Saturday, April 1, 1944

The Charlotte News

Saturday, April 1, 1944

FOUR EDITORIALS

Site Ed. Note: The front page reports that the Second and Third Ukrainian Armies were closing in on Odessa from the east and northeast, while other units were seeking to cut off the Tiraspol railroad on the lower Dniester River.

Other Russian forces cutting through the Carpathian Mountains toward Czechoslovakia had, according to German sources, reached Jablonica Pass, fifteen miles further south than the last Soviet reported position.

The decision of the Soviet Union to cut off Japanese coal and oil rights in northern Sakhalin was believed by the Soviets to strengthen their position with respect to Japan. Neutral observers, however, minimized the effects of the move, indicating that Japan had obtained only small amounts of coal and oil from Sakhalin in recent years. Japan had obtained 350,000 barrels of oil from the island in 1942.

A substantial American raid took place on southwest Germany while RAF Mosquitos struck western Germany the previous night without suffering loss.

According to Swiss sources, fifty to sixty Allied bombers were reported to have nearly destroyed Schafthausen in neutral Switzerland, just below the German border, causing several deaths. Apparently the town was bombed by mistake.

Despite the record loss of 94 planes by the RAF on Thursday night, their overall performance for the month was heartening, with a reported rate of loss of 4.5% in 6,500 individual bombing sorties.

In Italy, Allied troops took Mt. Marrone, 13 miles northeast of Cassino, in the long dormant central sector of the Italian front.

In India, Japanese patrols moved to within 12 miles of Imphal. The British and Japanese engaged in a heavily fought battle in the hills east of Kohima, near Ukhrul, the Japanese suffering heavy losses.

Radio silence of the task force attacking Palau, 1,175 miles west of Truk, prevented word of continuing operations there. For the second successive day, American bombers struck Truk, to prevent enemy planes from hitting the task force at Palau.

American and Australian troops closed to within 13 and 10 miles respectively of Bogadjim in New Guinea, a move closer in the continuing effort to take the Japanese position at Madang, twenty miles north of Bogadjim.

Richard Massock, reporting in the "Reporter's Notebook" column from the Anzio beachhead, tells of the heavily bearded Allied soldiers who nevertheless were required to adhere to Army protocol and wear helmets at all times, despite complaints that the heavy headgear gave the soldiers headaches. Leggings were also mandatory, though ties were optional.

"[T]he beachhead war never sleeps," he informed, even if dull communiqués informing only of patrol activity provided the illusion of lulls in the action. German planes attacked sometimes three or four times per night.

On the editorial page, "Armed Peace" discusses the House Military Affairs Committee determination that the post-war period must see continuance of American military strength, both of the Army and the Navy, if the peace were to be maintained.

The editorial agrees.

"The Hounds" tells of the Senate Judiciary Committee's determination to investigate the executive orders issued by President Roosevelt during his 11 years in office, all 3,361 of them, with an eye toward reeling in the executive and restoring power to Congress.

Senator Alben Barkley had cautioned that it might be a beneficial task for the Congress, provided it did not begin probing the private reasons for the President's actions.

"Waste Paper" addresses the continued critical need for recycling paper. It quotes a Congressman who indicated that each large mission over Berlin carried 12,000 American crewmen, 19 million rounds of ammunition, and 3,000 tons of bombs. The ammunition was shipped in boxes, the bombs had protective paper bands around them, 12 pounds of paper for each 500-pound bomb. Each container of blood plasma required a half pound of paper to ship. All of that paper comprised the military necessity just of the bombing crews on each major mission.

Of the twelve million tons of waste paper in the country each year, only half was being recovered, and a minimum of eight million tons were necessary to avert a crisis.

Thus, the piece urges continued contribution of waste paper.

"Mole Hill" finds troubling the British Parliamentary system of doing business, as evidenced by the call of Prime Minister Churchill earlier in the week for a vote of confidence, overwhelmingly delivered him, but posed over a relatively minor issue of equal pay between male and female school teachers. It was too distracting and confusing for the American mind to comprehend, and the editorial thus prefers the stability of the American system of scheduled elections, whatever its pitfalls otherwise.

Dorothy Thompson writes of two dispatches from Foreign Minister Sir Anthony Eden of Great Britain, indicating that the future of Germany would be to divide it into three spheres of influence, overseen by each of Russia, Britain, and the U.S. New Poland would incorporate East Prussia since the Danzig Corridor had a tendency to foment wars, the struggle over its control having been the flashpoint for the beginning of the war in Europe in 1939. Russia would likely be provided the territory in Eastern Poland to the Curzon Line, established in 1940. Russia also would likely be allowed to exert great influence in the Balkans, in Rumania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and possibly Yugoslavia.

Ms. Thompson wonders how this puzzle would fit together in practical terms without the displacement of millions of people and the consequent problems associated with such a dramatic shift in population. She asserts that many in Britain and the U.S. believed that the results of this policy would be terrible.

She concludes that the prospect for Europe had deteriorated markedly during the previous year since Prime Minister Churchill spoke of the creation of a European Council.

Samuel Grafton discusses again the "dignity of Congress" crusade being waged of late. The latest entry was from Representative Brown of Ohio who wished to investigate the Office of War Information for allegedly making critical statements anent the Congress in mailers provided the soldiers.

Representative Clare Hoffman of Michigan had become the ring leader of the band, an odd circus elephant for the fact that he had begun each day's session of the House for nearly a year by taking the liberty of the one minute allowed for free debate to assail the President, usually connecting him with Communism.

Marquis Childs examines the impact of the Oklahoma special Congressional election which elected the Democrat W. G. Stigler, and its portent for the Republican Party which campaigned hard against the New Deal behind the leadership of former Democrat, turned Republican, Senator Ed Moore. Since the state rejected the fiery anti-New Deal fervor of Senator Moore, it suggested a split Republican Party with states' rightists coming to control it. It left liberal Republicans and independents on the outside, perhaps to form their own separate New Deal Party.

Drew Pearson devotes his entire column to the history of the Italian Campaign and the consequent mutual attempts to cast blame for its current quagmire, the Americans blaming Churchill, the British blaming General Marshall.

Mr. Pearson recounts that both the Casablanca Conference of January, 1943 and the May-June Washington Conference in the wake of the North African victory in Tunisia had determined that there would be no second front launched immediately, giving more time for the Allied bombing to soften Germany.

In the May-June conference, Allied commanders declared their desire to strike in Western Europe, but Churchill refused, wishing instead to launch an offensive through the Balkans. General Marshall, however, balked at this latter suggestion as diverting too many troops from England. Neither side believed in the wisdom of an Italian campaign up the narrow peninsula, a perfect geographical zone for falling into a trap, with little to win, as even after Rome and Northern Italy would be conquered, there was still the Alps to negotiate to get to Germany.

Churchill still favored a Balkans campaign, especially after Mussolini fell July 26, affording the opportunity for taking advantage of twenty Italian divisions in the Balkans whose allegiance would be confused in the immediate aftermath. But General Marshall remained as adamantly opposed to dividing Allied forces in that manner.

Thus, after the Sicily Campaign, complete by mid-August, came the Campaign for Italy in early September, born essentially of a void, out of which the only place left for the troops in North Africa and Sicily to go being Italy.

Framed Edition
[Return to Links-Page by Subject] [Return to Links-Page by Date] [Return to News<i><i><i>--</i></i></i>Framed Edition]
Links-Date -- Links-Subj.