The White Falcon - 14.03.1942, Blaðsíða 2

PAGE 2
AMERICAN SCENE
The President
Addressing himself to the farm families of America—to those
who consume farm products—and, in short, to the whole of Ame-
rica, President Franklin Roosevelt Tuesday night scored idle
talk of a complacent America.
“If there is one single thing of which I am certain, it is that the
American people are not now and have not been complacent. On
the contrary they are keenly and entirely aware of the situation
in which they find themselves and are wholeheartedly committed
to action,” the president said in extolling the efforts of workers
throughout the country and in particular the farmers.
The president revived one word, most recently little heard, inflat-
ion. He warned that if prices keep on going up the country faced
inflation of a very dangerous kind. To guard against it he called
for co-operation and restraint and sacrifice on the part of all. He
also advised the government would have to take effective action
to prevent profiteering returns for services and goods alike.
The Public
The American public this
week hoped it had accepted an
offer made to it in 1939 by a
Japanese general who consider-
ed the disrobing of U. S. nation-
als then in Tientsin, China, as
part of his job. Nakedness, he
said, was not dishonorable, and
to prove his point he offered
to undress for Americans.
According to reliable reports
from the Far East, undress he
did. And then in the best tradit-
ional manner committed hara-
kiri. The general—big, egotisti-
'cal, blunt Lieut. General Masa-
haru Homma, commander of
Japanese forces in the Philippin-
es, had made the grave error of
underestimating his opponent.
For 15 months he had trained
thousands of men in Formosa
for the pending assualt against
the Philippines. Then with 200,-
000 men he tried to take the
islands. His failure to do so did
not please the sun goodess.
Pleased, however, were General
MacArthur and the American
public.
General Yamashita, conquer-
or of Singapore, took over in
the Philippines. To the Americ-
ans he already looked over-
tanned from staring at the sun.
Good News ^ !
"When the navy department
announced Friday that U. S.
. submarines operating in Jap-
anese waters had sunk three
enemy transports and one
passenger ship, it brought
cheers from the American pu-
blic. But more cheerful to aver-
age American was the fact that
the attacking submarines oper-
ated from Midway Island, once
claimed by Japanese as its pos-
session. Fact that Americans
on the Island are still in force
is revealed with the announce-
ment that one of four attack-
ing Japanese planes was shot
down there Thursday.
Welles Reports
American newspapermen this
week heard the report that 40
French warships completed
since German occupation had
been turned over to Nazi Fleet.
SUMNER WELLES
For verification they went to
astute, lanky Sumner Welles,
acting secretary of state, bom-
barded him with questions.
Welles said that Admiral Leahy
usually kept the state depart-
ment fully informed and as yet
had reported nothing to that
effect.
About food shipments to
North Africa Welles said they
had been suspended since Febru-
ary 19. Relations between U.S.
and Vichy were strained, with
communications crackling back
and forth across the Atlantic.
WARRING
___ FRONTS _________
(Continued from page 1.)
anese bombs. When a colonel
urged him to take refuge in a
shelter, Gen. MacArthur re-
plied that there was not a Jap
born who could make him
hurry.
BURMA.—following the fall
of Rangoon, the British have
been withdrawing slowly to-
ward Central Burma, where the
army will join Chinese rein-
forcements from Chungking.
The British destroyed all vital
installations and stores and
equipment which had to be left.
This scorched earth policy ac-
counted for the fires reported
by the Japanese press. General
Harold R.L.G. Alexander has
been named Commander in
Chief of the new Burma front.
RUSSIA. — The Russians an-
nounce a new ferocious drive
along the entire front despite
Hitler’s boast of a spring of-
fensive. South of Kharkov,
Marshal Timoshenko’s force
is pressing strongly towards the
Dnieper. In Crimea heavy
"fighting continues at Sevasto-
pol, and on the Iversch penin-
sula. The Russians claim the
destruction of the German
168th Artillery Regiment. Near
Leningrad the Russians are
employing an effective and de-
structive pincer on the Ger-
man 16th Army and its rein-
forcements. The Nazis have
lost 6,000 men and great quanti-
ties of supplies in their attempt
to hold their ground in the Len-
ingrad area. The Germans are
experiencing great difficulty
in trying to supply their 16th
Army from the air. The Russi-
ans also clam capture of Svch-
evka, an important railroad
town between Rzhev and Vyaz-
ma, and the annihilation of
most of the German 48th Div-
ision.
POPE MARKS ANNIVERSARY
BERNE—The third annivers-
ary of the coronation of Pope
Pius XII was celebrated at Vat-
ican today, but without the
pomp and grandeur of peace-
time observances of such occas-
ions. All offices in Vatican City
were closed except the post-
office where clerks worked long
0
hours receiving messages ot
congratulations from all over
the world.
Bundles.—Among biggest b mdles for Russia, to be given ever increasing aid from the
United States, are bombers s ich as these lined up at Consolidated plant in San Diego,
Cal. They are “Liberators” a.id have proved highly effective by the British in bombing
of Germany.