Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 29 December 1941 — Page 1

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FORECAST: Cloudy to partly cloudy and continued cold this afternoon and tonight; lowest temperature tonight about 18.

VOLUME 53—-NUMBER 251

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MONDAY, DECEMBER 29, 1941

Entered as Second-Class « Matter Indianapolis, Ind.

at Postoffice,

®

PRICE THREE CENTS

Luzon Holds; U. S. Sub Sinks Another Transport |

‘500’ RACE SUSPE

Report Hitler May Be Ousted Soon for Military Dictatorship

BUT WHY GO to all these pains, observers are asking. Certainly no one in authority here be-

By WILLIAM PHILIP SIMMS Scrippy-Howard Foreign Editer WASHINGTON, Dec. 29. — Trustworthy reports received here via London indicate that Adolf Hitler

may be superseded or ousted early his place may be taken by some dictatorship.

At sny rate diplomatic circles here seem inclined to believe that something is brewing just now inside Germany, either as a ruse or because of

some other and less subtle reason,

The first of these stories began to trickle into Washington shortly after the German reverses in They had to do with dissatisfaction among the higher Reichswehr officers with the way things were going. There were rumors that Hitler was coming in for a

Soviet Russia.

good share of the blame,

Next came the dismissal of the famed general Field Marshal Walther von Brau-commander-in-chief of the German Army and the announcement that the Fuehrer had assumed personal command as the supreme war lord over all the

chitsch as

armed forces of the Reich. = » >

THAT MUCH, at any rate, was

So was the curt statement from von Brauchitsch, explaining that he had voluntarily retired because of some mysterious “heart

ailment™—an excuse which many more than a grain of salt. Meantime “information” about

tions appears to be filtering out of Germany with surprising ease. According to these tales, Nasi troops are suffering terribly in Russia, are being driven back by stronger forces there, and on the whole are not doing so well. Some of these stories have actually been broadcast from Berlin, in English, while neutral visitors in the Nazi capital report hear-

ing much the same reports from

erals who do not seem the least reluctant to talk. Boiled down, the idea which certain eircles in Berlin seem to be trying to get across is, first that somebody in Germahy iS Burling things pretty badly, and, second, that the particular somebody is an amateur strategist named Hitler,

lieves Germany

in 1942 and that sort of military

direction.

An ouster of

he was

machin

NN | official. Mr.

here take with

internal condi-

conflict. True, the low countri democracies, but

prominent gen- —Germany was

or civil war. They agree that Hitler may eventually be replaced by some coup or other, probably military, but even so they wonder why it should be so widely telegraphed. in advance. Some believe it may be a feint before a blow in some entirely new

Others think it may lead up to a disavowal of the madman who has pluhged the world into the greatest and most wanton of all wars, with a view to some kind of peace offer, :

tail with what this writer was told just before the blood purge of 193¢. Neither then nor since have the higher officers of the Reichswehr been fond of their Fuehrer. They regarded him as an upstart but | adopted him, temporarily at least, because

They wanted the world's mightiest war

would give them precisely what they asked. As soon as he became a nuisance, however, they would ditch him and run things themselves,

THAT WAS IN 1934. Since then Hitler's prestige has soared. He murdered Reichminister Ernst Roehm, chief of staff of his own brown shirts, and virtually liquidated the brown shirts themselves, going over to the Reichswehr bag and baggage. And so was postponed his accounting with the Reichswehr's officers. But now a war is on. Hitler, the crystal-gazer, is probably not so dependable in a real and prolonged

Today is something else. For example, it is said that Hitler insisted, against his general staff's advice, on attacking Russia. It was a bad guess. From here on out, they apparently think, it will take generalship, not guessing, so the German generals may wish to take over.

is in immediate danger of collapse

Hitler by the military would dove-

their most useful instrument.

¢ and so did he. He could and

he guessed right against Poland, es, France, the Balkans and the there he could hardly guess wrong ready and the others were not.

