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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 24, 1944)
Ml 0) l S 1 Weather Forccmst: Partly cloudy to night and Friday. Little change In temperature. Temp. Highest yesterday 7g Lowest thlt morning 54 Precipitation past 24 bra, 9 Thirty-ninth Year RAF Thwarts Nazi "Dunkerque" Attempt EVACUATION TRY FROM LE HAVRE IS Capture of Bordeaux, Troyes by Far-Ranging American Tank Columns Reported. Supreme Headquarters, AEF, Aug. 24.-4U.PJ RAF bombers smashed an attempt by German light warships and merchant ves sels to evacuate Nazi troops from the doomed port of Le Havre today as far-ranging American tank columns were reported un officially to have captured Bor deaux, deep in southern France, and Troyes, only 130 miles from the German border. Thwarting a Nazi "Dunker que," the bombers intercepted the German ships shortly after midnight and in an eight-hour running battle between Le Havre and Boulogne, put the ships to flight. The bombers made 25 separate attacks against the surface craft, which presum ably were carrying troops from Le Havre, now on the verge of being engulfed by the first Ca nadian army. Ships Driven Back Some of the ships put into Boulogne harbor and then at tempted to sneak out again for a dash up to the North sea but they were driven back into port again by the bombs and guns of the RAF planes. The evacuation was attempted as American flying tank col . umns rampaged almost unop posed through southwestern and eastern France. Allied headquarters spokes men declined to confirm or deny a report broadcast by Radio France at Algiers that an Amer ican tank column had swept down more than 150 miles south of the Loire, Joined forces with French partisans and captured Bordeaux, the fourth city of France. (The reported fall of Bordeaux followed repeated reports from Gezan and French sources of al lied amphibious operations along the Bay of Biscay south of the city. There has been no official word of any Allied sea-borne at' tack on that coast, however.) Two other American columns, meanwhile, sped eastward to ward the German frontier In a drive that menaced the entire line of communication between the Nazi forces in southern and central France and their home land. One armored force of Lt. Gen.j George S. Patton's U. S. Jra army was reported striking into the outskirts of the Tioyes rail hub, a pivotal point on the net work of railway lines funnelling into Alsace-Lorraine and the Saar valley. A second tank column drove up from Orleans in a wide sweep around the southeastern suburbs of Paris, cut across the Loing river and drove eastward through Montagris, 63 miles southwest of Troyes. Only feeble opposition was re oH In the Dath of the fast- rolling American armor and it appeared that the German grip, on all eastern France had been shaken badly by the disastrous! beating Inflicted on the Nazi 7th army in Normandy. Four powerful Allied armies were crushing in from the west and south on the 93,000-odd sur vivors of the 7th army, and closing swiftly on Rouen and the channel port of Le Havre. SIDE GLANCES BT TRIBUNE REPORTERS George Buchanan trying without success to find out who wrote Trieste Overture. "Tubby" Dean surprised at the speed of the Medford un derground. Alfred Carpenter maintaining that since the calendar reads AuRust, it must be summer in spite of the early morning ther mometer reading. MEDFORD United Preu War Bulletins Ankara, Aug. 24 (U.R) Diplomatic sourcet said to day that Russia's armistice terms to Romania call for unconditional surrender and establishment of a demo cratic government in Bu charest. London, Aug. 24 (U.R) American heavy bombers from Italy and Great Brit ain, estimated at more than 2000 strong, struck against widespread targets in cen tral and northern Germany and in the wavering Balkan countries today as clearing weather permitted resump tion of the Allied aerial of fensive. E PASSES SEALED BY YANK E Rome, Aug. 24. (U.R) Amer ican mechanized columns were reported to have sealed the Franco-Italian Alpine passes after a lightning 68-mile ad vance from Grenoble to the Swiss frontier, while allied land, sea, and air forces broke down the last German defenses in the encircled naval base of Toulon. There was no official confir mation of the reported thrust to the Swiss frontier which, if veri fied, would put the American columns within 175 miles or less of Lt. Gen. George S. Patton's tank spearheads sweeping down on Troyes from the Paris