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Newspaper
Decatur Daily
Location
Decatur, Alabama, United States of America
Date
Aug 18, 1944
Page
1
Weather outlook highlights partly cloudy skies with storms in central portions. Local reports note a high of 83 and a low of 69. Various notices share military assignments births visitors hospitalizations and upcoming church services in Decatur and nearby areas.
Moscow report says Gen. Ivan Cherniakhovsky's third White Russian army nears East Prussia on the Szeszuppe river, threatening Königsberg with 200 mile front. German resistance stiffens as 450 enemy tanks reportedly knocked out in three days and 30 settlements captured.
At a breakfast session national chairman Robert E. Hannegan and Rep. Robert Ramspeck of Georgia outlined plans to preach the Democratic gospel in all 48 states. The discussion focused on party strategy and the role of the Democratic speaker's bureau.
President Roosevelt said there is a general understanding among the Allies on occupying Germany after surrender regardless of timing. He noted no detailed plans exist but talks with Britain and Russia progress. He also said it could be easy to reach an understanding with China on occupying Japan, with only verbal exchanges so far. He expects to confer with Churchill again, though timing remains uncertain.
Reports of a brilliant flash and loud explosion spread from Dunes State Park to Vincennes and Richmond, with witnesses from Terre Haute to Cincinnati. Police and military officials noted a large silver flash high in the sky at about 8 20 a m Central War Time, suggesting a meteor rather than a plane or explosion. An Ohio search by Aeronca Aircraft Corp. followed sightings near Middletown as Cincinnati airports reported all planes accounted for.
Butler P. A. Hine qualified as a mayoral candidate for September's municipal election. He joins incumbent T. H. Harrison and J. D. Cloud, with the candidate field nearing a deadline as more entries expected.
State Health Department reports five polio cases in Payette Jackson Lamar and Biobila counties during the latest seven day period, compared with six cases the previous week.
General MacArthur reported Japan's southward supply network along the Philippines to Halmahera and Ceram is being strangled by heavy Allied air raids. A 87 ton strike on Halmahera quivered the Millea airfield while Davao freighter hits and near-worst losses crippled outlying bases. Nimitz aircraft hit Mang Island and Pagan in the Northern Marianas as Allied forces press toward reclaiming the Philippines.
President Roosevelt said there was nothing to publish about inviting Wendell Willkie to a White House conference on postwar security. He declined to discuss foreign policy or respond to Dewey’s fear of a permanent Allied bloc. Willkie in New York offered no comment.
A B26 two engine bomber crashed three miles north of Nashville municipal airport killing two crew members during a routine training flight. Lt. Col. James H. Smart, commanding officer of the 2th ferrying group at the airport, announced the fatalities. Names of the men were not released immediately.
The piece outlines Hitler's dilemma of choosing a northern defense line along the Seine and Marne to shield France and coast defenses, while the Normandy, Brittany, and southern France defeats force a strategic rethinking. It also praises Patton’s rapid advances and air warfare pinning German forces, signaling a turning point in the Allied push.
Allied reports say enemy resistance in Southern France is crumbling before the U S Seventh Army, now a united striking force from Riviera landings. Casualties total under 300. 7,000 German prisoners, including a general and staff, are counted. Maj. Gen. Patch’s forces push inland toward Toulon and Cannes, with substantial beachhead expansion and heavy bomber support from Mediterranean air forces.
Rome reports three U S infantry divisions leading the Seventh Army drive into Southern France have been identified as the Third, 36th and 45th. The Third, under Maj. Gen. John W. O Daniel, carries blue and white diagonal patches and fought in Morocco, Tunisia, Sicily, and Italy. The 36th Texas division, commanded by Maj. Gen. John E. Dahlquist, first fought at Salerno on Sept. 9, 1943, and aided the push toward Rome. The 45th Oklahoma division is also noted.
Congressman Sparkman spoke at the Decatur interclub meeting on postwar plans. He urged keeping Decatur on its toes to become a leading postwar city and explained wartime funding, inflation control, the GI Bill, contract termination, and peacetime conversion. He called for international cooperation and invited public input on postwar issues.
A bill introduced by Hill of Alabama proposes creating a three member federal transportation authority to coordinate rail, motor and water transport nationwide. The measure aims to ensure that transportation rates are free from discrimination, preferences and inequalities, seen as challenging the current rail freight rate structure viewed as discriminatory to Southern industry.
Station 2 responded at 7 15 PM Thursday to 1505 Twelfth Avenue East where a small fire caused by defective wiring resulted in no loss.
American tanks probed toward Paris while Patton’s forces forced the German Seventh Army toward the Seine. British and Canadian units closed pincers around the pocket, with Patton advancing from the west and the front swinging eastward toward Caen and the Falaise area.
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