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The Alamance Gleaner Vol LXVII GRAHAM, N. C., THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 1941 NO. 45 WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS By Edward C. Wayne Rome Discloses Plot to Kill Mussolini As Part of Widespread Revolt Plans; Soviet Claims Gains in Bitter Fighting; Nazis Stall British Campaign in Libya (EDITOR'S NOTE?When eplnlons are expressed la these columns, they are these ef the news analyst and net necessarily of this newspaper.) ______________ (Released by Western Newspaper Union.) This air view made from a British bombing plane shows the result of aerial bomb hits on enemy barracks near Mellaha, Tripoli, during a fierce raid that preceded the British push into Libya. The attack was carried out by planes which flew close to roof-height of the buildings. ROME: Admits Revolt With an air of having quelled the whole thing, official Rome had ad mitted that' ever since the start of the war there has been a huge fifth column organization busily engaged in sabotage of the nation's war ef fort. Sixty of the leaders had already been arrested and tried, it was re ported and at least one plot to assas sinate Mussolini had been quelled. Official Rome accused Britain and Russia of sponsoring the group, of financing it and directing it. Of chief interest was the fact that it was centered in Trieste, center of the largest Italian industrial con centration, and that much of its ac tivity had been the blowing up of munitions factories. Though it was claimed that 60 leaders had been arrested, the Ste fani report stated that 11 actual perpetrators of many of the out rages were still at large. Listed m taken from the plotters were iJo pounds of high explo sives, 140 hand grenades, 75 incen diary bombs, two machine guns, 85 revolvers, rapid-fire pistols and thou sands of rounds of ammunition. Though the report was confirma tory in many respects of previous stories of revolt and terrorism in Italy, many observers wondered chiefly at the purpose in making an official disclosure of the facts of the trial at Trieste. BRITAIN: Libyan Drive The British in Libya, basing their general tactic on a split-up of the German mechanized divisions into tWo parts, met their first setback when General Rommel's Fifteenth, "fighting recklessly and ferocious ly," according to the London com muniques, succeeded in reuniting. Fortunately for the British, the union was formed inside the general trap on the Libyan "hump." And the royal navy rapidly rushed re inforcements ashore to the armies battling on land, making landings successfully at several points on the coast. British spokesmen at Cairo re garded the incident of the juncture of the German forces simply as "one of the downs in an up-and down fight," said the imperial troops had not lost their confidence nor their initiative, and that British mechahized forces and airplanes still were dominating the fighting. He said: "In this fluid battle which had raged on the main front with fluctu ations over an area of more than 1,600 square miles for many days, the center of gravity has altered almost daily as our or the enemy's main tank concentrations massed for attack or counter-attack." That was as clear a picture as it was possible to obtain. It was not, however, immediately discernible from the war maps where Berlin, still worried over the situation, but a little more confident, had any thing to cheer about yet. STRIKE: Rail Settlement President Roosevelt disclosed de tails of the settlement which had averted the rail strike of 1,200,000 members of the brotherhoods and had resulted in an estimated pay increase of $200,000,000 to $300,000, 000. RUSSIAN: Victory Develops The Russian communiques had developed the extent of the Red army's outstanding victory of the war around Rostov, and finally had claimed that General Von Kleist's forces were Seeing from Timoshen ko's armies right into a Soviet trap. Germany, admitting the retreat in the southern central front, had sought to belittle it as a mere "di version" attack, and concentrated its interest on the holes its forces were punching in the Moscow de fense ring. Kuibyshev declared that the shat tered remnants of Von Kleist's army was fleeing westward along the northern shore of the Sea of Asov, and that between it and es cape was another large Russian force which presumably had struck southward from Kharkov, and whose cutoff of the German supply line was not only hampering retreat but meant eventual annihilation of the armies unless they could escape by se* JAPAN: Exchange President Roosevelt, attempting to clarify the Japanese issue, for mally had placed before the Nip ponese government a demand that it explain why Japan had sent so many military, naval and air forces | into Indo-China, probably a jump ing off place for an attack on Thai land or the Burma road, perhaps both. The President did not consider this demand an ultimatum. At the time the Japanese reply to the President's request was being handed to the state department in Washington, Japanese newspapers indicated that the steady rise of re sentment against U. S. interference in Far Eastern