Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1943-03-09
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Gould K. Q.
Willow Run
How Hitler Must Want
to Bomb Detroit
By WESTBROOK PEGLER


DETROIT, March 9. - The
thought surely has occurred
to Adolf Hitler long before this,
so it will not be putting ideas
into his head to speculate on the
damage he could do with just
one air raid on Detroit COM
parable to any of the great mass
attacks on his own manufacture
ing centers in Germany and
France.
One Of those capsuled VOLCANOES
called block-busters which the
British have been dropping on
Essen, Cologne, Munich and
Hamburg, dumped through the
roof of the Willow Run bomber
plant. would not only smash the
building but obiiterate the ma
chinery, so carefully planned,
built and installed, which is now
producing a respectable portion
of the bomber force of the
United Nations and is steadily
increasing its output.
At least a year would pass
before the works could be re-
built and put back into action,
and meanwhile he would be
spared the punishment now
dealt and more promised him
by the bombers coming off the
Willow Run line.
Another big bomb destroying
one of the plants manufacturing
airplane engines, and others,
sown over the area, would either
demolish other buildings and
their machinery from which the
United States, Britain, Russia
and presumably China are re-
ceiving tanks. gyms. armored
tank destroyers and jeeps. or
mangle the equipment so badly
that there would be little sal
wage.
1T MIGHT be necessary TO
Il scrap most of the wreckage
and start over and that means
new steel construction and new
machines and tools.
1t means loss of output during
the time of clearing and rebuild
ing; idleness for several thousand
workers, skilled al special tasks,
who cannot be relocated IN other
cities: loss Of living quarters,
loss of drawings and records and
loss of morale, not only on the
scene of the disaster but all over
the country and among the fight
ers everywhere.
Already short OF manpower,
the United States, moreover,
would have 10 use millions OF
man-days and somehow find a
staggering tonnage OF scarce
materials for the rebuilding. In
one such raid Hitler might set
most of Detroit back 10 the
hour OF Pearl Harbor or even
further.
In the extension of the war by
possibly another year, 100. 1000 or
twice that many American lives
might be lost in battle.
1t is a gruesome thought in-
deed, but not unpleasant on the
reverse. for il can be assumed
that the raids on Hitler's own
centers of production have blown
away many of his factories no
less vital that ours, destroyed
materials which he cannot re-
place at all, shaken his people
who were promise that II
couldn't happen and depressed
his soldiers who undoubtedly
feel the lack OF all the gear that
otherwise would still be coming
through, and know from expert
ence in other lands what explo-
sives do TO factories.
TNHE Nazis in the early days
Il of the war impressed many
foreigners now among their enc
mics with their tricks of camou-
fiage and their resourcefulness
in building factories safe under
ground. But they can't hide
Essen, for example, with paint
and cheesecloth, any better than
the United States can hide De-
troit or Baltimore and the whole
German people, digging for the
life of a whole generation, could
not dig enough cellars big
enough to conceal their great.
established centers of war in
dustry.
Their important plants are
just about where they always
we're in the same cities, chained
there by the same conditions
that hold our war industries to
our big industrial centers and
when the bombers go over they
aren't blowing up mere stage
settings made TO deceive the
enemies of the master-race.