatter during recent months means anything, the names of the following District officials have been suggested as | possible successors of Mr. Allen: Richmond B. Keech, who has served some years as vice chairman of the " (See ALLEN, Page A-5.) Nazi Losses Heavy 'In Attacks, Say French By the Associated Press. PARIS, March 20.—A series of German patrols, operating west of the Saar River and Vosges Moun- taing, were reported by French mili- tary sources today to have sustained “serious losses” in futile attempts to penetrate French advance lines. The Nazi sorties were described as desperate, but beaten back in every instance, In the Saar River district fighting one German patrol walked into a French ambush and a spirited en- gagement followed. Heavy auto- matic fire from French guns inflicteg “serious losses.” In retreating the Nazis withdrew so hurriedly they abandoned their weapons, West of the Vosges the second series of German patrols were re- puised by French advance guards, who not only killed or wounded many of the enemy, but also took an unspecified number of prisoners. Aviation continued relatively in- active, although both sides made flights over the fighting lines. The high command’s morning communique follows: “A calm night on the whole. West of the Vosges our advance posts ree pulsed enemy patrols and inflicted some losses.” ]