The Herald-news., May 18, 1944, Page Page Two, Image 2

About The Herald-news. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1940-current

Image provided by: Montana Historical Society; Helena, MT

                
Page Two
WEEKLY NEWS, ANALYSIS
Invasion Raids Hit Greatest Strength
As Allies Hammer Western Defenses;
Bitter Fighting Continues in India;
Co-Op League Reports Steady Growth
(EDITOR’S NOTE: When opinions are expressed in these columns, they are those of
Western Newspaper I nion’s news analysts and not necessarily of this newspaper.)
- . Released by Western Newspaper Union. ■ ■
10^^^
EaffisWy JeKs \ \ i * w^i
HFkJv •’asfC •*
»"■ -t '.-i j
iww " ■
I : w *
L "SOI,
. •>. -, s * * jfgx tev dr^^Wr#z^Xi^
I wSI»
Ei2sh£&i3iS§&^^ Ou. .... ^h.L;
Hollandia Moving into battle alongside combat troops, Signal corps
photographers run all risks to take front line pictures. At Hollandia,
Sgt. Carl Weinke (left) and Pfc. Ernest Marjoram wade through swamp
in quest of “pix.”
EUROPE:
Decision Inland
With the invasion already under
way in the air with the thunderous
non-stop bombardment of the west
ern perimeter of Hitler’s quaking
Fortress Europe, experts agreed
that the big decision would be |
reached beyond the coastal defenses 1
and farther inland, where German •
panzers will attempt to fight off an
Allied breakthrough.
As U. S. and British planes con
tinued their round-the-clock • bom
bardment, the two sides readied
their lines in other parts of the con
tinent where attacks were expected
to occur simultaneously with an in
vasion from the west. In central
Italy, the Nazis shortened their
lines by pulling in a big bulge in the
Allied defenses, and in Russia, the
Reds wore reported massing troops
near eastern Poland for another
powerful offensive.
Rail yards, rail lines, bridges, air
fields, coastal defenses and Axis in
dustries all came under the bomb
sights of thousands of Allied planes
blasting out the invasion path in the
west.
COOPERATIVES:
Biff Business
Steady growth of the cooperative
system in the U. S. was reflected in
the Cooperative league’s report that
various organizations’ total sales for
1943 reached the record high of
$750,000,000, and savings of $50,000,-
000 were effected for consumers.
Feed, fertilizer, equipment, seeds
and other farm supplies accounted
for about two-thirds of the total
sales, the Cooperative league report
ed, with oil products and petroleum
next in line.
Declaring that local, regional and
national cooperatives now control
about 113 manufacturing plants,
2,b00 farm supply establishments,
2,500 gas and petroleum products
outlets, and 1,100 grocery stores, the
Cooperative league said that the va
rious organizations looked forward
to balancing the movement by in
creasing gas and petrol operations
in the East and grocery stores in the
Midwest.
Another objective, according to
the Cooperative league, is extension
of trade to Europe, where the co
operative system had a strong hold
prior to World War 11.
AGRICULTURE:
Plans Changed
Excessive rainfall in the south
west and middlewest delaying field
work in oats and barley, may result
in increased production of corn and
soybeans.
With corn stocks throughout the
country as of April 1 at 1,162.000.000
bushels —’ 380,000,000 bushels below
last year—figures -showed that at
42,000.000 head exclusive of pigs far
rowed since January 1, there were
4,000.000 less hogs on hand than in
May. 1943. Since the first of the year,
42,000,000 hogs were reportedly
butchered, a 55 per cent increase
over the same period in 1943, re
ports showed.
Because heavy rainfall has kept
farmers out of the fields, they are
expected to seed only '41.000,000
acres of oats, compared to the 46,-
000.000 planned, and plant about
1,500.000 acres less of barley than
the 15.000,000 acres originally in
tended On the other hand, about
100.000.000 acres of corn and 15.000.-
000 acres of soybeans probably jvill
be seeded.
H I G H L I G H I S • ■ . in the week’i newi
SAVINGS: National saving? ex
ceed the 33 billion dollars accumu
lated last year, according to ecorfo"
mists. By the end of the year the
total invented in war bonds, deposit
ed in banks or put into insurance
may reach 125 billion dollars, the
institute products, adding that this
huge sum is a danger to the.jiational
economy if inflationary tendencies
get out of hand.
MAIL ORDER:
U. S. Withdraws
Hottest issue of the year, the gov
ernment seizure of Montgomery
Ward and company’s Chicago plants
took another turn with the govern
merit’s withdrawal from the com
pany's properties, following an elec
tion In which a majority of the help
voted! to be represented by the ClO’s
United Mail Order. Warehouse and
Retail .Employees union.
