Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 5 December 1944 — Page 11

\ Reaching the Roer

(Mr. McQuaid, war ‘correspondent for The Times, is substituting today for Ernie Pyle, who will return

to active duty in the Pacific soon.)

ROER RIVER SECTOR, Germany, Dec. 5.—~In the shattered ‘ruins of a stone dwelling in what is left of a battered German village Which they themselves recently helped to capture, I lunched with officers of a tank battalion attached to the veteran 20th infantry division. This battalion came ashore across Omaha beach on D-Day plus one, as one of the first half-dozen armored units’ to land on the European continent, Their veteran shrewdness and combat “know how” do much to explain uiie success: of the recent ofe fensives which have carried the 19th corps to the Roer river banks and put Lt. Gen, William H. Simpson's 9th army in position for the climactic drive to the Rhine. © Battalion commander, 30-year-old .Lt. Col. Stuart F. Fries, Washington, D. C., was present as were: Lts. George E. Wagoner, Chicago; Donald E. Shaw, Springfield, O.; Homer D. Wilkes, El Paso, Tex.; Rob= ert S. Donaldson, Worchester, Mass.; Edward L. Gross, Ft. Worth, Tex.; Charles B. Green, Houston, Tex.; John Réése, Worcester, Mass, and Capt. Ralph

D. Halpig, Dayton, ©. Shrewd Sguceze Play Sa

Lf HAWS contribution to, the capture of the key Village: of Durhoslar affords a typical instance of the. JShrewd squeeze-play. tactics learned by such units as this in their close co-operation swith the infantry: Shaw fimped off from Bagsweiler with his platoon of Shesman, ‘mediums in the direction of Siersdorf. Despite a sefles ‘of ‘irrigation ditches he managed to get four tanks through to that town where he contacted the infantry officer whom it was his mission support. They decided to feint a frontal attack on Durboslar while Shaw worked his tanks into position where they could make a surprise approach from high ground in the: coal- mixing center a mile to the northwest. . When Shaw started to ‘slide off to the left with his four tanks—including one tankdozer—he encoun tered a deep anti-tank ditch, outposted at each end by well-dug-in enemy infantry.

The Germans hag

figured that the high ground would be attacked from that approach. © Shaw decided on tackling the job at night, His four tanks got thro. The next morning he rushed up seven more. They turned southeast hitting Durboslar from’ the north and faptured the town without a -single casualty. a

‘Didn't Stay Captured

“BUT IT DIDN'T stay captured. very well,” sald Shaw. “That night the Jerries sent two companies of infantry back, overran my command post, knocked out one of my tanks with bazookas and nearly ran us right out of town again. We fought them from house to house and street to street, finally “kicking them out that afternoon.” Despite the intensity of Germany’silast-stand re-

sistance in the Roer area, Col. Friers and his officers]

say they've learned to deal with this town-to-town warfare which has replaced the hedgerow-to-hedge-row tactics of Normandy. The successful entirclement of the.stubbornly held village of Beek hear the north end of the front -is one example ‘they cite. They feinted renewal of a direct approach there and went all the way around behind to the village of Lindern, The Germans’ position in Beek had become untenable by the time they found out what was’ going on. Their withdrawal was costly because our artis lery and’ planes caught them in full retreat. These young tank officers are contemptuous of the enemy's marksmanship though “he has more artillery on this front than seen since Normandy. But they are not so contemptuous about the effectiveness of the “community digging” now found around every German -town. “They are digging communitions trenches which completely encircle these settlements,” said Lt. Gross, “and by this means get their men quickly from point to point around the entire town. -Don’t make any mistake, that kind of installation is effective. A man with a bazooka in any kind of hole in the ground is a menace. You have to slow down in front of every ditch while your infantrymen go in and dig them out. Then they back up into the town and fight you hotise to house.”

