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CENTRAL OREGON'S DAILY NEWSPAPER
Volume LIU
THE BEND BULLETIN, BEND, DESCHUTES COUNTY, OREGON. TUESDAY, DEC. 26, 1944
NO. 17
German Counter-Drive Follows 1914 Path
Maos
I
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Map shows how all-out German counter-offensive follows the Wehrmacht's favorite invasion path. In
1914, and again in 1940, they poured through the Aachen-Malmedy sector toward Liege and the Meuse
river. Today's news revealed that a German spearhead is now only four miles from the Meuse river.
Soviet Armies
Ring Budapest
In Quick Move
By. Henry Shapiro
(United PreM Staff Correspondent)
Moscow, Dec. 26 (IP) The red
army stormed Into Budapest from
the west today after apparently
completing its encirclement in a
spectacular flanking sweep that
'doomed thoussnda ot Serman nd - l
Hungarian troops to death or sur
render Inside the tottering capital.
A new Hungarian provisional
government already was prepar
ing to enter Budapest behind the
red army.
German panzers, infantry and
self - propelled guns counter - at
tacked at least 25 times in the past
24 hours, but finally fell back into
the city for a last-ditch stand. The
advancing Russians slashed across
all railways and presumably also
had severed the last two second
ary highways running northwest
to Vienna.
Tanks Knocked Out
At least 81 nazi tanks were
knocked out In the breakthrough
area Saturday and Sunday. Front
dispatches said some Germans
charged the soviet lines drunk and
singing, only to be cut down to the
- last man by Russian machine
gunners. J Marshal Feodor I. Tolhukhin's
if Third Ukrainian army broke open
) the western flank of the axis lines
around Budapest yesterday after a
swirling five-day battle that cost
the Germans and Hungarians al
most 20,000 men killed or cap
tured. Advancing as much as 15 miles
through a 25-mile breach in the
axis defenses, the red army sealed
the fate of the capital with a
thrust to within six miles of the
Danube crossing at Esztergom, 19
miles to the north.
Germans Retreat
A communique said the enemy
was in full retreat, abandoning
huge quantities of equipment in
a rush to escape the rapidly-closing
trap. Thousands of nazi and
Hungarian soldiers were hemmed
inside the city itself, however,
and It seemed certain that in a
matter of days at the most they
j would have an opportunity to
make good their boast to turn
! Budapest into another Stalingrad.
' With little prospect of extricat-
' , ing more than a scattering of men
and equipment from the city, mili-
tary observers believed the nazls
would use Budapest's subways,
! hills, canals and tall buildings for
a destructive and suicidal delay-
t ing stand.
, f . .
Subway Strikers
Paralyze London
London, Dec. 26 (IB Striking
London subway workers returned
i to work today and the London
transport system operated on a
near-normal schedule.
Workers struck yesterday
against the advice of union lead
I ers in protest against the London
transport board's refusal to give
t them at least two days off in the
I Christmas holidav week-end.
Transportation facilities in the
London area were paralyzed by
; the walkout.
Full service probably will not be
I restored tomorrow, since today is
i also a holiday boxing day, tradi
! tionally the day in which serv
! ants receive gifts.
Girls Line Up
To Give Blood
To Doughboys
Washington, Dec. 26 IP Christ
mas was over today, but in a big
stone building not far from the
capital government girls began to
queue up early this morning to
wait their turn In line to give
their biggest Christmas gift
blood for soldiers in-Europe.
Each one hoped that her blood
would be "O" type, for then it
would be flown tonight from
Washington, would arrive in Paris
tomorrow and within days, even
hours, might be used to save a
- GI - ' - wounded : iriThe,; great" battle
against the nazis,
Her "O" blood would not neeti
to be made into plasma. It would
go to a soldier as she gave it.
Isle Conquest
By Americans
Is Completed
Allied Headquarters, Philip
pines, Dec. 26 (IP) American for
ces set their sights for other
Philippines islands today after
completing the capture of Leyte,
where, Gen. Douglas MacArthur
said the Japanese lost 113,221 men
in their worst military defeat in
history.
