Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 43, Number 9, Decatur, Adams County, 11 January 1945 — Page 1

> All Else Is Chores!

LIXUII. No. Nine.

AMERICANS DRIVING INLAND ON LUZON

Report Germans Retiring Into Siegfried Line 1< A

k Amies Os Ardennes JJ Reported Fleeing "3 To Reich Borders To Avoid Defeat ■l.;**”;' BULLETIN Paris, Jan. 11.—(UP)—American force* today captured La northern anchor of the shrinking Ardennes sail£ent from which the outmatched . German* were fading back into /.the Siegfried defenses beyond bonder* of the reich. i Paris, Jan. 11 —(UP)—The Ger11, in armies of the Ardennes were | ''l i ported fleeing back across the O rders of the Reich today *o I Scape development and annihition at the hands of Allied for- ! '* crushing in on their salient am the north, south and west. Field dispatches said the remLnts of 20 panzer and infantry Visions that launched the great 'dennes offensive less than four v'teks ago and all but split the; Ailed front were retiring at top ! eed into the Siegfried line de’Jiases. ‘ ;i All accounts Indicated that the i retreat still was being con-' WtlCted in good order over the i snow-clogged roads remain- 1 Pfe open in the center of the > li’lient, with small rear guard . “mations battling desperately ’ ” cover the withdrawal. Triumphant American and Briti troops who broke the back of German drive in eight days furious counteroffensive crowd- ■ ■ tn on the ’retreating enemy llbm all sides in a bid to seal Ifleir victory with the complete | struction of Marshal Karl Von mdstedl's tattered divisions. ■ American first army forces ■ lawn up along the northern wall II i the Ardenne* near the German- ■ Igian frontier struck down the base of the salient iitheast of Malmedy and Staveeariy today, threatening mdstedt’s last line of retreat, rst reports said the Americans d. no opposition in their ad- « nee. but they were moving S utiously to avoid a possible ambush. 1 Almost 16,000 prisoners were | own to have been rounded up the first army alone since the i irt of the Nazi offensive on »c. 1« and correspondents at i front estimated that the salit, which once measured almost 00 square miles, had been comjssed to about ISO miles. \ First word of the German reil/at, which appeared to mark W I closing phase of the battle of 1 . ¥ Ar denes. esme in a front disI tch from United Press war corSndent C. R. Cunningham. tningham reported that two j f terican army corps, the fifth ), ll the 18th airborne, were cutt- ; down into the base of the smy salient in what appeared l>e the -opening blow of a drive 'envelop and destroy the flee- : Germans. fi -;?atroiß of the 18th airborne he said, pushed “deeply” .... ith of Malmedy and east of ivelot today without making übl=’* art enemy. (jjjFhrther to the west. American I) j s )t army tanks and infantry. eal Ah swung down through the > c lo< rth4>l ' a of the salient at gs,t ; (Turn To Pape 2. Column 4) , the ——o — Herding Funeral Afternoon your Mineral services for Mi®. Marie ierding, who died Tuesday after-m.-'will (be" held at 1:30 p. m. urdajt at the home near Preble ..Il at 2 o'clock at the St. Paul’s IMfheran church, with Rev. Adolph " shier officiating. Burial will be he church cemetery. L TEMPERATURE READING lEMOCRAT THERMOMETER 8:00 a. m. . . 8 0:00 a. m.L..— — 8 jp>oon 16 2:00p.-m,„ „ &6 WEAtHER ■ •'Varmer tonight and Friday, fair and cloudy In north portion ■rh ocneeiona! light snow in «*• I 'm* north portion tonight and )A Rly Friday.

