L._T. SUNOCO, THDRSDA^ t JULY 10, 1Q41 GOOD EVENING EVERYBODY: Germany has just announced what it calls — ”Final Victory”. But that does not apply to the great struggle along the Stalin Line. TliiiyaH«i rTTmT^TTTTnr^r in tiho biitt.lfl ornnnd Minsk.y That’s where a great Russian army is said to have been encircled early in the ^azi-Soviet V/ar. Apparently the Germans have been busy with that trapped force ever since — more than two weeks. Now they say the fighting in the Minsk area had ended — final victory. The German High Command claims more than four hundred thousand prisoners* That vast number captured in the encirclement. But now let’s go to the Stalin Line 1 Uoscou tonight uses a significant word - stable. This is applied to the huge thousand mile battleiine. The xsmxkx Red «< army has established v/hA.t Moscow calls -^falrlv stable The importance of the statement is obvious to even those of us who are the least military-minded. A stabilized bat)4lefront would mean a major failure for the German high Conrnand a permanent line of war, armies facing each other with positions unchanged. The one th ng that I'lazi Germany would want least of all would be - a permanent eastern front. The blitz/trieg type of conflict requires movement and speed - rapid drives for encirclement. Even a slackening of pace is bad. If got the blitigkclBg lioicoM> This is common reasoning on the p rt of military commentators - although, of course, the full theory of the Blitzkrieg is not Known. That kind of bat • le is too new for the implicc-tions to have been worked out fully. Nevertheless, there*s vivid and obvious meaning in that word - stable, the Bed Army claim of a stabilized front along the btalin line. r WAn -ii This is really the major •soviet contention tonight. and other Red army reports are subordinate - details in a general picture. Mosco* tells of counter-attacks —three of them, along the vital north and central front. The places are Polotsk, Lepel, and borisov. drive through by the panzer divisions along the line of those three towns, would mean a vital stab at Moscow aad Leningrad, bo the Red Army is ilzgxng staging its counter­ attacks — with Great success, says Moscow. The boviet claim is that tax two entire Panzer divisions have been destroued..btill another Red army counter-attack is reported - in a less important area, the south, Bessarabia. nlrii has Berlin to say about all taxxx this - the possibility of a stabilized front? 'ftothingj virtually nothing The German high co^ij^nd is still silent. /lwday*s official comiiiunlQue merely stated thu.t operations in Russia were proceeding - without halt. This veil of Nazi silence has persisted now for days - ever since the panzer divisions crashed through for t a two hundred mile advance, and the Rea Army retirea all xh along the line, two or three hundred miles to the rear. may be that the German High CoiiLiiand says nothi .g, because things are not going well-. 1 WAR -3 Maybe ax. the reticence is because the Nazi assaults on the btalin line have been repeiieo, smashea back by Red Army counter-attacks. On the other hand^ we have to reroeiDbrr the policy the Blitzkrieg Army nas followed throughout tnis war - a policy of silence until a phase of the battle has been complfited. Maybe this once again is the case - and we won’t Ix^ve informative anythingfrom the Ge/iman high command until things have nappened in a big way. It is easy to understand that after a swift mechanized advance of two or three hundred miles, it would take some days to get ready for a new drive - orgrjiizing, bringi..g up new forces, oo the Germans may be marking time, getting set for a new itgwmtwag lightning thrust, will it succeed - or will the front remain stabilized? The answer to that question may very well be the answer to the wholM. Nazi-Soviet Aar. Moscow gives us a Story of Ge^'.rian units deserting to the Red forces. Ae are told of parties of German soldiers approaching soviet positions and displaying signs reading -’’Down with blo'jdthirsty Hitler.” This reminds us of previous Nazi stories of large Red forces shooting their coramiiinist commissars ^ Red Army division, and are advancing towara the city of Vipuri. f Th_t*s the place so much in the news during the Soviet- WAR “4 and deserting to the Germans. -Moscow also tells of Finns going over to the Soviet side - Finnish soldiers saying they don*t want to fight against soviet Russia. The official bulletin from ^elsink^, on the other hand, tells of advances by the Finns and Germans into Soviet territory. They claim they smashed a Finuiish War, the winter before last. iP J The I'javal Affairs '"’ouiiiilttee of the Senate today voted to sumiion secretary of the Navy Frank miox . Thh follows a resolution by Senator V»heeler of iiontana, de.'nanding that the becretary of the Navy be called to answer uestions about American warships and German submarines. There have been newspaper stories that a United States destroyer aimed a depth cnarge at a Nazi u-boat. Secretary Knox has already deniea that any such thing has occurred. He said there hr s not been any kind of shooting by the Navy. The Senate Committee wants to question him ^n detail and he v/ill probably be asked about what he said yesterday - the implication that iimerican warships may have to shoot in carrying out orders issued by President ‘•^oosevelt in the occupation of Iceland. The ^aval Affairs Com.iiittee has also sum loned Admiral btark, chief of Naval operations - for testimony along the same line. The committee action was accompanied by debate on the benate floor - with oenator Taft of Ohio criticizing the American occupation of Iceland. This, he said, was part of a policy that wou la lead to war - tne President taking us in. He pointed out that the Constitution gives to Congress alone the right to declare war. senator Coiuially of Texas replied for the adiiiinistration. He argued that the President has full constitutional authority to send the navy wherever he pleases - he’s the Commander-in-chief. He referred to previous American expeditions down Latin-American way, and added: ”If the marines can be sent to Latin-America to ^ protect a banana patch, they certainly can be sent to Iceland to protect the people of the United dtates.” Senator