Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 1942)
Lai YOUR JLniwn T -Bomb Be BONDSI Buy Wat Bonda Stan pa TOIIAV CoalrlbaW la Ik war iron af year aalioa. patriae lam. yaar awa arlf-aratectle. Vmandi that 101) yer art sowi Uh Th MAIL TRIBVNS Want Ad Way Quick Results At Small Coat FORD RIBUWE Unitad Praaa Full Leased Wlr Unitad Praaa Full Laatad Wlra Thirty-seventh Year. MEDFORD, OREGON, SUNDAY, DECEMBER 6, 1942 NO. 221 ilia Tin V Ul Med ALL News Behind The News by Paul Mallon Washington, Dec. 8 A gigan tic crucial battle (or control of the air over the Mediterranean it now in its first phase. This battle will determine the fortune of our invasion of Ainci, anu may require weeks; 1 1 wise K 'T ff el fies to VsAi . I very far th I ill) ii days with. No wise gen- go these without ran Halloa air power. To do so would waste troops. Hitler met our first landings by moving great quantities of planes into northern Tunisia, Sicily and Sardinia. He drew them from Stalingrad, central Germany and every point, but particularly from Bulgaria (where it now appears they had been placed In preparation for Invasion of Tiukey), and from southern France (for a contem plated Invasion of Spain.) It was obviously necessary then for us to establish air bases, to ship fighter planes in from Britain and the U. S. (You can not fly fighters that distance), to establish gasoline supplies in great quantity in short, to get an air screen overhead before moving our land troops further. We are getting that now. When German planes are driven fmm North African skies, the next step will be to pulver ize their bases in Sicily with our bombers, chase them from the Straits and open the way for in vasion of Italy. A COMPLETE re-making of America would result. If Mr. Roosevelt goes through with the idea of limiting all personal pro fits to $25,000 net after taxes. It is a new Idea and no one seems to be thinking about the effect it would have on the average taxpayer, worker or business man, but someone had better start. No one cares about the rich. They will get along on thelr 123,000, but the question is what the limitation will do to the average man and (he country as a whole. All the progress that has been made in America has depended Continued on Paca Eight) BLINDlLAYER TO BE FREE IN JUNE San Quentln, Cal., Dec. 5 (U.R) Parole of blind Capt. John M. Holmes, Jr., former U. S. army air corps flier, convicted of man. slaughter in the slaying of Wil son McNary In 1941, was an nounced tonight by the state board of prison terms and pa roles. Holmes, blinded In a suicide attempt after shooting McNary -cousin of Oregon's U. S. Sen ator Charles McNary in a quar rel over a wealthy San Mateo, Cal., matron, will be released June 25, 1943, 22 months after he started serving a sentence of one to 10 years Imprisonment 2 BIDSRLEDTO Portland, Ore., Dee. 0 (U.R) Only two bids were received to day for th scrapping of the battleship Oregon when bids were opened abcard the vener able war vessel, Lieut. J. G Dean of the U. S. navy an nounced tonight The Dulien Steel Products company of Seattle offered to scrap the ship In four months, Both bids, which were taken tender-advisement, approximated $00,000. Dean said. : -Ttie Oregon reportedly Is the navy's largest source of .metal ahJch can be Immediately con usiUd into armament, t II STRENGTH IN eTS- M NORTH AFRICA TO V'W, BE REORGANIZED S - Issue Still Unsettled In- "S. y"1 ' ' 4 T tense Fighting Underway - C ' YiA yty -Axis Takes Key Towns. . iv! s" ' , - .? T ) 1 ! -V London, Dec. S (U.R) Maj. Gen. Carl Spaatz, commander of United States army air forces In the European theater, has gone to Africa to reorganize Al lied air strength in Tunisia, where British and American troops had retired from two key towns under battering blows of German planes. It was disclosed today. Allied Headquarters In North Africa, Dec. 5 (U.R) Axis in fantry and mechanized units streamed tonight into Tebourba and DJedeida, key towns west of Tunis from which British and American forces had withdrawn under pressure. Allied units had withdrawn to a height dominating Tebour ba from the rear and were being pounded by German tanks, in fantry and dive-bombers. German troops earlier had entered Djedeida, 12 miles west of Tunis, and apparently bad completed their occupation of that town. The situation at Tebourba, 20 miles west of Tunis, was far from settled, however. A com munique from Allied general headquarters said: "Some enemy mechanized units and infantry have entered Tebourba. Heavy fighting is