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About The Oregon statesman. (Salem, Or.) 1916-1980 | View Entire Issue (April 9, 1942)
--- - r - J " 0U1Q)UU UUUUG: Rude' In - .;'' u Effect Your Choice KANSAS CITY, Ksi, i April S -P- A tavern free-for-all bronsht into play as BtrahJMaaYO ISaMBt MtaSI A aUhfa IISIl ssisii m. IS Jf, - , pop, a baseball, bat and a . chair. The sevear - partici - 1 ' pants were fined $10 each. s. SXTtZTY-FiaST YEA3 Sodom, Orogon. Thursday Morning. April 9, 1942 Prico 5e r Ho. 323 "ztn Q r O- - - rzr"N- - - - r (KfL m ass m a a Repairs Okeli : For Hoiises; . OOTopOir WASHINGTON, April 8-(AP)-Thc war v produc tion board Wednesday night prohibited new eon struction of nonessential residences, roads and com mercial buildings, and in dicated that projects al ready under way might be Halted if the materials go ing into them could be used more efficiently in the war program. The order Is effective Thurs day. Specifically it bans any resi den tlal construction other than maintenance and repair work if the cost is $500 or more, unless specific government permission Is - granted. Similar permission must be obtained for any new agricul tural construction If the estimat ed cost is $1000 or more. No other types of construction, commercial, Industrial, recrea- . tional, institutional, highway, or utilities, whether publicly or privately Xnanced, may be start ed witho"', permission if the cost of the project Is more than $5000 ;It Is in the national interest that all construction which Is not V essential directly or Indirectly to the successful prosecution' of the war, , and which involves the use of labor, .material or equipment urgently needed in the war effort, be deferred for the duration of the ; emergency,'! the board stated. -The drastic action, which WPB Chairman Donald M. Nel son had declared would virtual ly "suspend the civilian : con struction Industry," does not ap ply to ordinary maintenance and repair work needed to restore a ..structure, to "sound working 'condition.-4 W' ; To prevent evasion, the $500 upper limit on residential con struction was made the maximum for a 12-month period. That is, no person may spend $500 on a dwelling and subsequently make another $500 outlay on the same dwelling in the same 12-nvnth period. The same restriction ap plies to the farm and "other re stricted construction" maximums. Although the shutdown was ap plied only to construction not yet started, WPB gave this warning: - "Projects already under con struction are beta- examined .by the WPB on an individual .basis. Such projects may be .stopped If the scarce materials to be used In them can be put to more effective use In the war program. 1 In effect, the order "freeies" the sale of buildinr materials except for specifically approved projects or those costing; under the dollar limits specified. "This is done through provisions Which not only prohibit the start of construction, but also "the withdrawal from inventory and the purchase, sale or delivery of . any material ior use in sucn con struction unless authorized by the war production board." Exempt from the order are projects built for the armed forces and a group of other named gov ernment agencies; construction to replace residences destroyed since ' January 1, by fire, flood, tornado, earthquake or the "public enemy," and petroleum -producing and dis tributing facilities which are pro vided for in earner WPB actions. No change was made in existing- reiIations permitting' con struction of residences, costing up to $6000, in defense houslnc eritieal areas specifically desig- aated by the government. Applications to start new een . struction elsewhere must be filed with local offices of the federal housing- administration en forms obtainable from FHA local offices or from WPB dis trict offices. - The FHA local officer will de cide whether, a project is eligible for recommendation to WPB. If so, the application : will go forward to WPB's production di vision, headed by William H. Har rison, for final consideration. Auto Scrap YardsWarned PORTLAND, April 8.-(ff-Op-erators of automobile graveyards here received warning Wednes day that they had better begin felling scrap iron and steelor fclse. ' . Warning that Portland dealers were far behind in Junking old cars, John S. Graetzer of the war production board said yards that failed to comply could be requi sitioned. ... ..; Battles Desert - Heavy Raids at Malta Portend Drive on East BY DREW MIDDLETON LONDON, April 8.