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WEATHER. (U. S. Weather Bureau Forecast.) Light rain this afternoon and prob ably early tonight; somewhat colder to night with lowest temperature about 38; tomorrow fair. Temperatures today— Highest, 56, at midnight; lowest, 44. at 5 a.m.; 48 at 1 p.m. Pull report on page A-2. Closing New York Markets, Page 16 The only evening paper in Washington with ,the Associated Press News and Wirephoto Services. Mean* Associated Pre**. 86th YEAR. Xo, 34,304. WASHINGTON, D. C., SATURDAY, APRIL 2, 1938—THIRTY-FOUR PAGES. 'I :v - ■■ tt Entered is second class matter rmjnT'r' post office, Washington. P. C. lxiltJLxL, CLjS TS. ROOSEVELT, YIELDING, APPROVES MODIFICATION OF REORGANIZING BILL Would Let Simple Majority Kill His Orders. EDUCATION OFFICE TO BE UNTOUCHED President Shifts Stand After Bein£ Told of . Setback. BACKGROUND— Administration plan to reorgan ize Government's departmental set-up was passed in sections by House. Just before enactment by Senate sudden intense opposition arose and now threatens omnibus measure being considered as substi tute in House. Organized tele graphic protests against bill close to record in number. B> the Associated Press. President Roosevelt, upon advice of House leaders, has agreed to a modification of the controversial Government reorganization bill. Informed sources said today as the House convened to consider the program that Mr. Roosevelt had given his approval to a demand that the Education Office remain in the Interior Department and that Con gress be permitted to set aside by a simple majority any of his reorgani sation orders under authority of the bill. Representative Warren, Demo crat, of North Carolina, a member of the House Reorganization Com mittee. earlier had told newspaper men that when the House decided to resume general debate on the measure he would have "an impor tant announcement." President Roosevelt's modified position was taken, it was learned, when some of his leaders talked with him by telephone this morn ing about the setback they suf fered last night when the House balked a move to shut off debate on the measure. Earlier, administration leaders abandoned efforts, for the day at least, to impose restrictions on House discussion of the bill. By J. A. O LEARY. The bitterly-contested reorganiza- j tion bill faced a long drawn-out House j fight today as Speaker Bankhead an nounced efforts to close debate will j not be renewed this afternoon. This was the first reaction to the preliminary victory won by opponents last night when they defeated. 191 to 149. a motion that would have paved the way for closing of debate and possible final action on the measure tonight. Administration leaders still ex- ! pressed confidence the bill will pass, but the Speaker would not predict how many days it will take. Consid eration of the measure will be inter rupted Monday by the unanimous consent calendar and the Senate bill to enable the Reconstruction Finance Corp. to make loans to aid business conditions. The Speaker said it is apparent the House wants to debate the reorgani- I zation bill further, and added thaf opportunity will be given for full and fair discussion. The Speaker also , said the bill may be amended in some j respects, but ventured no comment on specific changes. Their success in forcing consideration of the bid into next week encouraged the opposition bloc. Chairman Cochran of the Reorgani zation Committee had moved an ad journment until noon today, ending five hours of verbal fireworks that found Representative O'Connor of New York, Democratic chairman of the Rules Committee, assailing the bill, while Majority Leader Rayburn of Texas sought to rally Democratic forces with an appeal to stand by the President, Maneuvers Considered. After the House had adjourned with the bill still open to general debate, some members of the opposition bloc were considering a move today to prevent the House from resolving itself into Committee 6f the Whole to re sume consideration of the subject. If this parliamentary maneuver should succeed, it would end consideration of the bill without permitting it to come to a direct vote. Even if this is not tried or should fail, the House probably will continue the battle of words throughout the day, pushing the fight into next week. Mr. Cochran presented the motion to end debate shortly before 6 o’clock, he also moved the previous question, which would have shut off discussion of whether to close debate. Mr. O’Con nor was on his feet insisting he had sought recognition to be heard on the question of closing debate. Speaker Bankhead ruled that the previous question had been called for. Roll Call Reverses Vote. A standing vote favored Mr. Coch ran’s