i ''-
Irv,
tr43an
4a11
WATHER
Fair and a Little
Warmer Today
VOL. LIV No. 38-S ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN FRIDAY, AUG. 25, 1944
PRICE FIVE CENTS
Allies Meet Heavy
Nazi Artillery in Paris
Reds Ask Romania
To Attack Nazis
Soviets Fix Armistice Price as War
With Germany; Britain, U. S. Are Silent
By The Associated Press
LONDON, Aug. 25, Friday - Russia called upon Romania today
to send her armies against the Germans "hand in hand with the Red Army
for the liberation of Romania" and fixed this as the price of an armistice
with the Allies.
In the first official reply from an Allied government to Romania's
announced decision to accept Allied peace terms, the Soviet Government
said that if the Romanian troops stopped fighting the Russians and turned
on the Germans, "or against the Hungarians for the liberation of Transyl-
vania," then the Red Army "will not disarm them, will keep completely
intact for them their entire equipment, and help them in this honorable
Yanks Race
TOCapture
Seine River
Toques River Line
Broken By Allies
By The Associated Press
SHAEF, Friday, Aug. 25-American
armor raced to cover the last 25
miles to the mouth of the Seine to-
day and encircle the remaining Ger-
man soldiers trying to hold back an
Allied tide pouring through breaches
n
Yank Troops
Speed North
Of Grenoble
Americans Reported
Near Swiss Border
By The Associated Press
SOME, Aug. 24.-A highly mobile
American task force of tanks, motor-
ized infantry and artillery sped
northward beyond Grenoble today
along highways already largely clear-
ed of the enemy by French patriots-
racing to join forces with Gen. Eisen-
hower's Allied armies in northern
France.
(An Associated Press dispatch from
Geneva said American troops had
driven into St. Julien on the Swiss
border 70 miles north of Grenoble
and little more than 120 miles from
the Rhine border of Germany. The
report, not immediately confirmed by
Allied, sources, placed the lightning
column some 210 miles inland from
the beaches of soutern France and
oj1ly 185 miles from a junction with
American armor southeast of Paris.)
Patriots in Control
Patriots were reported in full con-
trol of the area from Grenable north
to the Swiss border, having cut off
whatever German troops remain in
southern and central France from
communication with Nazi forces in
northern Italy.
Except in and near the naval base
of Toulon, where a trapped German
garrison fought from well prepared
positions, the only enemy opposition
to the swift movement of Lt.-Gen.
Alexander M. Patch's Seventh Army
columns was coming from small and
motley assortments of Nazi troops
scraped together in some localities.
Thrown piecemeal into the hope-
less task of trying to hold back the
powerful American and French for-
ces, these small units were being de-
stroyed as fast as they appeared.
See GRENOBLE, Page 4
TRAGEDY:
Airmen Bury
Children Killed
In Plane Crash
FRECKLETON, ENG., Aug. 24-W)
-This is a town nearly without small
children-a town of tears.
With the help of American soldiers,
the populace today arranged for the
mass funeral of 95 youngsters, all but
six of the village's total. They and
19 adults, including nine American
servicemen, were killed yesterday
when a flaming U. S. Liberator bomb-
er plummeted into the quiet Lan-
cashire town-Britain's worst trag-
edy of the kind.
The plane, carrying three of its
crew to death, crashed into an in-'
fants' school, its bursting gasoline
tanks spraying it with flames, and
caromed into a nearby snack bar.
Soldiers helped dig a communal,
grave for the children in the village
churchyard where burial will take
place Saturday.
Meanwhile an American airforce;
officer accompanied the Vicar of,
Freckleton- from home to home of
the grieving parents to offer the fly-
ing men's sympathy.
Townsfolk, their eyes swollen by
tears and lack of sleep after a night;
of searching for bodies, told of the
> duty."
Russia disavowed entirely any de-'
sire to acquire Romanian territory
in the statement, issued by the
Peoples' Commissariat for Foreign
Affairs and broadcast by the Moscow
Radio.
The statement, recorded by the
Soviet Monitor, contained no direct
reference to the proclamation by
King Mihai of Romania on Wednes-
lay, but it answered the youthful
nonarch plainly by declaring:
"The assistance of the Romanian
troops to the Red Army troops in the
ask of liquidating the German troops
i the only means of speedy discon-
inuation of military operations on
-omanian territory, and of the con-
:lusion of an armistice between Ro-
rnania and the coalition of the Al-
lies."
State of War Continues
In effect this meant .that, despite
Cing Mihai's proclamation, a state
f war continues to exist between Ro-'
iania and Russia, Great Britain and
;he United States.
',
i
1
7
t
1
l
in their Touques River line.