affairs was continu ing. From Singapore came word that ships had been ordered to that point to remove Japanese nationals from British and Dutch possessions in that area. The situation in the Pacific was getting more critical daily. President Roosevelt, in his press conference at which he discussed his action, stressed that the demand was to a friendly nation with whom the United States was at peace and hoped to remain that way. But, he added, he had been dis turbed by reports of the large mili tary concentrations already in Indo-China, and by further reports that additional forces of all kinds, military, naval and air which re cently had been sent there had ex ceeded the numbers agreed to by the Vichy government, which had submitted under duress. On top of this, he said, there were reports that Japan was now send ing to Indo-China reinforcements many times the numbers already on hand. MISCELLANY: Tokyo: Telling the people to be ready for anything, the press in formed Japanese that the British I were about to invade Thailand? ' usual Axis prelude to an invasion | by its own forces. ? ? ? Cleveland: The first rivetless all welded tank was to be turned ou{ this month at a factory here. The new tank will be called the M-4. NAVIES: Grid for Action WINSTON CHURCHILL Were U. S. warships relieving his navy f The arrival of the first British capital ship ever to go to the Far East at the head of a fleet, the 35,000-ton battleship Prince of Wales, electrified Singapore and was accompanied by the announce ment from Washington that launch ings of warships during November by the American navy had totaled more than one a day. In addition to the huge battleship whose identity was revealed, at least one other capital ship had been sent to the Far East by Brit ain, and the fleet, under Admiral "Tom Thumb" Phillips, was of considerable proportions. As to American launchings, these had included the 35,000-ton battle ship Indiana, the 10,000-ton light cruiser Cleveland, four destroyers and a submarine, added to many other smaller craft. Keels were laid during the month for one cruiser, nine destroyers and three submarines, Washington re vealed. Prime Minister Churchill, an nouncing as the ships arrived that reinforcements were being sent to the Far East, said this had been made possible by increased Amer ican aid in the Atlantic, bearing out the general feeling that the U. S. navy was picking up much of the load in that ocean. WOMEN: In Uniform Churchill had solemnly told the house of commons that with Amer ican aid and increases^ tempo of British production, the crisis of ma terial was at an end, but that 1942 would be dominated by a new crisis ?that of man and woman power. He asked authority to draft 3,000, 000 more men into the uniformed services, also to begin to draft women, also for service in uniform, though combatant work would be done only by women who volun teered. Many other changes were to be made in the conscription structure as Britain prepared to enlist the services of the nation's full power on the "right little, tight little isle." Men 18t? years old were to be called up. The age for compulsory rrfilitary service was to be raised from 41 to 51 years. This, he said, would yield 2,750,000 men. He asked also permission to withdraw a government promise that no men under 20 would be sent overseas. He wants, he said, to send them overseas at a minimum of 19 years. As to the women for the draft, he explained he wants the right to conscript single women between 20 and 30 years old for the uniformed services, though not for combat "unless they volunteer." It was the first indication that with modern mechanized war women might be just as acceptable as men for the fighting services. HOW MUCH: Aid to Reds? There was quite a controversy raging in lease-lend quarters in Washington when it was revealed that the October and November promises of aid to Russia had fallen far short of being carried out. The reasons were four-fold, but back of them all was an apparent inability of those in command to de cide whether to send all Russia asked, and whether, if it was sent, it would arrive at usable points and in good time. Asked why this was, authorities had responded first that there was a I considerable lack of ships to carry the materials; second, there was difficulty getting the British to per- . mit the United States to cut down on British aid, sending the material to Russia; third, there was a lack of information as to whether Russia really could handle 350,000 tons a month at the port of Archangel. Because of a shortage of docks, the stuff would have to be unloaded on the ice, they said, and might be lost or wasted. wmmrntEnmrna British Libyan Campaign Tests New U. S. Tanks Superior Type of Mechanized Units Developed; 'Sea Otter,' Powered by Auto Engines, To Be Used as Cargo Vessels. By DAUM1AUL National Farm and Ho ma Hour Commantator. nmj service, 13U n street, n-n, Washington, D. C. Is this statement true or falseT "A popular military song now be ing widely sung has in it a line to the triumphs of American soldiers in Africa." The answer is "true." But do not be alarmed, the song is the hymn of the United States marines