3AY, AUGUST 3, 1941
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
PA
4
The Russian
Stalemate THE WEEK IN REVIEW
New Defense
Agency
I
FOREIGN ... De-Blitzed?
On The Eastern Front: f411 Is Not
So
Quiet
AT HOME... The EDB
A new alphabetical combination the exception of Wallace. may name
Germany's stalemate war against and to all,
Russia continued amid propagandic week.
confusion last week, but time and Intense
events played heavily into the Soviet Brazil, fo
leo
underdog's hand. ties Thursd
The past 10 days have, according settlement
to most reports, been Russia's round. least the ba
Red -defenders have launched heavy Argentine
counter-offensives against Nazi blitz herself as t
columns, holding Hitler's legions at to hemisp
bay in most sectors, 'driving them nounced wa
back in some. U.S. blackl
German thrusts at Moscow, Lenin- controlled f
grad and Kiev, meanwhile, were ap- rebuked G
parently stopped like a hog in Mis- bassies forc
souri mud; the Russian bear was not ganda. Wh
to be conquered by a few thin rapier ture, will
thrusts alone, problem for
Fighting again was confined to
three main sectors: Bessarabia, Len-
ingrad and Smolensk, with the Mos-
cow Road at Smolensk still carrying
the brunt of attack and counter-
attack.
In the central area, German forces.
were doing something unheard of in
modern blitz war: they were report-
edly "digging in" to stave off massive,
heavily armored counter-assaults.
Moscow repeatedly boasted that the
Nazi drive had been completely shat-
tered; Berlin communiques coun-
tered with claims of more Red divi-
sions annihilated, but even Ger-
many's proud, boastful communiques
tacitly admitted strong Russian coun-
ter-offensives.
The Red Army was putting on a
violent, near-desperate drive, but
there still remained ominous gaps in'
the Moscow defense line; gaps
through which Hitler may at any
moment launch a lightning pincher
movement.
Through the smoke and propagan-
dic din of battle, only one thing was
certain: the longer Joe Stalin and
Adolf batter each other, the better
off will, be England and the U.S.,
come the final reckoning with fas-
cism and communism. Though offi-
cial Washington was throwing scent-
ed orchids to Moscow, few believed
that present relatipns were friendly
for'other than immediate reasons.
Largest gesture last week was Harry
Hopkins' air hop to Moscow from'
London. Most heralded plane flight
since Hess, it, together with White
House praise of Russian resistance,
werc seen largely as morale boosters.
Whatever the U.S. promised the
Kremlin will be little more than a
paper pledge; the defense effort and
British aid have little to spare, with
even fewer ships available for trans-
port.
hostilities earlier in the
diplomatic pressure from
ntine and the U.S. was fe-
r the cessation of hostili-
lay night. No boundary
has been made, but at
ttle has been moved from
to the conference table.
%, however, again showed
the chief stumbling block
here unity. First an-
s a decision not to honor
listing of alleged Axis-
irms. Later, Buenos Aires
erman and British em-
disseminating war propa-
at she will do in the fu-
be a delicate diplomatic
r Washington.
-Karl Kessler
From bomb-torn Chungking last
week came news of the bombing by
Japanese fliers of the United States
gunboat *Tutuila: news that created
a two-day crisis between Washing-
ton and Tokyo.
A 370-ton patrol boat, the Tutuila
was anchored in Chungking's neutral
harbor Wednesday when Japanese
bombers attacked the town, was dam-
aged slightly by a bomb in its hold.
Demands immediately came from
Washington for apologies, payment
for damages, and on Thursday the
incident, which many prognositica-
tors had branded as the prelude to
the United States' entry into the'
Eastern conflagration, was smoothed
over by Nippon's super-smooth re-
grets, a promise to pay damages "in
full."
Acting in the absence of his chief,
Cordell Hull, Acting Secretary of
State Sumner Welles accepted offi-
cial apologies of the Japanese gov-
ernment after conference with Pres-
ident Roosevelt Thursday, announced
that the incident was "officially
closed."
Thus all seemed smoothed over be-
tween Tokyo and Washington, ap-
peasers were happy, until week's end,
when President Roosevelt issued an
executive order placing an embargo
on shipments of aviation gasoline and
refined oil to all nations except those
in the Western Hemisphere, the Bri-
tish Empire and "unoccupied terri-
tories of other countries engaged in
resisting aggression."
