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The Alamance Gleaner Vol LXVIII GRAHAM, N. C., THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 1942 No. 40 WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS Heavy Fighting in Guadalcanal Battle Changes Entire Jap Pacific Strategy; British Offensive Is Aimed at Libya; Coffee Rationing Begins November 28 (EDITOR'S NOTE: Whin opinions are expressed in these eelnmns, they are those of Western Newspaper Union's news analysts and not necessarily of this newspaper.) Released by Western Newspaper Union. After a raid on Japanese positions, the first thing C. S. air fighters do in New Guinea is to amble over to the grass hut (called "Sloppy Joe's") near the Port Moresby airfield for a eup of hot tea and a snack. The temperature, obviously, was way up when this picture was taken. GUADALCANAL: Full Scale Fight News of full scale fighting on Guadalcanal island came to an ap prehensive America as U. S. soldiers and marines bore the brunt of con tinued Japanese attacks. The en emy bolstered its push with fresh reinforcements, landing them on the northwestern end of the island. The Japs opened their big attack by laying down a heavy artillery barrage and then using tanks and troops against the Americans' de fense lines. In the first two days of fighting, United States forces re pulsed five tank attacks with artil lery. The navy communique did not mention American tanks. Prior to sending their ground forces into action, the foe smashed at Henderson field?with costly re sults for themselves. The Japs sent over 16 bombers escorted by 20 Zero fighters. Grumman Wildcats, pilot ed by marines, shot down all of the fighters, one of the bombers and damaged three additional bombers. Japanese shipping in the Solomons area was the target of American pilots. The fliers chalked up two Jap cruisers and one destroyer dam aged, another cruiser probably dam aged and one heavy cruiser or bat tleship possibly damaged. Three attacks were made by Doug las dive bombers on a force of cruis ers and destroyers north of Florida island?13 miles north of Guadal canal. The navy communique said one enemy cruiser was damaged by bombs and the force withdrew. Cooperation Meanwhile, from General MacAr thur's headquarters in Australia came word of continuing Allied bombing raids on Jap bases north of the Solomons. Approximately 100.000 tons of shipping were de stroyed or damaged in three nights of bombing at Rabaul, New Britain. Other Allied bombers attacked Kavieng, New Ireland, scoring direct hits on Jap fuel dumps and installa tions.' Fires were visible for 90 miles. Medium bombers were in action over Dutch Timor, north erf Australia, where they bombed grounded air craft on the airdrome at Koepang, starting numerous fires. RUSSIA: Relief Army At points the battle line in Stalin grad had been driven to within 600 yards of the Volga as the struggle for that vital city reached its climax. While the Soviet reports told of beat ing off constant Nazi attacks, these same communiques admitted that the Germans gained important streets and buildings in other sec tions of the stricken city. To the northwest, the Soviet "re lief army" battled forward. After one advance this force found 3,000 German troops dead and dying in trenches and dugouts. In one in habited locality 600 Rumanians were killed and many captured. Germany's final, all-out drive for the city of Stalingrad itself was just part of the news from Russia, how ever, for in the Mozdok area of the Caucasus the Nazi advance had been slowed to a standstill; on the Black sea Russian marines were throwing back a strong Nazi drive southeast of Novorossisk; and on the Voronezh sector of the upper Don two Ger man platoons were slaughtered try ing to cross a water barrier. (Be lieved to be the Don river.) COFFEE: One Cup a Day Coffee will be rationed throughout the nation beginning November 28 on the basis of one pound each five weeks for all persons over 15 years of age, under an order issued by the Office of Price Administration. On the basis of 35 to 40 cups per pound, the ration means slightly more than a cup a day a person. So that merchants can stock their shelves, retail sales of coffee will be frozen at midnight, November 21. First of all the rationed coffee will be purchased on the last stamp in the sugar ration book, stamp No. 28. Following rationed coffee will be is sued by working backward through the sugar stamp book, using stamps No. 28 to 19, in sequence. Eligibility will be determined by the age shown on the sugar book. RAF BOMBERS: Over Italy Long-range RAF bombers struck 750 miles across France and Switzer land to ravage sections of northern Italy and to smash the port of Genoa in the heaviest raids of the war on Hitler's henchmen. Targets included the great Genoa Milan-Turin industrial triangle, site of Italy's principal aircraft and ship building works. The day before, RAF planes left Genoa