Oldest Newspaper In Alaska. ‘"The News of The Day In Pictures** Member (If I he Associated Press
• XHE NOME NUGGET
VOL. 44. No. 35. NOME, ALASKA, MONDAY, MAR. 23, 1942. Per Copy iu
Alllies Blast Invasion Approaches
Japanese People Warned Of Possible U. S. Attacks
Airmen In Australia Carry Out
Action Against Invasion Approaches
Inflict Heavy Damage Jap Planes
DESPITE LOSSES, JAPS BOMB PORT MORESBY
UNDATED, March 23 (AP) — Sustaining the coun
ter offensive against the invasion approaches to Aus
* tralia, airmen under Mac Arthur’s command struck at
the Japanese right wing in Dutch Timor after having
wrecked some two-score enemy planes in operations
over the week-end.
Despite heavy losses, mostly in hard-to-replace fight
er planes, the Japanese sent a bomber and fighter
force against Port Moresby in what the Australians
admitted was the heaviest attack of the war on that
city. The Japanese also attacked Wyndham in west
ern Australia.
A communique said a Japanese lighter was downed
during reconnaissance over Dutch Timor, about 300
miles off northwestern Australia. Japanese positions
there and at Dili were bombed but the results of the
bombing couldn’t be observed.
In the raid on Port Moresby, the Japanese showed
they retained considerable striking power despite the
week-end losses. The raiding force was composed of
19 bombers and 3 fighters.
4 Sir Stafford Cripps To Line Up India
In broader political and military strategy, the day’s
principle developments included the arrival of Sir
Stafford Cripps at New Delhi, on a mission aimed at
lining up India for full participation with the British
empire in the war effort, probably through negotia
tion for some form of independence. A footnote to
Cripps’ coming was Gandhi’s appeal that a scorched
varth policy bo not applied to the defense of India.
Gandhi wrote in his paper that a disavowal of any
such prospective policy would allay anxiety among
• the Indian masses.
Japs Send Plane Reinforcements to Burma
The battle for Burma, the gateway to India, has be
come largely a contest for air supremacy. The Japan
ese, apparently having found the American and Brit
ish fliers too great a threat to their land forces, were
said by informed sources in London, rushing heavy
plane reinforcements to Burma and “serious raids”
by the bolstered enemy air force were admitted.
Bataan Forces Pledge Will Fight On
4 In the Philippines, U. S. and Filipino troops sent
greetings to MacArthur in his new supreme command
of the southwest Pacific and pledged to continue to
fight in the Philippines “with the same zeal and devo
tion manifested” under his direction, a War Depart
ment communique said. It reported no Philippine land
action, but a Tokyo report via Berlin declared that
the Japanese had broken through the Bataan Penin
sula defense line, isolating several American units.
Russian Army Paper, Red Star
Asserts German Army Lost Blit/
Striking Power for Big Offensive
#
MOSCOW, March 20 (AP) — The Red Star, official
army publication, said the German army has lost its
blitz striking power and is now unable to develop an
• offensive over the entire Russian front. The toll taken
of the Germans in retreat has so weakened the Nazis
that they will not be able to hurl their full force ag
ainst the Red Army as they did last summer, but it was
admitted that the Germans can concentrate great
forces on separate sectors of the front.
The Russians put more pressure on the trapped Ger
man 16th Army at Starya. Russian reports from the
front told of the capture of an important Nazi defense
center and the slaughter of hundreds of desperate
Nazis trying by any means to break out of the en
circlement. German soldiers with their hands in the
• air trudged toward the Russian lines to surrender,
but were shot in the back by their own officers. The
• Vichy radio broadcast a report that the Red Army had
entered Starya.
Bomber Sinks
East Coast
New York, Mar. 21 (AP)
— Lieut. Gen. Hugh A.
Drum, commanding the
1 eastern army forces, an
nounced tonight that an
American bomber destroy
ed an enemy submarine in
| an- undisclosed area off the
eastern United States coast
The destruction of the sub
marine was complete and
! Drum said the sea was cov
rnred with oil and debris,
j and it was considered im
! probable that there could
have been any survivors.
Foui1 depth charges were
; dropped by the bomber
i which spotted the sub from
i about two miles, while the
plane was bound for home
from a photographic mis
sion.
Second Lieut. E. H. Ep
i person Scott of Kansas
j City, the bomber pilot, de
| dared he could see the con
I ning tower clearly in the
water and made four runs
over the sub dropping a
depth charge on each run.
I Corporal Clifton A. Cyr, of
Spokane, Washington, was
the gunner of the plane.
OPA Fixes Sugar
Rationing Dates
In April and May
Chicago, Mar. 21 (AP)1
;—National sugar rationing
registration dates were fix
ed by the Office of Price Ad
ministration as April 28.
1 29, May 4, 5, 6, and 7. The
announcement was made
at a meeting of rationing
, administrators from all the
I states.
Individual consu mers
are to register on the May
dates; and public schools
and industrial consumers
i on the other dates.
Two Jap Cruisers
Damaged In Raid
On Rabaul
Canberra, Mar. 21 (AP)
Prime Minister Curtin an-;
nounced that two enemy;
cruisers were damaged in
addition to one sunk yes
terday in a raid on Rabaul.
