Christmas is traditionally a light news day - and tonight the line-up ot world tidings is particularly light. For which let us be thankful. During the yeara ot war, the deYil of battle paid not too auch attention to the rea1t ot the lativit7, and Cbriataas aa an••• da7 could be aoabre and heaY7. Laat 7ear at this tiae, tor exaaple, the battle ot the Bula•••• on - a ••••ae ori•i• of - war. ■o'A all that ia o•er, and Yule~tide re•erta to a peacetime stataa - the lightest ot •••• ~ . ' da7a. :J'et••A~*• that we h••••'t an7 war ball~tina toni&bt. tRUli! President Truaan has arri•ed in Ian••• City. That•• a real bulletin - consideri~ the kind of trip the President · ■ ade toda7. Be flew troa laahington out to hie home atate, to be with hie faail7 for Christaaa dinner at hie home town - Independence, Miaaouri. And the flying weather aade thia Juat about aa riaky • Christaaa aa a President of the United States baa ever had. Mr. Truaan waa scheduled to take oft at ■ii ei1ht-tbirt7 thia ■ornins in the Preaidential plane. 4-rt..c. ~ --~--•AL ia called - •the sacred cow•. A sleet 1tor■ ••• raains in laabinaton -- ••• ,~•t.-.•• no weather for ■ t1~ either an airplane or a cow. It waa i ■poaaible to fly, and the loaical thing would h••• ••••e4 to be a cancellation of the Christ■•• trip. The President, bowe•er, refuaed to call it off. Be said ne•er in his life bad he ■ i111d Cbri1t ■ aa dinner with hi• faail7 back home, and be wasn't going to aiae it now. So he would wait a while, and ■ a7 be the flying weather would i ■prove. Ii R C- 9 it fifn., ~ We ' Btf&t.11croo - llllUI - 2 By noon, the sleet atora had stopped, but laahington k■ was blanketed by cloud and ■ iat - and blinding clouda were reported all the way along the route to the aiddleweat. Coa■ ercial flying waa auapended, planes grounded{ lot •o 100d for the .!,!Cred ~ow, · the pilot, Lieutenant Colonel Henry Meyera, aaid he tbought th•J could aake it. So they took off - President Tru ■an aoooapanied by a party that included reoonveraion - director John Sn7der, Mra. Sn7der and their dauahter - - •••1..,,. on their way for Chriataaa at St. Louia - where the Presidential plane was to ■ ate a atop. Bo• bad the weather waa 1• illuatrated by what happened to a newapaper plane with correapoidenta • who •o•er all Preaidential coainga and aoin&•• The newapaper plane waa to have taken off half an hour ahead of the sacred cow, but it wa• ao badly iced that tkatx the n•••••n were held up until two hours after the presidential departure - it took that long to de-ice -tiJplane. " Ifilllil - 3 The Sacred Cow flew through blindin1 cloud•) Jf'"n. inetru■ents.,«:1,ts&1 ~ < a i n and ice,~(:I.Z.i:-J7:f.trong headwinda.M14 to -'• t.wct••• The going••• eo bad that the Sacred Cow •a• an hour late when it got to St. Louie, landed there and continued the flight to Ianeaa City. At nearby Independence, Mieeouri, the tolka at ho•• were holding up Christ••• dinner, dela7in1 the Yuletide teaet becauee of the Preeidential-fl7in1- difficulties. As a reault the Truan• toni1ht are ha•ing just about the latest christaae dinner ia the history ot the Truan fa■ ily. jllQ_ e've heard of•• many a presentation ot the Congressional medal of honor, with superb storiee of heroia ■ acco ■panying the nation'• hi&heat ■ ilitar7 award. But bere•a one that is different fro■ all the rest. The war Depart■ent announce• that a Congressional medal ia to be preaented iD lezico, at