Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 21 August 1942 — Page 13

Hoosier Vagabond

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_ FRIDAY, AUG, 21, 19402

HOMEWHERE IN. NORTHERN IRELAND, Aug. 21, —I have been Having a talk with Chaplain Kenneth Ames, & Baptist, who hails from Minnesota.

low ‘who smokes a pipe. Other chaplains have told me they thought church attendance in the expeditiomary forces was higher than in civilian life at home, but Chaplain Ames can’t see. much difference. Out of a possible 3000 men he has an attendance of about 100 each Sunda y ies regiment has two other chaplains, one a Catholic and one a Presbyterian. Preaching is only a small part of the job. Ames “runs the library, arranges dances and entertainments, pays two visits a month to each of the big army hospital} in northern Ireland, and acts as a sort of father confessor to boys who have problems. He is distressed when the boys go: to town and drink too much, but he doesn’t let it get him down. One chaplain thinks the drinking is. 100 per: cent heavier here than at home, but Chaplain Ames thinks it’s just about the same as at home. ’ All the chaplains are trained to double in brass on the: battlefield, in practically any religion. If a wounded Catholic soldier is dying and there is no priest about, Baptist Ames will go ahead and give him the last rites of the Catholic church. “Does a soldier consider that sufficient, being done by a Baptist?” I asked. “Well, he probably figures it's better than nothing,” d the chaplain,

They Don’t Like V Mail

YOU'VE READ about the fiew type of mail to and from troops on foreign duty—the kind that is photographed on tiny films, which are flown across the, ocean with a tremendous saving in space and then

8

GEORGE M. BINGER, the advertising man, has a novel way of cheering up his friends in the hospital. He sends ’em a note something like this: “You'll be okay soon. You wen't die in bed. A fellow like you was born to be hanged.” It really cheers them up, too. . . . From the war department’s- military INTELLIGENCE division, we get a letter saying they're getting up a military definition dictionary. English-foreign military dictionaries in six languages, and military phrase books from English to 50 ‘languages. They ask us to run a notice “to -the effect that we would be glad to receive lists of English ordinary and military words and phrases that relate to any aspect of the war effort, as weli as any and all English abbreviations, : confractions and conventional signs, used in any field whatsoever.” Why not try Webster, ‘boys? . .'. R. G. Thompson likes the way a bus driver stopped his eastbound bus at 30th ‘and College, helped a blind man off the bus and across to the north side of 30th. So do we.

Just Like People

.- SOME OF THE FOLKS {ip around the Architeet’s:

building think the motorcycle cop who checks overtime parkers up that way is an old meanie. Hour and a half parking is permitted but the cop rides around every 45 minutes, we're told. The first time he marks the tires with chalk of one color, then ,uses a different color next time. By coming back ® every 45 minutes, he trips up the wise guys that have been watching until he made his first round, then moving their cars a few feet and figuring they were good for another three hours. ‘Taint fair, they moan. . . . One of our agents reports seeing a policeman in uniform carefully inspecting the tires of his private car parked beside Ayres. He found a chalk mark, moved his car back a couple of feet so the

Washington

NEW YORK, Aug 21.—It was by going out early to get his pledges and by being able to make them ‘stick that James A. Farley, the administration cast-off,

defeated President Roosevelt in the showdown over which should name the Democratic candidate for governor of New York state.

It was a humiliating experience for Mr. Roosevelt here in his home state. The President asked the Democratic party to nominate Senator James M. Mead. A few hours before the state convention met, Senator Mead’s defeat was so clear that Mr. Roosevelt suggested a comproniise candidate be named instead. Mr. Farley refused to compromise and rode through on © his candidate, the colorless’ John J. Bennett Jr., state attorney general “Senator Mead and Attorney General Bennett are. ‘both men of only ordinary ability and are regarded by all as pawns in a fight between the- president and his former political manager, Mr. Farley.