A ‘SECOND YORK PICKS OFF JAPS

Holds Bridge With Small Rifle; Grenade-Tossing Captain Rescues Him.

MANILA, Dec. 20 (U. P). — The] epic story of fighting against the! first shock of Japanese invasion at) Lingayen Gulf began emerging to- | day as eye-witnesses told how an! American lieutenant led the de-| fense of a bridge with a .30 caliber] rifle and how his captain went to! his aid with a blast of hand gre-| nades. | The man at the bridge, Lieut. William Porter, provided one of many examples of heroism on the northern front but soldiers already were talking of Lieut. Porter as a|

“second Sergeant York.”

Lieut. Thomas W. Spickard of] Princeton, Ky., described how when | the company was forced to take to the hills Lieut. Porter picked off all members of an enemy machine gun nest with his rifle.

Churchill Sends Thanks to: State

Prime Minister Winston Churchill today replied to the telegram of congratulations sent him by the Indiana Council of International Relations,

“Many thanks for your kind words which are a great encouragement to me,” replied Mr. Churchill to the message which had complimented him on his speech to the joint session of Congress recently. Thirty-five members of the

{ council and friends signed the

message. Alvin Coate is president of the council.

CHURGHILL TALKS TO CANADIAN HEADS

————————

Enthused Ottawa Crowd Upsets His Balance.

OTTAWA, Dec. 2 (U. P.).—Prime Minister Winston Churchill began a series of war conferences with

“Meanwhile,” he added, ~Capt.| Canadian military leaders today Edward Dale of the regular U. 8s |two hours after he arrived from Army went down a mountain road Washington.

to order Lieut. Porter's withdrawal. Capt. Dale ran into an enemy pa-

trol which wounded him seriously knocked

A group of 26 aids accompanied the Prime Minister, who was off balance by the

but he was able to account for the enthusiastic crowd which greeted patrol by using hand grenades and him at the railroad station. The

finally managed to return to his outfit,

“Upon reaching Baguio we,

learned that the enemy held a line i

between Baguio and the U. S. posi-| tions, However, we circled east into the mountains behind Baguio and eventuerlly made Balete Pass where transportation awaited us. “This took four days with little “=i. However, my Filipino troops withstood the hardships without grumbling and morale was especially high.”

WHOA THERE!

ELKHART, Ind. Dec. 20 (U. P). —George Bickel Jr, 21, and Ivan Smith, 21, both of Elkhart, today were scheduled to appear in City court to face charges of running a traffic signal—on horseback.

TIMES FEATURES ON INSIDE PAGES

Johnson

crowd broke out of police control in trying for a close-up view of Mr. Churchill and Royal Canadiah mounted police charged in to clear a path for the Prime Minister. As Mr. Churchill emerged from the crowd he still had a cigar in his mouth and waved as police escorted him to an automobile. He revealed he would return to Washington to complete discussions with President Roosevelt. Lord Beaverbrook, British Supply Minister, remained in Washington. Prime Minister W. L. Mackenzie King and the ‘dominion defense ministers were aboard the special train.

Sources close to Mr. revealed that “important understandings” had been reached with British and United States officials. Mr. Churchill will spend two days here, addressing the Canadian Parliament in special session tomorrow.

GERMANS LOSE TANKS CAIRO, Dec. 29 (U. P.).—British headquarters reported today that a German column attempting to repulse British forces closing in from

| the south on Axis units in the Jedabaya area, 90 miles south of

Benghazi, lost six tanks and was forced to retreat.

