Weather


40
Ar"
an

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VOL. LIII No. 133 ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN, THURSDAY, APRIL 8, 1943

PRICE FIVE CENTS

Eighth
Troops

Army

Joins

Forces

with

Yankee

in Drive on Retreating

Germans

Manpower Corps To Give Campus 'Singtime' Tonight

Three Groups
Combine for
Music Fest
Entire Proceeds from
Campus Musical Go to
Bomber Scholarship
Three top-ranking campus musical
groups"!-the Women's Glee Club, the
Michigan Union orchestra and the
Men's Chorus-will mass together on
the stage of Hill Auditorium at 8
p.m. today to present what promises
to be the finest in Michigan musical
entertainment-the Manpower Mo-
bilization Corps' extravaganza, "Sing-
time."
Ranging from the most sacred
chants to the best in modern classi-
cal jazz the program has been de-
signed to please every musical taste.
Because the entire proceeds of the
program will go to the Bomber Schol-
arship Fund there will be a strong
emphasis on patriotic music.
Glee Club Opens Program
The Glee Club will open the pro-
gram with "Adoramus Te" and "Ben-
edictus," the 'orchestra then takes
over with "Alleulia" which is being
played for the Michigan men and
women in the service.
Dedicated to the Glee Club by the
composer, Dorothy James, "Mary's
Lullaby" is the only number not ar-
ranged by Bill Sawyer, director of the
show. The Glee Club looks forward
to the day "When Johnny Comes
Marching Home Again" which will be
a paraphrase on the original. Also
adapted for the concert is a para-
phrase on Irving Berlin's "Easter
Parade."
'Summertime' Will Be Sung
Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue" and
"Summertime" from "Porgy and
Bess" will be sung. Ferde Grofe's "On
the Trail" is also on the program.
The orchestra experiments in their
blasting numbers, "December 7, 1941,"
and "Experiment in B-flat." The first
number attempts to show the chaotic
changes in campus life since Pearl
Harbor.
Star solist of the orchestra Don
Paladino will play the "Russian Lul-
laby." Critics acclaim the 13 year
old grade school student as having
one of the purest tones that can be
achieved on the trumpet.
Patriotic Songs To Be Sung
Patriotic marching songs will be
sung by the students accompanied by
the orchestra in the "Victory Medley."
The program will close with two cam-
pus songs followed by the National
Anthem.
Tickets will continue to be sold to-
day on the diagonal, in bookstores, in
the League and Union.
Magidoff Will
Speak Saturday
To Give Eye-Witness
Story of Russia at War
Mrs. Nila Magidoff, young Rus-
sian-born, wife of NBC's Moscow cor-
respondent and eye-witness of the
battle of Moscow, will describe war-
torn Russia at 8 p.m. Saturday in
the Rackham Auditorium.
Mrs. Magidoff, living in Moscow

when the Germans invaded that city,
immediately plunged into war work,
serving as an air raid warden, build-
ing sand bag protections for build-
ings and guarding roof tops from in-
cendiary bombs. Despite her desire
to remain in Russia, she was com-
pelled to come to this country be-
cause of the order requiring the wives
and children of American correspon-

PUBLIC JEOPARDIZED:


