WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS
U. S. Bombers Hit Axis War Plants
As Allied Chiefs Ponder Italy’s Fate;
Reds Push Nazis Back on Two Fronts;
Trap Jap Forces in Central Solomons
^__________________
(EDITOR'S NOTE : When opinions are expressed In these columns, they are those of
Western Newspaper Union s news analysts and not neeessarlly of this newspaper.)
______________ Released by Western Newspaper Union. .
Sicily’s fall came only after stiff fighting such as this, in which
British Tommies from the Eighth army advanced through a railroad
siding under heavy fire.
SICILY:
Happy Ending
Thirty-eight days after the first Al
lied troops set foot on Sicily’s south
eastern snore, the
island -fell, with
140,000 Axis pris
oners reported
captured. As Gen.
George S. Pat
ton’s Doughboys
from the Seventh
American army
swept Into Mes
sina to take over
the enemy’s last
stronghold, the
Italian mainland
loomed two miles
away.
Gen. George S.
Patton
The fall of Sicily was preceded
by the Axis’ evacuation of the island
behind the rugged action of their
rearguards, fighting fiercely from
natural defenses in the mountainous
terrain. According to Berlin, about
85,000 German troops with all of
heavy equipment were hauled to the
Italian mainland on small vessels.
The Sicilian campaign was
marked by bitter action. In the
early landings, American troops
withstood strong German counter
attacks to establish a beachhead at
Gela; Gen. Bernard Montgomery’s
British columns encountered stiff op
position before Catania, where the
Axis machine gunners could hide to
advantage in the grain fields; and
finally, German units planted in the
mountains slowed Allied advances
to a steady crawl up the open, crag
gy slopes before Messina.
Discuss Open City
As President Roosevelt and Prime
Minister Churchill came together
for their sixth conference in the his
toric citadel of Quebec, Marshal
Pietro Badoglio’s Italian military
government pressed efforts for the
recognition of Rome as an open
city. Acting as intermediary, the
Vatican was reported to have pre
sented Badpglio's proposals for such
recognition to Allied representa
tives.
Before recognizing Rome as an
open city, the Allies insisted that the
metropolis be stripped of all mili
tary activity. In their bombings of
Rome, the Allies concentrated on
the San Lorenzo railroad yards.
As Roosevelt and Churchill dis
cussed Italy’s fate, British and
American bombers loosed a rain of
explosives on the Italian industrial
centers of Milan and Turin. Waves
of four-engined bombers blasted at
the famous Caproni aircraft works,
chemical plants and the royal ar
senal.
RUSSIA:
Nazis Fall Back
Hitler’s armies fell back along
the central and southern Russian
fronts as the Reds’ masses of tanks
and troops ground forward in bitter
action. The Germans put up stiff
resistance, slowing the Russians’ ad
vance with local counterattacks,
and making them pay for every yard
gained.
But the sheer weight of the Reds'
drive told in the eventual German
retreats. In the central sector, the
Russians bore down on the impor
tant Nazi base of Bryansk, as they
moved westward from recently fall
en Orel. Farther to the south, Khar
kov lay encircled from three sides,
and Soviet troops stood at the gates
of the once great Pittsburgh of Rus
sia, now a blackened ruin.
OP A:
Changes Made
As a result of Office of Price Ad
ministration policies, the cost of liv
ing dropped fractionally during the
last two months and should register
a further decline in August, Chester
Bowles, new OPA general manager,
declared. Aim of the government
is to bring prices to the September,
1942, levels, and keep them in line
with the stabilization of wages at
15 per cent over the early 1941
figures.
SOUTH PACIFIC:
Slip on Noose
By occupying Vella Lavella , Is
land, American troops slipped a
tight noose around remaining Japa
nese forces in the central Solomons.
Vella Lavella lies to the north of
Kolombangara island, where 8,000
Nipponese stood entrenched. To- the
south of Kolombangara is New
Georgia island, which U. S. dough
boys dominated.