; Pride and Resentment in It

“WHAT THE FIGHT is all about is hard to say. think they are struggling for control of the New Ak presidential nominating delegation in 1944. Per- ] they are. Yet it is difficulteto think of the Democratic organia in New York turning against Mr. Roosevelt if,

with the war still on, he decided to run again. If Mr.

velt is not a candidate himself in 1944, then Mr.

~ Farley's accomplishment now may pay him dividends.

Undoubtedly a good deal of plain personal pride and human resentment are mixed up in this. After the 03 campaign, Mr. ‘Roosevelt began to

d to have a picnic lunch in what, my mother+inlay named “the Swan. cottage” years ago. ‘She built

“He is . Thoune and red-headed, a football-player type. of fel-

T

called V mail in our army, and, so far it's not very popular with the boys.

They say that it takes about site as long asreg-

ular air ma, that they have to say everything in one

page, which is too short, and that somehow they feel| |

as though they were writing in public on a billboard and the feeling of privacy is gone. Practically all the soldiers I know-have tried it for the novelty, but then dropped it. 1 understand, however, that the army will Soon put on a new campaign urging it and promising tha V mail will go through as fast or faster than the Jat ular air mail in the future.

The Americans Have Landed—

PERMANENT newspaper correspondents over here live in Nissen huts at a certain one of the army camps. Newspapermen, of course, like to dig up exclusive stories. and the Nissen huts aren't locked, so one of the boys, just to be on the safe side, keeps the carbons of all his stories in the cash register of a friendly pub in a nearby town. That’s his private safe and filing cabinet.

All American trucks and cars over here have stencilled on the back in white letters, “Left-Hand Drive, No Signals.” That’s because European cars have a right-hand drive and people. automatically look to the right side for siggals. 2 2 ”

The dining room of our hotel is pretty stiff with European dignity and. swallow-tailed waiters, and it's always full of British officers and their ladies dining in style. They must have got either a shock or a thrill the other night when two American captains came in and sat down and one of them pulled a bottle out of his coat and proceeded to mix -his own highballs. What tickled me was that he was carrying the whisky in an old-fashioned vinegar bottle with a handle on it. Just like the good old days of. prohibition.

chalk didn’t show, and went his way on foot. That proves cops are just like people.

Come On, Bad: Luck

IN THE MAIL we find a chain letter entitled “Good Luck of London.” It admonishes us to pass it and four copies along within 24 hours to people to whom we wish good luck. It states that “this chain was started by an American officer who ois gone around the world four times .. . the one who breaks this chain will have bad luck . . . copy this and see what happens four days after passing it on.., ete ete. . ..” We're tossing it in the wastebasket, just to see what happens. Maybe our draft board will get us. . . . In case you see a nicely dressed young woman or man going around town wearing what appears to be a ring in her or his nose, think nothing of it. She (or he) isn’t a Fiji islander, or anything like that. The chances are she’s just wear ing one of those hay fever relief gadgets—the kind with filter plugs for each nostril and with a curved bar connecting the plugs for quick removal in case of a sneeze. §

Travel in Wartime

TRAVELING AROUND the country these yl is no. cinch. If you think it is, just ask Nees, & Mi&chinist for The Times. Harry and Nees got homesick to see their son Fred, an air corps machinist at Keesler field, Miss, so they hopped a bus Friday afternoon and rode 950 miles down there. It was a long tiresome ride, as they didn't get there until 1:45 a. m. Sunday. Along about 7:30 a. m. they got to see Fred. In the afternoon they looked for overnight lodgings found none was available even in surrounding towns. They tried to catch the next bus home, but it wes full. ' Finally, a bus came through at 8:45 p. m. with a group of soldiers who got off at the field. Mr. and Mrs. Nees managed to get on and arrived home at 5:30 a. m. Tuesday. Theyd been on the road almost four full days and in that time hadn't even had their shoes off..