area. With American troops astride the Franco-Swiss frontier, the mountain routes of escape into northern Italy would be closed to the German armies in south ern France. Fight For Toulon Meanwhile, French infantry men battled through the streets of Toulon behind a tremendous air and sea barrage, herding the German garrison back into the old port area. The great naval base's main fortifications already had been breached, however, and an offi- cial spokesman said the corn- plete occupation of the port was imminent. (Lorfcon radio reports, uncon firmed by allied official sources, said American and French troops also had liberated the French west coast port of Bor deaux.) Redistribution Center Now Open in Santa Barbara Washington, Aug. 24. (U.R) War department hotels at Miami Beach, Fla., and Santa Barbara, Cal., went into use today as re distribution centers for veterans returning from overseas. The army maintains 35 hotels at Miami Beach and three at Santa Barbara. Veterans report to redistribution centers after 21-day furloughs to await reas signment. The war department said five such stations will be in operation by Oct. 1. Beside those at Miaiml Beach and Santa Barbara, one win be opened at Lake Placid, N. Y., Sept. 8, and others later at AsheviUe, N. C, and Hot Springs, Ark. TWO YEAR SENTENCE GIVEN HORACE STOREY Horace Oliver Storey, 48. charged with obtaining money under false pretenses was sen tenced yesterday by Circuit Judge H. K. Hanna to serve an indeterminate term of not to. exceed two years in state prison. Storey entered a plea of guilty on a district attorney's informa tion, and waived grand Jury in dictment. The cases of Gordon Everett Beckman, 19, charged with lar ceny in a dwelling and Mrs. Blanche Cobb, charged with ob taining drugs illegally were ord ered continued, pending further Investigation. Both entered pleas of guilty. Full Leased Wire MEDFORD, OREGON, THURSDAY, AUGUST 24, 1944 FIFTH CAPITAL Chisinau, Former Capital of Bessarabia, Latest to Fall in Soviet Advance. London, Aug. 24 (U.R) Rus sian troops have captured Chisi nau, former capital of Bessar abia and an enemy southern stronghold, radio Moscow an nounced tonight, as the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian armies con tinued their twin offensive against Germans and Romani ans reeling back toward Galati Gap, gateway to Bucharest.- Chisinau, 50 miles east of Iasi, previously had been by passed by the two Soviet armies in their drive southward over the Romanian plains, and lay approximately midway between the two Russian columns. Town Outflanked It was taken by 3rd Ukraini an army troops in a "skillful outflanking maneuver and fron tal attack," Premier Marshal Joseph Stalin announced in an order of the day which de scribed Chisinau as an "import ant communications junction and hold powerful enemy strong-1 Chisinau, capital of Moldavia state, was the fifth capital the Soviet armies have liberated. As in the cases of the other capitals Kiev of the Ukraine, Minsk of White Russia, Wilno of Lithuania, and Petrozavod sky of Karelia the liberation of Chisinau will be saluted by 24 salvoes of 324 Moscow vic tory guns. The capture of Chisinau joined the two Russian armies for a climactic smash throueh tne German and Romanian forces, who were 170 miles or less from Bucharest. The German and Romanian troops were continuing to resist, although they were fighting among themselves after King Michael's announcement that the Soviet armistice terms had been accepted. Sweden and Vichy End Relationship Stockholm, Aug. 24 (U.R) The Swedish foreign office an nounced today that all diplo matic relations between Sweden and the Vichy government "have ceased," and that Swed ish diplomats in France have been ordered to Switzerland. (The dispatch did not clarify the reason for Sweden's move, but it presumably was caused by the flight of the Vichy gov ernment, reportedly to the Franco-German border.) U. S. Learns Belatedly That Air Bombs Cannot Take Place Of Artillery Shells Washington, Aug. 24 'U.R) War Production Board Chair man Donald Nelson told the Senate War Investigating com mittee in secret testimony re leased today that the present lag in artillery production was due to belated recognition that air bombing could not take the place of shell fire in this war and that more guns had to be made. Tanks and heavy truck pro duction fell behind. Nelson said, mainly because of manpower shortages In foundry shops. Nelson said this "most critical problem" could