No direct mention was made of
Japan in the order, as in the order
freezing Nipponese assets in this
country earlier in the week. But be-
neath the surface of the carefully
worded order was but one thing: a
direct blow at Tokyo, which too many
.times had tread on the international
toes of Washington.
Earlier in the'week the little gignt
had struck the lumbering midget
when Tokyo responded to the order
freezing Japan's assets in this coun-
try by freezing American assets in
the Land of the Rising Sun. Similar
orders affecting Nipponese assets
came from Britain, Canada, Dutch
East Indies.
At week's end all was not so quiet
on the Eastern Front: Tokyo-Wash-
ington relations were strained to the
breaking point, with the United
States nearer the Oriental conflict
than ever before. -Bill Baker
I .
was added to the roster last week
when President Roosevelt Thursday
created the EDB-the Economic De-
fense Board-and named Vice-Presi-
dent Henry Agard Wallace to its
head.
A ministry of economic warfare
directed primarily at the interna-
tional aspects of the defense organi-
zation, the Economic Defense Board
holds complete power in its own field
besides possessing a check on prac-
tically any step any other Admin-
istration agency might take.
In addition to Wallace, the Board
membership consists of the Secre-
taries of State, War, Navy, Treasury,
Commerce and Agriculture and the
Attorney General, any of which, with
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I
JAPAN
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CHUNGKING &
...INGPO
BURMA ROAD: China's lifeline
becomes more vulnerable with .*;:.
": Japanese occupation of bases in o ;;_: .....::: ..............:::::.: . .,Y.; .;
French Indo-China. BRITISH STRONGHOLD at Hong FOOCHOW
> ; .Kong, though liable to blockade,.
: ;offers bastion from which sub-:
YUNNAN marines could wage war on japa- .'IA I
;_ ; ; "r nese flank.A .-
CANT #..:*'~i"SWATOW (.Pa Cifi C
JAPANESE FOOTHOLD AOKA SWATCANTONW tirij ,.
gained in Hanoi, capital HONG ONG
MANDALA of Indo-China, a year ago. \HN ON
" 'HANO I
HA PHONG Oea
YH AIN "-
-1 *otINVASION OF PHILIPPINES, sme mii-
A"OO tary authorities estimate, would requre a
force of more than half a million .
THAILAND:CIna Lz
..: (Siam) Q9 ,::
. A"PHILIPPINE
PATTERN FOR ATTACK:
v . , CAMRANH~ Japan has long line of navalMALA
>BA :" supply bases for maintaining anila to Pearl Harbor, 5481 11-x
steadyflow of munitions and-
o :. *-= " ;" war materials. AMERICAN SUPPLY ARTERY: This
Gulf ... x f~ . ;'~r is the route ships follow to and from
>? ' " : ""* AmericaLuncomfortably close to ap-
OfAAAIGONISLANDS anese bases on Palau and Yap Islands.
ofN .4--a ILNSAerc-nofotbycos oJp
GREATEST BULWARK in defense of East Indies *.'- - United States)
is heavily-garrisoned Singapore, one of wold'sMINDA
greatest naval bases. It is a high hurdle in the SPRATLY I.
path of any future Japanese push south . . .PALAU I
- ; *JESSELTON :"
PENANGORTH ~.i i
-AABORNEO
NINSULBRUNEMandate)
AEDANA Celebes Sea
rte RAKAN
NLMAHERA Equator
-- .: -- - - e . - -- - - - - -- ---- -~ ~~
:PADA BzRNEO ALKPAPAN
.<;.. ". CELEBES+
SRICH OIL PRIZE: Japan could :i:;: , ?>-::FNEW
PALEMBANG use a great portion of the 10,- >-"'% .. :4J GUINEA
000,000 tons of oil produced an- p 'A
nually in the Dutch East Indies. 4B.t1"ei,.
MACASS apua
In BETOENG "tJaa ea
BATAVIA anda Sea A
n' rei'.I TOEBAN.