Origin? '? f* rr emmer.t had
taken • the ; and ejected
Ward s £ am O ivman Sewell
Avery ai: :r tbe :: ~ ; iny refused to
honor a War Later : :srd directive
to extend u? un : - s maintenance
of member.-n.; contract until a new
one could be neg:tinted.
Although the gevernment’s with
drawal was based on the contention
that a determination of the union’s
right to represent the company em
ployees was the big issue. Ward’s
officials pointed out that the com
pany stood on its grounds that it
could not legally be forced to accept
the so-called maintenance of mem
bership contract, under which union
employees must remain within the
union for the life of the contract.
PACIFIC:
Eyes Westward
Entrenched in the Hollandia area
of New Guinea, U. S. forces turned
their eyes to the westward reaches
of the island, where the Japs re
portedly have massed many planes
in the region to defensively flank the
sea routes to the Philippines and
Indies.
In India. British and native forces
counterattacked invading Jap troops
at both Imphal and Kohima, where
the enemy had rocketed close on tn
the strategic Assam-Bengal railroad
feeding Lieut. Gen. Joseph Stil
well’s U. S. and Chinese army in
northern Burma. In bitter fighting
in the wild hill country, the Japs
found the going growing tougher.
In looking toward western New
Guinea, the U. S. command sent
bomber and fighter squads against
enemy airdromes and defense in
stallations, and the attacking planes
drew stiff opposition from Jap air
and ground crews.
Internal Threat
With Rebel Subhas Chandra Bose
on India’s doorstep with the invading
Japanese army.
Britain released
ailing Mohandas
K. Ghandi from
luxurious impris
onment to avoid
giving collabora
tionists too much
propaganda fod
der. ,in the event
of his death dur
ing confinement.
Jailed by the
British in August
of 1942 because of
Ghandi
his concerted wartime campaign for
Indian independence which they
claimed interfered with the war ef
fort against Japan. Ghandi recently
suffered from a recurrence of ma
laria fever. While imprisoned.
Ghandi conducted an unsuccessful
21-day hunger strike for his free
dom.
Once one of Ghandi’s close fol
lowers. the exiled Bose now working
hand in hand with the Japs in north
eastern India, has long advocated
more vigorous action against the
British rather than the saintly Ghan
di's civil disobedience program. '
GUTENBERG BIBLE: Harvard
university has been presented a
copy of the famous Gutenberg Bible,
one of the 10 perfect copies known
to be in the United States. It is the
gift of George Widener of Philadel
phia and it is valued at more than
SIOO,OOO. There are only <lO copies
of this edition in existence. They
were printed in 1455 in Mainz, Ger
many.
The Herald-New*—Wolf Point, Roosevelt County, Montana
LEND-LEASE:
Extension Favored
With extention of lend-lease for
another year assured in congress,
President Roosevelt asked for a
$7,188,893,000 fund for the period to
continue the program, which has
cost $30,362,687,362 to date.
Although congress put off enact
ment until senate and house could*
agree on terms for limiting the
President’s power to formulate poli
cies of preliminary or final settle
ment of accounts with recipient na
tions, only Sen. William Langer
(N. D.) registered opposition to the
bill in the senate.
Said he: “According to the report,
we got so-called strategic supplies
from nations that are beneficiaries
of lend-lease . . . Yet when we ob
tain metals and other strategic war
materials from these same coun
tries, we pay cash on the barrel
head, instead of crediting the lend
lease account ...”
WAR PRISONERS:
Aid Farmers
Of the 183.618 prisoners of war the
U. S. is holding in 203 camps in 41
states, good use is being made of
many in critical labor shortage
areas,' the War department re
vealed.
Between June of 1943 and the end
of March, prisoners’ work approxi
mated 19,300,321 man-days.
Prisoners have been particularly
helpful in relieving the farm labor
pinch. In the south, 3,500 prisoners
were used for an emergency harvest
of sugar cane after a freeze, and
they assisted with the cotton, rice
and peanuts crops. In the east and
midwest, prisoners have helped in
picking and canning fruit and other
foods.
FRIENDLY RIVALS
) f <•' ""'tf
» ■—
't Xi - - ' wBSSi
HHIKf t
For awhile, it looked as though
New Mexico’s gubernatorial race
would be a one family affair,
what with Robert E. Peterson
(left) the candidate for the Re
publican nomination, and his
wife, Edna, vying for the Demo
cratic nomination. But Mr. Peter
son’s petition of candidacy was
rejected.
Although Mrs. Peterson can
keep Mr. Peterson in hand in the
4<itchen as the picture show’s, Mr.
Peterson has a mind of his own
politically. Said Mrs. Peterson:
“I tried to keep him in line, but
1 failed. He is a former Demo
crat. I’m sorry he couldn’t file,
though.”
