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Show r WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS I First Phase of Invasion Ended As Initial Foothold is Secured; : French Hail 'liberation Troops" J Released by Western Newspaper Union ! EDITOR'S NOTE: When opinions are expressed in the .Mnm-c .u ,?,.rn Newspaper Union's news analyst and not necessaluT"8,' Si? " spacer?)' ' ' "Zr T. -"' iBA,V' AIRFIELD: Nearer Philippines A base within bombing range of the Philippines fell to General Mac-Arthur's Mac-Arthur's forces when the Mokmer airdrome on Biak Island was stormed and captured on the 13th day of the invasion of the Schoutens. The beachhead on Biak was established estab-lished late in May. A frontal stab was repulsed, following which American Amer-ican forces got in behind enemy positions po-sitions and swept to the air field from the rear. The Mokmer field is within 880 miles of the Philippines to the northwest north-west and is within good fighter range of Palau, Japanese western Carolines Caro-lines naval base guarding the approaches ap-proaches of the Philippines. The island also has two other airfields air-fields desired by the Sixth army invaders. in-vaders. The Americans immediately began a push toward the Borokoe airdrome a few hundred yards to the west. INDUSTRY: Must Take Initiative Warning that industry must find its own work when war contracts are no longer available, Donald Nelson, Nel-son, chairman of the War Production Produc-tion board, told the juse postwar committee, that: . . it won't be the government's job to find work for each company in its present expanded position. It's impossible to find a postwar market for the 8,900 airplanes we now produce pro-duce monthly." Stating that he was 100 per cent in favoring government's assistance in postwar planning for industry, he said that he was against government govern-ment "running" small business. He urged that companies now engaged in war production use their own ingenuity in-genuity and initiative in planning their postwar programs. He forecast a postwar "expansionist" "expan-sionist" period in which private enterprise rather than the government govern-ment would provide the necessary "spark." Government pump priming prim-ing would be at a minimum under such conditions. This Brst picture made from French soil shows American doughboys, rifles ready, wading through the surf onto the French beachhead. The photographer who made the picture was in the first group to hit the beach. Note the invasion craft in the background. Soundphoto. THE INVASION: First Phase Ended The first phase of the Allied invasion in-vasion of Europe was completed. To a tense world, supreme headquarters head-quarters of the allied expeditionary forces announced this phase as the "securing of a foothold and the defeating de-feating of local German reserves." Against fierce, last-ditch resistance resist-ance of 10 hastily massed Nazi divisions, divi-sions, totaling nearly 150,000 men, allied forces were plunging inland on a 100-mile front of curving shoreline shore-line from the Seine Estuary near Le Havre to the Cherbourg area. Allied forces are now in the second sec-ond phase, which is one of defeating the German "tactical reserves," said headquarters. The third phase, which must be won before the Allied Al-lied position is completely secure, is that of defeating the German "strategic reserves." (Tactical reserves are those in or near the combat area; strategic reserves are those held in readiness at a distance.) dis-tance.) I The Air Umbrella Headquarters announced that 27,000 individual air missions were carried out in the two and one-half days following the dawn of D-day. Great air fleets, probably greater than those of D-day, hammered Nazi strong points, transport and troop concentrations within a 150-mile 150-mile radius of the beachheads. Nazi fighter opposition was weak. The German high command had not yet thrown its long-hoarded fighter reserves re-serves into the battle for Normandy. The battle was joined around LIBERATED BAYEUX: First of Many Eyewitness accounts described great joy in the streets of Bayeux, France, first city to be liberated by Allied troops in the invasion of western west-ern Europe. On the main rail line linking the big port Cherbourg to Paris, Bayeux is five miles inland from Seine Bay. "God save the King. We've waited wait-ed for this day. On to Paris! Vive Tommy! Vive Amerique!" These were some of the rejoicing cries that greeted the first detachments to march through the narrow streets of the Normandy town. Cheering men and women danced through the same streets as the troops came in. Cafe owners began throwing open their doors with pianists striking up patriotic tunes to add to the festivity of that first day. Europe was to see many towns cleared of the enemy in the weeks to come but Bayeux got its niche in the history books when the French Tricolor was hoisted above it again on the second day of the Allied landings land-ings in France. SHUTTLE-BOMBING: Russian Bases Used New dispatches began carrying a new dateline that read "From a U. S. Air Base Somewhere in Russia" Rus-sia" and this spelled historic military mili-tary significance in cooperation between be-tween the United States and the Soviet Union. For the first time, U. S. planes had taken off from bases in Italy, bombed German targets, tar-gets, and continued flying eastward Lookout Bayeux, first city of France to be freed from Germans, and Caen. A fierce tank battle raged in several wooded areas near Bayeux, where the Nazis