continuing in the region of Tebourba. The enemy is at tacking with infantry supported by tanks and dive-bombers. "Our forces have been re grouped on the heights domi nating Tebourba." (This communique also was issued simultaneously in Wash ington as the war department's 259th of the war.) Intense fighting was proceed ing In widely separated parts of Tunisia. In the northern sector, presumably around the Dedeida Tebourba - Mateur re gion, Axis forces were known to have lost 33 tanks in opera tions from Tuesday to Thurs day, communique said. Tank losses also were run ning high for the enemy farther south, where the communique disclosed that Allied aircraft had inflicted casualties on a number of Axis machines yes terday. Air activity was Increasing I or Dotn sides, with Allied planes hitting Bizerte three times within 12 hours yesterday. On one sweep, they engaged an equal force of Messerschmitt- 109s and two Focke-Wulf-190s. One Me-109 was destroyed and two were damaged against a loss of one P-3B. Front reports said American and French troops, including United States paratroops, had scored an important victory in the Tunisian east coast area. Crack American paratroops un- cfer Col. Edson D. Raff of New York, operating as ground forces. cooperated with regular infantry and French patrols and artillery, storming Sidi Bou Zis, 73 miles inland on the Important highway from thqe port of Sfax. They captured 100 Germans, killed 40 and wounded 60. Their own losses were slight Additional towns were said to have been recaptured in the southern Tunisia area, and front reports gave great praise to the French artillery. One report said the operation of the French 75s the gun made famous in the last war was the decisive fea ture of the action. These successes, dispatches said, left the American-French units in position to strike east war toward the coast and consti tuted a threat oward Tripoli ania. NEW TRAINING SCHOOL Ssn Francisco, Dec. 5 (U.R) Two big new U. S. navy pre flight training schools will be established at Stanford Univer sity, Palo Alto, Cal., and at the nationally-known Hotel D e I Monte resort near Monterey, Cal., it was announced tonight ir-ev, Aetna Telepholo Here's another sight to make you remember Dee. T. One of the main reasons the Japs were able to escape after the atab-ln-the-back Pearl Harbor raid without heavier loses was the great amount of damage to D. 8. planes which were surprised on the ground. Here la one of America's fighting Flying Fortresses blasted in half by a Jap bomb just a year ago. The C. 8. Signal Corps photo has Just been released for publication. NAZI OPPOSITION ON THREE FRONTS Moscow, Dec. (Sunday) (U.R) The Red army drove for ward on three fronts today, the anniversary of the start of its crippling offensive against the Axis last year, crushing German opposition to its new attack southwest of Stalingrad as well as within the steel city and on the central front Front dispatches reported Soviet spearheads 10 miles be yond the west bank of the Don river in a new surprise offen sive that carried through the lower half of the river's big bend, southwest of Stalingrad. Three bridgeheads had been thrown across the Don, dis patches said, and the Germans were thrown into a panicky re treat despite Nazi high com mand orders to hold the Don's west banks at all costs. The Ger mans had rallied somewhat, it was indicated, but were un successful in attempting to re gain their lost territory. Just one year after they had stopped Adolf Hitler's Legions only 18 miles from Moscow and started on a winter of annihila tion that saw thousands of enemy troops succumb to Soviet guns and bayonets and the great Russian ally winter the Red army was on the march again. Northwest of Moscow, a new advance was reported on the Rzhevgeliki Luki salient. Front dispatches said the fighting had carried to the region of Smol ensk, the key city of the entire German defense system in the north. TO Washington, Dec. 5 (U.R) Attorney General Francis Biddle disclosed tonight that the jus tice department's anti-trust di vision recently discovered $15. 000,000 in royalties on a certain type of anti-aircraft gun were finding their way to patent-hold. k,8 in ucj iiiaujr. 