The Charlotte News

Saturday, May 9, 1942

FIVE EDITORIALS

Site Ed. Note: The front page continues to boast of the perceived Allied victory in the Coral Sea, a perception skewed by some falsely optimistic reports delivered to the press by General MacArthur, perhaps innocently based on false intelligence.

As indicated, it would turn out that losses were heavy on each side, somewhat more in terms of shipping tonnage for the Allies, somewhat more in terms of men and planes and number of ships for the Japanese. It was certainly not a clear victory for either side.

Yet, after five months of bad news interspersed only by isolated episodes to buoy hopes, the Doolittle raid of April 18, pockets of resistance here and there, the stubborn four and five-month fight on Bataan and Corregidor respectively, the tenacity of the little out-manned contingent of Marines on Wake Island in December, stories of occasional individual air or sea heroism, even a draw, forcing the Japanese navy to retire, was considered a potential turning point, as "Glorious Victory" on the editorial page suggests.

We shall let them therefore have their moment of well-deserved bliss in sunlit optimism and you may read it for yourself. The long, bloody struggle, however, still lay fiercely ahead for three more years.

In the meantime, remember, burn only parking lights within five miles of the beach and heed the 15 mph speed limit--that is, should you've any gas left of your two gallon weekly allotment to get anywhere even close to within five miles of the beach to begin with. If not, stay home and count your prescious remaining grains of sugar.

Framed Edition
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