flaming un der two-ton "block buster" bombs. The British air ministry announced that many large fires were set at Genoa, and the raid drew the almost unheard of admission from Rome radio that the bombers caused heavy damage. While the bombers also attacked other points, they concen trated their incendiaries and heavy explosives on Genoa, Italy's chief port. xnc.tcaavu xui uic Heaviest atiatft on Genoa was obvious. That port city is a vital supply terminal for Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in Af rica. It is also the site of aircraft parts and munition works. NORTH AFRICA: Libya Bound When the British launched the "biggest battle" of Egypt, military experts knew that the objective was to crush the Africa Corps of Nazi General Rommel and drive the Axis forces deep into Libya, there to crush and destroy it. While it was easy to arrive at this fact it was a more difficult task to determine whether or not this represented the much sought "Second Front." While the first reports of this new offensive by the British and other United Nations forces revealed that the Germans were being shoved back by the quick thrusts of air and land power nobody was under estimating the tremendous task ahead. To nullify the German Africa Corps and to open more the Medi terranean sea lanes is a big job. But it appeared that the British at tack had been well prepared and long planned. It had been made possible only because huge quanti ties of supplies had been poured into Egypt from America, These came through by way of the big U. S. base in Eritrea, on the Red sea. U. S. planes were co-operating with the British but no large num bers of American ground troops were reported in this action. And it was in the air that the United Nations first showed their strongest power. For once Rommel did not rule the skies. TANK, PLANE GOAL: Emphasis Shifted Disclosing that the year's numer ical production (or planes and tanks would not be met, President Roose velt attributed the situation to a shift in emphasis to heavier, harder-hit ting models dictated by battle ex perience. In his message to congress last January, the President said he had ordered steps taken to "increase our production rate of airplanes so rap idly that in this year, 1942, we shall produce 60,000 planes." This, he explained, contemplated not the production of 60,000 planes but the attainment of a 60,000-planes a-year production rate. He told his press conference that the changeover from the M-3 to the M-4 tank meant that the numerical goal (of 45,000 tanks) would not be reached but that the full amount of steel and materials called for in the initial program would still be used in the manufacture of fighting machines through enlarged units. THICKER SOX: And Faster Mail "Hello, Eleanor." This was the greeting the Presi dent's wife was given as she hus tled about the British isles on her visits to American troops stationed there. She had left Buckingham pal ace and the royalty in it behind and started her tour of inspection at the Washington club, main gathering place for U. S. servicemen on leave in London. Here she told the soldiers and sailors that she had already learned they would like to have thicker socks. She promised to see what she could do about it. Then the men told her that they would like some kind of a speed-up in the de livery of mail from home. - This too, would get her attention, said the First Lady. Said she: "I came here to learn just such things and I hope you will tell me more." That was her idea, to learn as much about conditions among the AEF as she could. Most people who know Mrs. Roosevelt sensed that she was coming home with a good store of information on this subject. HONG KONG: Docks Bombed Hong Kong's comparatively peace ful days came to a sudden end as United States bombers blasted the Japanese-occupied city in the first Allied raid on the British crown col ony since the Japs occupied it last Christmas day. The U. S. planes unloaded tons of explosives on the great Kowloon dock area, shooting down 10 enemy fighters and probacy destroying five others. One American bomber failed to return to its base and one fighter was reported to have made a forced landing in Chinese territory. Shortly before the Hong Kong raid, Brig. Gen. Claire L. Chennault's China air task force smashed a vast Japanese operated coal mining area around Linsi, in northeast China. Not a single plane was lost in this, one of the longest bombing raids of the war. The bombers de stroyed the huge power plant, which was the main target, and put the Linsi mine and five others in the Kail an area out of commission. WORLD WAR ACE: Down in Pacific The ominous word "overdue" brought news to the world that Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker and the crew of a heavy military plane were missing in a Pacific flight between Oahu and another unspecified island. Rickenbacker, ace of the first World war with 21 enemy planes and four balloons to his credit, was in the Pacific on an aerial inspection tour, for Lieut. Gen. H. H. Arnold, army air force commander. His visit was a military secret until the war department announced he was missing. CAPT. EDDIE KICKE.VBACHES End of ? tcret minion. ! ?