Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 10 August 1945 — Page 1

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The Indianapolis

FORECAST: Partly cloudy and alittle warmer

mes

tonight; tomorrow partly cloudy and warm with scattered Hishiderdiowers in afternoon and night.

Final Home . 4th Edition |

VOLUME 56—NUMBER 131

| SCRIPPS ~ HOWARD §

ait O BULLETINS

: By UNITED PRESS The N. B. C. reported from Stockholm today that the Swedish foreign office had received a “surrender offer” from the Japanese and transmitted it to the allies. N. B. C. Reporter Sven Norberg, in a broadcast from Stockholm, said American, Russian and British envoys, there were summoned immediately to go over the Jap-

FRIDAY, AUGUST 10, 1945

ALLIES CONSIDER J END OF PACIFIC WAR MAY BE NEAR

Throne Rights For Hirohito Asked; ficial Word, Fighting Goes On

Okinawa Yanks. Are Going Wild |

By RUSSELL ANNABEL, United Press Star Correspondent (OKINAWA, 9:30 P. M., Aug. 10.—American troops

anese-offer; Sf

WASHINGTON, Aug. 10 (U. P.).—Secretary of State

James F. Byrnes returned to the White House at 12:05 .

p. m. (Indianapolis time). It was announced that he would have a luncheon-table conference with the President.

By HARRISON SALISBURY United Press Foreign News Editor

"Japan today offered to accept the Potsdam surrender terms pr ovided the allies give her assurances regarding the sovereignty of Emperor Hirohito. It was believed that after consultation of the United States, Britain, Russia and and China—now going ‘on—an agreement regarding the emperor ‘might be worked out. i This would mean the surrender of Japan and the end of { World War IL. . Japan's offer was submitted to the allies through the Swedish and Swiss legations in Tokyo and through the Soviet ambassador, Jacob Mailk, who is still in the Japanese capital, It was announced over Morse transmissions of the offi- | cial Domei Japanese news agency and recorded first by the | United Press in San Francisco. Celebrations Touched Off

The governments of the United States, Britain, Russia

and China went into immediate consultation concerning the Japanese offer ‘even in advance of receiving the official text through diplomatic channels. : i The first text to reach allied hands, apparently, was that ‘submitted to Moscow by the Soviet ambassador in Tokyo. The White House indicated the war would go on as usual on land, sea and air until some official information was received. No. 10 Downing Street advised the British “to continue work as usual.” However, celebrations were touched off by the news, ‘particularly among the American men on the fighting front. Okinawa troops went wild. There was jubilation in Chung: tking and London, too. The Jap offer came four days: after the first atomic

‘bomb was dropped upon Japan and fewer than two days |

‘after Russia joined the war and invaded Manchuria, Korea land the southern half of Sakhalin island.

; Cabinet Is. Summoned

g President Truman in Washington immediately sum-

imoned Secretary of State James F. Byrnes and key mem-|

bers of his cabinet to the White House for consultation. he meeting lasted 30 minutes. The British cabinet was White House Secretary Charles G. Ross told reporters that until the offer was received officially there would be no eessation—so far as he knew—of land, sea and air action

went wild on this island they conquered less than two months ago today when they heard radio reports that Tokyo had said Japan would accept the Potsdam surrender ultimatum. They fired off guns and flares. Men yelled and beat on buckets. backs shouting: “The war's over.” The display of pyrotechnics was greater than any even seen during Japanese suicide attacks. Searchlights were turned on. Machine guns opened up. Bullets were falling everywhere. “We'd better get into a foxhole, somebody's gonna get hurt,” (Continued on Page 3 —Column 6)

Tracers criss-crossed the sky. They hammered one another's

his key cabinet members to his side “in the interest of possible developments,” Ross said. Ross promised to keep reporters informed of developments “as quickly as they happen.” °. . A full cabinet meeting, previbusly scheduled, was set for 2 p. m. The President, meanwhile, went on with a long schedule of conferences. The Japanese announcement said: “The Japanese government are ready to accept the) terms enumerated in the joint declaration which was issued at Potsdam on July 26, 1945, by the heads of the governments of the United States, Great Britain and China, and later subscribed to by-the Soviet government with the understanding that the said declaration does not compromise any 'demand which prejudices the prerogatives of his majesty as a sovereign ruler.”

