03$fS
IP
Tanl
iees
mmm
, What no one else had been will
ing to touch Director Byrnes of
.the office of war mobilization took
hold of Saturday and dealt with
decisively. He laid a ban on all
race meets, 'of . horse and dog,
heretofore, only in spots was there
ny interference with racing.
.. Horse tracks were closed In
Washington and California, but
the doscies continued to . chase
rabbits in Portland as money-lush
crowds posted their bets at pari-
mutuel wickets. Now, to conserve
manpower, materials and trans
porta ti on. Director Byrnes has or
dered a stop to racing. The order
comes on the eve of the "Florida
Winter racing season when vaca
tioners from the north "go to the
dogs" for diversion.
-' One reason why there was no
earlier prohibition of racing was
-the partnership of government In
the take. I recall at the governor's
! conference in Asheville in 1942,
. just after tire rationing had come
in, much of the concern of gov
mors present was over the effect
of rationing on race meets. Some
of the states, like Rhode Island,
Massachusetts, and New York, de
rive substantial sums from their
Share of the betting done on pari-
tnutuels operating at horse tracks
They didn't want to lose this rev
enue. So racing went on all
through the east and midwest on
the theory that people either rode
on" street cars or walked to the
tracks; As a
f (Continued on editorial page)
f
Allied Planes
Blast German
Supply Lines
By Howard Cowan
LONDON, Dec. 25, -(v?V Allied
fliers -rocked the Germans with
lightning one-two punch today
as Britain-based . bombers and
fighters lashed out at vital enemy
supply lines and swarms of fight
ers based in France, Belgium and
Holland poured bombs and rock'
ets on nazi troops and armored
vehicles in the third straight day
f 'clear-weather attacks.
following on the heels of the
gigantic 7000-plane Christmas eve
assault, the U. S. 8th air force
based in England today sent 800
warplanes half of them heavy
bombers streaking across" the
channel in renewed blow? at the
railroad and highway lifelines of
the German counterof tensive.
. Thirteen bombers and 19 fight
ers were missing from today's ope
rations, bringing American and
British losses for the three days
of furious air action to 198 planes.
Fif ty five were heavy bombers,
89 medium bombers and 104
fighters;
War Prisoners
Make Escape
i- WASHINGTON, , Dec, 25.-(P)-Twenty-five
German war prison
ers broke out of Papago park
tamp near Phoenix,-Ariz., yester
day afternoon and 19 still are at
large, the- federal bureau of. In
Vestigation reported tonight
Since the camp is under the
army, the FBI said it could give
o details on the break itself. FBI
gents, however, are helping or
ganize an intensive manhunt for
the Germans still free. -;
The men escaped from the stock
de some time between 4:30 and
.7:45 p. m. yesterday. (Additional
Retails on page 7.)
Three Salem Families
Get Christmas Babies
" Three babies were born Christ
mas Day in Salem hospitals, two
girls and boy.
At 12:08 a. m. Mr. and Mrs,
Carl Boedigheimer, 120 Morgan
avenue,, became the parents of a
daughter, born in- General hos
pital. At 3:42 a. nv Mr. and Mrs.
Howard S. Boomer became the
arents of ' son, weighing '
bounds, 4 ounces, at , Salem Dea
coness - hospitaL The third baby
reported was the daughter of Mr.
nd MrsPatrock D. Riley, 2155
Portland Road, porn at General
hospital at 4:47 a. m. .
It Wasn't Santa Claus
HOLLYWOOD, Dec. 25.-(P-It
wasn't Santa Claus that visited
ctoiy Robert Walker's home last
flight Thieves removed Jewelry
nd clothing valued at 14000.
.Weather y-y- :
, Maximum temperature Monday
2 -degrees, minimum IS degrees,
D rain, river - n. z in. , i-
i Partly -cloudy wnn few anew
parries ever and east ef the Cas
cades Tuesday and Wednesday.
Chewers northwest pertlon. Little
chanjre la tcmperarare.