As General MacArthur’s offensive
developed, with the central Solo
mons in the Americans’ grip, the
Japanese were left with outposts
only in the northeastern area of the
islands.
As MacArthur’s Solomons’ forces
wound up for the knockout punch,
waves of Allied bombers staged a
surprise attack on the Japanese air
base at Weewak, New Guinea, de
stroying 120 planes and killing 1,500
personnel. Caught unawares, Jap
planes were packed solidly on the
field when the Allied airmen flew
over, proving easy targets. The en
emy craft represented reinforce
ments that had been sent to bolster
Jap ground troops at Salamaua to
the south, where Allied units had
pressed within 15 miles of the big
base. #
WAGES:
Go Up
Average pay of workers in all
manufacturing industries was 05.0
cents an hour in June, the depart
ment of labor figures disclose. This
is 13 per cent higher than in June,
1942. Weekly earnings averaged
$43.35 in June, compared with $43.22
for May. In durable goods facto
ries (makers of tractors, furniture,
planes, etc.) the average was $49.37
and in non-durable (canned vegeta
bles, paper products, etc.) the aver
age pay was $34.41 a week. Be
cause of expanding activity, man
hours Increased some five million
over May.
Employment figures show that
there are now 17,100,000 women
working, an increase of three mil
lion over last year. In the same
period number of men employed de
clined by 2,700,000, from 39,900,000 to
37,200,000. Nearly two million more
women are wanted by industry.
HOME FRONT:
Roads Long, Bloody
Tempering increased optimism on
the home front. War Mobilization
Director James F.
Byrnes told the na
tion "the roads to
Berlin and Tokyo
are still long, hard
and bloody.” We
have met less than
7 per cent of the
enemies’ armed
forces in Europe, he
said, and in the Pa
cific, the Japanese
not only control most
of the productive
resources of China,
but also the great
James F.
Byrnes
wealth of Malaya and the Indies.
Looking at home. Byrnes prom
ised prices of actual necessities will
be scaled down under the stabiliza
tion program. Increased taxes or
“forced savings” must be adopted
to drain off 20 billion dollars of ex
cess purchasing power, he said. And
revisions in the government’s pro
curement program will make pos
sible production of some essential
civilian goods, he reported.
POST OFFICE
Postal deficit was set at $3,543,122
for the fiscal year ending June 30,
when the post office department
closed its books. This loss is the
lowest since 1919. Last year the de
ficiency was $11,825,185.
Revenues totaled $961,059,690, an
increase of $101,242,199 over last
year. The increase almost equalled
the entire income for the year 1900.
Expenditures amounted to $964,602,
812, an increase of $92,960,135. Sal
aries of employees accounted for 77
per cent of the costs.
DRAFT:
Deferment Grounds
In an effort to provide industry
with necessary labor, the War Man
power commission
headed by Paul V.
McNutt laid down
new regulations
for Selective Serv
ice, making occu
pation rather than
dependency the
basis for defer
ment.
At the same
time, the WMC
broadened the list
of jobs which are
non-deferrable,
Paul V. McNutt
and placed certain positions requir
ing high skills at the bottom of the
draft rolls.
In effect, the new regulation puts
teeth into the order to draft fathers
after October 1, since dads holding
non-essential jobs will be called
ahead of others employed in essen
tial industry. Provision has been
made, however, for fathers to switch
to essential occupations.
BEER:
Df ought for Duration
Beer is scarce, and will probably
be scarcer soon. War Production
board officials indicate. Demand is
running some 50 per cent above pro
duction, and areas away from brew
eries face a real '‘drought.’’ Com
munities near a source of supply
will fare somewhat better.
Restrictions on materials of all
kinds are limiting brewers to pro
duction of 63 million barrels. Last
year they turned out 68 million, and
that wasn’t enough to satisfy every
one. Malt supplies have been re
duced by 7 per cent, and bottles by
35 per cent. Caps are hard to get.
Transportation is irregular.