motion, 137 to 105, but as Mr. O’Connor took his seat there were de mands for a roll call vote, which re versed the decision with a margin of 42 votes against proceeding to act at once on the closing of debate. Following adjournment, Mr. Coch ran said the vote was of no signifi cance, beyond indicating a majority wanted to debate the bill further. Mr. O'Connor took the view, however, the vote indicated a strengthening of the opposition line, and predicted the bill would not pass next week. The flood of telegrams that con tinued to flow Into the offices of House members against the measure yester day figured in the debate throughout the day, with supporters of the bill (See REORGANIZATION, Page A-3.) k Vatican Held Unapprised Of Broadcast Hitting Nazis News Service Says Papal Secretary of State Had No Knowledge of Warning Against Plebiscite. By the Associated Press. VATICAN CITY, April 2.—Another chapter was added to the history of the Catholic Church's relations with Germany today bv the issuance of an assertion by a Vatican news service that a Vatican radio broadcast last night was made "W’ithout the know ledge of the (Papal) secretary of, state." This broadcast spoke of pastors who "short-sightedly join the victorious of the day." It was made to refer to the , Austrian Catholic Church by quoting an editorial in L'Osservatore Romano. ' the-Vatican newspaper, w hich said the Vatican had no knowledge of the Catholic bishops' declaration read in Austrian churches March 27. (In that declaration Theodore Cardinal Innitzer and five other prelates said it was their duty "to declare our loyalty as Germans to the German Reich (nation)” in the April 10 plebiscite on union with Germany. (There was no comment by Vat ican authorities on the Austrian Bishop's recognition of Nazi au thority until L'Osservatore Romano said it was made "without previous or subsequent approbation of the Holy See.”) Shortly after L'Osservatore Ro mano appeared, last night, there was broadcast over the Vatican radio a long statement in German on ‘false political Catholicism" which had "brought heavy damage to the honor and esteem of the church." Today (here was no official comment on this broadcast, and L'Osservatore Romano made no mention of it. The statement on it made by a Vati can news service was: "The talk made yesterday on the Vatican radio in the German language j regarding the Austrian situation was of a private character and was made without any understanding and even j without the knowledge of the secre ! tary of state. 1 "The coincidence between the talk and the note in L'Osservatore Romano, which established that the Holy See had nothing to do with the declaration of the Austrian bishops, was purely fortuitous. "In fact German language trans mission is made regularly every Fri day at 8 p.m. and that is the reason why it coincided with L'Osservatore Romano's note." Last night's broadcast referred to pastors who "no longer recognize thj wolf in sheep's clothing.” _The speaker—who was not named on (See VATICAN. Page A-3 i Leaders Discuss Proposal of Schweilenbach for Aiding Employment. BACKGROUND— No line of industry has been harder hit by the current business stump than the railroads, which, in February, showed a deficit for the first time in 17 years. The matter has been given deep study by the administration for several months, and a special committee from the Interstate Commerce Commission now has before the President a plan—whose details have not been made public—looking toward pos sible solution of the problem. liv {lie Associated Press. Administration leaders today dis i cussed a proposal to make "employ ment" loans to selected railroads to i spur industrial production and meet temporarily the rail finance problem. Senator Schweilenbach, Democrat, of Washington, who advanced the j suggestion, said he believed Govern ment money might be used more profitably on railroads than any other field to promote recovery. Senator Wagner. Democrat, of New York, agreed. He said replacements, repairs and improvements in all heavy industries now were lagging S5.000.000.000 a year behind previ ous peaks. Puts Figure at Billion. v Senator Schwellenbach estimated j $1.000,000'$)00 might be required to finance such a railroad improvement program. He said it should be under taken only in conjunction with a congressional pledge for a thorough study of the railroads’ threatened bankruptcy aimed at finding a perma nent solution by some definite date. Senator Schwellenbach’s proposal was simple in terms but far reaching in import. The Government would select, among competing lines, those which appeared the strongest financially and the ‘‘most logical” from the stand point of traffic possibilities. The R. F. C., or