Altoona Mirror (Newspaper) - March 25, 1942, Altoona, Pennsylvania The Circulation of the Altoona Mirror Yesterday WARMER FACTS ABOUT BLAIR COUNTY John Soyster is reported to have built the first house constructed in burg sometime during the year 1815 VOL 57 NO 242 PHONE 7171 ALTOONA PA WEDNESDAY EVENING MARCH 25 1942 EIGHTEEN THREE CENTS U S FLEET POUNDS JAP ISLANDS Nipponese Planes Carry Out Hit-and-Run Raid on Port Moresby BLACKOUT FOR ALTOONA WILL BE HELD SOON Mayor and Defense Officials Decide 1 on Test Easter Altoona will have its out trial on Monday night April 6 to last minutes 9.30 to 9.45 o'clock It will cover the entire metropolitan area of the city Emile Helms Blair county out director who will have charge at the trial said today that details will be announced as they arc ar- ranged by his committee This was presumed to mean ment for darkening theatre street lights railroad shops etc The Pennsylvania Railroad company will be interviewed by members of the blackout tee to see whether or not it will be feasible for the to operate without loss of valuable time on regular work or danger of accident Many to Cooperate One thousand air raid wardens and home defense police will cooperate with the city police in spreading the equivalent of a black screen over the city to shield it from hypothetical raiders while a squad of state motor police officers be stationed at the highway entrances of the city Assistance will be given by the Blair county rifle squad auxiliary fire watchmen and Boy Scouts The decision to hold the blackout a conference at his ayor Rhodes with Mr i Roy F Thompson chief wardens of and county When the warning signal is given traffic in the will cease ing- cars pull to the curbs and occupants will seek shelter in the nearest building The officers oh duly will warn residents having lights burning and gency switches at business places to darken signs arid display dows Mr Helms and his associates on the blackout committee will watch the city from a plane piloted by Paul Peterson manager of Stultz airport Tipton Masks to Be Tested While the city is in darkness Public Safety Director Jacob Weber announces the new out masks to be used on the city fire trucks will be tested Several trucks will make trial runs with masks on the headlights The progress of the blackout will be broadcast from observations from atop the W F Gable com- pany department store All defense industries will be contacted regarding participation Mr Helms warned today that must not take this trial blackout as a joke He pointed out that a now before the legislature will provide penalties of fine and ninety days in jail for refusal to cooperate with blackout regulations Altoona already has an ordinance compels compliance with the order on darkening store signs Flanked By Press March 1 patrols flanking Chinese and British defenses around Toungoo have cut off allied communications on the lay road in Burma between flve miles north K communique of the command today It nan said the was cut hy enemy patrols at mites north of Toungoo The communique was the official disclosure that nese troops had advanced north nf Toungoo the key point in the allied defense line across south central Barma miles north of Rangoon H that small British forces were remaining in the to press sive with the nese An allied coastal presumably along the Bay of Bengal was reported bombed by jix enemy aircraft Damage was described as slight Dispatches of Chungking meanwhile described a ing attack by American teer pilots on the Japanese at Thailand Japan's latest hid for aerial command nf the Burma the Americans de- at least forty aircraft in a surprise raid at dawn Tuesday The dispatches said I American casualty was Leader Jack of Y whose plane crashed after it was struck by a OF DISASTER LIEUT SAVED IN SHIP WRECK VISITS PARENTS TRAFFIC WILL BE CONTROLLED IN ENEMY RAID Lieutenant Bollinger one of the survivors of the wreck of the V S S supply ship Pollux which off Newfoundland on Feb 18 left at noon today after a surprise visit with his parents Mr and Mrs W Clyde Bollinger of 1710 Sixth avenue Lieutenant Bollinger is ly recovered from the effects of his nerve-wracking experience and ex- to return to his duties in the United States navy within a short time Meanwhile along with all other survivors of the wreck he is enjoying an extended leave Of personal interest locally was his report that Lieutenant necker of Bedford a doctor in the United Slates navy was the first physician to reach the survivors of the naval disaster having walked across the barren wastes for more than five hours to j reach the group Some little information ing the U S S on which Seaman Paul C Weidlich son of Mr and Mrs Clem Weidlich of 1110 South Twenty-sixth street lost his life was given hy Lieutenant inger The Truxton went about twelve minutes before the U S