La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959, June 16, 1945, Image 1

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La Grande evening observer., June 16, 1945, Image 1

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Newspaper Page TextA Dl uiiWtlu1Tu ' Vnii A (Community Newspaper , For Every Member of the Family ESTABLISHED 1S9B Jap Stronghold Allied Sea and Air Forces Smash Enemy Outpost; New Landing on Borneo Looms SAN FRANCISCO, June lfi (UP) Tokyo radio re ported another carrier-based raid today on Truk island, in the Carolines, forming two days of air and naval attacks. The. broadcast reported that carrier-based planes attacked for five hours this morning. Yesterday, Tokyo said, a force of two cruisers and four destroyers shelled the island for an hour. On Thursday! and again yesterday there were also air raids. The Japanese broadcast said that the naval force at tacking Truk was "presumably" British. $10,000 Issue of School Bonds is Approved 4 to 1 Electors- of the La Grande school district, in an extremely light vote, yesterday authorized the issuance of $10,000 in bond.s for the acquisition of additional land for the high school athletic field. The vote was 40 for the bonds and 11 against, 36 for and 7 against being cast at the Central school, and 10 for and four against at the Greenwood school. The bond authorization was asked by the school board to ac quire approximately three city lots at nHi" corner- of Hie' high school stadium. The addition!,! land will permit the enlargement of the athletic track to a full quarter-mile through squaring off of the field, into which the privately owned property now cuts at the corner. School officials announced they 'have an option on property own ed by the estate of the late Fred Spaeth, and are negotiating with R. E. O'Leary for acquisition of the other property. Peacetime Draft Is Held Key To Nation's Security . WASHINGTON, June 10 (UP) The heads of the army, navy and marine corps today told con gress that compulsory peacetime military training is essential !o the nation's security. Chief of Staff Gen. George C. Marshall, chief of naval opera tions Adm. Ernest C. King and marine corps commandant Gen. A. A. Vandcgrift added their voices to those of Secretary of Navy James V. Forrcstal an 1 high ranking field commanders to urge prompt congressional ac tion. Testifying before the hou.c post-war military policy commit tee, Marshall said that after the war the United Stales either must maintain a large standing army or must have a supply of trained reserves. The cost of a large army wou'd be prohibitive, Marshall said. "It is clear to me that what ever the terms of peace, the fundamental basis of our defense must be universal military train ing," he told the committee. "No other practical solution has been offered." Vandcgrift pointed out that Wake, Guam and the Philippines were lost because of unpreparcd ness and "not until August ci 1942 were we able to launch a i See PEACETIME . . . Page 3 Boys Get Awards For Scout Work A special hoard of review was held in the Presbyterian church early this week for the Scouts who were at the annual cam porce the previous week. Ex aminers present were Lee Rey nolds and Leslie Smith. Gerald Motz, troop 111. I ? ceived credit for painting, Itesh Fitzgerald, troop 122. for civics, and Larry Veal, troop 113, for bird study. By rectiving the civics merit badge, fiosh Fitzgerald complet Ml all the requirements for the Eagle rank. mm MANILA, June 16 (UP) To kyo reported today that a strong allied licet was neuring the great oil port of Balikpapan, on the entt coast of Borneo. indi'"''ir" another invasion of the island may be imminent. A Japanece broadcast said that the licet included an aircraft carrier, three battleships, 16 de s.royers and other warships. Any 'other" warships in a Heet ol that makeup could very well be landing ciafl. Today's communique from Gen. Douglas MacArthur's headquar ters reported a heavy bomber I attack, on Balikpapan gun posi tions, and nearby airdromes at Manggar and Sepinggan. Balikpapan, with u , pre-war population of 30,000, was one of Botneo's greatest . oil producing centers. The combined produc tion of its refineries and those of captured Tarakan island, 310 miles to the north, was 1,080,377 tons of crude oil in 1339., More than 400 miles to the northwest of Balikpapan, on the cpposite coast of Borneo, Austra lian troops completed clearing I the Brunei peninsula and Labuan island in the mouth of Brunei Buy. Australian troops advancing r.orth of Brunei town were with in 16 miles of the oil refinery