The WPB has ordered that 13 per
cent of the beer must be set aside
for servicemen. It contains 3.2 per
cent alcohol or less, lower than most
commercial beers.
Air Hero at 16
Tired of working on the farm, and
doing odd jobs around Elmwood, III.,
14-year^>ld Clifford R. R herlry took a
CLIFFORD
WHERLEY
last look at the old
| home early one
| morning and start
ed down the road
toward an adven
ture which saw him
a hero in the air
force at 16.
Later that morn
ing, Whrrlcy gave
his age as 18 and
was inducted into
the army. Because
he liked to shoot
rabbits, squirrels
and foxes, he de
cided to become
an aerial gunner.
»herley a craving for action was
soon satisfied. As staff sergeant and
turret gunner on a Martin bomber, he
participated in 21 missions over North
Africa. Hut when his real age was
discovered, the army gave him an hon
orable discharge, and now he must
await his Jltth birthday before he can
get back into the service.
In the meantime, ff herley will work
in the Glenn L. Martin plane factory,
helping turn out the bombers in which
he rode to such early glory.
RATION BOOKS:
Brown Stamps
Purchase of meat, fats, oils and
dairy products will be made through
use of brown stamps in ration book
No. 3 beginning September 12. How
ever, the last red stamps. X, Y and
Z, will remain valid to October 2.
Because the blue stamps, U, V
and W for the purchase of processed
foods will be good to October 20, ra
tion book No. 2 will not be immedi
ately discarded.
One series of stamps in ration
book No. 3 will be used for canned
and processed foods when the blue
stamps of book No. 2 are exhausted.
Book No. 1 will remain valid for
shoe rationing. In an effort to en
snarl black market operators, new
gas coupons will be issued. It is
planned to distribute an “F” series
to check the use of old coupons
which might have been turned in for !
eventual utilization at the full ration
rate after the deadline for the 25
per cent cut.
MINERS:
48-Hour Week
Miners working 42 hours a week
were permitted to work an addi
tional six hours at time-and-a-half
pay under an order issued by the
War Labor board and approved by
President Roosevelt. With the $9 ob
tained for the extra six hours, min- 1
ers will receive $51 for their 48-hour
week.
Secretary of the Interior Harold
L. Ickes, government operator of the
mines, had asked the WLB for the
48-hour week to stimulate produc
tion of coal and avert a possible
fuel shortage. The 48-hour week
formed one of John L. Lewis’ pro
posals for a new contract, along with
pay for underground travel of $1.25
a day, which the WLB has been con
sidering.
NORWAY:
Underground Stirring
Apparently moving to suppress
“underground” activities, lately
sparked by hopes of Allied invasion, 1
Nazi authorities have placed Nor
way under virtual martial law. Ac
cording to Swedish radio reports, a
state of siege has been declared for
the entire nation. Imprisonment and
executions are being employed to
suppress all organizations that might
be able to assist the Allies in the
event of invasion.
-- I
Many Tax Laws Suggested
To Get 'Nervous Dollars'
Compulsory Savings, Personal Excess In
come Tax, Spending Levy Found Unpopu
lar or Unwieldy; Orthodox Bill Seen.
By BAUKHAGE
News Analyst and Commentator.
YOUR TAX- AND BOND-DOLLAR
HOW THE GOVERNMENT SPENDS IT
(Firat Half of 1943)
AiroWt (
Ground ordnencci
< . end (
I itjnel equipment'
McrcHint vtucit|
Mttc*JLncoui j
f mwiMom* '
W. J
construction \
‘Automotive vehicle* end equipment, cbthinq end person*] equipment
end other expense*
“Fey. subsistence, travel lor armed force* and civilians, agricultural
commodities lor export end miscellaneous expense*
__ Dere-WFB
WNU Service, Union Trust Building
Washington, D. C.
As far back as biblical days, the
tax collector was an unpopular per
son.
Today you don’t see the tax col
lector but you know who writes the
tax laws and the folks who do (con
gress) lead a most unhappy life,
especially in an election year such
as we are approaching.