| Inside Indianapolis By Lowell Nussbaum

RUSSELL CAMPBELL, the OPA’ state information director, moved his office several days ago from the second floor of the OPA building at 429 N. Pennsylvania, td a room in the same spot on the third

b | Sho, Yesterday afternoon, he walked down the cor-

ridor, heading for the men’s rest room. He opened the door and stepped inside. A chorus of feminine screams paralyzed him. As soon as he could get his wits about him, he bolted out the door, blushing furiously. Out bounced half a dozen females, almost .as confused as Russ. They, too, thought maybe they were in the wrong place. It developed they weren't, but Russ was. What happened was that sum Campbell forgot that while the men’s rest room is at the end of the corridor on the second. floor, the ladies’ rest room is in the same place on the third floor. Poor Campbell. They say he really was “one befuddled bureaucrat.” ... We notice in a news item from Baltimore that Ted R. GAMBLE is the war finance director—and thus head man in the sale of war bonds. His name is quite a contrast tothe bonds he sells. They definitely are NOT a gamble. , . , We're informed that Gloria Scott, better known as Gloria Feld, will sing with Nelson Eddy on a war bond drive program at Graumann’s Chinese theater in Los Angeles at 9:30 tomorrow night over WFBM,

Suggestion Department

DUTCH B read a story in Readers Digest ahout San Francisco's new underground parking garage—proving room for 1700 cars beneath a small park—and right away he got ideas for Indianapolis. ‘Why not, he asks, do the same thing with University Park! Sure, we'd have to remove the statues and the fountain and trees and grass while we were digging. So did San Francisco. But as soon as the conerets. underground - structure had been built, the

i -

| World of Science

AS WORLD WAR II leads to more and more amazing industrial miracles in the laboratory and on the production line, it is interesting to recall that the whole technique of modern industry, based on the fdea of interchangeable parts, originated in the manufacture of firearms, This basic idea which is the foundation of mass production was + first put into affect -by a couple of gunsmiths, Simeon North and El Whitney, .(Whitney had already invented the cotton gin, but fail~ ing to make any money from it, had turned to the manufacture of firearms.) A collection if pistols and rifles made between 1760 and 1852 by Simeon North has just come into the possession of the Franklin Institute of Philadelphhia, and Thomas Coulson, the institute's director of museum research, takes the occasion to review some of the facts concerning this revolutionary development,

Controversy Still Rages

HE POINTS OUT that controversy will continue to rage as to whether North or Whitey deserves the credit for having instituted the technique. However, he is inclined to accept the fact that the idea originated abroad, “Although the system is. inseparably associated with this country and is called the ‘American system’ abroad, the first suggestions for its use came from France,” he writes in the Journal of the Franklin Institute.

My Day

WASHINGTON, Monday ~Yeierday afternoon SHO) CATHY S00in 1G18, Fates Rend homital le the White House and have tea, and-I time talking with them. A number of the men came in wheels

lawns, flower gardens, trees, walks, seats and even the monuments were restored. San Francisco's cost something like a million and a half—raised partly by the sale of stock to business people and partly py an RFC loan. It is scheduled to revert to the city at the end of 25 years. The plan is worth thinking about as a post-war. project, . . The water company windows have been decorated with an artistic reproduction (by-Boaz) of Santa and.his transportation. The old gentleman, his sleigh and his eight reindeer, cover the windows clear across the front of the utility building. Every detail was looked after by the artist. even to having the reindeer prancing the right way around the circle.

The ‘Synthetic* Orchestra

THE FOLKS up at the Indianapolis Symphony are accustomed to hearing the orchestra referred to as the “Sympathy” orchestra, but they ran into a new one Saturday. A man walked into the office and asked Emalyri Remmel:. “Is this the Indianapolis Synthetic orchestra?” , , . Lou Sieveking Jr. passes along ahother episode in the “Annals of Henry.” As Lou was leaving ‘the stadium after the I. U.Purdue game, along with John “Buzz” Tribbey, former mayor of New Albany, and an ardent Republican, they met Governor Schricker. After exchanging the’ usual commonplaces, Lou reports, Buzz blurted out: “Well, Mr. Schricker, I didn’t vote for you but ‘you've supe. been a mighty fine governor.” . . . At the Press club party Saturday night in: honor of Earl Richert, the club vice president, Governor Schricker was present and gave a little talk, After saying that Earl was going to Washington for “higher service,” the Governor smiled and added reminiscently, “It wasn’t so long ago that I thought I, too, was going to Washington for higher service.” . , . Curtis Benner of the Lukas-Harold plant was'in a Crawfordsville. cigar store the other day and found