renter of Tutong, on the road to the Seria and Miri oil fields. ! Adult Classes are Offered at College Lyle Johnson, registrar of Eastern Oregon college, today an nounced that Monday is the final day for registration for summer school classes at the institution, which is offering several spcci;l classes of interest to adults of the community. He said these classes are "World Problems in Political Geography" with Dr. Joseph Gai ser as instructor; "Creative Writ ing." Miss Amanda Zabel; "Orni thology" with field trips, Dr. C. W. Quaintance, and "Outdoor Sketching," George Nightingale. Ho also announced a special class in elementary Red Cross first aid will be conducted by Mrs. Night ingale. Japanese Home Waters Are Mined GUAM, June 16 (UP) Super fortresses mined waters off Nii gata, 160 miles north of Tokyo, early today in perhaps their deep est penetration of J a p a n, an enemy broadcast reported. Niigata lies on the north coast of Honshu, the main Japanese home island, and is 1,650 miles fiom the nearest B-29 base on Saipan. A round trip flight to Niigata would be 3.300 miles. Ten other B-29s mined the western tip of Honshu, Kanmon Strait between Honshu and Kyu shu and the nearby Suwo Sea, Tokyo said. Peare Reappointed To Aviation Board Dr. W. M. Peare of La Grande j has been reappointed to the Ore-! gon state board of aeronautics by j Gov. Earl Snell, to serve a five I year term. With the notification of the re appointment, Governor Snell sent his thanks for "the splendid serv ice you hae rendered in the pabt." . , LEADS IN BORNEO Li.-Gon. Sir Leslie Morshead, above, Anxac hero of Tobruk, com mands Australian forces that swept ashore on Borneo in the first major invasion looking to recapture of the vital island. Workers Will Be Enlisted Here For Ship Repair As part of a campaign to re cruit 30,000 workers for ship re pairs in Pacific coast yards, a representative of the United States employment service wili be in La Grande all next week. ... Fletcher Milton, local USES representative, announced, H. C. Nelson will pp at the USES office, 111 Fir street, to interview men who are not now engaged in es sential industries. The manpower shortage in the yards that arc repairing battle damaged ships, was the subject of a conference today in Port land between manpower directors of Pacific coast states with F. W. Hunter of San Francisco, region al director. He said the repair yards had 130,000 workers last month, and that it Is the aim to increase their strength to 160,000 in this cam paign. It was reported that in Port land yards alone 5.000 workers can be used to repair the vessels needed to keep mn and supplies going to the Pacific war area. The conferees also studied crit ical manpower requirements of other essential industries, and it was reported that discharged vet erans are being interviewed at separation centers and many are going directly into critical occu pations. ' More Butter Is Promised Civilians WASHINGTON, June. 16 (UP) Civilians could look forward today to slightly more butter but somewhat less cheese in the net three months. And no more Bourbon whiskey production for a while. The WRA food administration's third quarter dairy allocations gave civilians 7,000.000 pounds more butter than the 329,000,000 pounds consumed during April. May and June. The cheese quota of 92,000,000 pounds will be 20,000,000 pounds shorter than during the current thre-month period. Meantime WFA scotched hopes for any Bourbon production dur ing the July liquor-making "holi day." Quota Passed in Cancer Fund Drive Harvey Carter, chairman of the local campaign for the cancer funds, todav announced that the $571 quota has been surpassed I by a substantial margin, with contributions to date totaling $621.09. He announced the following final list of contributors: Clara Wilkerson, Fred Spaeth, town of Imbler, Eagles lodge and E. E. Swiger. Other members of the commit tee which handled the fu'OJ cam paign were: Bert Worley, T. B. j Lumsdcn. Helen Manning. Edna Mac Burress, Mervin Mortr nson, Mrs Thelma Freisinger and Mrs. Carrie Trollinger. IllilfllllliSlilifSiiillSl!!!!!!!!! tf7 Walla Coetfitl LA GRANDE, OREGON SATURDAY EVENING, JUNE lfi, 1915 of Truk Battered Union County Sales of War Bonds Lag W. C. Perkins, Union coun ty w a r finance committee chairman, announced today that tlie county is running behind schedule on purchases of K Honda in the 7th war loan campaign, and if the quota of $741,0(10 is to. -be reached by the end of the campaign, June 3(1, daily sales must not be less than $8,l3f.10. This figure was arrived at nf tir reports of the selling agencies