S Pollux about a mile away and within a short lime broke up and turned over There were seven men lost from the Truxton I and ninety-two from the Pollux The tragedy shook Bollinger probably more than any other officer of the Pollux because the men lost were almost entirely from the group of United States Naval Reserve corps to which he belonged in New York He knows the wives and families of the of those lost The two ships were wrecked be- fore dawn on the morning of Feb IS in a high wind and strong sea which caused them to be dashed against the rocky coastline off St John's Newfoundland ns they Continued on page 13 column 1 MAYOR DECLARES SALVAGE PROBLEM IMPROPERLY MET Advised this morning by City Engineer J G King that the WPA organization officials had Informed hint that they would not participate in trolley track removal work in Mayor Rhodes said that the federal government authorities by such a decision are losing their best bet to get steel to fill the material needs of tbe war tries As is well known there are or fivo miles of tracks including the Second Third and Fifth avenue lines that would be available for salvaging and tho mayor pointed out that the city is ready to proceed with a summer's program if the WPA wil cooperate Several years ago the higher WPA authorities turned down the proposal then when the national defense program was started a year ago it was announced that the policy had been changed and that the WPA would go through with it Now it would appear that they have reverted to the original policy Discussing the salvage program in general Mayor Rhodes said that on n couple of occasions lately he has driven out over the state and he has found that to date no effort has been mado lo salvage the terial to be found ID Die Continued on i column 3 WASHINGTON D C March 25 Pennsylvania Rising temperature today and not as cold tonight us last night The will be about freezing night Council on Defense Lists Men Who Will Serve on Blair Highways Throughout Blair county ful volunteers will help control traffic In the event a blackout due to an enemy air raid becomes officials of the Blair ty Councilor Defense announced today Harry C Smith executive man ot the council listed the men who will patrol the various ways and their stations They are as U S No miles north of Altoona Gilbert S Watts R D No 3 Altoona telephone Bellwood 2551 Shannon Altoona R D No 3 Joseph Bellwood Kettle miles cast of Altoona Raymond H Paul R D No 3 telephone Altoona Legislative Route No and one-half miles east of Altoona James W R D No Altoona telephone Altoona Intersection Gap Road and Avalon Road One and one-half miles west of Altoona 1 E Green Altoona D No 1 telephone 4874 Pennsylvania Route No and one-half miles north ot toona William R D No 2 Altoona telephone Altoona Edward Tremmel R D No 2 Altoona telephone Altoona 9738 Legislative Route No 07018 and Broad Avenue mile south of Altoona K K Black R D No 2 Altoona telephone Altoona U S No 22 Two miles west of Duncansville K A R D Duncansville telephone 43 or 2 C O Smith R D No 2 Duncansville phone Lewis L Daugherty R D No 2 Continued on page 2 column 2 VICTORY GARDEN PLOWING BEGUN NEXT WEEK Announcement was made today at the city highway department of- fices that the plowing of plots of ground in connection with the victory garden program in Altoona this year will be started next week For the purpose of the plowing and gardening the city has been divided into four general areas nnd Henry L Schvitz department fore- man in making the announcement said that all requests for plowing must be in the office at City hall by the end of tho present week It was made clear by Mr that tho work must be cleared up in the respective areas before the tractor and other equipment are moved to another section for no hack calls will he made It should he distinctly understood that only uncultivated plots will he plowed for the department cannot undertake to plow the lots of the people at largo at their homes These plots will be allocated to those who will cultivate them The committee in of the project is composed of Mr John E Rhodes Eoy Scout executive Fred and Miss Verna Foust a teacher in the city schools will hold a conference week and over the details of the program At the office of Director Frank M Hunler it was stated Continued on 2 column 6 Ruins of Jap Planes Litter Thai Air Base By KOREKT I MARTIK Correspondent CHUNGKING March wreckage of at least forty aircraft the Thai of mai today warning the Japanese that America's volunteer pilots the Tigers of the orient will match any bid for command of Burma's skies Attacking suddenly and without warning the American fliers ped from the skies at dawn day and riddled grounded enemy planes and personnel It the American volunteer group's reply to Japan's new aerial offensive over south Central ms but the costly The