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,, ,-— — ■ [ E0REE*ITI I REMEMBER ' *S Lf&ErA PEARL wbbbiib tpr'noon and considerably colder tonight. “ SlJMlli HiaHWlI ' „ jav fair and cold. _ rrTiZT’sr™_ AMD BATAAN __ WILMINGTON, N. C„ MONDAY; DECEMBER 18, 1944 •_•_FINAL EDITION Nazi Troops Reinvade Belgium, Luxembourg; WacArthur s Mfii Pressing Inland On Mindoro American Chief Says South End Of Isle Secure GENERAL MacARTHUR’s HEADQUARTERS, Philip pines. Monday, Dec. 18.—(/P)—United States forces who landed against weak opposition Friday on Mindoro island are pressing inland, Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s heaidquar announced today, and have shoved their outer defense {ix nliies beyond the town of ban A jose X;ic Americans on Saturday seiz ei command of strategic high .round, and have established an jrc „f defense reaching at the farthest point, 11 miles from the beachhead where the dawn land iMs were made. In the advance to secure airfield positions .only scant resistance J-as encountered, the communique reported. MacArthur said the southern end or Mindoro Island, which lies less than 155 miles from Manila, is “now secure." The sanguinary struggle for Leyie Island continued unabated, with the First Cavalry and 32nd Division pressure from the north end of the Ormoc corridor and the nth Infantry division pushing tip from the south. Japanese casualties were mount ing apace. X-he communique report ed’an additional 2,012 enemy slain up to last Saturday. These Japa nese dead have not been previously reported. There is every indica tion that the Japanese have been hard-pressed as the Doughboys’ drive continued with increasing speed. The communique reported addi tional enemy supply dumps cap tured. with artillery pieces, mor Urs. light and heavy machineguns and several large tanks. The Yamashita Line on Leyte was outflanked from the south as the 77ih Division, which captured Ormoc. has pushed seven miles nor.hward in a fierce struggle. Army and Navy fliers have prac tically cleared the Philippines of Japanese planes, and continued also to harass enemy shipping. Patrol planes set fire to two small freighters off Masbate, and bombed Puerto Princesa on Pala wan. At Zamboaonga, night patrol planes damaged a 3,000-ton freigh ter transport and again blasted an oil tank farm r.t Tarakan, Borneo, s frequent target. Airdromes at Jolo and Tawi on Continued on Page Three; Col. 3) -—.y VAR DEPARTMENT REVOKES BAN ON WEST COAST JAPS WASHINGTON. Dec. 17. — UP) — 7m War Department today revok ed Us order excluding all persons 01 Japanese ancestry from the "est Coast. An announcement by the Army said that the revocation order was issued by Maj. Gen. Henry C Pratt, chief of the Western De fense Command, with the appro val of the War Department. Favorable progress of the war in he Pacific, as well as other developments,-’ was giveq as the reason for the revocation. The revocation order provides inat any person of Japanese ances about ’ ’whom information is mailable indicating a . pro-Japa rese attitude-’ will continue to be dared from the Coast states. More than 115.000 persons of Jap anese ancestry were evacuated ;°m strategic areas on the West Wfast. the States of California, Washington and Oregon. The ma ferity pf them eventually were ransferred to relocation centers heated chiefly in the Mountain fe'es including Arizona, Utah, ^°ming and Colorado. I'M smart / I FINISHED i ANY |§H0PPIN6,I i Newport News Harbor Blaze Kills Sailor NEWPORT NEWS, Va., Dec. 17 (TP)—A merchant seaman was kill ed and fourteen other men hos pitalized by a seven-hour fire which destroyed Pier Eight and damaged a Liberty ship at the Hampton Roads port of embarka tion today, the Army said. In releasing a statement con cerning the fire late today, public relations officers said loss of life “so far as known late Sunday” was limited to one merchant mari ner who leaped from the Liberty ship and was swept away. Of the 14 injured enough to be hospital ized, they said, two had "serious, but not critical burns.” The fire, which broke out at 2:30 a. m. when the gas tank of a lift truck loading cargo in a freight car was accidentally punc tured, “completely destroyed” a 800-foot pier owned by the Chesa peake and Ohio Railroad before controlled by Newport News city and Army fire fighting equipment, aided by 31 ireboats. With it went 40 railroad cars and an undesig nated amount o pier equipment and cargo. The Liberty ship was loading cargo, officers said. A strong wind swept fire along the creo soted $400,000 pier within a few minutes and flames reached the vessel. -V ‘FLYING SANTA' PAYS VISIT TO LIGHT KEEPERS BOSTON, Dec. 17.