showed a total of $14,606.25 in E bonds weie sold yesterday, bringing the total of this type of bond sales to $498,987.50. Sales of other type bonds to individuals yesterday were $4,128, making the total to date in these bonds $70,306. Sales of all types of securities in the 7lh war loan drive now amount to $658,112, leaving a to tal of all types of bonds to be sold in the next two weeks $305, 888. Ribbentrop Goes Under Quiz About Nazi War Secrets . LONDON, June 16 (UP) Supreme headquarters investi gators questioned former German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop today for clues to the nazi underground if any and the extent to which Germany shared her "V" weapon secrets with Japan. Ribbentrop told his T3ritisl) cap tors originally that he was on a "mission for Hitler," but it later developed the mission was to tell Britain and Germany that the luehrer always had hoped to avoid war with Britain, A dispatch from British army headquarters said Ribbentrop was on no other special mission when captured Thursday in Ham burg. Questioning of Ribbentrop was believed c-entuiing around four main topics on which may hinge future war plans of the United Nations: 1. Did the Germans delect a sizeable anti-war bloc in Japan. 2. Did Germany pass on to Japan scientific data for the lat est terror weapons, as for in stance the trans' - Atlantic V rockets? 3. How strong and closely knit Is the nazi underground in Ger many, who are its potential lead ers and where is it based? 4. Do secret nazi outposts exist in neutral or other countries? Polynesian Wins Pimlico Classic BALTIMORE, June 10 (UP) Hoop Jr., the Kentucky Derby winner, was derailed from rac ing's golden highway today when he was defeated by Mrs. P. A. B. Sicli ner's Polynesian in the 55lh running of the Preakness stakes. Polynesian led from the start and won going away, two and a half lengths ahead of Hoop Jr. The latter beat out Darby Dieppe, which came up fast, in a photo finish for place. An outsider in the betting, Polynesian paid $26.00, $6.70 and $3 80. Hoop Jr., the favorite, re turned $3.20 toplace and $2.00 to sluw. D a.r b y . Di.eppe's show pr ice was $4.30. Mrs. Harry Fulton Is Accident Victim Mrs. Harry Fulton is in St. Joseph's hospital where she re ceived treatment for a broken ankle received in an accident last night at her home. Mrs. Fulton had stepped from the car, driven by her husband, and he. not knowing she had walked behind the car, backed the auto, knocking her down. She expects to leave the hospital within a few days. bseruer r--- GET IT UP, SON1 As the color guard passes during a 44th infan try division parade at Langenfeld, Austria, youngsters at the road side salute all except the recalcitrant lad at left, whose girl friend, whilo holding her own salute, Is trying to make him pay his re spects to the Stars and Stripes, Capacity Crowd Knockout Enemy in Bond Show A thrilling and at the same lime somewhat terrifying picture of how American boys fight and die in the jungles and volcanic islands of the Pacific attracted a record crowd to the high school stadium last night when two-score veterans of infantry fighting on the world's battlefields vividly illustrated how monoy invested in war bonds equips them to uphold their roputation of being the President Truman To Visit Coast, Then Go To Berlin WASHINGTON, June 16 (UP) President Truman takes to the airways next week lor a wniri- wind month of continent-hopping that will challenge the late Presi dent Roosevelt's travel and wind up in Berlin by July 17. The White House announced late yesterday that the president hopes to address the closing ses sion of the San Francisco confer ence next Saturday. It was also announced that the big three will meet "in the vicinity of Berlin. From Mr. Truman's press con ference statements in the past two weeks it seems eel tain that he will be greeting Soviet Pi--mier Josef Stalin and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill somewhere in the vicinity of the wrecked German capital n o t later than July 17. In between these jumps the president is to visit Olympia, Wash., his native Missouri and possibly the governors coher ence at Mackinac Island, Mich., during the first week in July. The president's schedule, map ped out for reporters by White House press secretary Charles G. Ross, left observers gasping. It livaled anything the late Presi dent Roe.nevelt ever alle'.npt'd when he was a champion world traveler. 