1 Ih, flnw nf ,! m,nv through devious corporate chan nels in neutral countries into Germany was stopped, IBddle said in a review of the Justice department's internal security program during the first year of American participation in World War II. He did not reveal how the money flow was stopped, however. GRATUITY CHECKS Washington, Dec. 5 U.R) The war department announced today that dependents or rela tives will receive gratuity bene fits after officers or enlisted men are reported missing for one year. Salt Lake City. Dec. 8 (U.R) A growing coal shortage to night threatened the already critical fuel supply situation in th western states- . TOKYO PREDICTS By United Press (Undated) Japanese radio and press, summarizing results of the first year of war in the Pacific, warned today against compla cency and the possibility of fur ther American air raids on Japan during the coming year. A Tokyo broadcast recorded by the FCC said that "It Is most dis astrous for us to become too tranquil." "We must increase production and furnish the required arma ments to those at the front," the Japanese radio commentator said. "Just how fervently Amer ica is attempting to plan some method by which to bomb and raid us need not be mentioned here as .you know all too well." Tokyo broadcasts, recorded by the United Press, boasted that the "greater part' of the U. S. naval force and practically all of the British force in the Pacific had been destroyed. Referring to the battle of Guadalcanal, the enemy radio said: "Ever since the American ma rines were trapped, Guadalcanal Island has been serving as pre cious bait to lure the U. S. naval forces for the Japanese navy, ever anxious to encounter the enemy, to send to the bottom of the sea." The broadcast admitted activ ity by Allied submarines and air craft but said they were "Iceble efforts." The Japan Times-Advertiser, referring to Benito Mussolini's speech last week, said that the Italian premier may be assured that our country certainly will not disappoint" his expectations of Japan. E INCREASED TAXES Washington, Dec. 8 (U.R) Secretary of Treasury Henry Morgenthau, Jr., tonight warned Americans that they must pre pare themselves for heavier taxes and greater savings out of current income in order to fi nance their global war. In a Pearl Harbor anniversary statement, Morgenthau declared the United States is fighting on both a military and an economic front "the war against the Axis and the war against post war chaos." And, he added, ex perience has taught that "a military victory alone may turn to ashes." WAGE BOOST OKAYED Washington, Dec. 8 U.R The War Labor Board today granted the request of Remlng ton Arms Co., Inc., for Dermis sion to give a general 8 cent- n- hour wage increase to 30,000 employees E 'FALSE FINAGLING' OF DARLAN DEAL Chicago, Dec. 8 (J.R) Wen dell L. Willkie, Republican party leader, tonight denounced American collaboration with Ad miral Jean Darlan as "false finagling with expediency," and warned that through loss of moral force the United Nations may win the war and lose the peace. "Under the lame excuse of 'expediency' to save American lives and win an easy victory, we are collaborating with Vichy's Darlan," Willkie said In an interview published in this week's issue of th Christian Ad vocate, official Methodist church newspaper. , "After promising freedom to the French, we put Into control over them the very man who has helped enslave them. And then, when the world's astonishment sweeps down upon us. we en deavor to explain that the deal with this arch-bctrayer is only temporary, and that we shall ditch him fast when we have got all we can from him. "With all my soul I hate this false finagling with expediency. temporary or permanent." Willkie called for an America that would be an arsenal of Ideals as well as munitions. He urged churches to take the lead in promoting these ideals. T BOMBERS' TARGET New Delhi, Dec. 8 (U.R) Heavy bombers of the U. S. army air force In India attacked Japa nese troop and truck concentra tions near Mandalay yesterday, dropping nearly 100 bombs "with telling effect," an official air force communique said today. The attack was directed at Pyawbwe, about 75 miles osuth of the Burma capital, the com munique said. The enemy trans port depot was estimated to con tain about 300 trucks. All crew members returned safely. WOT ON Two soldiers are believed to have lost their lives at Camp White Friday morning while crossing tiic Rogue river, It was revealed Saturday by the Public Relations Office at the camp. The bodies have not been recov ered but next of kin have been notified of th accident. Names of the men were not made pub lie. Search for the missing men Is continuing in the river and a board of inquiry will be sum moned to Investigate the cir cumstances, the public relations of lie sain NAVAL FORCE AT GUADALCANAL