(AP) Axis columns in north Africa have sprung into sudden activity in the front area west of Tobruk which may be the forerunner for the expected big axis drive for control of the eastern Mediterranean, the Suez gate and the southern road to Russia. The British issued . a -: special communique in Cairo Wednesday night announcing the action, not ing, that .as yet there had K been BERLIN (From German broadcasts). April 8 (Jf The German bombing of Malta Tuesday was the greatest of the war, Berlin military quarters said Wednesday night, and it left the principal city of Val letta "a spectacle of atter de strnction," its docks and supply depots aflame. Its anti-aircraft guns silenced. only "minor engagements with our light forces" by "two or three' enemy columns operating between the Tmini-Mechili track and the British position south of Ain El Gazala, roughly 40 miles west of Tobruk. Although no- heavy fighting had yet been reported in two days of this action, issuance of the special communique under scored the potential significance of the axis move. "The enemy movements are being closely watched," the com munique concluded. (Turn to Page 2, CoL 3) 300,000 Tons Rubber Asked Wanted for Civilian Use; Council Plans Immediate Study WASHINGTON, April Production of a minimum of 300,- 000 tons of synthetic rubber a year for civilian use over and above the 700,000 tons already planned by government agencies was pro posed Wednesday by the petrole um industry war council. The council appointed a com mittee representing the entire industry to make aa immediate study of the problem Of pro ducing synthetic rubber, espe cially - Butyl robber, "with a view of determining its prac ticability In meeting the tire shortage.'' William R. Boyd, jr, council chairman and' president of the American Petroleum ' institute, said the industry action was prompted by the fact that the present rubber program made no (Turn to Page 2, CoL 7) Reports to Be Heard CORVALXJS, A prll l.-ft-Progress reports on crop produc tion, scrap Iron collection and other war activities will be heard by the Oregon war board of the US department of agriculture at Portland Friday. - Tuesday's Weather V Weather forecasts withheld and temperature data delayed by army request. Elver Wed nesday. Jt feet Mar. tempera tare Tuesday, 54, min. 47. . . " Marshall and Hopkins Visit Confer With Churchill After Surprise ' Atlantic Flight LONDON, April 8-(P)-Gen. George' C. Marshall, US army chief of staff, and Harry Hopkins, chairman of munitions assign ments and close aide -of President Roosevelt, arrived in London Wednesday on a surprise mission by airplane and almost immedi ately conferred with Prime Minis ter Churchill. Wednesday night Gen. Marsh all told newspapermen that the purpose of the American forces In Europe was to "expand;" Hopkins said that President Roosevelt had entrusted him with some confidential matters on which to confer with Church Ill. General Marshall's remarks about expanding the . American forces were in reply to a question implying that US forces might become cramped in the British Isles. "Well, we want to expand over here," he replied, and the corre spondents at his press conference roared with laughter. Gen. Marshall said he was hero fo see the development of the British- forces here in the British Isles and to talk things over la reneral 'with the Brit ish chief of staff. He said he was not sure whether ho weald go directly back to Washington, and he said he certainly would . (Turn to Page 2, CoL 8) Two Defense Road Awards To Be Made Awarding of contracts for two Important defense road contracts will be considered at the next meeting of the state highway com mission? In Portland Anril SO. the commission announced here Wed nesdaXr ' The larsest croiect. estimated to cost approximately $1,000,000, involves straightening and widen ing the i Pacific highway west, south of Monmouth, in the area including the Adair cantonment ine straightening and widening operations will cover ... approxi mately 15 miles. ; The other job, to cost 1150,000, involves construction ; of - access roads to Portland shipyards. Both lobs will be financed by the federal government. The first job was requested by the army and the second -job by the navy Press Mom Malta-On the Alert Because of deep rock shelters, like workers .entering fsr casualties Mediterranean island of Malts, plarue of the axis campalsB la North Africa. Since the war besaa the Island has anderg one- more than 1309 air raids, the heaviest of which came Tuesday. The attack seemingly .was prelude to sudden axis troop movements la Libya, where lisht clashes were reported Los ; Angeles Area Is Blacked Unidentified Planes Cause Alert For Two Honrs, but Identified as Friendly; Darkening Success LOS ANGELES, April MAAn all-clear signal at 10:54 p.m Pacific war time, Wednesday rugm ended a DiacKout mat had covered Los Angeles and Orange counties since 9:03 pjn. At San Francisco, the western defense command said the blackout was caused by the presence in the Los Angeles area of unidentified planes which later were identified as friendly. The blackout was preceded by a radio blackout at 8:35 p. m, and within half an hour Los Angeles and its suburbs were almost com pletely dark. . Aviation plants