some other Gov ernment agency to be set up. would lend these roads sufficient funds to establish their finances on a sound basis and put their facilities in first class shape. Work-Producing Materials. These loans would be made with the requirements that the major share of the money be spent for work producing materials or improvements. Competing roads would be permitted to struggle along as best they could on the theory that consolidation must be effected eventually. Senator Schwellenbach said he be lieved the decrease in employment which would be brought about by mergers could be met by reducing the retirement age of railroad employes. He said the Government W'ould have to make substantial contribution, how ever. toward the payment of pensions. (The railroads have a five-year agreement with the brotherhoods run ning until 1941, under which a dismis sal wage is payable to employes dis placed by consolidations.) The investment loss in roads which would be abandoned, he predicted, would be little greater than if they continued to operate at a loss with bankruptcy inevitable. President's Views Not Known. Both Senators Schwellenbach and Wagner are regarded as among the ad ministration’s inner circle. There was no word, howevej-, as to whether President Roosevelt had shown any favor for the proposal. The President has announced he soon will send Congress a message on the railroad situation. He is con ferring here Monday with rail officials and union leaders. Senator Schwellenbach said he tvas convinced the Government must re turn to spending in some form to pro mote recovery. PRESIDENT LEAVES FOR D. C. TODAY, Ends His 10-Day Sojourn in ! Georgia—Rail Parley Is Slated Monday. B» lb- Associated Press. WARM SPRINGS. Ga . April 2 —A i trip that started out as a vacation 1 and developed into a series o. official i pronouncements on major foreign and ! 1 domestic policies came to an end to- ! I day for President Roosevelt. - With Mrs. Roosevelt, who made a j transcontinental flight to join him earlier in the week, thp President j planned to leave by special train late : this afternoon after a 10-day sojourn at his Pine Mountain cottage. The train will reach Washington shortly after noon tomorrow. First on his program when he re turns will be an important conference Monday morning with representatives of the railroad managements and brotherhoods on how to remedv the f ' ‘ triers, if the As- | sociation of Railway Executives, and j heads of some of the rail labor or ganizations have requested the meet ing, the President told a press con ference yesterday. He added he would not make public the report of his spe cial committee of three Interstate Commerce commissioners, who have framed legislative proposals at his re quest, until after the Monday parley. He expects to send a message to Con gress soon on the subject. This is only one of many domestic questions which received the Presi dent's attention here. The declining stock market was the subject of many telephonic communi cations with Washington. As for foreign affairs, the press was told yesterday that discussions with Mexico over compensation for seized American oil properties were progres sing satisfactorily, but that the own ers could not expect this Government <See ROOSEVELT, Page A-7.) ----m ■■■' - NAZIS MUST REGISTER Compulsory Older Affects All Germans in Britain. LONDON. April 2 (TP).—The German Embassy announced today that com pulsory registration would be required for all German "and former Austrian" nationals staying in Great Britain more than three months. SIX POWER PLANTS SEIZED BY C. 1.0. CONTINUE SERVICE Employes Take Possession of Shops in Michigan as Parley Fails. CONFERENCE CALLED MONDAY BY GOVERNOR Union and Management Unable to Settle Differences Over • Wage Scale. By the Associated Press. JACKSON, Mich.. April 2 —Electric and gas service continued without interruption loday despite seizure of six strategic plants of the Consumers’ Power Co. in Southern Michigan by employes belonging to a Committee for Industrial Organization union. The employes, members of the Util ity Workers’ Organizing Committee, peaceably took possession of the plants last night after negotiations with the management for renewal of their contract were terminated. The company said the union de mands included upward revision of wages: the union said it sought as surance there would be no reduction 1 in wages. j Gov. Frank Murphy, concluding a Florida vacation, upon being notified j of the situation, called representatives 1 of the company and the U. W. O. C. i to meet with him in Detroit Monday : ! morning. Company to Co-operate. "We will conduct thp strike.” said Albert Sionkus. U. W. O. C. national director, "so that the consuming