Evening Star Newspaper, May 26, 1940, Page 1

Weather Forecast Mostly cloudy today, occasional light showers tonight and tomorrow; not much change in temperature. ‘Temperatures yesterday—Highest, 66, at 3:30 p.m.; lowest, 56, at 4 a.m. From the United States Weaf Full details on Page No. 1,836— No. 35,089. Bureay report. A-2, B he & WASHINGTON, ‘D. C, MAY 26, 1940—132 PAGES. un doy Star WITH DAILY EVENING EDITION * The Evehing and Sunday Star is delivered in the city and suburbs at 75¢ per month. The Night Final Edition and S8unday Morning Star at 85c per month. TEN CENTS DECISIVE PHASE OPENS IN FLANDERS BATTLE Weygand Prepares, Ousts 15 Generals; French Army in Trap, Nazis Claim Allies Are Struggling Desperately To Save Million F L3 Germany Gambling for All Or Nothing as Defenders Draw Strings By the Associated Press. Allied Generalissimo Maxime Wevgand ousted 15 ~en- erals, including some of France’s top-ranking commanders, and replaced them with new faces last night to bolster his hand for the rapidly-approaching showdown with the Ger- | mans for mastery of the English Channel. On the German side, an authoritative Berlin source said Adolf Hitler had thrown more than a third of his army into the western front battle and that the remainder would be ready to join in a drive on Paris, storm the Maginot Line or invade England after a few days’ mop-up of the encircled Allied area. Germany is ready to destroy 1t was said. Seven infantry colonels were jumped to major generals to replace some of the ousted French commanders. tion facing them: Germans driving northward miles from England, during the day; others driving westward crossed the Lys River, Belgium’s the Nazi lock on a million trapped Allies. Allies Battle Desperately to Save Million. The Allies fought desperately to halt Germany's steadily advancing armies in the battle for the English Channel and save perhaps a million men from destruction. For the Germans, it appeared to be an all-or-nothing gamble to | snap shut a huge jaw whose teeth—warplanes and lightning motor- | ized divisions—were grinding British, French and Belgian armies | ever closer to the Channel coast and, in places, cutting through. Masses of Germans poured toward the sea through the wedge between the Allies’ northern forces and the French central army; on its northern side the Nazis occupied Vimy Ridge and other crests northwest of Arras. But the Germans themselves were in danger of«being pinched off by fierce French attempts to break through to the trapped northern armies and by apparent British efforts to reinforce them. | On the south side of the Nazi-commanded corridor French | troops driving from the Somme reduced from 35 to 20 miles the distance separating them and their imperilled comrades. Allies Freely Admit Situation Grows Perilous. The Germans were confident that success was near, while the | Allies freely admitted the situation was growing more perilous, but still not beyond hope. The French War Ministry acknowledged that the Germans.;' continuing their rapid advance through the salient across North- | ern France, had reached the new British-Belgian line in the northwest. The steady Nazi progress, the German high command’ re- ported, has swept through Boulogne, important English Channel port; the Belgian cities of Ghent River, Belgium’s last natural defense line. Berlin dispatches said their Calais but regardless of whether bombardment has destroyed its operations. Britain, already within earshot of the cannon roar, anxiously whipped her defenses into shape. for 18 and 19 year old volunteers to strengthen home defenses after Prime Minister Churchill had warned that “the gravity of the situation deepens hour by hour.” New Blood Injected PARIS, May 25 (#).—Gen. Maxime | Weygand tonight summarily dis- missed 15 generals who figured in the French rout from the Meuse front and injected fresh blood into his allied high command for the decisive phase of the battle for the English Channel. A War Ministry communique pub- lished under the heading of “Penal- ties” said the 15 commanders of full armies, corps, divisions and other army services had been removed from their posts. Their names were not announced. Their commands already have been taken over by new men chosen by Gen. Weygand in his flying trips to the front to lead the campaign against the German corridor to the sea. Seven infantry colonels were pro- moted to be major generals to fill the places of those ousted. Promoted are Henri Martin, Jean Besse, Andre Durand, Charles Mast, Charles de Gaulle, Gustave Mesny and Louis Buisson. Heavy Units Pour Through. ‘The Nazis poured masses of heavy tanks and infantry through their breach between the northern Allied forces and the central French Army in an effort to tighten their hold on the English Channel coast. On the northern side of the cor- ridor the Germans occupied Vimy Ridge and other crests northwest of Arras, making contact with the new British-Belgian positions, and pressed their attacks on the Dover Straits port of Calais. On the southern side of the Ger- man salient French operations along the Somme River were reported continuing “with success.” The night high command com- (See PARIS, Page A-4) 500 Killed in Raid By Japanese on Sianfu By the Associated Press. CHUNGKING, China, May 25.