be solved by 12,000 additional workers. Production Declines Nelson's testimony was given In the same closed session Tues day at which Maj. Gen. Lucius D. Clay, army director of ma terial, told the committee that production of tome vital war Items dropped as much as 53 per cent last month. Chief shortages listed by Clay were heavy artillery and ammuni tion, trucks and tanks. STETTINIUS FOR E T Chairman Promises Corre spondents to Try for More Information on Talks. Washington, Aug. 24 (U.R) Edward R. Stettinius, Jr., chair man of the Dumbarton Oaks world security talks, promised corresondpents today that the chairmen of the three delega tions would try to get more in formation into their daily com muniques. The three chairmen Stettin ius (U. S.), Sir Alexander Cado gan (British) and Andrei A. Gromyko (Russian) met 16 rep resentatives of the State Depart ment Correspondents' associa tion in Stettinius' office at Dum barton Oaks. The correspond ents hai requested the meeting to present a memorandum pro testing the secrecy surrounding the conference. Stettinius read to the commit tee a joint statement of the three powers which said in effect that the present system of publicity about the talks would continue. After a 45-mimite off-the-reenrd discussion of the problem, how ever, stettinius said the three leaders would consider the memorandum from the press and added that he personally expect ed that the meeting would do some good. Foreign War Vets Select Officers, Keep Women Out Chicago, Aug. 24 (U.R) Jean A. Brunner, Forest Hills, N. Y.. was elected commander In chief of the Veterans of Foreign Wars at the closing session today. I Joseph M. Stack, Pittsburgh, Pa., was chosen senior vice- commander, with Louis E. Starr, Portland. Ore., a junior vice commander. Other officers are Robert B. Handy, Jr., Kansas City, Mo., quartermaster-general; James A. Cannon, Youngstown, O., Judge advocate general; Dr. Hubert J. Eckwall, Chicago, surgeon-general; and the Rev. Father Pat rick J. Lydon, Boston, chaplain. Delegates voted down a pro posal to admit service women to their organization by a vote of 2,848 to 1.946. PATCH CONFIRMED Washington, Aug. 24 (U.R) The senate today confirmed the promotion of Alexander M. Patch, commander of the south ern France Invasion, to the tem porary rank of lieutenant gen eral. Nelson said "tremendously increased requirements" neces sitated a sudden output of heavy artillery. Sen. Homer Ferguson, R., Mich., asked if this was due mostly to changes in plans. Nelson replied it was "due mostly to a change of con cept." "Due mostly to the fact that they found out aircraft bomb ing could not take the place of artillery?" former Chairman S. Truman, D., Mo., asked. "That is very true," Nelson replied. "In other words the dropping of a bomb didn't have the same effect as the shooting of a shell?" Ferguson persisted. Known From Start "The ordnance department knew that from the start," Nel son said. "And contended for It," Fer guson asked. "Cottended for It; proved it mathematically In every way, shape and form," Nelson re plied. But you eouldn t convince 1 " " United Preu Full Leued Wire fiM 1 1 ll'iHMiHfti. iiniiiiiiimiiniiiriTnfHnniifTiiiiiiiMiii',1 ,'i i . - 11 1 M GERMANY K - FRANCE f UTXh I ELVCH,Ll' V,CHV I 'Tl !l 11 1 111 'UM0Gn LVN) VTALY . 1 B t'STVPN 'TURIN 1 iSw ! R jz V, (C ' Mil SPAIN Mats (Acme Ttlenhnto) Liberation of Paris by French patriots was accompanied by spectacular new Allied gains on all French Ironta, Canadians and British closed In on Channel parte, wru ch Americans were approaching down the Seme. Other U. S. unite race past Sens, southeast Paris, nearlng German border as Allies, In south, reached Toulon and were within three miles of Marseilles. Unconllrmed reports told of new landuura near Bordeaux. Street Fighting Flares Up In Paris; French Flash Call For Outside Help Supreme Headquarters, AEF, Aug. 24 (U.R) Street fighting between French patriots and Germans flared up lnsido Paris today and Allied Supreme Headquarters announced that yes terday's fighting French communque telling of the capture of the city was premature. Headquarters revealed that the patriots, tricked by a Ger man appeal for an armistice in to believing that the enemy was leaving the capital, had flashed an urgent call for' help to the American and French regulars massed outside the city. Allied forces began moving on the city yesterday against German resistance, headquar ters spokesmen said. (Radio France at Algiers