pub lic will suffer no inconvenience, at least until every means has been ex hausted to settle it.” Dan E. Karn, vice president and general manager of the power com pany, wired Michigan's Governor that 'w« are willing to co-operate in any manner we can to avert possible in convenience and suffering to the pub lic.” The union took over a hydro-elec tric plant at Zilwaukee. near Sagi naw; two electric substations in Flint and one in Bay City, and gas plants at Flint and Lansing. No disorder wa reported. Non union employes and foremen were re quested to leave and complied. A few pickets were on duty outside some of the seized plants. Only union mem bers were permitted to enter the plants. Injunction Blamed. Except for the presence of the small number of pickets, there was no out ward indication of anything unusual. The normal flow of electricity and gas continued. The union, one of three in the com paTiy's plants whi'-h claim to represent a majority of hourly workers, had been negotiating with the company for several weeks to renew a contract which expired February 28 It had been extended through March by agreement. The U. W. O. C. negotiators left the conference v.hen the management said it eculd not renew the contract be cause of a court injunction obtained by an independent union, the Inde pendent Power Workers' Union. The power company is a subsidiary of the Commonwealth & Southern Corp. and has nearly 6.000 employes. It provides electricity for 948 commu nities and gas for 126 In Southern Michigan, all outside of the Detroit area. Man? of the State's principal industries are dependent upon It for power. * COUPLE RECOVERING FROM POISON TABLETS Police Report Dose Was Taken While Man and Woman Were in Parked Car. A man and a woman were reported recovering in Gallinger Hospital to day from poison tablets they are al leged to have taken while seated In a parked automobile. Tlie two were Identified by police as William P. Storty, 47, of the 2400 block of Pennsylvania avenue N.W., and Florence Hathaway. 24. of the 300 block of Tenth strut N.E. Police said they were taken to Casualty Hospital about 5 a.m. by Raymond Kelly of Cottage City, Md. Mr. Kelly told police the Couple woke him up and said they were sick. He took them to the hospital in their own car. After treatment at Casualty the two were transferred to Gallinger. Summary of Today's Star Page. | Page. Amusements B-16 Radio _B-8 Church j Real Estate. News A-10-1I-12 B-l to 6 Comics B-14-1S short Story-- B-8 Editorials ....A-8 ' Society .A-13 Finance-A-16 Sports ...A-14-15 Lost & Found B-8 Garden Page.B-7 Obituary_A-6 FOREIGN. Spanish rebels near Mediterranean in victory drive. Page A-l Catholics warned by Vatican against Reich plebiscite. Page A-l NATIONAL. Battle continues as foes balk reorgan ization vote. Page A-l Wagner sees approval for F. C. C. tele phone supervision. Page A-3 Move to write processing taxes into revenue bill gains. Page A-3 World navy race charged by Clark; U. S. drops limitations. Page A-4 WASHINGTON AND VICINITY. Carter B. Keene, former chief postal inspector, dies. Page A-l Medical Association representative here in G. H. A. controversy. P*Be A-18 Wage board seta pay scales for laun dry worker*. Page A-18 A EDITORIAL AND COMMENT. Editorials. Page A-8 This and That. Page A-8 Stars. Men and Atoms. Page A-8 Answers to Questions. Page A-8 The Capital Parade. Page A-9 David Lawrence. ' page A-9 Mark Sullivan. Page A-9 Jay Franklin. Page A-9 Lemuel F. Parton. Page A-9 MISCELLANY. Shipping News. Page B-8 Vital Statistics. Page B-8 City News in Brief. Page B-8 Nature’s Children. Page B-8 Bedtime StQry. Page B-14 Letter-Out. Page B-14 Cross-Word Puzzle. Page B-14 Contract Bridge. Page B-15 SPORTS. Goslin may beat out Simmons for outfteld berth. Page A-14 Louis will K. O. Schmeling, says Thomas, Joe's latest victim. Page A-14 Griff's foxiness as mogul earns writer's tribute. Page A-lt Storm washes out Masters' golfing 1 event at Augusta. Page A-1S /l0THAT’5^ THE NEW DEAL V NAME,EH?/ A ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME CARTER B. KEENE Ex-Chief Postal Inspector Handled Many Important Investigations. Carter B Keene, 69. well-known at torney and Government official, for- | merly chief post office inspector, died this morning at Homeopathic Hos- ' pital after an illness of about a month Mr. Keene, who resided at the Co lumbia Country Club, had been seri ously ill for about 10 days, and his death was said to have resulted from a blood clot Although a native of Maine. Mr Keene had been prominent in the Na tional Capital for many years. He was ' a prominent Mason. His last public ! post was as receiver of the United States Savings Bank, from which he retired December 31. 