NEUTRALS:
Blacklist Threat
Applying pressure in its efforts to
purb neutrals* trade with the Axis,
the U. S. and Britain announced
that its black-listing of companies
for continuing business relations
with the Allies’ enemies would be
extended into the postwar world.
Meanwhile, it was reported, a spe
cial U. S. representative arrived in
Stockholm, Sweden, to seek a can
cellation of that neutral’s prosper
ous ball-bearing trade with the Ger
mans.
Of 15.000 firms on the U. S. and
British blacklist, 10,000 are in South
America and the remainder in neu
tral European countries. The Allies'
threat to carry-over the blacklist
into the postwar world, implied that
more friendly businesses would re
ceive the jump on trade.
ARMS:
U. S. Output
No less than 13’^ billion rounds of
.30 and .50 caliber bullets—enough
munitions to kill off six times the
population of the world — were
shipped to fighting men in 70 war
theaters during 1943 by the U. S.
ordnance field service.
Besides this tremendous volume
of ammunition, other deliveries in
cluded 9.500 light and medium
tanks; 20.000 75-millimetcr tank
guns; 91.000 bazookas; 648.000 sub
machine guns; 15.000,000 hand
grenades and 21,000,000 rifle gre
nades.
As the figures reflected, Vice-
Chairman Donald Davis of the War
Production board declared that U. S.
production of military supplies,
equipment and munitions nearly
equals total war output of the rest
of the world.
LOCKERS
Because of the demand for foot,
lockers far exceeding the number
available, the War Food administra
tion has issued new regulations re
stricting the applications for lockers.
Only two classes of users can be
included in applications after June 1.
First class consists of farmers who
tire resident operators, producing
the kind of food normally stored in
lockers. The second class are bdo
pie living in towns, -but who super
vise operation of a farm by a tenant
on a share basis or by hired labor.
Km DKtW PeMSOH
Washington, D. C.
big vs. little farmers
Forty years have elapsed between
the big-business battles of Teddy
Roosevelt and Cousin FDR, but one
issue which plagued the former is
also plaguing the latter and is now
before congress. It is the question
whether government irrigation, gov
ernment water, and government rec
lamation shall benefit the big land
owner or the small.
The issue is now one of the hottest
fights both in California gnd ir. con
gress, where Secretary of the Inte
rior Ickes has been called to testify
on a rider which Congressmen El
liott and Carter of California have
skilfully smuggled into the rivers
and harbors bill—a rider permitting
big landowners in California's cen
tral valley to benefit from govern
ment low-cost irrigation.
The question in Teddy Roosevelt’s
day was whether any farmer hold
ing more than 160 acres should bene
fit from government irrigation. The
issue arose when the land kings of
the Far West wanted to develop their
ranches and speculative holdings
through irrigation at government ex
pense.
The West was for it, but the East
objected. Eastern states claimed
they would be footing the tax bill
and that Western irrigation would
come out of their pockets. The West
replied that the irrigation projects
of that day would provide benefits
for small Eastern farmers who mi
grated westward tomorrow.
After a terrific battle, Teddy
Roosevelt won out. Congress ruled
that government - irrigated land
tracts must be limited to 160 acres.
That law still stands. But Repub
lican Congressman Carter of Oak
land, Calif., and Democratic Con
gressman Elliott of Tulare, Calif.,
have ganged up to change it with a
rider exempting the central valley
irrigation project.
Their amendment, already passed
by the house, would mean that big
ranchers in the central valley could
benefit from the new irrigation proj
ect no matter how extensive their
holdings. Even more important, it
would mean that a lot of new land,
not extensively cultivated at present,
would be subjected to cut-throat
speculation.
Ickes for Small Farms.
Secretary of the Interior Ickes,
who has supervised the expenditure
of $150,000,000 on central-valley irri
gation, is determined that the bene
fits shall not go to land speculators
and big ranchers, plus some of the
big liquor companies which have
bought up California wineries.
The issue, according to Secretary
Ickes, is whether the U.S.A, is going
to become a nation of large land
owners hiring Okies and tenant
farmers, or whether the nation will
feature medium-sized farmers oper
ating their own land.
NOTE—Business men in the cen
tral valley are split over the issue.
Many merchants believe that me
dium-sized farms rather than poorer
farm labor make for better business
in neighboring towns. The Fresno
Chamber of Commerce calls 60 to
80 acres of figs an economic unit for
a family, or 80 to 120 acres of al
falfa. The Chamber has sent out
booklets urging settlers to take up
small land tracts.
• • •
FOUR-Fs.
Despite all the army howls for
4-Fs to get into war plants, it re
mains a fact that physical examina
tion in many plants is so stiff that
they can’t get in. In fact, the physi
cal in some plants is stiffer than in
the army.
