Igig IiiT^_Z_^!J.ligcg^__THURSDAYj._aAY_28j._1942 good EVElilNG EVERYBODY: I in Washington tonight and one topic of conversation here concerns -- ;ylexico. President of iexico today called for a declaration of war against the Axis powers. i>Aanuel Avila Camachc told the IJexican Congress that actually a State of Viar with the Axis already exists -- this because of the sinxiiig of Mexican ships by submarin^ attack, rle sp oxe of "reiterated aggression" He added that iexico has no recourse other than to p ,-f»-ppcc t,o make the So he asked the iexican Cong realities a formal thing by issuing a Declarati of War. accept the realities; these realities being -- War. | i I 7 t RUSSIA state of war affairs in soutJiern Russia is ambiguous with both sides claiming success. The Nazis declare^the big victory tli^^ claim seventy miles south of Kharkov^ Tliey say that encircled Soviet troops are being rapidly mopped up, and they now boost the number of trapped Russians to more than one hundred and sixty thousand. Thfi Soviets on their side issue a gweeninp denial. Today Moscow states that the Red Army has definitely stopped ^ German counter offensive south^f Kharkov. Todav Moscow dispatches tell of some weird Nazi tricks mentionlns'confusion attacks’.' These were staged by German troops JUUEtasc wearing Russian uniforms and by Nazi tanks narked with the Red Army emblems. By disguising as Russians the assailants hoped to cause confusion. And then Moscow gives us a description of a psychic attack - in which the entire One mndred and First German Division Of about fifteen thousand men marched to the assault the Soviet line they in parade formation. ^Idvanc^ aga ^ ^ v/ere goose-step^ ing v;hile a military band blared with^orns. U » I i ff i; ll Rl'S^ ' 2 Just ®' linden in Berlin, sut it was on the hattlefront in southern Russia. The ^ocse-stepping narade wa s blasted by Soviet ,funs. YiTiereupon, said Moscow, many of the psychic soldiers deserted. Apparently they had enough -pCje of the psychology, or what, and went over to the Russians. LIBYA In Lib& t/h6 British rGporl & sharp rGpulsG for thG Nazis in the desert battle. This occurred in a blazing conflict of tanks -- only about fifteen miles from Sobj^yJu^ A German column advanced more than one hundred miles to get that near to the stronghold. However, aiost of the one hundred miles was across nearly empty desert -- little defended -- a No iiAan’s Land of the burning sands. Another heavy battle is being fought further to the South. In that area a Nazicolumn advanced for ninety miles. There a violent conflict is going on; with the British lines holding intact. AMBRICAI^-B JTISH The magnitude of British -American plans for concerted action against tlie Axis enemy is indicated by a statement from Li^utenant-Generd. Somervell, Chief of the United States Army Supply Services# General Somervell is in Londdn with the American military mission that is coordinating plans with British militar y chiefs. In his statement tods^ he st^sed the word — standardization. They are fortnulatlng a giant supply progr® which will standardize the British and American military forces. Both parties to use the same kind of equipment and munitions American shells to fit British guns and Vice-versa# American Ani British tanks to use the same kind of parts. The two Allies to be able to exchange war materials. This will mean a great ..j Increase in mutual efficiency is expected to facilitate A >A a big British-American military blow agd. nst the Nazis. We ard qa laAionkL, howeveir, ilo e'bipect aiV sii<^ \ \ \ \ \\ \ \ ' \ \ deyjelo\>mexk too\ sooA. Woi'd here in Washim toxj points out^ th \ at an'i»/vasSon of the,Nai/coutrolled oontln6«i/would/t«lke ^oymous I \ / jforoes of the/hl^est degree / / I / / ' ' ' \ . i / of training. ^And/the British-American :/ i ! ( / / ■ ! ; tl offd;,3e 13 not 11 ely to/be adopt.«i juntll/eveiithlrt been y / ' / .' I / * / - made ^ r^ady^n the largest k^^d o^ wa ? CEIHA in China then- two theaters of action -- as ther^ have b»en for several days.