said American troops entered Paris tnnitrht. fnllnwintf the arrival of a French regular force.) Liberation Hailed (shortiy before the announce ment that Paris had not yet been freed, Prejident Roosevelt issued a special statement in Washington hailing the "liber ation of the former French cap ital as dispelling the "patch of gloom" which had remained "through the rising tide of Al lied successes.") There was no official word at headquarters that Allied re lief columns had yet entered Paris, although a dispatch from CBS Correspondent Charles Collingwood, datclined "Paris," said the French 2nd armored di vision arrive there yesterday. Gen. Pierre Koenig, com-mandcr-ln-chlef of the French forces of the interior, an nounced early yesterday that Paris had been liberated by an army of 80,000 organized patri ot troops and hundreds of thou- them except by experience," Truman observed. Nelson told the committee that $73,000,000 was spent In July on new artillery plants which are just now coming In to production. Lags in tank production, Nelson said, were due largely to changes In de sign while radar output fell off as new developments had to be worked into assembly line pro duction. Nelson said there was no real evidence of war Job desertion by workers desiring to return to peacetime occupations ex cept on the west coast. The army and the war manpower commission, however, he testi fied, feel that desertions are pretty widespread. "On the west coast there has been some movement of that kind," Nelson said. "I think this Is probably due to very bad living conditions, overcrowding, lack of transpor tation, and a cutback in pro grams which caused part of the labor force to dissipate,'" he said. sands of revolting Parisians. Nails Break Pledge His announement apparently was based on the German ar mistice request, which tho pa triots accepted at face valuo as signifying thnt the Nazis Intend ed to evacuate tho city. Then, even as jubilant crowds throughout the Free French Em pire and the Allied world were celebrating the liberation of Europe's queen city, the Nazis repudiated the pledge on which they had obtained a brief truce from the patriots and resumed the battle. Latest reports reaching Allied headquarters from the turbul ent city said the Franch still held parts of Paris but that street fighting still was in prog ress . Germany Whipped In Sixty Days Is Atherton's Guess Portland, Ore.. Aug. 24 (U.R), National Commander Warren Athcrton of the American Leg- Ion today predicted Germany would be out of the war in B0 days and If so, believes that the1 war in the Pacific will be overl within a year. Coming here from Spokane. Wash., Athcrton has observed fighting conditions on a three month tour of the Pacific and is now on a 20-state speaking tour. He said the Allies have been beating the Japs in the Pacific with a third of our strength, "and when we turn all of the United States production Into the theater the Japs will go un der within year." Union Squabble Halts War Work Providence, R. I., Aug. 24 (U.R) All structural work on comljat carriers at the Walsh Kalscr shipyard was halted to, day as union leaders, comapny officials and government repre sentatives conferred In an effort to end an unauthorized strike of 7500 bollermakers and rig gers. The walkout began Tuesday as result of what was described as a jurisdictional dispute be tween two affiliates of the Amer ican Federation of Labor. QUIZ SLAYER SUSPECT Los Angeles, Aug. 24 (U.R) Police today arrested Admiral Dewey Adnmson, 48-year-old negro ex-convict, and questioned him In connection with the strangulation murder of Mrs. Stella Blauvelt, 84, wealthy Chi-: cago widow last July 24. Mrs. Blauvelt was murdered In her apartment when she surprised a would-be burglar. NO. 131. BY YANKEE FLIERS Pearl Harbor, Aug. 24 U.R) American filers continued their wide-sprend dally air attacks against Japanese positions throughout the. Pacific, striking Paramushiro Island In the north ern Kurllcs Sunday and attack ing the Island of Yap for the fourth consecutive time, Pacific fleet headquarters announced to day, Ventura searchplanei from fleet alrwing four sank a small vessel off Paramushiro, most northerly of the Kuriles, dam aged another ship and scored direct hits in storage areas, the announcement from Adm. Ches ter W. Nimltz" headquarters said. One of seven intercepting enemy fighters were shot down. All tho navy planes returned. Seventh AAF Liberators con centrated their Tuesday attack against