and the line is: "From the halls of Monte zuma to the shores of Trip-o-Ji." It refers to our fight with the Barbary pirates in 1801. Nevertheless, the United States army is now celebrat ing another American triumph of arms in Africa?not human arms but tanks. Whether the British can drive those tanks to victory against one of Germany's foremost generals is another matter, but the superiority of our little 13-ton iron wagons in the early engagements of this Brit ish offensive is evidence, military experts say, that the United States still has the mechanical genius that can outmatch any in the world. I have just talked with a high of ficer who has served with Amer ica's new first armored division. He says that America has a mech anized army in the making that will be superior to any Hitler can pro duce. This officer credit? our suc cess to an old American character istic which some people were afraid had run to seed in this push-button age; the ability to do things with our hands. Fine Mechanical Experts "The new army," said the officer, "is developing the finest set of mechanical experts I ever saw. Americans are natural mechanics and it is coming out as a result of the training of our motorized units." When the army laid aside "May West," the heavy tank the United States built first, and concentrated on the smaller and far more mobile 13-ton unit mounted with a 37-mm. gun, many people wondered if it could stand up against the heavier German tanks with their much high er caliber weapons. In the first week's fighting in the present of fensive in Libya the American crea tion proved superior. The anti tank guns it carries because of their high muzzle velocity have a greater penetrating quality than the Ger mans' heavier guns. But the superior mechanical in tegrity, the greater speed, ana the other qualities that go into the American product are only hall the battle. Just as horses have to be watered and (ed, so tanks must be cared (or. Maintenance is a vital (actor. And this is where the mechanical genius o( the individual is important. When a tank division rolls out, tools, spare parts, ma chinery must (ollow alter. And the American ordnance unit, really a rolling machine shop, mhich moves in the wake o( the mobile units, is able to make any repairs short o( those requiring the equipment of an arsenal. At home, American motorized units have been submitted to all practical endurance tests in the field that they would have to meet in battle except being shot at in action. Now, thanks to the (act that the British in Africa are using Amer ican tanks, they are getting the nec essary final test without risking American lives. That is one reason why army of ficers are celebrating America's bloodless battle of Africa. Perhaps somebody will write a song about it. ? ? ? . Sleek Sea Ottere And Leaee-Lend Cargoes Overlooking DuPont Circle where once the children of ambassadors played under the watchful eyes of their nurses and one could hear the chatter of half a dozen foreign lan guages, there is a modest office. In that office has been carried out a typical American venture which may shape the final course of the war?at least it will help launch a thousand ships. On the second floor there is a gentleman with a straggling gray mustache. He is Starling Burgess, one of the nation's leading marine architects. At the back, downstairs sits a man with thinning gray hair and the energy of youth. He is a structural engineer, the man who makes the blueprints work, J. B. Weaver, head of Weaver Associates. This organization has just made an idea work. It was conceived by Hamilton Bryan, a retired naval I ? ? uuxuuioiiuci, tutu naiicu nuuci, ojj automotive engineer. The idea was to build a small cargo boat to be driven by automobile engines tc help get lend-lease supplies across the Atlantic. In addition to making the wheels go rounds these were the problems to be faced in such an undertaking: 1. Speed in construction. 2. Method of building and use ol material which would avoid use of over-taxed shipyards and an under supply of expert shipbuilders. 3. Material which could be ob tained from small mills not now busy. 4. Low cost. As to design, the ships had to be of shallow draft and produceable in large numbers, so that the loss of one would mean small losses in ma terial and manpower. 'Offer* Passes Tettt Weaver Associates took the job and produced the sleek "Sea Otter," a creature which has now passed all tests, a characteristically American enterprise because it was conceived and executed on private initiative, a result of typical American inven tive genius. There are many remarkable tech nical qualities of this revolutionary craft which to the layman seems to be a glorified outboard motorboat. Aside from technicalities some of the features of the achievement are worth mentioning: Instead of mak ing use of the large steel plates for the hull usually used in ship building, a smaller plate has been adopted. These small plates can be made in small steel mills, many of which up to now have been unable to get materials because they are not equipped for the work required by the big shipyards. In order to do away with the need of expert