Two Christmas day amphibious
landings in the enemy rear, one of
them resulting in the capture of
the port of Palompon, and a thrust
across the northwest tip to the
west coast ended the Leyte cam
paign except for minor mopping
up.
MacArthur said the complete
ness of the destruction of Lt. Gen.
Tomoyuki Yamashita's forces on
Leyte "has seldom been paralleled
in the history of warfare."
Japs Badly Beaten
"General Yamashila has sus
tained perhaps the greatest de
feat in the military annals of the
Japanese army," MacArthur as
serted. Where MacArthur will strike
next in the Philippines naturally
remained a closly-guarded mili
tary secret. However, the Jap
anese have been predicting that
he will send invasion forces
ashore on Luzon, site of the cap
ital city of Manila.
Escort American liberators con
tinued their almost daily raids on
the network of airfields around j
Manila with two attacks Satur-
day and Sunday on Clark field. I
t-.. .o f i, .o rfrnnnon:
Sunday, when escorting fighters
shot down IS to 20 of 50 to 60 in
tercepting Japanese planes. One
American plane was lost.
New Landings Made
MacArthur's troops brought the
Leyte campaign to a blazing close
Christmas day with amphibious
landings at Palompon, 15 miles
northwest of Ormoc and the last
port on the island still in Japanese
nanas, ana at t-ueno tsenu, uur-
west across Ormoc bay from
Ormoc.
The 77th division, liberators of
Ormoc, caught the Japanese com-i
pletely unawares with its landing i
at Palompon and forged inland to ; a short time after Charles E. forecaster said, but the relief will
within 10 miles or less of another McKinney reported his car stolen be only temporary,
column striking along an east-; from the corner of Oregon avenue The cold wave was caused by a
west road from the Ormoc eorri-iand Bond street, city police last cool mass of air moving acrors the
dor. Little resistance was being night located it parked near a nation in a southeasterly direc
encountered. I local church, they reported today, lion, the weatherman said.
Counter
Offensive
1914 invasion
2ZZZZZZZZZZZ
Japs Damage
U.S.Warships,
Navy Divulges
Washington, Dec. 26 IP Amer
ican naval forces have suffered
damage at. the hands of land
based Japanese aircraft in the
Philippines since the big Philip
pine sea battle of Oct. 23-25 but
lt has not disrupted plans for fu
ture' acttrm78ererary of . Navy
James Forrestal said today. '..
The navy is not announcing
what damage was suffered by its
vessels because it does not wish
the Japanese to know what ships
they have hit, to what extent ves-1
sels have been, injured, or how
soon thev mav be back in action,
Forrestal explained in a statement
reviewing the navy's part in the!
Philippines campaign.
Rumors "Not True"
He described as "not true" ru
mors that the navy has not an
nounced all its losses in the late
October naval battle. All U. S. ship
and plane losses in that action
have been made public, he said.
Losses announced were a light
cruiser, two escort carriers, two
destroyers, one destroyer escort,
and some josser craft.
"The public should not be led,
by false rumors of supposedly un
announced facts, to deprecate the
achievement of the officers and
men of the third and seventh
fleets in that action," he added.
"The Japanese fleet was indeed
'beaten, routed, and broken'."
Claims Made
He said the navy's silence on
damage Inflicted during the sec
ond phase of the Philippine naval
campaign the phase following
the big sea battle "has left the '
field clear- for the Japanese to
make fantastic claims, perhaps
fishing for information."
"Perhaps the best way to assess
the results of Japanese air attacks
against our fleets since the second
battle of the Philippine sea is to
ask whether those attacks have
disrupted our plans for future ac
tion," he said. "They have not. The
fall of Leyte and our landing on
Mlndoro are a concrete demon
stration that they have not."
Run Reported on
Rationed Foods
Portland, Ore., Dec. 26 mi The
small neighborhood grocery
stores in Portland which were
open on Sunday and Christmas
day were literally swamped with
customers who were anxious to,
buy a few Kroceries before ration -
values today.