[~ Aviation to Revolutionize America's Living Habits Civil Aeronautics Administration Provides the Necessary Impetus; New Developments to Have Social as Well as Material Effect. By BAUKHAGE News Analyst and Commentator. WNU Service, 1343 B Street N-W, Washington, D. C. One thing the war will produce, upon which there is general agree ment, is national airmindedness. And there will be basic changes in the living habits of the nation, pro duced by development of the air plane, as great or greater than were produced by the automobile. The automobile and the good roads which made its use possible revolutionized small town life. The airplane, according to the experts who manage to snatch a moment to think beyond bombers and fight ers to passenger and cargo planes, is going to change big town life and perhaps something far more impor tant?small-world life. Recently 1 had a long chat with one of the men who heads up a plant that is turning out planes for Uncle Sam. That is a full time job. But he is a dreamer, too, and the moment he gets a chance to lean back and think out loud about the future, he paints an epic picture of the skyways of tomorrow. "What the roads did for the auto mobile the airfields will do for the airplane," he said to me watching imaginary airplanes in a blue cloud of cigar smoke. "We now have 25 times as many airports as we had before the war. They are in many remote places. Those places won't be remote any more." Nett for War bird* When he said that I couldn't help recalling a trip I made recently on a special plane across the country. Because we were going to see a lot of airplane secrets anyhow, we were permitted to "look"?I mean by that, the curtains weren't drawn as they are in all ordinary passenger planes these days. I won't reveal the de tails of what I saw, of course, but I can tell you it was hard to be lieve. Suddenly in the midst of no where the runways of a field below would be visible. A few miles away 1 could see automobiles or railway trains moving along like bugs or worms. I knew the passengers were looking at the landscape as they passed. But plain and hill and riv er were all they could see. Just out of their range of vision there would be a busy airport. Only war birds nest on it now, but some day commercial planes will rise from these thousands of tiny intersections in the sky routes that will lace the world together in a tiny ball. The way these dots on the air map have increased is incredible. The Civil Aeronautics administration's first airport program got under way in 1941 with 385 defense landing areas designated for construction or repair. There were 282 new air ports by the end of 1941 as well as 48 new seaplane bases and anchor ages. The significant increase in landing fields since then is, of course, a military secret. At the beginning of 1942 there were 2,484 airports in the country, of which 1,086 were municipal institutions, 930 were commercial. That in it self is significant for it shows how communities themselves pushed for ward to open their skygates without waiting for a commercial organiza tion to do the Job. The rest of the nearly twenty-five hundred fields were army and navy, emergency or | miscellaneous; 30 were private. Airport Development Meanwhile, with the aid of'the CAA laws were drawn up in many states which in the year 1942 result ed in the passage of 42 separate acts by state legislations designed to provide municipalities or coun ties or other political divisions with authority to cure defects in or de velop airports. Ten states passed acts to acquire land and construct facilities and operate them. Some states built flight strips beside high ways from unclaimed aviation tax refund money. All this shows how aviation was becoming a part of the 1 national political consciousness. During this time one of the prob ' lems of the air that few people, even those who constantly use air travel, realize, increased?the traf fic problem. As one pilot expressed it to me, speaking of a field where he learned most of his flying: "Our traffic problem there was a lot more complicated than the one on Times square in New York city." It is easy to see why. Consider | that the block system on the rail ways Is divided into one-mile sec tions; that is, a train is warned a mile ahead of the block in which there is an obstruction to traffic. In the air a comparable block is now IS miles. When the cruising speed of the commercial planes goes up the block will have to be increased. Traffic control is regulated by a federal airways system. In 1941 it was extended to the point where it separated and controlled traffic from 14 centers, established by the Civil