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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (April 11, 1945)
Essen, Great Nazi Arsenal City Captured by 9th Army; Yanks Race Eastward Less Than 63 Miles From Berlin; Juncture With Russians Expected Within 24 to 72 Hours MEDFOEDJtik United Press Fortieth Year SAVAGE DEFENSE IN SOUTH OKINAWA STALLS INVADERS Marines Take Sub Base On Unten Bay; Crush Last Resistance in Philippines. Br Uniled Press The American drive on Naha In southern Okinawa stalled gainst savage Japanese resist ance today but invasion forces continued gams in other sectors with practically no opposition. To the north the marines cap tured a submarine base on Unten bay in a mile and a half advance. Torpedoes and mines were seized but the Japanese had re moved all submarines and other craft. ' Gain Fine Harbor Army troops opened the en trance to Nakagusuku bay, one of the best naval anchorages south of Japan, by an amphibi ous landing Tuesday on Tsugen (Tsukata)alsland, about 10 miles off the southeast Okinawa coast. Only moderate resistance was encountered and officers expect ed the enemy to be cleared from the island soon. Other troops had . captured almost two-thirds of the bay's shoreline and Tokyo said Ameri can warships already were oper ating in the bay. Troops of the 24th army corps battled to crack the Japanese defense lines four miles above the Island capital, Naha. In the Philippines, American troops crushed the last organized Japanese resistance on southern Luzon and seized control of the Sulu archipelago in the south by occupying Jolo island. Other troops landed on Busu anga island, north of American controlled Palawan across the Sulu sea from Mindanao and ended Japanese control of 3,000 lepers in the Culion colony. American bombers from the Philippines continued neutraliza tion attacks on Formosa and tank or damaged three ' more Japanese cargo vessels in main taining the aerial blockade of China sea shipping. Radio Tokyo, today identified three American carriers, which it claimed were sunk off Okin awa Friday, as the Essex, the converted carrier Langley and the auxiliary carrier Hipper. 2 COitlATION CASESSETTLED Two land condemnation cases scheduled for federal court in Klamath Falls this week failed to reach the Jury, attorneys for both parties reaching an agree ment which is now before Judge James Alger Fee for considers tion according to Otto Frohn mayer, Medford attorney acting for the defendant. Both were the United States versus Car ence C. Hard, the cases involving two tracts of land used for the marine barracks at Klamath Falls and for a pipeline for the barracks. But one Jury was chosen, and this contained the name of but one resident of Klamath Falls majority of the jurors being from Medford and other parts of Jackson county. Court was re cessed to open in Medford in June. SIDE GLANCES Br TRIBUNE REPORTERS Jeanette Wlmer tactfully pointing out to a reporter an embarrassing error In a news story. Commander Harry Young, forced to relinquish his Legion commander chair to a guest speaker, finding the rank and file's bench a hard seat. Larry Nygaard popping vest buttons as a result of the advent of an 8-pound grandson. Full Leased Win Back an Stand tAcmt TeUphotoi Blinking from glare ot cameramen's flashbulbs, Joan Barry takes the stand in Los Angeles court as star witness (or tier infant daughter Sarol Ann. In second trial of Baby's paternity suit against comedian Charlie Chaplin . CITIZENS URGED TO TURN IN-OLD S ftpplnnM A. Stncfff ffpnerfll chairman for the United National HnlMnff Hrlvi. In Jnrlfnn rnnntv today urged everyone to turn In their old clotnes tnis week m n-dn, that Vio rtrlvo tnav hp concluded by the first of next week. Stagg reported that the drive Is progressing nicely and final reports are expected to put Jackson county "over the top." rinthp rfmnnert In street recen. tacles on streets of Medford will be picked up each evening with the final pickun from the boxes to be made Monday morninc AnvAna tun ft hnt nnt turned in their clothing donations is asked in rfennolt them in the boxes or take them to one of the two re ceiving depots. Humphrey's Mo tors, 33 South Kiversme. or Flchtner's Garage, Sixth and Fir streets. Stagg emphasized that It Is nnt mfvnrv to clean wearing apparel except underwear, shirts and linen, wnicn snouia oe washed but not necessarily Ironed. The Rotary club turned in a fine collection of suits at their T- mnnti n tT and threatened