continued operations bat shipyards In the Las Anaeles harbor area, unable to darken their lights, were forced to suspend operations. Workmen waited antfl the blackout ended to resume their interrupted tasks. Difficulty was encountered in isolated areas, one of them in downtown Los Angeles, in dark ening street lights and traffic sig nals, but within a few minutes they were all extinguished. Hotel guests in some cases had to be warned personally by air raid wardens to darken their windows. Air raid wardens exercised little patience with ; motorists sad I pedestrians, compelling drivers to draw to the curb and tarn oat their driving ; lights. Only emergency .. vehicles with approved blackout lights and driving permits were allowed to proceed at a H-mfle aa hour rate, Wednesday night's blackout was the first here since last February 25. when ' su-aircraft batteries fired for three hours at unidenti fied objects over an outlying sec tion of the city. OSC Corcds Plan Camp Programs rrmvALLlS. Anril ZMJPtr Oregon State college co-eds win do their bit to make life pleasant for soldiers at Camp Adair near here.' -' - The Associated Women Stu dents In cooperation with dean of women Thiena Maris are planning entertainment for camp ; S o c i al events next fall. - , : " .New that pictured above with dockyard hava iteen suffered en- the Uny by the British. Out Bengal Naval Fight Seen London Thinks World's Biggest Battle May Already Be On LONDON, Thursday, April 9 (iP)-Naval reporters here Thurs day said that the biggest naval battle in all history seems about to blaze up in the Bay of Bengal" between the Japanese and British fleets." The battle may already have begun," the Daily Sketch's cor respondent said, and recalled that Sir Andrew Caldeeott, gov ernor of strategie Ceylon off the' southern Indian coast, had told the people .there Wednesday that "good news might be ex pected as an aftermath to the Easter Sunday raid" by the Japanese. Unconfirmed axis reports tell of naval battles already in the In dian ocean where the Japanese steadily are thrusting eastward. Dispatches appearing here agreed that powerful units of the Japanese fleet were operating in the area; and said that the British were tracking them down. Routes to SMpyard v To Be Improved . PORTLAND, April federal grant of $185,000 to im prove access routes to the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation plant has been made, Mayor Earl Riley reported Wednesday, Street widening, an underpass and an overpass are included In the plans. - monk Erie New British Improve Position; Aerial Success Related ' SYDNEY, Australia, April 8 CflP)-The Japanese have landed on Manus island in the Ad miralty group, it was reported Wednesday, in an apparent de sign to protect their far-ex tended forces on New Guinea and New Britain, to the south and southeast, respectively. Anticipating this move by a small occupation group, the Australians had destroyed the airdrome and everything else which miffht be of use to the Japanese at the landing port, ' Lerengau, ' &Tht , point , is 350 niilesnorth of occupied Lae on the .New Gui nea coast and about an equal dis tance northeast of Rabaul, New Britain. Lorengau's seizure strengthened the belief here that Rabaul was growing In importance to tha Japanese hold in the entire southwest Pacific area and that the invaders found they virtually needed further outposts for sea and, air. reconnaissance to protect Rabaul's supply lines. A similar intention was seen in the recent Japanese landing at Bougainville in the Solomon islands. . 1 Aa Australian war corre spondent reported front Pert Moresby that "excluding allied, air operations north of Australia Tuesday and Wednesday we have destroyed or seriously damaged at least 157 Japanese aircraft in the past month in a brullantly executed aid of fensive over a front extending from Timor to KabauL" The correspondent described these successes as a result of "one of the most powerful and most sustained air blitzes since the Pacific war began.' It began with the Japanese landing at Lae and Salamaua, New Guinea, exactly a month ago Wednesday. "It is only a few weeks since single Japanese reconnaissance planes could come over Port Moresby and complete their jobs almost unchallenged. "Today on such a job the pilot stands a good chance of suicide, and we see the extraordinary pic ture of five or seven highspeed Zero fighters being used as escort for one lone reconnaissance plane." (Turn to Page 2, CoL 1) . Siletz Logging Operation Is Announced . ; ABERDEEN, Wash, April 8. (AVLogging of a big stand of timber inOTegon's Siletz river district win be; started soon by the newly incorporated Western Logging - company, : Edward ,W. Morley, secretary-treasurer, said Wednesday. , " Kallroads and truck roads are sew being buCt to the timber, he said. The lots wCl be dump ed at Independence and rafted