Site Ed. Note: The front page reports that one of the most crucial battles of the Okinawa campaign was being fought by the 29th Regiment of the Sixth Marines for the Sugar Loaf Hill fortress, a 150-foot hill on the eastern approaches to Naha and the moated fortress of Shuri at the center of the Japanese line. The Japanese were desperately seeking to reinforce their lines at Sugar Loaf to preserve the position. The Marines had taken the northern slope after nine attacks in seven days on the hill. The Japanese were still in control of the southern slope overlooking Naha. That position first had to be cleared before the Marines could enter the empty ruins of Naha, being patrolled, however, by increasing numbers of Americans. Losses to the enemy were heavy and mounting as they were to the Americans.

Admiral Nimitz provided a detailed account of the hand to hand fighting which had taken place in the battle to take Conical Hill, already captured. An hour-long battle, in which G Company of the 383rd Regiment of the 96th Division held off determined Japanese, found the officer leading the enemy contingent dressed in formal white gloves and polished dress boots, in preparation for his Bushido entrance to Nirvana. Several of the officers encountered in the fighting were so dressed.

More than 400 B-29's were reported over Japan this date, bombing Tokyo and Hamamatsu, important industrial city 60 miles southeast of Nagoya. Some 300 of the Superfortresses were reported to have raided the latter location at around noon, dropping more than 2,000 tons of demolition bombs. The Tokyo raid involved about 150 B-29's. A Japanese broadcast added that 30 Beesans had mined Wakasa Bay, western Honshu port on the Japan Sea during the morning, while others were believed to have mined Bungo Strait at the southwestern entrance to the Inland Sea.

General Curtis LeMay announced that four raids on Nagoya during the week of March 12-29 had destroyed 11.3 square miles of the city, 22 percent of its area, including 33 specific military targets. He also stated that 59.58 square miles of six of Japan's largest cities, including 17 square miles of Tokyo, had been bombed out or damaged in B-29 raids.

Japan was reported to be training children to throw grenades, that children on Okinawa had died "heroic deaths" throwing the deadly devices at Americans. The American forces, however, had reported no such instance.

Vice Admiral Ryoso Fukuda was appointed by Premier Suzuki to take over command of the Imperial Fleet in China waters.

The report, however, states that this Imperial Fleet in China waters likely was somewhat the figment of the imagination of the High Command. Admiral William Halsey's carrier forces had plied the waters off the China coast and discovered no such fleet in existence.

—Ah, stupid American. Invisible Fleet: New Japanese secret weapon. You will see. You die, American.

On Luzon, Filipino guerillas and soldiers of the 43rd Division recaptured Ipo Dam near Manila. Thousands of encircled Japanese continued to hold part of the water supply. It remained a mystery why they had never blown the dam.

Anti-aircraft searchlights had been utilized as artificial lighting to reveal nighttime operations of the Japanese seeking to penetrate American lines at the outskirts of Manila. The light permitted continued American firing of mortar rounds through the night without endangering American troops, revealing the attempts at infiltration. The tactics had eventually broken the spirit of the continued resistance.

To the south, the 38th Division moved toward the Wawa Dam, capturing high ground 3,500 yards northwest of Mount Batangan against heavy resistance, killing at least 200.

On Mindanao, the 31st Division captured Valencia and two airstrips in the central part of the island.

The 40th Infantry Division, aided by units of the Americal Division, drove south along the Sayre Highway toward the 31st, bypassing a strong enemy position in the Mangima River canyon, and circled back onto the highway at the village of Dalirig.

From China, it was reported that the Chinese had completely re-occupied the port city of Foochow, 125 miles northwest of Formosa, as the Japanese were reported to be withdrawing to the northeast from the city to a position up the coast toward Shanghai. There were also indications of withdrawal from Wenchow in Chekiang, 220 miles south of Shanghai, as well as from Amoy and Swatow.

Observers in Chungking foresaw possible withdrawal also from Southeast Asia to positions north of the Yellow River, with evacuation from Burma to Thailand as the first step.

The withdrawals appeared to be from fear of American landings on the coast of China or the result of rumors that Japan had tendered peace offers to the United States and Great Britain, a report not confirmed.

The Chinese had been aware for some time of an underground peace faction in Japan led by former Premier Prince Konoye and including business leaders who wished to avoid further destruction of the country.

In other areas, the Chinese were within 18 miles of Paoching, guarding the key city of Hengyang in the supply corridor between Manchuria and Indo-China. The entire right wing of the Japanese drive toward the American airbase at Chihkiang, 250 miles southeast of Chungking, had completely dissolved.