Many a patriotic 4-F has worn out
shoeleather making the rounds of
war plants, only to find that he can’t
get in. A punctured ear-drum, for
instance, is considered just as im
portant in a war plant as in the
army.
In recent weeks, belated steps
have been taken to relax some of
these physical restrictions, but much
still remains to be done. So you
can't blame a lot of the 4-F-ers if
they aren't in war plants.
Another difficulty which the War
Manpower commission might well
dig into is the fact that anyone can
quit work in a vital war plant but,
without a certificate of availability,
cannot transfer to another Avar plant
—at least, not until after a 60-day
period.
In other words, you can step out
of an aircraft factory or a synthetic
rubber plant and go to work in a
barber shop or at a bootblack stand,
or 4ust loaf at home. They are not
essentia! fodustries. But if you want
to switch to a munitions plant, you
can’t—without a certificate of avail
ability (which you probably can’t
get), o? without waiting the required
cooling-off period of 60 days.
MERRY-GO-ROUND
<l. Busy as he is. President Roose
velt will soon be called upon to set
tie the problem of whether a rail
worker's vacation week is six days
or seven. Railrodd workers were
granted a week's vacation as part of
the wage compromise last year, but
the railroad executives now contend
that FDR meant-the vacation should
be six days, not seven. If the rail
road workers get seven .days, they
can stay away Sunday, which is a
holiday anyway, plus Monday, or an
actual total of eight days
Seabees Open Ice Cream Parlor
^^o*^loßl
W?W«
'"'^ ^HhIkISR
; w w* \ B^; ,B S l^
■ Bj l.^B|||R^
■ SB- ^xs^b^B < ^^Wlil
1 / W ^BBwl
Destined for the scrap heap because many of its parts were worn out
and could not be replaced, an ice cream manufacturing unit of Guadal
canal was salvaged and put in order by a naval construction battalion
and now Is turning out ice cream twice a week for Seabees and the
marine unit to which they are attached.
Pegging a Strike at a Jap Pillbox
r IP* - bIK
.. 'is 1.
A Jap pillbox has been located on Bougainville island, and Sergt.
Charles H. Wolverton of the 37th division sticks out his tongue as he
takes aim before letting a grenade fly to its target. These are two of
the soldiers who beat back Jap counterattacks in the Empress Augusta
Bay area in March, taking a toll of about 7,000 Jap dead.
Rail Key Loss Perils Honan Province
PANTOWCX
TIENTSIN
1 I ATAYUAN I
LiMT; J / (Ijl-
TSINAN I
(j PEIPING-HANKOW RR. \
' 1 / m jrJgMSi \HAICHOW
I PUCHOW //\
DUCHOW# )
■■ mi K .nr- 7
XT .... -4- 4 nankingT^*^k
C H I /h
Jfo^^ICHANG t HANKOW
xhAngchow
•^CHUNGKING; /
Two critical situations face China as Jap drives along the Peiping-
Hankow railroad (1) have resulted in the taking of Chengchow (2),
both key points on the north-south line. As the map shows, Cheng
chow is on the northern rim of the Honan province, a great food-raising
area. From Chengchow the rail line cuts across Chinese territory (indi
cated by dark areas).
Prize-Winning Waste Paper Campaign Photo
it"*.
The above picture won the national grand prize In the news picture
contest sponsored by the U. S. victory waste paper campaign. It was en
tered by John Mendicino of the Chicago Sun. Award was a SSOO war bond
plus S2OO war bond for first place in the East North-Central region. Prize
winners were announced by Linwood I. Noyes, president of the ANPA.
Watch Skies
W^HM
rr
This photo was made as Gen
eral Eisenhower (arrow) was on an
inspection tour of an RAF bomber
wing, somewhere in England. With
him at the control tower are, top
left, Maj. Gen. L. H. Brereton,
USAAF; top right, air marshal Sir
Arthur Coningham; center left,
group captain C. R. Dunlap. The
general at lower left is unidentified.
Sewell Avery Family
' Bn 1 ■
Bl?
Sewell Avery, chairman of the
board of Montgomery Ward & Co.,
Mrs. Avery, and their daughter,
Nancy, shown after the annual meet
ing of the stockholders of the com
pany, in Chicago. The Ward plant
was seized under President Roose
velt's orders.
Behind Firing Line
*• ' - -.-,11^4 :
'.Jr
r t ■ j
....
As if they didn’t have enough
shooting, these American doughboya
who came back from the front line
at ^nzio beachhead for a rest, bang
away at targets on the rifle range,
somewhere in Italy.
Miss Pan-America,’44
itOM
Lovely 19-ycar-old Virginia War
len of Miami, Fla., holds huge''tro
phy presented to her, following her
selection as Miss Pan-America of
1944, at a contest held in Miami.