OAGan;ERABAJA *
Ocean /70-w'
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250 5o0 " f0 i : Potugl
Miles (at Equator ML. ,Y) yAe, Yt
.SBRDTH ' MAJOR JAPANESE
MAJOR BRITISH BASE U. S., BR., DUTCH AIR ARMY AND D
(- ASECONDARY BR., U. S. AND .I S.AVRABASESHNAPANESE
~\NDUTCH NAVAL BASES A..R., DTCNHA YM
SECONDARY BR., U. S. AND AAPAESENAY
DUTCH ARMY BASES A
A AOIL OL OCCUPIED BY
U.S~ BRITISH DUTCH .L APAN IN AIR AL
cfelU)e LKU I4L MC l i:C H IN ESE; WAR?3}:{ . i*. li i:' : ::::'i :....:....::.:p{:i .C ::
an alternate. Liason officers to keep
in touch with the board were re-
quested of all other important 'de-
fense agencies.
The purpose of the new board was
expressed in the Executive order as
the protecting and strengthening of
"the international economic relations
of the United States in the interest
of national defense."
The day before another appoint-
ment of note was perpetrated when
the Democratic steering 'committee
of the Senate named Senator Con-
nally of Texas to the chairmanship
of the Senate Foreign Relations Com-
mittee to succeed Senator George of
Georgia, who is now head of the
Finance Committee.
Defense By-Products
Price control and oil consumption
were in the headlines last week as the
main by-products of the defense
effort.
On Wednesday Roosevelt sent a
special message to Congress warn-
ing that "we face inflation unless we
act decisively and without delay."
He asked authority forthe establish-
ment of price ceilings and a curb on
excesses in installment credit.
Congress appeared willing to grant
the request, although not to delegate
the authority directly to the Presi-
dent. Fear was that the President,
in turn, would name Leon Hender-
son, who .is not well liked in Con-
gress.
A 7 p.m. curfew for gasoline fill-
ing stations in, the 13 Atlantic sea-
board states beginning today was
ordered last Thursday by Harold L.
Ickes, Defense Petroleum Coordina-
tor, declared necessary because of
lack of transportation facilities to
carry oil to the east.
Friday the President ordered the
end of all exportation of oil outside
the Western Hemisphere, the Bri-
tish Empire and unoccupied terri-
tories of other countries resisting ag-
gression.
Draft 'Compromise'
C
Japan Moves On
Despite thinly-veiled British and
U.S. threats, Japan last week con-.
tinued to make preparations for a
major move in the Far East, while
Washington and London kept a
watchful eye on Indo-China.1
Following preliminaries of a fort-
night ago, Tokyo last week began
loading troops and planes into Sai-
gon. First, 14 transports and 13,000
men; then 30 more transports and
untold quantities of men, materials.
Most of these forces were being
shifted to, the Malaya and Thailand
borders, leaving little doubt as to
Nipponese intentions. To the French
military post at Cambodia on the
Thailand (Siam) border went lorry
after lorry, loaded to the hilt with
grim-eyed orientals.
Ominous was one Japanese offi-
cial spokesman's statement that Nip-
pon's forces would "cooperate with
the French against any incidents or
aggression." It took no trained ob-
server to recognize that statement
as a prelude to attack.
From Thailand Japanese could cut
readily intd China's most vital supply
artery: the Burma Road. From In-
do China to Singapore to the Dutch
East Indies, to the Philippines-
thence Asia for the Japanese.
With the arrival in Saigon of Tok-
yo's 100-man uniformed military mis-
sion, Japanese control of the French
colonywas assured. -Tokyo is going
all-out; the outcome rests with the
U.S. and British fleets, the effect of
American economic pressure.
Wings Over Europe
In the RAF-Luftwaffe' air duel,
Britain again last week held the up-
per hand, with repeated raids on the
invasion coast, German industrial
centers and northern communica-
tion lines accredited to British raid-
ers.
One lone American-built "flying
fortress," London . claims, success-
fully bombed the German potr of
Emden, started several fires, returned
unscathed. Secret of the raid's suc-
cess layfn the fact that the U.S. ship
was built to operate at sub-stratos-
pheric levels, designed to bomb ac-
curately from a heighth so great that
the ship was not perceptible from the
ground.
In the Senate last week' various
"compromise" amendements were
suggested for the draft extension bill,
all seeking to limit or regulate the
length of the proposed additional
service.
There seems to be no doubt at this
point but that the bill will pass. An
informal poll of the Senate early
last week ,showed a 2 to 1 proportion
in favor. Anti-Administration forces,
however, still are .seeking to gain
any limitations on extra-service that
they can.
Administration compromise meas-
ures are not satisfying foes, however,
Thomas offered an 18 month limit for
extension; Wheeler immediately de-
manded it be out down to six.