The complicated problem they
face can be simply stated—think it
over and figure out what you would
do if you had to write a tax law.
The problem is this: how to collect
the most dollars and lose the least
votes.
Soak the rich? Well, they have
the money and it hurts them the
least, but unfortunately there are
not enough of them to soak. It is
too bad because they are so few in
number that their votes don’t mat
ter so much. (Only 46,949 people or
approximately one eight-hundredth
ol those with incomes earn over $10,
000 a year.)
Tax the rest? That will bring in
the biggest total but they are the
ones with the votes.
The President says we need 106
billion dollars to run the war this
year. The treasury says that out of
every dollar collected, 90 cents goes
to pay the war bills.
So there have been a number of
schemes concocted which are aimed
at getting the nervous dollars, the
ones most likely to create inflation.
Presumably they are the dollars that
belong to the people who are now
getting a lot more money than they
did before the war. It would be just
to take the "excess profits" to pay
for the war especially because the
people who are getting a lot more
than they are used to are the ones
who spend most freely.
So compulsory savings has been
suggested. That is, making Uncle
Sam collect a part of everybody’s
income, which would be returned
after the war. Then there is a
scheme to tax spending. In other
words, tax the dollars which are
spent on extras, dollars that get
back Into circulation and push np the
inflation spiral. Not the dollars that
go into homes or life insurance or
paying old debts, but the dollars
that romp off for more clothes than
you need to wear, more food and
drink than you need to absorb,
more gadgets than you ought to get
along with in wartime.
Then there is another tax—the
personal excess income tax.
That is a tax on the amount of
money that you are receiving now
that you weren’t receiving before
the war.
Lacking Popularity
None of these methods is popular.
There is a sentimental objection to
compulsory savings. It smacks, ac
cording to its opponents, too much
of totalitarianism, of an interfer
ence with the individual’s personal
habits. The President is opposed to
it—and his wife agrees with him—
the treasury is opposed to it.
The spending tax is said to be too
complicated and likewise appears to
be unpopular with the treasury.
Then there is this personal excess
income tax of which you will soon
be hearing more. The chief objec
tion to that tax seems to be that it
is too hard to work out; that it is
too hard to make it just and fair.
Even the Nazis who tried it gave it
up after about a year’s trial.
When the personal excess Income
tax comes up, you will hear many
arguments against it. Like many of
these other "unorthodox” methods,
it requires the establishment of what
is called a "base period” to estab
lish a comparison. That is, some
period of time during which the
amount earned by the individual is
taken as a base. Then what he is
making now is compared with that
"base” and the difference taxed.
But that is a pretty hard thing to
work out because so many adjust
ments would have to be made for
special cases that the government
would never be able to examine each
case and pass on it fairly.
Take the young doctor. The year
before the war, he may have been
graduated from medical school.
Probably he had little or no income
then. Then he begins to practice
and in wartime, doctors are in de
mand. He may have made a fair
income this year. Would it be fair
to tax the "excess” if it were the dif
ference between this year's earning
and the "base period” when he was
earning nothing at all?
Too Many Inequitiet
Then there are many men who
are getting more money now be
cause they work longer hours or
have received just and deserved pro
motions—all these things immedi
ately come into the picture when you
begin to straighten out the inequi
ties, when you really try to tax a
just percentage of a man’s income.
And so the predictions which are
being made in Washington now are
that the next tax bill will be a pretty
"orthodox” affair, it will simply
have about the same kind of exemp
tions. a little higher percentage tax,
and will be rushed through at the
last minute after as many members
of congress have objected to the
clauses which they think will be un- j
popular with their constituents. The
government needs the money and
needs it quic ily. The people don’t
want to be :axed any more than '
can be helped and the congressmen
will lean over backwards trying to
please the people.
Meanwhile, the treasury tells us
that most of the money which is be
ing earned due to the great in
crease in production caused by the
war is going to people whose in
comes are less than $5,000 a year—
seven-eighths of it. So at least seven
eighths of the taxes ought to come
from that group.