down the Willamette, river to Portland and other Willamette valley mills. . The operation eventually will employ about- 300 men," Morley said, .r vv;v,--.a ' William B, Morley, Aberdeen, is president of the new company and J. R. Dant, Portland,' is vice- president i :: : J'' ' ; r , The Morleys also operate the Saginaw Timber; company . and Saginaw Logging company and a shingle mill on Grays Harbor. mvOn Isle: toll Told In Fresh Hordes Yanks Occupy Southern Tip Of Peninsula; Dive Bombers Still Come; Barges Ruined WASHINGTON, April 8-(AP). The Japanese in vaders, after forcing the desperately-pressed defend era of Bataan back to a new line, swarmed down upon them Wednesday with hordes of shock troops and all types of planes -and a communique reported omi nously that casualties 'were heavy on both sides." - Fresh Nipponese infantrymen wereaided by dive bombers and lead-spitting attack planes. Describing a struggle which reddened the' soil and rocks of the nar row peninsula, the war department declard in the late afternoons..'. ; s to India Reported US Envoy Begins Efforts on New Defense Formula NEW DELHI, India, April B-VP) Assurances that the United States endorses the British pledge for In dian self-government after the war and a declaration of American con fidence of victory were reported in semi-official' quarters Wednesday to have brightened the prospects for settling the complex Indian question. ; Louis Johnson, special envoy from President ': Roosevelt. ' was reported to have stepped Into a nearly-deadlocked situation with these ; assertions, and as a re sult the . All-Indian congress party most potent single group (Turn" to Page 2, C6L 1) Reds Cross Attempt to Cut Off Salient Before Buss Capital V LONDON, April 8.-(ff)-The Russian armies of the center were reported Wednesday n Ight to have forced the heavily: fortified upper Dnieper river , in a major flanking movement designed to tut off - and destroy the German Rahev-Gzhatsk-Vyazmal salient before .Moscow, the last enemy line of consequence standing east orSmolensfc -. V. :The crossing, said soviet ad ; vices via Stockholm; was made between "the towns of Dororo " buxn and D a r o v o about t9 ' (Turn to Pago 2, CoL' 4) Ghet Olcott Jap Prisoner PORTLAND, Ore, April S-(ff) Ensign Chet W. Olcott, Portland, son of former Gov. Ben W; Olcott, is In a Japanese prison camp, ac cording to a Japanese propaganda broadcast heard here Wednesday, Young Olcott was on Wake island at the time of the Japa nese attack and his- father had assumedNhe was a. prisoner but the broadcast was '. the first de finite word of it The broadcaster read a brief message from Olcott saying he was well. Dniepe Africa The present Japanese attack is the longest sustained drive of the enemy since operations began on Bataan. Waves of shock troops have attacked almost continuous ly, without "regard to casualties, which have been heavy on both sides. . . .. "American and Filipino troop , including naval and marine contlnxents, have stub bornly resisted every advance. -Repeated efforts of the enemy to land troops behind our lines have been frustrated by our beach defenses, manned large ly by naval and marine person nel ' The situation, however, was evidently critical because of the numerical superiority of the foe. The Nipponese command was ob viously seeking not merely to press the ! defenders back again but toe cut off their avenue of withdrawal to the Corregidor fortress two miles off Bataan's tip. . i ' "Heavy bombers are continu ing their attacks on our rear areas near the southern extremity of the Bataan peninsula," said the communique. . - i ,; ' - An announcement earlier In the day had told how the defend ers had resorted' to a general withdrawal of their defense lines, because of a Japanese break through. The location; of the sew line was not disclosed, but the fact that the Japanese launched a heavy attack against it so swiftly indicated that the stubborn American-Filipino troops had not relinquished much territory in their withdrawal. - An apparent Japanese ef f or to start . a water-borne attack, acalnst fortified Islands at th entrance to Manila bay was smashed when the big guns of the forts broke up concentra tion of barses and small boats (Turn to Page S, CoL 4) Ship Training Offered Army , Workers :'.P ORTLAND, April tH&t Construction workers on the Cor vanis and Medford army canton ments will be offered shipyard training in their off-duty hours, L. a StoIL sUte director of the US employment service, said Wednesday, 'y.np- ' When cantonment construction is completed, the men ; will then be available for transfer to ship building Jobs, StoU pointed out. . - He estimated that by the end of 1942, an additional 85,000, men would be employed. Provision has already been made , for. training more than 17,000 of these,' StoU said. . r ' Clamp :!'') -V i r T.I i :-: i i- - - i i-i :.