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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Seaforth News, 1942-01-15, Page 2VOICE OF, TUE PRESS AIRMEN'S DINGHIES Rubber dinghies carried by air crews of the.R,A,F, in a pack. measuring 16 inches by 8 inches are one of the contributions to Britain's war effort made by Un- ited Kingdom manufacturers of corsets,silk stockings, maekin- tophes and so on, Like the carbon dioxide gas used for inflating the dinghies, which , normally goes overseas in millions of bottles of BritaIn's famous table waters, most of the goods -normally pro- duced by these companies are known to shoppers in most 'parts of the world, These rubber dinghies haveal- ready saved many lives, for rn cold weather airmen wearing the "Mae West" jacket who came down in the sea could not expect to survive half -an -hour's immer- sion. Now, however, even a 400 lb. man can sit in his dinghy, stop leaks from a pin -prick to a can- non shell hole, propel it with a. pair of rubber hand -paddles (made by people who usually turn out ladies' underwear), light sig- nal flares (supplied by firework manufacturera) and sustain him- self with emergency rations sup- plied by the makers of dainty ]boxes of chocolate. —St. Thomas Times -Journal. TO BED BEFORE MIDNIGHT From the Canadian Osteopathic Committee on War Effort comes a suggestion which at first glance may be laughed off by many but which in reality is worth thinking *bout; it is that we should all be in bed by midnight. Many statements have been grade by responsible authorities that our health standard is not what it should be, and the nervous and labor strain of these days is working a heavy and increasing toll. The osteopaths point out that more rest is the cheapest and yet most effective answer to this inroad upon our vitality, and few who study such matters will dis- egree. —Ottawa Journal. DRESSED TURKEYS Turkeys, the 'Wartime Prices and Trade Board rules, are dress- ed only when they are bare. It is just another of those mildly con- fusing anomalies, such as the fact that bread rises when it sets, and, in the price of sleeping car ac- eomodation, the lower berths are always higher than the uppers. —Windsor Daily Star. NAZI EMERGENCY If Mr. Churchill suddenly were to take personal command of all the British land forces we should know a grave emergency had arisen. That is what Hitler has done in Germany, and it must be an event of deep significance. —Ottawa Journal. ISN'T IT A SHAME? Berlin correspondent complains that the Russians are attacking the German invaders at night and that Nazi soldiers are "under con- tinuous strain and can find no deep at all." Now, that's what we'd call downright mean. - Windsor Star. TIMELY TID-BIT "Hitler is reported to be search- ing in the state libraries of Paris, in occupied France, for a copy of Napoleon's reputed secret memor- andum, entitled 'How I got out of Russia.' " —Woodstock Sentinel -Review. NEUTRAL As the British writer, Vic Oliver, well says: "As far as the present international conflict is concerned, I am completely neu- tral. I don't care who kills Hit- ler." —Windsor Star. RULE OF BUGS A chemist, alarmed by priori- ties, says that without insecticides bugs will rule the world. What makes him think bugs don't rule a large slice of the world right now? —Stratford Beacon -Herald. INKLING OF TRUTH "Some women who say they suffer in silence may mean that when in silence they suffer." -Beli.eville Intelligencer, FITTING Germans pronounce the letter "J" as we pronounce the letter "Y." Thus Japs become "Yaps," Well . . . —Woodstock Sentinel Review. RECIPE' The best way to improve a vegetable dinner is to add a nice, juicy steak. —Vancouver Sun. Scrap For Warships Enough scrap metal has been collected in Britain in two years to furnish material for two cruis- ers, i 0 or 12 destroyers, 10,000 anti-tank guns, 15,000,000 shells and 10,000 tanks. ,TAS' IN ISH"` CAUGHT BY UNCLE SAM. A mass of torn, twisted and dented steel is all that remains of this two-man Japanese submarine that was shelled, rammed by a destroyer and blast ed with a deptirbomb during Hawaiian blitz. The forward half of the craft has been ripped to pieces. The wreck was raised by U. S. Navy from bottom of Pearl Harbor for first-hand examination. Army of Russia Still Marches On In September, after a lively few `months, the German High Command said; "Russia es a military power is finished." Last July 2 Dr. Otto Dietrich, the Nazi press chief, sounded off prematurely on the same topic, and wound up with: "I have never misled you." What he said that day Includ- ed: "The power of residence of the Soviet armies has been broke en." "Unbelievable chaos has closed over the Soviet armies." "The encircling, dismembering and annihilation of the . huge Red forces guarding the road to Minsk and Moscow has been coni• pleted." Some other little gems from the Dietrich press conference: "The last Russian army groups are being wiped out." "There Is no doubt that the whole Russian front is smashed." Air Raid Sirens For Ontario Cities Ontario's larger cities will have air raid sirens very soon. Production of an English -type siren is under way at Bu•lec, Lim- ited, Scarboro, Firist order from Ottawa is for 60. The sirens can be heard four and a half miles away under good conditions. It 1s, a twin -note type, automatically controlled by a "whaler relay" which transmits the warning signal or the "all clear" as desired, by operating a designated switch. The siren to be made is of the type approved by the home office, A.R.P. depart- ment, In England. U. S. Airlines In