1936. Funeral services probably will be held at All Souls' Church at Sixteenth and Harvard streets N.W., Monday afternoon. Conspiruous Postal Career. Mr. Keene was born at Freedom. Me., son of Orris H. Keene, a well known lawyer of the Waldo County bar. He came to Washington in 1893 to enter Government service and had lived here continuously since that time, takin ga prominent part in civic and ! social affairs, Mr Keene had a conspicuous career 1 in the postal service, receiving in 1901 ! an appointment as post office inspec- j tor. He rose rapidly from the lowest j grade to chief post office inspector in j 1910. He was actively identified with most of the important investigations carried on by the Post Office Depart ment and was recognized as an expert in running down fraudulent uses of the mails. One of Mr. Keene's conspicuous in vestigations was that of the United Wireless Telegraph Co. This investi ation alone lasted more than a year, and resulted in the conviction of six officials who had mulcted the public of millions of dollars. Mr. Keene resigned as chief in spector in July. 1913. to become di rector of the Postal Savings System. He was largely responsible for the de velopment of that postal service during its pioneering period, and the exten sion of postal service to broader fields of usefulness. A compelling speaker himself, Mr. Keene had charge of all speakers in the five States of the Fifth Federal Re serve District, during the third and fourth liberty loan drives. In April, 1920, he resigned as director of postal savings to enter private practice of Igw in Washington. He continued his law practice until February, 1934. when he was appointed receiver of the United States Savings Bank. Mr. Keene resigned from this posi tion December 31, 1936. having re turned to depositors during his term of service 90 per cent of their accounts. He returned to active law practice. Prominent in Masonry. Mr. Keene received his early educa tion at Freedom Academy, in his na tive town, later graduating from Maine Wesleyan Seminary, at Kent Hill. Me. At the latter institution he had long been and was at the time of his death a trustee He studied law in Washing ton and obtained his LL. B. and LL. M. from Columbia College, now George Washington University, in 1894 and 1895. He was a member of the following clubs and societies; Columbia Coun try Club, Society of Mayflower De scendants. Society of Colonial Wars, Thirty-third degree Mason. Scottish Rite bodies. Almas Temple Shrine, of w'hich he was past potentate, and Temple Noyes Lodge, No. 32, of Ma sons, of which he was past master. N^t, WASHINGTON’S water front is busy these days — fitting-out time is here again and the smell of turpentine and tar, varnish, paint and new hemp fills the air. . Hundreds of Washington yachts men and would-be yachtsmen are malcing things shipshape for shakedowns. They will want to follow the news of boating and fishing every Sunday in Tha Star Beginning Tomorrow Attorney Dies CARTER B. KEENE. PLANS TO ABANDON BALTIMORE ROUTE Capital Traction Would End Bus Service by Way of Olney June 30. The Capital Transit Co. today filed notice of its intention to discontinue its j i bus service between Washington and Baltimore via Olney and Ellicott City j on June 30. E D Merrill transit company presi dent. filed the notice with the Mary land Public Service Commission in j Baltimore. Only yesterday the com pany had applied for a change in schedules and rearrangement of zone fares on bus lines between Washing ton. Alta Vista, Rockville and Wash ington Grove in Montgomery County. The Maryland commission was in formed that it was understood one of the intercity operators "may be inter ested" in taking over the bus route from the Capital Transit Co. At local headquarters of the com pany the interested operator was not identified and officials said there has been no actual negotiations. The Washington-Baltimore service was established in 1930. In seeking to discontinue service be tween Washington and Baltimore, the company stated it was compelled by "a lack of justifying patronage” ‘and the exhaustion of all other means to "relieve a continuing operating deficit of several thousands of dollars a year.” Under the Maryland Public Service Act. a 30-dav statutory notice must be given whenever service is desired to be discontinued. Notices must be posted in all buses. Under ordinary procedure, if there is a lack of sufficient protests against the proposed action, the petition of the company is usually granted. Should the commission feel the protests are effective, however, a hearing will be held before the petition is finally acted upon. The company expressed its "regret" at seeking to withdraw its vehicles and licenses, but Mr. Merrill said "we find no other course open to us." The con tinuing deficit, he informed the com mission. can "no longer be borne by the company.” EARTHQUAKE ALARMS NEW HAMPSHIRE TOWN Houses Shaken in 10-Mile Area, but Scientists Agree Temblor ‘Very Weak.’ Bv the Associated Press. ROCHESTER. N. H., April 2—An earthquake which shook houses, rattled dishes and in some communities within a 10-mile radius of Rochester sounded like a “terrific explosion,” was dis missed by scientists today as a “very weak” earth movement of only 15 seconds’ duration. Mrs. Helen Piper, Rochester tele phone operator, said a “rumbling sound” preceded what seemed to be an explosion. She and other Rochester residents said buildings shook, and in South Lebanon, Me., across the Salmon Falls River from Rochester, house wives reported pictures were knocked from the walls. Telephone operators reported a surge of calls from alarmed subscribers. • . .. Shanghai Damage $253,500,000. A. Bland Calder, Commerce Depart ment attache at Shanghai, estimated today the Japanese invasion has caused approximately ' $253,500,000 damage to Shanghai property and business. A. BLAZE DESTROYS De Seversky Experimental Ship Lost in $700,000 Miami Fire. B5 the Associated Press. MIAMI, Fla.. April 2.—Fire of un determined origin early today razed' the No. 1 hangar at the Municipal; Airport, destroyed 14 planes and' caused loss estimated at $700,000. An insurance adjuster made the 1 tentative damage estimate in a pre liminary examination after the flames had destroyed the $20,000 hangar and burned some the Nation's finest private planes. The hangar was cov ered by insurance, but it could not be determined how many of the planes were protected. A series of explosions punctuated the crackle of flames when the blaze was at its height, but these were be lieved to have been caused by the planes’ gasoline tanks and the fire was not thought to have been started by a blast. Investigation Started. City Manager A E. Fuller and Mu nicipal Aviation Director C. T. Han sen began an immediate investigation into the cause of the fire. It was announced no air line service into the city would be interrupted. Most of the major lines use other airports. Firemen used gas masks to gei through the dense smoke, but heat was stifling Three persons suffered minor injuries. Some of the expensive airplanes destroyed: A Lockheed Eleetra owned by M. L. ; Benedum. Pittsburgh oil magnate, ' valued at $120,000, in w hich Jimmy ; Mattern conducted his search for the j lost Russian flyers in the Arctic sev ! eral months ago. A special experimental skip owned by Maj. Alexander P. De Seversky, in ! which he has set numerous speed rec j ords, valued at $250,000. | A Grauman amphibian owned by Gar Wood, motor boating enthusiast, valued at about $65,000. SI,500 Cash Saved, A nearby administration building caught fire, but the blaze there was checked. W. R. Davis, weather office em ploye, was cut on the face and arms when he broke a window’ while trying to reach a fire extinguisher. Mr. Hansen saved a large portion of the files and $1,500 in cash from the hangar office. STOCK RALLY LED J BY A.T.&T. SHARES Phone Common Soars More Than $4 After Appearance of Federal Report. j By the Associated Press. NEW YORK. April 2.—American Telephone jumped more than $4 a share to above $117. leading a broad upswing in the Stock Exchange today. The rise in telephone, on the heels of publication of a Federal communi cations commissioner's report to the fuli commission asserting that rates could be cut 25 per cent was at tributed by brokers to short covering. It was explained that for some time past traders had been selling the stock short, hoping to buy it back at cheaper prices on publication of the long-awaited report. When the report finally appeared, it prompted more buying back by the shorts than fresh selling. . The bond market joined the advance in stocks, particularly rail issues, as Wall Street took an optimistic view of President Roosevelt's announcement yesterday that he would make public the I. C. C. commissioners' suggestions for dealing with the rail problem, after conferring next week with J. J. Pelley, president of the Association of Ameri can Railroads. Brokers said that after the extreme declines of the past few weeks, result ing in considerable distress selling of weakened marine accounts, the market was ripe for at least a "technical" re bound. Among shares rising $2 to $3 were U. S. Steel, Bethlehem Steel, Chrysler, Allied Chemical, Du Pont and General Electric. In commodities, cotton and grains improved. REBELS NEAR SEA IN VICTORY DRIVE; MORE CITIES FALL 2,000 Prisoners Are Seized as Gandesa Apex Town Is Captured. EBRO RIVER VALLEY OPENS UP NEW ROUTE Troops' Final Action