the city of leuvo Laredo, presented•• poatbu■oual7 to the lezican father ot an Aaerican aoldier. laast■l la■st■la Pri•ate Manuel Perez••• borD at Oklabo ■ a City 1 ot Mexican parent• - bi• faailJ going back late to the aouth of the Rio Grande. a. wnGne of tboat innu■erable lezicana in the aouth•••t - so ■e of Aaerican birth, •••• not. Taken into the Aray, he waa aent to · the Pacific, and distin&uiahed hi ■ aelf in the fighting on Luzon. Single-handed be killed at least twent7-three Japf.,,, in a one-aan ~ assault on an ene ■J machine gun••• neat that •a• 1• mowing down hia ooaradea. Manuel Perez attacked with a rifle, and oloae d ahootina until at~l•••~ quarters kept advancing an D " / "'1' = 1!5!NI H:'RO - 2 - - the rifle was knocked from his hands. Be snatched a gun from a Jap soldier, and continued abootin1 until the aaaunition was aone. ta Then he fought -&--- with the ziil rifle as a clu,l - until be •a• killed. 1f"Manuel Perez waa not the firat Aaerioaa 10141er ot Mexican anceatr7 to earn our highest decoration. In fact, it ia rather reaarkable ••• bow aan7 of tho•• Spani1h naa•• of the 1outhwe1t are ■f on the li1t of honora awarded for heroiaa in the war. ~~. ~ a d a Cbriat■aa Ministers of the Bi& Three?~ session.i:a lo ■ a w,,'~othing i ■portant J we•• are told. lews froa the Soviet Capital continue■ the indication of last night - that yesterday'• peace - conference annou.!.:_ement is the only big thing that 1• likely to develop. The final coaaunique, which will probably be issued to ■orrow, •ill have ao ■ etbin1 to aa7 about the atomic bomb - a aost ■ o ■ entous to p ic. But th• Mosco• dispatch indicates that there won't be any senaational diacloaure. The chances are that the announceaent will confine itself to 1tate ■eat1 that atoaic proble ■• were diacuaaed with a apirit of 1004- will. Al10 - that plans have been aade tor further ato ■ boab deliberation• by the Big Three. During the day ■ Foreign Yiniater• began, we betore th• •••ting ot the ~ ~- were told,ef~ii'•a• to have two principal purposes!,One - a consideration of the dark riddle of the ato ■• fte other 1 plans for a , ~u• peace con!erence. Secretary of State Byrnes declared he was going te Moacow to launch a peace confer nee proposal. In this he••• has succeeded, as we heard last night. It is true that the J••• Peace Conference, which will gather soae ti ■ e before lay Fir1t, will be of liaited scope. It wil l consider treaties with Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Bunaary and Finland. The•• treaties will be drawn up in accordance with the -- ~1'... foraula deaanded by Soviet Buaaia -~i& power• llr aet the teraa. 2The peace CODfereD08 of teeDtJ•ODe D&tiODI nothing be turned down by the Bil Three. Thua, we won't have any decisive gatherin1 of the nations to rearraage the world, like the corference of Vienna, or the Versailles peace conference Thejcope won't be anything like aa largei- but,at lea1t we have a Big Three agreeaent on the •~i~g of peace with the satellite enemies. And 1 there •.!.!1 be a peace MOSCQI - 3 conference - which Secretary Byrnes went to Iosco• to get. Tie social events of the Moscow proceeding• were cliaaxed by Stalin's big banquet for Aaerican Secreti:I)' of State Byrnes and British Secretary Bevin. A lot of Ruaaian toasts •ere drunk - which is not news. I& And there was a aotion picture show. Off- ' hand, the ao~es displayed to the banqueteer• aigbt not see ■ so