NINETY-FOURTH YEAH
Nazis Drive for
M
euse in Fierce
Armored Assault
Allied Air Fleets Darken Skies;
Enemy Cains One -Three Miles
But Meets Stiff U.S. Resistance
f By James M. Long
'PARIS, Dec. 26(AP) The Germans were bursting
toward the Mense in a fierce new show of armored power on
this bitter cold Christmas day in which allied, air armadas
for the third straight day darkened the skies with one of the
mightiest attacks since D-day and wrought terrific ruin.
On the basis of latest positions disclosed at supreme
headquarters tonight as of mid-day Sunday, these advances
were measured in perhaps one to three miles, but from field
dispatches describing the force of the onslaught it seemed
probable they had gone farther in -terrific Christmas day
battles bloodily costly for both sides.
Against toughened doughboys' resistance, the Germans
this time were not reeling off big
gains, but they had definitely
broken the 48-hour virtual stale- j
mate. , r
One of the new surges was
aimed west of Laroche toward the
Meuse, probably no more than 15
miles ahead of advanced enemy
units farther south, reported op
erating near Rochefort, 14 miles
from the river.
Outflanking Move
A second was aimed , north- i
ward from Laroche in what, ap
peared to be an attempt to out
flank the St. Vith . wedge r which
has split in two the big German
push in Belgium. .
One German force; pressing
southward within 16 miles of the
French border, finally seized Li
bramont, 23 miles , northeast of
the French gateway city of Se
dan, and drove the Americans
from Rosieres, eight miles to the
east
As these forces traveled south,
an American relief force some
four miles farther east was fight
ing north in. an attempt to re
lieve doughboys forces cut off in
the Belgian road center of Bas
togne, six miles ahead of its ad
vanced positions.
17. S. Blows Hurled
Along the 25 miles of Field
Marshal Karl Von Runstedt's sou
thern flank in the Ardennes Hills,
Gen. Eisenhower's counter-attack
kept up it steady battering but
there were no further gains re
ported since this morning's an
nouncement of the capture of
three towns. '
(The Berlin radio said US for-
ces in great strengxn, pacea oy
veteran divisions of the Third and
Seventh armies, went over to the
attack Sunday on a broad front
aeainst the southern flank and
had - forced' some German with'
drawals).
Main Weight West
Von Runstedt still was throw
ing his greatest weight -due west
Bastogne, in , the center of his
southernmost wedge, still was de
nied him by an epic 'American
defense which scorned surrender
and was being supplied by air.
Intermediary in Lindy
Kidnapping Case Sick
NEW YORK, Dec 25.-()-The
condition of Dr. John F. (Jafsie)
Condon, 84-year-old educator and
intermediary in the Lindbergh
kidnaping case, was "unchanged'
today, a spokesman for the fam
ily said. Condon was said to
have had pneumonia.
Christmas. Anno Domini 1944,
Mixture oi Tradition & War
.- By Romney Wheeler ,
LONDON, Dec. 25-(-This was
Christmas, anno Domini 1944.
A mighty organ filled the vault
ing darkness of London's West
minister cathedral with the throb
of ."Silent, Night" at midnight
mass. :--r'l v. f rA ' ' - k:
5 (Westward an American i de
tense line braced for the next
hammer blow of. a, German army
gambling on knockout punch.)
Bright Christmas trees and lights
cheered GI's far from home to Red
Cross clubs and canteens. ' ,
(An infantry colonel said, we
Just sat up on this hill and mowed
them " down. The ? whole valley
down there is littered with' their
dead.") . . '
The lilt of carols, traditional as
12 PAGES
JNJ
Food Requires
More Ration
WASHINGTON, Dec. 25 -UPh
Housewives will find more ration
points are required and their sup
ply of valid points diminished
when they shop for food tomor
row. -:::y, -rrrf-
Ration points will, be required
for six canned vegetables peas ,
corn, green and wax beans, as
paragus and spinach in addition
to tomatoes, under new -office of
price administration regulation
effective at 12:01 a.m.f eastern
war time, Tuesday. A pound of
butter iwill increase from 20 4ov
24 red points in value at the same
time.