Emergency Test Oranges from California, pe- cans from Oklahoma, oysters from Baltimore, baked beans from Boston and scrapple from Philadelphia — a veritable feast. Only it wasn't. .All these delica- cies were flown to New York re- cently not so much for eating purposes as for a testto show how the 862 transport planes of the United States' 19 commercial airlines could carry 2,896,000 pounds of food to New Yorkers in a war emergency. It's A Long Time Between Stitches Mrs. Caleb Fox Jr., Production Department Chairman of the Red Cross in Philadelphia, reports that a middle-aged volunteer showed up with a half-completedknitted sock and asked more matching yarn to complete it. Noticing it was an off -shade, Mrs. Fox inquired when It was started. Came the reply: "During the first World War." Americans To Stay In Canadian Forces Canadian officials ray that United States volunteers in Can- ada's fighting forces are expect- ed to remain where they are era- ther than return to the United States for service. Nearly 10,000 men from "south of the border" aro serving in the Canadian Army, and 10 per Gene. of the air crews trained and in training for the Royal Canadian Air Force are from the States. The female frog deposits from 600 to 1,200 eggs annually. BEAUTIFUL CATHEDRAL i The million -dollar Cathedral in Manila, where Japs rained bombs on the undefended Philippine capital. Theatre of War In Vast Pacific Many Thousands of islands In Pacific Brought Into .The War, Relates The Sault St. Marie Star. 7ufis is an 'amazing' war which 1s now in progress in the Facies Ocean. Mr. Churchill, When he announc- ed the opening of the British of- fensive in Libya a few weeits ago, spoke or the operations there being like those of a sea battle, with strategy and tactics being extend- ed over a wide area. But even Mr. Churohi•ll did not at that time vision operations of the scope of those now, being carried in the vast expanse of water' that lies be- tween Asia and the Americas From Yokohama to ancouver is 4,280 miles and from the 'same Jap- anese port to San Francisco is 4,- 525 miles From Yokohama to Honolulu ie 8,440 miles., Russia's 1,500 mile battle line has seemed a tremendous distance. But it 'is dwarfed by a war which takes distances such as those in the Pacific. And think of the many thousands of isands which as scattered over that great area. There are some 7,088 islands in the Philippines, which stretches for a distance- of one thousand miles'. In Japan, without taking into a000unt the territory it holds in China, there axe some 2,322 islands, stretching over 1,600 miles, and having a population of 100,000000. people. In the. Netherlands Indies there are about 2,000 islands, spread over a territory 3,000 miles in length' from Singapore to Borneo Then in ad- dition there are the scores and hundreds of islands which owe al- legiance to Britain, Prance, the United States, Russia, Japan, Aus- tralia•, New Zealand which are dot- ted over the map. Airplanes and modern war ves- sels have brought a strange war to a strange territory. Nazis Hide Truth From Own People The. Germans are trying' to hide from their own people their huge losses in Russia by regulating obituary notices, asserts London Calling. Since the start of the Russian campaign there have been four orders regulating obituaries, it is said. The first prohibited firms and party organizations from publish- ing them; the second ordered the reduction in size by half; the third limited the number to twenty- five daily, and the fourth instruc- ted editors to censor the text. • ees and War Horsy mixed with foods and drinks were inciu..ed in the daily diet of the ancient Romans. So highly did they prize this food that the Roman Lmpice armies even carried their own bee -hives with them wheneser they invaded a 'foreign land. m THE WAR - WEEK --- C eplmentary on Current Lverlts Allied Heads Meet In, Washington To 'Plan Defeat of Axis Powers "Tho Prime Minister of Great Britain," . chid the Presidential Secretary, Mr, Stephen Beene on the evening of December 22, "is now with the President, He ar- rived by 'air and was met by the Pt'nn air n n Washingtonesidetat , Hae was accostatiompaniedear by Lord Beaverbrook and a tech-. , nical staff;" "There is, of course," continued Mr. Early, "one primary objective in the con- versations to be held between the Nr'eeident''and the British Prime Minister and the respective staffs of the two countries. That purpose is the defeat of Hitlerisin through- out the world. "It should bo remembered that many other nations are engaged to -day in this 'common task. Therefore, the present confer ences in Washi-rgton should be regarded as preliminary to further conferences which will offically include Russia, China, the Neth- erlands and Dominions. It is ex- pected that there will also be in- volved an over-all unity in the conduct 'of the war. Other nations will be asked to participate in the over=all objective." Issues Involved The problem of co-ordinating the vast issues involved could be summarized under the following beadings: 1. Britain, . America, China, Russia and. the Netherlands stand unshatteyably united against any separate peace with any part of the Axis and they axe making the fullest conceivable pledge to each other that only a peace ap- proved by all will be accepted by any. _ 2. A supreme. Allied War Council will be immediately or- ganized .. to direct the composite strategy against the composite forces of the Axis. The highest and most critical decisions of pole icy will be settled by common agreement in the interests of the most effective war plan and all the theatres of the fighting will be co-ordinated in the interests of this common strategy. This is to give effect to Mr. Roose- velt's repeated declarations that the world -scale aggression of the Axis can only be defeated by the world -scale strategy of the Al- lies. 3, There will' be an unreserved poolingof theimplements of war and they will be dispatched to the fronts where they are most needed in accordance with the necessities of the broadest strat- egy. 4. Russia's entry into the war against Japan will be decided by joint agreement as to when and how it will be most effective. 