Highways converging on a pocket
little more than 10 miles deep and
35 miles wide were loaded with
troops, tanks and trucks hurrying
Allied forces forward against what-
ever the German Seventh Army has
left between the Touques River and'
the Seine, 25 miles farther east.
Elbeuf Captured by Yanks
Elbeuf, Seine River ferrying point
25 miles from the mouth, where the
Germans shipped the bulk of their
men and armor across, fell to a daz-
zling 25-mile American advance, and
the enemy's main port of Rouen, 10,
miles north, was believed under the
sights of U.S. artillerymen.
Canadians streaming across the
Touques swung on as much as 11
miles east and were nearing the
mouth of the Seine for a junction
with the Americans which will ex-
plode one more battle of annihilation
before the last German is wiped out
west of the big river.
Far to the south the Americans
plugged the last hole in the Orleans
gap south of Paris with the capture
of Montargis, by-passed in the at-
tack on Sens. Montargis lies about
halfway between Orleans and Sens
and controls most roads running
through the gap.
Drive Loses No Speed >
The diversion of American and
French troops to help hard-pressed
patriots liberate Paris apparently did
not rob the Allied drive of any of its
steam, although it was felt at head-
quarters that these forces could have
been better employed elsewhere, since
Paris' fall way a foregone conclusion
anyway.
ARC DE TRIOMPHE-A pre-war view of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Liberation of the city was
announced by Gen. Charles de Gaulle's headquarters. French patriots struck at the city 50,000 strong,
De Gaulle's headquarters said and seized all public buildings in the city. Resistance by the Germans
is still reported and Allied Armies are now marching on the city.
LID BLOWS OFF:
Wilson Resigns from 'WPI
In Row with Nelson's Aides
v
Russians Drive
Towardast
Romanian .Line
By The Associated Press
LONDON, Aug. 25, Friday-Sweep-
ing through hundreds of towns and
capturing thousands of Germans and
Romanians in a 28-mile advance, two
powerful Russian armies Yesterday
plunged to within 58 miles of the
Galati gap, last enemy defense line
barring the way to the heart of
capitulated Romania.
Soviet front reports said the Axis
was collapsing after the desertion of
Romanian troops.
Four Strongholds Captured
Four major strongholds, Chisinau,
Moldavian capital; Roman, Bacau,
Husi and Barlad, fell in swift suc-
cession to the Russians-and with
the seizure of Barlad the Red Army
was less than 60 miles from the
Danube River and 135 miles from
Bucharest, the capital.
During yesterday alone the Rus-
sian armies took 25,000 prisoners,
Moscow's broadcast bulletin said, for
a combined total of 47,000, in a
whirlwind five-day offensive.
Nazi Armies Face Trap
Dispatches via Switzerland said
the German Eighth Army between
the Prut and Seret Rivers was in
imminent danger of being engulfed
by the defection of Romania.
*, * *
Germans Form
Puppet Regime.
LONDON, 'Aug. 24.- (4P)- The
Germans, trying to salvage what
they can from capitulated Romania,
promptly announced today the vague
formation of a puppet regime oppos-
ing King Mihai's new pro-ally gov-
ernment, appealed for Romanians to
remain in the war on the Axis side
and said that rioting had broken out
in the Balkan nation.
The Swiss radio broadcast a dis-
patch dated Bucharest saying that
Romanian troops "started a march
into Transylvania last night," re-
ferring to Mihai's announced inten-
tion of recovering, with Allied help,
that part of pre-war Romania awar-
ded to Hungary by the Germans in
the 1940 Vienna Conference.
The new Romanian government,
headed by Premier Gen. Constantin
Sanatescu, and including Juliu Man-
iu, peasant party head, Dinu Brat-
7
t
1
l
Six Hopwood
Prizes Given
Maida Steinberg Wins
Top Fiction Award
The six winners for the 1944 Hop-
wood summer contest in the fiction,
poetry and drama divisions were an-
nounced yesterday by the judges with
no award made in the drama class.
Maida Ruth Steinberg, graduate
from Cleveland Heights, O., won the
$75 award in the fiction division with
Shirley Hamburg, Detroit senior,
placing second with $50 and Kath-
"een Highes, sophomorefrom Detroit,
winning $25. Judges were Morris
Greenhut, Norman E. Nelson and
Carlton F. Wells.
Two graduates, Bernic -- Slote, Nor-.
folk, Neb., and Robert Richman, Ann
Arbor, were named in the poetry divi-
sion winning awards of $75 and - $50
respectively, Rosamond Haas, Rich-
ard H. Fogle and Bennett Weaver,
judged in this event.
Paula Brower, sophomore from
Holland, Mich., obtained the only
award in the essay division, $50.
