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Show WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS U. S. Forces Clean Up Hollandia Area; WFA Announces Dairy Subsidy Rates; Heavy Hog Shipments Glut Markets; Aerial Attacks Weaken Nazi Defenses Released by Western Newspaper Union. Italy- Italian farmer, are shown clearing vineyards of mall volcanic vol-canic .tone fragments .pewn by belching Mount Ve.uviu.. FLOODS: Field Work Halted Floods and heavy rain sweeping the country retarded field work and rail shipments alike, in addition to causing extensive property damage and loss of life. In the middlewest, farm work was as much as three weeks behind schedule, with only half the oats sown in Iowa, and much of that acreage planned to be diverted to corn and soybeans in Illinois. Warm, sunny weather was needed in the winter wheat belt in the southern great plains area. Because of blight and excessive moisture, the southeast south-east feared for its potato crop. Vegetable and fruit produce en-route en-route to northern markets from the west and south was held up by flood conditions through the Mississippi river basin. A stimulus to the black market was feared through the possible pos-sible diversion of crops to trucks. PACIFIC: Nearer Philippines Heavy U. S. bombers were within 1,400 miles of the Philippines with the Doughboys' capture of three airfields around Hollandia in northern New Guinea following a whirlwind invasion, inva-sion, which Gen. Douglas MacArthur claimed sealed off 140,000 Japs. Reinforced by additional troops, British and native units in eastern India braced for a showdown struggle strug-gle with invading Japs, aiming for the Bengal-Assam railroad supply- DUCKS t Population Up With mallards most numerous, the duck population now approximates 125,000,000, according to figures of Frederick C. Lincoln, chief of migratory migra-tory birds investigation of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife service. Mallards now make-up 35,000,000 to 40,000,000 of the duck population, Lincoln said, with pintails second with 20,000,000, and bluebills third with 15,000,000. Marked increases also were noted for red-headed ducks and. coots and mudhens. Because of the continuing decrease de-crease of woodcocks, however, it has been indicated that the season may be closed on them next fall, along with the Jacksnipes. BUSINESS: Oil Supply Because a tremendous area of prospective oil territory remains to be tested and petroleum could be produced from enormous reserves of coal and shale, the U. S. need have no undue concern over future oil supphes, Edward G. Seubert, president presi-dent of Standard Oil company of Indiana, told stockholders in the course of a report on the firm's business busi-ness in 1943, showing profit of $50,591,371. At the same time, President Ralph W. Gallagher of Standard Oil company com-pany of New Jersey, in announcing profits of $121,327,773 for 1943, told shareholders that although the U. S. was assured of sufficient oil in the future, two principal problems existed, namely, discovery of more oil, and insitution of sound, worldwide world-wide conservation policies to prevent pre-vent wastage in production. MAIL ORDER: Legal Battle Ground was laid for one of the U. S.'s most historic legal battles when the govern- EJri?r''' ment forcibly took over Montgomery Ward and compa- V siLi ny's big Chicas ' plant following its II Jfi refusal to accept a I presidential order I1-, ' - 1 to obey a War La-I La-I I bor board's direc- I ' 1 tive to extend a con- " tract with the CIO's Sewell Avery Mail Order, Warehouse Ware-house and Retail employees Local 20 until the union's bargaining rights could be determined. Claiming that the WLB had no supervision su-pervision over Ward's because it cannot be classed mm as a war plant, W Ward's 69-year-old ' 1 President Sewell i I Avery stuck to his guns to the last, (j finally being carried '" 4 from the plant by ,s ' J U. S. troops when . j, V 1 refusing to recog- ";'" "t J nize the govern- J ment's occupancy. As both sides W.C.Taylor squared for a court battle, Undersecretary Undersec-retary of Commerce Wayne Chatfield Taylor took over operation of the plant, lacking cooperation from some Ward officials standing loyally beside Avery. CIVILIAN GOODS: Increase Opposed While congressional leaders pressed for an increase in output of civilian goods in view of a surplus of certain materials and cancellation of some war contracts, government officials of-ficials cautioned against any considerable consid-erable boost in production over present levels. War Production Czar Donald Nelson Nel-son said military output must be increased in-creased in the immediate future and maintained at high peaks until actual ac-tual needs for operations in western Europe are established. Undersecretary of War Robert Patterson opposed any notable switch to civilian production on the grounds that it would create unfounded un-founded optimism and lead to a rush from war plants to obtain job? in consumer goods industries. QUEBEC: Overseas Service Paced by Nationalist Member Rene Chalout who declared that any fighting forces should be furnished fur-nished by the U. S., Britain, China and Russia because only they stand to gain anything from the war, the Quebec provincial legislature cast a 55 to 4 vote expressing disapproval of any move to send Canadian conscripts con-scripts overseas. Said Chalout: "Conscription for military service in Canada was instituted insti-tuted because there was supposed to be danger of invasion. If federal authorities were sincere at the time they should abolish it now since' there is no more danger of an invasion inva-sion of Canada." The legislature acted after the Canadian Ca-nadian national defense minister declared de-clared draftees could be used overseas over-seas if appropriate measures were taken by the government. 