^ WHAT IT MEANS—
THE BULLDOZER
AT WORK
By JAM£S D. WHITE
WSHINGTON — Roaring and
snorting around the world is a
new American weapon of war—
a steel-bladed behemoth dedicat
ed to pushing things around.
The bulldozer is a common
sight in America, but few Amer
icans realize that this revolution
ary earth-mover is barely 15
years old and that it does a lot
besides spade-work in this war.
It pushes things where they’re
wanted, pushes them away when
they’re not wanted and acts in a
pinch as a combat weapon.
Still Critically Needed
Importance of the bulldozer in
military operations is indicated by
the fact that the War Depart
ment still lists it as “critically
needed” in spite of steady ex
panded procurement goals. Army
engineer shave developed a num
ber of types to do different kinds
of work.
Basically, the bulldozer is a
crawler-type tractor with a heavy
shovel blade on its snout. By
pushing dirt into place instead of
using the old method of lift-carry
dump, it has speeded up the
building of countless airfields,
ramps, revetments, jetties and
HEDGEROW HEAVER—This
newest members ol the dozer
family is Ihe Army's Tank
Dozer, which licked the hedge
row headaches in Normandy.
As an earth mover it is the
equal of the heaviest dozers
and it can fire on one enemy
while blotting out another.
road grades. Around the world
it has amazed our Allies with its
speed in leveling air strips and
clearing rough ground.
Bantam airborne dozers fly
into jungles in gliders and go t:o
work gouging out landing strips.
The army has specialized tree
dozers with a high blade to clear
extra thick jungle.
There's a giant beach-dozer
with a crane-hoist mounted on
its stern which is used to move
heavy equipment across newly
won beaches.
The New Tank-Dozer
Newest member of the dozer
family is the tank-dozer, which
whipped the Normandy hedge
row. This is simply a medium
tank with a dozer blade mount
ed on it. This blade was special
ly designed by army engineers,
and can be thrown off by the
driver in ten second if he wants
t oget. back into the tank busi
ness.
In Normandy the tank-dozer
broke through the raised earthen
walls under the hedges that
sometimes stopped the tanks. It
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Sheared off hedge trees up to 18
inches thick and opened the way
lor motor;. <a equipment to pour
through. Its blade does not af
fect its firepower.
In Italy nine Army engineers
were decorated for building an
escape road, under enemy artil
lery fire, for some trapped tank
destroyers.
At Cassino. bulldozers cleared j
the way through the vast rubble j
i of the wrecked town so tanks
could get through.
A Shovel of Deaih
In Pacific jungles there are
even a number of reports about
i irritated bulldozer drivers who j
buried Japanese abve in their
, foxholes, tipped over small pill
boxes. and upset whole embank
ments complete with Jap ma
chinegun nests.
So useful is the new tank-dozer
ip clearing the way for tanks and
mechanized equipment that one
engineer colonel reported: “It
may be decisive in rough terrain.
The old conception of ‘tank coun
try’ can be considered obsolete.”
In other words, if the ground
is too rough for a tank, the bull-,
dozer trims it down.
. ■ .. - ..
RATION LIFTED
ON BICYCLES
The local OPA representative,
Miss Martha Jenner, is in receipt
of a telegram from the Juneau of
fice, which advises that the ra
tioning of bicycles has been lift
ed and are available to all who
wish them.
j
Fine plastic powders have been
found by U. S. Bureau of Mines
workers to be a potential new
soxirce of factory fires and ex
plosions.
* ^4* .4* ^4* .4. .4^ *4^ .4* *4^ *4. .4* .4* .4* .
FIFTH ARMY ON
PORTION OF
MONTEN LA FINE
%
ROME, Sept. 27.—'Apt—A
strong German counter-attack
which the official report said that
the Nazi command had expend
ed liberally of his personnel, has
driven the American Filth Army
to a portion of the Monten La
Fine Hill, which is 20 miles south
of Bologna, it has been reported.
The allied command announced
that meanwhile the Eighth Army
has extended a bridgehead across
the Rubican, which at one time
was the boundary of the ancient
Roman Tmpire.
4* 4* 4* *> 4* *> *2* •> 4- 4* 4 *2* ♦> *5* *> 4 4 v •> 4
On the southeastern edge of
the front, at the Po Valley, they
fought their way into the out
skirts of Bellaria, which is eight
miles northwest of Rimini.
On the Ravenna Road, the
Fifth Army command said that:
Kesselring had moved the ele
ments of three more infantry di
visions into positions against the
American spearheads now aimed
down the northern slopes of the
Apenn, cracking the middle of
the Gothic Line.
The German counterattack dis
lodged the doughboys’ hard-won
eastern spur, on the Monte La
Fine Hill, but efforts were being
mahe to regain that sector.
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