they were trying out & plan of requiring customers

to turn in an empty cigaret package before permitting them to buy a full pack. It seemed to be working out pretty well. The object, of course, is to prevent hoarding.

By David Dietz

Two attempts were made in France to manufacture muskets from interchangeable parts, according to Mr. Coulson. The first was in 1717 and was successful. The second was described by Thomas Jefferson, then our minister to France, in a letter to John Jay, dated Aug. 30, 1785.

Jefferson Intrigued

JEFFERSON, like George Washington, was keenly interested in science and invention, and like Washington, was a charter member of the American Philosophical Society founded by Benjamin Franklin. In his letter, Jefferson describes seeing the work of a French mechanic named Le Blanc who had made a vast improvement in muskets, this improvement consisting “in making every part of them so exactly alike, that what belongs to any one, may be used for every other musket in the magazine.” Jefferson thought Congress would be interested in bringing Le Blanc to America but it turned out that Congress wasn't. However, in 1798, with the threat of war with France hanging over ‘the nation, Congress appropriated $100,000 for the purchase of arms and ammunition, One of the contracts went to Whitney and another

to ‘North. The contracts make no mention of in-|-

terchangeable parts but not long after both Whitney and North were making them and the controversy concerns which of the two was the first to do so. Apparently Mr. Coulson does not find sufficient evidence to render a decision in favor of either contender, North wrote a letter. in 1808 in which he says that he has been using the technique for some time. In a letter written in 1818, Whitney claims to have used the process as early as 1800,

oy Eleanor Roosevelt

of books for children, and their possible use tting juvenile delinquency. haps this is a good time to mertioh the Boys’ bil ike philanthropic organization headed p t Herbert Hoover. have 250 member clubs and provide places Jide eonsrustive leadership, for boys

By B. J. McQuaid

SECOND SECTION

By LOUISE FLETCHER

HEN “The Very Thought of You” opens at the Indiana ‘theater tomorrow it will have special interest for Indianapolis fans. The list of screen credits will include a line that reads “Original story by Lionel Wiggam.” - The Warner Bros. film is the latest writing effort of a Hoosier who sold his first story (at the age of 13) while he ‘was a student at Technical high school. > ” » » IT WAS a Tech teacher, Miss Margaret Burnside (still on the school’s faculty), who first recognized her pupil's gift for writing and started him on his career 17 years ago with the sale of that first story. For its purchase by a pulp magazine he received $78. Since then he has written .fiction and verse for a long list of magazines—among them Harper's, Atlantic Monthly, New Republic, Nation, Harper's Bazaar, New Yorker, Saturday Review of Literature and several poetry magazines. . » » IN 1936, while he was a student in the Northwestern university School of Speech, his book of poems, “Landscape With Figures,” was published.

Mr. Wiggam’s mother and stepfather, Mr. and Mrs. J. Ed-

GUAM BRISTLES— Recaptured Isle Becomes Strong

By SANDOR S. KLEIN United Press Staff Correspondents

GUAM, Dec. 5.—Top military men on this war-ravaged American outpost envisage the eventual creation of a “Pearl Harbor of the western Pacific’ on this island. It already is more powerful than . anyone anticipated in the days when congress battled over pro-

posed appropriations for harbor improvements at Guam.

