Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 43, Number 34, Decatur, Adams County, 9 February 1945 — Page 1

w ,n the War! All Else Is Chores!

XLIII. No- 34.

|G ALLIED DRIVE STARTS ON WEST FRONT

Bees Start ■leanup Os | S In Manila Launch Jfc-Up Os Enemy liKouth Os City i Fe ’ h - 9—(UP)—The batent ' e,ed ,ls laat and coodieß phase today as American swarmed across the lu 1001 oUt a " d deßtroy ...„ traitped in the souther g:Sßof the city. E&nKoys of the 37th (Buckeye) the Pas’g in ainphiand on pontoon bridges . ißKertday and quickly estahbridgehead on the zithßk opposit t,he Malacanang put up only weak JaSKe ..long the river bank, hut : rw ■felled later Wednesday fought back savagely artillery and rifle nr«.W was rapidly disinhowever, and it was belai organized opposition TwrtSK crushed within a verv few The advancing 37th into the southern half of rißtl early today and herding t tk^^Hte ,u. survivors back slowly tHw.iiting guns of the U. S. division moving up ■ ® ■south. Tokyo said a third column was grouping troops and' at Quezon, 12 miles of the Philippines capiii, “Ha:: attempt to make a deytMßlßuiid east to cut off the ga:: isons from the main ! '"MB the ridge positions.") body of the 11th airreported slightly north Field Wednesday night, :t Kcl elements apparently '’■rre Kl luorth of the enemy-held ? ItfHand cutting into 'he rear garrison. rate street battle was :■'' iHoud under a great, pall of ‘-••..hrMfea! flame that blanketed the inth'^KD.rliei e, hoalf of .Manila. TtsrHatr.- still were burning nriKlr.; wantonly inside ■■■■■■TaHg pocket and it was feared ■sdt-aMpo.-- ..nd a vast area of the “SSMity would be burned to the s)HHefore the last enemy lias broadcasts said the Japevacuated all but a force from Manila and in the Philippine presidwas among the build-tcgrJßioy.-d by their demolition ~ ’•’•■pin business section of the Hs reduced to blackened -“aykough most of the- fires in IS Bf T" Page 2, Column 7) ■aSsHw" - - ■ - —

O|ed Western Front Push At Destroying Nazis

Note: In the following Iwo United Press war ‘ J!! who between them J ! lf?(1 °P erations of all sev ’ Armies size up the situ’llP western front as Gen. Eisenhower's main wiutW ! ‘ v ' Sets underway. Both , wr ß assigned to supreme Al- , in Paris.) i,.3^K Boyd D- LEWIS and ■ EDWARD MURRAY ■. Fob. 9.— (up) The big ''BIB I)egun - Holland to the Aipe, Gen. Eisenhower is hurling ' sSt Rritish and French the climactic battle of , is to destroy Germany s ' forces before summer in with the Red army s >n the east. of success are far ' teiMian thny were in the Alwhich ended Dec. 16 n, W"' nar ‘ Marshal Karl Voa ■ counter ’ at tack in the •“■time, the western Allies jßcking wh ; ’e the Germans “ rc j n a j nsing T» a ttle to f*M^t* n ln tlle east * Tlle ®* es ’ > : U B 6 already has been breach- -./^■ rce areae - An <i the Nazis ‘'X a W® rately B h° rt of two vital , ® es *ities“—men and oil. <r *®Kf ;U9 ««es place German ' *“ W63t 8t Sfl divteloos.

DECATUR DAILY DEMOCRAT

Ohio City Soldier Killed in Belgium Pvt. Dale Krieger of Ohio City, Ohio, and husband of Mrs. Mary Krieger, who is employed at the A & P store in this city, was killed in action in Belgium last month, relatives have been advised. Pvt. Krieger is a son of Mr. and Mrs. George Krieger of Ohio City. He was 23 years of age and was with the First army. Recently he was reported missing in action and later the message was received that he had been killed. Q Slate Solons Speed Up Action On Bills Favorable Report On Election Bill Indianapolis, Feb. 9 — (HP) — Hoosier legislators disposed rapidly of their calendars in the house and senate preparatory to the weekend recess today, including a favorable committee report in the upper chamber on the controversial Republican election law codification bill. A- Democratic minority protest against the election bill failed to materialize and the senate accepted the GOP majority report without debate. After passing six minor measures in the morning session, senators scheduled a short afternoon meeting. Representatives meanwhile approved appropriations of $225,000 for research and eradication and control of animal diseases. The house passed nine measures then adjourned to 1 p. m. Monday. One would set aside $125,000 in state funds for the control of bang’s disease in cattle and hogs. Another would appropriate SIOO,OOO for a research laboratory at Purdue University to study animal diseases. The bang’s disease bill provided that part of the money be used as indemnity payments to farmers whose infected cattle was ordered slaughtered by inspection authorities. The state appropriation would be matched by the federal government. A building to house the research laboratory would be constructed with $75,000 and an added appropriation of $25,000 would be used to maintain the laboratory during the next biennium. An attempt to pry a labor bill out of committee, through a motion by Rep. Earl Utterback, D„ 1 Kokomo, was defeated. The measure proposed that state and local government employes be given collective bargaining and self- ■ organization rights. * Utterback said that the bill had | been in committee “for many days,” but his motion was tabled by voice vote. Other bills approved in the (Turn To Page 5, Column 7)