BRIEFS by Baukhage
An honorable discharge from the
army during the present war will be
signified by a lapel button, the
war department has announced.
• • •
The British radio in a French
language youth hour broadcast to
the continent declared: “Young
men, gain time. If you avoid going
to Germany today, perhaps you will
Mver have to go.”
The Nazi ministry of propaganda
has ordered all literature about Be
nito Mussolini withdrawn from Ger
man libraries and bookshops espe
cially those drawing a parallel be
tween him and Adolf Hitler, the Rus
sian Tass news agency said in quot
ing a report from Berlin reaching
Geneva, The parallel did exceeding
ly little to help the cause of Hitler
in his countrymen’s eyes.
Released by Western Newspaper Union.
PLEURODYNIA—FALSE
PLEURISY
Some years ago I wrote about an
epidemic of pleurodynia in England.
Pleurodynia is an inflammation with
pain in muscles of the chest. It
Dr. Barton
is sometimes called
false pleurisy—pain
in lower part of
chest and upper part
of abdomen, pain
on breathing and
with any movement
of chest muscles. At
that time it was con
sidered an infectious
disease, but as
symptoms were
light, lasted but a
short time and no
bad effects followed.
notmng more was neara aDoux n.
It is interesting to learn that an
epidemic of pleurodynia is reported
in Brooklyn, N. Y. Cases of this
disease began to appear in the Red
Hook section of Brooklyn in July,
1942. To date at the Long Island
College hospital, 166 cases were ob
served, of which 40 were admitted
to hospital. Apparently there were
more nose and throat symptoms in
these Brooklyn cases than those re
ported in England, Norway and
some parts of the United States.
"The prominent symptoms in
adults were fever, severe pain in
upper right side of abdomen or low
er part of the chest, or both, suf
ficient to make breathing painful
and difficult. The abdominal symp
toms were frequently so severe that
surgeons were called into consulta
tion. The recoveries were prompt,
often within 24 to 48 hours, though
further attacks of pain and fever
often occurred.” In a number of
these adult cases, headache, dizzi
ness, lack of interest and fear of
light occurred.
In children, in addition to fever
and pain in upper abdomen and
lower chest, there was sometimes
very difficult breathing, vomiting
but no diarrhea, severe inflamma
tion of the throat and quick and
complete recovery. In most of the
infants violent convulsions occurred.
Fortunately for physicians, parents
and child, the convulsions quickly
disappeared.
I am passing this information
along, as the symptoms are so se
vere that the patient suffers as much
as if he had heart disease, pleurisy,
gall-stone colic, or a surgical con
dition of the abdomen. That these
symptoms disappear so quickly and
leave no after effect is much for
which to be thankful.
However, when these or similar
symptoms appear, the family physi
cian should first be called, as an
examination will show whether they
are due to pleurodynia or something
more serious.
• • •
How to Avoid
Food Poisoning
In these days when the need and
value of food is so much on our
minds it is possible that in our ef
forts to get certain foods we may
not watch as closely as we should
the foods offered for sale.
The danger signals of food spoil
age are: 1. Cans with bulging sides.
2. Glass containers showing seepage
over the tops. 3. Food discoloration.
Because of canned goods shortage
there has been considerable storing
of canned goods, some of which may
be kept for longer periods than in
former years. It is then doubly
necessary to make sure that the
can has not become damaged, al
lowing entry of disease-producing or
ganisms.
Suspected foods should never be
tasted to discover spoilage, since
even small amounts of some foods
infested with organisms can cause
illness or death.
Because of the shortage of cans
and canned foods, there will be more
home-food canners and home can
ners are reminded that canned foods
must be thoroughly sterilized to
safeguard against botulism, a high
ly fatal type of food poisoning which
affects the brain. Formerly it was
thought that botulism was caused
entirely by raw or insufficiently
cooked sausage, but lately most
cases that have occurred involved
vegetables: but fruit, meat and fish
were also at times found to be the
cause.
