Oldest Newspaper In Alaska. "The News of the 1 lav In Pielures" .Member ol I lie Vssoeiated Press
— THE NOME NUGGET
VOL. 44 No. 111. NOME. ALASKA, Wednesday. Aug. 12. 1942 Per Copy 154
Navy Announces Attacks on Japs
Counter Invasion Forces Secure Hold Solomon Is,
Two Nazi Spies, Naturalized Am
erican Citizens, Get Terms In Prison
President Approves Military
Commission’s Findings And
Electricutions Occur
WASHINGTON, Aug. — Six of
the eight Nazi agents who enter
ed the United States intent on
sabotage and terrorism paid with
their lives in the electric chair
of the District of Columbia jail.
The White House announced
that the men were put to death ,
in accordance with a recommend
ation of a military commission
which was named to try them.
Two of the Nazis. Ernest Burg
•er and George Dasch, were spar j
ed because they turned Govern
ment evidence and furnished in
formation that lead to the cap
ture and conviction of the others.
In the prompt execution of the
spies, the United States served '
fair warning on the Axis as to 1
the fate its agents may expect i
in the United States,
Names of Executed Nazis
The six Nazis who were elec- |
tricuted were: *
John Kerlin, Heinriok Heinck, j
Robert Quirin, Warner Thiel, !
Herbert Hans Haupt and Her- ,
man Neubauer.
They were put to death exact
ly a month from the day they
went on trial before the mili- !
tary commission composed of 7 ,
Army generals. The first man !
went to the electric chair at
noon and the others followed in
rapid succession.
Burger was sentenced to life j
imprisonment at hard labor and j
Dasch to 30 years in prison at ;
hard labor. Dasch was the leader
of the four Nazis who landed
from a German submarine on
Amagansett Beach, Long Island,
New York.
The other four were landed on
the coast of Florida.
Two Naturalized Citizens
Burger is a naturalized Am
erican citizen. Haupt, 22 years
Oid, and the youngest of the,
German agents, also was a nat- i
uralized citizen. All eight men '
had worked in the United States ;
and spoke perfect English.
The execution of the Nazis fol !
lowed by two days the death sen
tence imposed on Max Stephan,
the Detroit restaurant man con
victed of treason for giving aid
to a Nazi prisoner who escaped
from a prison camp in Canada.
Stephan was sentenced to be
hanged at the Federal Detention
Prison at Milan, Mich., on Friday
November 13.
The official announcement of
the execution of the six Germans
came from the White House.
The White House announce
ment said that the President had
completed his review of the find
ings and the sentences by the
Military commission and that he
had approved of its unanimous
recommendation, which also was
concurred in by the Attorney
General and Judge Advocate
General.
Indication of Major Event
Earlier in the day it was ob
vious that some major event was
about to occur at the District of
Columbia jail. Early in the day
the Provost Marshal of the Dis
trict of Columbia, Brigadier Gen
eral Cox arrived at the jail and
a short time later District Cor
orner Magruder and then a Ro
man Catholic clergyman arrived.
Newsmen at the jail were not
permitted to make telephone
calks.
The White House announce
ment said that the record of the
trial of the eight Nazi prison
ers will be sealed until after the
war. It was presumed that the
record probably contains some in '
formation that might be of value .
to the enemy.
SIX FACE CHARGES
CHICAGO, Aug. — Federal At
torney J Albert Woll --aid that
he soon would ask far indict
ments against three Chicago
couples charged with aiding one
of the eight Nazi saboteurs tried
in Washington. Woll declared
that sufficient evidence had been
assembled to warrant indictment
of tlie Ciiicagoans. They are Mr.
and Mrs. Hans Haupt, parents of
spy Herbert Haupt, Mr. and Mrs.
Walter Froehling, and Mr. and
Mrs. Otto Wergin. The Froeh
lings are the uncle and aunt of
Herbert Haupt, who was execut
ed in District of Columbia.
The three Chicago couples are
charged with giving aid and com
fort to Herbert Haupt in the Il
linois city after he had been land
ed in America from a U-boat.
Hearings for the six Chicagoans
recently were postponed until
August 25.
Parents of Herbert Hans Ilaupt
had not been officially informed
of the son’s eleetricution. They
and four other Chicagoans wore
held in the Cook County jail in
default-of $50,000 bail on federal
charges of aiding young Haupt.
United States Marshal William
McDonald said there could be n<>
interviews with them without
special authorization from Wash
ington.