Yap on bivouac areas "d 'lclt !" lsla"d approximately 635 miles "outhwest of captured Guam. Antiaircraft was meager, ... Backfire ISUmS c 0 Frrint Creti) Dunsmulr, Cal., Aug. 24. (U.R) V. C. Creason, Southern Pacific engineer, suffered sec ond degree burns and R. C. Guy man, fireman, suffered second and third degree burns when their locomotive backfired yes terday at Mott, seven miles north of Dunsmuir. Creason was In a local hospi tal. Guyman was sent to the Southern Pacific hospital at San Francisco following first aid treatment. WILSON RESIGNATION ACCEPTED BY F.D.R. Washington, Aug. 24. (U.R) The White House today an nounced that President Roose velt hos accepted the resignation of Charles E. Wilson as execu tive vice-chairman of the war production board. Wilson In his letter of resigna tion blamed "subordinate" WPB officials for statements that he was "opposed to reconversion." On the contrary, he said, he fa vored reconversion and actually had set In operation many steps affecting reconversion to a large degree. Wilson, former president of General Electric Co., has had his differences with WPB Chairman Donald Nelson on occasion. Nelson called at the White House today to bid the president goodbye before starting on a mission to China for Mr. Roosevelt T AXIS SATELLITES. Hungarian Army Claimed In Revolt Upheaval Lika Preceding 1918 Collapse, London, Aug. 24. (U.R) Thej Hungarian army was reported in revolt today, and press dis patches said Bulgaria had asked the allies for their peace terms in the wake of Romania's stun ning break with Germany and her proclaimed decision to Join forces with the allies. A flood of reports from allied and axis sources on the conti nent made it clear that all threa of Hitler's balkan satellites wera in the throes of political upheav al almost Identical to that which collapsed the central powers in 1918. Mutiny In Hungary The German DNB news agen cy announced that Hungary' nazi puppet premier Dome Sztojay had ordered the Immedi ate dissolution of all political parties in that nation, and Swiss press dispatches to London said mutiny had broken out In tha Hungarian army. DNB said all political activi ties in Hungary were prohibited under the decree and that Sztojay was prepared to act ruthlessly to put down any op position. An Exchange Telegraph dis patch from Zurich, quoting a Hungarian diplomat there, said a cabinet crisis was imminent, if it had not already developed and that an army-led revolution was believed certain. Simultaneously, Bulgaria was reported on the verge of follow ing Romania out of the axis camp. Authoritative reports from Ankara said tha Bulgara had asked for a final delineation of the terms on which they could make peace with the Unit ed States and Britain. On Allied Terms ' 1 While some government cir cles in Sofia appeared to ba holding to the illusion that they could withdraw from the war with some territorial gains, it appeared Increasingly evident that the Romanian move would squeeze Bulgaria out in short order and at the allied terms. Romania Itself was braced to meet posslblo German reprisals, and the government clamped virtual state of alcge on Buch arest. EXCESS PROFITS Washington, Aug. 24. U.R Democratic and Republican sen ators joined today In attacking as "administratively impossible" the proposed McKellar excess profits amendment to the sur plus property disposal bill. The senate by voice vota added to the bill the Bankhead amendment, raising the federal loan ceiling on cotton from B2Vi per cent to 95 per cent of parity. The excess profits amendment Introduced by Sens. Kenneth McKellar, D.,'Tcnn., James O. Eastland, D Miss., and Ernest W. McFarland, D., Ariz., would give the government the right to ban excessive profits on all sub sequent resales of surplus pro perty after it leaves government hands. r t T m. i yjampn uin i reais Mosquitoes in China A Secret B-29 Base, West China, Aug. 24. (U.R) Oomph girl Ann Sheridan cut short her recent appearance at this base when her halter and slack attlra provoked a large-scale attack by mosquitoes and insects in ad dition to whistles from her G. I. audience. Miss Sheridan was appearing during a tour of far eastern bases with actor Ben Blue. TO BERLIN By United Press The shortest distances to Berlin from advanced allied lines today: Southern France 890 miles (gain of 71 miles in week). Northern France 820 miles (gain ot 75 miles in week). Russia 323 miles (un changed for week). Italy 802 miles (un changed for week).