Many stores were completely
sold out of such items as suger,
butter, cheese, processed fruits
and vegetables and canned meats
and fish.
RENT CONTROL DIE
Washington, Dec. 26 (Hi The
office of price administration an
nounced today that residences in
coun(y 0re win come undpr
npA rpnt rontroi nn .ianuarv i.
I with Jan. 1, 19-14, as the maximum
a,
CAR IS KWOVERED
YANK
Clear Weather
Help toFliers
In Great Battle
Thirty Villages Left
In Flames; Selected
Targets Are Hit Hard
By Walter Cronklte
' (United Proas War Correspondent)
U. S. Ninth Air Force Advanced
Headquarters, Dee. 26 (IP) Air
men of the Ninth tactical air force
were credited today with one of
their greatest bags of the war In
Christmas day strikes at the Ger
man spearhead in Belgium, knock
ing out more than 1,100 vehicles
and 35 planes.
Reconnaissance pilots also re
ported that 30 German-held Bel
gian villages had been left in
flames after the aerial attacks. ..
Mustangs and Thunderbolts
took off in perfect, cloudless
weather to carry the aerial phase
of the allied counter-attack against
the Germans big gambling offen
sive into its third straight day.
Called Pay Day
"It was pay day again for us,"
said 1st Lt. Donald B. Smith,
Thunderbolt pilot of Mahaffey,
Pa. "All over the battle area there
were lots of planes waiting to
swoop down on targets. You could
almost tell how the main roads
ran by the strings of planes hover
ing over head, waiting to strafe
anything that moved."
Reconnaissance pilot 1st, Lt.
Karl' Brandt of Newport, Pa.;, said
Thunderbolts In attacks on 30
Gerrhan-held Belgian villages had
left all in flames.
"Fires- were burning- In prac
tically every town in the battle
area." he said.
Meanwhile Marauder medium
bombers plastered two bridges on
the Moselle river and lour com
munication centers immediately
behind the front, continuing tile
campaign to isolate me uerman
spearhead from supplies ana re
inforcements. Pilots Optimistic
Other pilots reported that their
big 72 hours over the battle area
already had changed the course of
the conflict. They reported Ger
man armored convoys and supply
columns for the first time were
taking to secondary roads, Just as
thev did In the Normanay aenai
massacres, in an attempt to avoid
the skv-borne destruction.
Luftwaffe strength over the
battle area continued to dwindle
as it has daily since the air phase
of the battle beean.
The night airmen encountered
fewer than 100 German ngnters,
They shot down 26 in isolated
combat. Four others, and five
probables were destroyed on the
ground.
Midwest Shivers
In Subzero Ghill
(Br United Press)
The coldest weather of the sea
son hit the midwest today with
the mercury dipping to 16 degrees
below zero at Rockford, III., and
the federal weather bureau at Chi
cago said no Immediate relief was
foreseen.
Sub-zero temperatures were re
ported for the entire bloc of north
central states from Michigan to
Iowa and as far south as northern
Missouri, with the lowest reported
at Rockford. Iowa City and Mason
renortcd 15 dcerecs
' - "y - iowa, reported 10 aegrecs
field, III., thc-low was 12.
Scores of cities in Illinois re
ported below zero weather. The
mercury dropped to two below at
Chicago at 4 a. m. and the wea
therman said It would go to five
below before noon.
Cold Weather Due
Lower Michigan reported no
sub zero temperatures before 4 a.
m. but it was expected to reach
that mark In the areas near the
(lakes today.
Warmer temperatures were ex
'poeted tomorrow, the weather
AIRMEN STRIKE AT FOE
jraiuer fiicpuriea leister laina in
Big Nazi Drive on West Front
By James McGIincy
j (United Preen War Corrcepondent)
' Paris, Dec. 26 UP) Supreme
headquarters reported today that
Adolf Hitler personally conceived
and planned the present all-out
German offensive during the rumor-clouded
months when the
world was swamped with reports
that he was dead, gravely ill, or
Insane.