Potsdam Terms

The Potsdam declaration called for: 1. Unconditional surrender of all Japanese armed forces, accompanied by adequate assurances of good faith. 2. Occupation by allied forces of such portions of Jap-| anese territory as the allies regard as necessary for the fulfillment of their objectives. 3. Elimination “for all time of the authority and influence of those who have deceived and misled the people of Japan.” 4. Punishment of all war criminals. 5. Elimination of Japan's war making capacity and elimination of all bars to establishment of a free, democratic régime in Japan. 6. Application of ‘the terms. of the Cairo declaration, limiting Japanese sovereignty to the four islands of Honshu, Kokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku. | 7. Stripping Japan of all her possessions in the Pacific| and Asia won by aggression. The immediate question was whether the continuance of Hirohito’s “sovereignty” was compatible with the terms

Entered as Second-Class Matter at

Indianapolis 9, Ind. Issued dally except Sunday

[of complete surrender and with allied control of Japan until

such a time as the allies deem Japan ready to take her place in a democratic society of free nations.

The Japanese announcement was made in two wireless

jsransmissions from Tokyo, one beamed to the United States

land one -to Europe. That to the United States came first

and was followed shortly by a transmission to Europe in lalmost identical wording.

Both the transmissions broke down before they were

completed but both gave the substance of the Japanese offer.

For some hours following the original broadcasts, sent

Pogstolfice

PRICE FIVE CENTS

P PEACE OFFE

in Morse telegraphic code, no further mention of the sur--

render offer was made by the Japanese radio. It was not mentioned in transmissions designed for East Asia, the FCC reported, nor was it mentioned in the Japanese home radio broadcasts.

No Formal Notice While Washington reported no formal communication had been received through the Swiss or the Swedes, this was hot regarded as unusual. Considerable time is required

for transmission of diplomatic ‘code messages which, in this instance, would go first to Stockholm and Bern and then would be retransmitted to the allied capitals.

The question of Hirohito was expected to be a thorny one and it seemed highly probable that, even if accepted by the allies as a basis for discussions, it would require specific

clarification.

The position of the emperor in Japan has been one of the most debated points among those directing allied psychological warfare against the enemy. The emperor is regarded in Japan as a god, above all mortal strife. Because of this, some students of Japan have

surrender the offer must be made by him, disassociating himself from the mortal acts of the Japanese gov ernment and military clique. \ : Difficult Situation It appeared difficult at first glance, however, to see how

a position of “sovereignty” could be maintained by the em-

peror in a nation which would be under the rigid control of~ the victorious allies. One suggestion was that such a demand might be accorded by recognizing his “sovereignty”

only on a spiritual plane, leaving mundane affairs in the

control of allied arms. Here, however, the allied terms for the complete remaking of Japan into a democratic state run afoul of the principles of the Shinto religion embraced by most Japanese and 'of which Hirohito is the living symbol. ; The actual mechanics of any surrender, it was bellovel: would require considerable time to work out. The terms, in the first instance, must be acceptable to | four great powers, the United States, Britain, Russia and (China.

Japanese are fighting the British Indian’ troops in Burma; (Continued on Page 3—~Column 1)

{long speculated that when the time came for Japan to:

Japan's fighting forces are most widely dispersed. T he

Emperor Hirohito . . . vital question is his sovereignty.

2D ATOM BOMB

RUINS NAGASAKI | Of Offer fo

Here Is Japs’ Statement

TRAIN WRECK

Accept Terms TOLL 25 25 T0 30

mgainst the Japanese empire,

Although neither the Swiss nor the Swedish representa-

[tives here had received any

inkling by that time that ‘al

wurrender offer might be on the way, the President called

Japs Lodge Formal Protest Against Use of Atomic Bomb

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 10.—The Japanese government has lodged a

States of such atomic weapons as the atomic bomb constituted a new

| Observer Says City Looks Like Erupting Volcano.