that the Japanese could never hope t6 retake it during this war. And the job is not yet done. ® = = THE RUGGED, hard-boiled marine—Ma). Gen, Henry L. Larsen —who is the commanding general of this stronghold, has no.illusions about Guam ever attaining the importance of Pearl Harbor. But, he told a party of Washington naval writers touring American bases in the Pacific, Guam “will be another Pearl Harbor to the limit of its capacity.” It was obvious to this writer, as it should be, to any newcomer, that the armed services have already accomplished miracles here. Guam was first invaded by the Americans July 21. It was declared secure for us Aug. 10, less than five months ago. » » ” A VAST, interlocking network of highways has been cut through the jungle-covered hills of the island. Air strips have been or will be built. Tremendously important supply facilities have been established. The harbors will be capable of handling more ships than anyone dreamed they could just a few years ago. Defense installations and defensive forces cannot be discussed, But this much can be said: This island is capable of turning aside the hardest punch the enemy can now deliver, » . . BUT GUAM is not intended to serve strictly as a defensive outpost. It has great offensive potentialities., And in the days after the war in the Pacific is over, Guam could serve as the watchtower over Japan. The accomplishments to date have been achieved under difficult conditions — some natural and some man-made. The terrain is rugged. The jungles are tough. And there is lots of rain. From time to time since the island was declared secure, the remnants of the beaten Japanese garrison have proved troublesome, Gen. Larsen said that approximately 11,000 Japanese were killed in the. battle for the island,

Barnaby will be found today on page 21.

THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS— rang: Im BEAD ST ear

Pacific Fortress |

It is so formidable right now,

The Indianapolis

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1944

Lionel Wiggam, who wrote the original story for “The Very Thought of You,” opening tomorrow at the Indiana theater, made * his first fiction sale as a 13-year-old student at Technical high school.

ward Spatig, live at 1121 Edgewood dr. His father; Howard Carlton Wiggam, who died in 1926 before Lionel entered high school, was a boxing and wrestling coach at Indiana university, Albert Edward Wiggam, the author and lecturer,. is a cousin. s x = AFTER graduation from Tech,

Lionel entered Northwestern at

the age of 15, but it was not un« til January, 1943, that he received his . degree cum laude from

. studying verse writing

| *HANNAH+¢ |

RETAINS 'FREEDOM'— De Mille Ready To Quit Radio in Union Squabble

HOLLYWOOD, Dec. 5 (U. P.). ~—Cecil B, De Mille today was ready to give up his $5000-a-week radio job rather than pay a $1 union assessment,

He said he felt to pay 1t would be an acknowledgment “that I am no longer a free man.” The film and radio producer announced his refusal to pay an assessment of the American Federation of Radio Artists last night, : » » .

THE FEE vas assessed the union to oppose proposition No. 12. This was a proposal to ban the closed shop in California. It was defeated in the November election. Under the closed shop agreement between the union and the studios, a member not in good standing may not participate in broadcast. The union notified De Mille that unless hé pays the fee he will be barred from the air next Monday. ”» = =»

few of the 2300 members of the union who refused to pay, union officers said. The union's right to levy the fee was upheld by the California courts. “Can any organization as such usurp the rights of an American voter? Can it arbitrarily make up his mind for him that he must support or oppose any proposition on the ballot?” De Mille asked.

FORMER TECH PUPIL MAKES SUCCESS AS WRITER FOR MOVIES—

_ ‘Original Story by Lionel Wiggam...

It was in one of Miss Margaret Burnside’s English classes at Tech that she first recognized Mr. Wig» gam's ability and started him on

his career as a writer of fiction and verse.

Princeton university (where he also was the class poet).

» ” » IN THE interval he mixed short stretches ot college attendance with trips, via freighter, to the orient and Europe.