But even these are understrength and probably total fewer than a half million men. Germany’s strategic troop reserves once held east of the Rhine have vanished in the battles of the Ardennes and the eastern front. The morale of the remaining soldiers* varies with rank. Common soldiers are beginning to show signs of discouragement, but they still fight stubbornly when well led. Some of the fanaticism and blind obedience have gone, however. Junior officers, mostly drawn from the Hitler youth, remain arrogant and boastful of new weapons and military miracles which will turn the tide at the eleventh hour. Older officers see the handwriting on the wall. They know Germany has lost the war, and this time they see no easy way out by which they can gain a breathing spell in which to rearm for a new try at world conquest. Signs of Germany’s lack of oil and gasoline are many. Prisoners confirm that military convoys are running out of gasoline and stalling on roads for days at a time waiting for fuel trucks. Allied pilots repeatedly strafe vehicle and armor concentrations that fail to burn, indicating their tanks are dry. Morale on the German home front also is ebbing fast. Disci(Turn To Pag« *» Column «).

Soviet Troops Clamp Pincers On Frankfurt Violent Battles Are Raging For Bastion Os Berlin Defenses London, Feb. 9 —’(UP) — Berlin reported today that Marshal Gregory K. Zhukov had clamped a pincers on Frankfurt and violent battles were raging on both sides of the key catedai on the west bank of the Odor 33 miles east of Berlin. ■Eighteen miles north of Frankfurt Soviet armored forces fought in the streets og burning Kuestrin, which the Nazis eaid had been encircled “temporarily” by the junction of Russian bridgeheads across the Oder. A Moscow broadcast hinted at an impending announcement on the battle of the Order 'before Berlin by tbe Red army command. It said Zhukov’s front had been “wrapped in official silende, which usually precedes some big announcement.” ■’Hard battles on t'he Oder on both sides of Frankfurt continued,” Ernest Von (Hammer, Nazi military commentator, said. IHe reported that the Germans had had crushed a Soviet bridgehead across the Oder at Fuerstenburg. 43 miles southeast of Berlin, but other Russian units “gained afirm foothold on the west bank” just south of Frankfurt. Von Hammer said Marshal Ivan SKonev’s army was attacking anew from its bridgehead across the Oder at Steinau, and had driven to Lueben, 40 miles northwest of Breslau. Parchiwitz, 10 miles southeast of Lueben, fell to the Russians, he added. He reported a “Gigantic battle” in the BreslausLiegnitz- Glogau triangle. Swedish refugees who fled Berlin to their homeland reported that inhabitants of the German capital expect the Red army to reach it (Turn To Page 2, Column 6) 0 17 Youths Ordered For Active Service Group Ordered To Report February 22 Seventeen Adams county youths will leaVe Decatur Thursday, February 22, for active induction into the nation's armed forces, the local selective service board announced today. They will be given final examinations at the reception center before being assigned to the various branches of service. Included in the list are several high school students. Board members pointed out that any students who are now in the final semester of their senior year and are called for induction may have this induction postponed until they complete the school year. However, the Decatur Yellow Jacket basketball team suffered a blow with today’s announcement, as Donn Eichar, regular guard for the Jackets, is included in the February 22 group. Eichar completed his requirements for graduation at the close of the first semester and so will leave for service on February 22, which is the opening day of the annual sectional tournament. The complete list of the contingent follows: Robert Edward Kuhnle, Lester Laverne Dubach, Gene Junior Hoffman, Arthur Jess Rufus Werst, Morris Eugene McClure, Robert Paul Brown, Richard Franklin Helmrich, Verlyn Ray Geyer, Clarence Raymond Nevil, Richard Schroeder, Donn Eugene Eichar, Donald Anselm Heimann, Raymonds Junior Rolston, Chester William Baumgartner, Francis Harold Bentz. Robert Amos Jones and Roger Wayne Amstutz. — o TEMPERATURE READING DEMOCRAT THERMOMETER 8:00 a. m 27 10:00 a. m 29 Noon — -— 31 2:00 p. m — 36 WEATHER Partly cloudy and mild tonight and Saturday. Occasional light rain near Ohio river tonight.

ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER IN ADAMS COUNTY

Decatur, Indiana, Friday, February 9,1945.

Manila Opens Door To China E ' J KYUSHU j / pu: china CHINA — TyV'T"'" — SMS. NICOLAS A ’f' I Jr bimbtiv\pasig R.lkj_<7f=p - -/ -/ -- Hr —-’4’- i \ ' ,‘.4 AT*’.im»j~sA N TjAcql | I “ SOUTH I rc?: ~~ Hf sex intp aMtigns} — —™—x i - ?^x9CzTi c '' rY CHINA —.—. Manila dBHHBfIwuPA ««■ r —. \ ermita VICTORY IN MANILA is certain to bring an early change in the pace of the battle for Japan and the fight to oust the Japs from China. One glance at map will show that some 650 miles across the China sea is the Chinese coast. Formosa is within easy striking distance and the Ryukyu islands form a trail to the Japanese coast. Manila's famous land-locked bay is a natural parking place in which to gather our ships for any exploit. Japan’s water supply-lines to the west and north of Luzon "become easy targets for fliers and the excellent flying fields offer endless possibilities for knock-out bombing blows. At hand, for instance, are the Nichols and Nielsen fields and nearby is Clark field. The map inset shows a section south of the Pasig river, where Jap snipers are being mopped up by our forces.

Legion Oratorical Contest On Monday Three Schools Will Hove Entrants Here Students from three high schools will participate in the county elimination contest of the American Legion oratorical contest at . the junior-senior high school at 8:30 o’clock Monday morning. Ed Jaberg, chairman, announced today. Entrants from the public and Catholic high schools in this city and the Monmouth high school ■will give their 10-minute orations, from whom the county winner will be selected. Adams Post of the American Legion will award a $25 war bond to the county winner; $lO in stamps to the runner-up and $5 to the youth who wins third place. The names of the participants will not be announced until after the contest, Mr. Jaberg said. An invitation was extended to all high school students in the county to attend the program. The county winner will enter the district contest, which will be held in Fort Wayne. From the district, the winner goes to the state contest. Local judges will score the orations according to the table of merits prepared by the Americanism commission of the Indiana American Legion department, with the support of the Indiana state bar association and the Indiana department of public instruction. 0 , William Rich Dies At State Hospital Funeral Services Sunday Afternoon William Rich, 50, well known Monroe township farmer, died Thursday at the state hospital at Richmond, where he had been a patient for the past two weeks. lHe was born in Monroe township January 11, 1895, the son of Nicholas and Elizabeth Dailey-Reich. He was married to Clarice Fox. who survives. IHe was a member of the Cross Reformed church at Berne. Surviving, in addition to the wife, are three sons, First Lt. Leroy Rich, stationed at Camp Barkley, Tex., Loris and Luster Rich, ■ both at home, and one sister, Mrs. Rufus Nussbaum of Monroe township. Funeral services will be held at 1:30 o’clock Sunday afternoon at the church, with Rev. C. A.-Schmid, officiating. Burial will be in the M. R. E. cemetery at Berne.