5. There will be agreement on the essential peace objectives outlined by Mr. Roosevelt and Mr; Churchill in the Atlantic Charter. 6. The alliance will not au- tomatically terminate with the conclusion of the war. It is de- signed to constitute the beginning of a peace alliance against fur- ther aggression—the urther'aggression—the beginning of a world policy force to prevent future war. 7. The mechanism of Close consultation is planned to form the basis of economic and social collaboration in the period ; of post-war reconstruction. Conference In 'Moscow It is significant that the initia- tive of this Allied' Council` did not spring from any single one of its members, It arose almost shnul- taneously from all. of them, in- cluding strong leadership from Generalissimo Kiang Kai-shek in Chungking. The councils from which the present argument is emerging have been in progress for some time in Washington, in London and in Moscow. Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden and Prime Minister Joseph Stalin in Moscow have reached an agreement in full on conduct of the war and especially. on "the ne- cessity for the utter defeat of, Hitlerite Germany", There was also an exchange of views on questions relating to- the post-war organization of peace and securi- ty. In the last war, lack of con- certed effort cost, the Allies dear- REG'LAR FELLERS—Mouseproof ly, In this war, with the =ti Axis coalition sprawling over most of the lands and seas of the world, prompt action is now being ,taken to weld the Allied forces into en efficient fighting unit, The sl?•ug- gle, Mr. Churchill said; if man- aged well, would take only half as long as if managed badly. Grave Problem,' In speaking of the otislanght o.f Japan which presented grave problems, Mr, Churchill said: "If people ask me, as they gave a right to ask me in England,' why is it you have not got envie- equipment nileequipmentof modern a.re.ai and modern weapons of all kinds in Malaya and in the Ilan niches, I can only 'point to the- victory General Auchinleek has gained in the Libyan earnpai* Had we divided those gradually -grew - lug resources between Libya and 'Malaya, we would have ` been, found wanting in both spheres, If the United States has been found at a disadvantage at eer•- taui points in the Pacific, we know that it is to some extent due to the fact that you, have been giving us of your equip - Ment for the defence of the Brit- ish Isles, and aboveall for your help in the' Battle of the Atlantic, on which all depends, and which. fs, in consequence, ;successfully and constantly maintained. (if course it would have been much better if we had had en- ough resources of all kings to be at full strength at all threat- ened points, but considering how slowly and reluctantly we brought ourselves to large reale . 'preparation and how' long those preparations took, we had no right to expect to be in such a fortunate position. Post-war Problem The choice of how to dispose of our hitherto limited resources had to be made by Britain in a time of war and by the United States in times of peace, and I believe history will pronounce that upon the whole, and it is upon the whole that these .niat- ters must be judged, that the chocie made was the right one." Although Mr. Churchill stated in Washington that conversation would not include post-war prob- lems, that the present emergency came first, we must consider his words spoken to Congress. "If we had kept together after the last war, if we had taken common measures for our safety, the re- newal of the curse need, never have fallen on us." After winning the last war to- gether with partnership between Great Britain was dissolved and each went their respective ways, even becoming rivals. The ques- tion of war debts, the selfishness of British and American commer- cial policy, the disarmament com- pact, the lack of accord of the Far Eastern Policy all worked to- gether to break up the union of the English-speaking peoples, This is the mistake which Mr. Churchill and Mr. Roosevelt are now trying to repair. • Normandie. Seized By United States Armed coast guardsmen, acting on naval orders, /lave seized the $60,000,000 P2bneh liner Norman - die, one of the largest, -proudest and finest shins afloat. Led by Capt. John. Baylis, guards- men swooped down on the 53,423 - ton liner .at the Hudson River pier, where she has been. laid up mice the beginning of the war. The Normandie could be used either as' a transport or as an air- craft, carrion. She was designed and built io speedy conversion.' Capt. , Baylis said, he had removed about 200 seamen from her, In Washington, the department of justice said the French seamen would be released and placed on Par Buiole.lt in 1936, tine Normandie' is the third largest ship in the world, exceeded only by the British Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Mary, Her length of 1,020feet makes her four times the height of. the Statue of Liberty—a gift from Prance to the United. States. By GENE BYRNES