Council Must Reject
Bill to OK Firetraps
ANN ARBOR'S Town Council may tonight bestow an official
blessing on a multitude of fire hazards.
Unless Ann Arbor citizens demand that human safety be
placed ahead of property rights, the Council, after long side-
stepping demands to enforce city building standards, may pass
a proposal to permit the Majestic Theatre and other unused,
unsafe or condemned hotels, auditoriums and dwellings to be
open for public use.
After the necessary second reading the Council will vote on
the amendment which would allow condemned structures to be
used if such repairs as are possible with existing government priority
regulations are made.
This means that while other cities all over the nation are
tightening up their building standards, Ann Arbor's will be
lowered. It means that the lives of students, defense workers,
townspeople and servicemen who live in these condemned build-
ings and attend those unsafe theatres and auditoriums will be
endangered. It means that the tragic fire which this week took
the life of Agnes Day Gilson might be duplicated several times
over.
THE NEED for stricter enforcement of present building laws has
been clearly shown. In the case of the Majestic Theatre, Build-
ing Commissioner William C. Maulbetsch said in a report last De-
cember that he would take no responsibility if' the city fire commis-
sion or Common Council decided to allow the Majestic Theatre to
reopen. He maintained that it would be impossible to remodel the
building to protect it from fire. Its frame construction would con.
stitute a serious fire hazard, even if other violations of the fire laws
were removed.
This is a dangerous proPosal that must be killed. The
forces supporting it are in sight of their goal of reducing Ann
Arbor's safety standards. They must be defeated.
-Monroe Fink
NO 'COCOANUT GROVES'!
Dangers Of MajestiC
Ex.Aposed bA yfProfeLAssor
(Editor's Note: The following article was submitted to The Daily as an
open letter to Daily readers by Prof. George B. Brigham, Jr., of the architecture
college. This analysis of the fire hazards of the Majestic and Whitney theatres
will, we believe, emphasize the importance of the necessity for defeating the
building code amendment.)
THE Cocoanut Grove disaster in Boston has caused many people
to question fire hazards in Ann Arbor.
Many will remember the old wooden Arcade Theatre on North
University Avenue, Ann Arbor, which burned to the ground one
night, very fortunately after the closing hour.
Hazards still exist here as has been disclosed by local and state
inspection.I
How many Ann Arbor citizens know that the Majestic is
built entirely of wood with only a thin veneer of brick on the
exterior to make it look safe; that this wood construction is
not protected with fire stops; that the heating plant is not suffi-
ciently segregated; that the aisles and lobby are too narrow,
and that the exits, which may be adequate in width, are poorly
placed, with dangerous steps at the main entrances?
How many know that the Whitney is a close second to the
Majestic and that even though the exterior walls are solid brick,
the interior is wood, and the exits are as questionable as those of
the Majestic?
Both of these theatres were declared dangerous several
years ago, and were given five years by the City Council to liqui-
date and close - five years in which a public disaster might have
happened. The Majestic is closed and the Whitney should have
closed at the end of the five-year period on January first of this
year, but is still open to the public. This is not the fault of the
City Engineer's Building Inspector, who has been overridden
by the City Council.
Obviously, the owners of these theatres would profit if the
buildings could be continued in operation. Some of our council-
men seem to be convinced that Ann Arbor needs more recreational
facilities so urgently that public safety can be disregarded.
THE Ordinance Committee of the City Council has under con-
sjderation adequate building code regulations which, if carried
out under careful supervision, would give reasonable assurance of
fire-safe theatre structures. These regulations, which would be an
amendment to the existing building code, have been before the City
Council and passed their first and second readings. It is imperative
that they pass their final reading without nullifying clauses if the

public is to be adequately protected in existing theatres.
However, the Council also has under consideration another
amendment which would allow these two theatres to be used in
their present condition for the duration. It is imperative that
this amendment be defeated.
-44f .I- :-,1 ---,-------,

No Building
Permit Issued
For Firetrap
Basement Apartment
Was 'Operated Without
Knowledge of Officials'
The basement apartment at 331 E.
Liberty St. in which Agnes Day Gil-
son, University bride of two weeks,
was burned to death Monday oper-
ated as a dwelling without the knowl-
edge of city building officials, George
H. Sandenburgh, City Engineer, told
The Daily last night4
The building was converted into an
apartment house in 1929 after a per-
mit for three first and second floor
dwellings but not for a basement
apartment was granted, he said.
Staebler Comments
Walter P. Staebler, chairman of the
City Building Code Board of Appeals,
said last night that "to my knowledge
no request for utilization of the base-
ment apartment has been made in
the last eight years."
Permits for basement apartments,
usually for janitors and caretakers,
are granted if the area is fire proof
and has an auxiliary exit excluding
conventional windows, Mr. Staebler
said.
(Basement apartments are not cov-
ered by the Ann Arbor Building Code,
but permits for them may be obtained
from the Board of Appeals if con-
ditions of the State Housing Code
are met.)
Only One Exit
Investigation by a Daily reporter
showed that there was but one stair-
way exit from the apartment. Three
small windows meaursing approxi-
mately 18 by 30 inches, about three
square feet, were in the bedroom of
the burned dwelling and these opened
inward like conventional basement
windows.
The State Housing Code provides
that windows may be classified as
auxiliary exits if they are 12 or more
square feet in area exclusive of the
frame.
Mrs. Charles Noble, whose private
Turn to Page 2, Col. 7

