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Show I ! WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS Hard-Fought Battle for Air Supremacy Holds Key to Control of North Africa; Italians Fret Over British Air Raids; Gains in New Guinea Mark Pacific War (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.) i Released by Western Newspaper Union. 1 STRATEGY: A'azis First Much interest throughout the United Unit-ed Nations has long centered on the broad or general plan for defeating the Axis. Always there have been theories advanced which often seem to have little basis in fact. Others again have a highly legitimate tone. One of the most recent explanations explana-tions of such strategy, and one of more plausible presentations of it is that advanced by Prime Minister John Curtin of Australia. In a current cur-rent statement he declared that President Roosevelt and Winston Churchill decided even before the fall of Singapore (February 15, 1942) that the most necessary job was to beat Hitler and then take after Japan. Thus the campaign in the South Pacific and on the Australian continent con-tinent becomes one of a "holding" action. He warned his countrymen that they might have to endure strong air and sea-borne attack from the Japanese forces based on the island of Timor. He urged them to further prepare themselves for such action. He pointed out that the closest co-operation exists between the Australian Aus-tralian government, General Mac-Arthur Mac-Arthur and Admiral Chester Nimitz, commander of the U. S. Seet in the Pacific. CANNED FOOD: New Restrictions America's housewives are finding less and less use for their can openers. open-ers. Many canned foodstuffs are eliminated elimi-nated for civilian consumption for the duration upon a new order of the War Production board. The order was designed to save large quantities quanti-ties of tin, steel and rubber for war purposes. The saving in rubber would be made through fewer truck deliveries under the reduced output program. Canned foods henceforth eliminated eliminat-ed include apples, applesauce, apri- ai null mi mwmttyrw-nxii' J?.. pTj'w-f,w-vl . ;fS . . . J L v r i. , i - i -- r,l United States soldiers cross a stream In the Gona-Buna area of New Guinea. The occupation of Gona by Allied forces, directed by General MacArthur, left the Japanese pinned down in a narrow strip of coast in the Buna area, 12 miles south. JAP DEFEAT: In South Pacific When Allied forces, directed by General MacArthur, occupied the Gona area of New Guinea, the Japs lost the northern anchor of their ever-diminishing beachhead in Papua, Pa-pua, which already has been badly sliced by veteran American and Australian jungle fighters. This new defeat left the Japs hemmed in a narrow coastal strip centering on the Buna area, 12 miles to the south. First announcement of the Gona victory was made by Prime Minister John Curtin, who gave the news as he was conducting a review of the war before the house of representatives representa-tives in Canberra, Australia. His announcement was made 16 days after an Allied headquarters communique com-munique had announced the original origi-nal Australian entry into Gona. The Japs had landed at Gona on July 22 and from that area launched their invasion drive which took them across the Owen Stanley mountain range to within 32 miles of the Allied Al-lied base at Port Moresby. COMPLAINTS: From Italy "Why do the British bomb ,our towns now instead of German towns? After all it was the Germans Ger-mans who bombed London." That was one of the many complaints com-plaints reported originating in Italy during the past 30 days. Well-informed diplomatic quarters have reported re-ported ever-growing discontent in Italy It-aly over the war. Mussolini's people peo-ple are weary. They do not like the arrogance of their German Allies. Al-lies. Already they are dazed by repeated re-peated British . bombing attacks. And every Italian knows the immediate imme-diate future is black. cots, numerous types of berries, grapefruit segments, orange juice, dehydrated vegetables, powdered skimmed milk, bacon and other meats, fruit for salad, okra, succotash, suc-cotash, various fruit juices, white asparagus, chili con carne, meat loaf, Vienna sausage, sausage in oil, frozen and storage cream, various fats, syrups and sea foods. CASUALTIES: Total War Well into the second year of World War II, U. S. citizens were pondering ponder-ing the official announcements from Washington which reported for the armed forces during the first 12 months of the fighting. There were 58,307 such casualties in that period according to the Office ,of War Information. In-formation. This total includes killed, wounded, missing, interned in neutral neu-tral countries and prisoners of the army, navy, marine corps, coast guard, merchant marine and Philippine Philip-pine Scouts. War department reports showed that army casualties totaled 35,678 and of this number 2,009 (including 480 Philippine Scouts) were killed; 3,332 were wounded; and 29,000 (including (in-cluding 10,500 Philippine Scouts) are missing in the Philippines and the Dutch East Indies and 1,119 are missing elsewhere in action; 112 are prisoners of war, not including those missing in the Philippines; and 106 are interned in neutral countries. Six hundred and nine of the 3,332 wounded have returned to action. As the majority-of the army's missing miss-ing