President calls Army, Navy chiefs for a council of war in capital
Washington (UP) –
President Roosevelt summoned top Army and Navy chiefs to the White House today for an invasion conference and prepared to lead the nation in a prayer he wrote last night as the Allied armada moved across the English Channel to France.
Mr. Roosevelt called in Gen. George C. Marshall (Army Chief of Staff), Adm. Ernest J. King (Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Fleet) and Gen. H. H. Arnold (commander of the Army Air Forces).
Meanwhile, reports poured into the White House from the War and Navy Departments on progress of the invasion.
In his prayer, which the President will deliver at 10:00 p.m. EWT – and in which he asked the nation to join – Mr. Roosevelt asked for divine battle strength “to conquer the apostles of greed and racial arrogance.”
‘We shall prevail’
The President’s prayer said:
With Thy blessing, we shall prevail over the unholy forces of our enemy.
Lead us to the saving of our country, and with our sister nations into a world-unity that will spell a sure peace – a peace invulnerable to the schemings of unworthy men. And a peace that will let all men live in freedom, reaping the just rewards of their honest toil. Thy will be done, Almighty God.
White House Secretary Early said Mr. Roosevelt began writing the prayer several days ago. He completed it, Early said, last night after he delivered his radio “fireside chat.” He was sitting in his bedroom at that time receiving telephonic reports on progress of the invasion, Early said.
The prayer was made public hours in advance of the President’s broadcast tonight in order that it might be printed in newspapers during the day so the people would know it and could say it with the President in their homes tonight.
House hears prayer
At the request of Speaker Sam Rayburn, the prayer was read in the House of Representatives when it convened today. The first copy of the prayer after it was transcribed from the President’s own handwritten copy was sent by special motorcycle messenger to the Capitol.
The President will have his first opportunity to discuss the invasion publicly when he meets at 4:00 p.m. with his regular press and radio conference.
Acting Secretary of State Edward R. Stettinius Jr., meanwhile, said this is not the time for rejoicing but the time for everyone at home “to put everything he has into his job to speed the day of victory.”
Early told reporters the President’s fireside chat discussion last night about the capture of Rome had the effect of a psychological diversion. The Germans and others undoubtedly listened to it with interest, he said, and replied “I think you might call it that” when a reporter asked if it was a psychological diversion.
Mr. Roosevelt, in his talk last night, had warned that victory over Germany “will be tough and costly.” People in the capital recalled the somber warning when they awakened to discover that the long-awaited invasion had begun.
Roosevelt slumbers as D-Day news breaks
Washington (UP) –
When the invasion came early today, President Roosevelt was sound asleep and the White House was quiet except for a message center through which came official reports of last-minute developments.
Being one of the few persons in Washington who knew exactly when the invasion would occur, the President retired early in the evening after his radio broadcast, but was undoubtedly up early canvassing the latest official dispatches.
Editorial: Our job at home is to match spirit of the invading forces
American soldiers, the sons, brothers, husbands and friends of all of us, have at last hurled themselves against Hitler’s Europe, where they will fight it out with the Nazi armies for the cause of world freedom.
They are united with the British in an undertaking which is recognized as the most difficult in military history and one which could not succeed unless it had been planned with care and skill and driven forward with irresistible might.
It will end triumphantly, however, because of the certainty that it is being directed brilliantly, that every essential element of power has been provided and that the men of all ranks will bring to their task a high order of resourcefulness and courage.
Naturally, the hopes and the fears and the pride of all Americans go out in these hours of terror and of trial to the men who swarm upon the beaches of Europe behind a curtain of fire from guns on the ships and from bombers, and who make their way forward through a veritable inferno to their objective.
No one at home can visualize the scene. Attempts to describe it must necessarily be feeble and futile. It will bring a test of human valor against all of the genius and the cunning that have gone into the Nazis’ long preparation to meet the challenge of this day – a challenge which involves their survival.
The German soldier dies hard. This much must be conceded to him. He mans his gun to the last and goes down fighting. The invaders know this as they start on the long road to the Reich and to the gleaming goal of peace.
Our job at home, now that the suspense is ended and the battle is in progress, is to capture as much as we can of the spirit which the soldier brings to his rendezvous with history. This is a stern mood, one which precludes baseless hopes and delusions, which takes into account the strength of the enemy, also his vulnerability. It is a spirit of quiet confidence, of dogged determination, with little passion. Nor is there anything in this deadly enterprise that even vaguely resembles glamor.
The soldiers on the beaches realize, of course, that this is a job that has to be done and they are bent on doing it well, regardless of the cost. Half a world away, they are setting the tone for the home front – a tone influenced by faith that whatever they give to the cause of victory during these next few months as the tide of battle sweeps in from the Channel and the sea and over tine continent toward the Reich will be worthwhile.
These young men are fighting for old ideals and old rights. It is not enough to be with them in spirit as they struggle forward. Unless those who remain at home work tirelessly and endure bravely, they will fall short of being worthy of those who represent them on the churned, blighted battlefields of the world.
General’s wife backs attack by selling bonds
Washington (UP) –
While Lt. Gen. Mark W. Clark leads his 5th Army forward north of Rome, Mrs. Clark is preparing to fulfill her “partnership in this war” by assisting in the 5th War Loan Drive.
The energetic wife of the 5th Army commander said she was “very excited and very humble” when she heard the news of the fall of Rome – and very grateful that her husband had been spared.
She said:
But my heart was heavy because I couldn’t help thinking of the families of all those who fell in Italy before the 5th Army got to Rome.
Victory can’t be unmixed and give only joy, because we must think of those who die and are wounded.
To do her part at home, Mrs. Clark is active in the sale of bonds, having traveled more than 300,000 miles in previous drives.
Urging women to accept their responsibility in the bond drives and other war work, Mrs. Clark said:
There has never been a time in history when women could do so much as they can now – and I have no patience with those who are idle.
‘Stand ready!’ Eisenhower urges patriots
London, England (UP) –
**Gen. Eisenhower warned millions of patriots in Europe today against a premature uprising as the Allied forces landed in France, but urged them to prepare and stand ready for the signal that will hurl them into the greatest revolt in history.
Eisenhower said:
The day will come when I shall need your united strength. Until that day, I shall call on you for the hard task of discipline and restraint… follow the instructions of your leaders… be patient. Prepare.
Eisenhower’s message went out over Allied radios to all the peoples of Western Europe, where an underground army estimated at more than 8,000,000 has been built up during the four long years of occupation.
The Allied commander said:
I know I can count on your steadfastness now, no less than in the past.
Messages from underground leaders reaching the United Press said the patriot armies were prepared to strike and were awaiting only the signal from the Supreme Allied Command.
De Gaulle in London
Gen. Charles de Gaulle, leader of the French liberation forces, arrived in London and conferred with Eisenhower and Prime Minister Churchill, apparently on military matters. De Gaulle was believed to have told Eisenhower that French resistance forces were prepared for an all-out effort when the Supreme Command was ready for them.
The French resistance movement, which military experts agreed was one of the finest underground armies in Europe, is estimated to contain 150,000 armed patriots. Led by the Maquis, the patriots have battled the Germans continuously for four months and forced the Nazis to keep troops, badly needed in Russia and Italy, on French soil.
Supplies and material have been pouring into Europe’s underground caverns for many weeks.
In accordance with Eisenhower’s plea against recklessness, exiled leaders of Norway, Belgium and the Netherlands appealed to their people by radio today to wait and obey Allied instructions and be wary of German trickery.
King Haakon of Norway told the Norwegians they “must not let their enthusiasm lead them into a premature uprising.”