lucnua; -o to disrobe otter members who do not produce suits at wcir . uilna arcnrHtnff to E. C. Corn, chairman of special events. All schools and ciass rooms that have not reached tne r . nn th. rlnthins drive will H 11 W L. v.. o r.nntlnue the drive until tomor- vw evening end schools win ac cept the clothing until that time E. H. Hedrick. superintendent of city schools, stated today. BARRED TO NAZIS AHjlAtt Anril 11 (UP) Sweden shut her doors to flee ing Germans today in a move on vlously designed to prevent Nazi war criminals from slipping into the country in the guise of refu gees. German refugees who have ar rived in the pa.it few days will be reported unless they are tn hp e-pmiine deserters from the German armed forces or In poor health, the Sweaisn gov ernment'i decree said. The action left Switzerland hp nnlv neutral haven adjoin ing Germany or German-occu pied countries for German retu- gees. A Bern Broadcast ian nisht said Switzerland would continue to welcome "the un fortunate and innocent victims of this war." ' I ft ti 1 Mf m viz i y; aaaa 5jfcwwtftfty assessa' MEDFORD, OREGON, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11, 1945 HITLER SUCCESSOR IS Serious Split Among Nazi Leaders, Report; Millions Evacuated From Berlin. London, April 11 OJ.PJ Evi dence has reached official quar ters in London that the nazis are shoving aside Adolf Hitler, possibly in favor of Gestapo Chief Heinrich Himmler, the Press Association said today. "A serious split among nazi leaders appears to be going on," the lobby correspondent of the Press Association said. "Foreign observers state Hitler now looks to be a 'dying man.' " ' By United Press April 20, Adolf Hitler's birth, will be like any other day in Germany, according to radio reports. BBC reported today that there will be no holiday on Hitler's 56th birthday. The German minister of the inter ior has ordered work to go on as usual because of "war ne cessity," the broadcast said. The correspondent said the nazis appeared to be "throwing over" Hitler as the German dis aster in the west grew almost hourly. The dispatch did not elaborate on the reports. ' Heads Gestapo Himmler,, mentioned In ' the dispatch as possible successor to Hitler as supreme ruler in Ger many, is interior minister and commander of the German home army In addition to head of the dreaded Gestapo. Himmler once before waa ru mored to have become acting fuehrer of Germany. That was immediately following the abor tive attempt on Hitler's life last summer, but all evidence indi cated that Hitler again had taken over the reins following his recovery from wounds. Diplomatic sources gave seri ous attention tothe Press Asso ciation dispatch, since that agen cy frequently is used to circul ate information from official circles. Aerial' reconnaissance and neutral reports, meantime, indi cated that the Germans have evacuated millions of civilians from Berlin, once the world's fourth largest city. City Stripped The city apparently has been stripped for an impending siege from the east and west. Night reconnaissance fliers said trains were leaving Berlin under cover of darkness, pre sumably moving out the last of the civilian refugees or possibly shifting troops south to the Alps for a last stand. A Berlin dispatch to the Zur ich newspaper Dietat said sev eral hundred thousand inhabi tants had left the capital in the past fortnight alone because of the worsening food situation. Only a bare trickle of food has slipped through the allied air blockade of Berlin, the dis patch said. Even army rations were said to have been cut se verely. Milk was almost unob tainable, even for babies. Colombia in its colonial days was known aa the Vice-Royalty of New Granada. - "Ball of Fire" Fighting Spirit Needed Now By Japs, Togo Warns By United Press Jspanese Foreign Minister Shlgenori Togo, In his first speech since he resumed cabinet osflce under Premier Kantaro Suzuki, said Wednesday that Japan's foreign policy "will now dovetail perfectly into military considerations. Togo, regarded In Japan as an expert of soviet relations, assert ed that Japan was "fighting only a war of self defense," and aimed only at "universal peace and concord of nations based on Would-Be Glamor ' Girl Sentenced On Check Charge Hollywood. April 11 (U.R) The desire of Jane Reinhart Fletcher, 24, of Topeka, Kansas, to be a "Hollywood glamor girl" resulted today in her being jail ed for 00 days on her plea of guilty to cashing a worthless