were in the Philippines and Dutch East Indies, most of these are presumed to be prisoners of I NORTH AFRICA: Air Battle Groivs Cheering word of ever-increasing Allied air strength in North Africa came from London and the Morocco radio as swarms of American and British planes in Tunisia provided cover for land operations. Press reports tell of ground commanders com-manders telephoning for air coverage cover-age "as casually as calling for a taxi." Chief battleground for the oppos-1 oppos-1 ing forces had been Tebourba, a strategic junction 20 miles west of Tunisia and 35 miles south of Bizerte. Here a series of rapid action ac-tion tank battles took place, with the key town changing hands as battle fortunes shifted. Continuing efforts were made to extend and equip new airfields from which Allied planes could operate. Reports reaching the United States stressed the importance of the many American Commando transport planes now available. They are described de-scribed as 50 per cent faster than the JU-52s and are capable of mov-1 mov-1 ing jeeps, small field guns and up to 98 soldiers. On the opposite side of Africa, the British Eighth army was reported report-ed allowing Marshal Rommel's army no rest in the El Agheila area. The official communique spoke of patrol and artillery action. British military sources in London had warned that the "real" offensive was not yet under way and that ' when the Eighth army strikes, the ; blows will leave no doubt as to its j strength. RUSSIA: ; Central Front Although Nazi forces have been hard pressed in Russia, military observers ob-servers were quick to warn against undue optimism. Despite a grave strain on their communications, German Ger-man forces were said to be showing no signs of faltering in defensible positions. ; Generally speaking, news was good. The Red army drove seven miles deeper into enemy lines on the central front near Velikie Luki, recapturing 13 settlements, while the Germans failed in their drive ! to regain the initiative on the Stalin grad front On the central front the Russians attacked with ski troopers supported support-ed by tanks painted white. This front extends northwest of Moscow, roughly from Rzhev to Velikie Luki. Russian reports said the Nazis were trying not only to smash the Soviet offensive but also to start one of their own, evidently in the belief that the Red army is exhausted exhaust-ed after their continuous attack. But the same sources also report that Italy has little chance of breaking break-ing away from German domination and seeking a separate peace. A steady stream of German air, antiaircraft anti-aircraft and land forces, all under Gestapo supervision, is pouring into Italy. Most of the land forces are said to have been drawn from the few reserves in Germany. Russia's new offensive makes withdrawals from the Eastern front practically impossible. The almost incessant bombing of Turin, northern Italian industrial center, continued unabated. The smoke and fire of one raid was not dissipated before another wave of British bombers returned to spread new destruction. It was evident evi-dent that the RAF did not intend to give city authorities even time to restore public utilities. war. Navy department officials said that they had reported or were in the process of reporting to the next of kin 22,629 casualties for the year. Broken down here is the picture: Navy dead, 4,532; wounded, 1,579; missing, 8,636. Marine corps dead, 1,129; wounded, 1,413; missing, 1,926. Coast Guard dead, 40; wounded, 11; missing, 119. Merchant IVX'arine dead, 482; wounded, none; missing, 2,762. According to Japanese and German Ger-man figures 3,138 U.'S. civilians are interned, said the OWI report. 3-CENT COIN: May Avert Shortages 1 If mint officials have their way new 3-cent coins may jingle in your pockets some day in the not distant future. Officials asked authority to make such coins in case the copper shortage short-age becomes so acute that there won't be enough pennies. The house passed legislation authorizing the new coin and returned it to the senate sen-ate for action. . Director of the Mint Nellie Tayloe Ross has asked the nation's school children to undertake a "help win the war" campaign by putting idle ' coins, especially pennies and 5-cent pieces, to work meeting business demands, de-mands, and thus save many tons of vital metals. DETROIT LABOR: Approximately 660,000 essential war workers in the Detroit area have been frozen to their jobs in an all-inclusive order by Montague A. Clark, Michigan director of the War Manpower commission. The order lists 34 categories in which employees may not change jobs without specific government authorization. It affects nearly two-thirds two-thirds of the area's gainfully em- ployed workers. It includes workers at the Willow Run bomber plant, and other plants throughout the region. The order, Clark said, was intended intend-ed primarily to prevent labor pirating pirat-ing and production dislocations caused by shifting of workers to jobs that pay more. The order specifically directs employers em-ployers to "refuse to hire or solicit workers from other essential industries indus-tries within the area unless the applicant ap-plicant presents a certificate of release re-lease from his former employer or from the review unit of the U. S. Employment Service." The order provides both employee and employer with the right to appeal. |
