TIIRE, MJ CI GAN DA ILY

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 20,1944

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Senate Defeats
Waterways Bill
As Last Action
Both Houses Adjourn
For Christmas Holiday
By The Associated Press
WASHINGTON, Dec. 19-A half-
billion dollar post-war rivers and
harbors bill was killed tonight when
the Senate adjourned without recon-
sidering a controversial report on it.
Stringent opposition against- the
measure developed from a House-
passed rider exempting the $360,000,-
000 Central Valley Project (Calif.)
from a 42-year old reclamation law.
Western State Objections
Spearheading objection to the rid-1
er were Senators La Follette (Prog.-
Wis.) and Hatch (D.-N.M.) who con-
tended it would affect the basic land
laws of the country and should not be
handled in a hasty manner.!
The two westerners suggested, in-
stead, that the Central Valley issue
be studied by the Senate irrigation
and reclamation committee.
Had the measure passed, it faced
a possible veto because of oppositionl
of Interior Secretary Ickes to the
rider which, he said, would pave the
way for land speculation in Califor-
nia.
Both Adjourn
Both parts of the 78th Congress
adjourned tonight. The gavel drop-
ped in the House at 6:59 p. in., EWT.,
and the Senate quit at 8:22.
Less than two dozen House mem-
bers were in their seats when the
adjournment resolution came over
from the Senate and was adopted.
The House had spent the entire day
marking time, waiting for the Senate
to clear the business of Congress.
Michener Gives Thanks
The last business of the House was
to adopt a resolution offered by Rep.
Michener (R.-Mich.) expressing the
assembly's thanks to speaker Sam
Rayburn for "the able, impartial,
dignified manner" in which he pre,
sided over Congress.
The speaker was not at his desk
to heaithe brief tribute from ,he
Republican spokesman. He left yes-
terday for his home in Texas and
turned the chair over to Rep. Cox
(D.-Ga.)

COURAGEOUS ACTION:
Foxhole Doughboys Face Nazi
Tanks Rather Than Retreat

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By The Associated Press
IN BELGIUM, south of Monschau,
Dec. 19-Veteran American dough-
boys, flung into one of the war's
weirdest battles on a moment's no-
tice, brought the German attack on
the northern flank near here to a
bloody halt today in a welter of
wrecked tanks and dead men.
At least six German counterattacks
were smashed.
Farther to the south the situation
remained fluid and obscure, with deep
German penetrations reported, but in
this mountainous pine-covered area,
Jap Brutality
,Cited in Burma,
Wors -Thgn-SI avery,
British Office Reports
LONDON, Dec. 19.-(A')--The Jap-
anese forced more than 60,000 white
prisoners to labor under worse-than-
slavery conditions to speed through
the Thailand-Burma railway and
road and then left a monument to
25,000 men who died along the way,
the British War Office charged
today.
Citing cases of extreme brutality,
of sick men carried to work on
stretchers, men forced to labor naked
in insect-ridden jungles, the war
office declared there also were cases
of torture and killing. It added:
"The Japanese themselves erected
a memorial at Tamakan to approxi-
mately 25,000 men who had died on
the railway. Of these less than 1,000
were Japanes" the remainder being
represented as 'English, Australian
and Dutch."
War Secretary' Sir James Grigg
opened the subject in Commons with
an oral statement that "the strongest
possible protest" had been made
against past conditions existing in
Burma and Siam (Thailand) ." The
number of white prisoners employed
was "probably much higher" than.
60,000, he said, although he added
it was difficult to speak with cer-
tainty.

where millions of snow-covered ever-
greens stand like Christmas trees, the
Germans' Elite guard tank columns
have been stopped and hurled back
while their flying bombs still thunder
overhead.
How it was done is one of the war's
most fascinating battle stories.
Some gallant doughboys stood
fast in their foxholes and allowed
tanks actually to run over them
rather than retreat. It was one of
the most siectacularly courageous
actions since a British Coldstream
Guard unit in Tunisia two years
ago this month fought a German
panzer attack outside Medjez el
Bab until the Nazi tanks; crushed
them in their trenches.
An American hospital south of
here was overrun by a German tank
column which pushed on, leaving
some parachutists to load the nurses.
and wounded onto trucks for trans-
fer to Germany.
Lt. Col. Charles Horner of Doyles-
ton, Pa., an infantry battalion com-
mander on reconnaissance, dashed
into the town in a jeep driven by
Pvt. William J. Cazara of Detroit.
Two American half-tractors follow-
ed.
The hospital was recaptured in-
tact in some fast gunplay that
outdid any wild west thriller.
"The colonel sized up the situa-
tion and started shooting and the
parachutists ran for it," declared
Maj. William R. Washington of Cro.
zet, Va., a member of the small bat-
talion.
The wounded and hospital person-
nel then were evacuated hurriedly
and doughboys took over the town
just in time to shoot up two jeep-
loads of Germans who drove into
town in captured American vehicles.
Then more German tanks ap-
peared and the doughboys and Am-
erican tank-destroyers started
slugging it out with them.
The town now. is firmly in Am-
erican hands.
A few miles south of there, another
group of tank 'destroyers knocked out
three of five German tanks that they
engaged in a furious three-hour fight.



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New Guinea, Oct. 24, 1944
"Dear Aunt Ruth:
Have been moving about now for months and weeks and days - and by
chance - part by accident - in all this time - some mail caught up with me,
and it was your "Michigan Daily." Quite a surprise and pleasant no end - then
I moved to a new address and hope other copies come.
While a transient and reading the Dailys -met up with some other Michigan
men (before my time) and even tho it was years since heard or saw A.A. they
ate up the papers with a passion. More valuable than money out here. Common
interest and memories.
Just getting settled unow (I hope) and hope I can stay at the present position,
Nice location and fine weather (in comparison) and well - o.k. in general.
Time to punch the clock' now. Will let you know how things are. I really
appreciate your sending "The Daily" way out here in New Guinea and will never
be able to thank you enough.
Hope you have a desirable winter (as for weather).
Most grateful,
John D. Woolever (Ensign)"
-frQm letter of John D. Woolcver to Mrs. Ruth Buchanon

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Shoke the pine cones out of your hair and come down
from that tree
Though it's getting late, you haven t a thing to worry
about.
We still have lots of answers to the question: "What
to give them?"
We tied ourselves to Mother's apron strings, just to see
what she wonted most.
We followed Dad clear around the block and listened
to his day-dreaming-out-loud.

We opened the letter Sis sent to the
note of its contents.

North Pole ,nd

We even confess eavesdropping on the talk Junior
with Santa Claus.

had

S es -4 (d

11131 3uDaily

rSo take it easy.
We'll show you how to brighten that family tree .. and
the whole family to boot!
Come on down!

Sinlihimseriptiom.s.

fori

Xina.

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