check for $100 to buy -an ex pensive gown. Superior Judge Clement D. Nye originally suspended a one year term and placed the come ly blonde on probation for three years. When she failed to make restitution, she was ordered to serve SO days of her sentence Daughter of Charles Edwin Reinhart, chief clerk of the Kan sas State Corporation Commis sion, Mrs. Fletcher admitted she got in with a "fast movie crowd" and was living beyond her means. F FREED BY YANKS Paris, April 11. (U.R) More than 4,000 French officers, per haps a fifth or a sixth of France's pre-war personnel, were liberat ed on the night of April 6 when American ninth army forces overran prison camp on the southwest edge oi feoest. - ' " " MaJ. Forrest W. Creamer of Jeffersonville (state not listed) told about it today. He was the first American officer to enter the compound after the troops captured it. ' Many of the officers had been prisoners for five years. At least 800 of them made forced march from Arnswald, northeast of Berlin, to Soest, southeast qf Hamm, when the Russians over ran Pomerania. The distance is more than 300 miles. The prisoners told Creamer they had had no medical atten tion lately, not even during the march from Arnswalde which was made in subfreezing weath er. They were on the road from Jan. 29 to March 20. They slept in the open on the way, and the feet of many were frozen. OLD C-C BUILDING The 40-year old former Cham ber of Commerce building on Main street near the railroad tracks, having out-lived Its use fulness, has been sold by the Southern Pacific Co. to a local contractor and Is being com pletely removed. Exact construction date of the building Is not on record but it was built by the Commercial Club of Medford about 40 years ago on property owned by the Southern Pacific. The building, having been used for civic purposes through out the years, was vacated by the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce last year. According to Southern Pacific officials no plans have been made for future occupancy of the lot on which the building stood. equality," Tokyo radio reported in a broadcast recorded by Unit ed Press, San Francisco. - "All Japanese must tackle the war In the manner of the body crashing special attack corps," Togo said. "Besides fighting for the independence of greater east Asia, we are striving for our empire." Togo said Japan's ' fighting spirit "will be turned into a huge ball of fire to bring about the strength for the outcome, no matter what difficulties lie head." TRIBUNE United Press OF AUSTRIANS SAY Russians Complete Occupa tion of Remaining Districts Door Open to Germany. London, April 11 (U.R) An Austrian broadcast said today that the last three nazi-held dis tricts of Vienna have been clear ed, presumably completing . the liberation of the Austrian cap ital. Radio Sender Austria said the Leopoldstadt (second) and Brl gittenau (20th) districts, both be tween the Danube river canal and the river Itself, and the Florldsdorf '(21st) district east of the river finally had been lib erated. Occupation of the remainder of Vienna's 21 districts all those west of the river and canal was completed yesterday by Marshal Feodor I. Tolbukhln's Russian 3d Ukrainian army. Escape Narrowed A soviet front dispatch said Tolbukhin had captured a cross ing over the Danube canal into the Leopoldstadt and Brigit tenau districts. Russian forces at last reports were driving along the east bank of the Danube less than eight miles northeast of Florldsdorf. They had narrowed the German escape gap from Vienna to less than JO miles, already spanned by artillery fire. The liberation of Vienna would topple the strongest bas tion athwart the back door to Germany and the nazl last-ditch defense zone in the Austrian and Bavarian Alps. ACTOR LOOKING Regis Tomey, Hollywood movie actor, and Bradley Page, retired actor, left Medford this morning for southern California after a brief visit In the city. Tomey Is in the cast of "Dough girls," which played at the Cra terian theater last night. Tomey and Page came here from Curry county, the former having been a guest at the Page ranch there for the past several days. Both expressed themselves as delighted with southern Ore gon and Tomey Is hoping to pur chase land in this area. Page retired from the screen about four years ago and since has spent most of his time on the Curry county ranch. The men were registered at the Holland hotel while in the city. AUTO ROLLS OVER ON CRATER LAKE