News from long forgotten and bypassed Bougainville came from the Australian Army indicating that the Third and Eleventh Divisions had made important headway after bitter fighting with the Japanese. The Aussies had almost completely cut off the enemy on Bonis Peninsula on the northern front, while in the center of the island, other units captured Berry's Hill, and in the south, tank-led infantry had broken through enemy defenses at several points along the Hongoroi River.

It was the first reported action from Bougainville since February, 1944.

In Rome, Field Marshal Sir Harold Alexander charged that Marshal Tito had used force "all too reminiscent of Hitler, Mussolini, and Japan" to take areas in northeast Italy and southern Austria, in the areas of Trieste, Istria, and the Slovene coastline. General Alexander stressed that, pursuant to the Yalta agreement, it was the Allied duty to maintain these areas in trusteeship until the peace conference settled their disposition. He stated that he had been unable to reach an amicable compromise with Marshal Tito on their occupation. There was no objection to Yugoslavian claims being made for the territory but occupation by force was unacceptable.

Marshal Tito declared that the honor of Yugoslavia required the occupation. He was said to have previously agreed on May 8 to Allied occupation of the areas but had changed his mind because of changing conditions.

General Alexander told Tito that the Allies intended to continue to use the port at Trieste and maintain forces in northeastern Italy and Austria. He asked Tito to forbid his troops from entering Austria and to withdraw those already across the border. That request had yet to receive compliance.

The 15th Army, comprised of between 300,000 and 400,000 troops, under the command of Lt. General Leonard Gerow, were now occupying 14,000 square miles of Germany, including the Saar Basin, the Rhine Valley, and the western half of the Ruhr. The area was eight times larger than that supervised by American troops after the World War I Armistice.

Norwegian authorities had located stolen art treasures, including works by Rubens and Rembrandt, and a table once owned by Napoleon, within the mansion previously occupied by Vidkun Quisling. Quisling was expected to be summoned for a preliminary hearing on charges of treason within a week.

Heinrich Himmler was said now to be in the area of Hamburg and a search was on for his whereabouts. Previously, he had been reported in the area of Berchtesgaden to the south.

Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, chief of the German High Command, was added to the list of war criminals maintained by Czechoslovakia.

Former French Premier Edouard Herriot, having been liberated by the Russians from a German prison camp, had arrived in southern France.

In Portsmouth, N.H., U-234 surrendered, bearing Major General Ulrich Kessler of the Luftwaffe and the bodies of two dead Japanese who had committed hara kiri. The craft had originally been en route to Japan via Greenland when it surrendered a week earlier. It was the fourth U-boat surrendering in Portsmouth, the others being U-803, U-873, and U-1228.

As reporters were maintained a distance of eight feet from the crew and forbidden interviews, it was not made clear why the U-boat carried two Japanese. It appeared a bit late in the war for observation and training, but it was not revealed whether they were officers, sailors, soldiers, or diplomatic personnel. Presumably, though not indicated, the submarine was headed to Japan to return the two home.

Apparently, as maintained in secret through the Cold War, the mission of U-234 was to transport a substantial amount of uranium oxide to Japan for use in an attempt to develop its own atomic bomb. The uranium was seized by the Government.

An unfortunate minesweeper, operating off the English coast, was sunk without survivors on May 8 at 11:59 p.m., one minute before the official end of the war, even if ceasefire had already been declared since 2:30 a.m., May 7. The nationality of the vessel was not identified but presumably was part of the Royal Navy.

In San Francisco, the United Nations Conference awaited word from Moscow anent the regional defense plan which had been approved by Britain and the United States and needed approval by the Soviets. A revolt by the smaller nations was again brewing against the power exerted by the Big Five and was thought potentially to prolong the conference beyond the ensuing two weeks.

Francisco Aguirre of Cuba, in a closed meeting, had accused the Big Powers of wanting to create a "collective dictatorship" of the world. Nine of the Latin American leaders were refusing to allow further action at the conference on the proposed unilateral veto power of each member of the Security Council until the issue was settled as to regional defense blocs, allowing block members to take action against aggression within each regional sphere, with or without Security Council approval.

The UMW anticipated settlement of its three-week old strike, the obstacle being resolution of how to apportion the proposed $1.37.5 daily increase in pay, as having been suggested by Secretary of Interior Harold Ickes, in control of the mines since May 3. The miners, however, had not returned to work under Government control. The union was said to be more optimistic of resolution than were the mine operators and hoped to have the miners back to work on Monday.