— A large-scale Japanese bombing raid caused 500 deaths at Sianfu, 8hensi Province, on May 19, delayed advices reported today. Three hun- dred persons were killed in a single shelter which received a direct hit. ’ on Wedge France’s entire attacking army, Here’s the situa- up the coast entered Calais, 22 last natural barrier, to tighten and Courtrai and across the Lys was fighting in the streets of the port is captured, they said, usefulness for British landing The British War Office called England Calls Youths LONDON, May 26 (Sunday) (®). —Britain, jarred into militancy from its centuries-old groove of ease and empire, called last night upon its peace-born generation, boys of 18 to 19%, to fill the gaps in home defense forces against the danger of invasion. . The war office asked for volun- teers from the age groups just under the conscription range after Ger- man bombs thumped on English soil over a 200-mile stretch of coast and while German guns echoed from just across the channel. German warplanes were believed to have dropped bombs off the southeast coast of England early this morning but no damage was reported. In East Kent residents hurried into shelters and basements during an air raid alarm in effect for 105 minutes. British fighter planes were seen flying out to sea and anti- aircraft guns were heard. Kent is on the southeast coast of England. The port of Dover, in Kent, is only 22 miles across the English Channel from Calais, where heavy fighting is in progress. Enlist for War Duration. Recruits gathered by last night's call will have to enlist for the dura- tion of the war in home defense battalions. When they reach the conscription age of 20, however, they will be transferred to train- ing units for service in the field army, wherever it may be. Now it is fighting with the French and Belgians in Flanders. The volunteers for home defense battalions are distinct from the thousands who - are enlisting as “parashoots” to defend Britain against parachute invaders. The leaders of Britain’s new dic- tatorial system, who have pledged the nation to fight to the last gun, the last sovereign and the last man, also turned intense pressure upon organized labor. Prime Minister Winston Churchill, in a letter yesterday to the Trades Union Executive Council, demand- ed a “supreme effoft” by workers to defend the country and win the Further Surprises Ready for Britain, Germans Hint Br the Associated Press. BERLIN, May 25.—More “sur- prises” in this war of strange ‘weapons were promised today by an authorized German mili- tary source who hinted that they might be designed for use against England. What they might be—in a war that has produced para- chute infiltration, dive bom- bardment and steel, gasoline driven “cavalry’—was not dis- closed. DNB, official German news agency, commented that besides new weapons already tried “there still are more to come” that “even the Maginot Line’ could not resist. Corsicans Summoned To Arise as Italy Awaits Move fo War Latest Qutburst Is Seen Sign Duce Will Act in West Mediterranean By the Associated Press. ROME, May 25—In spoken and printed word and picture, the name of Corsica, French Mediterranean island, flashed before Italian eyes tonight against & background of ex- citing rumaor. Italy’s preparations for war gained in momentum, but how or when Fascism would act remained a matter of guesswork. Thé fact that westbound Italian shipping, including sailing of the gréat flagship Rex, had halted until at least June 6, made that date a focus of speculation. Foreign observers professed to see in the Corsica outburst a sign that Italy, if she goes to war at all, would | move first in the western Mediter- ranean. The French have held Corsica since 1768, and Napoleon came to France from there. But the island, 114 miles long and separated only by the narrow strait of Bonifacio from Italian Sardinia, is Italian by his- tory, geography and tongue. A manifesto, 1ssued in Rome by Petru Giovacchini, leader of the Corsican irredentists, called upon Corsicans to “arise—the moment of redemption is near.” Giovacchini, a half Italian fugitive from the island, has been agitating for Corsica’s re- turn to Italy. A map of Corsica, printed in bright red ink, was spread across the front page of the newspaper Tevere. Posters screaming “Viva Italian Corsica” were plastered on the walls of Rome. ‘There were rumors, among others, (See ROME, Page A-4) Peruvian Quake Toll Exceeds 300 Dead By the Associated Press. LIMA, Peru, May 25.