HIGHWAY ' A Pontlac sedan operated by Mrs. Erma D. Perry, Shady Cove, upset late yesterday afternoon on the Crater Lake highway a short distance from Medford when a rear tire blew out, ac cording to a report from state po lice. The vehicle rolled over one and one-half times. Neither Mrs. Perry or her mother-in-law, Mrs. Minnie Per ry and five-year-old daughter, Carrie, passengers In the auto, were injured, police said, al though the car was badly wrecked. CHORAL MUSIC PROGRAM SCHEDULED FOR APRIL 27 April 27 Is the date ot the concert of choral music to be nrpipntpd bv music students of Medford senior high school Miss Mabel Nansen, music supervisor stated today. The a cappella choir and girls' chorus will be featured in the program. Chungking, April 11. (U.R) More than 5,000 Japanese, in eluding a divisional and regl mental commander, were killed in the battle of the Nelsiang dis trict of southwest Honan, com munique announced today. Full Leased Wire NO. 17. 235 COAL MINES SEIZED IN EFFORT TO HALTSTRIKES Producers, Unionists Pre pare to Ratify New Wage Contract After Seizure. Washington, April 11 (U.R) Soft Coal Producers and the United Mine Workers prepared today to ratify a new wage con tract estimated by operators to mean an average daily raise of $1.30 for miners and a $150,000,- 000 a year expense for the in dustry. Negotiations for the two par ties reached agreement last night shortly after the government seized 235 coal mines that had been beset by wildcat . strikes traceable in part to the uncer tainty of the nearly six weeks of wage discussions. In Seven States The seized mines were located In seven states Pennsylvania Ohio, Alabama, Virginia, In diana, Tennessee and Kentucky and for the most part were the so-called captive mines operated by steel companies. Fuel Administrator Harold L, Ickes was directed to operate the 235 mines seized by the gov ernment. He appointed the mine owners as federal managers, or dered the American flag run up over the pits and the miners to report for work tomorrow morn ing. E BEFORE ALLIES IN ITALY DRIVE Rome, April 1 1 (UP) Both coastal wings of the German de fenses In Italy swayed back to day before concerted allied drives which captured the La Spezia naval base's" outpost of Mnssa and gained two and a half miles through three Po valley towns. The American 8th army storm ed through Masa, German strong hold 18 miles southeast of La Spezia, and on the other side of Italy the British 8th army's new offensive across the Senio river toppled Lugo, 28 miles southeast of Bologna, Fuslgnano, four miles northeast of Lugo, and Cotignola, four and a half south east of Lugo. Gen. Mark W. Clark's 15th army group was striking all along the line In a bid to whit tle down the German might in Italy before it could fall back to Join the homeland defenders in a last hopeless stand. Throughout the day yesterday allied planes carried on their greatest attach aince the inva sion of southern France last August. They flew 1,850 sorties. LOUISIANA FLOOD 4 New Orleans, La., April 11, (U.R) Helicopters carried iooa, MniMno and medicine to thou sands of homeless flood victims in central Louisiana today as the death toll from swollen streams mounted to four. Clarence F. Rowland, head of the National Red Cross disaster committee headquarters at Alex andria said nearly 70,000 fam ilies presently were affected by the floods. Over 40,000, he said had been evacuated already Thousands of refugees were liv Ing In tei" cities throughout the stricken area and were being fed from field kitchens. Approximately 1,500,000 acres of land were under water and thousands of head of cattle had drowned. ' " " Americans Million Strong Break Loose for Last Push Toward Germany's Capital BULLETIN PARIS, APRIL 11. (U.R) THE NINTH ARMY'S HELL-OHW WHEELS SECOND. ARMORED DIVISION IN ONE OF THH MOST SPECTACULAR DRIVES OF THE WAR TONIGHT RACED TO THE BANKS OF THE ELBE RIVER AT MAGDE. BURG. 63 MILES WEST OF BERLIN. THE ELBE IS THE LAST WATER LINE BARRINQ THI AMERICAN ADVANCE UPON THE REICH CAPITAL. THE SECOND ARMORED'S ADVANCE WAS ONE OF THB MOST DASHING IN A CAMPAIGN THAT RAPIDLY WAS DEVELOPING INTO SPEED RACE ALONG THE SUPER. HIGHWAYS THAT ADOLF HITLER ONCE BUILT FOR THB USE OF THE WEHRMACHT. Paris, April 11 (U.R) The great German arsenal city of Essen fell today in the wake of three American armies racing; over the last 100 miles to Berlin at a clip that was expected to bring a Juncture with the Red Army in the next 24 to 72 