Army opens inquiry of plane explosion
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32 Jap planes, 4 ships bagged by battleships
Every one of 20 enemy dive bombers downed in first Solomons raid
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Names of high officials invoked in attempt to defer Buchmanites
Legislators and draft chiefs declared in favor of more to place men in 2-A
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Member flays annual report of Dies group
Subversive elements still in government employ, committee says
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Nine plead innocent in Boston club fire
Boston, Massachusetts (UP) –
Nine of 10 defendants pleaded innocent today when arranged in Superior Court on manslaughter, conspiracy or negligence charges growing out of the Cocoanut Grove fire which took 489 lives.
The only defendant who failed to appear was Police Captain Joseph Buccigross, who is charged with neglect of duty and corruptly failing to enforce fire laws. It was announced in court that he was confined to his home by illness. Special arrangements will be made for his arrangement.
In continuing the cases until Jan. 12 for the filing of special pleas, Superior Judge Frank J. Donahue released the defendants in the same bail as when they were arrested Thursday. It totaled $88,500.
Hugging in public by troops banned
Sydney, Australia (UP) –
U.S. soldiers on leave must not “put their arms around a female companion in a public thoroughfare in a manner unbecoming a soldier,” Army authorities ruled today.
The new regulation was included in orders issued by U.S. military officials to effect stricter discipline of U.S. soldiers away from posts.
AEF soldier gets sentence of death
London, England (UP) –
U.S. Army headquarters announced today that Pfc. Sammie Mickle, 23, Negro, of Citronelle, Alabama, had been sentenced to be hanged as the murderer of Jan Ciapciak, a Polish seaman.
The sentence was imposed by a general court-martial at Glasgow Dec. 30, it was added.
It was testified at the court-martial that shortly before midnight Nov. 18, in Glasgow, Ciapciak seized the arm of a girl who was with a soldier talking with Mickle. When the girl resented his attention, there was a general scuffle and Ciapciak wounded Mickle slightly with a wood chisel.
Mickle left with his soldier companion, it was testified, but returned later with a knife, stabbing Ciapciak.
It was the first hanging sentence imposed by an American court-martial in the European Theater of Operations in this war.
Maas attacks split command of U.S. again
Costly military mistakes called result of lack of coordination
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Single military group parting shot by Collins
Unify for efficiency, economy, retiring House member urges
By Charles T. Lucey, Scripps-Howard staff writer
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Ferguson: The extremists
By Mrs. Walter Ferguson
Roughly speaking, our people always have been divided into two major groups – the conservatives and the liberals. There is no reason to suppose they will ever merge completely. History proves that such division of basic opinions has always existed. We should accept its verdict and seek a few intelligent compromises for the present.
In days of peace, we could afford to quarrel. But now that we are neck-deep in war, a truce is imperative. No doubt the liberals are tired of hearing themselves called “starry-eyed innocents” and “addle-pated idealists,” but the conservatives are equally weary of being named stupid “isolationists, materialists and Quislings.”
Yet that sort of name-calling goes on day in and day out. The attitudes of hatred we assume toward fellow Americans won’t help us to win a quick victory nor assure us a good peace afterward.
In fact – and I’ve been reading their magazines and newspapers consistently – the liberals have very little right to the name any longer. They are becoming more intolerant than those they call intolerant. They never give the opposition credit for sincerity or good intentions. So strident and unjust are some of their accusations, one is forced to the conclusion that open minds and liberal opinions are no longer known to some of them.
It seems to me home groups should be willing to compromise over certain issues, especially when sacrifices are asked of all. Whether we agree wholly as to methods, the aim of everyone is victory. Neither group is flawless.
Charges of treason against political or idealistic opponents are both unfair and unwise at present. The extremists of liberalism and conservatism both sound screwy, if you ask me. It’s obvious, besides, that both would fail if given their heads – so why can’t we have a negotiated peace on the home front?