Shattering Aerial Blows At Germany London, Feb. 9 — (UP) — More than 2,150 American bombers and fighters raided synthetic oil plants, armament factories, and rail yards deep in Germany today in a shattering blow at the heart of the Nazi war machine. The eighth air force assault followed a heavy British night attack on a synthetic oil plant at Poelitz, nine miles north of Stettin and the bombing of Berlin by mosquitoes. The American assault was carried out by more than 1,300 flying fortresses and liberators anti about 850 musr tangs and thunderbolts. oLenten Season Will Open On Wednesday Speakers Listed At St. Mary's Church The series of Lenten sermons at St. Mary’s church, beginning Ash Wednesday, February 14, was announced today by Rev. Joseph J. Seimetz, pastor. The other sermons will be given on Tuesday evening and the Way of the Cross will he made on Friday evening and Sunday afternoon. Father Seimetz will deliver the opening sermon on the evening of Asli Wednesday. His subject will be, “Repentance and Penance.” The blessing with ashes will take place on Ash Wednesday after the morning -mass, at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, and after the evening services which will begin at 7:30 o’clock. Father Seimetz will preach in five of the Fort Wayne Catholic churches during the Lenten season, which opens next Wednesday. Easter Sunday falls on April 1. The visiting priests and the subject of their sermons for the Lenten discources are: Feb. 20 —Rev. Charles F. Gir(Turn To Page 5. Column 4) 0 Two Men Are Missing After Chicago Fire Chicago, Feb. 9.—(UP) —Two men were missing and damage in excess of $300’,000 was caused by a fire, followed by a series of explosions, that swept through the Veirling steel works early today. The processing building was destroyed and a section of the foundry wrecked by one of a series of explosions. Fire Marshal Anthony J. Mullaney said damage to the buildings approximately $150,000 and company officials said that plant contained $600,000 worth of machinery in its seven buildings. Damage to machinery was estimated at $150,000.

Divisions Os Canadian » First Army Break Into Siegfried Line Flank

Plan Salvage Drive In Rural Schools First Pickup Will Be Friday, Feb. 16 A waste paper and tin can (prepared tins) salvage drive will be conducted in the county through the rural schools, the first pickup being Friday, February 16. “Nation-wide salvage of tin and waste paper must continue on an intensified basis,” was the message received today by L. L. Hann, county school superintendent from Frank G. Thompson, executive secretary, general salvage program, war production board, Indianapolis, “Salvaging tin cans may be continued even after the war. Tin supplies depend upon the East Indies and it may be a year or two after the defeat of Japan before the mines can get back into production,” writes Mr. Thompson. “Tin collections are far below the necessary requirements and our present stockpile is being drained at an increasing rate. At no time since the outbreak of the war have our new supplies of tin been equal to requirements and as a result, the government stockpile of pig tin represents about nine months’ consumption at present rates.’” Waste paper salvage also will have to be continued for the. duration to meet the ever increasing needs for war production programs. There are more than 200,000 items that call for the use of paper for essential war needs, today. In order to meet the present an l future critical demand for both tin and waste paper, Mr. Hann has advised the county school principals as to the details of the Adams county salvage program and collection day —the third Friday, each month, during the school year. Under the direction of the principal, each school will appoint or select a boy or girl salvage chairman and salvage committee. The proceeds from the sale of the salvage materials will be used by the schools for their own activities. Through the cooperation of Herman Haugk, county highway superintendent and hfs co-workers, the highway trucks will be used to haul the salvage materials to the proper depots and waste material dealers. A meeting is being planned for the salvage committee, the school and highway superintendents and waste material dealers to complete the arrangements for these regular monthly salvage programs. _o Jacob Bloemker Dies At County Hospital Funeral Services Sunday Afternoon Jacob Bloemker, 77-year-old retired farmer and resident of Magley, died at 9:30 o'clock Thursday night at the Adams county memorial hospital after an extended illness of complications and heart trouble. He was born in Treble township May 20 ( 1867, the son of Ernest and Bferdina LindemannBloemker. and was a lifelong resident of that township. His wife, the former Lydia Hilgeman. died 15 years ago. He was a member of the Salem Evangelical and Reformed church at Magley. Surviving are a daughter, Mrs. Emma Gilbert, of Defiance, O.; two brothers, Henry of Adams county, Fred ’of Tocsin; a sister. Miss Minnie Bloemker of Adams county, and five grandchildren. Funeral services will be held at 1:30 p. m. Sunday at the home of a nephew, Edward Kolter, in Magley and at 2 o'clock at the church.’ with Rev. John Michael officiating. Burial in the church cemetery. The body will be removed from the Jahn funeral home to the Kolter residence Saturday morning.