By Raymond Clapper

cut loose from Mr. Farley. More and more the president allowed Tommy Corcoran and other amateur politicians in the administration to take over. They took the 1938 congressional campaign out of Mr. Farley's hands and attempted the ill-fated senatorial purge. The president and Mr. Farley continued to drift apart and they separated completely in 1940 when the president took the third-term nomination. Mr. Farley became a cast-off.. He was a good Political mechanic, but out he went.

‘Sometimes a Clumsy Workman’

MR. FARLEY IS g sentimental man and he must have felt it deeply. I don’t kpow the whole inside: story of it, but I suspect that if Mr. Roosevelt had made the effort he could have had the benefit of Mr. Farley's political skill straight through. Jim Farley never was much interested in policies, only in politics. His skill would have saved Mi. Roosevelt many headaches. Dropped to the bottom of the ladder; Mr. Farley started back to work as a state politician. County by county, he worked on the leaders and tied them to him. By the time President Roosevelt woke up fo , what was happening, Mr. Farley had enough delegates "pledged to nominate his candidate for governor. If Mr. Roosavelt had gone to work earlier he might have got the delegates before Mr. Furley ‘gol them. But he was busy running the war, and it isn’t easy to i a war and run state politics and do both jobs we About all T can get out of this episode is that it would make a neat little footnote for Mark Sullivan when he writes another history of our times, a foot-

note about how Mr. ‘Roosevelt, with all his vision and|

instinct for democratic leadership, was al times such a clumsy workman.

4

By Eleanor Roosevelt

"ob the: nelshboring farms -nine hours ‘» day. One

boy had left to take a job, but 23 are still making

‘themselves useful and ‘enjoying ‘their ‘evenings. to-}

gether, ~ With

my point of view, that is one of the problems of ly -0ow: when they

sity in which they’ find themselves. " These tudetis, who are. will §5 enllese,. feel that ay on in college in order to be better trained untry later on, they must at lea: to full time work which

By Ernie Pylelfil

reprinted and delivered on the other side. This is}

; auch Jong, hours of work, 1 is idl to plan jmeh sv much that is either educational or recreational. From | Bart

Flying Fortresses Proven in “Actual ‘South Pacific

Battles.

By GEORGE WELLER Copyright, | 1942, by The Indisnapolis Times

e Chicago Daily SOME IN AVSTRALIA Aug. ' 21.—Here, where American bombers have successfully defended

Australia from Japanese attack, the| §

discussion of the relative merits of American flying fortresses and Liberators as compared with British Lancasters, Halifaxes and Stirlings, which is now going on in America and England, has been taken up with vivacity. . Australian newspapers frequently receive from their overseas cor-

«| respondents dispatches like the one

from New York this week, which led off with: “American ‘air experts previously eager to defend United States bombers and fighters, now do. not deny suggestions from. London that British bombers are far superior to flying fortresses for bombing the continent.”

“Give U, ‘S. Bombers Credit The impression created here by the recurrence of such dispatches, occasionally coming from New York

| but more often from London, is that _| there is something out of date about

Inside Indianapolis By Lowell Nussbaum

the flying fortresses and Liberators.

If this were true, it would be a

matter of the gravest significance for it would deeply affect the ‘entire war plans and compel a quick and drastic revision of production schedules. Actually, in the opinion of men who have seen what the American bombers have achieved in the Solomon islands, Midway, and Coral sea battles, there is little doubt that the fortresses are the finest class bomber in the world for the task assigned to them. These fortresses, thanks to their great range, have been able to come fully around the world, in both eastern and western directions and take up the burden of the defense and. recovery of the

battering Japanese convoys and armadas, in laying waste Jap airfields and in carrying the offensive into the deepest corners of China, Japan and Malaya, Britain has been able to concentrate 1000-bomber

i raids upon Germany.

x Largest Fleet Yet American bomber raids have been

pte | worldgide. It was due. to a big!