Judges were Albert K. Stevens, Ed-
ward T. Calver and Henry V. Ogden.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 24-(A)-The
lid blew off a bitter row in the War
Production Board today when Char-
les E. Wilson, executive vice chair-
man, resigned and charged that he
was the victim of "unfair attacks and
criticisms" by." aides of Chairman
Donald M. Nelson.
Wilson, former president of Gen-
eral Electric Company, accused Nel-
son's personal assistants of inspiring
stories that he was acting as spokes-
man for big business and opposing
plans for reconverting industry to a
peacetime basis.
"The dissension within the organ-
ization does harm to the war produc-
tion effort and, therefore, to the
country," Wilson wrote President
Roosevelt. "I am unwilling to be a
party to such a controversy."
The resignation was accepted with
expressions of regret by the Presi-
dent, who said he was "aware of some
dissension" within WPB, key agency
in charge of the country's mammoth
output of war materials.
The development confronted Nel-
156 Tons Fall
On Halmahera
SOUTHWEST PACIFIC, Aug. 25,
Friday-()')-A record bomb load of
156 tons was dropped on Halmahera
Island, southern guardian of the
Philippines, by Allied bombers con-
tinuing their blistering atacks, head-
quarters announced today.
This brings to more than 400 tons
the explosives unloaded on Halma-
hera in the last three raids to be
reported. Gen. Douglas MacArthur's
communique' Wednesday said 135
tons had been expended on the octo-
pus-shaped island, and the previous
day he announced a 110-ton raid.
For the fourth straight day Sev-
enth U.S. Army Air Force Liberators
bombed Yap Island, cradle of Pacific
typhoons 1,200 miles southeast of
Manila.
son with one of the most serious cri-
ses in WPB history, just as he was
preparing to depart on an economic
mission to China at the behest of Mr.
Roosev pit.
He was believed tonight to be con-
sidering the appointment of Lt. Com-
mander J. A. Krug, to be acting
chairman during his absence in
Chungking. Krug recently left a
WPB vice chairmanship to take a
naval commission.
Campus Groups
Invited to Meet
PAC Here Is Pledged
To Defeat of Michener
Harold Franklin, Local 600 (UAW-
CIO), co-chairman of the Political
Action Committee here, yesterday ex-
tended an invitation to "all indi-
viduals and groups interested in bet-
ter government" to attend the PAC
meeting at 8 p.m. Monday in Local
38 Hall, 208 W. Washington.
"All individuals and campus or-
ganizations in this area are invited
to offer help as leaders or as workers
in the wards and precincts," Frank-
lin continued. "The program of the
PAC," he said, "is not only one for
organized labor, but for labor, farm-
ers and small businessmen as well."
The PAC is non-partisan, and sup-
ports candidates whose records prove
they are representing the people,"
he added.
"The national PAC is pledged in
the post-war period," Franklin stw-
ed, "to full employment and pros-
perity, instead of strikes and indus-
trial strife. To achieve this end, the
PAC is pledged to support the candi-
dacy of President Roosevelt for Pres-
ident. Locally, we are pledged to de-
feat Rep. Earl C. Michener for Con-
gress," he added.
100 More Blood
Donors Needed
To Fill Quota
Army, Navy Respond
Generously to Drive
Three hundred and fifty blood
donors have registered for the Sep-
tember Blood Bank, which leaves the
campus 100 short of the quota of 450.
"In one hour at the West Quad,
130 donors registered, more than
civilian registration for the entire
week," Pam Watts, co-chairman of
the drive, said.
The Army registered 52 donors and
RONAGs 53 this week. The commit-
tee commended the servicemen for
their response to the drive.
Registration continues today and
tomorrow. A special booth at the
center of the diagonal will be open
from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 2:15
p.m. today and from 9 a.m. to noon
tomorrow.
Donors may register at the social
director's office in the League from
10 a.m. to noon and from 1:30 to
5 p.m. today and from 9 a.m. to noon
tomorrow. Facilities for registration
are also available from 3 to 5 p.m.
today in the Union.
British, Indians
Advance i~n Italy
ROME, Aug: 24.- (P)- Taking
quick advantage of lessening enemy
resistance in the upper Arno Valley
southeast of Florence, British and
Indian troops have advanced and
captured several important points,
including Mt. Foresto, it was an-
nounced today.
Polish and Italian troops in the
Adriatic sector made limited gains
and established firm positions on the
south bank of the Metauro River 12
miles inland from the Adriatic coast.
German losses were reported high in
that sector, where 800 prisoners had
been taken by the Poles in the past
ten days.
Field Guns
Stage Duel
In Suburbs
Yanks Drive To
Join Liberators
WAR AT A GLANCE
By The Associated Press
ROMANIA-Russia asks Roman-
ia to send armies against Germans
as price for her armistice with
Allies.