DOOMED TRAITOR VVATCIIEI)
DETROIT, Aug. — Guards are
keeping close watch outside Max
Stephan’s solitary confinement
quarters at the Federal Deten
tion prison to prevent the con
demned man from making any
possible attempt at suicide.
Sixty-seven days remain on
tlie calendar before Stephan
mounts the gallows and pays his
debt for sheltering a Nazi air
corps officer. Peter Krug in De
troit. Lieutenant Krug stopped
off in the motor city after escap
ing from the internment camp at
iBowmanville, Out. Krug was
seized in San Antonio, Tex., and
his testimony convicted Stephan
of treason.
Stephan insisted, in gutteral
tones, before his stout guard that
Germany would save him from
hanging on November 13, as;
scheduled. But the former res
taurant owner did not explain
how this could be done. Mean
while, defense attorneys studied
the possibility of appealing to a
higher court.
Husband Has No
Excuse Buy Meat
CLEVELAND, O., Aug. — Hus
bands who wriggle out of doing
food shopping with the excuse
that they can’t tell the good meat
from the bad don’t have a leg
to stand on now, according to
OPA officials here.
He now can buy beef or veal
with the same intelligence as his
wife if he can only remember the
order in which ABC come in
the alphabet. All such meats
now must be graded alphbetical
ly in butcher shops.
. ican Invasion f orces Ksta!
Footholds In Solomon Island Jungles
UNDATED, Aug. 12 (/P) — Sea-borne American in
vasion forces, officially described as all trained in the
“new twists to the business of killing Japs,” battled
the enemy in fierce hand-to-hand fighting in the Sol
omon Island jungles. 900 miles northeast of Australia.
The Navy in Washington declared that “Marines
opened the door for an Allied offensive in the south
Pacific.”
The correspondent of the Australian Broadcasting
Commission reported from an advanced Allied base
that "there is a general feeling that our forces are
stil1 making progress toward their objective, and that
is occupation of the islands in the Tulags area.” The
correspondent said: “U. S. Marines and other shock
troop'” are apparently firmly established in a counter
invasion foothold.
A Tokyo broadcast, quotir., Captain Kamada, Jap
navay spokesman at Shanghai, persisted in the fiction
that the battle was over and termed it an over-night
encounter. The broadcast pictured the sea battle off
the Lianas as fought at suci: close quarters that U.S.
and Jap warships actually coli.ded.
British Aircraft Carrier Eagle
Sunk By Sub In Mediterranean
LONDON, Aug. 12 (/P) — The British aircraft car
rier Eagle was sunk as a r esult of U-boat action in
the Mediterranean, but a large part of the crew of
the 22,000-ton warship were saved, the Admiralty
announced. A German broadcast heard here indicated
that the Eagle went down at the start of a battle
which may be continuing between a British convoy
and Axis subs. The convoy was escorted by the bulk
of the Mediterranean fleet now engaged in the west
ern Mediterranean.
Since la.-rt evening, when the original German re
port, it was said that the Eagle was sunk at mid-day.
Adding to the scope of the reported action, the Ital
ian command said one of its subs scored two torpedo
hits at dawn yesterday on a “large warship of unas
certained type, but strongly escorted.”
The Admiralty said that at least one enemy sub is
operating in The same area where an old carrier was
already sunk.
"Waves" Naval
Auxilary to
Organize at Once
I T. COMMANDER MILDRED II.
McAFEE SAYS PRELIMIN
ARY STEPS ARE TAKEN
—
Miss Mildred II. McAfee, proi
dent of Wellesley (Mass.) college,
was the choice of Navy Secre
tary Frank Knox to head the
women’s naval reserve organiza
tion which was recently author
ized by Congress. The organiza
tion is similar to the army’s
W A AC’s. She holds the rank of
Lieutenant Commander.
WASHINGTON, Aug. — Steps
already have been made for or
ganizing the Women’s Naval Aux
il ary, Miss Mildred H. McAfee,
its head, announced in Washing
ton.
Miss McAfee was sworn in as
commander of the Waves a few
days ago, the oath of office hav
ing been administered by Secre
tary' of the Navy Franx Knox.
She holds the rank of lieutenant
commander.
The Navy’s Waves, similar to
the Army WAAC’s will be chosen
from among volunteers in all
parts of the country.
Their work, chiefly of office
and clerical nature ashore, will
relieve from such positions many
naval men.