And beginning . December 31,
about 85 per cent of all meats will
be back on the ration list
Not all ration stamps the house
wife may have on hand will be
valid either. All red and blue
stamps which became good before
December 1 and all sugar stamps
and home canning certificates ex
cept No. 34 are cancelled. That
leaves! book four red stamps Q5,
R5 and S5 and book four blue
stamps X5, Y5, Z5, A2 and B2
valid tomorrow. - v
, Five new red stamp s T5
through X5 and five blue stamps
-C2 through G2 will become
valid December 31. Each will be
worth 10 points.
(New ration point chart
on
page nine) :
Chinese Stab
Supply Lines
CHUNGKING, Dec 25 - - A
series of stabbing attacks at Japa
nese supply lines northeast and
northwest of enemy-held Kweilin,
.capital of Kwangsi province, was
announced tonight by the Chinese
high command. 1
While the main body of Chinese
forces still battled for Hochih, in
western Kwangsi, knife-like at
tacks struck at two important
Jananese communications hubs
deep in enemy-held territory.
Yuletide. echoed- through de
serted streets. r t
German V-bombs struck north
ern and southern England, One
hit a row of houses. Aj number of
children were killed.) ; - t -
I 'Santa Claus came for. the first
time In this war to the Lambeth
walk home of the "Three Little
Littles",- Brenda, Bobby and
Charles who were thrice bomb
ed out by the Germans.
(Berlin , radio said: "Scientists
responsible for1 the development 61
German V-weapons have been
decorated with'' the knight's cross
of the Iron cross.") Lr,:;u--...
Portal staff worked overtime to
distribute gradually diminishing
mountains of mail for U. S. sol
diers overseas. -
(Additional details on page S)
Points Today
PCUNDHD
f Czar' of
AH Food
Is Sought :
GOP's in House
Declare Single
Alan Necessary .
By William F. Arbogasft -
WAS H INGTON, Dec. 25 -JPl
House republicans renewed today
their suggestion that a, food "czar",
be appointed with almost unlimit
ed authority over pricing and dis
tribution. "
Their recom mendation came
from Representative Jenkins of
Ohio as he announced renewal of
a republican food study commit
tee named last year.
Jenkins, chairman of the 444
man house group did not com
ment specifically on OPA's an
nouncement over, the weekend of
tighter food rationing, but he said
the present food situation was
due to failure of the administra
tion to appoint a single man to
supervise the handling of food as
the committee recommended some
time ago. ; -i
"A single individual, free from
the administration's whims,. could,
coordinate and regulate all rami
fications of the food Industry,
eliminating many shortages and
providing better distribution," the
Ohioan said in- an interview.
The proposed food "czar" would
have the assistance of v experts on
wheat, corn, fruit and vegetables.
All 55 Yank
Pilots Return
For Dinner
EIGHTH AIR FORCE FIGHTER
STATION, Dec. 25H)-When 55
Thunderbolts 1 streaked off this
field, banked 1 into the sun and
headed for Germany today, cooks
began preparing turkey for Christ
mas dinner.
It was their Job' to guess how
many places to set With utmost
confidence, they set 55 places. At
dusk, the 55 places were filled. ,
The famed 56th fighter group
52 of Its pilots are aces with five
or more kills in combat had re
turned from the flak-filled Ger
man skies without ' loss. - Two
planes roared in an hour late, but
their pilots made It for dinner.
Ranging over the Cologne area
on patrol duty, the group shot
down! eight enemy planes, bring
ing its three-day total to 45 and
its two-year total to a record
breaking 800.