The latest report of the
smash at the Japanese left
wing of conquest, also told
of continual enemy recon
nassiance over areas in!
New Guinea and Papua.
The Japs struck at two
places on the west coast of
Australia, bombing and ma!
chine gunning Brooke and
Derby, which isn’t a hun
dred miles southwest of oft
bombed Darwin.
All Japs Ordered
Evacuated From
Cambridge Is.
Sm Francisco, March 22
(AP) — Forcible evacua
tion of all Japanese from
Eainbridge Island in Puget
Sound, opposite the Brem
erton Navy Yard, was or
d 'red today by the Army,
effective March 30. The or
der was signed by Lieut.
Gen. DeWitt, commander
of the Western Defense
command and the Fourth
Army. This is the first com
pu’sory evacuation action
taken by the Army against
we st coast Japanese.
_
Airmen Strike
Devastating Blows
c
Melbourne, Mar. 22 (AP)
—The combined American
and Australian air force,
warming to its work under
the aggressive influence of
General MacArthur struck
devastating new blows at
the northern arc of Japan
ese airpower, wrecking 23
planes in three attacks.
Pledge Neutrality
Of French Fleet
London, March 22 (AP)—
The Daily Mail said in a
Madrid dispatch that
French Vice Premier Dar
lan announced a full agree
ment between the Vichv
government and the Unit
ed States is near, pledging
among other things, the
neutrality of the French
fleet. This agreement has
caused much anger among
the Axis powers.
Gunhoat Ashvilie
Listed As Lost
Washington. Mar. 21 (AP)
—The Navy announced to
night that the 1.270-ton
gunboat Asheville was pre
sumed lost by enemy ac
tion south of Java. Her
commander was Captain
Keneth Mortimer Hoeffel
of Oconto, Wisconsin. No
word of the personnel was
disclosed and they were all
presumed lost and were be!
lieved to number 185 offic
ers and men.
Liner Sunk
In Atlantic
New York, Mar. 21 (AP)i
— The torpedo sinking of
the Iiondurna, a passenger;
liner, on March 16th, off
the New Jersey coast with
a probable loss of 54 lives,
was disclosed today by the
Third Naval District, as 6
battered survivors reached
here Thursday.
Chinese Predict Japs Will Attack
•Russia Soon As Conditions Right
And Mustering Ten Million Men
FIGURE SEEMS FANTASTIC
CHUNGKING, March 23 (AP) — Large scale Jap
anese preparations to attack Soviet Russia “as soon
as conditions are favorable” were reported by the
Northwest China Daily News, organ of the Chinese
Communists, supporting the Chinese government’s
contention that a Japanese assault on Russia is coming
soon. The communist paper said, in addition to the
regular armies in Manchukuo and Inner Mongolia,
Japan is mustering 10,000,000 men from her home
islands, Formoza, Korea and occupied China.
(This figure seems fantastic as the best estimates of
Japan’s manpower unit, and the number of Japanese
under arms in all areas is about 5,000,0000. In addition
she has recruiter “puppet” armies in Manchukuo ami.
occupied China, but these do not total more than two
or three hundred thousand and are of such doubtful
quality that they could hardly be used in a major
campaign. The Japanese also are recruiting “volun
teers” in the area of Formosa, but there is nothing to
indicate that more than a few thousand will be raised
this way. Japanese regulars in Manchukuo are esti
mated at from five to six hundred thousand men. The
paper also said the Japanese are enrolling more than
100,000 white or anti-Soviet Russians. This however,
is more than the total of the White Russians of all
ages and both sexes in the Far East.)
Japanese Told of Prospects Of
l.S. Raids on Japan From Rases
In The Aleutians And In China
PEOPLE URGED MAINTAIN WATCHFULNESS
TOKYO. March 22 (From a Japanese broadcast)
(AP) — The Japanese were told today of the pros
pects that United States planes may raid Japan from
either the Aleutian islands or Chinese bases, or both.
Lieut. General Kobayashi, commander of home de
fense. urged the people in a radio address, to maintain
watchfullness and warned that weather conditions in
Alaska and the bow-like chain of Aleutian islands, will
soon permit raids on Japan and “the enemy is working
out plans for an attack from the north Pacific.” He
pointed out that United States efforts to reinforce
Chiang Kai Shek’s air forces might result in attempts
to attack Japan from bases in unoccupied China.
MacArthur Asserts In Melbourne
That Success or Failure Depends
Oil Resources At His Disposal
HAS FAITH IN AUSTRALIAN SOLDIERS
MELBOURNE, March 20 (AP) — General Mac
Arthur arrived today and was enthusiastically greet
ed by a large crowd which was thrilled by his promise
that the Allied defense will give way to an offensive
to drive the Japanese out of the Philippines. I am glad
there will be immediate cooperation with Australian
soldiers, the General said.
The General added: I know him well from World
War days and admire him greatly. I have every con
fidence in the ultimate success of our joint cause, but
success in modern war requires something more than
courage and willingness to die. It reuires careful pre
paration and furnishing sufficient troops and material
to meet the known and potential strength of the en
emy. My success or failure depends primarily upon
the resources which the respective governments place
at my disposal. My faith in them is complete, and in
any event I shall do my best to keep the soldiers’
faith.