Meanwhile ,the armed forces of
the Philippines have been national-
ized by . Presid;ent Roosevelt for the
"duration of the emergency." Maj.-
Gen. Douglas MacArthur,' former
Army Chief of Staff, was named to
command the forces.
Controversial Tax
Mandatory joint tai returns for
married couples held up the consid-
eration of the defense revenue bill
in the House last week until that
body voted on Wednesday to take up
the bill under a semi-closed rule per-
mitting an outright vote on whether
to delete the controversial section.
General ,debate on the bill con-
tinued until Friday, when the House
adjourned. Tomorrow the bill will
be corsidered for amendments, at
which time the joint returns ques-
tion will be brought up for final
action.
The bill, worth $3,529,200,000 in
its present form, was first reported
some days earlier by the Ways and
Means committee, which said it was
convinced that the country would pay
the increased levies cheerfully be-
cause of the imperative need of mak-
ing these shores invulnerable to at-
tack.
Three proposed changes stiffening
the composition of the bill were sub-
mitted by President Roosevelt, but
the House Ways and'Means Commit-
tee turned down the request by a
decisive majority.
Wheeler Again
Senator Wheeler continued to make
headlines last week when, in reply to
Secretary Stimson's charge of "near
treason" he branded the latter "a
deliberately cunning attempt to cre-
ate the utterly false and spurious
impression" that he had encouraged
soldiers to resist draft extension at-
tempts.
Stimson's charge' came the week
before when he learned some Army
men had received "stay out of war"
I ts OIL STORAGE BASINS
FIELDS W BIREFINERIE5 ^'' "'
CHINESE WAR
FIELDS
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.:.,.:,:..::::::.:.::..:::::..t.....:.:........,....:..:::::::
- - - - - - - - - -
IN ALL the fabulous history of the
Far East, nothing more fantastic
orsinister has Occurred than the mid-
summer threats exchanged by Japan
and the United States.
No diplomatic, economic or military
maneuvers have been more intricate
and threatening-and few have been
more empty of real action. Yet be-
hind the bluff and counter bluff of
occupied Indo-China, denial of oil
supplies, and frozen Japanese assets
lie dangerous weapons ready for in-
stant use. War is as far away as a
mirage, and yet as close as steaming
hot breath on your shoulder.
*E* *
oil. To the military expert, 700 miles
is exactly the range of Japanese med-
ium bombers, the only kind they pos-
sessess in numbers sufficient to dent
a good-sized cow pasture.
This .means the Japanese are really
700 miles closer if they intend to
blast a path through the Indies to-
ward the oil and rubber and tin-but
especially the oil-they need to fight
a war. The move into Indo-China,
in other words, appears preliminary
and preparatory-getting ready for a
drive toward greater stakes.
* * *
TOKYO has been notified that the
Dutch, the British, and the
they now hold a dagger poised over
the heart of the Indies. You also
have the Dutch and the British and
the Americans building their ring
around those islands-a deadly steel
ring, insulating them against the Jap-
anese dagger.
* * *
0IL IS THE KEY to the whole sin-
ister game.
Reliable commercial oil statisticians
in the United States report that Ja-
pan has been buying from the Dutch
and the Americans about 5,500,000
metric tons of oil a year. Japan's
minimum civil needs are some 3,500,-
000 tons. She is storing away a part
meet Japan's possible war needs with
a little to spare.
* * *
THERE IS, of course, oil in other
parts of the East Indies. In 1940,
reliable experts calculate, Sarawak
produced 168,000 tons, British North
Borneo, 764,000.
The experts can't put their fingers
on exactly what happens to this oil,I
but presumably it is stored around
Singapore. The British fleet in the
Far East tries as far as possible to use
oil at hand. It buys from the Dutch
and the United States. It gets about
1,000,000 tons of oil a year from Bur-
desperate Japan, and they, therefore,
are forging their ring of steel.
* * *
THAT ring is half shoreline and
half sea-line. The shoreline is
guarded by some 500,000 British, Aus-
tralian, Dutch and American soldiers.
The American army of the Philippines
guards the northern spearhead based
on Manila. The Dutch and the Bri-
tish take the southeastern wing of
the islands based on Bandoeng in
Java, and Brueni and Tarakan in
Borneo. The Dutch and the British
also take the western reaches of the
area, basing on Singapore, Medan in
Sumatra, and Penang (Georgetown)