lone American casualty was Squadron Leader Jack Mewkirk of Scarsdale N Y whose daring won citations from Britain and China Newkirk's plane apparently was hit by a stray bullet from Japanese ground defenses and crashed near the Chiengmai airdrome his fellow fliers reported The crash they said came at the end of a low dive Dispatches and reports from the pilots described the raid as among the most damaging of the war In their first dive the Americans set fire to seven Japanese probably killing their pilots three others were during a subsequent swoop over the field The fliers said Japanese lies could not bo determined be- cause it was not known how many strafed planes contained pilots The only Japanese defense was an anti- aircraft machine-gun mounted on a truck The airdrome about ninety miles east of the border has been one of the pal enemy bases for enemy operations against allied airdromes in Burma The Americans attack probably was the opening move of a large-scale offensive designed to offset new Japanese aerial forcement arriving from the erlands East Indies and Malaya 3 JAPANESE CRAFT ADDED TO ALLIED BAG Australians Are Preparing for Expected Attack on Mainland HIGHWAY BUREAU j ANOTHER ARREST WILL NOT AID IN i PENDING BY FBI RAID PINBALL SLOT MACHINES PITTSBURGH March their first move ami slot machines allegedly used for gambling Allegheny county detectives raided a town shooting gallery and three machines Attorney Russell H Adams said he planned to seek a court order for destruction of the machines each licensed by the city for Adams snitl tion of tho machines he the general policy of office in ture raids The high temperature yesterday afternoon was 47 degrees the low last night was 28 degrees and at 9 o'clock this morning the turo 33 degrees tn thermometers at the railroad test department building SPRING CLEANUP The precedent established last year of not participating in the an- spring cleanup campaign will quite likely be adhered to this spring by the highway ment The responsibility nf ing rubbish accordingly will rest j with the individuals as it did last I year On the other hand there be no letup on the part of the health department The sanitary officers already have taken up the tion work and they will insist with the same force as ever that body participate in the cleanup effort The automobile tire problem un- doubtedly will ties in the way of the cleanup as effective as it should be engaged in the work of ing ashes and rubbish already are complaining that they get tires to keep their trucks moving and some actually have gone out Continued on papr 2 column 3 COMPANY TO TAKE ONLY 6 PER CENT CLEVELAND O March from Washington where he had testified before n committee on charges that his firm reputedly had exacted ex- war profits from the William R lack president of Jack Co has ed that his firm would voluntarily limit profits to per cent and that there would be drastic salary re- At the hearing before the house naval affairs committee it was dis- closed that the firm had disbursed to workers last that Jack himself got last year his secretary Adelaide Bowman was paid last year arid the first ten weeks of this year and that workers were given jewelry and ance policies Harry E Yoxtheimer another witness said he had been in bou and hat his ary had been raised from tri The head of the firm which makes aircraft parts said that nil profit over fi per cent henceforth would ho returned to the ment IN LOTTERY CASE By United PITTSBURGH March 25 At least sixteen have been arrested in con- with a lottery ring in which the federal bureau ot investigation has made least 110 arrests in the past few days E Thornton special agent in charge of the Pittsburgh FBI said another suspect ler of Pa has not been because he is under a doctor's care at present ton said agents have talked to and lie will be available whenever wanted by the federal authorities Thornton said William T Phillips of arrested last Monday has posted bond for his in the federal court at Wilmington Del Hearings Scheduled Local defendants Hin the gigantic lottery ease announced this weed with their arrest by FBI agents were expected to waive hearings early this afternoon when they at the office of United States Commissioner A George Mashank assistant United States attorney iti Pittsburgh this morning notified Attorney Santella that he was now authorized to accept bond for nine local defendants in the case It was be- the majority ot them would be able to give bond since the previous limit wax Papers already arc being drafted to return the men to Wilmington Continued on page 2 column 5 ANSWERS STILI still alarms for minor fires were answered by city men yesterday afternoon and last night At o'clock last night No 3 company used a booster tank stream on a mattress caught afire nt the home of Gertrude Shultz Sixth avenue A grass