LOCAL TEMPERATURES

“ar en

| British Sea, Land and Air

SLASH NORWAY COAST IN RAID

Forces Sink [ine Ships, Desiroy 2 Garrisons.

| LONDON, Dec. 20 (J. P.).—Britlish land, sea and air forces in a | dramatic raid on the Norwegian coast, wiped out two German gar- | risons, destroyed nine ships and valuable installations, killed at least 120 Germans and captured 95 Nazis and nine Norwegian Quislings, a communique said today. British shock troops landed Sat: urday on twp islands off the Norwegian coast Saturday under cover of a smoke screen laid down by their planes and a bombardment by |airplanes and warships, while long ‘range bombers blasted the nearest German air field, 100 miles away, to prevent the dispatch of rescue planes, it was disclosed. Landings were made on the island of Vaagsoe, a key German convoy base, between Bergen and Kristiansund, anti on the adjacent island of Maaloy. Oil tanks, ammunition qumps, a wireless station, a Quisling industrial plant and a lone German tank were destroyed as the wail of one British majors bagpipe floated over the scene. The raid appeared to be a full dress rehearsal for the day when Jllied forces mean to take the war to the continent of Europes for the knockout biow against Germany. There have been clear indication that Britain, using its secretly trained Commando shock troops, envisages raids of bigger and bigger scale, anywhere from the Arctic circle to France's bay of Biscay, in preparation for “the day” when it is Germany's tum to fight an invader from the west. Following up the raid, in a newlyresumed intensive offensive of its own, the Royal Air force attacked Germany in force during the night.

WOMAN MOTORISTS CONVICTION UPHELD

EE ———

ENEMY GANS IN SLOW PUSH ON SINGAPORE

Air Attacks on Manila Halt for Day; Nearby Fort Bombed.

On Inside Pages

Anglo-Russian Parley .... The Battle of Wake . U. S.-Jap Word War .....c..e.. 3 Today's War MOVES ....ccoeeee 5 Life in the Raw 8 ‘1942 and You’

JOE ALEX MORRIS ited Press Foreign Edilor

American defenders of the Philippines fought off two Japanese drives aimed at Manila today but the enemy enveloping attack against Singapore made slow gains against stubborn Allied resistance. At Washington, it was announced that United States submarines had sunk another enemy transport and a supply vessel and that one American destroyer, had been slightly damaged by an enemy air attack. Dutch defense forces were reported battling strongly to crush a Japanese parachute invasion of Sumatra while Dutch and Australian bombers blasted an enemy transport and a cruiser and shot down two enemy planes off the north coast of Borneo. Later, the British radio, heard by the United Press listening post in New - York. broadeast a Dutch Batavia communique asserting that reports that Japanese parachutists had landed at Medan, on the coast of Sumatra, was “due to a misunderstanding.” On Luson Island, the Japanese failed to renew attacks against the undefended city of Manila but heavily bombed the fortress of Corregidor in Manila Bay-—about 30 miles from Manila—for two hours, losing a number of planes. On the fighting fronts— NORTHEAST PHILIPPINES — Japanese .nvaders advancing from dingayen gulf were reported driven four towns by an American counter-attack on their left flank but there was no important change on the main Pampanga front where Gen. Douglas MacArthur shortened and strengthened defense lines along the Agno River.

SOUTHEAST PHILIPPINES — American lines along the Taiong River held back heavy Japanese attacks designed to break into Batangas Province. The southeast front is about 50 miles from Manila and the enemy has been attempting to fight his way to the main communications lines leading toward the port of Batangas, Cavite and Manila. MINDANAO — Unconfirmed reports said that Dutch bombers had (Continued on Page Five)

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JAPS GO TO RESORT

WASHINGTON, Dec. 29 (U. P). —The Japanese Embassy staff, including “peace” Envoy Saburo Kurusu and Ambassador Kichisaburo Nomura, left Washington today for Hot Springs, Va, where they will await completion of arrangements for their return to Japan. The party comprised approximately 90 Japanese who have been virtually confined to the embassy grounds since a few hours after Japanese planes bombed Pearl Harbor, Dee. 7.

DED DURING WAR

GUNNER OF 1918 FALLS IN' AGAIN

This Time He Hopes to Do Part by Helping Repair Warships in Hawaii.