—(*— A hum over Boston harbor today was not the echo of reindeer, it was the sound of “Flying Santa” on his annual visit to lighthouse keepers in a Civil Air Patrol plane. Edward R. Snow, in the guise of Santa' Claus, whirled on a four hour trip of 380 miles along the New England coast in a plane piloted by a C.A.P. instructor. Twenty packages were dropped, including some to troops on isolat ed coastal areas. The flights were originated in 1938 by Capt. William H. Winca paw, a friendly aviator from Friendship, Me., who has since gone to South American in the in terest of aviation. Wincapaw had a deep interest in the lonely life of lighthouse keepers and was always ready for flying on errands of mercy. SinQe Wincapaw left, Snow has taken over the Santa role with gifts of clothing, tobacco, candy and even plum puddings. -V-y Man Slashes Wife, Sick In Hospital, Following Dispute NEW YORK. Dec. 17.—UP)—The women’s ward of Bellevue hospital was thrown into an uproar during visiting hours today when, police said, an enraged husband suddenly drew a knife from his pocket and inflicted serious stab wounds on his ill wife. Police said the man, whom they identified as Angelo Gonzalez, 23, became angry because his wife, Anita, 18, suffering from possible bronchial pneumonia, told him she was not well enough to return to their home and three children. As other women patients anc visitors screamed, Gonzalez slash ed his wife’s face three times and | then darted from the ward, rar downstars to the street and escaped in a taxicab, police re ported. French, nedsl Seek To Bar Future Wars Alliance Would Prevent Further German Aggression PARIS, Dec. 17—(/P)—The new French-Russian alliance pledges mutual economic and military assistance for at least 20 years and cooperative steps to bar Germany from any future aggression, it was disclosed tonight. The text of the historic alliance, released by the Quai d’Orsay, de clared the two countries were re solved to collaborate in establish ing a world organization for peace, and pledged a common, no-quar ter struggle until final victory over Germany. Article Three commits Russia and France to “undertake to adopt all necessary measures in com mon accord at the end of the present conflict with Germany to eliminate any new threat emanat ing from Germany and to bar the way to any kind of initiative rendering possible a new German attempt at aggression.” If such measures, or any Ger man aggression, involves either nation in hostilities with the Reich, “the other party will im mediately bring it all the aid and assistance in its power,” the treaty asserted. Under the pact signed in Mos cow December 10, both nations agreed to lend each other all pos sible economic aid “to facilitate and speed up the reconstruction (Continued on Page Three; Col. 1) -V Brooklyn s Citizens Honor LaGuardia For His Defense Of Sons NEW YORK, Dec. 17.— — Brooklyn crossed the East Rivfer into Manhattan today to select “The Man Who Has Done the Most for Brooklyn In 1944.” The Society for the Prevention of Disparaging Remarks About Brooklyn voted the honor, to Mayor F. H. La Guardia. Adding another laurel wreath, they made him a member. The mayor was cited for “spon taneous action in rising so gallant ly to defend our boys in service, attacked so viciously by an alleged British author.” This referred, of course, to his defense of Brook lyn soldiers against remarks in Noel Coward’s latest book. \ Poland—As Approved By Churchill WKM* T I M 9»**.'~^s,LATVIA\ ’ r— M ~l ^ * The shaded area on this map represents territory that would be left to Poland if border changes are made as proposed by Russia and endorsed December 15 by British Prime Minister Churchill. He said the Poles had no alternative but to meet the Russian demands for a fronter along the Curzon Line. Churchill declared Poland would be; compensated with territory “at Germany’s expense,” including Danzig and the western part of East Prussia. The heavily outlined area rep resents pre-war Poland. RAF Attacks ELAS Units After Peace Plan Fails ATHENS, Dec. 17.—(IP)—RAF Spitfires and rocket firing Beaufighters attacked ELAS forces in Athens today after the Left-Wing troops had opened up with heavy artil lery and mortar fire in the city. The Beaufiediters attacked the ELAS radio station while Spitfires, armed with can non, attacked an ELAS-controlled locomotive and strafed the stadium area and a concentration of ELAS troops on the northwestern out skirts of Athens. Earlier in the day there had been scattered fighting, a British communique said, after the Brit ish commander, Lt. Gen. R. M. Scobie, had rejected as unsatisfac tory a peace proposal by the Left wing EAM-ELAS group. The British said that hundreds of armed Bulgarians had infil trated into northern Greece, but declared it was not known wheth er they had entered the country at the invitation of the ELAS or were simply reoccupying territo ries which they evacuated under the terms of the armistice—Thrace and eastern Macedonia. The British communique said ELAS troops—the militia of the EAM—continued their artillery and mortar fire and that sniping had increased. Gen. Scobie was said by British (Continued on Page Three; Col. 1) 20,000 LONDONERS PROTEST BRITAIN'S POLICY ON GREECE LONDON. Dec. 17.