—Revised es- timates tonight on yesterday's earth- quake placed the dead at more than 300 and the injured at least 2,000. Besides Lima, its seaport of Cal- lao and the nearby resort, Chorillos, suffered heavy loss of life and enor- mous property damage. Reports from outlying provinces showed the effects were nation-wide, but the Lima area appeared by far the hardest hit. HONOLULU, May 25 (£ —Vibra- tions of the Lima earthquake traveled around the world, Lt. E. O. Heatton of the Coast and Geodetic Survey reported today. rom Destruction Ready to Destroy Attack Army, Berlin Says VATICAN SPEEDS raid shelters, offers diplomats refuge if Italy fights; Pope reported sure of war entry, but refuses own haven. Page A-3 ALLIES' FATE IN FLANDERS rests Ain closing gap, Maj. Eliot says; success will permit later cleanup of coastal area. Page A-4 By the Associated Press. BERLIN, May 25.— Germany has trapped and is ready to de- stroy the entire attack army of France, an authorized source de- clared tonight. ‘The decisive Nazi military operations in the Netherlands, Belgium and Northern France, he continued, have been accom- plished by just one-third of Ger- many'’s 5,000,000 first-line troops. At present, he went on, the Reich has 65 per cent of her army still unengaged and will be ready in a few days to take Paris, storm the tlnai; Maginot Line or invade Eng- land. Channel coast within the area whicly the Germans have encircled in the past two weeks, are 500,000 French, 400,000 Belgians and 200,000 Eng- lish, this spokesman declared. Since it can be considered, he went on, that France's attack army is gone, all she has left is 120 divi- sions of first-line troops to defend Paris, hold the Maginot Line and to protect her southeastern flank against s possible attack by Italy from across the Alps. 83 Divisions Used. The figures on Allied troops caught by Germany's encirclement movement were affirmed here by military experts who calculated that Germany had used approximately 83 of her 250 divisions of first-line | troops in the speedy operations -by | which she has absorbed ‘all of Hol- } land, most of Belgium and a slice of | Prance in about two weeks. | An authoritative source estimated | that one-fourth of France's first- line force is trapped by the Nazi encirclement. These troops, he said, are the cream of the French Army, with the best equipment, including mechanized weapons, available in the Allied armies. i He went on to outline the nature | of the operations and predicted an early cleanup of the trapped Allies. Already, he recounted, the German drive which penetrated northward to Calais has turned eastward to try to blast a way through north of the Lille fortifications. From Arras, in turn, a drive has been launched to sweep east and north of Lille, French industrial town within the curve of her fron- tier with Belgium. ‘Will ‘Sponge Up’ 700,000. This joint maneuver will bring encirclement within encirclement, which, he estimated, would cut off the bulk of British and French troops—perhaps 700,000 men—who who will be “sponged up.” Further to the north a loop will be drawn outwards to Ghent to ab- sorb the bulk of Belgium, he de- clared, and after that, the remainder of the trapped Allied force would be crowded up against the Channel Coast and captured. Thus Belgium, like Caesar's Gau, will be divided into three parts, en-- abling the Germans to carry out the age-old military maneuver—divide and destroy. This source predicted the mopping up of the Allied forces within the next few days. And then, he con- tinued, Germany will resort to her much-discussed “secret weapon” and in operations on an “exciting scale” will bring about “great things.” The statement on the Nazi secret (See BERLIN, Page A-3) Of Aiding Nazi By the Associated Press. . DUBLIN, May 25—Mrs. Iseult Stuart, wife of the Irish novelist and poet, Francis Stuart, was charged before a- special military court today with assisting a Ger- man mystery parachutist believed to have been dropped into Dublin from a Nazi plane. The prosecutor said the “safety of since' the parachute man still is at large. Mrs. Stuart was remanded in custody until May 31. The prosecutor said he believed Mrs. Stuart’s husband, a lecturer on English and Irish literature at Berlin University, is in Germany at pres- ent. He recalled a charge filed against Stephen C. Held yesterday when it was alleged an open parachute, & German air force badge and documents relating to harbors, bridges, airdromes and military forces were found in his house. A man’s clothing also was found, war, telling them the gravity of the situation “deepens hour by hour.” The conference