hours. In a day of spreading Nazi military disaster that brought the final collapse of the Wehrmacht measurably closer, the American First, Third and Ninth Armies, more than 1,000,000 strong, broke loose on what appeared to be the final drive for Berlin. INVADERS FIND RESISTANCE DISORGANIZED Vanguards of the Ninth Army in the north were 89 miles or less from the capital early today and all three armies were pound ing ahead against disorganized resistance. Essen, Germany's greatest manufacturing city and the core o the Ruhr valley industries, was captured by the Ninth Army's 17th Airborne Division in an advance into the northern wall of the Ruhr trap. Home of the sprawling Krupp Works and the sixth largest city in Germany, it was. the richest industrial prize to fall into Allied hands. The German garrison, already more than 100 miles behind the Berlin-bound American armies, offered only weak resistance. ESSEN FALLS SOON AFTER HANNOVER Essen fell barely 24 hours after the Ninth Army's 84th Divi sion had captured the big railway and factory city of Hannover. Cologne and Frankfort-on-Main also in American hands and seven more of Germany's 20 largest cities Harburg, Bremen, Dort mund, Dulsburg, Disseldorf, Leipzig and Magdeburg were by passed, under direct attack or lmmlently threatened by the Allied sweep. The swift capitulation of the Essen garrison was expected to speed up the liquidation of the Ruhr trap, still holding possibly 120,000 Germans, and release powerful American forces to Join thai march toward Berlin and a link-up with the Red Army. , American Ninth Army troops on the northern wing raced five miles beyond Brunswick to within 09 miles of the dying Nazi capital.- The First Army was 114 miles from Berlin and the Third Army 126 to 130 miles awayv on the basis of front reports lagging hours behind the speeding American tanks. ' BEYOND ELBE BEFORE SATURDAY 'A dispatch from United Press War Correspondent John M Dermott reported that leaders of the First Army tank forces ex pected to be far beyond the Elbe and linked up with the west bound Russians before Saturday. German resistance before the Elbe was shattered completely and nothing but undefended road blocks lay in the path ot the charging First Army. The link-up with the Red Army would split Germany In two, seal the fate of Berlin and probably end all organized enemy re sistance except perhaps In the "Islands of resistance" in the Bavar ian redoubt, along the North Sea coast and In the Ruhr. , SOUTHERN END OF LINE RESISTS Only at the southern end of the western battle lines were the Germans offering any coherent resistance. There crack Elite Guards Divisions fought tooth asd nail to slow the American Seventh Army's drive across Bavaria toward the Nazis' boasted "last redoubt" In the southern mountains. In the north, Canadian troops plowed ahead through the Ems river valley within 20 miles or less of the North Sea and' British Second Army forces rolled up for Hamburg in a weakly-opposed drive aimed at turning the Elbe line and lopping off all of north western Germany and Denmark. EISENHOWER IN DRAMATIC ANNOUNCEMENT The British advance on the coast prompted Gen. Eisenhow er's dramatic announcement on the German collapse. In a special message broadcast to German Njrth Sea port officials and work ers, Eisenhower called upon them to prevent sabotage of the great harbors and naval bases by fanatical Nazi demolition squads. "In these last weeks of the war the future of your towns is In the gravest danger from fanatics who may make a last-minute attempt to make the ports unusable," ne said. "The power of the men behind these fanatics Is crumbling. It will be broken with the arrival of the Allied armies. Then your ports will be used at once. It depends on what you do now which will be the first port reopened." 7) VJV'-" K-w'-CM, "'"I'M w S ' )OMMltr; VxMM7 ewimo ( JoiOONl , ftirL llMMchi , PISBlN T HAMKfUHT fclsW. ' ff. jLftt V F? J A?7 nunc IU KHltbo ; r la w.v..v.vsr:S..-r' ; sohemi. VjtUMwtli V i. ft. ltJ'.itOTTGA.r X ; f ...J-. jf-WWrrflMSUO . BAVARIA y-J , FRANCI ; UUmf- , y I VI HNS , Resuming Its slashing drive toward Birlra, TJ. S. First Army pushes al most to Nordhsusea lit mlln from the capital end U miles from Elbe River. The Third and Ninth ArtnKe likewise thrust toward the Elbe while, In north. American and British forces strike for Hamburg. Oo 0UrtAL9 Vld l fool, Nssle bat tit fiercely for BeUbronn, other bastions 3 K TS MKKLIN.URO (Arm Tefppfofe) 1
