Roosevelt hails freeing of Manila
Action held warning to Axis’ treachery
WASHINGTON (UP) – President Roosevelt last night hailed the liberation of Manila as a warning to the Axis that “their world of treachery, aggression and enslavement cannot survive in the struggle against our world of freedom and peace.”
In a message to President Sergio Osmena of the Philippines, released by the White House, the President said that the “magnificent strides” of U.S. forces in the Philippines will “strengthen our determination to drive the Jap invaders from your islands.”
“The American people rejoice with me in the liberation of your capital,” he said.
He promised that the United States would join with the Filipinos – a “loyal and valiant people who in the darkest days have not ceased to fight for their independence” – as rapidly and as fully as possible.
With God’s help we will complete the fulfillment of the pledge we renewed when our men returned to Leyte.
Yanks toast their arrival inside Manila brewery
By H. D. Quigg, United Press staff writer
WITH 37TH INFANTRY DIVISION, MANILA, Philippines (Feb. 4, delayed) – One of the first large buildings reached by advanced elements entering Manila was the Balintawak Brewery and the Doughboys lost no time in toasting their arrival.
The brewery was undamaged, although flames were cracking in a warehouse next door where the Japs apparently had stored supplies.
In the cool interior of the brewery, the Doughboys quickly pulled plugs from a large tank of beer and began filling their helmets and any other available containers.
They naturally had a tough job keeping the floor from becoming flooded. In an effort to help, I filled two canteens, two-quart bottles and my helmet. The cool beverage seemed the finest I ever tasted.
One of the first Doughboys into the brewery was Pvt. Timothy J. Moriarity of Lowell, Massachusetts, who, after sampling a helmet of the cold beer, declared it was even better than the beverage dispensed at Donhue’s “best beer in lower Massachusetts.”
But, he agreed, 33 months of jungle fighting may have biased his judgment.