'IRON RATIONS' American and British troops in India will eat a new and perhaps tastier meal when in tight spots These emergency meals, packed in large cans, are informally known as iron" rations. The condensed food is packed in a can sufficient for eight men for one day, and consists of corned mutton, mut-ton, vitamized" crackers, tea, jam chocolate, chewing gum, salt, sugar' grapefruit juice (for Americans) and emonade powder (for B itish troops). Cigarettes are included EUROPE: Invasion Aivaited With huge concentrations of shipping ship-ping reportedly massed in British ports and the Allied aerial attacks continuing in unprecedented force, Nazi Europe nervously awaited the historic and heralded invasion. While the U. S. and British prepared pre-pared for hostilities in the west, the Russians were reportedly organizing strength for a new drive into eastern east-ern Poland, presumably to synchronize synchro-nize with the invasion. As the Russians Rus-sians gathered their new forces, the Axis armies in southeastern Rumania Ruma-nia stiffened resistance and parried Red thrusts along the Dniester river front. Western Europe found no rest by day or night as British and American Ameri-can heavy, medium and light bombers bomb-ers smashed at the Germans' vaunted vaunt-ed concrete and steel Atlantic wall, French and Belgian rail lines over which the enemy could be expected to shuttle troops to meet invasion forces, and German industries supplying sup-plying the wehrmacht, AGRICULTURE: Hog Glut In the woke of the government's move to buy all corn in 125 mid-western mid-western counties for sorely pressed processing industries, heavy hog shipments clogged slaughtering centers, cen-ters, resulting in embargoes in some centers, notably St. Louis, Mo., and Peoria, 111., . 1 . The large shipments were believed also influenced by short feed supplies sup-plies after two years of extensive use of grain for, fattening record numbers of stock, and the government's govern-ment's plan for a minimum price of $12.50 per hundredweight for this fall. Taking note of the dwindling feed stocks, OPA announced that effective effec-tive May 15, the ceiling price on hogs over 240 pounds would be cut to $14 per hundredweight, to discourage discour-age heavy finishing off. Dairy Subsidy i To erfcourage conservation of grains during the pasture season to provide for heavier feed during the fall and winter months, the War Food administration announced subsidy sub-sidy payment rates for dairy production produc-tion for the next 11 months. Although rates , during the next four months will range from 35 to 65 cents a hundred pounds for whole milk and 6 cents a pound for butter-fat, butter-fat, beginning September 1 and ending end-ing next March 31, rates will range between 60 to 90 cents for whole milk and 10 cents for butterfat. Estimated to cost between $300,-000,000 $300,-000,000 and $400,000,000 annually, the whole program is dependent upon congressional appropriations for administrative ad-ministrative expenses, WFA said. RATIONING: More Butter Because of record stocks in warehouses ware-houses and freezers, 35,000,000 pounds of 'country butter will be available for civilian use in May at 8 red points per pound, along with 112,000,000 pounds of creamery butter but-ter at 12 points. At the same time, OPA announced that more and better ice cream will be produced in May and June, following fol-lowing permission to manufacturers to increase output to 75 per cent of 1941 figures, and to use a mix 1 to 3 per cent richer in butterfat content. con-tent. In addition, reductions in point values val-ues are scheduled for flank beefsteak, beef-steak, lamb and mutton, variety cuts of pork and veal, dried beef, potted and dried meats, and sausages. ' I ing Lieut. Gen. Joseph Stilwell's Allied Al-lied forces, clearing a path for a new communication line to China through northern Burma.. Encountering light resistance, U. S. forces cleaned up Hollandia in record time, extending Allied air and naval control far up the New Guinea coast and threatening the enemy's supply lines feeding bottled troops all the way down to the Solomons Solo-mons to the east. Hollandia's fall also placed General MacArthur one step closer to realization of his vow to return to the Philippines, SURPLUS GOODS: Disposal Planned With government sale of surplus war materials already running at a rate of $12,000,000 a month, federal officials were reported to have agreed upon a plan for entrusting future large scale disposal of such goods to five agencies and 12 business busi-ness experts. Under the plan, the War Food administration ad-ministration would handle food; the treasury buyers, textiles; the' Reconstruction Re-construction Finance corporation land and factories; the Maritime commission, ships and related materials; ma-terials; and the war department munitions. ' The business advisors would counsel coun-sel on how the various surplus goods should be distributed, but each agency agen-cy would be asked to formulate its own policy of sale through negotiation, negotia-tion, auction or advertising. |