Yanks Bomb
Swiss Town
LONDON, Dec. 23 -(AV An
American squadron bombed
Thayngen, Swiss town ; on the
southwest German border today,
an official communique, broadcast
by the Swiss radio reported. The
bombing damaged the German
rail j station on the frontier, some
factories and number of houses.
the communique said. One Ger
man was .killed; and four Swiss
were injured, according to the re
port;' -y.; y -;: , y. -yy:
' Thayngen is situated in the can.
ton. of Schaffhausen, for whose
bombing by mistake earlier In the
war the United State - has paid
an indemnity. l
Mustang Group Tops
Its Christmas Goal
f A U. S. FIGHTER STATION,
Dec. 25-(-The Zighth air force's
357th Mustang group shot down
31 German' planes : in -yesterday's
big , air battles and r thereby , ex
ceeded Its .Christmas goat i.
' For several days a sign: had
been hanging on the bulletin
board "500 by Christmas." The
day's kills gave them 51C r -
Salem, Orogon T day Morning. Dcmbr
Yanks Killed in
i -v. v.-.y.-.-r v. .7-:
-J
Two American soldiers lie dead on the ground some where In Belgium,
killed In the new German break-through. Photo is one from roll
f film captured from German soldier and shows equipment re
- moved from Yanks, as well as shoes from man in foreground. (AP
v wlrephoto from signal corps radlophoto)
Shipyard Employes
Work Without Pay
On Christmas Day
BRUNSWICK, Va, Dec. li.-ifl)
More than 1500 shipyard employes
voluntarily gave up 'their Christ
mas holiday today to work without
pay on a - cargo carrying vessel
as a Christmas gift ta the men on
the fighting fronts.
An additional 500 volunteered
for the night shift
The workers are among the 13,
000 employes , of the J. A. Jones
construction company.
U. S. Prisoners
Hit by Bombs
Claims Berlin
LONDON, Dec. 25.-aj)-A Ber
lin broadcast today declared U,
S. bombers set fire to an Ameri
can prisoner of war camp on the
Lahn river Sunday and that many
Americans were ' killed.
"Direct hits were scored on
several barracks: one of which
was hospital for the wounded
and sick U. S. prisoners, and all
of : them . were, killed,", said the
broadcast by Transocean, Nazi
propaganda agency.
"Out of 60 American officers,
the greater part were killed. Oth
ers were seriously injured. Still
other American prisoners of war;
who were just being transferred
to the camp from train, were
machine gunned," the German re
port said. - J
Pan-American
Meet Planned
WASHINGTON, Dec 23.-W)-A
Pan-American foreign ministers
conference to discuss hemisphere
problems may be held, either im
mediately before or after a United
Nations meeting, probebly in
March of" April .
Argentina was asked a confer
ence to discuss her diplomatic iso
lation. The delay, of most nations
in answering her request and the
vagueness of replies sent in make
it certain , that the meeting - will
not be on Argentina's terms, ac
cording to diplomats here.
German SS. Elite Guard
Massacres 300 Italians
; By the Associated Press : .
, The office" of-war. information
reported Jast riight that members
of the German SS elite jfuard and
Italian . lascists . had - massacred
about 300 civilians at Moncyuo, in
the Reggio Emilia region of north
ern Italy, according to reports re
ceived from abroad.
23, 1944
I
Breakthrough
K
200,000-Fewer
Gar Tires Due
For January
WASHINGTON, Dec. 2S.-m-
CivOiana will get 200,000 fewer
pasenger tires in January than
this month, OPA said today.
The cut from 2,000,000 to 1,-
800,000 results from General Eis
enhower's call "for more tires to
support our' Invasion forces,'' it
was explained.
In addition,-the January quota
of small truck and bus tires is
down sharply from 280,000 to
216,000.
In the heavy truck and bus tire
category where already there Is
a back-log of 100,000 priority ap-plicationsHp-the
allocation is pared
to 110,000, down 10,000 from the
December quota. -
.With "A" motorists due to wait
until late 1945 for new tires, OPA
urged full use. of recapping fa
cilities. .
Berlin Admits
Yanks Attack
LONDON, Dee . 25-ffV-The
Berlin radio said tonight that US
forces hr "great strength," with
seasoned divisions from both the
third and seventh armies, went
over to the attack on a broad
front yesterday and advances had
been scored . up the Arlon-Bas-
togne road. '
The broadcast admitted that the
attack on Field Marshal Karl
Von Rundstedfs - southern flank
had forced the Germans from
the village of Wamach,' 10 miles
south of the Belgian road center
of Bastogne.'
y?-f.l-y:.