Bolster Fifth Army Positions In Italy Rome, Feib. 9— (UP)— Patrols advanced several hundred yards to strengthen Fifth army positions in the Serohio valley in ‘the west coastal sector, headquarters said today. Minor clashes were reported i along other fronts. North of Gallicano Fifth army forces continued to hold off a German counter-attack which was launched yesterday morning by a force of approximately one company. Farther east a Fifth army patrol ambushed a German raiding party northeast of Castelnuovo and killed 15 of 30 in the group while suffering four casualties. o Berlin Described As City Os Death Refugees Describe Terror In Capital London, Feb. 9 —(UP)^— Refugees described Berlin today as a city of death and ruins whose survivors expected the Red army to reach the capital ‘“within a week or two.” “It’s like the end of the world,” one of a group of more than 20 'Swedish refugees said on his arrival at Malmo, Sweden, after fleeing Germany through Berlin. Others said the bodies of thousands of Berliners who were killed in air raids or died from hunger, exposure or disease had been buried in the streets. They believed a state of siege would be proclamed soon. “The death toll is so terrific,” one refugee said, “that squads regularly are going ihe rounds of stricken quarters, collecting bodies door to door from sidewalks where they bad been thrwn. ‘’Bodies are taken to the nearest i open space and dumped without i identification in mass graves, or' even burned in funeral pyres.” Thousands — other reports have placed the number as high as 15,000 or 20,000 —were killed in the American air raid on Berlin Saturday, the refugees said, A Swedish engineer suggested that a new-type bomb may have been used. He said people scores of yards from where the. bombs fell were killed "by air pressure.” “Not only did the new bombs seem to carry a greater weight of explosive than before, but they (Turn To Page 2, Column 8)

Cpl. Robert Barnthouse Is Killed In Action In Belgium

'Cpl. Robert Barnthouse, 24, a paratrooper, son of Mrs, Ott 0 Gase of 1225 Elm street, and a veteran of nearly every major battle front from North Africa co France, was killed in action in Belgium on January 21, the war department notified the mother last night. Cpl. Barnthouse, -who entered the army in October 1941, and went overseas in June, 1942, was once reported missing in action in North Africa in September, 1943 and was wounded in combat in France last August 23. He was among the first American troops t o land in North Africa. He served in that campaign and in the.’invasion of Tunisia, Sicily, Italy, South France, North France and continued with the American troops into Belgium and Holland. He had been awarded the Purple Heart. Un the invasion of Italy he was with the 509th parachute infantry battalion of General Mark Clark's Fifth army. When he was transferred to France, his outfit became a unit in the Third army, it is believed. He was stil] attached to the same paratroop company. Shortly after he had been missing in actidn, he wrote to his mother that he lay in deep grass only a few feet from w.here the German soldiers were looking for the American paratroopers. Prone to the ground, he lay silently, tearful that the Nazi sawpsra discoxer

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Price Four Cents.

German Resistance Softened By Heavy Bombardment From Air And Artillery Paris, Feb. 9—(UP)—Armored and infantry divisions of the Canadian first army broke into the northern flank of the Siegfried line today in a full-scale offensive that carried forward almost live miles on a six-mlle front aimed squarely at the German Ruhr and Rhineland. Advancing steadily behind a screen of flame-throwing tanks, veteran British and Canadian infantrymen spilled over the German border southeast of Nijmegen and drove several spearheads deep into the Reichswald forest. Vanguards of the attacking force were reported half-way through the forest early today, imperilling the twin strongholds of Cleve and Goch that form the northern anchor of Germany’s west wall. First army paratroops, fighting as infantrymen, were reported to have pushed almost five miles into the forest from the west to within about four miles southwest of Cleve and 5U miles northwest of Goch. German resistance, softened and in some places paralyzed by a thundering Allied aerial and artillery bombardment, showed few signs of stiffening this mornI ing 24 hours after the start of ; the offensive that promised to set ■ the whole western front ablaze. Aerial reconnaissance indicated. however, that the Germans were recovering from their initial surprise and were beginning to rush reserves into the threatened area. At least seven towns, two of them German, were captured in the first 12 hours of the advance and one Allied column on the northern flank of the assault line I was reported less than three | miles from the Rhine crossing 1 town of Millingen. The outer belt of the Siegfried fortifications already had been cracked, and field dispatches indicated that the flooded, soggy terrain was proving almost as great a barrier as the Germans to the Allies’ forward progress. More than 1,200 prisoners were captured in the first onrush, and the bag was reported mounting rapidly. Headquarters spokesmen made it clear that the big push was on to break open Germany's western (Turn To Pagie 2, Column 4)

SLriß ’ F w « ** f •• ... J? jl / oHh i <■ * JF) SP'A life •V . IW f z fad him and his buddies. His unit received a presidential citation for bravery and heroic service in action. Cpl. Barnthouse was born in Bluffton, June 6, 1920. He waft graduated from the Bluffton high school prior to entering the army. He is a grandson of the late Will Smith of this city. — — - — . — —U —4—4