— (M—'Twenty thousand persons jammed in Tra falgar Square at the foot of Nel son’s monument condemned Brit ain's armed intervention in Greece today and approved a resolution calling on the government '‘to stop using troops against the demo cratic resistance forces in Greece.” The resolution termed the gov ernment’s policy in Greece “dis astrous.” The Red Flag of Russia and the British Union Jack flew side by side above the platform from which spokesmen from the Labor Commonwealth and Communist parties cried out their bitterness against the British policy, de nounced Prime Minister Church ill’s stand and demanded the re call of Tommies on duty in Greece. Saying British prestige has “fallen with a bump,” Lord Stra bolgi, a Laborite, contended the intervention threatened to length en the war by months and had brought American isolationists out again into the open. He added that “if this is the price we have to pay for Churchill’s domination the price is too high.” BROADCAST DELAYED' Churchill May Address Na tion Before Christmas LONDON, Dec. 17. — (JP)— prime Minister Churchill did not deliver the radio talk to Britain tonight which it was said yesterday he might. But he is expected to make a statement on the war and Euro pean political problems before the House of Commons recesses on Thursday for the Christmas holi days. The Prime Minister may broad cast before Christmas if he is able to announce Iha^ a meeting with President Roosevelt and Marshal Stalin has been arranged. Harbor Bill Jeopardized By Senate’s Yule Plans WASHINGTON. Dec. 17.— UP) — The bitter Senate controversy over six State Department nominations threw a shadow of uncertainty today over pre-Christmas adjourn ment plans of Congress. The leadership wants to go home by Wednesday. The nominations, including that of Joseph C. Grew, former ambas sador to Japan, as undersecretary, were the principal obstacle to ad journment, save for a $564,000,000 deficiency appropriations bill that must be passed, and a $500 000,000 Rivers and Harbors bill snagged on a House amendment. In the opposition to the appoint ment of Grew and five assistant secretaries — Nelson Rockefeller, Brig. Gen. Julius Holmes, James C. Dunn, W. L. Clayton and Archi bald Macleish— President Roose velt is confronted by an unusual alignment of forces spark-plugged by three Senators who usually vote the Administration way. So unusual is the tie-up that Sen ator Clark (D-Mo) threatened at Saturday's closing hour to desert it rather than have it appear that his own opposition to Macleish linked him with opponents of Grew and Clayton. The New Deal trio—Senators Pepper (D:Fla), Murray (D-Mont) and Guffey (D-Pa)— are associat ed with Senator Lafollette (Prog Wis) in a resolution to postpone! consideration of all six names un til the new Congress meets in January. Pepper told reporters he would seek to call the resolution up for consideration Monday. “That would give the President a chance to reconsider this team and make the changes in it which a reconsideration would surely bring,” Pepper asserted. Pepper and his associates say they question the “big business” background of ome of the nomi nees. With Christmas just a week away, the lawmakers are looking up train schedules home. Only the intense interest in the State De partment nominations is keeping a quorum on hand in the Senate. House members began streaming away from the Capitol over the weekend, taking 1vtr. Roosevelt’s acceptance of .he Social Security tax rate freeze as the end of any emergency in that chamber. The rush of Senators to leave as soon as the confirmation votes are completed blackened the chance for agreement on the Rivers and Harbors bill. The House wants to make an ex ception to a reclamation law re striction in the case of the* Cen tral Valley Authority in California. The restriction bars any individual from irrigating more than 160 acres with water from any gov ernment financed project. Reds Advance On Budapest; Hit Slovakia Force Stands 5 1-2 Miles From Capital Of Hungary LONDON, Monday, Dec. 18 — (fP) — The Red Army ad