-Ti the eastern part of the count trv the Japs are still attacking the important city of Kinhwa. China denies the Jap claim that Kinhaw iias been captured but admits that the city is und'T sieye. Forty thousand enemy troops have been assaulting ever since Monday, with the garrison holding out in gallant style. The Chinese reiterate their claim that tlie Japs are using poison gas. In the South, Yunnan, the Chinese are conducting a powerful counter offensive agains^he enemy forces that pushed £ hb forv/ard from Burma. Tonight Chungking reports that at/t\;o key points near the Burma Road large enemy units have been encircled, and face annihilation. JlAViT Another blow stwck at the enen,y by American undersea Q power. This afternoon the Navy announced the sinking of two Jap ships and the damaging of two others. This was accomplished by American submarines in the ■outhwestern Pacific, but the Navy specifles^it was not a part of the-Coral Sea battle.^ The two a enemy vessels sunk were tb# large naval auxiliary and a cargo A ship. Another cargo ship was severely dsmiaged, cmd so was a heavy cruiser. And that is the most inQ)ortant part of it — a powerful Jap wardiip violently biased by torpeitoes. Whether s A or not it sank is not indicated but we do know the Jap heavy cruiser w has at least been put out of action for some time to come.e. mmm The possibility of a Jap air raid agi nst oup own Pacific shore was eii?)ha3ized today by Secretary of War Stlmson, He called a borabing raid against the United States — "almost inevitable.” He explained that, because of the character of the Oriental mind, the Japs would be compelled to try some retaliation for the American bombing of Japan. Secretary of War put it in tliese wordsi ”The United States government, through General PoolIttle^^nxnMi tag administered a stinging^humiliating surprise blow when it bombed Tokyo#” The Secretary kxjsjcx added that he had some understluidlng of Oriental psychology, and Miiat a loss of face Japan has suffered because of TOtltada the bombing. ”A most serious loss of face,” said he, which can be wiped out only by a return blow. Hence, the ra'lltary authorities are takiqj every precaution. "We are doing everyth!* we can," said Seotetary Stlmson, "to prepare for such a return blow. O' nOOLITTLE Bein^ in Washington, there was one person in particular I wanted to see — Brigadier-General James H. Doolittle. Who wouldn* t be eager to have a chat with the commander who led the American war planes that bombed Japan? Luciily, I had known Jimmy Doolittle in the past — when he was the nations’s ace of acrobatic and speed flying. * So I dropped in on him at found Brigadier-General James H. Doolittle deep in the preparation of his full and final report on the bombing of Japan, a detailed stuc^ of the action, with technical olmervations aid lessons to be drawn. That document will be a flaming thriller when released — but it won’t be released until the need for secrecy has passed. Jlnmy Doolittle was his old smiling self. In fact, a good deal of the visit we had together might be apt to 4.V, 4- Mrrie novelists used to employ( characterize a phrase that old The phrase -- "he smiled silently. Of conrse I wasn't brash enough to asK any questions with our country ^ secrecy — j about things of obvious military j y^affling a weapon agsL nst the Jqp enemy, usii^ secrecy as so baffling a " f 00 a IJITLE - 2 Jlmi^ informed me that he could not be quoted on anything concerning that exploit idiioh raiks as perhaps the most brilliant air blow ever struck. So, in the matter of the bombing of Japan, the bases from which our planes operated ani sundry other concealed points, we can let it go by saying — // the Brigadler-Geik rsl smiled silently. There was one thing, however, on which I felt free to question Brigadier-General Doolittle, a personal thing concerning rt which I had long^^^CB» curious. I often wondered about it, and wanted to ask him in times past — but never got around to it. How did it happen that he never got around to trans-Atlantic flying? During the time when he was the Army*8 Ace daredevil of the sky, cross-the-ocean flights were the great headlined events — the dream of aviators. So why hadn*t Jlnmy Doolittle ever tried one? I asked him today, and thought most likely he*d reply that trans-oceanic flying never Interested hia, or that too mai^ rthers were doing it. But not at all. -I simply never got the opportunity." said Jimmy. "The cliance to make an ocean flight n^ ver came my 7 DOOLITTLE - 3 Then he went on to tell me how he planned a superb 3 ky jaunt across the Pacific - he a».d Captta Mi^Cready of Kelly- cro33“Ainc rlcft—Non—StoD-fame'Fkm* and McCready acroi ■Stop-fame. Thaj^went so far as^^' s. -^UXAyVil to survey the route - Midway Island, Wtoi^IWh^iknd so /\ on* Jiitnny pointed out that later on this route precisely was the one used for the trans-Pacific Air Line. But those years before, there was nothing that could be used for landing fields on islands like Midway and Wake. So he and McCready planned"7^ to r»a «k-sa^plane and make their stops on the lagoons of coral atolls in the South Sea. It* would have been a magnificent flight, would have earned flaming headlines in those | days. '•Why didn*t you do it?", I asked Brigadier General Doolittle today. He smiled with curious reminiscenoe^wi^^answere^ S were not allowed to. We were both in the Array, and^dul in-nmndlim y | '^hy?