fortress raid upon Rabaul that the| American navy and marines were able to count upon a landing on the Solomons. This" introductory raid

was carried out by the largest fleet

of fortresses yet sent out. It made the Solomons base useless for Jap aircraft and thus enabled allied forces under Vice Admiral Robert L. Ghormley to regain for the empire the first territory retaken since the war began. It is felt here that bomber logistics, which are so vital, could be better discussed if overseas experts would refrain = from classifying them on the basis on which a nation builds them but according to their

not to outdo British bombers, which they antedated, but to accomplish a different task. The fortress is meant for operation by day, British bombers are intended for use by night. They ‘are, in fact, as different in nature as day and night.

Heights Are Very. Different

The fortresses operate most effi ciently at heights above 30,000 feet by day. The British bomber operates at medium levels of between: 10,000 and 20,000 feet by night. Although all these bombers have occasionally been used for medium and even low-level day raids—as when ‘the fortresses, attempting desperately to stave off a. Japanese landing at Palembang in Dutch Sumatra, went down, under monsoon clouds, to 2500 feet and somehow got away with it—their silhouettes make too large a: target for .anti-aircraft. : The British bombers cannot successfully be used by day because they are unable to achieve the altitudes where fortresses soar. However, by giving away the ability to hold altitude they. gain in bombload — “ait these bombs can be dropped only at night. Ability to ‘Stand Up’. Praised

With regard to armament, the

camps, particular are really) fF trying to do. "il time Job for he bene of the ct

empire. Through their work in|.

purpose. The fortresses were built

BE3007 HY

a A

While recent German gains in the vital Don-Caucasus area of Russia have been very strategic, this map shows that the territory conquered in the past t wo months is only one-third as much as was s aptured in the first two months of the invasion of Russia a year ago, :

REYNOLDS, MAY

ARE CRITICIZED

Barkley, George Seore and Norris Condemn ‘Board’ Talking

“In Congress.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 21 (U. P.. —The, senate yesterday directed sharp criticism at two influential congressmen—one who predicted-an early end of the war and another who urged immediate freedom for India—for making “broad statements” tending to create disunity and uncertainty among the allies. The attacks were led by Majority Leader Alben W. Barkley of Kentucky ' after Chairman Robert R. Reynolds. (D. N. C.) of the senate military affairs committee, called for immediate freedom for India to display the good faith of the united nations jn applying the principles of the Atlantic. charter.

Chides:a Kentuckian : . Rebuking : Rep. Reynolds’ for his] comment on the affairs of an allied nation, Senator Barkley then chided Chairman Andrew J. May (D. Ky.) of the house military affairs committee for his recent

statement that the war will end in|

a united nations victory either this year or next. Senator Barkley declared that both men must realize that their words carry unusual weight because of their positions as chairmen of two important congressional committees. Senator Walter F. George (D. Ga.), chairman of; the senate finance committee, ine into the censure saying “any statement that can be interpreted as a denunciation of Britain coming out of our government will be hailed in the camps of our enemies everywhere as evidence of disunity between, Britain and the United States. “It will be exploited by Germany, ir India and by Japan throughout the Far East,” he said.

Norris Draws Parallel

The dean of the senate, 81-year-old George W. Norris (Ind. Neb.), asked Senator Reynolds what he would think if a member of the British = parliam ent sought to tell} “certain localities” of the United States ‘that they should estatlish freedom and independerce for aii by “removing certain requirements that a poll tax must be paid in order to vote.” Senator Reynolds ' replied * that Britain could be “ekcused” for making suggestions on American political matters which directly or in=