vanced within 5V2 miles of besieged Budapest yesterday and reached the Slovak border at a new point 72 miles north east of the Hungarian capital in a rapid but methodical slashing apart of the remain ing small German holdings east and northeast of the Danube river. The thrust to Slovakia with cap ture of the town of Susa repre sented a gain of 15 miles from previously-reported Soviet posi tions in that area northwest of Miskolc. En route, the Russians seized the big rail town of Putnok, eight miles east of Susa, the So viet communique said. A supplemental communique this morning said more than 600 of the enemy were slaughtered at Put nok and eight German tanks and self-propelled guns were knocked out. Hundreds of the enemy also were slain in bloody fighting that resulted in capture of Fot, 5 1-2 miles northeast of Budapest, and Mogyorod, eight miles from Buda pest, the Russians Announced. This was the first official word on the great battle for the Hun garian capital since Wednesday. Other Red Army units took the big town and railway station of Paszto, 37 miles northeast. of Budapest, and Kisbarkany, six miles north of Paszto, in a drive north from the Hatvan area, while others fanning out northwest and northeast of Miskolc captured more than 40 communities. These included the rail and road center of Putnok, 80 miles north east of Budapest and Only four miles from the Slovak frontier. The advances in the Budapest area were the first announced by the Russians since last Wednes day when they reported the cap (Continued on Page Three; Col. 2) -V Yank Fliers to ‘Bomb* Nantes Children With Tons Of Yule Presents A U. S. BOMBER BASE, Eng land. Dec. 17.—(iP)—Flying For tresses will “bomb” Nantes with tons of presents during a Christ mas party for some 3,000 French children. Gifts including candy, toys and soap will come from rations of the personnel of the 384th Bom bardment Group, a veteran U. Sn Eighth Air Force Fortress unit in England, and from parcels re quested from home. Officers and men of the unit also contributed $1,85G toward a fund to purchase more gifts and equip ment for orphanages in Nantes —-—--7 New Zealand Unit Storms Into Faenza ROHE, Dec. 17.—OP)—New Zea land troops in a foot-by-foot slug gng match today captured Faenza, Po Valley fortress city (pop. 45, 000) on the broad highway arrow ing to Bologna 29 miles away, end ing a long siege and decisively de feating the 90th Panzer Grenadier division. Lt.-Gen. Sir Bernard C. Frey berg’s troops toppled die city on the Bologna-Rimini highway with simultaneous punches into the town from the southwest and east, and then speared three miles up Highway Nine toward Bologna to the Senio river, reaching a bridge blown by the Germans Faenza, famed for Faience ware pottery, had been squeezed for weeks by the British Eight Army flanking operations. Freyberg’s men captured the hilltop town of Celle southwest of Faenza after a day-long battle, taking 200 prisoners, and then broke over Highway Nine. Some units drove up to the Senio river on a wide front. Others turned down the road into Faenza. British and Indian troops also inched their way over a ridge west of the city, which other Eighth Army units forced in from the east across the Lamone river. Faenza fell only after a bitter street battle. -V ‘MARS TASK FORCE’, YANK JUNGLE UNIT, CLOSE TO MANDALAY BHAMO, Northern Burma, Dec. 17.—(TP)— American Infantry and Artillery troops known as the “Mars Task Force” now are fight ing in the North Burma area and advance forces in Burma, it was disclosed today. The U. S. force is under the com mand of Brig. Gen. John P. Wil ley of Hampton, Va., whose wife is from San Antonion, Tex. The first news that American ground troops were fighting alongside the British and Chinese was released after one American unit command ed by Col. Ernest Easterbrook of Carmel, Calif., made contact with the Japanese at Tonkwa, 65 road miles south of Bhamo and some 120 miles north of Mandalay. Col. Easterbrook is Gen. Joseph W. Stilwell’s son-in-law. Japs Expected To Fight Into ’46, Harmon Says PACIFIC HEADQUARTERS, U. S. ARMY AIR FORCE, Dec. 17.