By UNITED PRESS Twelve hours after the atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki the city still looked like “a volcano in the process of #rupting,” NBC Correspondent Robert Shaplen reported from Okinawan today after a flight over the devastated eity. Shaplen flew clofe to the city

(U, P.).—Here is the text of the | Japanese statement offering to accept the Potsdam surrender ultimatum: “The Japanese government today addressed the following communication to the Swiss and Swedish governments "respectively for | transmission to the United States, Great Britain, China and the Soviet Union:” the broadcast began. - “By- the gracious command of his) majesty the emperor, who ever render good .offices in seeks to enhance the cause -of| peace vis-a-vis the enemy powers. world peace and desires earnestly to “Unfortunately. these efforts in| bring about an early termination of |¢o interest of peace having failed, |

SAN FRANCISCO, Alg. 10

mankind from the calamities to. be imposed upon them by further con|tinudtion of the war, the Japanese

formity with the august wish of] his ‘majesty to restore the general

| Many Soldiers diers Victims in North Dakota Crash.

MICHIGAN, N. D, Aug. 10 (U.|

{today from the erumpled observation tar of ‘the. Great Northern | |railway’'s Empire Builder. Officials |

between 25 and 40.

| A spokesman for. the railroad

‘ormal protest with the United |crime against the whole of humantates through Switzerland request= | ity and civilization. ng that the Americans “immediate-| «Therefore the Japanese govern-

aboard a Liberatof on a night government asked several weeks! bombing mission. lago the Soviet government which, | “On our way up north,” he re-|enjoying neutral relations then, ta!

peace and desiring to put.an ‘end said that a majority of the dead | {to the untold suffering caused by were servicemen. Of the first 17] bodies removed 10 were soldiers, he

(Continued on “Page 3—Column 3) said, adding that the death list

|Russ Slice Info Korea, Three

Other Jap Areas, Tokyo Says

By W. R. HIGGINBOTHAM United Press Staff Correspendent . LONDON, Aug. 10.—Red armies have invaded Korea, the Japanese half of Sakhalin island and two more sections of Manchuria, Japan reported today .a few hotirs before the Tokyo radio reported she had decided to surrender conditionally to the allies, A Moscow communique placed one of perhaps six Russian columns

restoring | P.) —Twenty bodies were removed | thrusting into Manchuria 30 miles more dinside the western border.

Japanese forces in Manchuria, = ; and Korea counter-attacked the; Massed Soviet artillery pulverized invaders, a Japanese communique the fortified Japanese line in the

hostilities with a view to Saving iho Japanese government, in con-| estimated the déath toll would be said, pnd heayy fighting was un-| northwest, one dispatch said, and

"der way between Soviet veterans [Soviet cavalry, of the European war and the poured through in pursuit of enemy enemy's crack Kwantung army. forces retreating across the hot, The first Far Eastern front dis-|waterless steppes. The Japanese patches to be published in Moscow | were unable to hold a single border told only of the shattering of the|town,

tanks and infantry

ported, “we passed within a few enemy's defenses in northwest Man-

y discontinue the use of. such In-|ment in the name of the Japanese

auman weapons as the atomic omb,” radio Tokyo said today. Tokyo, in a broadcast recorded by United Press, quoted the protest as ying: “Indiscriminate use by'the United

people and also in the name of humanity and civilization condemns the United States government, simultaneously requesting it to immediately discontinue the use of such inhuman weapons.”

TIMES INDEX

for| gam... 60 ve fam... i

~ |WARMER WEATHER EXPECTED TONIGHT

It's going to be a little warmer tonight, the weather bureau predicted.