Fatal poisoning from commer
cially canned goods, however, is ac
tually rare.
A further warning is given against
buying illegally prepared or distrib
uted meats as a disregard of the
usual sanitary measures goes hand
in hand with the sale of such prod
ucts.
• • •
QUESTION BOX
Q.—What is the cause of a husky
throat?
A.—Yon should not permit hoarse
ness to exist so long. See your phy
sician first, then a throat specialist
If necessary.
Q.—What would cause constant ]
pains in the head for several years? |
A.—There are more than 100
causes for head pains. Ask your
physician about X-rays to discover
cause if eyes, nose, throat, digestive
and generative organs are normal.
Use Waste Space
For a Linen Closet
homemaker knows how
many steps could be saved If
table linens could have a special
closet in the kitchen or pantry. In
one home that we know of space
for such a closet was going to
waste all because cupboard doors
or drawers would interfere with
the door shown here in the small
sketch. At the right you see how
I POTCI
rMCE
VlF
SPACE
V IK
V ^
RED AND
WHITE
TICKING ON
A SHADE
"OM-ER
UPPER LAUNDRY BAG
4ANGS UNDER SHELF I
that space became an efficient
linen closet complete even to a
smart laundry bag.
The high compartment has a
door of plywood. Below this are
shelves with a curtain on a shade
roller. The curtain runs up and a
down between the shelves at the
left.
• • •
NOTE: Mrs. Spears has prepared a
large sheet giving complete working
sketches for making this closet and the
laundry bag. All dimensions are given
»nd step-by-step directions are illustrated.
An itemized list of all materials and fit
tings is included. Ask for Design No. 256
»nd enclose 15 cents. Address:
MRS. RUTH WYETH SPEARS
Bedford Hills New York
Drawer 10
Enclose 15 cents for Design No. 250.
Name ...
Address ...
E2 E AT Heat rash irritated skin
fc# trt I thrills to the touch of Mex
THE Sana, formerly Mexican
IJ E* AT Hoat Powder. For sooth
■ I I ing help, get Mexsana.
Alcohol Candles
Alcohol can be frozen by liquid
air into candles that burn like the
ordinary variety.
Acid Indigestion
Relieved in 5 minutes or double money back
When excess stomach add causes painful, suffocat
ing gas. sour stomach and heartburn, doctors usually
prescribe the fastest-acting medicines known for
symptomatic relief—medicines like those in Hell-an*
Tablets No laxative. Bell-ans brings comfort in a
jiffy or double vour money back on return of bottle
to on. 25s at all druggists.
With Time
Time makes more converts than ^
reason.—Thomas Paine.
I
_
PASH IH FEATHERS..
_l
r Y00 WOMEN WHO SUFFER FROM^
HOT HASHES
11 you suffer from hot flashes, dizzi
ness. distress of ‘•Irregularities”, are
weak, nervous. Irritable, blue at
time*—due to the functional
“middle-age” period In a woman’s
life—try Lydia E. Plnkham’s Vege
table Compound—the beet-known
medicine you can buy today that’s
made especially for women. '
Plnkham’s Compound has helped
thousands upon thousands of wom
en to relieve such annoying symp
toms. Follow label directions. Plnk
ham’s Compound is worth tryingt
A BAB A BAY'
Keeps p
New cream positively stop*
*underarm Perspiration Odor
1. Not stiff, not messy—Yodora spreads just
like vanishing cream ! Dab it on—odor gone!
2. Aetua'ly soothing-Yodora can bs used
right after shaving.
3. Won't rot delicate fabrics.
4. Keeps soft I Yodora does not dry in Jar. No
waste: goes far.
Yet hot climate tests —made by nurses —
prove this daintier deodorant keeps under
arms immaculately sweet—under the most
severe conditions. Try Yodora I In tubes or
Jars—10#, 80#. 60#. McKesson t Robbins.
Inc., Bridgeport, Connecticut.
DEODORANT CREAM
* *r.
f