10 Crewmen Die In Bomber Crash WALLA WALLA, Wash., June 10 (UP)--A B-24 Liberator bomb er crashed near the Walla Walla army air field at 5:52 p. m. yes terday, killing all nine crewmen aboard, it was announced today. The bomber was returning from a combat training mission when it crashed and burned just north of the field. Names of the victims were withheld pending notification of next of kin. Weather Data for 24 hours to 7 a. m. Temperature: Maximum 71 Minimum 42 Forecast: Partly cloudy tonight and Sunday. FIVE CENTS Thrills as Gs best fighting men in the world. Thousands of residents of La Grande and nearby communities packed the stands and hundreds more stood through the long pro gram to witness a spectacular "show" such as is seen nowhere else except on the battlefield, While they were entertained such as they never were before, they could not but have been impressed with the illustration of the high cost of war and the pressing necessity for loaning their money (through bond pur chases) to provide the where withal to maintain the drive into Tokyo. Concert is Presonted The demonstrations followed an impressive retreat ceremony at the Eastern Oregon college, and a fine concert at the stadium by the 28-pie-ce band, which I-.'a-tured the saga or Roger Young, the infantiyman who gave hi.s life that his buddies might con tinue their victorious march against the enemy. Opening with a demonstration ef infantry equipment, the pro See CAPACITY . . . Page I) Mercy is Asked By Nazi Murderer AI1KWKILEH, Germany, June 16 (UP) Peter Back, 37-year-old crippled nazi ward heeler, threw himself on the mercy of a U. S. army court today alter calmly confessing the atrocity murder of an American flier who parachuted into Germany last August. Hack related in cold, unemo tional tours how he filed two shuts into the head of the help less flier after the American had be n clubbed almost unconscious by a nazi mob. Hi' offered the excuse that he was acting on orders from the nazi party overlords to kill on sight any allied fliers who para chuted into his native village of Priest, in the Cologne area. Kisen h o wer Lea ves On Return to U. S. PARIS, June 16 (UP) Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower left for the United States today in the late President Roosevelt's private plane. The plane was specially sent by Gen. George C. Mai shall to bring Eisenhower back. He expects to reach Washing ton at 1 1 .10 a in. Monday. New Assault Seen As Aftermath of A Okinawa Victory GUAM, June 1C (UP) American artillery and flame throwing tanks annihilated hundreds of disorganized Jap anese in a 10-square mile dead end pocket of southern Oki nawa today and Tokyo reported U. S. forces appeared to be preparing' for possible new landings in the Ryukyus. - Beaten enemy troops acknowledge defeat with sporadic, suicidal Banzai charges into withering fire from 10th army troops, "There are so many targets that we cannot kill all tlk6 enemy we find exposed," u 7th division staff officer told United Press war correspondent E. G. Valens. ,.. Radio Tokyo said American i naval units already have extend ed patrols 110 miles northeast of Okinawa to Amnmi island, only 185 miles south of Japan proper, in preparation for possible fresh operations against the "Japanese homeland." U. S. artillery has dug in for tha lust time on southern .Oki nawa. Big guns raked the en tire Japanese death fortress, now approximately three miles wide und three miles long. Officers estimated there are probably thousands of enemy soldiers dead or dying in iheir own territory victims of artillery bombardment, aerial rocket firing and incendiaries, oil bombs, naval shelling, mor tars and riile fire. Final victory on Okinawa may come this weekend, certainly within a week, U. S. officers said. The 10th army has captured nearly half the southern plateau. Flume-throwing tunks advanced nheud of the infantrymen, crush ing diehurd Japanese in foxholes beneath their treads. Enemy broadcasts reported what . were described as "signi ficant developments" in the Oki nawa area. The Jupanose regard Amami. like Okinawa and the remainder ef the Ryukyu islund chain, as part of their homeland. Tokyo suid it also wus "espe cially noteworthy" that the num ber of fully-laden American car go ships and landing craft in the American-held Kerama islands Hist west of Okinawa had in creased suddenly. , " French Attack Spaniards Who Fought for Nazis CHAMBERY, France, June 16 (UP) French resistance mem bers fought on hour-long pitched bntte here late yesterday with troops of the Spanish blue divi sion, which fought the Russians on the eastern front, and killed I"! Spaniards. 