Taft denied that the Iceland move was simply for National defense. “There has been no attacK on the United states. and no threat of attache,” he declared. Then he referred to the possibility of American forces ^oin^ still fartner afield. Not Iceland - but Ireland, “weeks ago,“said the senator, “I heard on reliable authority th^^t the Unitea states was constructing a Naval Air base for Great Britain in Notrhern Ireland. iiiake the proposal recently, and today we have a response from Northern Ireland. The Ulster Premier said - yes. His government I That’s a thing which has been suggested by Vvandell wilkie. He '^ould agree to the wilkie proposition that the Unit d States construct a Naval base for Great Britain in in Northern Ireland. “If the I biiNATE -o United btates and ureat britain", he said, "Cdiae to the KBRSjbixixR conclusion that this Aouid be helpful in v^innin^ the battle of the Atlantic , the Ulster Government wouia readily agree to do every tiling possible to facilitate the ^^roposal. The extension of «-merican power far and wide in the subject of a lot of rumors. There’s aamchatKa, for example - that, far northern peninsula of x^xjexA Eastern biberia. Today actliifc secretary of btate bumner welies denied reports that the United btates is negotiating with soviet hussia for military base at Kamchatka. He said the stories were Hazi propaganda, designed to stir trouble between the United btates and oapan. •ii> President Boosevelt today asked Cont'ress for xjia an additional four billion seven hundred mil ion dollas He wftfrtr^ the money for the Army. The President indicated that A most of tne spending would be for guns and aiQ/iiunition, to equip the hugely ex..j4nded land forces of this nation. We've had word for some time that the President was gdaing to ask for cjiother large army, appropriation. The supposition was th^t it would come to five or six billion dollars. Today we get the figure - nearly five billions. This maJces a total of fifteen billions - requested for he army this year. Morganthau Secretary of the Treasurj^*x|txxxxxj^ says that Eh the new appropriation proposed today may cause a change in the plans for taxation. The xxxx tax program drafted by Congress calls tBxxhs for the raising of three and a half bil ion. But that. apparently will not be enough..More money needed, heavier taxation. The secretary, in speaking of the new figures presented to Congress today, used these words, "Bo colossal as to warrant close look at the shole fiscal picture." 11 DRAFT '7 In Confresn today a bill was Introducpd to permit President Poos^^velt to Keep men in training for more than a year. Also to empower the President to send tnem out of the \^esterrl tiemisphere if necessary. This applies to National Guardsmen taken into the regular Army and to men conscripted under the selective service law. Tne legal period of training is for one year. Congress is astced to remove tnat time limit. The law puts a limit on places to which the men can be sent -- not out of the Western S kx I Hemisphere. Congress is asked to eliminate that restriction. All this has been ander discussion during recent days, and now lt»s up for iitKixti legislative action. The bill was Introduced by Senator Reynolds, Chairman of the Senate military Affairs Committee, who said he was doing so at the request of General Alarshall, General Chief of Staff. 6yL£ At Brockton, Massachusetts, today the Judge passed sentence on Private Patuski - gave him six months in jail. That*s a good deal of punishment for a soldier on furlough, but then consider the exploit that Private Patusk% performed. He*s an artilleryman - and also a boxer. At camp Hulen, Texas, he*s heavyweight champion of battery K, two hundred and eleventh regiment of the coast artillery. A powerful soldier is Private Patuski - brawny arms and miighty fists. He*s also a military policeman, which souiila be a vouch« for excellent r conduct - perfect behavior at all times. But Private Patuski also fancies himself as an amateur locomotive drive^’anc^set out to emulate the explots of the legended Casey Jones On leave from Camp Kulen, he went up to his native Massachusetts, and was on a passenger train speeding toward Brockton - when the inspiration seized him. He admits he had a few drinks. and was in something of a haze. However, there*s nothing hazy ibout what happened. Private Patuski climbed out onto the coal tender and then into the cabin of the locomotive. He pushed I don’t Know how the comraandant feels about that, ^aybe he'll reply - "Keep him, and give him the six months,"or maybe he'll growj?,*- "Send him back to us." Private Patuski is deeply concerned. He says he was just about to be promoted to the ranK of sergeant 1 1 11 ! 1 JjEAR The Vkfcr Departaient today asked for a statement of facts from Lieutenant-General ben Lear, ConuiiEnder of the Second Army stationed at •Memphis, Tennessee. This followed a warm discussion in Congress -- with various legislators denouncing iiMiaxsiRK the General for the famous Yoo Hoo eoisode. There A was fervid oratory on the subject of the soldiers who whistled at girl golf players wearing shorts -- Yoo Hoc. There were A- ^ndl gnant remarks about the general who was playing golf on that same course. 1TTT^tit~i||ii^n^t reply ”Yoo Hoo”. Instead, he was highly indignant — especially when the soldiers, in whistling to the girls, made some llghi: remarks to the n ~nI 1 I li^ TiM'i ~ in civilian clothes, they didn’t know IB who he was. A zood deal of Congressional heat was focused on the nunlshment the General inflicted — making officers and soldiers of the offending division take a fifteen-mile hii hike as a punishment and ])enance. The General had his defenders today, flongressmen who spoke stronrly for the necessity of firm discipline. There was a lively argument -- back and forth. And now the war Department tarces action. fS ? « _ III if I A lu Major General Riehardson, Chief cf thu Army Public Relations, icakes the followlnj? statement:- ”lhe war Department never ht prejudges a case," said he. "Whenever such an incident arises Ae always telegraph the officer for his side of the case. General Lear, he concluded, "has been called upon to raaKe this report and give a statement of fact”. (£v^ 'to ; c y -w_e-o