were strengthened by parachute troops. The navy supported foot troops with a gigantic bombardment of Caen. Nazi forces were attempting attempt-ing to hold the city as a pivot for counterattacks. But on the second day of invasion, the Germans were forced to admit street fighting already al-ready was being waged inside Caen. Single Front It became increasingly obvious that Allied positions were fast being be-ing welded together into a single front, stretching from Caen through Bayeux to just outside Carentan and some distance up the Cherbourg Peninsula toward Valognes. It was disclosed that the first forces ashore on D-day might have Pushed ahead more rapidly than "ley did, but General Eisenhower's supreme command decided it was wiser to slow the advance somewhat some-what while awaiting more ade-Quate ade-Quate strength rather than make a risk having the spearheads choked off. OBJECTIVE PARIS: By Bastille Day? Bastille day, French national holi-day, holi-day, falls on July 14 and in the first days of the invasion of western Europe, veterans of the 1940 battle France forecast that the Allies would be in Paris by that date to P the natives celebrate. In New York the French language weekly, "Franee-Amerique" carried column by Ernest R. Bauer, which Indicated that French military vet-"ans vet-"ans familiar with the terrain over which the battles are now being "Ught predict rapid progress from the beachheads to Paris 120 miles fiway. Meanwhile in London Winston urchill urged the house of com-Wons com-Wons to guard against "the idea that things are going to be settled ln a rush." to land at secret U. S. air bases set up on Russian soil. This new program opened the farthest far-thest corners of German territory to bombing attack by Allied planes based in Britain, Italy, North Africa and Russia. American military leaders had long wanted these Russian Rus-sian bases but it took diplomatic skill of the first caliber to get the Russians to agree to the strategy. They were finally convinced when it became obvious that the U. S. and England had the necessary planes and the Russians did not. First target was a Rumanian freight yard in which the Nazis had concentrated supplies for troops fighting the Russians. American Flying Fortresses were accompanied accompa-nied by Russian fighter planes on part of the mission. ITALY: 'Major Break' in Lines The German high command in Italy was forced to admit a "major break" through their lines north and west of Rome as the Fifth army smashed toward Lake Bracchiano and Civitavecchia, key port of the Tyrrhenian sea. German resistance was described by the allied command as "only light" It amounted to little more than disorganized activities by delaying de-laying infantry units and self-propelled guns. The Fifth army had taken more than 18,000 prisoners and many more thousands were captured by the British Eighth army, which was meeting heavier resistance northwest north-west of Rome, where the hardest fighting is being encountered. The Vatican "Whoever may be the military authorities actually having control of the city of Rome," the Vatican has announced its determ.nat.on to maintain a policy of neutrality Observers Ob-servers took this to mean that the holy see gave the Germans credit for correct behaviour with regard to Rome in its final hours. 1 A German sentry pictured as he scanned the skies over Boulogne, France looking for trouble that came unexpectedly. Boulogne was one of the cities hit by sea and air bombings, paving the way for landing land-ing of Allied forces. FOOT SOLDIERS: Pay Increase In reply to a request by War Secretary Sec-retary Stimson, Chairman May of the house military affairs committee commit-tee introduced a bill to increase pay of skilled infantrymen $5 to $10 a month. Soldiers 'holding the expert infantryman's infan-tryman's badge would get a $5 increase in-crease and those having the combat infantryman's badge, $10. Cost of the increase would amount to between be-tween 55 and 71 million dollars yearly- In asking for the legislation, Stimson Stim-son said infantry casualties are the highest of any branch of service. In the North African campaign, including includ-ing Italy, the infantry suffered 70 per cent of the casualties, although comprising only 19.6 per cent of the total forces. FARM MACHINERY: Restrictions Removed Small manufacturers (employing less than 100 workers) can now engage en-gage in the unlimited production of farm machinery, equipment, and repair parts made entirely from surplus sur-plus materials or materials with an AA-4 preference rating. This new arrangement, announced by the War Production board, is limited lim-ited to firms employing not more than 50 workers in group 1 labor areas, or on the West coast. Elsewhere Else-where plants employing fewer than 100 workers may participate. Manufacturers meeting these regulations can use surplus materials mate-rials and component parts from inventories in-ventories together with AA-4 prefer-ence prefer-ence rating materials in such production. pro-duction. TRAVEL BAN: Because of the increased loads placed on the nation's transportation transporta-tion system by the invasion, Director Direc-tor of Defense Transportation J. M. Johnson has asked immediate cancellation can-cellation of all nonwar conventions, trade meetings and all nonessential civilian travel. An ODT spokesman said there were no plans to ration train and bus travel through priorities, but that reserved space may be commandeered com-mandeered by orders of the army surgeon general for casualty cases. |