directly affected a united nations|

victory. But other ‘suggestions, he said, would be “presumptuous.” *

18 Days Among Ex Cannibals Are Described by Navy Flier

By JOE JAMES CUSTER United Press Staff Correspondent WITH THE U. S. PACIFIC

FLEET AT SEA — (Deelayed) —

Every time . Lieut. William McGowan, 25-year-old navy pilot from Alexandria, Va., looked at those savages with. their tattooed bodies and bone-pierced noses he couldn't help thinking of what happened to the shipwrecked Chinese. The grandfathers—perhaps the fathers—of those same natives are said in south sea legends to have seized a group of shipwrecked Chinese sailors back about 1850, put them in a stockade and eaten them one by one after fattening them on boiled sago - with cocoanut oil dressing. “I kept telling myself that it was a lot of baloney—those stories—but I couldn’t help shuddering just the same,” said Lieut. McGowan after his rescue. ; But the natives pf Little Rossel island off the southeastern tip of New Guinea were more frightened than angered by the appearance of jeut McGowan and his radioman, . A. Miller, 23, of Phoenix, Ariz.

Women Are Hidden

* Not once in their days among the natives of Rossel did the American fliers see a woman. “We learned that all the women had been hustled off into the rugged hills—into the = bushes—when we were first sighted; apparently white men had stopped off there before,”

said the pilot. McGowan and Miller were on a

scouting mission over the Coral sea;

when . they found themselves far from ‘their mother ship and their fuel almost gone. They sat down in a lagoon off Rossel island and edged up to the beach through ‘razor-sharp coral heads. While Miller remained behind the trigger of the plane’s machine-gun, Lieut. McGowan began reconnoitering the apparently deserted island, an automatic in each fist.

The Natives Creep Up

“Then, suddenly, a band of natives crept out from the deep foliage, surrounding me,” the Plot related. “1 felt -a prickling at the pape of my neck. They were short compact gents, ranging in. hue from -cafe-au-lait to. dark chocolate, with bushy hair decorated with huge combs, flat noses pierced by pol‘ished bone ornaments, enormously stretched ear lobes and their bodies covered with fantastic tattooing. “I can tell you the gun butt squirmed: in ‘my moist hand, but finally the leader approached and croaked a gutteral “Hello i Mungi.” Finally, by means of laborious sign language, McGowan learned

that!iliers were no other white men

Women as Ship Welders

Lauded by W. Coast Builder

PORTLAND, Ore., Aug. 2 (U. P. ) ~Hereafter the feminine gender will be more appropriate for the ships that go down to sea. Lady welders in metal helmets ' and

horsehide gloves today” help build}

thie ships; sailors Have always called

| Most of ‘the lady welders said they were “crazy about” their jobs. And plant officials were unstinting in their praise of “their women workers. a “The ‘women are good at their work and have not increased our

| accident rate,” said J. O. Murray,

personnel manager of the company. “We hope there will be mote women in our shipyards,” he said,

tite tar oulding 15 A: ef voally wok a, woman's Wustry.” i

. me|

on the island and no towns, but there was a mission some distance away. The natives didn’t know there was a war but. they had been warned about the Japanese. The bribe of .a leaky fountain pen, paper and a flashlight lens brought promise of guidance to the mission.

Tried to Repair Radio Finally, after four hours of climbing over rocks and through jungle growth, the mission was reached and “Mr. Satepan,” a Melanesian missionary, greeted the American fliers with a meal of ripe bananas, fried pumpkin, boiled chicken and

yams. The next day McGowan and Miller returned to their plane by a dingy. Then they set to work repairing their radio while curious natives sat on their haunches for hours, spitting out streams. of betal-nut juice, “Then one day we heard from a native that four mystery planes had landed—not very far from our own seaplane, I drew our American in< signia on a piece of paper and the frowzy head of our informant bobbed up and down excitedly. “Four more lost American navy planes on our little island ~~ it seemed fantastic.” :

‘The Fatted calf

A runner was sent ‘with a message: to the four other planes. “They were at a mission — only three hours walking distance away.” The reunion was celebrated with a feast of roast calf which Lieut. McGowan described ‘as “just about

en.” Several days ‘were spent in repairing the planes, then, one morning ‘a native boy named Tepi who had clamored up a tree to “‘catchum cocoanut” shouted that an airplane was approaching. “We began firing our Very star{’ pistols so frantically that it looked like Fourth of July.” said Lieut. McGowan. : “Then = we signalled with ‘our blinker lights and the allied plane landed in a lagoon.” Lieut. McGowan and five others flew to a nearby base and a repair . crew . was sent from Port Moresby. Gasoline was flown in and the’ stranded men took off, circling in a farewell to the natives whom they. had been among - for 18 days.