. After Hitler had set up the
grand attack now beating at the
approaches of the Meuse line and
the French border region, he
turned over Its execution to Mar
shal Karl Von Rundstedt and the
marshal's chief of staff, Von West
fall, a SHAEF spokesman said.
The overall nazi strategy was
reported whipped into shape un
der cover of the smoke screen of
"Hitler's rumors" craftily thrown
up by nazi propagandists, the first
authoritative appraisal of the
On High Divide
' Wire communications through
out Central Oregon were serious
ly disrupted today as a result of
a break in theElflc TTelegraph
Telephone companjej3jln--clr-J
cult at Criterion summit, south
of Maupin, due to icy conditions.
A dense fog'covered the district
and froze to the lines, causing
them to snap shortly after mid
night, it was reported.
Two crews of linemen, one from
The Dalles and another recruited
from Central Oregon points,
worked throughout the remainder
of the night and today to repair
the damage. Linemen estimated
they would have the service re
stored by late today.
,In an effort to restore normal
service, the hard-pressed linemen
worked day and night throughout
the holidays, to repair damage
which began several days ago
with the first silver thaw.
Programs Interrupted
Mutual broadcasting programs
over radio station KBND were in
terrupted yesterday and again
this morning, by the wire dam
age, but the network programs
were expected to be normal by
tonight.
While there were no traffic ac
cidents reported, icy conditions in
Bend claimed at least one casual
ty, police reports stated today.
Officers were called to Drake
park where a man was reported
down, and they found Verne Lor
enzon, a logger residing at 1029
Lexington avenue, with a broken
leg. He was removed to St.
Charles hospital.
Street department employes re
sumed the task of removing snow
from downtown streets, and
planned this afternoon to bring
the city's new $7,000 snow loader
into use for the first time.
Roads Snow Covered
Conditions of state highways
over the Cascades and through
Central Oregon remained practi
cally unchanged over the week
end. Reports today to the local
offices of the state highway de
partment told of packed snow on
(Continued on iJage u
Iced Telephone
LinesGiveWay
Food Supplies of Nation Reported at Low
Ebb, Says OPA; Ration Points Increased
Washington. Dec. 2 6 mi
Warned by Price Chief Chester
Bowles that many of the nation's
food supplies are at the wars
lowest ebb, housewives today be
gan paying out blue points again
for most canned vegetables and
prepared to dole out red points
beginning Sunday for meat that
has been point free for many
months.
Would-be hoarders were caught
unawares by the suddenness of
the OPA's move, which was ad
vanced at least 24 hours due to
premature circulation of reports
thnt OPA w as going to broaden I longer valid. All eugar stamps ex
the food rationing program. jcept No. 34 are no longer valjd. A
The situation, in brief, Is this:
As of last midnicht all ration-1
free vegetables are now back on;
the ration list. This includes as
paragus, green and waxed beans,
corn, spinach, and peas. Aspara
gus, beans, and spinach are 10
planning behind the offensive in
dicated. It was an audaciously brilliant
as well as fundamentally simple
operation which Hitler was de
scribed as mapping with the aim
of destroying the allies in the
west.
Already committed to It were
one infantry army, one panzer
army, and possibly a second pan
zer army, SHAEF reported. The
immediate objective of the origin
al plan was the line of the Meuse
river as defined by the great for
tress cities of Liege, Namur, and
Dlnant. "
The original plan was reported
frustrated in its initial phase by
the failure of the American First
army to collapse, but more Ger
man gains are to be expected be
fore the full picture of one of the
most confused military situations
of the entire war emerges.
Plot to Assassinate Churchill
Believed Uncovered in Greece
Nearly One Ton of Explosives Located Under
Hotel; Conference Reported Due in Athens
Athens, Dec. 26 (EE) A possible plot to assassinate Prime
Minister Winston Churchill was thwarted today with the
discovery of nearly a ton of dynamite under the Great Britain
hotel, British and Greek government headquarters, while a
conferenc aimed at ending the Greek civil war waa reported
shaping up.
