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Show I WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS Passing of Dictators Climaxes Downfall of Axis in Europe; Map Swing to One-Front War I Pjlfl"a by Western Newspaper Union. (EDITOR'S NOTE: When opinions are expressed In these columns, they are those of Western Newspaper Union's news analysts and not necessarily of this newspaper.) 7 - - , $ ? , Under cover of tank, Soviet infantrymen storm Nazi strongpoint in Berlin Ber-lin during death fight for capital. Tj'TT'p rT)T? . armies in Italy surrendered to Lt- EUROIE: Gen Mark clark Inevitable Ends Looking back upon the events of Accursed outside of his own coun- war D"ce said: "staUn is a try, with no hope of refuge as Allied reat man the greatest man in- armies closed on deed but Roosevelt is really lucky. r,, Germany.s final Europe may still be saved if the ' .?' . " j redoubts, Adolf S10 - Americans erect a barrier 4. , - Hitler reportedly against the onrushing Russian VJ died amid the hordes." v 1 Tbm oI own PAPTFTr1. if- dreams. following '- "" , his one-time part- Counter -Point P " ner, Benito Mus- Ack.ack flew haa at at- -H ' ? tacklnS JaP Planes' and' beins LJk. LSi 4e5ayS' ., struck, they plummeted to earth A has - been smoke and flame. Adolf Hitler for two years Aground, U. S. artillery ham- Mussohm s death mere(J at thg e s staunch possessed none of the import of Hit- defenses before the ltal ol ler's although even his was temp- Nahg and Yanks d close tQ ered by the fact that the breakdown fte arth in their ad. of the German army largely count- yance against strongly en. eracted any fanatical resolutions he trenched foe as bullets fiew. might have had to carry on the war. Qn aU rf southern okinawa Immediate effect of Hitler's death tnis was warhard, relentless, was to bring about the formation of merciless war. But like all war, a German government under Grand there was the tempering touch Adm. Karl Doenitz less offensive to 0f humanity under the brutal the Allies at a time when peace crust. For, under a shinto negotiations ' were proceeding. shrine back of the front, a U. S. Though Nazi, Doenitz principally Mormon chaplain married a ' has- concerned himself with naval captured Japanese officer and affairs, mus avoiding any of the an okinawan nurse upon their stigma associated with the party's request. Standing by without in-political in-political machinations. He moved dulgjng in any demonstration to surround himself with similar were 200 American soldiers, prominent men, who, at least, pretended pre-tended to serve their country as WAR PRODUCTION: Germans rather than as Nazis. -y pfong Bitter Cup Maintenance of some controls to Reportedly dying with his boots on assure continued critical production in the once grandiose, now rubbled for the war against Japan and re-reichschancellory re-reichschancellory in Berlin where he laxation of others to permit the Urn-was Urn-was supposed to have directed the ited resumption of civilian output city's defenses through its fatal are scheduled for effect after V-E stand, Hitler did not pass on until Day to adjust the country to a one-he one-he had seen his own greater reich front conflict, government officials split to pieces by advancing Allied disclosed. armies. To help relieve the shock of such Berlin itself was a shambles as an adjustment, it was revealed, cut-the cut-the fuehrer died, with that once backs already are being made in proud German capital lying in a war production with the tempo ex-ruin ex-ruin of masonry and twisted girders pected to be speeded up in the comas com-as the Russians took over street tag months. after street in bitter house to house Even with Germany's defeat, war fighting, with Nazi fanatics stand- production will continue to dominate ing true to. Hitler's orders to resist American industry with military to the last. output for the first year after V-E To the north, Russian units were rjay estimated at 48 billion dollars, racing westward across the Baltic 14 per cent less than the program coast to clean up a formidable de- for a two-front war. As a result, fensive pocket with British and critical materials will have to be American troops advancing east- controlled to channel them into war ward. Due west of Berlin, U. S. and production, and manpower regula-Russ regula-Russ forces already had solidly tions will have to be retained to as-linked as-linked up, while to the south, sure an adequate labor supply. French and Yank columns drove with plants reconverted to civilian deep into the Bavarian Alps and production expected to take up most raced through Austria for another of labor slack after V.E Day, war junction with Red troops, which Manpower commission officials would not only seal that country's looke(J tQ a continued pressing em-fate em-fate but also forge a ring of steel loyment situation. In tight labor around Czechoslovakia. areas WMC plans to conttaue That was the picture of Germany the referral of workers to critical that lay before Adolf Hitler as he industry .and require certificates of went down fighting "against Bolshe- availability for job changes; main- vism." tain the 48-hour- week with higher 11 n D7 '7 ' 7 Pay to attract workers from other It LfUCe rlllLOSOplllZeS sections, and to rate industries ac- "No tree reaches the sky" thus cording to their importance in es- spoke bald, stocky, bull-necked Beni- tablishing priorities for hiring peo- to Mussolini before his summary pie. execution by Italian The lumber, textile and rubber in- Partisans in north- isSS- 1 dustries are among those which will em Italy that touch- receive a high rating, since supplies ed off a wave of i k of these materials will remain short killings of ex fas ''JJ long after V-E Day and production cists, which prompt- V will be necessary not