FRANCE-Allies send help to
patriot forces in Paris. Germans in
Seine trap squeezed. Germans at-
tempt to flee Le Havre by sea.
Spearheads east of Paris roll to-
ward Reich.
GERMANY-Hungary reported
trying to quit war. Germans try to
talk Romanians into fighting on.
AIR-Huge bomber fleets pound
oil targets in Reich from both
sides.
RUSSIA-Reds fight on and
plunge through disorganized en-
emy forces in Romania.
PACIFIC-Halmahera Island hit
by record load of bombs.
By The Associated Press
SHAEF, Friday, Aug. 25-Ameri-
can troops and a French armored di-
vision, meeting heavy German artil-
lery resistance, battled in and near
the Paris suburbs early today in their
drive to join patriots fighting the
enemy in the streets for complete
liberation of their capital.
A dispatch from Edward D. Ball,
Associated Press Correspondent with
the Allies near Paris, said one column
of Brig. Gen. Jacques Le Clerc's
French armor had driven a wedge
into German-held territory from the
west and another from the south had
advanced to within nine miles of
NEW YORK, Aug. 24- (
Herbert Clark, Blue Network Cor-
respondent, said in a broadast
from "outside Paris" tonight that
the Germans were reported moving
strong new forces into the French
capital and had entrenched them-
selves throughout the city. French
patriot forces, however; control
most of the suburbs, he said.
Paris. These columns met fierce
German artillery fire. Allied field
guns moved up to engage the enemy
batteries.
Paris Radio in Allied Hands
(The Paris radio, now in the hands
of the FFI, said in a broadcast re-
corded by CBS that troops of Le
Clerc, "passing through Pont De
Sevres, have entered Paris."
A Free French broadcast early to-
day said German guns were violently
bombarding sections of Paris. One
section being shelled, the radio said,
was the fifteenth district lying oppo-
site suburban Clamart, where it plac-
ed advancing French and American
forces.
French Appeal For Aid
The French radio also broadcast
an "urgent appeal for help," declar-
Eng the townhall in the 11th district
was being attacked by Germans an4
that patriots were running out of
ammunition. This district lies in the
-ast of Paris and includes the place
De La Republique, where barracks
of the republican guard were situat-
ed.
Supreme headquarters broke its si-
lence today on the confused situa-
tion inside Paris-whose "liberation"
was celebrated in United Nations cap-
itals throughout the world yesterday.
Veteran s Group
To Meet Today
the newly-formed Veteran's Or-
ganization will hold its weekly meet-
ing at 7 p. m. today in Rm. 304,
Michigan Union.
A constitution will be submitted
for the approval of members, and all
veterans on campus are urged to at-
tend, according to Bob Lynch, pub-
licity chairman.
At the last meeting of the organ-
ization, Al Lomako was elected treas-
urer and Arnold Jacobs, correspond-
ing secretary.
Daily Stops Publication
With today's edition the Michigan
Daily will suspend bublication for the
NAZIS HOLD TO THE LAST DITCH:
Eyewitness-.Describes Street Fighting in Marseille
By SID FEDER
MARSEILLE, FRANCE, Aug. 24-
(P)-This greatest seaport of France
may have been captured, as French
forces officially announced last night,
but you would never believe it by
what is going on inside the city to-
day.
There was gun fighting in virtu-
ally every street, not only from strong
pockets of the enemy in various parts
of the city of 800,000 but also among
Frenchmen as patriots tried to clear
places where collaborators were be-
vard De La Madeleine joins the
famous Canebeire. And at that
point, too, action was still hot as
small garrisons of Germans held
out in Fort St. Jean and Fort San
Nicolas at the waterfront point
guarding Vieux Port. They fired
light artillery down the Canebe
Canebiere like pouring oil in a
funnel.
There were far fewer Germans in
this second largest city of France
tonight, however. Mopping up, street
by street and house by house, French
death in blazing gunfighting, the
Germans finally were overrun and
the city was ours. But it was a rio-
ping,stearing slugging match while
it lasted.
The French had to root the enemy
out of the Hotel Louvre on the Can-
nebiere, where they had machinegun
emplacements, and then go across
the boulevard to do the same thing
at the Hotel Nouailles.
Many houses along the way were
death traps, too, as snipers in upper
stories tried to hold out until the
final minute.
At one point we saw Germans ap-
pearing to be infiltrating up both
sides of the Canebiere and figured it
best to retreat. Right here I saw
one of the coolest exhibitions of
"guts" I ever hope to see. Our jeep
driver, Chunky Henry (Tom) Smith,
Chattanooga and Greenville, Tenn.,
got into the jeep and lit out up the
street in reverse although he was
under direct shell fire until he could
round the corner.
There I, Fred Painton of Reader's
Digest, Winston Burdett of Columbia
i
.
I I