ire at o'clock yesterday at Sixth avenue and ninth street was extinguished by No 5 company and iVo 0 company used three gallons of chemical when an automobile belonging to Mrs H Figart caught afire at Nineteenth avenue find Eleventh street at 2.62 o'clock yesterday By C Staff Correspondent GENERAL MacARTHUR'S HEADQUARTERS tralia March planes made a hit and run raid today on Port Moresby on the New Guinea coast 350 from Australia and it was re- ported unofficially that enemy planes had been sighted over Katherine on the road 175 miles southeast of Darwin Three Japanese bombing planes accompanied by ers made the attack of Port Moresby Though they in dropping their bomb loads they flew exceedingly high in fear of the ly deadly allied anti-aircraft guns Down Enemy Planes Official reports said that one Japanese fighter plane had been shot down over Port Moresby and that a second was aged and probably downed A third Japanese plane n fighter was added to the allied bag when the gunner of an allied plane shot it down over Timor island yesterday It was reported in well informed sources here that ns the allied forces girded themselves to meel a Japanese attack on Australia and prepared themselves to organize an offensive on the Dutch forces were still holding out in central Sumatra central Borneo nnd parts of Celebes So stout is the Dutch resistance it was asserted that in some areas the Japanese were out of Continued on 15 column 5 ORGANIZED LABOR WAIVES EXTRA PAY SUNDAYS HOLIDAYS By JOK ALEX MORRIS IT I Foreign The united nations and the axis raced against time today to launch neu offensive blows in the Pacific nnd where fighting had plowed to R pace pending the expected big spring drives Japanese forces slogged forward slowly in Burma and traded blows with American and Australian planes on the New Guinea to Australia The Burma communique hinted that n Japanese flanking maneuver has jeopardized the position of the force defending Ton n goo hut the exact situation was not clear The Japanese slipped n round Toungoo and cut its ward communications at eight miles to the north Whether the is in a pavilion to fight its way through the Japanese lines was not known Equalizing the Japanese success to some extent was a destructive air attack carried out by the ican volunteer group a Japanese landing field at Chieng Mai Some forty Japanese were blasted on the ground ever Jack leader of un AVG squadron and credited wilh the of twenty-five Japanese planes shot down and lost On the Australian front attention still was centered on Port Moresby The Japanese raided the New Guinea south coast port lightly and reconnaissance chines were spotted as far south as 175 miles southeast of Tlie Australian press believed I IIP Japanese were pre- paring to attack New ofT Australia's cast const in an attempt to wain a for hilling at Zealand supply linos nnd the ship routes from lie United States A was be- ing maintained at Fort Moresby against Japanese air attack Continued on 7 column 5 By BAILEY Stall Correspondent WASHINGTON D C March 25 labor today management to its waiver ol double pay for Sundays and days hy placing war production on a week The of Industrial and the American of acted in abandoning double play a provision which President velt and Production Chief Donald Nelson said was impeding the war effort The action in no way changes the time and one-half premium for work ici excess of forty hours a provision of the act which a house bloc seeks to outlaw of the hour week outlawing of the closed shop and limiting of profits to per cent of tfic rost of a contract are in the sponsored by Representative Howard W Smith D and being ered by Hie house naval affairs committee Affair A Chairman Carl sou D Ga hinted today that he might offer a for the Smith hill and propose a eight-hour week for war labor with incentive He asked Nelson nnd Secretory of Frances Perkins yesterday to consider his suggestion Tabor's pledge to abandon on papc 2 1 NO EXTENSION ON AUTO PLATES March Ing Revenue Secretary Walter J Kress warned Pennsylvania ists today that there will be no ex- tension of the license plates beyond midnight next Tuesday Kress said renewals have been handled so far with others at the rale of a day The record ho said com- 1 favorably with new wore issued before expiration of he old Normally Kress i said about owners fail to renew before close of the license period The motor vehicles bureau will remain open until 3 p rn Saturday as a favor to motorists he announced U S FLEET TAKES ENEMY BY SURPRISE Installations on Marcus and Wake Made Shambles by Americans NBA HARRY Harry tells house naval affairs committee he re- a bonus after ing- only a month as assistant comptroller of the Jack Heintz Cleveland airplane parts firm accused of making astounding pro Us on work ITALIAN SHIP SET ABLAZE BY BRITISH FIRE By United