Weather Little Change in Temperature, t ti 4atii4 Editorial Farm Bloc Still Blockingr VOL. LII. No. 94 ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 1942 Z-323 PRICE FIVE CENTS Jap Island Bases Raided By Pacific Fleet Qr ganizations Explain Work At Freshman Union Smoker Future Activities Men Hear Advantages Of Popular BMOC's Varied Life Meeting Featured By 'Mud-Slinging' Three hundred freshmen attend- ing the Activities Smoker yesterday at the Union enjoyed the unique situ- ation of 11 prominent organization BMOC's bickering for their services in the midst of a mutual "mud sling- ing" duel. The annual smoker, whose purpose is to acquaint the freshmen with campus organizations, was opened by Toastmaster Robert Sibley, '42E, president of the Union. Sibley stressed the importance of extra-cur- ricular organizations to successful university life and related the many advantages of the BMOC. Introduced by Toastmaster Sibley, Burr French, 42E, invited freshman engineers to write for Technic, point- ing out the practical experience offered. Union Slings Mud Jack Grady, '42BAd, told prospec- tive staff men that the Union has everything to offer that a freshman could desire and started the "mud slinging" by deriding publications. Representing Congress, all-campus independents' organization, Norton Norris, '43, stated that Congress helped to integrate students into campus activities and asked for sup- port of class of '45. Answering the derogatory remarks aimed at publications, Al Owen, '42, spoke for Michiganensian offering the enticement of practical work and beautiful women. Ralph Mitchell, '42, extended an open invitation to join the Gargoyle staff. Emile Gel, '42, managing editor of The Daily, told of the journalistic opportunities offered by the editorial and sports staffs, and Dan Huyett, '42, business manager, described the excellent sales training given those on the business staff. IFC Is Open Don Stevenson, '42, president of IFC, urged fraternity men to strive for positions on the Council during their sophomore year. "Mimes," re- presented by Bob Titus, '42, invites those interested to participate in the Union Opera. Seeking support for the newly formed "Wolverines," Bunny Craw- ford, '44, asked the freshmen to help in creating a strong school spirit. Stu Park, '42, speaking for the Var- sity Band described the excellent op- portunities offered talented students. The program opened with several songs by the Varsity Glee Club and movies of the Michigamua initiation were shown. Fleeing Nazi Warships EscapeBritish Forces Much Harassed German Capital Ships Run Gauntlet Of Terrific Bombing By Channel Defenders Victory Book Campaign Opens Drive (By The Associated Press) Britain officially announced today that her planes and destroyers scored direct hits on three big Nazi warships, the 26,000-ton battleships Gneisenau and Scharnhorst and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen, in a furious run- ning battle in Dover Straits yesterday during which 42 British planes and 18 German fighters were lost. This great naval-air battle, which apparently was continuing today af- ter the German units escaped into the North Sea, temporarily overshad- owed the desperate plight of Singa- pore where latest dispatches said the Japanese were only two miles outside the island city Thursday night, but that the British were counter-attack- ing in some places. British Take Pounding In the British-German channel battle the British appeared to have taken the worst pounding in prelim- inary official reports. But poor visi- bility and a heavy smoke screen erupted by the German units con- cealed whether any of them were mortally stricken. The big warships, escorted by clouds of German planes, and de- stroyers, torpedo boats,nand other units, slipped out of Brest, the French harbor where they have long been laid up and exposed to British air attacks. When the British sighted them shoving into the Channel, they swung into action. Dover's shore artillery also began shelling the Strait; Ger- man land batteries in France retali- ated. Destroyers Lost An indication that the British also lost some of their destroyers was in- dicated in the communique which said: "Casualties in our destroyers were not heavy." When last sighted, the Germar ships, according to the communique "had become separated and were making for ports in the Helgoland Bight. Further reports from our forces are awaited." The British lost 20 bombers, 16 fighters and six other planes in the attack which lasted for hours, and with darkness closing over the Strait it looked as if the German ships would reach the safety of their North Sea ports. While Singapore was dying very Fire-Eaters Swallow Blaze At 935 Dewey Boy Scouts and Daily reporters ate smoke last night as they lent their meager assistance to the Ann Arbor Fire Department to help put out a blaze in the home of Miss Katherine Kempfer of 935 Dewey St. The fire, which began shortly after 9:00 p.m. yesterday, is believed to have originated in a pile of mat- tresses and other materials being saved for the Red Cross. hard, forcing from the enemy an ad- mission of a "fierce resistance" in which British warships were partici- pating, the Imperial lines holding the approaches to the Burma Road scored a pair of significant