CLEANERS MAY GET DEPOSIT: ON HANGERS |

WASHINGTON, Aug. 21 (U. P). —Dry cleaners and laundries ‘may ask a ‘deposit of from:1.to 5 cents to insure ‘the return of wire -coathangers’ used in delivering

‘garments; Price ‘Administrator

Henderson ruled yesterday. Henderson .said he felt. the. deposit: system wads necessary because manufacture of wire coathangers had been stopped to conserve steel. He added that if a customer furnishes his own hanger, the establishment is not obliged to return the identical hanger. ;

HOLD EVERYTHING

the tastiest meal I have ever eat-|.

Must Toughen for Fig Despite Terrain and Citizens Attitude, "

Copy: ght: by 1042, by DY ro Dal News, Inc.

LONDONDERRY, Northern land, Aug. 9 (via airmail).~The

|1ong grind has begun.

when even northern Ireland be the source of minor thrills. “The boys are now as much at home us they will ever be and have settled down into the long, hearte breaking routine of training which will make them fit to face Jerry. The king and dueen have been

i land gone, the first maneuvers have { |been held. From now on it will bef | just good hard work until the guns

begin to fire in earnest. Face Training “Test Everybody knows that the Amere icans can, take it when “it” means a ‘knock-down, drag-out fight with the enemy. It now remains to be seen whether or not they can take it when “it” means endless months

of training. The answer will be yes, if the men can be made to understand that every minute of work is an ine surance policy against a one-sided slaughter when they run up against the seasoned, beautifully trained and well-equipped German divisions which they will have to meet. The men who want to “get the job finished and get. home” will simply have to be told that they never will get home if they take on the job before they are ready and before they have all of the equip= ment that a modern assault group needs. It is up to their officers to drill this into their heads. They're Tough and Alert A week with the Americans up here convinces you that the officers and men are both physically tough and mentally alert. They handle their . equipment skilfully and put their hearts into the Sullest routine drill, They all seem to: be really inter= ested in the war. Maj. ‘Gen. ‘Gen. Russ : sell P. Hartle, who commands ‘the army, is certainly one of the hardest working officers in the British isles, He and’ his officers are vitally ine terested in making their men hape py as well as efficient. The army up here suffers from two handicaps, in addition to the obvious difficulty that it has never had any combat experience. The first thing that strikes you is the fact that its fighting equipment is excellent in many respects and, as far as it goes, but for perfectly une derstandable reasons, does not ree flect the most recent battle experls ence of the united nations.

Terrain Not So Good

“In the second place, northern Ireland, for several reasons, is not a good place in which to exercises an army. Most of its land is used for agricultural and, in general, American tanks are forced to keep to the roads. The land which they can use without paying expensive indemnis ties is so bad that the tanks are likely to become bogged down. The people of northern Ireland, further= more, are not as war-minded as the people of England and can be. prete ty unreasonable when their props erty is damaged. We saw one tiny cottage Standing

begin with, but the owners put fm a claim for the equivalent of $4000,

ities found a contractor who ag to patch it up for $200. Now people are living in'an army tent and aren't quite sure they want to move back into {i cottage, anyway. : March 30 Miles Daily

"A woman who put. in a he Dg oman who. pul in a H frightened to death ‘by Ameri tanks was handled by the E claims office. It simply remin her that she had never paid income tax on profits made,

Mel

her rabbits.

* Despite these limitations, * ‘Americans manage to Xoep

| shape and fo perfect their k