exciting -- •fa film depicting the Soviet war against Japan. Al we know, the Red Aray wmt into the Far Eastern war at the eleventh hour, and hurled its offensive• while the Jape were busy surrendering. So the fila could hardly have been up to atandard of the spectacular new1reel1 of the European war, or the Aaerican and British~•• hostilities in the Pacific. However, the aotion pictn of the Soviet war against Japan is aaid to have been an eye-opener, ahowing the immense preparations the Red Ar■y bad ■ade for a ---~to,~ giant war against Japan - -a 1!( the JaI, surrendtnti in such a hurry. ' [BAIQE France Y . ~ ~ f i n a n c i a l inti■ation tro■ was .borne out entirely today. ;y(t~ tlil all the French•• evening •••■papers were ••Jina ----t:e.r t~franc ••• about to be deYialued - aal an announce■en "" ~ I\ ,-.•ould be i ■ aued ahortly,. The announoe ■ent ca■• toda7 - cutting the Yalue of French aoneflranc ha• hitherto ,.. been quoted at Fifty to a Dolla~, t•o cent• apiece • . , _., A"'- tt-+••• ••• an artificial valuation,-., figare ■acb too high. Part• explain• that one rea1on •bi the franc ••• kept P•11ed at ttfty to the dollar••• to diacourage i ■erican aoldtera in rrance tro■ bu7iq too ■ uch. The GI'• had lota of dollar,, and it ther. coa14 ~ . ~ , ' I t ~ ~ ~ ~ , have go~ ■ore franc• tor.--- : would hawe 1trlppe the country of aooda laad]y needed*• by the lrench civilian population. low the nuaber 0¢ I'• is deor•a•ln1 rapidl7 ov.er there - and their exceaaive buyine power doesn't have to be considered ao ■uch. So the v.alue of the franc is being cut to less than balf, the new rate to be about a-hundred-and-ninet,en to the dollar. ' r141c~ - 2 Inetead of 1 1 I worth two cents, tbe franc hereafter •ill be worth leas than O.!,! oent, ei1bt7-four one• hundredth of an Aaerican penn7, to be preaiae. The de¥aluation 1• ■■ ■eant to 1tabili1• French eoono ■i-, diaooara1e the Ii blaok aarket, aa4 ■tiaulate French •••l• export■• T..rflaancial aeaaure 1• taken by the DeQaulle 1o~ernaent, •• Prance prepaflt to put ita ota7 on tb• Brettoa lood1 a1ree■eat ~ - that plan ot th• po ■ t-war ■oaetar.7 atabilit7 ••••I nation■• So rraaa• 10•• to tbe Brettoa loo4• attafr with a 1harpl7 devalue4 aarreaoy. • • lllBltlllll The atara •hone at Bethlehe ■ laat ni1bt - and 10 did a lot of other lights that would ha•• astonished the three wise ■en frea the !aat, if tbeJ had been Journeyin& that wa7. All the way fro ■ ~~ Jeruaalea to Bethl•h••• .Ma road••• aade bri&ht b7 ~ - - ~ I th• headli&hta of handred1 of Aaerioan Ara7 ••biol••• - ~ tourin& cars, IJl' J••P•• ... • Bethlehea.laerican 1oldier1 were no~ riding, a• th•J went on pil&ri ■•&• Th• &ray oar• were to the plaoe the •••ioar ••• bora. ~~.,. - parke4,~,llabt• the road, while th• 1oldiera ■arched in 1in&le file - goin& on toot like true pil&riaa. lliMI ••• ia aquada, led , by their Cbaplaina. At Betilebea, the 1hrine ••• li&hted with candle• and the ao~nd of bell• rang out, old-ta1hioned Christaaa chi••• rang by hand. The bell ringer• were Franciscan friars, and aaong th•• the one that ran& the big bell, the chiaes of the deep ba•• tone, waa Father Liska, who bails from down around Galveaton,T&t'•t At Boston, Judge Sa■uel Eisenstadt bad a surge of the Cbrist ■ aa spirit, and decided to hand down a decision worthy ot Santa Claus, if aot Solo ■on. A local citizen stood taoing the coart, char1ed wltb drankenneaa. Be bad been on qaite a riotoas bender, and