Aeronautics administration. Over a million and a half aircraft operations were recorded in that year. The increase in speed which mili tary developments in airplane man ufacture have brought about will have a social as well as a material effect. Crainng?At 400 "Think back," my air-minded friend said, "to World War I. Our maximum speed of war planes was about 180 miles. Today, 180 miles is the cruising speed of our commer cial planes. Today our fast war planes make much more than 400 miles an hour. Let's be conserva tive and say that in 1965 our com mercial planes will be cruising at at least 400 miles. "In my opinion we will race the sun from New York to Los Angeles and not do a bad job; leave New York at noon and be in Los Angeles at 4 p. m.?their time. "Going In the other direction, leave New York at 5 p. m., get to London for breakfast. Leave Lon don at eight in the evening and get to New York in the morning." It is easy to see that when London, New York and Los Angeles are that near together in terms of time, they will be that much nearer together in terms of thought?in habits, cus toms and understanding. There can be no distant places, in the natural course of existence, Americans on business or recreation will move through Singapore, Tokyo, Buenos Aires, Rio, Moscow and their citi zens will be a part of our cities. When it comes to the makeup of our own towns, large and small, it is easy to see what will happen when a normal daily commuting distance to work will be stretched to a hun dred miles. The residential area of cities will fan out in monstrous cir cles. There will be a much more general admixture of viewpoint and attitude of city and country, of com munity and community. The melt ing pot of America will produce a much more homogeneous broth of humanity. And it will temper the world. ? ? ? 'Austerity Luncheon Makes Lasting Impression My friend from Australia dropped In suddenly in an army bomber the other day, as friends have a way of doing these days. His business has kept him in Australia many years. He likes the folks "down un der" and he's doing a good job for our soldiers there and for Uncle Sam now. "Australia is not fighting a total war yet," be said, "but she's a darn site farther along than America. We haven't started," he told me. "Because," I suggested, "we didn't get the scare they got and are still getting." "Yes," he said. "Nobody expect ed the Japs to try to get and hold Australia, but they did fear that if there wasn't adequate protection the Japs could bomb Australian cities and the big war plants all along the coast and put them out of business." 1 The thing he seemed to feel that had made a great impression on the "austerity." "Take the austerity luncheons and dinners?that is what they are called," he said. "I invited an American Big Shot to lunch. I gave him the menu. He said: 'I'll take a dozen oysters.' 'All right,' I told him, 'that will amount to three shill ings and will leave you sixpence, which is enough for a cup of coffee.'" It seems that you can buy just so much, no more. You can,spend 65 cents for lunch and 85 cents for dinner. You can have your luxuries, but it doesn't leave anything over. And instead of a limit on income of $25,000 a year which has been suggested here; after taxes are de ducted, $10,000 is all that is left Look Out Below! 2,000-lb. Bomb! The pictures presented herewith are the very first actual photographs of 2,000-pound bomb tests ever to be released in the United States. They were taken at the Army Ordnance department proving ground, Aberdeen, Md. In picture at top the bombs are being readied by a muscular civilian expert for the test. He is attaching the tail fin to one bomb, across which lies a red flag?warning signal to other workmen. Fins are placed on large bombs just prior to dropping, to guide them in their flight. Made of comparatively light metal, they might be bent if shipped attached to bombs. Bent fins would cause misses. The 2,000-pound demolition bomb is trundled carefully to the h' it tored bomber. Notice the pistol scorn by the soldier tcko is pushing tho hand cart. He is armed to enforce, if necessary, rigid safety Testri rti asm applying tchen high explosives are handled. An electric winch U} the bombardment plane lifts the bomb through the bomb bay to its position in the plane. These tests arm rcmdnctad in cooperation with the air corps, which furnishes the bombardmsastP aircraft and flying personnel. This remarkable photo shows ? - 2-000-pound bomb an instant after its I release. Flame and smoke are rent nearly 2,000 foot skyward as the bomb ex plodes. Photo teas taken with a tele scopic lant, ? mile from the blast. These two ugly, jugged frugmemts of metal, held by an army ofioar. formed pert of the cam oj Am M bomb. , Jm
The Alamance Gleaner (Graham, N.C.)
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Nov. 5, 1942, edition 1
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