The dynamite was found in a sewer under the hotel a few
hours before, a planned convocation of British and Greek fac
tional leaders, and the fused cache was removed. " .. ' ,
Greek government sources said representatives of all ele-
Death Toll Six
l(
Portland, Ore., Dec. 26 IP At
least six traffic deaths five of
them in the Portland area were
recorded over the Christmas week
end.
Latest fatality was a jaywalker,
Domingo V. Ruez, 62, killed on a
Portland street Monday night
when struck by a streetcar.
A hit-run driver was sought In
the death of John Burton, Port
land tavern operator, who was
killed early Sunday during a Port
land collision between his car and
a motor freight truck.
A head-on automobile collision
In Portland Saturday night
brought death to two William
Smarten, 42, Portland, and Carl
Chiles, 39, Mllwaukle, Ore.
Another Mllwaukle man Jos
eph Roy, 51, was killed Saturday
night when struck by an auto
mobile on the southeast outskirts
of Portland, and Jack Marston of
Molalla, Ore., was killed Saturday
night in a head-on automobile
collision on the MolallaColton
highway.
LICENSES DUE SOON
Only three and a half days re
main in which to apply for 1945
automobile licenses, K. I. Hamby,
deputy sheriff, said today. Hamby
suggested that persons apply as
possible to avoid a rush on Friday
and Saturday morning. The sher
iff's office will close at noon on
Saturday.
points and corn and peas 20
points for No. two cans.
Beginning Sunday 85 per cent
of all now ration-free meats will
go back on the ration list. The
OPA was not too worried about
hoarding of meat because It is too
difficult to keep. Meats Included
are utility beef, better grades and
cuts of veal, bacon, pork should
ers, spare ribs, beef and veal liver,
some'sausages and meats In tin
or glass containers. Point values
will range from one to 13. i
All red and blue rallon stamps
validated before Dec. 1 are no!
new sugar stamp will be Issued
Feb. i. but it will be good for five
pounds over a three months pe-
rlod Instead of the present two
and a half months.
Butter Is up from 20 to 24
points.
The nazis have acknowledged
that the Hitler plan for a sudden
great victory has gone wrong, a
primary factor being the First
army's stand along the Malmedy
Stavelot flank of the German sali
ent, which veered the enemy
south away from Liege.
Two of the armies committed
to the German drive were Identi
fied as the Fifth panzer army and
the Seventh infantry army.
By SHAEF account, the big
push from the Belgian-Luxembourg
frontier zone had Its origin
and development in Hitler's mind
in the last three months while his
engrossment covered up with ru
mors of his rug-chewing, an ope
ration for a critical throat, ail
ment, and a flight to Japan,
among others.
The rumors reached flood tide
when Hitler failed to speak on
the anniversary of the Munich
beer cellar putsch, a sort of "holy
day" in nazidom.
ments of the civil war were in
vited to a conference at which
CHurchill and Foreign Secre
tary Anthony Eden were ex
pected to make their supreme
bid to iron out the difficulties
which threatened the make-up
of the British coalition gov
ernment. (An Athens dispatch of the
British Exchange Telegraph said
a car carrying a white flag left
government headquarters at the
Great Britain hotel to fetch
E.L.A.S. delegates for the confer
ence.) Civilians Demonstrate
Two hundred civilians gathered
near Constitution square shout
ing Churchill and Roosevelt."
They dispersed good naturedly at
the request of police. A ragged
column marched away behind gi
ant British and Greek flags.
Themistocles Sophoulis, elder
statesman and liberal party lead
er, said he had been Invited to the
conference, but was asking for
further details. He said he did not
want to attend a meeting where
the communists were represented,
considering them rebels with
whom negotiations were impos
sible.
BULLETIN
Athens, Dec. 20 UP) Allied
and Oreek lenders met laic to
day, a few hours after the
thwarting of a possible- plot
against Prime Minister Mills
ton Churchill hy discovery of
a dynunillu cache under the
Great Ilritaln hotel, for a
momentous conference alin
ed at settling the civil war In
Greece.
