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Show WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS Stalin to Allies: 'Fulfill Obligations'; Records Prove U. S. Planes Superior; Wages, Food, Rent, Profits Stabilized As Anti-Inflation Program Takes Effect (EDITOR'S NOTE: When opinions are expressed In these eolumns, they are those of Western Newspaper Union's news analysts and not necessarily of this newspaper.) Released by Western Newspaper Union. .- America, too, is developing its force of Commando units as the above photograph from the Panama Canal Zone would indicate. Here, during training maneuvers, these "Bushmasters" are about to push their way through barbed wire entanglements as part of a simulated attack on an "enemy force." Highly trained and tough, troops like these are the spearheads of attacking forces. FULL DINNER PAIL: 'Definite Assurance' There was a coffee shortage looming loom-ing and plans were under way for meat rationing but a "considered statement" by Donald Nelson, chair-man chair-man ot the War Production board, carried definite assurance that "there Will be enough food to eat" for the duration. This statement was made to the house agriculture committee. The committee has been studying the farm labor shortage and has warned that this situation might cause an acute food shortage. While Mr. Nelson Nel-son appeared to recognize the labor problem as an important one, he felt that "we are going to be smart enough ... to meet the problem." Meanwhile a vast loan program to farmers was being considered to aid them in producing full capacity crops. This prospective step calls for such loans to small-income farmers, farm-ers, with the funds to be used for obtaining tools, machinery, livestock and other items to aid increased production despite less available labor. HOARDING GAS?: It's Plenty Dangerous Hoarding of gasoline to beat rationing ra-tioning plans is not only unpatriotic, says the National Safety council, but extremely dangerous. "The motorist who tries to beat rationing by laying in a supply of gas literally is storing up danger and trouble for himself," says this safety bureau, and further warns that: "No matter how careful the average aver-age person may be in storing gasoline, gaso-line, there is a definite danger that vapor will escape. This vapor is highly explosive, and a chance spark or flame may set off an explosion ex-plosion that can wreck a house and cause death or injury." Concludes this warning: "You may get an extra ride hoarding gas, but the chances are it will be to the hospital. There is only , one sale rule for hoarding gasoline Don't do it!" YOUR USED TIRES: Can't Be Sold As a 'further rubber conservation step, Price Administrator Leon Henderson Hen-derson acted to "freeze" all used tires and tubes in the hands of present pres-ent owners until a normal rationing program can be worked out. The OPA order prohibited the transfer of any used tires and tubes by dealers and consumers. It did not, however, prevent the sale to a consumer of an automobile equipped with used tires. Automobile Automo-bile dealers also are allowed to shift their used tires that are mounted on cars in stock to other cars also in stock. The order permits car owners to have their used casings and tubes repaired and to have tires recapped if they qualify for the latter service. MORE TROUBLE: For Vichy France Edouard Herriot, former president of the now defunct French chamber of deputies, has been arrested for challenging the Vichy government's policy of increased collaboration with the Axis. The 70-year-old elder statesman of the Third Republic was reported held in his chateau outside Lyons, according to German and Italian radio announcements. Recently Herriot and Jules Jean-nenney, Jean-nenney, former leader of the French INFLATION CURB: Roosevelt to Byrnes Within 18 hours after he had been granted broad powers to halt the spiral of inflation, President Roosevelt Roose-velt named Associate Justice James F. Byrnes as the director of economic eco-nomic stabilization and moved to stabilize wages, salaries, profits and farm prices. Byrnes resigned from the Supreme Su-preme court shortly after he was named head of the new Office of Economic Stabilization. Under the new legislation farm price ceilings cannot be set below parity or below the highest market level between January 1 and September Sep-tember 15, 1942, whichever is higher. high-er. If such ceilings are too low to reflect increases in farm labor and other costs since January 1, 1941, the President is directed to raise them. The Vgislation calls for a 90 per cent parity "floor" under cotton, cot-ton, corn, -wheat, rice, tobacco and peanuts, the floor to be established by means of loans. The President may hold the loans down to 85 per cent, however, on corn and wheat used for feeding livestock and poultry. poul-try. Acting immediately, Leon Henderson, Hender-son, head of the Office of Price Administration, Ad-ministration, ordered that all rents be frozen at the level of March 1, 1942. Henderson issued his first stabilization sta-bilization order within 24 hours after aft-er the OES was created. He said the OPA soon would establish machinery ma-chinery to enforce national rent regulation reg-ulation and urged that, in the meantime, mean-time, landlords who may have raised rents since March 1 reduce them to the previous level. He asserted that evictions resulting result-ing from sale of rental property will be Drevented. RUSSIA: And Second Front Even as Josef Stalin reiterated his demand for a second front to bring relief to sorely tried Russia, an official communique acknowledged acknowl-edged relentless Nazi pressure everywhere ev-erywhere on the Volga front. The communique neither claimed Soviet advances nor acknowledged withdrawals, with-drawals, but spoke of "incessant attacks" at-tacks" by the enemy. In one sector within Stalingrad Soviet forces' were reported to have demolished several blockhouses held by the Germans, killing about three companies of Nazi infantry. In a special bulletin the Moscow radio said that Soviet troops had driven the Nazis from an important point on the front west of Moscow, later beating off five counterattacks. In one of these attacks the Germans were reported to have lost 700 men killed. Dispatches from the front said that in northwest' Stalingrad the Red army attacked in force in an industrial in-dustrial district, hammering through several streets and improving the Soviets' general position. Despite local Russian successes, Premier Stalin pointed out the increased in-creased necessity for a second front and increased aid. He asked that the Allies "fulfill their obligations fully and on time." Broadcasts from Vichy, France, and from Turkey said that Stalin had turned over to Marshal Sha-poshnikov Sha-poshnikov the post of defense commissar, com-missar, which Stalin himself had held. YANK AIRMEN: In Biggest Raid In the biggest daylight operation the U. S. army air forces have yet ! 