America at war! (1941–) – Part 4

BRITISH LAND BEHIND NAZI LINE
Allies drive to clear path to Antwerp

Yanks closing trap around Aachen
By Virgil Pinkley, United Press staff writer

Third Fleet cripples Jap base on Marcus, 1,100 miles from Tokyo

All-day bombardment by Halsey’s warships spreads fire and ruin on island

Nation stunned by Willkie’s sudden death

Heart attack fatal to 1940 candidate

Willkie

New York (UP) –
The body of Wendell L. Willkie, the small-town Indiana boy who became a nationally-known corporation executive, a presidential candidate and, later, America’s most influential private citizen, lay in state at the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church today.

Thousands of his friends and political followers filed into the church to pay their final respects.

Mr. Willkie’s death of coronary thrombosis early yesterday came with a suddenness that stunned a nation which always had regarded the tousle-haired husky-voiced Hoosier as the epitome of health and vigor.

The reaction was spontaneous and swelled all day yesterday and today as thousands of telegrams of sympathy poured in from friends, supporters, political opponents and admirers in all walks of life.

Mrs. Willkie at bedside

Only 52, the former Republican standard-bearer entered the Lenox Hill Hospital for routine treatment of a stomach disorder Sept. 6, but had been seriously ill only since last Tuesday, when a streptococcic throat infection and a lung congestion developed.

His temperature soared to 104 degrees and then subsided, but his heart weakened under the strain. The last of three violent heart attacks was fatal at 2:20 a.m. yesterday. Mr. Willkie left her own sickbed and arrived at her husband’s side five minutes before his death.

Funeral services will be held at 3:00 p.m. tomorrow but the time of Mr. Willkie’s burial will be determined by the return of hid only son, Lt. (jg.) Philip Willkie, USNR, who is on convoy duty in the Atlantic. Mr. Willkie will be buried at Rushville, Indiana, only a few miles from the little frame house at Elwood, where he was born Feb. 18, 1892.

Lamented by Roosevelt, Dewey

Mr. Willkie’s death came less than a week after that of another great American political figure and presidential candidate, Alfred E. Smith, who deserted the Democratic standard in 1940 to support the Hoosier’s Republican bid for the Presidency.

President Roosevelt and Governor Thomas E. Dewey both lamented his passing.

In reading of those days, I realized the some of the American citizens truly believed the UNIONS were Communistic and their leadership anti-Constitution. I can remember my Father and Uncles (mid-60’s) sitting in the living room after Sunday dinners, talking of Communist trying to takeover. Uncle Ken was sure FDR was one of them and electing JFK was the next step. BY the 70’s I saw UNIONS helped us not hindered us. I feel Ike saved our Republic just by being there. The good-old days! Thanks for some great research on Dewey, that I never knew.

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You’re welcome :slight_smile: It was pretty frustrating, however, with the lack of audio recordings (I’ve only found Frankie’s recordings) and having to sift through newspaper issue after newspaper issue to even get the full text of Dewey’s speeches, while Frankie’s speeches are easily available online.

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americavotes1944

Many soldier votes may be challenged

Contests indicated in close races
By Robert Taylor, Pittsburgh Press staff writer

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania –
Wherever the civilian vote is close in the November elections in Pennsylvania, there is likelihood of a wholesale challenge of soldier votes, based on technicalities of the state soldier vote and election laws.

State election officials estimate that as many as 21,000 soldier votes – enough to decide some of the contests involved in the November election – will be invalidated because of irregularities in the preparation of the ballots by the fighting men who cast them.

The challenges are expected to occur chiefly in Congressional and legislative districts where the civilian vote is close and the soldier vote can decide the elections, but it could be intensified if the statewide vote is close.

Contested cases to courts

The decisions will be made by county election boards and, in contested cases, by the local courts. Thus far, the Attorney General and State Elections Bureau have given only informal, advisory opinions, leaving formal rulings to county officials.

In some cases, the state has already advised that soldier votes are invalid and should not be counted; in others, it has left the questions to the county officials to solve.

Throwing out ballots because of technical irregularities, in the absence of fraud, however, runs counter to a long line of federal and state court decisions which have held that where they voter indicates his intent, his right to vote is paramount.

Types of irregularities

According to estimates of state election officials, the invalidation of 21,000 soldier ballots would reduce the countable soldier vote in Pennsylvania to 150,000 – less than 20 percent of the state’s 800,000 men and women in the Armed Forces.

There are the types of irregularities already tabulated, or expected to be found:

  • Execution of the soldier-voter’s oath by a noncommissioned officer, instead of a commissioned officer, as required by the Military Ballot Law.

  • Failure of the officer to sign the jurat, or oath to the soldier-voter.