Tress LONDON March ad- reported tonight that tho Italian battleship torpedoed in the Mediterranean fleet encounter was of the class and that it UK hit amidships and set afire In addition an Italian cruiser was damaged severely and another a hit the admiralty said The class represents Italy's four completed from 1937 to 1940 By skillful use of smoke said the admiralty our force avoided serious damage Some damage however suffered one of our cruisers and three de- Casualties were nol heavy The admiralty estimated that axis bombers were employed in attacking the British sea force after the engagement with the Italian One ship was sunk from the British convoy and a de- stroyer was hit but it managed tn reach harbor safely the admiralty said The action occurred Sunday in the Mediterranean when a fleet of five British cruisers and destroyers escorting a convoy to Malta en- countered an Italian battle fleet The Italian fleet was headed by the battleship and included six cruisers and a flotilla of de- WANTS FRONT LONDON March Soviet Ivan Maisky demanded today that the united nations seize the initiative from Germany and make a supreme effort to open a spring and summer offensive which will turn 1942 into the victory year of the war CIVILIAN WORKERS RESCUE MEN FROM U S By Staff Correspondent HONOLULU March mi launch was passing the hulk of tlie battleship Oklahoma Pearl Dec T when someone heard a top lap taps coming from somewhere i side The launch raced hade lo yard through the hat was railing down from the shell scarred sky A cutting crew of navy yai civilian workers under an climbed into the hull and a thirty-eight hour fight again deadly and rising water which resulted in the thirty-two mm all he known s who had heeti trapped side the battleship For tiie first hours until lie hull had been penetrated men worked hy the light of the blazing battleship Arizona hugging the Oklahoma's side to escape the shell splinters Once inside they worked in th ly fumes nnd fast rising o cut through hulk head after head arid rescue five separate ties of trapped seamen some of whom were clinging nt the hist to sn they not i drown Tho old lie story today in the of j ty civilian navy and the ensign for heroic and most efficient work with utter disregard lo their personal safety in ing in the rescue of thirty-two Continued on PMC 3 WASHINGTON D C March United States Pacific fleet task force carried out surprise attacks on Japanese owned Marcus island only 990 miles southeast of homa and on Japanese Wake island smashing shore tions sinking two patrol boats and demolishing three large seaplanes the navy announced today The communique ed United States losses at only two aircraft one in each of the attacks which were met with little op- position Few enemy planes or ships were found in either area Halsey In Command The task force was com- manded by Vice Admiral Jiam F Halsey who headed the naval forces which raided the shall and Gilbert islands last Jan 31 The raid on Wake which was captured by the Japanese after a gallant de- fense by a small United States marine garrison was made by aircraft and surface ships on Feb 24 The Marcus raid was carried out at dawn March 4 by aircraft of the task force By JOE JAMES CUSTER Staff Correspondent ABOARD A U S AIRCRAFT CARRIER IN THE PACIFIC March United States navy knocked at Japan's front door today planes from this aircraft carrier dumped twelve tons of high explosives on tions at Marcus island 990 miles southeast of Tokyo Eight days previously it now can he revealed a United States naval force delivered a crushing blow at installations on Wake island which the Japanese had captured from heroic American marine defenders Naval authorities believed the two raids shattered for some time at least links on Japan's chain of fortified island bases extending southeasterly from Tokyo to tha Continued on page 2 column 4 War Briefs IBS United Press LONDON March Minister Winston Churchill re- today that a British light naval squadron damaged and routed an Italian squadron comprising a modern battleship six cruisers and a flotilla of destroyers in the week-end Mediterranean sea battle Tho battleship hit hy a was believed to be the LONDON March ain's war production has in- creased more than 40 per cent since last September and them already indications that it will far exceed this soon Ralph Assheton parliamentary tary nf the labor ministry said today March Prime Minister John Curfin today that Australia un- der the supreme command of General Douglas MacArthur will take swift and resolute action to carry the war hack to Japan NEW March British communique reported today that a Japanese flank at- tack hus snapped the ward communications of the force at KOO and that a fierce is with the situation ad- serious TOKYO March broadcasts recorded kr V P in New York and Continued on 2 1