Eight Violent Holiday Deaths
Reported in Portland District
PORTLAND, Dec 25 The
Christmas holiday wound up to
close today with a toU of eight
violent deaths In this area as po
lice predicted .ah all-time record
of traffic accidents. - ' . .,
A crash-punctuated weekend,
which kept police cars and ambulances-
screaming through the
dty, cost five lives and sent nearly
a score of motorists to Jwspitals.
A two-year-old girl burned to
death, and two persona were fa
tally shot. ; ; :- ;, . ;- -,;.
; Killed r.miieadAc collisions
were- Jack'iIarston,Molalla in a
crash on the llolalla-Colton high
way; William Smarten, '42, Port
land, and Guy McBride, 32, Van
couver, in a crash on the St
Ilelecj road. Otixer traffic victims
Prlco 5c
No. 3
Seek to
Conclude
Conflict
turious Fighting
Continues; Meet
Set for Tjoday
V '. 'I.'.'.
By Stephen Barber
ATHENS, Dec 25 - Pi - Prime
Minister Churchill and . Foreign
Secretary Eden arrived; dramatic
ally in embattled Athens today
and immediately beganj conferen
ces seeking to settle the 23-day-old
Greek conflict j
Even as the British Prime Min
ister and his foreign secretary
were arranging for general
meeting of all factions for 4 p.m.
Tuesday, the left-wing ELAS
group continued furious fighting
with British and Greek govern
ment forces throughout this
Christmas day. Cannon fire , and
rocket blasts reverberated .in. the
city. ; -. : .j.
ELAS Invited I
The ELAS was invited to send
three or If our representatives to
the conference, with promises of
safe conduct. ' I ; ' ,
Archbishop Damaskiinos of Ath
ens, mentioned as a possible re
gent for ; Greece in previouf . at
tempts to settle the Conflict will
preside at the , Tuesday meeting.
Alexander Present I -
The seriousness' with which the
Greek situation is regarded was
indicated by the announcement
tonight that Churchill and Eden
had arrived and disclosure that
Field Marshal Sir Harold Alexan
der, Allied commander-in-chief in
the Mediterranean, and Harold
MacMillan, British resident minis
ter . in 1 the Mediterranean, both
were in Athens also.
Heavy Sijow
Slows Action
In Italy Area
ROME, Dec 25 - () - A heavy
Christmas snowfall farpeted the
Italian front today, confining ac
tivity to probing stabs at enemy
positions after heavy German ar
tillery, i mortar and machine gun
fire throughout the night
The northward and westward
push of the Eighth' isrmy above
highway nine has j wihittled the
.strong, j broad enemy isalient east
of the Senio river from width
of 10 miles to less than five. . ' '
. Canadian units advanced along
the heavily-mined, lateral road on
the Senio's east bank, rooting the
enemy from many fortified build
ings in the area of Rossetta, 10
miles northwest of lAlhed-held
Ravenna. They encountered thick
German mortar and machinegun
fire. i "
i - i
W r ' . ITT ' m ( r
ilea uoss workers
Arrive in Australia -
ALEXANDRIA, Vai Dec. 25.-Wy-rorty-slx
American Tied
Cross workers have arrived safe
ly in Australia.
I
were Joseph Roy, 31, Mflwaukle
and John Burton, 44, Portland.
Mrs. Viola Belle HamiltoiL. 23,
died today from bullet wound in
flicted in her Vanport City home
last night . Deputy sherrif Ralph
Benton quoted her busband,
Maurice,, 31, as saying She drove
way after tiff andi returned
few minutes later to find his
wife shot
The other holiday quarrel took
the life of John Knapp,( 74, after
wnai oeiecnve i. iu McLIccien
described as fight ovei whether
limits should be on or i)ff. IL'ke
John 3,- tras Tiarged iwith in-
vcluntary manslaughter. V
Glenn Ward, 2, died today
from ; burns suffered 1 when her
clothing caught fire at the family
I
, .. . - i ,
heme Christmas eve.