indorsed the na- tion's conscription of labor snd e TONDON, Falb 40 _ > the prosecutor said, and evidence would be given that Mrs. Stuart purchased the clothing. Held, an Irishman, t in jall under military the state” was involved in the case | bed. Irish Poet's Wife Is Accused Parachutist Police reported they found $20,000 in American - money and a.radio transmitter. in his home. He was quoted by the prosecutor as saying range man came to his house 18st Sunday night, intro- duced himself, as Henrich Brandy and asked for lodging. Later, Held said, the articles were found in the study where the man was given a Held’s application for bail was re- fused. Charges against him included “aiding and abetting a man un- known in & manner likely to prej- udice public safety.” Premier Eamon de Valera an- nounced tonight the formation of a new volunteer force for “local security work” in Ireland (Eire). “We are within the war zone,” he said in an address to his Fianna Fall party followers at & meeting in Galway City. “We must prepare to defend the liberties we have won.” He said the new volunteer corps would be apart from the regular army.and would be associated with the police force “to watch over the sacurity of the people and to watch for the first sign of attack upon us.” P ) (O | Backed up against the English | WAITLL YOU HEMR MY FiRESIDE TONIGHT ! Gy i \ 3[\\)#“] 2 .Squosh Center Comments on ‘Notionul Defense! RSN jPris&ner, Found 'Hanging, Believed 'Dies Witness Found in Cell After Being Charged With Intoxication A man booked by police as William McCquston of New Orleans, La, was found hanging from a-céll bar at No. 11 precinct station yesterday, but was revived a few minutes later. He had been arrested a few hours éar- lier on a charge of intoxication. Policeman C. F. Lowery, station | turnkey, found the prisoner hanging by his shirt about 2 p.m., uncon- | scious. Artificial respiration was administered and a Casualty Hos- pital ambulance and the rescue luqmd were summoned. The pris- oner was taken to Gallinger Hos- pital where his condition was said not to be serious. Seized After Leaving Stand. A William C. McCuistion, Fred- erick (Md.) marine worker, was ar- rested last October 31 by Washington police as he stepped down from the witness stand at a Dies committee hearing after two days of testimony in which he charged the C. I. O. Maritime Union was Communist controlled. Police were armed with a warrant from New Orleans charging him with the murder of Philip Carey of the Maritime Union following a con- troversy in the union. At an extra- dition hearing on December 6, how- ever, Chief Justice Alfred Wheat f District Court refused to turn him over to New Orleans authorities. Placed in Cell. The man arrested yesterday was placed in his cell at No. 11 precinct about 11 a.m. following his arrest at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital by Detective Charles Berry. Capt. David Bur- roughs of ‘the hospital police had taken the prisoner into custody when he was found on the hospital grounds allegedly intoxicated. Detective Berry said that from pic- tures he had seen of the Dies com- mijttee witness he believed the man he arrested yesterday was the same man. After being booked at- the station, where he gaye }is age as 50 and his address as New Orleans, he was re- lieved of his belt and tie. He was found with the shirt looped around his neck and tied on a cell bar. Pedestrian Is Killed, Wife Hurt by Auto Here Vincent Bergin, 23, of 3218 Wis- consin avenue N.W,, a clerk, became the Capital's 25th traffic fatality of the year early today, and his wife, Kay Bergin, 21, lay in a critical condition in Emergency Hospital, suffering from injuries received when both were struck by an auto- mobile last night while crossing Connecticut avenue at Nebraska avenue N.W. Mr. Bergin was taken to the hospital unconscious, and died a few hours later. Mrs. Bergin was said to have received a compound leg fracture, concussion and possibly & fracture of the skull. Police said the couple was struck while proceeding against a red trafic light by an automobile operated by Miss Alice Erickson, 24, of 1832 I street N.W., who described herself as a secretary. Miss Erick- son will be held for action of the coroner, police added. Radio Programs, Page F-5 Complete Index, Page A-2 4 (A | | Starving Famin‘ Rides Boxcars Seeking Work By the Associated Press. REDWOOD CITY, Calif., May 25. —Hollow-eyed from hunger, a family of seven stumbled from a railroad boxcar today to tell of a 25-day journey begun st Fort 8mith, Ark., with only 20 cents, some bed rolls and a three-day food supply. nie, and her five children; from 4 to 18 years old, heard dejectedly | that they would be sent home. “I.don't want to go back, else I wouldn't have started,” Green said. “There isn't any