DECATUR DAILY DEMOCRAT

German Relief I Armies Halted Near Budapest A Resistance Inside Hungarian Capital. Reported Crumbling (London, Jan. 11—-(UP) —Soviet : front dispatches said today that (Russian beseigers of Budapest had occupied nearly all of Pest and the ; industrial island of Cespel, and a Red army counterblow had snuffed out Nazi hopes of breaking the ring around the Hungarian capital. Hungarian front report relayed iby Moscow said the critical phase of the battle .had parsed, and the • Red army had the situaiion well in I hand. -The mop-up of Pest, the part of I the capital on the east bank of the i Danube, was complete except for liSsmall nests of resistance, while IlCsepel island and its 25 armament I factories were firmly in Russian ' hands. The failure of t.he German relief ■ offensive west of Budapest was takI en in Moscow to mean that the defense forces naw concentrated in ■the tulls of Buda would fight house fby house and street by street, as did the defenders of Pest. 'Strategically the* Germang were in better battle positions in Buda than they were in Pest. T.hey were entrenched in stone houses among the hills. The Russians threw back two ! German relief columns 15 miles from Budapest, and the Nazi effort to save the survivors of the Budapest garrison appeared to have spent its force. Stalled almost in sight of the trapped Budapest garrison, the Nazi relief army itself was in danger of envelopment from the rear. (Late Moscow dispatches said a) powerful Soviet flanking force north of the Danulbe had fought its way to the outskirts of Komarno, more than 30 miles (behind the German Vanguards and was threatening momentarily to cut their supply line to Austria. (Russian guns and flamethrowers (Turn To Pagie 2, Column 4) Drastic Steps For Coal Conservation 68-Degree Heat In Homes And Offices Washington, Jan. 11 —(UP) — Shop windows and billboards in many parts of the cquntry will be darkened next week by government order and millions of homes and office buildings are expected to lower heating temperatures in cooperation with a White House move to avert a threatened coal crisis. Warning that a serious coal shortage is impending, war mobilization director James F. Byrnes last night announced a drastic conservation program which he said was the only alternative to coal rationing. The program included: 1. A ban on all outdoor advertising, ornamental and display lighting using electricity produced from coal. This was expected to save 2,000,000 tons yearly. 2. A plea to householders, managers of apartment and office ■ buildings, hotels and stores to permit temperatures to go no higher than 68 degrees as a means of saving another 14,000.000 tons of coal. 3. An order to the office of defense transportation tp eliminate all special and excursion trains and to freeze schedules to resort areas at the normal yearabound levels, rather than at the seasonal peak. Byrnes said. 1945 coal produe(Tura To Pag* 2, Ooluma 6)

—— 4. , Where MacArthur Invaded Luzon In Philippines

*■■■> ■ • . «> ... •U' '.. . . ' • ' { . .. ' : . I W. : I

This aerial photo, made before the war. shows the low-lying terrain abutting much of the shore line of Lingayen Gulf on the island of Luzon, where General Douglas MacArthur has landed in the final fulfillment of his pledge to return to the Philippines. Manila and Corregulor are slightly more than 100 miles from Lingayen Gulf.

Production Goals 1 Are Set For Farms I I. Increase Sought For Adams County I Adams county farmers, with a great record of achievement for food production in war time, have new goals to meet in wheat, corn and soy bean acreage, Mrs. Mary Wilson of the AAA office in this city, announced today. The agriculture department is I asking a decrease in oats acreage in the county, according to the county-wide plan wihieh will be submitted to the farmers in February. The increases asked in acreage for the crop® are: wheat, 37 per cent; corn, six per cent; soybeans, eight per cent. The .soil building program will j be continued during 1949, Mrs. Wilson said. Under this program the farmer receives a nominal payment for limestone placed on pasture fields, which later are converted into, crop raising acres. In Indiana, the agriculture de-| partment iis asking a decrease in | the number of brood sows and cattle. The decrease for brood sows is 10 per cent; cattle and calves four per cent; eiheep, four per cent; egg production, 15 per cent and chickens six per cent. A one per : cent increase in the number of milk coiws is asked. There are no government re- ; strlctions on any crop program, or livestock this fear. None was set last year and the goals assigned are merely for the national agriculture and livestock production, 'Mns. Wilson explained. 'Farmers in this county, although handicapped by the shortage of manpower, exceeded their goals last year, except for corn which was affected by the drought during the growing season. o U. S. Casualties Os War Total 646,380 Exclude Figures In German Offensive Washington, Jan. 11. — (UP) — ■ Officially announced U. S. combat casualties, still not including those suffered in the German offensive, reached 646,380 today, an increase of 8,241 over those disclosed a weSk ago. Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson in announcing army casualties compiled here through Dec. 29 said they did not include those suffered in the enemy drive which started Dec. 16. He added, however, that he expected “to have next week the figures for December which will cover principally the 1 period of the German offensive.” The overall army total announc- ( ed today by Stimson was 564,351. . The navy, marine corps and coast , guard total as of last night was 82,029. I , Army casualties were 7,999 great- , er than those annountod a week ■ (Tur a Tip Page i, Qoluiaa 3). 11

ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER IN ADAMS COUNTY

Decatur, Indiana, Thursday, January 11, 1945.®

Landing On Luzon Is 'Viewed With Alarm' (By United Press The American landing on Luzon ■was “viewed with alarm” by the Japanese press today and al least one newspaper, the important Asahi Shimbun implied disharmony among Japanese leaders by calling for a “United political front to meet the critical nature of the situation.” According to a Tokyo broadcast, reported by the FCC, Asahi declared the Japanese people were “burning in sincere enthusiasm” and that it was up to the government to take steps” so that .the elated enemy can be pulverized.” Would Return State To Standard Time — Bill Is Introduced In State Assembly Indianapolis. Jan. 11 — (UP) —I A bill to put Indiana clocks back j on central standard time effective April 1, with “daylight saving” time or its equivalent—central war time —in effect during three tfummer months, was introduced in the .Indiana general assembly today. The measure was introduced in i the house by Rep. Albert B. i Thompson, R., North Vernon, who | proposed that first and second-, class cities be given the right to J retain the present time system, the year around. Under the terms of the meas-j ’ire, war time would be observed I only from June 1 to Sept. 1 of i each year <sver.the rest of the j state. The bill was considered ages- j lure to Hoosier farmers, who ; have opposed war time since its , inception by federal directivei four years ago. ThompsoiF’’requested that it be referred to the house agriculture committee. The time changing measure j was one of 12 presented to the> lower house, while in the senate 10 bills and one resolution were added to the legislative hopper. Another house bill added a sec-j tion to an existing strip mine regulatory law, which would provide that mine operators fill I abandoned cuts progressively as i they move through mining territory. After the opening of each new open cut, the mine operatorsl would be required to level the earth of the previous strips so that no more than three spoil (Turn To Pag/ 1 o Column 4) 0 — Area Rent Director Here On January 17 John E. William®, rent director of the Fort Wayne-<Decatur area office. will be at the Decatur post office on Wednesday. January 17 to assist landlords and tenants in problems confronting them. Mr. Williams will he at the post office after 9:30 a m. to assist tUoee who have questions pertaining to bbe rent control law for him to answer.

Senate Leaders And Roosevelt To Confer « General Discussion Os Foreign Affairs ,Washington, Jan. 11—(UP) — A delegation from the senate foreign relations committee .scheduled a conference with President Roosevelt today for a general discussion of foreign affairs and hie impending meeting with Prim’s Minister Churchill atid Premier Josef Stalin. Invited to the White House con- : ference were the eight members j of the special subcommittee set up ■ more than a year ago to Improve I liaison with the executive branch ■ of the government on foreign policy. Committee chairman Tom Coni nally. D„ Tex., said of today's conj ference. the group’s second with the i President that ‘“we just are get-t- --' ing together for a general discusI sion of the present international I picture and an exchang.- of views ion some of the current problems.” ' Informed congressional quarters expect the Big Three meeting to take place shortly after the fourth term inaugural on Jan. 20 to be followed by a fullscale United Nations meeting on the subject of organizing a permanent international security organization. In. addition to Connally, the sub- ! committee includes Sens. Walter F. | George, D.. Ga,, Alhen W. Barkley. { D„ Ky., Elfbent D. Thomas, D., Utah 1 Arthur H. Vandenberg, R.. Mich., i Warren R. Austin, R., Vt., Wallace > H. White, R„ Me., and Robert M. | La Follette, Pa.. Wis. Connally said that Secretary of | State Edward R. Stettiniue, Jr., I would meet with the committee in I closed session next Wednesday. It i was understood plans were being ‘ made for meetings with Stettinius |or one of his principal aides at ; least once a month. Vandenberg was expected to rej iterate to Mr. Roosevelt some of I the points raised in his speech be- ! fore the senate yesterday in which j he criticized some aspects of the | current international picture. ■ To erase conditions wihieh he i blamed for current Allied friction, ■ Vandenburg proposed: : : 1. An immediate treaty among the ; major Allies pledging military cotopeiation for complete d militariza- ■ tion of Germany and Japan. 2. Early formation of an internai tional security organization such i aa contemplated in the Dumbarton j Oaks agreemeint. with a provision ■ that all interim 'bi-lateral agree- ■ meats shall be subject to revision iin the ’right of postwar developiTurn To Page 2, Column 7) —O No Damage Is Done At G. E. Factory The siren at General Electric plant was sounded at about 3 o’- : clock this morning when a watchman noticed that lint from a lead burning machine in plant number ■two had ignited. .As a precaution the fire siren was blown. The flame •was extinguished immediately. No damage wia done, officials of the company elated.

