Evening star., 1943-06-27

put together. The average building time
days. Contracts have been placed for
500 Victory ships, to be delivered in 1874.
With speed Of Is to II knots. they are
to replace the commissions
10-knot Liberty ships saa
The proportion of tactical planes has
risen in two years from 40 to SO per cent.
Average airframe weight increased 63
per cent, from 4,40o to 6,400 pounds,
during the first five months of 1943, as
compared to the same period in 1912.
Yet the number of planes delivered in
May was 40 per cent greater than Janu-
arys output. ~
Justice Byrnes recorded that President
Roosevelt's one time goal of 100000 mill
tary planes, derided not long ago as
vivid example of production, Byrnes an
nounced that motor vehicles manufac-
tured in this country and exported to
lease-lend destinations would already II
parked bumper to bumper, reach twice
across North America. Since the United
States began to rearm, he stated, it has
turned out 100000 anti-aircraft cannon,
1885, 900 pieces of artillery and 2,225, 900
machine guns.
Mellow Light Of Victory" ,~
The entire scene of the World War has
experienced so revolutionary a change
that Prime Minister Churchill in his re-
port to the House of Commons on June
8, could describe it, in memorable
phrase, as an expanse "on which the
mellow light of victory now begins to
play" He had in mind two disasters of
magnitude lately suffered by the AXIS,
and two developments, OF recent origin,
on the Atlantic and in the heavens OF
Europe, which may prove to affect the
conduct and issue of the planetary battle.
Unparalleled Russian tenacity at
Stalingrad wore down an assault OF ut
most resolution, with Hitler's own mill
tary and political prestige at stake. The
defeat cost the Reich and its satellites a
total calculated at 33O, 900 killed, wound
ed. missing and captured men. The
Anglo American expedition to French
Morocco and the conquest of Tunis re-
deemed the continent of Africa from the
last vestige of Axis empire. 1t prom
ises to open the Mediterranean to Allied
shipping, and adds great new blade to
the pincers slicing at Festung Europa.
German and Italian losses in Tunisia
alone amounted to 100000 dead and
captured soldiers.
For some reason not yet adequately
explained, the sinking Of Allied shipping
by U-boats, at its peak in March, started
suddenly downward in April and con-
first half of June. simultaneously, the
killings of German undersea craft rose
abruptly in May to 20 or perhaps 30. For
the first time since Pearl Harbor, two
successive weeks, between June and Is,
passed without the reported loss of a
single Allied or neutral merchant vessel
in the Western Atlantic
Has Hitler's ultimate weapon been
struck from his hand-the weapon on
which he relied to cancel out American
war production? Navy spokesmen are
too wary to say so. But they believe that
two anti-submarine weapons, the auxil-
iary aircraft carrier and destroyer escort,
are beginning to exert a significant
effect.
Round the Clock Raids.
On March 3, 1912, British bombers de-
molished the Renault factories near
Paris. Two months later Cologne was
devastated by the first 1,000-pla raid
II, hictnrxy
paign to use aerial bombardment for par
alyzing Italy and immobilizing the
Reich's war plants and transportation.
With the aid of American craft devised
for daylight operation, the attacks this
year have redoubled in intensity and have
been placed on round-th clock basis.
The onslaughts volume is expected to
rise throughout the summer and to be
reinforced by new American bombers
far superior to the Flying Fortress and
Liberator. Enthusiasts hope that the
Axis can be knocked out this year by
air attack alone. Churchill acknowi-
edged that the experiment is worth a
trial, II other means are not excluded"
The War Department reports that be-
tween January 27 and June Is of this
year 18 heavy bombardment missions of
the United States 9th Air Force, based in
England, against German targets result
ed in the loss of 106 American craft. "a
against 571 German planes shot down.
l87 probably destroyed and 321 damaged.
Japan won its last naval victories on
February 81, 1912 when the East Indian
fleet of the United Nations was wiped
out in the battle of the Java Sea and ON
the night of August 80, when the cruis-
ers Astoria, Quincy, Vincennes and Can
pena were sunk. The headlong offensive
was stopped in its tracks by a series of
brilliant successes by American surface
and air forces which followed the Java
Sea fight.
In the Coral Sea, on May 8 of last
year, big invasion fleet descending on
Australia was smashed and put to
flight. In the historic Midway encounter
OF June 4, large-scale attack aimed at
Hawaii was parried and turned back. The
battle of the Solomons, on November
1915, cost the Japs two battleships, eight
cruisers, six destroyers, eight transports
and 10000 men. In the Bismarck Sea.
on New Guinea, a Japanese convoy on
March of this year lost u warships and
IL transports, with more than $4,000
soldiers drowned.
Submarines Play Havoc.
Since Pearl Harbor. American SUBJ
marines have played havoc with jap
anese naval and merchant vessels, and