only for the ed Allied officials Pacific war but also for such civil- to call a halt to " f ian enterprises as building, crating spare the country and packaging. a blood-bath. 1 . , To help take up the employment Captured with his L -V slack uponjhe reduction in war pro-dark pro-dark and comely w duction the so-called "spot" author-25 author-25 - year - old mis- Benito Mussolini ization program for civilian output tress and neo-fascist will be restored, with plants show-accomplices show-accomplices while attempting to flee ing idle machinery and workers per-to per-to Switzerland, the 61-year-old ex- mitted to return to peacetime manu-dictator, manu-dictator, who had ruled his coun- facture. Altogether, 700 million dol-try dol-try high-handedly for 20 years, was lars of such work has already been shot in the back shortly before Axis authorized through 1945. COAL PRICES: New Hike Eecause of OPA approval of soft coal operators' petitions for price increases to help defray some of the cost of the new miners' contract, producers will be allowed to boost prices an average of 16 cents a ton, with consequential small percentage increases in retail ceilings. By granting an average price increase in-crease of 16 cents per ton while having the operators themselves bear an additional 5 cents of cost to cover the added expenses of the new contract, the government followed fol-lowed the policy laid down in 1943 of allowing the companies a profit margin mar-gin equal to 1942 or 15 cents a ton. Signed after 42 days of negotiation, negotia-tion, the new contract awards the average miner 81 cents a day more in take-home pay by requiring full payment for underground travel time; calls for higher hourly wages for second and third shifts, and also raises vacation pay. Meanwhile, the government strove for settlement of a new hard coal contract to prevent extended disruption disrup-tion of anthracite output as negotiations negotia-tions between operators and miners broke down and work virtually ceased in the principal producing state of Pennsylvania. SAN FRANCISCO: Turn Tables Having dominated the early stages of the San Francisco postwar security se-curity parley of the United Nations, Russia's bristly V. M. Molotov was forced to give ground under the combined com-bined pressure of the U. S. and Britain Brit-ain and the South American states. But before Molotov had been scored, the Russian Foreign Commissar Com-missar had succeeded in dividing up the chairmanship of the conference assembly among the U. S., Britain, Russia and China instead of reposing repos-ing it in U. S. hands as ordained by diplomatic custom, and had obtained ob-tained three votes for the Reds at both San Francisco and in the future postwar organization. Molotov was rebuffed on two counts: Over Russian objections, the conference agreed to the seating of Argentina upon the South American states' contention that the country had renounced its Axis sympathies and joined the inter-American defense de-fense system, and then the delegates dele-gates refused to recognize the Moscow-sponsored Polish provisional provision-al government unless broadened by inclusion of other than Communist elements. EUROPEAN CROPS: Bleak Outlook With the prolonged German resistance resist-ance this spring retarding seasonal plantings and adding to smaller acreages seeded last fall because of bad weather and abandonment of land in areas of military operations, opera-tions, 1945 harvests in liberated countries are expected to drop considerably con-siderably below previous years. As a result, extensive overseas food shipments may be needed to provide pro-vide relief. Further aggravating the situation, it is said, is the breakdown of the German system of collecting sur- Pitching in to help relieve the critical European food situation, the North Dakota Farmers Union turned over 338,000 red ration points to the OPA for purchase of meat and butter for starving civilians. plus stocks from farmers for distribution dis-tribution to urban centers. With provisional pro-visional governments slow in devising devis-ing a distributive system, many farmers have hoarded excess supplies sup-plies or sold them at fancy prices in the black market. Indicative of the already pressing food situation in many cities of liberated lib-erated countries, civilians have been restricted to diets with an energy value of 1,500 calories a day compared to an average of 3,000 in America in 1944. LOCKER RAIDS: Seek Excess Meat With the meat supply growing tighter, OPA officials in the Chicago, HI., area moved against hoarded city locker holdings in an effort to get thousands of pounds of beef, etc., circulating in regular distributive channels. Though the right of its course of action was challenged, OPA endeavored endeav-ored to have locker holders supply information as to how much meat they had and how they secured it, with those with an excess required to give up red points, sell it or turn it over to the agency. With many locker holders swearing swear-ing they owned farms, possessed interests in-terests in them, or were related to farmers, Attorney Harry Adler declared de-clared that under OPA order No. 16 a producer could store any quantity of meat, and up to 450 pounds could be loaned under condition it was repaid re-paid in six months and no cash was involved in the transaction. FRANCE: Political Straw Polling nearly 25 per cent of an estimated vote of 18,000,000, the Communists displayed unexpected strength in France's recent municipal munici-pal elections and indicated advances made by the party following its aggressive activity during the liberation liber-ation period. As a result of the balloting, bal-loting, the Reds will control all important im-portant cities, including Paris. Lyon. Bordeaux, Marseilles, Toulouse and Rennes. |