I Sixth Army Vanguards Overrun 30 Cities And Towns In Powerful Push

B-29s Attack Big Jap Base At Singapore Great Naval Base For Japanese Hit By Superforts Washington. Jan. 11. — (UP) —B--29 Superfortresses bombed the ■ great Japanese naval base at Singapore in daylight today, and an en-1 emy communique reported damage ( to military installations, the destruction of 20 or more civilian dwellings and “scores” of casual-! ties. A brief war department announce- 1 ment revealed that India-based B-, 29s of. the 20th bomber command ! attacked were identified only ; as “military installations of the' Malay peninsula," but the Tokyo i radio several hours later said the | main target was Singapore. Another Japanese broadcast said lone Superfortresses from the Marianas made three nuisance raids on Tokyo itself between 9 o’clock last night at 2:40 a. m. today (Tokyo* time), dropping fire causing no damage. The raid* on, Singapore was the second by the 20th bombet.commantL Last Nov. 5. another )force ®t hute four-eiigined raiders scored hits on a drydock and wrecked other installations in the strongest naval base in southeast Asia. A communique issued by Japanese army headquarters at Singapore. broadcast by Tokyo radio and recorded by the FC_C, said 20 Superfortresses thundered over the ■ city and the adjoining Seletar dis-; trict, site of large docks and naval installations, about 10:50 a. m. toiTurn To Pog-c Column 4| o j City Aids In Keeping Cemetery Roads Open Officials.of the two Decatur cemeteries today expressed their appreciation to the city street depart-: ment fol* their work in keeping I driveways at the cemeteijes open j for traffic. The city grader, operated by i Peter Lcshe and Max Knave), has ; 'been used frequently in recent . weeks to clear the snow from the] roads to keep the drives passable. | 0 Three U. S. Warships Are Sunk By Typhoon Heavy Loss Os Life Revealed Last Fall Striking’ with a fury that no en-1 emy force could muster, a tropical | typhoon sank three American destroyers and damaged an undisclosed number of smaller vessels. some time last fall in the western Pacific, the navy revealed last night. The destroyers swallowed up by lhe sea ill the midst of the fierce ; storm were the Spence. Hull, and i Monaghan. They normally carried ; a peacetime complement of 520 men. . , The navy said a total of 84 crew ; members from the ships were i rescued by planes and surface ves- j csls that searched the area after j the typhoon had passed. No mention was made of losses aboard the other craft damaged by ■ the storm. In addition to the typhoon victims. the navy reported the loss of i seven other smaller craft to enemy i action in the Pacific, bringing to 254 the total number of U. S. naval vessels lost in the war. ; The seven ships were identified j as four landing craft, one motor torpedo boat, one small subma rifle chas*r. *nd one auxiliary smaller vessel.

War Agencies Back Work-Or-Fighf Bill 18 Million Men To Be Covered By Bill BULLETIN < Washington, Jan. 11—(UP) — Secretary of war Henry L. Stimson said today “there seems to be no escape’' from inducting into the armed forces “substantially” all physicallyqualified men under 30. ■ Washington, Jan. H. —(UP) -- Col. Francis V. Keesling of the ■ selective service system estimated ! today that 18.000,000 men, inclu 1I ing’A-F’s, would be covered by the | pending bill to put all draft registrants in the 18-45 year category i on a work-or-figlit basis. !;-> Keesling, liaison officer between i service and congress. IfTnade the estimate in testifying hjiefore the' house military affairs i committee on the bill providing for ■ induction into special service units of all men who give up or refuse to take essential war work. He said selective service ayif’' other war agencies joined the war and navy departments in endorsing the as a means of tightening up homefront manpower mob'lizatioh. Keesling jjlso gave the committee a breakdown otissthe monthly schedules thS armed forces plan to 01/faltf the newly-an-nounced quota ofc 900,000 new men during the first sik months of 19-15. During January and February, Keesling eaid, the army will need 80.000 men a month and will boost draft calls up to 100.000 a month during the next four mouths. The navy, he said, will need 32,i 000 men for each of the-first six months of the year. This, combined with estimated total enlistments of 150,000 would make a grand toi tai of 902,000, he said. h* of war and navy Robert P. Patterson and Ralph A. Bard appeared before the committee yceterday to endorse the pendi fig bill and expressed the hope that, congress would follow it with | a full national service measure. Committee chairman Andrew .1. : May, D., Ky.. who introduced the ' work-or-fight bill, told reporters it ; would be sent to the floor somt - I — I (Turn To Pago 2, Column 5) o Bill Introduced To Amend Pension Law Retirement Funds For City Workers •A bill has already been introduc;ed in thehoueeof the state assembly hby Robert Heller of this city, rep•f resentative from Adams and Wells | counties, tp amend the Indiana law ■ of 1943. authorizing cities of the j fiftth class (which includes Deca- | tur) to eetalbliish retirement funds i for municipal plant employes. ; The bill is number 31 iH. B. Miser j Heller) and was introduced last Monday, according-to the legisla- ■ five bulletin issued today. It is : explained as follows, “Amende 1913 | act authorizing certain cities to es- ' tablish retirement funds for muni- ! cipal utility employes to include cities of the fifth class operating ■ two or more municipal utilities. Emi ergency. Referred to cities and 1 towns committee. Local employes have formed an I organization seeking th ? passage of a law wherelby they could contri(bute to a pension fund and thus obj tain a pension on retirement. Civil city and municipal plant employes do not participate in the ■ federal social security and old age pension law, for reason bhat'the ' law excludes governmental emI ployes. 'Manley Foreman a 20 year emi ploys of the electric plant, and water department*, conferred with Mr. Heller a few weeks ago on the introduction and passaga of such a ■law. -w— - -■ —••