Ex-Gunner Glenda Kingery, who helped convoy thousands of dough« boys to France in 1918, today had hope of being able to do something for the Navy once more. Uncle Sam encouraged him about the prospects of a job as a rivet heater at Pearl Harbor. Mr. Kingery, 45, of 32 N. East St, was among scores who answered the U. S. Civil Service Commission's call for civilian employes needed by the Navy to keep the Hawaiian naval base “ready and fit" at all times to keep U. S. warships in fighting trim, Mr. Kingery tried to enlist in the Navy the day after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The recruiting officers found him tattooed, as a sailor should be, but they also found him toothless.

Thrice Rejected

“What's the Navy gonna do—bhite them Japs?” the brawny Mr. Kingery protested when the recruiting ‘officer declined his services. Then he ‘tried to enlist in the Marine Corps and in the Army, again meeting with refusal. He was Johnny-on-the-spot when Government officials today began interviewing applicants for jobs at Pearl Harbor.

Mr. . Kingery, who received his honorable discharge from the Navy in 1921, has worked in steel mills and on construction jobs over the last two decades. Because he is not employed in a defense industry, O. BE. Bacon, a representative of the Civil Service Commission, believed he could line up the exgunner for a job at Pearl Harbor. “I'd like to leave tonight,” Mr. Kingery declared, tugging at the star that's tattoored on the lobe of his left ear. (The right ear is similarly decorated) “If I have any spare time in Hawaii, and get my hands on a 45, I'll get myself some Jap meat if any more of em sneak over.”

Are Germans In Philippines?

MANILA, Dec. 29 (U, P.).— The Herald reported today that Filipino soldiers who fought at Dameordis said they mistook German officers for Americans during the fighting. They said the Germans advanced ahead of Japanese troops and represented themsel as Americans, They told the Filipino sol diers to go &head, as the way was clear. Before they knew it, they were being fired upon by the Japanese. The soldiers said they believed the Germans were officers of Japanese tank formations.

RECAPTURE 4 LUZON TOWNS

‘Blast Tokyo!” Demanded By Bombed Civilians Of Manila.

By FRANK HEWLETT United Press Staff Correspondent MANILA, Dec. 29.-~Gen. Douglas MacArthur reported . tonight that American and Philippine forces successfully stood off heightened Japanese pressure north and south of Manila today and unofficial advices claimed at least four north Luzon towns were recaptured by American troops.

Japanese air squadrons lost a number of planes in a two-hour bombing attack on the fortress of Corregidor, guardian of Manila Bay, but avoided any ‘new daylight attacks on the undefended city of Manila. Gen. MacArthur's communique reported “no material change” either to the north where American forces are holding the lines of the Agno River, 85 miles from Manila, or to the south where the lines run along the Taiong River, 63 miles from the capital. An afternoon communique had re< ported that the Japanese are stead ily building up pressure on both

(Continued on Page Five)

William G. Sparks, Indianapolis attorney and son of Judge William M. Sparks of United States Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago, died

The Supreme Court today at 7%

g

William G. Sparks, Lawyer, Dies af 37; Son of U. S. Judge Was Civic Leader

University Law School where he was graduated in 1929.

In June of the same year, Mr.

Mr, Sparks was president of the Indianapolis Country Club, a mem-

ber of the Columbia Club, Indiana

There'll Be Hot Time in Pearl Harbor

Ex-Gunner Kingery (right) tells Mr. O. E. Bacon that since he can’t make it hot for the Japs in the Pacific he at least will be happy to make it hot for the rivets at Pearl Harbor.

HELP IS COMING, FILIPINOS TOLD

FDR Gives Solemn Pledge As U. S. Navy Repeats ‘Fleet Is Not Idle.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 29 (U. PJ). ~The Philippine Islands today had the promise of “positive assistance” of the U. 8. Navy and President Roosevelt's “solemn pledge” . that their freedom will be redeemed and their independence established and protected. , In reply to an inquiry whether the President's use of the word “redeem” was meant to imply that the Philippines were about to be lost, White House Secretary Stephen T. Early today said: “No, I shouldn't think so.”