work back there. They told us there was plenty in | California.” X | Adrian Ward, county superintend- | ent of social service, explained he | would have no choice but to return | the family at Arkansas unless some one came forward with a proffer of work. Except for one short stretch in California, when they were picked up by a minister, the family made the entire trip in boxcars, stopping at division points to forage for food. Green said he found work only once, nailing fruit boxes. U. S. Worker Living Here 3 Years Wins Non-Residence Claim Henning Not Subject To D. C. Income Levy, Morgan Rules In the first lagal test of the “dom- icile” clause of the District income tax law, as such, the Board of Tax Appeals of the District ruled that Eugene - S. Henning, who has re- sided and ‘worked here for three years, was not domiciled here and therefore not subject to the local income levy. Mr. Henning, junior electrical en- gineer employed by the Navy De- partment, who lives at 930 Ran- dolph street N.W., claimed legal residence in Worcester, Mass., where he pays a poll tax and where he has voted by absentee ballot. The Henning ruling: ‘announced by Jo V. Morgan, sole member of the Board of Tax Appeals, followed the precedent set by the United States Court of Appeals for the Dis- trict (which the United States Su- preme Court recently declined to review) in the James J. Sweeney case affecting the now repealed Dis- trict intangible personal property tax, which also was levied on per- sons “domiciled” in the District. Since Congress has failed at this session to amend the District in- come levy, to apply the tax to per- (See TAX RULING, Page A-5) A 30-year-old Federal employe, who said she was beaten and thrown from an automobile on the Marlboro pike in nearby Maryland, was taken to Casualty Hospital with serious { injuries last night. The employe, Mrs. Julia Patricia Gregory of 246 First street SW., & widow, suffered injuries to the back, the right hip, face and right arm. Police of the ninth precinct said they were' furnished with the -name of her assailant. However, she as- signed no reason for the attack, ac- Roaseveltfo Call Guy J. Green, 33-year-old farm | hand and carpenter; his wife, Min- | Woman U. S. Employe Found Beaten, Thrown From Car Private Experts fo Aid Defense Plan | Has Not Decided Whom He Will Select; Prepares Radio Speech By the Associated Press. President Roosevelt’s intention to | call private experts into the Govern- | ment to help with the extraordinary | $3,207,011,352 defense program was announced at the White House yes- terday. Stephen Early, press ucremry.‘ | disclosed that Mr. Roosevelt planned | to create a national defense emer- | | gency co-ordination group composed | of both private individuals and Gov- | | ernment officials. The Chief Executive intended to draw experts from industry, agri- culture and labor, transportation, communication, finance and con- | sumers, Mr. Early said. They wouid | assist—but not supersede—the Gov- ernment officials, he declared. Meanwhile Mr. Roosevelt worked yesterday on' the “fireside” radio address he will deliver at 9:30 o'clock | tonight, his first since the war in| Europe got under way in Septem- ber. It will be broadcast abroad as well as throughout the nation. Other Defense Developments. Other developments touching on the defense program included: 1. Col. Frank Knox, Republican vice presidential nominee in 1936, appointed. & committee to confer with Government officials on theans of co-ordinating civilian suppbrt of the President’s defense program. The appointees were Gen. Malin Craig, retired, chairman; Gen. Frank R. McCoy, retired; Col. Wil- liam J. Donovan, New York and Washington lawyer who led the “Fighting 69th” in the World War, and Lewis Douglas of New York, former budget director who left the Roosevelt administration after dif- fering with its fiscal policies. 2. Representative Ditter of Penn- sylvania, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Commit- tee, said President Rovsevelt's recent defense message to Congress had given thousands of people the im- pression that an attack upon the United States was imminent. - This fear must be dispelled if the Nation is to_think clearly and plan wisely, Mr. Ditter said, in an address pre- pared for broadcasting, adding that it was also “imperative” to levy Senate Unit Backs Alien Registration Early -Passuge of Fifth Column Curb Plan Sought By J. A. O'LEARY. A Senate Judiciary Subcommittee voted yesterday to require registra- tion of all aliens within four months as one precaution against “fifth column” activities in this country, while both houses of Congress pre- pared to go forward with defense legislation this week. The alien registration proposal was added by the subcommittee to a bill already passed by the House to