victories in that theater. Japs Hurled Back There, the Japanese were hurled back both in the Paan and Martaban sectors along the Salween River, in areas about 80 airline miles from Rangoon. At Paan, said the British Command, the enemy was so thor- oughly beaten down that he had temporarily abandoned operations; before Martaban, it was added Japa- nese troops fled in disorder, th'row- ing their guns away as they ran. In the Dutch East Indies, which are next in line for full-scale enemy assault now that Singapore is slowly being knocked out, fighting appar- ently was inconclusive although the silence from Borneo and Celebes was not reassuring. In the Philippines-where, inci- dentally, General MacArthur's his- toric stand was saluted in a British broadcast from dying Singapore-the War Department in a morningcom- munique disclosed that the enemy had occupied the island of Masbate in the center of the archipelago and from this it seemed likely that his ultimate plan was to throw a con- trolling line clear totMindanao in the far south. Little On Luzon OnrLuzon itself, this communique reported, there was again little activ- ity; again the invader was tirelessly reorganizing for his long-expected major assault. Of the Russian front, yesterday's specific information was slight. From what was available it appeared that the Red armies still were advancing generally but that the Germans were hitting back very hard in an effort to hold the areas in which they now tand. Blood Donors StillRequired Donations Appointments To Be Made At Union Blood donations-over 1,000 stu- dents promised; 76 have kept that promise.. Such is the story that came out of the Union yesterday. And it leaves at least 920 male students yet to keep the pledge they made to the soldiers, sailors and marines in our armed forces. The pledges can be kept, appoint- ments for donations can be made from 1 to 5 p.m. today and tomorrow at the Union. Officials of the Red Cross and the Student Defense Com- mittee hope-and expect-to be. swamped with eager donors at that time. The donations are actually to be made Feb. 17 and 19 under the direc- tion of trained physicians at the Women's Athletic Building. Those students who are under 21 years of age are urged to write home immediately for permission to give their blood. It was pointed out by Mrs. Malin of the Red Cross that while such permission may not be re- ceived in time for this particular drive, another opportunity to donate blood will be offered in the near fu- ture. She emphasized that a large and continual supply of blood plasms is needed. Murphy May Head Good Will Mission To Irish Free State WASHINGTON, Feb. 12.-(P)-As- sociate Supreme Court Justice Frank Murphy, lifelong advocate of Irish freedom, may head a mission to the Irish Free State in a move to "nor- malize" Irish - American relations, government sources said tonight. The project, which has President Roosevelt's tentative approval, is still under study and must clear State De- partment and diplomatic channels. The mission's ultimate objective Japanese Suffer Stiff "Ship Lo'sses, Marshall, Gilbert, Makin Islanids Dealt 'Terrific Blow' As U.S. Navy Destroys Huge Amount Of Enemy Equipment WASHINGTON, Feb. 12.--(A)-The Navy Department announced to- night that the recent Pacific Fleet raid on Japanese bases in the Marshall and Gilbert Islands had resulted in destruction of five enemy warships, including a converted aircraft carrier, and 11 auxiliary vessels and that numerous shore installations had also been destroyed. The fact that the raid had been made on the Japanese naval and air bases previously had been announced but information given out tonight constituted the first disclosure of the terrific blow dealt the Japanese. In addition to the wreckage of ships and shore establishment, the Navy said, the enemy lost 38 airplanes including 21 bombers. American losses for Using "A Book For Every Soldier" as its campaign slogan, the Victory Book Campaign was inaugurated yesterday in the first floor of the main library. The drive will continue until Sunday. Boxes for collection may be found in all the city libraries and other strategic campus points. Students are asked to keep in mind the demand for history, technical and biographical books as well as fiction. In the latter field, authors Jack London and Zane Grey are Army favorites. Highway Body To Hold Annual Meeting Here Road Engineers To Discuss Problems Feb. 18-20; Van Wagoner To Speak Michigan highway engineers will climax another year of progress next week when they meet to discuss mu- tual problems at the twenty-eighth annual Michigan Highway Confer- ence to be held Feb. 18, 19 and 20 in the Union. Heading the speakers' list for the three-day " gathering will be Gov. Murray D. Van Wagoner and Uni- versity President Alexander G. Ruth- ven, as well as more than a score of other highway men from state and county highway departments. Special Symposium New developments in the field of highway construction and mainten- ance will be discussed in a special symposium scheduled for Wednesday afternoon, followed by talks on black- top surfaces and strengthening old bridges. Dean Ivan C. Crawford of the Col- lege of Engineering will preside over the luncheon meeting, at which President Ruthven will speak. The morning