One of his collegiate intervals,

he spent at Butler university, in Mrs: Thor G. Wesenberg’s class, Mr. Wiggam's interest in plays and playwriting dates back several years to the time when he appeared here in the Civie theater productions,

'AT ANY RATE, IT WAS DECENTER'

Civil War Dangers Exceeded Today's, Say 'Boys in. Blue’

By UNITED PRESS FIVE OF the 342. men remain-

ing of the 1,000,000 who fought

on the Union side in the Civil war compared their hardships with those of present-day soldiers. Four of them thought: their hardships had been greater but the fifth thought this war was “tougher.” Here is what they said: y ® = : Henry Mark Mingay, Tujunga, Cal, 98: “This war isn’t so much. I served 10 months in New York's fighting 69th reRiment starting in 1864 In a real war, “We didn’t have the safety of foxholes. “We had to stand up face to face against our enemy until we saw the whites of their eyes. “If you had to stand on the battlefield, loading your only weapon, a rifle, each time ‘you fired as we did, wouldn't you be in more danger than if you were

.in a foxhole?

“Now there was the battle of Petersburg, Va. In two hours we lost 200 men killed and wounded. “I went out in front of the firing line and picked up another weapon because mine burst. “Each day we were issued nine

hard tacks which we had to lay |

on a rock and crush with our guns before eating. Otherwise, you wouldn't have had any teeth.” » » n Clark Wood, Heron Lake, Minn,, 102: “Why this war's a picnic. I went six weeks without changing

_as at home.

directed a play for the benefit of

DE MILLE was one of only a.

ON THE CURB— Double Tonnage Sought in Paper

Collection Today

DOES YOUR curb look different today? It should be “yes” if you live in the northwest area of the city because today’s the day for waste paper pickup there, City trucks, under the direction of Luther E. Tex, city street commissioner, started out at 8 a. m. in an effort to “at least double” the 11 tons of paper collected yesterday.

Tomorrow, it will be the norths

east area's turn. Salvage commit» tee officials again urged residents to tie their paper bundles securely, and to place them at the curb early. ~ » » THE southeast area will be can~ vassed Thursday, the final day of the current paper drive. * Police were on the lookout to day for unauthorized collectors reported to have been picking up paper yesterday. Mr, Tex said “at least five” un.authorized trucks were busy, apparently collecting paper for sale at a profit to themselves, Proceeds from the sale of the paper collected will be donated to the post-war building fund of the Children’s Museum, :

Thursday.

It's an interest that's been carried on in distant places as well

In Peiping in 1937 when fighting broke out between China and Japan, Mr, Wiggam produced and

Chinese war relief.

. » ” » IN GENEVA, Switzerland, in

1939 it was his pageant, “A Prayer for the Living,” which was chosen for the 15th anniversary celebration of the Students International union. : Mr. Wiggam, a member of the union seminar that year, also pro-

duced the pageant. He returned to this country in 1940 by the 8. 8. Washington on the trip during which a German submarine commander invited the ship to stand by and be torpedoed —and then changed his mind, . . ® = = ENTERING Princeton later, Mr. Wiggam continued writing plays, one of which, “Three White Leop= ards,” he directed for the university's Intime theater in 1941. For the first time in the Intime's history, a professional actress appeared with the student cast, She was Katherine Emery, who had been starred in the Broadway production of “The Children's Hour.” On the Warner Bros. staff of writers since his graduation from Princeton, Mr. Wiggam is now working on the screen play for “The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse” in which Charles Laughton is expected to appear.”

my tlothes during the battle of the wilderness and my uniform looked like just one big walking louse, “We had no way of carrying our equipment and provisions except on our backs when we went into battle, “The care wounded men got was very meager and had no comparison with modern medicine and the care the boys get now.” ” » . R. E. Coleman, Lincoln, Neb. 95: “The boys in this war have a snap. Look at 'em. They ride in a Pullman, “They have good clothes and eat good food. They get passes to go to town and take their girls out. “Why, in our war, it was rough. “We rode in ‘box cars, ate dry hard tack and raw meat, slept in the open, and never went anywhere. “And lots of men died because no one took care of them. Yes, sir! Our war was worse.” » » . Samuel R. Yoho, San Francisco, 98: “Of course, this war's toughet than our war. A lot more weapons shoot a lot more shells in a lot less time. ' “At Nashville, we had to bite off the cartridge tips, pour the powder into our muskets, ram the shot and twist the ramrod And that took time. “If I wasn’t so old, rd like a crack at the Japs. “It would probably do me good to get Under army discipline again.” ” » » Hiram E. Gale, Seattle, Wash, #8: “At any rate, our war was decenter,