RAKEDBYPLANES Aussies Roll Up Enemy Flank On Gona Beach Air Raid Hits Kavieng. Washington, Dec. 8 (U.R) Alert and hard-hitting dive bombers and torpedo planes have Intercepted and attacked an ene my naval force which may have been attempting to relieve gradually-weakening Japanese forces on Guadalcanal, the navy dis closed tonight. Ranging 150 miles northwest ward from their base on the island, the death-dealing planes on Thursday (island time) found a small force of enemy light sur face vessels between Santa Isa bel and New Georgia islands. They let go with bombs and torpedoes but thus far, the navy said, results of the attack are not known. It was assumed the Japanese force consisted of cruisers and destroyers, possibly bent upon landing supplies for enemy troops on Guadalcanal which have received no appre ciable relief in several weeks. Gen MacArthur's Headquar ters, Australia, Dec. 6 (Sun day) (U.R) Australian patrols fanning out along Gona beach continued today to roll up the Japanese right flank toward Sanananda point, one of the main centers A enemy resistance, after 105 mm. howitzers had been flown from Australia to centers of-heavy .fighting on the North Guinea shore. ' In the New Ireland theatre Consolidated Liberator bombers struck at Kavieng early Saturday in one of their heaviest raids, dropping about SO tons of bombs on an airdrome, supply dumps, Installations and dispersal areas, the communique reported with out mentioning specific damage. In the Buna-Gona area, the communique said, activity "in all sectors is limited to patrol clashes and sporadic fighting." In ex tending control of the beach east and west of Gona, the announce ment said, the Allied forces sent medium bombers against enemy defensive installations in the Buna area. DECEMBER SET AS Portland, Ore., Dec. 8 (U.R) With the warning that Oregon faces a winter in which it will be unable to obtain Its normal supply of fuel, Governor Charles Sprague today proclaimed Do cember "war on fuel waste" month. Asking Oregonlans to reduce fuel consumption as a safeguard against a more acute shortage in the future, the governor said newspapers, radio stations, civic organizations and schools would cooperate In a public enllght- ment campaign. "I urge the people of Oregon to study the material which will be presented to them and to take the simple precautions necessary to reduce fuel waste. the proclamation said. "I par ticularly urge school children to become fuel wardens in their homes and to check constantly against the fuel conservation in structions." GERMANS ROILED BY FLEET'S LOSS London, Dec. 8 AI R) An anti French tirade by Dr. Paul Jo seph Goebbels indicated tonight that the Germans were so en raged over the scuttling of the French fleet at Toulon they will not seek an alliance with the puppet Vichy government. The Nazi propaganda minister In an article In his weekly pub lication. Das Reich, which was broadcast by the German DNB agency and recorded here, de clared Franc was dead. BULLETIN Beverly Hills. Cal.. Dae. (U.R) A mild earthquake was fait hare at (:3S p. m. to day. It was described as a single, short sharp jolt Tucson. Aria.. Dae, S (U.R) The publie relations office at Davis-Monthan field her lata today announced it was a heavy bomber from the field which crashed and burned on th desert near Florae lata Friday, killing all members of th eight-man craw. BOMBARD NAPLES, E First Yankee Attack Upon Italians Wrecks Docks At Main Port. Cairo, Dec. 8 (U.R) Recon nalssanca reports tonight re vealed that the American four- motored Liberator bombers which blasted the important Ital lan port city of Naples In a day light raid yesterday definitely sank one of two cruisers on which direct hits were scored. Allied reconnaissance planes found that in addition to the heavy damage previously report ed Inflicted on Italy's third larg est city, which included a direct hit on a battleship and an un determined number of merchant ships, sticks of high explosive bombs had burst across the Mas sanelllo and Cesarlo Console moles. The heavy damage to dock In stallations was highly Important because Naples had become the Axis main port for sending sup plies and reinforcements to Af rica since British bombers had virtually knocked out Genoa. The Liberators, attached to the 9th U. S. air force in Egypt and Libya, late yesterday brought home to Italians that Prime Mtn. ister Winston Churchill was In deadly earnest when he warned last Sunday that southern Italy as well as the northern parts would feel the might of