hand welders a special device has been created so that the welding can be done automatically. Because the ships are only 250 feet long they can be taken through the Great Lakes. They require such a shallow draft that inland factories on rivers can be utilized. So simple is their construction that great speed in manufacture can be attained. And when it comes to operation, instead of a skilled en gineer any good auto mechanic who doesn't get seasick can take care of the engines. The automobile engine is virtually fool-proof and is so cheap that it can be replaced economically with spares which can be carried on board. These sleek little otters cost less than one-third of the ordinary ship of the same size. As soon as the practicability of the "Sea Otter" was established the plans were submitted to the navy de partment. Like all revolutionary ideas many obstacles were thrown in the way of its consideration, but it appealed to President Roosevelt immediately, who, with Secretary of the Navy Knox, pushed it through. ? ? ? British Reasons For Hope of Victory In the last few weeks American officials have been telling us hers in Washington that the British are taking a much more optimistic view of their chances of victory. I asked one prominent Briton in a position to know, why this was the case. Here are the reasons, as he outlined them: 1. It has been demonstrated that American-British collaboration can produce the necessary sinews of war more rapidly and in greater quantity than Germany can. 2. Hitler made a fatal mistake by treating the conquered nations so badly that Germany has no chance of^obtaining willing or whole-heart ed co-operation from them no mat ter what their puppet governments may decree. If the Nazis had been more tactful and less brutal this situation might have been very dif ferent. 3. The feeling is growing that the German army will crack up when the men in the ranks and the people at home realize that victory is no longer around the corner. The last point be elaborated. Al though the German army was beat en in the last war, he pointed out, it was not really defeated until the home-front cracked and the ef fect of the attitude of despair on the part of the civilians broke the fighting spirit of the armies in the Held. Old Tribe Paint Helps U. S. Arm Black Earth Indiana Used Contains Element That Toughens Steel. LAKE PLACID, N. Y.?Centuries ago the St. Francis Indians would bathe in the magical waters of a lake deep in the Adirondack forests and then rub their bodies with the peculiar black soil near by to make them invincible to the fierce Iro quois. Now the white men are chopping roads to the spot at Tahawus, near the headwaters of the Hudson river, to scoop up the tame soil to make their "fire sticks" and "war birds" strong against another enemy. The National Lead company will spend $5,000,000 reopening the long abandoned Tahawus iron mine to extract titanium, an element valu able for toughening steel. And the name given to the new mining set tlement is "Elijah," for the Indian who guided pioneers to the place in 1826 for "a dollar and a half and tobacco." Mountains Are Ragged. Once again the white man will try to whip the rugged mountains that reduced the earlier venture to a ghost town and since have protect ed the sacred waters of Lake San ford?believed by the Indians to give everlasting life?from all but a few hunters. Spurred likewise by the defense program, other large companies are pouring out several more millions of dollars reopening iron mines at Clifton, near Canton; at Port Henry, on the southwest shore of Lake Champlein, and at Benson mines, west of Tupper lake. The region of the developments is historic territory. In 1907, Vice Pres ident Theodore Roosevelt whipped a team of horses over the bumpy roads at night to get to Buffalo, where President McKinley had been shot by an assassin. Roosevelt had been vacationing at a hunting lodge near Tahawus. This also was the section traveled by the abolitionist, John Brown, who proposed to transport slaves through the forests in a scheme to establish a free colony for Negroes. The titanium, used also for whit i. nn?k ?ka cuuig ya ui v| so wvrassassascvt mui uic iron deposits that blacken the ground at Tahawus. It was estimat ed that 20,000,000 tons of ore li^be neath these outcroppings on the slopes of Mount Marcy, the highest peak in the Adirondacks. Indians Showed Them. The first miners in the area were skeptical when the Indian, Louis Elijah, entered their camp with a chunk of the rich ore and assured them, "Find 'm where water run over iron dam." But they followed him and the truth of the guide's story may be seen today in a natu ral dam of iron, five-feet high, in one of the streams. Furthermore, according to records of the first par ty, whole sections of the upper Hud son river bed were found to be near ly pure iron. Archibald MacIntyTe and his as sociates in the party hurriedly staked claim to the land and finally acquired 109,000 acres, about two townships, for 10 cents an acre. Their mine prospered and Tahawus ore won gold medals at the Phila delphia Centennial exposition in 1978. Maclntyre grew wealthy and served as state