session Thursday will be in charge of Prof. John S. Worley of the transportation engineering de- partment, and will take up highway capacity, access roads for industry and traffic engineering for war pro- duction transport. Three independent meetings will be held Thursday afternoon, discus- sions having been scheduled for traf- fic officers, county road commission- ers and members of the State High- way Department. Leading Speakers Leading speakers on' the banquet program Thursday evening will be Governor Van Wagoner and State Highway Commissioner G. Donald Kennedy, after which five engineers will receive special awards for 25 years of consecutive active service in the development of Michigan highways. The conference will close Friday, with the annual meeting of the Asso- ciation of Road Commissioners and Engineers. The conference is under the direc- tion of the College of Engineering, in cooperation with the State Highway Department, the Michigan Associa- tion of Road Commissioners and En- gineers and Michigan State Police. Ford Toolmakers Quit Strike To Resume Jobs DETROIT, Feb. 12. -() - Em- ployes of the Ford Motor Company tool and die shops returned to their jobs today after five days of sporadic shutdowns that resulted in a loss, Student Senate To Investigate Rent Situation Also Votes To Inaugurate Campaign For Letters, Donations To Selectees Not a single opposition vote was cast yesterday in the Union as the Student Senate moved to approve an investigation of the rent situation in women's League Houses. The survey, to be conducted by the Senate Service Committee, will probe complaints of excess rentals charged coeds. The question of student house- cleaning under these conditions will also be taken up. The Senate Defense Committee re- ceived unanimous approval in its plan to open a campaign for letters and gifts to University men now in the armed forces. This drive will be launehed in the near future. Another unanimous accord was given a resolution backing the Vic- tory Book campaign for service men. Seven senators also went on record as willing to participate in the cur- rent blood donation appeal. President Bob Krause, '43BAd., re- ceived the final unanimous approval of the evening when he told the Sen- at that action was being taken on a service man's scholarship fund. He announced cooperation with the Michigan State's Student Senate in this plan, first of its kind on any campus. for the action, first offensive stroke by American forces in the Pacific, totaled 11 aircraft and some person- nel casualties. The enemy's ship losses, the Navy said, consisted of one converted 17,000 ton aircraft carrier of the Yawata class, one light cruiser, one destroyer, three large fleet tankers, two sub- marines, five cargo vessels and three smaller ships. Several other ships were badly damaged. Jap Plane Losses Jap airplanes destroyed were two large seaplanes, 15- fighter planes, 11 scout bombers and 10 additional bombers. In addition to those which the Navy described as having been de- stroyed in the main actions in the Gilbert Islands, the official an- nouncement also disclosed that at Makin Island in the Marshall group American forces destroyed' two en- emy patrol planes and badly dam- aged one auxiliary vessel while a third enemy patrol plane was de- stroyed at sea. The raids were conducted against Makin, former British island which the Japanese occupied the day they attacked Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, and the following islands in the Gilbert group which Japan originally ob- tained under mandate after the World War: Jaluit, Wotje, Kwajalein, Roi (in the Kwajalein Atoll) and Taroa in the Maloelap Atoll. Roi Destruction In summarizing destruction to shore establishments the Navy said that at Roi two hangars, ammunition dumps, fuel stowage, all stores and warehouses and the radio building were laid waste. At Wotje the entire shore installa- tion was turned into wreckage. It had consisted of two hangars, oil and gas stowage, shops and store houses, two anti-aircraft batteries and five intermediate coastal guns. At Jaluit, the raid was conducted in a heavy rainstorm. The official communique disclosed that despite this handicap American aircraft at- tacked two enemy auxiliary vessels and badly damaged one of them. .British Claim Line Holding In Singapore, Imperial Forces Report New Counter-Attacks To Cover Retreat BOMBAY, Feb. 12.-P)-The Brit- ish line in Singapore extends "from the naval base in the north to the center of the island, to Tanglin in the south," the Singapore communi- que said tonight. The British reported successful counterattacks on the Japanese left flank. The communique relayed here by wireless: "At 7:30 a.m. today Japanese mili- tary bombers with a fighter escort fought an unsuccessful engagement against our air force over Malaya. Fighting Continues "Heavy fighting continues in the western and northern sectors. In the north of the island enemy activity has been intensified. "Enemy air activity ceased during the night, but was resumed early this morning. The enemy attack was sup- ported by dive-bombing and ma- chine-gunning as well as by medium tanks. "The British line extends from the naval base in the north to the center of the island to Tanglin in the south. "From Sungei Sunya