A PROBLEM FOR ALL:
Capable Negroes Fail
To Get Teaching Jobs

By JIM CONANT
Highlyqualified Negroes have
failed to obtain positions on the fac-
ulty of the University because of
their race, it was indicated by a
Daily investigation completed yes-
terday.
There have been competent Negro
graduate students at the University,
notably in the fields of mathematics
and sociology; but no Negro has ever
received a final recommendation to
a teaching position.
The reason given by faculty mem-
bers for this situation varied from
fear of student reactions to a convic-
tion that the appointment of a Negro
would never be approved by the au-
thorities.
Case of William Claytor
The case of one man was outlined
to The Daily yesterday by Prof.
Harry C. Carver of the mathematics
department. William Claytor, one
of the most brilliant men in his spe-
cialty ever to come to Michigan,
missed out on a faculty job solely
because of his race, Prof. Carver said.
."I'mnot interested in stirring up
trouble," said Prof Carver. "But no
one has a right to say that a Negro
should not teach at a state univer-
sity. Claytor is now a lieutenant in
the Coast Artillery: in view of the
shortage in the mathematics depart-
ment, I wish he were here to help us
out."
Approximately three years ago
Clayton, a Ph.D. from Pennsyl-
vania, was the most promising man
for a vacancy in the mathematics
department. At that time, Prof.
Carver said, he failed to receive an
appointment because no one would
take the responsibility of sayig
"yes" or "no" to the appointment
of a Negro.
"Clayton had the stuff," Prof. Car-
ver pointed out. "He was a perfect
gentleman, a good mathematician
by any standards, Negro or white,
and had the personality for a teach-
er."
Never Reached Administration
In spite of the fact that several
members of the mathematics depart-
ment endorsed his candidacy for an
instructorship, Prof. Carver contin-
Farm Bloc Aids
Bankhead Bill
Vote Sends Measure to
Agriculture Committee
WASHINGTON, April 7.- (AP)-
The farm bloc rescued the vetoed
Bankhead Bill from almost certain
defeat in the Senate today with a 62
to 23 vote to place the controversial
measure in storage with the friendly
Agriculture Committee.
The farm group thus beat down
an Administration effort to kill the
bill outright, and, in keeping it tech-
nically alive, raised a threat it will
be brought up again if any blanket
wage increases are granted that
pierce present economic controls.
The measure, which would force
price control officials to disregard
government benefit payments in fix-
ing farm price ceilings, was vetoed
by President Roosevelt because he
said it might stir up an inflationary
tornado.
Gen. Eisenhower
Expresses Surprise
ALGIERS, April 7.- (P)- Gen.
Dwight D. Eisenhower today ex-
pressed "surprise" over a French Na-
tional Committee statement that he
had asked Gen. Charles De Gaulle to
postpone his visit to North Africa,
thus indicating that a new misunder-

ued, the recommendation for the
appointment never reached the desk
of the President or the Board of Re-
gents.
"I believe," Prof. Carver empha-
sized, "that if Clayton's appoint-
ment had gone through, it would
have met with no opposition from
the Administration. I am confi-
dent that neither the President
nor the Board of Regents would
turn the application down for ra-
cial reasons."
Clayton's ability was highly
praised by Prof. Raymond L. Wilder,
with whom he worked here. "Clay-
tor is one of the outstanding Negro
mathematicians in the country As
a scholar and a teacher, he was
good."
Others Hire Negroes
Universities which, at the present
time, hire Negro instructors include
Harvard University, the University
of Chicago, New York University,
and the City College of New York.
Negroes here have been employed
as technical assistants and readers.
The reasons for faculty hesitancy in
recommending them for teaching po-
sitions were indicated yesterday by
Prof. DeWitt H. Parker, chairman
of the philosophy department.
"This particular problem has
never confronted our department.
If it had, however, there might
have been some feeling that stu-
dents would e embarrassed by a
Negro Instructor, and that the ap-
pointment would not go through
the' authorities. With regard to
graduate students, of course, Ne-
groes have always been on an equal
footing with every other student."
World News
In Brief ...
AN EAST COAST CANADIAN
PORT, April 7.- (P)- Thousands of
fighting men of the British Empire,
ready for action on land, air or sea
and hopeful of opening a new front,
and a group of De Gaullist French
seamen off the battleship Richelieu
and other French vessels berthed in
the United States sailId from here
recently enroute to Britain. Their
arrival was announced tonight.
Among the thousands sent across
from this foggy port were principally
Canadian Army men, but the move-
ment included also hundreds of
RCAF air and ground personnel, An-
zac and British airmen from the
combined training program in Can-
ada and 70 men of the Royal and
Canadian Navies.
LONDON, April 8 (Thursday)-
()-- Russian troops captured two
more localities on the Smolensk
front, and destroyed nine German
guns and three blockhouses and
dispersed an infantry concentra-
tion on the Donets defense line in
the Ukraine, Moscow announced
early today in its midnight com-
munique.
Dispatches from Moscow also
reported sharp local fighting in
the Kuban Delta near Novorssisk,
but there was no essential change
in battle positions on the long
Russian front.
* * *
LA PAZ, Bolivia, April 7.-~ (A)-
The Bolivian government tonight
published a decree declaring Bolivia
at war with the Axis powers and
ordering general mobilization.
The decree was formulated by the
Cabinet at a meeting Tuesday night,
and must be referred to the Bolivian
Congress for confirmation. No date
has been announced for Congress'
meeting.I