*', I asked. Then Doolittle, s sraile assumed an added twist of wry "The General said that KcBready and remembrance as he repliedi I were too valuable,” Hou could sense the recollection of a DOOIITTLE - 4 5 big disappointment — not to have been allowed to try that cross-the-oceai exploit. It iiuat have hurt at the time, a dozen ore so more years ago# But tiiat General^certainly had his wisdom — when he said that Jimmy Doolittle was too valuable to risk. Maybe he had some {Premonition of the fate that was reserving th^aviator of those years for an exploit of future war far more glorious than ar^ flight across an ocean. ile .miTRAL LM^D Everywhere these days we hear that what we need are sh'rs'f and more ships — and stil] more ships. Are we getting them ? The man who knows more about this than anyone else is Admiral Emory S. Land, head of the Maritime Com ission, one of the busiest men In the world. Admiral Land told me today that our ship building program J^up to schedule. The Admiral is an authority on many subjects:- The Navy in which ha* he served with distinction, the Merchant Marine on which he is now our Humber One authority^ Ana also- aeronautics. For at one time he was one of the heads of Guggenheim Foundation for the advancement of aviat on in the this country. And at that time his chief pilot, borrowed from the Army, was a young chap* named^Jimry Doolittle. Adm Jimmy since General Land told me today that he hadn*t seen bombing raid on the cities Doolittle carried out that fabulous had always regarded Jimmy as of Japan. But he said that he V pver vnown and spoke •liable men he had ever .n one of the m.ost reman of him with great affection. I mentioned thts to general Doolittle an hour later and he in turn said that Admiral Land, the man to whom Uncle Sam admiral land - 2 has given almost the toughest job, building those ships, ships e-nd more ships, is one of the greatest men he had ever known. Jimr’.y XjcxsRl reminisced that when he was flying for the Guggenheim Foundation, making those first experiments in flying blindjthat he had three bosses, one Harry Guggenheim, a civilian; another, the Army Air Corps officer in command of Mitchell Field, Long Island; and the third, a naval officer. Admiral Land. Jim y quoted the Bible where it says that you cannot serve more than one Master, and told how he had been obliged to serve three'. .And he explained that this could only have been possible for an Army officer under such a wise and great naval man as Admiral Land. MINERS The Mine Workers today ousted PhilirVurray TT and that's the equivalent of a union President tossing out a union Vice-President. Because the action taken by the Executive Board of the Mine Workers was strictly at the behest of the Union President — John L* Lewi^,\ The two men< former close friends and allies fiad been bitterly at feud of late. John L. Lewis Was head of the C.I.O. and ^hillip Murray succeededjto his job. Murray is high in the labor councAs of the administration whereby Lewis has be'en opposition. /Hr—tme Tam^-^trmrJ tbday’s expulsion of Murray seems likely to cause a definite break between the United Mine Workers and the C.I.O. 4 bridges The Attorney General today ordered the imaedite deportation of Harry Bridges. The order affirms the contention that the West Coast C.I.O. leader has been a raeruber of the Communist Party during his residence in this country -- and, he is an alien. The latest is a dispatch from San Fransicco which states that Bridges will undoubtedly appeal to the United States Supreme Court. The Attorney General thinks that an appeal to the courts’might take a year -- before a final decision is handed down Tod ay *sgovernment move leads one to recall President Roosevelt’s recent action in freeing Earl Browder, the American Communist leader who was sent to prison for passport vdlations. Communist Browder turned loose. Communist Bridges ordered deported.