Temperatures will average near normal tomorrow and Sunday, the weather bureau reported. It will be cooler Monday and Tuesday and a little warmer Wednesday. Scattered showers throughout the state are expected tonight and tomoitow and locally this afternoon and tonight. i

LOCAL TEMPERATURES Gam....600 10am... 11 7am. xe OA 11am. ... 80 12 (noon) .. 83° Ai hs 88

miles of what was left of Nagasaki. We began seeing it a hundred miles away—first, as a thin white line on the black horizon.

over to him: ‘What do you think it is?” He shrugged his shoulders and talked to the navigator, A moment later, the navigator came back on the phone: ‘That's Nagasaki, That's the place they dropped another of those magic eggs today.’ “The pilot swung the plane over toward the line of light. It was a clear night and the stars were out. The pilot was taking no chances.

(Continued on on Page 3—Column

JAPS PS SHIFT TRQOPS CHUNGKING, Aug. 10 (U, P) — More than 100,000 Japanese troops have withdrawn north from the Tung Ting lake area of Northern Hunan province, a Chinese military spokesman said today. Observers

|speculated that the withdrawal may

have been an attempt to anticipate and prepare defenses against the Russian attack into Manchuria.

“1 nudged the pilot and shouted.

Highlights of President Truman's Radio Address

(Truman Speech Story, Page 8)

WASHINGTON, Aug. 10 (U. P.).—Here are- the highlights of President Truman's radio address:

JAPAN—“The Japs will soon learn some of the other military secrets agreed on at Berlin. They will learn them first-hand—and they will not like them.” “We shall continue to use (the “atomic bomb) until we completely destroy Japan's. power te make war, Only a Japanese. surrender will stop us.” RUSSIA—“The Soviet Union, before she had been informed of our new: weapon, agreed _to enter ‘the war in ‘the ®acific. We gladly welcome into Tg ot jieuegle against ne last of

aggressors our gallant and victorious ally against the Nazis.”

ATOMIC BOMB—“The atomic bomb is too dargerous to be loose in a lawless world. That is. why Great Britain, Canada and the United States, who have the secret of its production, do " not intend to reveal the secret until means have been found to control’ fel bom #0 as to protect ourselves the rest of the world hg a danger of total destruction.” : BASES“. , , We are going to maintain the military bases nec-

would reach at least 25. An officer of the state guard unit | at Devil Lake said the death toll

|would rise to at least 40. He said |

at least that many soldiers were | |killed in the rear car of the train: when the second section of the] Empire Builder crashed into the first section.. ’ | Identification of the dead of

dition of many bodies which were | seared when the car burst into! flames. Workers had succeeded in cutting | away half the telescoped car. * The bodies were enmeshed in the buckled steel plates of an observa-| tion car and the locomotive of ae! train's second section whic

(Continued on “Page 3=Column 5)

TAVERNS TO CLOSE ’ Better stock up on refreshments— | NOW. The A. B. C. today an-

{nounced that it would request all

liquor outlets, including stores and taverns, to close for 24 hours after the official VJ announcement fd

axis | (Continied on age 3—Column 6) made.

made difficult by the charred con-|

The. Japanese report of four new

churia, though - last night's com- g4yiet invasions placed Red armies munique told of at least three other|

| penetrations of the frontier, I (Continued on Tare SOalumn 3)

Third Fleet Planes Blast Tokyo Area, Japs Report

northern Honshu this morning for United Press Staff Correspondent the second straight day in an =tGUAM, Aug. 10. — More than'tempt to ham-string enemy efforts 1200 carrier planes from the 3d! to move reinforcements to Korea - fleet shifted their attack to the and Manchuria to fight the tovad- | Tokyo area today, the Japanese Ye- | ing Red armies. ported, after destroying or damag-| The carrier aircraft shifted thelr ing 257 enemy aircraft in north- assault to the Tokyo-Yokohama bh! ern Honshu yesterday. area during the morning, Tokyo « Seventy Superfortresses also|said, and in the afternoon bombed dropped one-ton demolition bombs and strafed airfields and military lon the sprawling: Tokyo. arsenal tne area shortly before noon for the| second time in 48 hours. : Ninety other B-29s had raided the Nippon Oil Refinery at Amagasaki near Osaka before dawn. A Pacific fleet communique said pla nes of the 3d fleet tiation

By WILLIAM F. TYREE