Aim at Fifth Column

The messages of hope for the Filipinos were dispatched last night. The moves to encourage them to continue their stand against the invaders were interpreted here as efforts to counteract Japanese propaganda and Fifth Lolumn efforts. The Japanese have been exploiting nationalist sentiment among the Filipinos who were scheduled to obtain independence from the United States in 1946. . They also have been circulating rumors about inactivity of the U. 8. fleet which the Navy says are designed to “trick this country into disclosing the location and intention of its warships.”

Navy Is “Not Idle™

Mr. Roosevelt told the 16,350,000 Filipinos in a dramatic short wave radio message that the entite fighting manpower and resources of the United States stand behind his pledge. The Navy—for obvious reasons— gave no hint in its announcement of the “well-planned campaign” the Pacific fleet has embarked upon to aid - Gen. Douglas MacArthur's Philippine defense forces. “The Philippines may rest assured that while the United States Navy will not be tricked into disclosing vital information, the fleet is not idle,” the Navy. said. = Two weeks ago today Secretary of (Continued on Page Five)

GERMANS, ITALIANS RELEASED IN MANILA

Japanese Still Interned ‘By Constabulary.

MANILA, Dec. 20 (U. P).—Interned German and {talian citizens, placed in concentration camps shortly after the Japanese attack on the United States, have been released, it was disclosed officially to-

day. Col. J. P. Guido, chief of the in-

A ——

MOVE TAKEN T0 CONSERVE VITAL 0005

Only Other Interruption Was in 1917 and 1918; Track Refunds Cash.

By EDDIE ASH Times Sports Editor The Indianapolis 500-mile race has been suspended for the duration of the war, This announcement was relayed here from New York today by Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker, president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, over which the $100,000 speed classic has been run each May 30 since 1911, The only other interruption ia racing at the huge Indianapolis track occurred when. America was at war in 1917 and 1918. Captain Rickenbacker's ane . nouncement of the cancellation of the International Sweepstakes was confirmed locally by Theodore E. (Pop) Myers, vice president and general manager of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corp.

" Refund Ticket Cash 1

Mr. Myers said that payments which have been received on ad vance ticket reservations for the 1042 event would be refunded as soon as possible. The over-the« counter sale of tickets ordinarily does not begin until January i many rate fans order and pay fof... tickets ahead of that date. oo Mr. Myers of course knew that the decision was imminent, but he didn’t know positively until ‘late last night. He said that several thousand dollars had been received in advance ticket sales, much more than at this time last year.

The downtown office of the Speedway Corp, which i§ located: at 444 N, Capitol Ave, will be closed after a month or six weeks, Mr. Myers said. The only signs: of life about the huge plant in Speed« way City will be the regular watche man and maintenance crews.

Part of Victory Effort

“Tradition and priorities demand that we again voluntarily abandon the annual 500-mile race in the ine terest of a full-out victory effort,” said Captain Rickenbacker, who was America’s flying ace in World War 1, and prior to that a motor race pilot himself. ‘

“Back in 1917 the men of auto mobile racing immediately answered the call to the colors and served magnificently, Now again in 1941 the call has come.

“Even before Pearl Harbor racing men have been applying their usually well-trained mechanical minds and hands to the demands of defense. Now their talents and courage are being readily applied to the high tasks of victory. “Today tools and motors are as important as men, and priorities

.~ (Continued on page seven)

WILLIAM FORTUNE iS CRITICALLY. ILL

Williath * Fortune, = business and civic leader, and chairman of the Indianapolis chapter of the Red Cross, was critically ill at Method. ist Hospital today. Mr, Fortune entered the hospital more than a week ago, suffering from a complication of ailments, Pneumonia developed a few days ago. :

BURMA ROAD SCANDAL EXPOSED

In what he himself describes as his "most important story since Norway," Leland Stowe rips wide open the sordid and: : incredible tale of how Chinese racketeers and war profiteers have looted unknown quantities - of goods on the Burma Road and sold them "at neat profits. « «+ « throughout various parts of China." Stowe pulls no punches in describing the "squeeze." Showe's First Article Appears

TOMORROW IN