“Only those who enlisted to die |

were sacrificed and now air raids slaughter innocent women and children. “War is war and the spirit is the same. “We griped about food short= ages in those days, too. “But nothing has happened so far to compare with the Shenan9opb. ”

UNITARIANS T0 HEAR FRANCES W. WOOD

Miss Frances W, Wood of Boston, director of church schools and leadership training for the American Unitarian association, will make several talks before local Unitarians this week. The main event of Miss Wood's visit to All Souls Unitarian church will be a dinner at 6 p. m. Thursday for children when she will address the parents. Louis Thomas will present a magic show. Miss Wood was to speak to cradle roll mothers this morning and to the religious education committee this evening. At noon tomorrow, she will dis cuss “The Present Day Challenge to Religious Education” ‘at a meeting of the Elizabethans at the residence of Mrs. Oran Smith. The Jessy Wallin Heywood Alliance will hear Miss Wood at a luncheon meeting

By Laurene Rose Diehl]

| TE VERY SIMPLE] SANTAS SEG WONT HOLD

Times

- PAGE no

Tomorrow's Jo Priority for War Should

Come First

By EDWARD A. EVANS WASHINGTON, Dec. 5. — Vies tory over Germany may be much more remote than it seemed in September, Victory over Japan must not be delayed by such: shortages of weapons as are threatened in Europe. Those are the basic reasons why the government is slowing down the “spot” re 1 conversion program, for putting segments of industry back into civillan - goods production, increasing orders for certain munitions, scaling down earlier estis mates of war-production cutbacks to follow Germany's defeat. We have always believed that the war effort should have prior ity over any move toward reconversion or any increase of civilian goods, and so we agree with the steps now being taken. And we don't blame: the military men for not foreseeing all the kinds and quantities of munitions that would or might be needed. They are doing an uneprecedented job, and doing it well. ’ » » » AT THE same time, we don't {lke the tendency in some quarterms to accuse industry of hurting the war effort by talking about réconversion and post-war plane ning, or to jump on workers for leaving war plants to seek jobs with a peacetinie future. Too many people have believed that the war, at least in Europe, was Just abouf over. But the September expectations of early victory were aroused, not by industry or labor, but by statements of high government aus thorities, civil and military, in our own country and in Britain, . » » LET'S make up for whatever time has been lost as a result, Let's postpone any actual recone version that could possibly proe long the fighting. But let's get ready to move on reconversion—and to move fast— just as soon as it’s safe. One way to keep workers on war jobs as long as they're needed is to let them know that plans

age of peacetime jobs. We, the Wome Papa May Get Loan, but Mam Will Spend It

By RUTH MILLETT THE HEADLINE said: “First Local Vet to Get G. I. Loan Plans Modern Home.” But down in the news story where plans for the homes were described it was his wife whe did the talking— who said Just how the 'G. I. loan was gor © ing to be used,’ even down to the “blue and gold parlor” and the kitchen “with built-in cab -

going to go, G. I. Joe—if you have a wife, ” - ” THE government says it is going to make you loans for educa tion, homes, etc. Don't count too much on just how the loan is going to be used. For the little woman is going to have her say about that, And you find yourself live ing In a strictly modern house in. stead of the: colonial cottage you always dreamed of. You may even find yourself enrolled in a college instead of going into business as you once planned. . » » SURE, it's your loan—as youll discover when you go to pay it back, But its going to be “ours” when you get it, and the woman you took for better or for worse is going to help you spend it. You probably won't mind, of course, but you should knows in case you had counted om something else,

License Waivers Granted War Dogs

- DOG VETERANS of’ this war will. not be given Inte hunting licenses. But an ordinance introduced at last night's council meeting provides that their owners would not be liable for the annual Hews.