Bowles said the decision had
been "difficult to make" but nec
essary "because civilian supplies
of sugar, butter and commercially
canned fruits and vegetables are
at the lowest point since the war
began and meat supplies are de
clining." "When Americans understand
the facts back of today's action
that prospective supplies are
smaller and that It will help each
one to get his fair share I am
sure they will welcome the ac
tion," How ies said.
Republicans laid the tight situa
tion to the administration's fail
ure to appoint a food "czar" wlih Editor's note This dispatch,
full power to handle all phases of ! filed by United Press War Corre
the food Industry, and indicated! spondent Mac R. Johnson of Sal
they might renew their fight for pan, has heen held up since Dec.
such an official in the new con-1 4, presumably pending notifica
gross. tion of the next of kin.)
German Drive
Gaining Speed
On West Front
Spearhead Reported 4
Miles From Meuse as
Armies Press Onward
By J. Edward Murray
(United Presa War Correspondent)
Paris, Dec. 26 (Ui Field Mar
shal Karl Von Rundstedt's offen
sive, backed by two and possibly
three full German field armies,
advanced west today, despite con
tinuous American air assault, and
a nazi ' spearhead was planted
within four miles of the Meuse
river line just east of the Belgian
fortress city of Dinant.
The most forward points reach
ed by the nazis were Celles, four
miles east of Dinant, representing
a gain of 11 miles from Rochefort,
and Clney, ten miles norjnwest
of Rochefort, about eight miles
from the river Meuse.
Forces Join Up
The nazi advance was made
possible by crushing the American
defense positions in the center of
the German salient, extending
west from St. Vith. This enabled
the northern and central spear
heads of the nazi forces to join
up and hammer west with new
force.
An Allied military spokesman
at Shaef said the offensive had
been personally planned by Adolf
Hitler and was designed to crush
the Allied forces In the west.
He said the initial objective Of
the Germans was the Meuse river
line and the fortress cities of
Liege, Namur and Dinant, . The
plans had been thwarted, in meas
ure, he said, but further German
gains must be expected.
Panzer Army used
Von Rundstedt has hurled the
seventh German Infantry army
Into his attack and is emptying
the fifth German panzer army and
possibly a second panzer army.
With the crumpling away oi
the American positions In the cen
ter of the German salient the
nazls were pounding hard for the
Meuse river despite fresh tactical
assaults by the ninth air force.
The ninth had flown somes
by noon and destroyed six Ger
man tanks and damaged five.
They had also shot down 22 Ger
man fighters witn one proDODm
and five damaged. Four Ameri
can planes were lost.
On the southern side of the
German salient, where the Ameri
cans have been th.-owing In power
ful counterattacks, our troops
registered slight gains, taking
high ground near Eppeldorf, four
and a half miles southeast of
Dleklrch and three miles west of
llie L,UJteniuuuI B uunnaii uuu;i.
Supply Routes lilt
Eight air force flying fortresses
and liberators again joined the
battle, smashing at the nazi sup- -ply
route and freight yards along
the Rhine.
Flying conditions were not quite
as good as they had been but most
of the bombing was done visually.
The sudden collapse of the
American pocket below the Mai-Medy-Stavclot
line after two days
of relative stability sent nazi tanks
and armored troop carriers spill
ing westward along the northern
wall of the corridor to join their
central spearheads driving for the
Meuse.
Exploiting the break-through,
the nazis sent three p.rmored
spearheads through the riddled
center and right center of the
American first army line on a
13-mlle front pointed squarely at
the Meuse river citadels of Dinant
and Namur.
Two Air Colonels
Lost Over Tokyo
' Headquarters, 21st Bomber
Command, Saipan, Dec. 4 (De
layed) UP) Col. Byron Ellas
Brugge, deputy commander for
operations and training of the
21st bomber command, and Col.
Richard Thomas King, Jr., com
manding officer of a Superfort
ress unit,- failed to return from
yesterday's B-29 raid on the Mu
sashina factory of the Nakajlma
aircraft works in Tokyo.