'Approximately 100 Spaniards and sevcrul Frenchman were wounded. A sealed train brought the Spaniards here on their way home to Spain from Switzerland, where they had been interned after fighting as volunteers with I me wenimociu on ine eastern I front. The French smashed windows and ripped off doors to get at the Spaniards inside. The battle raged an hour be fore railroad officials could get the train moving again. The blue division was officially dissolved by Generalissimo Fran cisco Franco over a year ago. But members who wanted to re main on the eastern front as vol unteers in the wehrmucht were allowed to do so. Proposed Laws To Go To Vote SALEM, Ore., June 10 (UP) Petitions which will cause two laws enacti'd by the 1945 legisla ture to be referred to a vote of the people were filed with the secretary of state here late yes terday. The laws were the "fish bill," which would have limited com mercial fishing in some coastal streams, and the Multnomah county registrar of elections bill, which would have created that appointive office. The petitions were filed on the last possible day, as all other new laws passed, which did not have the? emergency clause, went into effect ul 12:01 u. m. today, Auto Tire Output Will Be Increased WASHINGTON, June 10 (UP) A total of 800,000 more pas senger and motorcycle tires will be produced in the July-September quarter than were produced in the second quarter of 1945, the war production board has announced. The schedule reflects a sharp drop in requirements for air plane and military combat tires during the redeployment period. Heavy truck und bus lire pro duction will be ubout the same. Court Rules for ' State in Tilt ;l In Bowman Trial The state won an Important victory in the trial of Albert For rest Bowman on a murder charge today, when Circuit Judge R, J, Green overruled a defense mo tion aimed at counteracting Bos nian's asserted admission that ha struck the blows that might have killed his father, Albert F. Bow man, Defense Attorneys Henry Hess and S. H. Burleigh petitioned the court yesterday afternoon for the right to question state witnesses who were scheduled to testify concerning Bowman's asserted confession. ' Jury Is Excused 'i The jury was excused at 4 p'. m. yesterday and the remainder of tho court session and most oil the half day session today were devoted to arguments of attor neys on the . defense effort to show the admissions concerning the homicide were made by young Bowman under compul sion. -i C.'H. Eberhard, district attots ney pro tern, and George Cochran; deputy, vigorously opposed tho defense motion, and were sus tained by Judge Green, who ruled that the state had made ' a prima facie showing of homicide. ' Police Testify , Following the ruling, the jury was recalled, and Captains H. W. Howard and S. A. Malehorn at the state police arson squad, who assisted in the investigation of the Bowman case, were called as state witnesses. Capt. Howard testified that when young Bowman was ques tioned he admitted engaging jh physical combat with his father, whom, the witness testified, said ho struck on the head with a rock after his parent! threatened to shoot him and started toward him with a milk stool. Howard quoted Bowman as saying he took the stool away from hu father and they engaged in a scuffle in the barnyard, during which he picked up a rock and struck, his father on the head, Believing he had killed his parent, young Bowman threw the body into a nearby well, Howard again quoted the accused man. With the completion of the testimony of Cupt. Howard court was adjourned until 9:30 a. m. Monday. American May Get -High Vatican Post ROME, June 10 (UP) Popa Pius XII intends to name arch bishop Fruncrs J. Spellman of New York as the new papal sec retary of state, an unimpeachable Vatican source suid today. :i The Vatican informant said that Archbishop Spellman would te named u cardinal during a consistory sometime lute in the full, possibly a few days before Christmas. His uppointment as secretary of state will follow. "Lord Haw Haw" to Face Treason Charge LONDON, June 16 (UP) Wil liam "Lord Haw Haw" Joyce was flown here from Brussels to day und taken immediately to London's Bow street police sta tion to face u charge of high treason. The renegade English fascist, who fled to Germany before the outbreak of the war and broad east for the nazi propaganda min istry, was brought back by allied military agents who captured him near Flensbur g last month.. Baseball Results By Untied Press American League R H E Detroit 7 14 t Chicago 5 13 2 Overmire, Rout (8) and Swift, Richards (8); Lopat and Tresh. ' Boston 0 5 2 Washington 4 9 0 Terry, Johnson (8) and Wat? ters; Haefner and Ferrell.