waa lawfully entitled to soaetbin1 like ten da1s in jail. The Judi• aaked bia it h•~••rrled, aad the prisoner aaid - 1••• his wite •a• at hoae, whereupon hi• honor thouabt, oh the pathoa ot it all ~ - the little woaan apendins a lonely Chriataaa,\ •••• hubby - in the Jaa. So, before iaposina aentenoe tor drunk•••••• the judae waa seized with a ~i yuletide i ■pulse - •hicb caused hi ■ to seize the telephone, and call the wife. Bia Honor'••• Yoice •a• bene•olent and kindl7 •• he apok~~;,! ' the good Saint biaselt, /-... ... -··.,, announcing joyful news. Be asked the Lady - would ahe like to have her husband bo ■e tor Cbriat ■as? And thia was her reply: •tell, to tell .,.-,,.i, the truth, your honor•, 1aid ~ hl'd have a happi•r ,.. Chriataaa without hia•. Can Jou 1ue11 thereat ot the atory? I'll bet 7ou caa•t. According to all the rules of draaa, the Juda• ahoald ha•• 1eat the drunk to Jail for Chriataaa - but aa,be hi• honor thou1bt tbat •ifl• hadn't aho•n too auch ot 1•letide apirit. la7be be Of all the innuaerable incarnation ot Santa Claus t~is Crristmas, the one who made the biggest hit of all was a Iris Iringle in laahington - at the Walter Reed hospital. lotAing like brin&in& exactly the Cbriataas present tha\ aoaebod7 wants.- ,~.~ ••.,.,..•t~iaa .. i •• , Of course, aome people ao■eti ■•• wish for the aoon - but I' aup_poae, it Santa Clau• 1• aaart enough, he'll provide · •••n that - the aoon. At the lalter · Reed Hospital, aoldier patients, who bad auttered a■putationa, were aated what they'd like torChriatmaa. The an•••r• ••r• ■any and varied, all aorta of things - and th••• were duly listed. One patient •a• private Toa C•••Nl'9r /'of Endicott, lew York. Soldier Toa ia lying in a plaster cast - he baa been in one for aontha, that badly wounded in battle. lben they asked hia •bat he wanted tor Christmas, he said, well - be wished Santa Claus would bring hi ■ his wife and four year old daughter, from uv-state le• York. But he knew that wa1 too much to a1k, and ao - well, he'd take 1o ■ ethin1 tlae. Thia was reprted to Santa Claua - and who do you think the good aaint happened to be? Be••• General Ji ■ ay Doolittle, first bo ■ber of Tokyo and co ■mander of that faaoua lighta Air Force againat la1i Ger■ anJ. TheJ told Ji ■■J Doolittle what aoldier To ■ wanted for Chriataaa, and what he figured he couldn't have. · An ordinar1 Santa Claus, you or I, with whiakera, a pillow aad a red ooat, would h•••'fg let it go at that - not being able to figure a way to whiak To•'• wife and little dau1hter all th• ••1 fro■ Endicott, Bew York, to laallington. Qf e••••e, laMe '• - OU D / •1l aepd' - t thi • • ' ,.- / . / / .,. ,, .,. / / f - ~ - cd'tt, lew ·' ~o-tk? .Jl'y, jlltfi' sead ··' a ; Y-2~ . err Y - · I!!!!!~ =::.:-= 3 ~.!"#:~ Christn■ at the A I alter Reed Hospital produced a aurprise that drew a pandeaoniua ••••A••• ,(of cheering. Jiaay Doolittle••• a Santa Claus of areat dignity, handing out Christaaa present• &■ to this one and that. Pr,vate Then caae the turn o~l•••**•AToa I Ce•..,.•• iChair-ah-SorrowJ tiae tor hia to get hi• pr ~ went. Santa Claua 1••• a aignal - and in ca■• 1oldier Toa•• •if• and the little &irl. They walked over to To•'• bed and And that••• when the Daddy•. ~ I don't expect thatAthe firat boabin1 of Tokyo or the winning of air battn.e• aaain1t th• laal Luftwaffe ever provided a 11 cd•• ■oaent l t i , ~ ~ i ~ n a n t General Jia•J Santa Claus Doolittle.I "