the line runs north. Counter-attacks by our troops have been successful on the left flank of the Japanese." Evacuation Covered Meanwhile, London reports that the British Imperial line on Singa- pore, still beating off the enveloping Jisaster, four times counter-attacked .he Japanese invaders today, three of the charges breaking but one of them accomplishing its apparent ob- jective of covering the continued evacuation of women and children and the removal of portable military supplies. At 3:30 p.m. British time (10:30 a.m. Eastern War Time, Thursday) the Singapore station was calling out: "The Japanese are endeavoring to obscure the real position on the island of Singapore behind extrava- gant claims. "We are not only going to fight. We are going to win. We shall emerge from this struggle." ' 9) New War Board Survey: University Poll Will Determine Summer Session Enrollment By WILL SAPP a year ahead of the old two-semester Laying groundwork for its war- plan. born summer semester, the Univer- Mh ng.l .p sity of Michigan took steps yesterday Michigan high school principals to determine the number of new stu- been asked to expla the U- dents that may be expected to enroll versity's three-term plan to their se- this June when Michigan's year- nior classes and report back to Regis- around schooling plan begins "for the trar th after the studet hav duration. had time to discuss the acceleration Principals of Michigan's 600 ac- plan with their parents. credited high schools and 100 selected The information obtained in the preparatory schools outside the state survey will be made available to other are being surveyed to determine: educational institutions in the state 1. How many students they will upon request, University officials graduate this spring, said. 2. How many of these expect to go The Regents' questionnaire to Uni- on 'to a college or university. versity students eliciting student 3. How many expect to enroll in the opinion and course desires on the University's summer term this June; summer term will be distributed soon. and how many of those planning to The five page question blank will be enter Michigan will enroll in the lit- used as a guide, as far as possible, in erary college and the engineering the formation of the third-term aca- college. demic program. No calendar for the Registrar Ira Smith said that he summer semester has been an- was preparing the survey under the nounced as yet. authority of- the University War As most high schools will not grad- Board. which suhmitted the original uate their seniors until the first week More Time For Comedy: State Will Switch Time-Local Cocks May Explode In Attempt By EUGENE MANDEBERG With the passage yesterday of a bill through the state legislature turning Michigan's clocks back to normal Eastern Standard time, starting at 2 a.m. Monday, Ann Ar- bor may find that time marches on, stands still, or staggers in an alarm- ing manner. For, following the announcement of the legislature's action, City Coun- cilmen in Detroit expressed the opin- ion that they would maintain pres- ent "war time" if there is a legal way to do it, and local officials, though unable to give more than personal opinions, recalled that the city fol- lowed Detroit during the last war and may well follow suit again now. According to an Associated Press story the situation may be further complicated by the fact that "spon- sors conceded that the state law would apply only to state and local agencies, and that industries in in- terstate commerce and Federal agen- cies would remain on the present fast time schedule, unless and until the Interstate Commerce Commission orders otherwise." And the ICC has institution, but as incorporated in the state constitution, it is provided that it shall be governed by a Board of Regents. It is an independent body, subject to the decisions of the Re- gents, and not to the state. Thus, if the Ann Arbor Council voted to go with Detroit, the Regents would have to decide whether to fol- low the city, follow the state, or;be- gin another new time table of their own invention. Further, it is believed that the University's position would be gov- erned more by policy than by legali- ties, so that would leave the Regents in another hole from which they would have to extricate themselves gracefully. Then, if this were not enough, a time here not in line with that of the state might cause the citizens of Ann Arbor to lose an hour of their time every time they stepped on state property. Just a minute at the Secretary of State's office to buy li- cense plates will cause an hour's loss, and you might be late for dinner. mlm fia l ... r -l"% .ilr Ann Ar-s- William Weston To Discuss Fungi Here Wednesday I Speaking on "Fungi and Fellow Men" at 4:15 p.m. Wednesday in the Natural Science Auditorium, Dr. Will- iam H. Weston. Professor of Crypto- gamic Botany at Harvard University, will present his lecture in entirely non-technical language and attend- ance need not be limited to botany and zoology students. Known as an exceptionally able speaker, Dr. Weston has done a great deal of platform work, doing much to popularize fungi through his lec- tures and also as the author of num- erous papers of fungi, particularly those which attack the grass family; Dr. Weston has spent many years