— (TP)—“We expect that Japan will be on her feet and fighting in 1946,” Lt. Gen. Millard F. Har mon, commander of the Strategic Air Force, Pacific Ocean areas, said today. Harmon, who directs the Mari anas-based Superfortresses opera tions against Japan, made it plain that he holds no hope that B-29 raids on Tokyo industrial centers can knock Nippon quickly out of the war. “This is no Gilbert and Sulli van war out here,” he said. “It’s real and it’s tough.” In a radio interview, Harmon said that reconnaissance Super forts have not observed any seri ous damage as the result of the December 7 earthquake in Japan. “Our planes have been over much of the area where the quake was supposed to have cen. tered. I’m afraid that the Jap counterpart of the Hawaiian vol cano goddess Madame Pele was not on our side.” Tokyo cannot be destroyed by incendiary bombing, he said. “No one gives the Jap credit for being a resourceful enemy ex cept those who have to fight him,” the general added. "Our photo graphs of Tokyo reveal that a large system of firebreaks has been built. These firebreaks are lanes fully a block wide, where houses have been razed. They run for miles throughout Tokyo. ‘'Burning flimsy houses will not beat the Japs. Our targets are war industries. We want to stop them from making airplanes. We will try to paralyze their power sys tem and knock out their steel mills.” ./ Germans9 Assault Carries Within 10 Miles OfMalmedy PARIS, Monday, Dec. 18.—(IP)—'The German army re invaded Belgium and Luxembourg in an all-out offensive yesterday, denting U. S. First Army lines with thousands of troops and scores of tanks attacking on a 60-mile front. This first major counter-offensive since Normandy was gaming ill uuwiBiv* At some points along a front between Monschau, 16 miles south east of Aachen, on southward to the German fortress of Trier the enemy had advanced some miles while other thrusts were being held by the Americans. (The depths of the German pen etrations were not given. Kennedy reported that some of his dis patches were altered by censor ship.) Seizing the initiative for the first time since D-Day, the Germans swept back along the paths of heir 1940 conquests, spurred by an order from Field Marshal Karl Rudolf Gerd von Rundstedt that “your hour has struck.” What appeared to be the main blow carried to within 10 miles of the' Belgian city of Malmedy, 23 miles south of Aachen. (Malmedy is 14 miles west of the German border and, assum ing American lines were at the frontier, that would mean a pene tration of four miles. However, Allied lines on that long-quiet sec tor are ill-defined.) An inferno of artillery fire plung ed into the American lines. Para chute troops in considerable num bers dropped behind the American positions in two corps areas on the First Army front and also behind the U. S. Ninth Army. Dropping in groups of four to eight, many were captured. The long-hidden German air force roared out at least 450 strong and by nightfall had lost 143 planes in terrific air battles that cost the Americans 33 fighters. It was the enemy’s greatest show of air power since the Allies stormed the French coast. The battle flared along a 60 mile front from Rotgen, 10 miles southeast of Aachen, on south into Luxembourg, where at least two small penetrations were made be fore the Americans held. Associated Press Correspondent William F. Boni said the land as sault was concentrated some 23 miles south of Aachen, where Ger man infantry and from 30 to 50 tanks overran advance American positions in the area of Honsfeld on the route to the Ardennes For est. From Honsfeld, two miles In side Belgium, the Germans pressed on west to within 10 miles of Mal medy before the attack eased late (Continued on Page Three* Col. *) -V Luri wArtt LUmtS * OUT IN STRENGTH AGAINST YANKEES WITH THE U. S. NINTH ARMY in Germany, Dec. 17. — (fP) — For the first time since the days of tire Normandy beachhead last June the German High Command won the initiative in Western Europe today with a powerful counterat tack in northern Luxembourg and Belgium. Into it, the German High Com mand had pitched its reserves. Whether it is the only blow the German army has up its sleeve on the Western front, the next few days should tell. It probably is not. For the first time since the land ings on the Normandy beache* six months ago, the German air force came out in strength, throw ing an estimated 550 fighters and bombers over the U. S. First and the southern edge of the U. S. Ninth Army fronts. Week after week of conservation, during which U. S. and British warplanes often swept the skiea uncontested, enabled the enemy air force to throw its full punch in to this blow. , It is doubtful if the German high command hopes to drive any deep salient into the Allied line, or to capture and hold any large amount of territory. It is certain that American air superiority is going to inflict a crushing blow on the German air force if German planes stay in the fight as they did today. German planes were falling at an expensive rate.
Wilmington Morning Star (Wilmington, N.C.)
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Dec. 18, 1944, edition 1
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