1 I " ': j In setting forth a wage and salary sal-ary stabilization policy, President Roosevelt provided that there be no decreases for any particular work below the highest wages paid between be-tween January 1 and September 15 unless to correct inequalities. BUSH SOLDIERS: In Surprise Advance Rugged Australian bush soldiers turned the tables on the Japs in New Guinea and, through infiltration methods, recaptured Nauro in the Owen Stanley mountain range, high point of the Japanese advance, and then continued their forward march to the north. Strong enemy opposition was expected, ex-pected, but failed to materialize. The march took the Aussies to Nauro, then to Menari, "without establishing es-tablishing contact with the enemy." Official communiques said nothing about what had happened to Japanese Japa-nese forces which at one time drove to within 32 miles of Port Moresby. However, Allied air strafing and bombing of pack trails is thought to have accounted largely for the Jap retreat. Meanwhile, heavy bombers raided raid-ed Japanese shipping at Rabaul, New Britain and Buin on Bougainville, Bougain-ville, in the northern Solomons, setting set-ting fire to two enemy transports and scoring possible hits on two cruisers and an unidentified ship. The marines continued to consolidate consoli-date their positions in the Solomons and to strengthen the defense of the important Guadalcanal air base. ALCOHOL: 'Total War' Whiskey and wine have reaib gone to war. Under terms of a directive issued by the War Production board the entire output of U. S. distilleries is now being diverted into industrial alcohol for wartime purposes. There remains in the country, however, about 3 years' supply of beverage whiskey even though naif of the nation's distilleries had gone into war production earlier this year. This new action, putting the entire en-tire facilities of the liquor industry to work for the war machine, will enable the country to meet all its military and industrial requirements as far as alcohol is concerned, says WPB. Under normal conditions the industrial in-dustrial alcohol needs of the nation are met by commercial industrial alcohol plants while the distilled spirits industry produces for beverage bever-age use. Should war demands be exceeded, some distillers may be permitted to make beverage whiskey. undertaken from England, American Amer-ican Flying Fortresses blasted a Nazi aircraft factory at Meaulte and an airfield at St. Omer in northern France and shot down 13 of Germany's Ger-many's crack fighter planes. At the same time U. S. Boston bombers attacked docks at Le Havre, and escorting American and Allied fighters totalling 400 destroyed another five Nazi Focke-Wulf 190 planes. Although officials did not reveal the number of Flying Fortresses participating in the raid, all the fortress planes returned safely. Six Allied fighter planes were lost. Even as the speedy fighters and the mammoth fortresses and American Amer-ican medium bombers were roaring over France, engaging enemy fighters fight-ers and bombing targets, Britain's secret Mosquito planes, fresh from their assault on Nazi-occupied Oslo, were pounding objectives in Belgium. Bel-gium. 'BOX SCORE': Of V. S. War Planes The "box score" of American fighter planes and bombers in combat com-bat over world battlefronts proves their superiority over Axis aircraft, according to a special bouse subcommittee sub-committee report. The ratio of enemy planes destroyed de-stroyed to U. S. losses in combat during dur-ing the period from August 14 through September 14 was 7.5 to 1. During this period, P-39s destroyed 20 enemy ene-my planes in combat with a loss of five, and P-40s destroyed 14 enemy planes with a loss of only one. From February 1 through September Sep-tember 20, enemy planes destroyed by army aircraft of all types on all fronts totaled 279. United States losses on all fronts totaled 114. For the month of August only, 75 enemy ene-my planes were destroyed as against U. S. losses of 15. The report indicated that the Japanese Jap-anese Zero has a faster climb, higher high-er ceiling and greater maneuverability, maneuvera-bility, but that the American P-40 has a number of better fighting characteristics. Our pilots prefer the P-40 to the Zero, the report pointed out. LABOR SUPPLY: j Reservoir j More than 5,000,000 women must be added to the present number of women war workers by the end of j 1943, Chairman Paul McNutt of the War Manpower commission has announced. an-nounced. The women's bureau of the department of labor disclosed that the ammunition industry already al-ready is the largest women employer employ-er of the major war industries and extension of employment of women to new types of jobs is expected. EDOUARD HERRIOT Fights Collaborationist Regime. senate, warned the Vichy government govern-ment against trying to draw France back into the war against "our" Allies. Al-lies. Herriot also announced his resignation from the French Legion of Honor because the award had been given two Frenchmen fighting for the Germans on the Russian front. He has steadfastly refused to have anything to do with the collaborationist col-laborationist regime. It was presumed that Pierre Laval ordered his arrest because he feared that he would go abroad and lend his invaluable prestige to the Fighting Fight-ing French. MISCELLANY: PRELIMINARY: U. S. citizens learned long ago that meat rationing to about 2lh pounds per person per week was on the way but now the first step in the actual has been announced. This came in the form of a government order reducing civilian meat supplies by about 20 per cent by specifying to meat packers pack-ers the amounts they should distribute distrib-ute to non-military distributors. EXTRA: An increased fuel allowance al-lowance for families with children under four years of age has been announced by fuel oil rationing authorities. This will be enough oil to permit raising the temperature to about 70 degrees in the space occupied by children. FROZEN: Under order of the Of-fice Of-fice of Defense Transportation all railroad schedules have been frozen as of the end of last month. This directive eliminates all special and charter trains to sporting affairs and other similar events usually requiring requir-ing special train service. |