in Sector Will Sever Loyalists—Lerida Fighting Continues. BACKGROUND— The Spanish civil war now ap proaches a climax as Gen. Fran cisco Franco's latest mass drive gams momentum. Begun in March, it was aimed at Barcelona and at splitting government territory by driving to the sea. The offensive, if successful, would isolate the Province of Catalonia, last Loyalist stronghold. Most of Franco's re sources are massed in this effort, to win the war, and Loyalist opposi tion appears to be wilting. (Map on page A-7.) Bj »hp Associated Press ZARAGOZA, April 2—Insurgent Navarrese forces under Gen. Garcia Valino today occupied Gandesa. only 21 miles from the Spanish govern ment's eastern coast—the last impor tant stronghold in Tarragona Prov ince barring the insurgent march to the Mediterranean. The insurgents reported capture of 2.000 prisoners in seizure of the city. Gandesa is at the apex of a triangle of which Tortosa and the city of Tarragona, both on the coast south west of Barcelona, form the other points. A drive between the two coastal cities would dismember Gov ernment Spam. Gandesa is the easternmost ooint to which insurgent forces have ad vanced in their northeastern Spanish offensive. The city is on the southern flank of the line Gen. Francisco Franco has been extending eastward to dismember Spanish government territory. Opens Ebro Valley. Occupation of Gandesa. insurgent military leaders said, would open for Gen. Franco's armies the broad Ebro River Valley, into the Tortosa Delta, for a final push to the sea. By highway Gandesa is »6 miles from Tortosa. The Ebro curves in a great bend east of Gandesa and twists south to the sea below Tortosa. Insurgent dispatches said the entire northeast Spanish front was moving forward except at Lerida Operations were aided by bright, sunny weather. Persistent government resistance in the Lerida sector forced the insur gents to circle the besieged city, re garded as the gateway to Barcelona, and slowly fight their way through its defenses. The insurgents said they captured a number of fortified defense posi tions around Lerida. forcing govern ment militiamen to retire before ma chine gun fire. The insurgent ad vance was supported by airplane straf ing of government lines. 1.000 Prisoners Taken. Capture of the village of Villalba, 5 miles north of Gandesa. broad ened the insurgent salient south of the Ebro River. Valino reported taking 1.000 prisoners between Villalba and Gandesa. The insurgent forces advanced to ward Gandesa against a hail of ma chine-gun bullets from government emplacements west of the city and broke through a line of government | tanks that tried to block the way. Meanwhile. Gen. Juan Yague's Moors occupied heights controlling Lerida from the west and south and awaited only the completion of an encircling | operation before attempting to enter j the provincial capital on Catalonia's western front. The capture yesterday of Valder robres, at the eastern extremity of Teruel Province, put the insurgents w'ithin 12 miles of the Mediterranean plains and gave them control of roads leading northeast to Gandesa. The Insurgents shelled the western Residential section of Madrid this morning, concentrating fire around the palace. Idlers basking in th° sun hastily took refuge in cellars and doorways. Press on to Tortosa. HENDAYE. Fiance, at, the Spanish Frontier. April 2 i/Pt.—Generalissimo Franco's Foreign Legion today had barely 30 miles of rolling hills to pass before planting its red and gold ban ners on the seacoast and splitting government Spain. The Legionnaire Corps, once com manded by Franco in Morocco and brought to the mainland to lead his insurrection, occupied Valderrobres and pressed on toward Tortosa on the Ebro River coastal delta. Northward. Gen. Juan Yague's Moorish corps hung on to the out skirts of Lerida, the historic citadel that guards Barcelona, 80 miles away. Although Insurgents claimed gov ernment militia had evacuated the city, dispatches from observers with the Barcelona army said eight shock units of seasoned, well-trained troops occupied the town. 50.000 Residents Flee. The city's 50.000 inhabitants had fled. Insurgents said the town was in flames. Subjected to incessant artil lery bombardment, it rapidly was be coming a pile of mortar. An insurgent bombing expedition was met by government planes over the city in a battle that lasted for hours. Government officers claimed a coun ter-attack yesterday had pushed the insurgents back 6 mile' to the south west on Alcarraz. But insurgent advices said Gen. Yague's men merely were waiting for advances on the flanks before occupy ing Lerida. The government held machine gun positions south of the city across tha Segre River and raked insurgent col umns.