Evening star., 1942-02-07
By HELEN LOMBARD.

Washington is probably the most
talkative town in the United States.
One of the main industries Of the
Capital is the production of con-
versation, whether 1t takes place on
the floor of the House or the Senate,
in the corridors of various depart
ments and agencies or over the
dinner table 1t floods. flows and
whispers. and enemy agents and
their stooges gather in their share Of
the crop.
Naval officers coming into port
from sea duty are not supposed to
make long distance calls nor to in
dicate in their letters home the
port of call or even the ocean where
their ship is located. They fire.
quently do, however. and relatives
putting two and two together. some
times have a fair idea where their
sailor men are and even what ships
they are on.
Terror Calls Received"
Since the outbreak of war, Navy
wives and relatives have been re-
ceiving mysterious phone calls an
nouncing the sinking of ships and
the death OF their men at sea. 1t
was assumed at first that the calls
were part of the Axis war of nerves
and the Navy Department i'm
mediately issued the assurance that
relatives would be informed of cas-
ualties as soon as they were con-
firmed by the department in Wash
ington. A checkup by intelligence
officers revealed that definite plan
lay behind the terror calls"
The phoney death messages fell
into certain categories. Relatives
of officers who we're known to be
on certain duties were picked out
The wife Of one of the highest
ranking officers in the Navy Depart
ment, whose son was known to be
on an aircraft carrier. was called
and told that he had gone down
with his ship. The lady. forewarned
by her conversations with her hus-
band, simply hung up without re-
plying. Others, at the beginning Of
the telephone offensive, were caught
by surprise. The mysterious caller
usually woman with a soft voice
would begin the conversation
something like this: My dear, I
am distressed to tell you that your
son who was with my brother ON
fho {fha vooroA ~
portant transport such as the Lafay-
cite or of an airplane carrier WAS
then given was killed when the
ship was struck by torpedo of
Hawaii"
The party thus spoken to, who
may have had an idea that that
particular ship was either in port or
In another ocean sometimes blurted
out: How terrible, are you sure you
are right? The last information +
had from Tommy about two weeks
ago, was from Norfolk" The con-
versation continues q few more Sec
onds and ends abruptly when the
startled relative asks the name Of
the informer Before the agent
hangs up, however, she has very
often found out what she wanted to
know, the probable location Of the
ship.
Men, Too. Are Transgressors.
Nor are the women the only ones
who inadvertently give information
to the enemy. A kind heart and
desire to appear important may also
play a role and as often as not the
informer in this case is q man.
There is the story Of the retired
admiral called back to active duty.
He was so distressed by the tears Of
q clerk in his office, who had been
told that her f1ance had gone down
with his ship in Pearl Harbor, that
he went to the trouble to ascertain
that the young mans ship was
afloat in the Atlantic. He dried the
pretty young womans tears with
the heartening information, cau-
tioning her at the same time that
it was Of a highly confidential ma
ture. The young lady rushed to tell
all her ultimate friends-in strictest