  • Failure of the officer signing the jurat to state his rank.

  • Evidence that military ballots have been opened and resealed by censors. Some countries plan to throw out such ballots on the ground secrecy of the ballot has been violated; others may accept them.

  • Voting by a checkmark, instead of the required “X.”

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Excellent topic … Even today that specter looms over us in elections. Do soldiers vote count, or even our civilian mail-in votes? It is a worthwhile thought for research. WE want the results before going to bed, not tomorrow or the next day.

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It’s a question close to home, actually. My grandfather was in charge of ballot counting for servicemen who voted in Paris.

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Gracie Allen Reporting

By Gracie Allen

Hollywood, California –
The biggest mystery of this war to me is the Jap admirals. First, they lose face, and now the rest of their bodies seem to be disappearing. Almost every day a report comes that five or six or 10 more Jap admirals have been killed in action.

For goodness’ sake, who’s killing them? The American Navy can’t even find them, let alone fight them.

I’ll bet the same question puzzles Hirohito when the head of his navy reports:

Oh, Illustrious Emperor, we have won another retreat victory. The American Navy lies at the bottom of the ocean. Their guns did not even touch our ships.

To which Hirohito replied: “Then keep an eye on those sharks, because somebody is knocking off all my top men.”

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44_mlbplayoffs

Browns lead in sixth game

Chet Laabs triples, McQuinn scores him

Sportsman’s Park, St. Louis, Missouri (UP) –
The American League Browns, battling hard to keep their World Series chances alive, led the National League Cardinals, 1 –0, in the third inning of the sixth game this afternoon. A triple by Chet Laabs with George McQuinn’s single, produced the only run of the game thus far in the second inning.

Lefty Max Lanier was on the mound for the Cards, who needed only one more victory to win the championship. Opposing him was Browns’ star righthander, Nels Potter.

Lanier and Potter had met before, in the second game of the series, but neither finished. Lanier went out in the eighth and Potter in the seventh. Blix Donnelly was the eventual winner for the National Leaguers with Bob Muncrief, the loser, in an 11-inning battle.

Sanders raced over to the temporary boxes behind first base to reach for Don Gutteridge’s foul as the Browns came to bat in the opening inning, and Lanier took care of the next two batters – striking out Mike Kreevich and Gene Moore, the latter taking the third strike with his bat on his shoulder.

Litwhiler fans

Potter fanned Litwhiler, the first Cardinal to come to the plate. Johnny Hopp then popped to Gutteridge and Stan Musial was thrown out by Gutteridge.

The Browns opened the scoring in the top half of the second when, after Stephens had struck out, Chet Laabs tripled to the wall in right center and raced home when George McQuinn followed with a single over second. Christman sent a high fly to Hopp in center and Hayworth went out the same way to end the inning and send the American Leaguers away to a 1–0 lead.

Walker Cooper’s bid for a hit in the Cards’ second was turned into a putout by Stephens’ leaping one-hand catch. Sanders popped to Gutteridge. Kurowski bashed a single off Christman’s glove, but was trapped off first on Potter’s snap throw with Marion batting and was retired. Potter to McQuinn to Gutteridge to Potter.

Potter fans

Lanier had fanned Potter and forced Guttridge to foul to Musial in the rightfield bullpen in the Browns’ third before Kreevich lined a sharp two-bagger to left center, the second extra*-base hit off the Cards’ lefthander. Lanier pitched cautiously to Moore and walked him, then Stephens nipped the rally by forcing Moore, Marty Marion to Verban.

In the Cardinal half, Emil Verban singled after Christman had tossed out Marion. Lasnier came through with a hit to short center, Verban stopping at second.

Potter then struck out Litwhiler and Hopp to retire the side.

GAME INCOMPLETE AT EDITION TIME.

I DARE SAY —
What kills a man?

By Florence Fisher Parry

Power union debates strike in Ohio cities

Walkout would idle 400,000 war workers

Perkins: Pittsburgher offers plan to guarantee annual wage

Government must be kept out of it to ensure system of free enterprise, he declares
By Fred W. Perkins, Pittsburgh Press staff writer

Johnston: U.S. businessmen make hit with Stalin; ‘they stay in office’

Marshal tells Johnston Russia and America must work together after war
By Eric A. Johnston

Wage formula studied by WLB

Board to discuss question all week

25 more Jap ships blasted by planes

Philippines, East Indies area hit

Churchill, Eden arrive in Moscow

Trip called ‘sequel’ to Québec parley

Stokes: A voice is stilled

By Thomas L. Stokes

Maj. Williams: Airport upkeep

By Maj. Al Williams

A typical success story ends –
Willkie – Global citizen, Indiana farmer

Political blitzkrieg made U.S. history