comptroller for sev eral years. But transportation was difficult in the mountainous country, and when more accessible deposits were de veloped and operated more cheaply in Minnesota, Tahawus lost money. The mine closed in the 1980s. Invents Tiny Black Box a That Grades Diamonds ST. LOUIS.?A small black box that detects minute graduations of color in diamonds was exhibited hers. The tiny mechanism was devel oped after seven years of work. It instantly grades the color quality of diamonds, much more accurately than the human eye. Another new development viewed by jewelers was a magnifying de vice that can instantly distinguish between real and synthetic emer alds. Private Boots Sergeant In the Pants Just Once CAMP WOLTERS, TEXAS.?At least this is the story: When Harry D. Brunner, Brook lyn, N. Y., was promoted to be ser ge en t, a private barracks-mate, said: "All my life I've wanted to boot a sergeant in the seat of the pants. Now you and I are pretty good friends, so I'm asking you to grant me my wish." And?it's reported?the sergeant graciously complied. 127 Midget Ships Added to Program Planned to Meet Shortage In Cargo Vessels. WASHINGTON.?Confronted with an immediate shortage of merchant shipping, pending delivery ot mass tonnage of Liberty ships and other cargo vessels now on the ways, the United States maritime commission announced that it plans to build lft smaller special-type vessels which can be constructed without interfer ing with the larger shipbuilding pro gram. Some are already under con struction. The new program will consist of IS small Diesel coastal-type tankers, 25 seagoing geared-Diesel tugs, 26 Diesel harbor tugs, 45 small car go ships of a British design known as coasters, and 15 concrete barges for transport of bulk cargo. The small Diesel tankers are based on existing design. The Diesel-geared tugs will be 186 feet long and, except for horsepow er, among the largest ever built. The design is new. The latest type of such tugs afloat are Dutch mod els of from 3,000 to 4,000 horsepow er, but this has been cut to 2,250 horsepower by maritime commis sion specifications. If necessary, these tugs could tow across any ocean, but they are primarily intend ed for use in Gulf and American coastal waters. The navy uses a somewhat similar tug to tow tar gets. The harbor tugs are to have 1,000 horsepower delivered by direct-drive Diesels. They are to be 100 feet in length, equipped with towing ma chinery. There are no set specifications for the harbor tugs and they may be designed either by the commission or privately. I L ? r A 1-1 launcning ok niaoama Rehearsed for 2 Years PORTSMOUTH, VA.?The battle ship Alabama will make a big splash when it is launched at the Norfolk Navy yard here next Feb ruary, a splash so big that engineers already are calculating how wharves across the narrow Eliza beth river can be protected from damage. Drag chains weighing 800 tons wiU. help check the ship's speed. The Alabama has been "launched" time and again in miniature in the David W. Taylor model basin, oper ated by the navy under the bureau of ships at Carderock, Md., and every conceivable problem connect ed with the actual launching has been studied. Naval architects were letting the model of the 35,000-ton vessel slide down the ways into the basin as long as two years ago, and from these launchings engineers have collected data which tell them ex actly what to expect when the sister ship of the Massachusetts and the South Dakota actually hits the river. The model tests showed, for ex ample, that a possible wave eight feet high might be set up by the battleship, but that the height of the wave in the confined waters of the Elizabeth river probably would not exceed Ave feet. It was found that unless the mo, men turn of the ship was checked in some way the vessel undoubtedly would crash into the Berkley wharves across the river. ' That is why the tons of chain drags, placed in SO-tou clumps and secured to pads at the side of the ship, will be employed. Uruguay to Build Base To Aid American Defense MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY. ? Early construction at a base tor landplanes and seaplanes that would have full command at the vital Rio de la Plata mouth aad be available for United States ase in the event of war is reported planned by Uruguay. The base, informed sources said, would include a strip at land facing the Atlantic, which would be used by landplanes, and Laguna Negra for seaplanes and flying boata. Part of the cost, these sources said, would be met from the $17, 500,000 obtained recently from the United States for national defense. Heart Medicine Causes Flurry in Cleaning Shop ATLANTIC CITY. ? Employees ran from a cleaning establishment here, shouting "bomb!" Neighbors fled from their homes. A police car ran screaming to the establishment, emptied the "bomb" and submerged its contents in a bucket of water. It was a bottle of medicine, labeled nitro glycerine tablets. Someone had left them In a suit. Dr. William Kurland, called by police, explained the tablets were used tor heart ailments.
The Alamance Gleaner (Graham, N.C.)
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