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Newspaper
Decatur Daily
Location
Decatur, Alabama, United States of America
Date
Aug 10, 1944
Page
1
Partly cloudy this afternoon tonight and Friday with scattered afternoon thundershowers. Local records show a high of 92 and a low around, plus updates on residents visiting, military postings, church events, and community notices from Falkville to Decatur General Hospital.
President Roosevelt ends a three day strategy session with Adm. Chester Nimitz Gen. Douglas MacArthur at Pearl Harbor. The talks outline new offensives aimed at unconditional surrender of Japan with plans to return to the Philippines and grant its independence. Admiral Halsey joins the discussions as war effort accelerates across the Pacific.
Fala the 5 year old Scottie traveled 2000 miles to Hawaii on the presidential cruiser but was kept on a tight leash by quarantine rules. President Roosevelt did not seek special favors for the dog and a naval aide monitored Fala daily by phone while the ship visited Waikiki. A sailor reportedly plucked a single hair as a memento.
Japanese broadcast says American forces suffered a major defeat in the alleged seizure of Honkyoing as Hangyang reports on Chinese defenders slain to the last man. No Allied confirmation of American presence. Hankow Canton line still open to fierce resistance.
Propaganda Minister Goebbels issues sweeping decrees ordering all public meetings banned and non war related entertainments halted. Domestic servants of foreign origin are drafted into war work and households with children are prioritized for armaments production. Women up to 50 must work. many workers reassigned from railways postal and cultural services. Cultural life and film theater staffs are redirected to armaments, with broader conscription and intensified homework. The broadcasts warn of reduced living standards as Germany mobilizes for total war.
Ernie Pyle describes a group of soldiers in a Normandy farm yard momentarily entranced by German bombardments. The sense of awe gives way to panic as bombs curve toward their position and smoke lines drift over them, creating a chilling, near-paralyzing fear.
Eyewitness recounts a sudden bombardment as planes approach and drop bombs. The narrator and others dive for cover in dugouts foxholes or behind a wagon shed, describing the terrifying rattling sound and instinctive reactions during the attack.
All electric power in Decatur will be off Sunday from 2 30 to 5 30 AM for the installation of new transformer equipment at the central sub station on First Avenue announced by the Electric Department.
August 29 marks final day to qualify for the city election. Mayor I R Harrison and J D Cloud have qualified for the mayoral race while Knox McRae is the sole candidate for Place No 1 on the council. Other council seats show no candidates yet. Election set for September 18 with terms beginning in October.
Rome reports Vatican steps to deliver flour and essentials to Archbishop Elia Della Costa for Florence relief amid food and water shortages. Canadian troops with Italian patriots press Fascists in Allied Florence. Poles reach Francavilla near the Cesano river as Adriatic fronts push forward.
American submarines in Japanese waters claim 16 more vessels sunk or damaged, bringing total to 839 ships destroyed or damaged since the war began. The count includes 54 warships sunk and 633 merchant ships sunk with 101 damaged. Submarine losses total 27, with three lost in non-combat maneuvers.
Two 15 year old Decatur youths were taken into custody by Patrolmen Hunter and Kennedy for stealing an Underwood typewriter from the Rehabilitation and Crip pled Children’s Service office in Decatur junior high basement Monday night. The typewriter's sale to a local furniture store led to police contact with the credit bureau and the store manager's call. One boy confessed and both were released after restitution.
Gen Dwight D Eisenhower supreme commander of Allied forces moves advance command post from Britain to Normandy to maintain contact with fast rolling offensive. The transfer occurred in recent days by air and troops including WACs live in tents under patrols while Eisenhower travels from a nearby airfield for conferences with subordinates.
London reports a grave new Russian flanking threat west of the upper Narew river threatening East Prussia and Warsaw. Berlin says Soviet attacks are beaten off or checked and Russian bridgeheads across the Pilica near the Vistula.
Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force announces consolidation of airborne personnel into a single unit commanded by Lt. Gen. Lewis H. Brereton. The merged force includes air and ground troops and aims for unprecedented coordination and mobility in future operations. Brereton’s deputy will be Lt. Gen. Frederick Browning. Brereton replaces by Maj. Gen. Hoyt Van Den Berg as Ninth Air Force commander, with Van Den Berg replaced by Maj. Gen. Ralph Royce.
Decatur honors Sgt Ben E Johnston Jr 30 who died August 9 from leukemia. A North Africa Sicily Anzio veteran he served since 1941 and died in Atlanta. Funeral Friday at St Johns Episcopal with burial in the city cemetery. Survivors include parents two sisters a brother and an uncle.
A reader advocates total extermination of Germany, while others seek overwhelming Allied punishment to prevent future aggression. The piece notes Germany's retreat, dire morale tests, and huge casualties as the war nears decisive weeks on the Russian front.
Gladwin Hill reports Supreme Headquarters announces a revolutionary airborne army amid Allied advances toward Paris. German defenses shrink Le Mans fall signals pressure on the Paris area as Canadian and British forces drive toward the Seine and Caen in a widening offensive.
Henry Cassidy of the Associated Press reports from Moscow that a Soviet authority predicts Germany could remain in conflict until next summer. The forecast notes that an unexpected event, such as another bombing of Hitler, could alter the course. Cassidy has four years in Moscow and sees little optimism for a quick victory.
Unconfirmed reports claim American troops have reached Nantes and Le Mans lines extend toward Paris. Cities along the Loire including St Malo and Lorient are enclosed by Allied forces. Brest and Lorient face heavy assault as German resistance tightens.
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