protect the armed forces of the United States from subversive prop- aganda and to create additional grounds for the deportation of aliens. Senator Connally, Democrat, of Texas, in charge of the bill, will ask the entire Judiciary Committee to Teport the measure to the Senate tc- morrow and seek its passage before adjournament. Another development yesterday was the declaration of Senator George, Democrat, of Georgia that “elementary military training” should be added to the camp routine of the Civilian Conservation Corps for all enrollees who are physically | qualified. Sentiment for Plan Seen. The Georgian said he believed sentiment in the country would sustain such a step now, although it would have encountered difficulty until recently. The suggestion was frowned on, however, by Senator Thomas, Demo- crat, of Utah, who said that, while volunteers might be obtained from the C. C. C. units to take up sepa- rate defense training, he did not think the military - training work should b;htnken into the C. C. C. camps. is proposal is in the discussion stage. =i Before this week ends House and Senate conferees probably will put the finishing touches to the $3,297,000,000 defense fund, divided between the Army and Navy appro- priation bills. House subcommittees are holding brief, last-minute hear- ings on the big increases the Senate made in both biils to build up the Army and Navy air forces, to speed | the launching of 68 warshaps under construction, to start others and to increase the enlisted strength of both services. Meanwhile, both Houses will con- sider during the week basic legis- lation to authorize expansion of the ‘Navy, some of the funds for which are already in the naval appropriation bill. ‘These basic authorizations are necessary to en- able Congress to continue to ap- propriate funds later for a larger Navy than existing law calls for. Will Take Up Two Navy Bills. The House on Tuesday will take up two naval authorization bills: One, designed to speed work in navy yards and the building of other ships by contract in private yards; the other, to raise the au- thorized size of the Naval Air Corps to 10,000 planes, with 20 new shore bases and facilities for the training of 16,000 pilots. The Senate within a few days also will take up the naval ex- pansion authorization, both for additional warships and air force facilities. Discussing the subversive in- fluence bill his subcommittee ap- proved yesterday, Senator Connally said “it will effectively control fifth column activity in this country,” al- though that is not its sole purpose. Passed originally by the House last July, before the war emergency had developed in Europe, it reached the Senate too late for action before adjournment. When the present session convened 'in January the Senate sent the measure back to the Judiciary Committee for further study. As originally drafted a year ago, the bill called for registration of aliens every six months, but the (See DEFENSE, Page A-16.) Dutch Subs Reach England LONDON, May 25 (#).—The 1,316- ton Dutch destroyer Van Galen was bombed and sunk by the Germans during the invasion of the Low Countries, the Admiralty said to- night, but two new Dutch subma- rines managed to reach England through a magnetic mine field. took her to the Washington hospital. Mrs. Gregory was found lying in the driveway of a sawmill fronting the Marlboro pike near Meadows, by James Randall, a Forestville fire- (See CONGRESS, Page A-8.) 1,200 Dairy Workers Here Threaten fo Strike More than 1200 dairy® workers— members of the Milk Drivers and Dairy Employes Union, Local No. 246—-have voted to strike June 6 unless their demands for more fa- vorable wages, hour and working conditions are met in a new con- tract by that time, The Star learned last night. This local union, an afliate of the International Teamsters' Union of the A. P. of L, handles virtually all milk deliveries in the District and nearby Maryland and Virginia. Its membership ' includes most of the plant employes, as well as milk truck drivers of 11 dairies covered in the union contract. - 2 man, whose home Mr. Randall, who was on his way to Marlboro at the time, telephoned the Mailboro rescue squad for as- sistance and Mrs, Gregory was re- moved to the hospital in the squad ambulance. . Members of -the squad said she ¢ them the name of a man she '::;i‘:’hnthetlmamddeehm ¢ on me and kicked me out of ih’c‘dm." ' \ The vote in favor of the strike, if necessary, was about 950 to 100, it was learned. Negotiations on the proposed contract nave been under way for nearly two months. The Ppresent contract expires June 6. Union members declined to com- ment other than to acknowledge that its members had voted in favor of the strike. Representatives of the dairies said they had not been noti- fied of the strike threat. )