Allied air power. It was the first American air attack on Italy and it achieved "excellent results," a United States communique reported. The huge bombers were able to sweep across th Mediterra- nan from African bases and reach Naples undetected by trail Ing a formation of Italian planes, the Italian high command re ported. ASG.0.P.CH0ICE St. Louis, Dec. 8 (U.R) Re publican national committee members, enthusiastically gath ering to choose a harmony chair man, heard the first gun of the G. O. P. presidential campaign sound from Ohio tonight with the Informal but emphatic launching of Gov. John W Bricker's 1944 favorite son can didacy. Coincidental John B. Holl Is ter, Cincinnati, O., lawyer, was most prominently discussed as a compromise choice for national committee chairman to .avoid a political ruckus between the friends and enemies of Wendell Willkie. PARITYILTO Washington, Dec. B (U.R) The Senate Agriculture commit tee today unanimously approved a revision in the farm parity formula which Its sponsors con ceed would ultimately raise the price of food to consumers. Supporters of the measure said they would make every effort to drive the bill through th senate at an early data. AMERICAN LOSSES Battleships Crippled In Sneak Attack, 177 Planes Lost Casualties 4,575. Washington. Dec. 8 (U.R) Eight U. S. battleships and 11 other naval vessels were crippled ana i l l 01 our planes were de stroyed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor a year ago Monday, the navy department disclosed tonight In 110 flaming minutes th Japanese hit every American battleship that was In the har bor. They thus laid up nearly half the number of battleships m th entire U. S. navy at th tlma. They destroyed or disabled "most of the aircraft in the Ha waiian area," the navy said. A high naval officer said it was fair speculation that th balance of the Pacific fleet re maining seaworthy after the at tack could have been annihilat ed if the main Japanese battle fore had followed up th initial blow. All told, th navy revealed In its anniversary statement 89 . ships of the Pacific fleet ex clusive of small craft were moored at Pearl Harbor on th morning of December 7. Th Japs struck at 7:58 a. m. At 8:45 a. m when the last of the raiders had retired, the U.S. Pacific fleet had been crippled to this extent: Put out of action: Battleships (5) Arizona (sunk), Oklahoma (capsized), California, Nevada, and West Virginia; destroyers (3) Shaw, Cassin and Downes; the minelayer Oglala, the target ship Utah and a large floating drydock. Total 11 ships. Damaged: Battleships (3) Pennsylvania, Maryland and Tennessee; cruisers (3) Helena. Honolulu and Raleigh; the sea. plane tender Curtiss and the re pair ship Vestal. Total, eight ships. Other losses: Planes estroyed (177) navy 80; army 97. In addition, 70 navy planes and a still undis closed number of army planes were- disabled. Personnel killed, wounded or missing (4575) navy, 2177 killed, 960 missing and 878 wounded; army 226 killed and 396 wounded. On the morning of December 7, the report relates, the Pacifio fleet was divided up into four task forces two at sea and two at Pearl Harbor following ex tensive operations in the Pacific There were two phases to th Jap attack. The first was when dive bombers struck at Hlckara Field and the naval air station on Ford Island and Kaneoh Bay. A few seconds later, tor pedo planes and dive bombers swarmed in from all directions to concentrate on th heavy ships at Pearl Harbor. "The enemy attack was based on exact Information," th navy said. The Japanese, hs said, wera poised to hit well in advance and probably weeks were Con sumed getting into position. Ho estimated that three and possibly four aircraft carriers were used In the attack. So perfectly executed was the assault, he added, that it was probable the enemy rehearsed the attack "like a Hollywood movie".- He said it was not im probable that th enemy may have set up a replica of Pearl Harbor In a restricted area or. the inland sea off Japan to practice. Naval experts assumed, h said, that most of th Jap fliers failed to get back to their car riers because they could not have carried sufficient fuel and large bomb or torpedo loads to have completed the round trip. In that respect, h added, they had engaged In a suicidal mis sion. SHIPYARDS INSPECTED Portland, Ore., Dec. 8 (U.R) Rep. John Z. Anderson, mem ber of the House Naval Affairs committee, declined tonight to discuss his inspection trip today through Portland shipyards en gaged in navy construction.