Rommel's
Defenses
Smashed
Airmen Rip Tamnks;
New Victory Takes
6,000 Prisoners ol
Cafsa-Gabes Road
Bly The Associated Press
ALLIED HEADQUARTERS IN
NORTH AFRICA, April 7.-A spe-
cial communique announced to-
night that the British Eighth Army
has made contact with the Ameri-
can Second Army Corps advancing
across Tunisia from the Gafsa
area.
ALLIED HEADQUARTERS IN
NORTH AFRICA, April 7,-The Brit-
ish Eighth Army has smashed com-
pletely Marshal Rommel's Wadi
Akarit defenses 20 miles north of
Gabes, and today joined forces with
American troops under Lieut.-Gen.
George S. Patton, Jr., in relentless
pursuit of the fleeing Africa Corps,
whose ranks were ripped by low-fly-
ing Allied airmen.
'Now Enjoying Common Targets'
Prime Minister Churchill told the
House of Commons in London that
more than 6,000 prisoners already
had been taken in this new victory,
which led to a quick union between
the British and American armies on
the Gafsa-Gabes road.
The long anticipated junction of
the British and Americans also
merged the air forces which were de-
clared in a special communique to
be "now enjoying common targets."
Advanced troops of the Second
American Corps fought through the
flank of the withdrawing enemy
forces and united with the British
on the ridge of Chemsi, 15 miles east
of El Guetar on the road to the
coast.
Yanks Batter Through
As the Americans and the British
mnet triumphantly on the hill where
lite German troops had fought bit-
terly only a few hours earlier, heavy
American forces of American Billy
MAitchell bombers with a Spitfire es-
cort were bombing the enemy trans-
ports fleeing northward from the
area.
It now can be disclosed officially
that an American infantry division
which for more than two weeks has
been trying to batter through to the
-oast has performed the vital role of
Turn to Page 2, Col. 2
Yank Bombers
Hit U-Boat Yard
Raid on Paris Factory
Is Claimed Successful
LONDON, April 7.- (M)--The RAP
disclosed through a commentator to-
day that American heavy bombers
in their daylight attack March 18 at
Vegesack had inflicted severe dam-
age on seven of 15 U-boats building
there and submarine experts believe
the yards' production will be im-
paired for many months.
The consensus after examination
of reconnaissance photographs was
that the Americans had struck what
may have been the heaviest single
blow of the war against U-boat pro-
duction.
Detailed study of the pictures
showed that one U-boat almost rea-
dy for launching was capsized in
her berth; hits were scored on two

being readied for mid-May launch-
ing, two which would reach full
growth in mid-June and two in the
embryonic stage.
The full reconnaissance study is
not yet ready on the American attack
last Sunday on the Renault works
outside Paris, but the RAP commen-
tator said it was without doubt "ex-
tremely successful and scarcely a
single building in the entire plant
area escaped some damage."
Other American attacks especially
praised by the RAF were those on
Hamm's Railway Station in which

Services

Held

Yesterday for
Fire Victim
A quiet throng of more than 200
townspeople and students filed into
St. Andrew's Episcopal Church yes-
terday noon to attend the funeral of
Mrs. Agnes Day Gilson, 19-year-old
University junior who was fatally
burned in an apartment house fire
Monday.
The Rev. Henry Lewis, to whom
the young bride spoke her wedding
vows only 19 days ago, officiated.
Delta Sigma Delta fraternity broth-
er of the groom, Dr. Charles Mark
Gilson, who is still confined to St.
Joseph's Mercy Hospital with severe
burns, acted as pallbearers.
The burial was in the Forest Hills
cemetery, at Geddes and Observa-
tory.
Fate of Building
Code Rests With
These Councilmen
Here is the list of the names of
Ann Arbor Town Council mem-
bers who will consider tonight
building code proposal. They will
legislate on the safety of Ann
Arbor residents. Call them and
demand that they defeat this pro-
posal.
They are:
Glen L. Alt, president ....2-2382
John B. Waite ...........5661
Fred L. Arnet.............2-1890
Walte R. lx, . - ,_ MIR

Im