The New York Daily Mirror reported that Mrs. Roosevelt had been approached by Democratic leaders, including Postmaster General Robert Hannegan and Bronx leader Ed Flynn, and asked to run for mayor of New York, but had firmly declined.

On the editorial page, "Another Victory" provides a quote from Woodrow Wilson in September, 1919, stating that the reason American mothers who had lost sons in the fighting in France had come to him in tears, thanking him and blessing him, despite that it was he who had sent their sons to Europe, into the thick of the Argonne Forest where death was almost a certainty, was because they knew that their sons had died for the concept of "liberty of the world".

"Found—& Lost" thinks it likely that there had been general regret at the resignation of the City Health Officer in Charlotte, Dr. Ross Cameron. The piece asserts that he had done a fine job and would be hard to replace.

"Who's Talking?" remarks on the denunciation by Russia in early April of the non-aggression pact held with Japan since April 25, 1941 and the hope which the renunciation had stimulated that Russia might enter the Pacific war.

The press rose up in resentment over this pronouncement, and The News had joined the chorus, believing there to be no sound reason for squelching such discussion. There still did not appear to be any.

Indeed, while American newspapers were precluded from discussing these matters, the Russians had announced that the Red Army had turned to maneuvers in central Europe, suggesting that they were not finished with the fight, impliedly suggesting they might join the Pacific war.

Then came a letter, which the Russian press highlighted, from Sakhalin Island, north of Japan, half-Russian, half-Japanese, expressing warm greetings to their comrades. It was likely that Tokyo had perceived this incident as another signal of Russian aggressive intentions.

The piece concludes frustratedly that Americans could not speculate on Russian involvement in the Pacific war when the Russians themselves were sending signals which could be interpreted only as moves toward that involvement.

"The Man of Joy" comments on the capture of Dr. Robert Ley, the founder of the "Strength Through Joy" program of the Nazis, while trying to slip by American checkpoints disguised as Dr. Ernst Distelmeyer. He had been spotted and identified by a fellow Nazi, had then tried to take cyanide when discovered, but failed.

The excerpt from the Congressional Record has Representative Karl Stefan of Nebraska explaining the cost of the San Francisco Conference and that the allocated amount of $1,011,685 would prove insufficient for the American delegation were the conference to extend beyond the current basis of six weeks, wanted another 1.5 million allocated from the 1946 budget, with $100,000 to be made immediately available.

Drew Pearson reports of a response by Premier Stalin to notes sent by President Truman and Prime Minister Churchill to Stalin indicating the several Russian broken promises from Yalta, with regard to Poland, Austria, Yugoslavia, and Rumania. Stalin on May 10 had refused to back down, sternly replying to Churchill, more mildly to Truman. In the eight-page letter to Truman, Stalin affirmed his commitment to the Yalta accord, but differed on its interpretation, stating that he and President Roosevelt had enjoyed a personal understanding of how the generalized agreement was specifically to be carried out and that he was only following that unwritten interpretation.

Dorothy Thompson, still somewhere in the Mediterranean, writes of the concern that the peace was quickly being eroded in terms of relations between the West and Russia for the failure of the United States to realize that peace was accomplished politically, not by military force. There was failure to insist on stringent obedience to the terms arranged at Yalta as to Poland, the Allied agreement on occupation of Trieste and southern Austria, now occupied by Tito without Allied opposition, Russian occupation of Berlin, of Prague, and Vienna, all in derogation of agreed terms of joint Allied occupation.

Marquis Childs, writing from Chattanooga, tells of being at a luncheon with several business men and professionals debating TVA. They all agreed that TVA had not sought to dominate the region, had cooperated instead of being intrusive to life. They also had agreed that David Lilienthal had done a fine job as its chairman. TVA had helped business in the aggregate, both directly in terms of increased business in certain sectors and indirectly through lowered utility costs.

A letter from the Charlotte Merchants Association thanks the News for its sobering influence on V-E Day, reminding that a bitter battle still lay ahead in the Pacific and that it was therefore no time for joyous celebration. The result had been a proper diminution of excitement in Charlotte regarding the news of V-E Day.

A perennial letter writer finds the suggestion by a psychologist, who had written an article in the newspaper recommending that the German people protest that they had done nothing wrong as a whole people as a method of catharsis, was entirely out of place and likely spawned by pro-Nazi propaganda. She asserts that repentance in accordance with Scriptural doctrine was the only path to forgiveness. She advocates death for the Germans guilty of war crimes.

A quote appears from Orson Welles: "A Woman with her hair combed up always looks as if she were going some place, either to the opera or the shower bath—depending on the Woman."