Capture ;
Port City ;
Nippon Suffers ;
r ' Greatest Defeat;
Says Mac Arthur
By C. Yates McDaalel
GENERAL MacARTHU TVS
HEAD QUARTERS, Philippine
Tuesday, Dec 2flH-Gen. Doug
las MacArthur declared today that
the Leyte-Samar campaign ; "was
closed except for mopping up"
yesterday "after American dough
boys had captured Palompon in a
water-borne assault which sealed
the fate of the Japanese and clos
ed their last escape port' on north
western Leyte island. .
Asserting that Gen. Tomoyutt .
Yamashita (Nipponese commaneV
er in the Philippines) "has sus
tained perhaps the greatest defeat
in the" military annals of the Japa
nese ' army," MacArthur's com
munique said the Japanese had .
lost an estimated 112,728 killed
and 493 captured in the 87-day
campaign. . ' ;
Crashing Defeat f
"The completeness of this de
struction," said MacArthur, "has .
seldom been paralleled in the his-
tory of warfare." -5 , - r
The magnitude of the American
victory in the first phase of th
campaign to liberate the Philip
pines was further borne out by
Gen .MacArthur's assertion that
2784 enemy planes were destroyed
in the islands, since the ..landing
on Leyte Oct. 22, by the Third
and Seventh fleet carrier, planes.
the Army's Fifth air force, marint
units and American shore and ship
anti-aircraft guns. j 'U '
Many Ships Sank .
A total of 27 warships and 41
transports sunk during destruction
of 10 Ley te-bound Japanese con
voys does not include enemy loss
es in naval battles in Leyte gull
October 25. ; The American cas
ualties of 2623 killed, 8422 wound
ed and 172 missing covered only
the American ground forces losses.
The coup de grace was given, tb
Nipponese on Leyte Christmas
morning (Philippine time) when
77th division force entered ' Pa
lompon bay and stormed ashore
while escorting US Seventh' fleet ,
PT boats beat a tatoo against th
beach and the division's own ar
tillery laid ; down a heavy bom-
bardment from advanced positions
inland from Palompon. . , :
To West Limits I
Of Budapest 1
LONDON, Tuesday, Dec 28-CT)
The red army drove to the west
ern city limits of Budapest yes
terday and, in a 15-mile advance,
cut the last railway escape rout
westward from the Hungarian
capital and came within 10 miles
of completely surrounding it ,
The Russians also surged west
ward through southern Czechoslo
vakia toward the Hron (Garam) '
river north and south of Leva
(Levice) in drive witkin less
than 85 miles of Bratislava and
i miles from Vienna. ' j ,
The soviet communique, an
nouncing these successes last
night, said they were accomplish
ed with ; severe cost to the nazis
in both men and material. In
flicted by Russian bombers as well
as ground troops. ; .
The toll of German and Hun
garian dead in the five days of :
fighting southwest of Budapest -has
risen, by Russian, account to
more than 14,000 and hundredf
of nazi dead were left on the -
battlefields of southern :' Caecho-
tlovakla.
Reds, Hungary
Near Accord
MOSCOW, Dec. 25--PoUti-cal
observers in Moscow believe
an armistice will be effected soon
between the soviet union and th '
new i provisional government of
Hungary formed at Debrecen
All negotiations between this
new . government and , the soviet,
union are being reported fully to.
United States and British repre
sentatives In Moscow. Represent
ing co-belligerents against -Hungary,
U. S. Ambassador W. Aver
ill Harriman and British Minis
ter John Balfour certainly will
sit in on the coming armistice
conference. '
Reds Confident Tke 1
Will Handle Germans ?
. MOSCOW, Dec 15 -(ff)-C ln
lengthy review of the German ;
counteroifensiy on the western
front the Jiewspaper Pravda too&f
the line-today that1 General EisenS
bower would deal with the situa
tion, and gave the impression of .
every confidence, in the .western
allies. -