Buy War Savings Bonds And Stamps «■ -

Price Four Cents.

Drive Within 90 To 95 Miles Os Manila, All Four Os Initial Beachheads Linked c General MacArthur’s Headquarters, Luzon, Jan. 11 (UP) • Sixth army vanguards drove 18 to 20 miles inland from the Lini gayen Gulf today, overrunning perhaps 30 cities. towns and villages and at least one airdrome in a powerful drive across the plains of Central Luzon to within 90 to 95 miles of Manila. Reliable reports at Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s headquarters said that at least a few patrols already had reached the Agnn , river at a point where it bisects the Luzon plains some 20 miles inland from the 20-mile wide invasion beachhead. . | Tile Japanese had been expect- ■ ed to make their first defense stand along the Agna. but military sources suggested that the enemy, caught off balance, would be unable to organize quickly ' enough to defend the river and instead would attempt .to stem the American advance farther I south. - Already behind the Americans j,, were the cities of Lingayen with its airport. Dagupan, Ma'ngaldan . and San FahiSn. as well as a r cluster of 25 to 30 lesser towns and hamlets in the invasion area. All four initial beachheads 3 had been linked and army engineers s were enlarging the Lingaten *airdrome for imminent, use. (A Tokyo broadcast heard 'in > London said a second American 1 convoy still was In the waters west of Lingayen Gulf and a third west of Panaj’ in the Central ■ Philippines, “unable to continue northward because of Japanese 1 air attacks." With the landing on Luzon. Tokyo said, the battle of the Philippines has reached ; the “decisive stage.”) (A Japanese radio broadcast claimed a new American landing on Lingayen Gulf was attempted yesterday near Rabon, six miles north of San Fabian, but was ‘completely wiped out wit ltfn r io minutes" by massed artillery fire. The Japanese radio said considerable numbers of American tanks were going ashore and that ‘immense battles" are now being fought, i (A BBC broadcast • reported by the Blue network said American troops were less than 100 kilometers—62 miles —from Manila, but this would put them far across Ibo Agno and it appeared that the announcer confused his kilometers and miles. Blue also quoted BBC as saying that the Americans were inland an aver age depth of 35 kilometers, or [ (Turn To Page 2, Column 3) — o . — , Farm Census Being Conducted In County Special Five-Year Census Being Taken •At least nix farm enumerators are making the special five-year farm census in tihis county, Mrs. . IMary Wilson, clerk of the AAA office in this city, stated today. The appointments are 1 made through James D. Harrell, of Ko- • konfo. supervisor for the northeaet- ! ern Indiana district, which includes Adams county. The census is to be • made this month. The men and the townships assigned them are: Lawrence Beckmip'er. Root: David Roth. \\ ashnigton; Elmer Winans. Union and St. Mary's; Lester Adler. Preble ■ and Kirkland; Joseph Fogle. Jefferson and Blue Creek; Carl Schug, ■ Monroe. i The census includes basic Infori mation on farm acreage, land valt ues. crops, livestock and other gen- ■ e.ral items pertaining to agriculture. All information given the enurncr- • ators is confiden-tial. Mrs. Wilson said that eight men were allotted to this county to do (the work, but that she had not bein advised if th* oher appoinUirauia •had been made.