Seattles" Woman
Row er Mobilized
Fill 100.000
Seattle, Aug. — Seattle
began mobilizing woman
power to fill 100,000 war
jobs in a hurry in ship
yards and aircaft factories.
Every woman capable of
doing any sort of work is
asked to register during
the next three days at the
city’s nine high schools and
throughout King County.
The Civilian War Com
mission and United States
Employment Service is
sponsoring the registra
tion and has set the goal
at 25,000 applicants immed
iately but it is said that
four times that many jobs
will have to be filled here
eventually this year.
Immediate employment
is not guaranteed but the
registration is planned to
serve as a survey of poten
tial employees.
Are you taking advantage
>f six months paid in ad
vance subscription ?
Navv Announces 5 Air Attacks, l
Naval Bombardment Japs in Aleutians
WASHINGTON, Aug. 11 (/P)—The Navy announc
ed that five air attacks and one naval bombardment of
Jap forces in the Aleutians recently resulted in the
sinking of one enemy cargo ship and damaging two
others, with heavy damage to shore facilities. Our
loss was one observation plane. The Japs also had
two -four-motored seaplane bombers shot down by
American pursuit craft, but it was not stated whether
they were caught in attacks on Jap-held territory or
in some separate action.
The communique said that Army bombers on July
22, di’opped bombs through the fog in the area of
Kiska harbor, but the results were not observed.
On July 29th, Navy patrol planes conducted a night
attack on Kiska and Army bombers attacked shore in
stallations and ships in the same vicinity.
On August 3rd, Jap aircraft attacked the U. S. de
stroyer Kane off Atka Island but no damage was in
flicted. Army bombers again attacked the Kiska har
bor area but results were not observed.
On August 4th, Army pursuit planes shot down two
Kawanishi-97 seaplane bombers.
On August 8th, a Pacific fleet task force, protected
by Navy patrol planes, heavily bombarded a group of
enemy ships, camp facilities and shore install itions at
Kiska. The attack was a complete surprise, the en
emy mistaking the first salvos of shells for bombs,
opened fire with anti-aircraft batteries on imagined
planes. Intensive bombardment from cruisers and de
stroyer guns soon silenced the shore hatter; started
fires, and inflicted severe damage to the camp area.
The only enemy resistance was from aircraft. Our
loss was one observation plane.
On August 9th, naval patrol planes followed up the
bombardment by an attack on 2 cargo ships in Kiska
harbor. Two bomb hits were scored on each ship, re
sulting in a total of seven damaged. Observers sight
ed a sunken cargo ship believed sunk near the beach
in the previous day’s bombardment by surface forces.
Canadians Study
Shipbuilding
Methods of U. S.
Vancouver, B. C.. Aug. —
A British Columbia ship
yard commission headed
by Judge S. E. Richards
left for Portland, Ore., to
study the most advanced
American method of ship
building.
The Canadian delegation
is particularly interested
in the assembly line meth
od of ship construction in
use at the Henry Kaiser
shipyards.
Clerks Ouit And
Stores Close
TACOMA, Wash., Aug. — 30
retail stores in Tacoma, war
boom city, failed to open when
negotiations for higher wages be
tween employers and the AF of
L retail clerks union broke
down.
All department stores and con
cerns handling furniture, ready
to-wear shoes and variety goods
' closed.
Only a jewelry store and a
i chain variety store which promis
1 ed to meet the wage demands.
1 were open.
Union spokesmen said that no
strike had been called and that
there would be no picketing.
“After months of fruitless nego
nation-,’’ the union leaders said,
“the clerks just walked out.”
I(earin'? On
Tax Ends
T h u r s d a v
Washington. Aug. — Sen
ator Walter F. George,
Democrat of Georgia, chair
man of the Senate Finance
Committee announced yes
terday that public hearings
on the six and a quarter
billion dollar tax bill will
be closed Thursday.
At the request of Sen
ator Tom Connally of Tex
as the committee agreed to
hold a brief executive ses
sion to mediate what
would be done about joint
income tax returns for hus
bands and wives. Senators
from eight western states
with community property
laws are trying to block
any joint income tax re
turns.
During consideration of
the tax bill by the house
ways and means commit
tee a proposal was adopted
tentatively for mandatory
joint income tax returns.
This provision was drop
ped, however, before the
bill reached the House
floor.
Connally made his sug
gestion in hope that the
matter might be disposed
1 of finally in the Senate Fin
lance committee.