Evening star., 1944-01-18
Catch Warns Nation
Must Not Slow Down
Until Victory Is Won
1000 Attend Trade Board
Dinner Opening
War Bond Drive

The war cannot end until I'VE
have fought it through" Rear Ad-
miral Thomas L. Catch told more
than 1000 members of the Wash
ington Board of Trade last night at
the MayfloWer Hotel, where the
Fourth War Loan Drive was
launched in setting of official gold
braid and Hollywood glamour.
Our enemies are counting on us
to tire of the war and quit. and we
must have the CUTS to hang on
until the end-until this thing is
finished" said the famed COM
mander of the battleship *" the
South Dakota. which has taken it's
place among the Nations most illus
trious fighting ships.
Admiral Catch shared the ros-
trum with jeanette Mcdonald,
singing star of the screen, who sup
piled the glamour and Franchot
Tone and Lloyd Nolan, all of whom
are on bond-selling tour Music
for the program. which was broad
cast over the Blue Network and Sta
ton WWDC, was supplied by Jan
Garber's Orchestra.
Issue Clean Cut.
The issue is clean cut and SIM
pie" Admiral Catch declared
dollars or lives Russia and China
have shown that a shortage of dol
lars can be made up in a loss of
lives, but no life can be bought in
dollars and we must give our men
the equipment they need to fight
this war"
The gray-haired officer declared
that We have reached the stage in
the fight where the determination
and stick -to-it-ness OF our fore
fathers must come to the fore" He
said the optirists are counting on
Russia making Germany collapse to
end the conflict. but II say we can't
count on any one but ourselves. We
haven't begun to win the war yet-it
is just beginning"
Paying tribute to- the raw crew
of the South Dakota, which went
into action with only four months
training, Admiral Catch, now serv-
ing as judge advocate general of
the Navy said no nation in the
world-not even the British-would
send out ship with four months
training He attributed the ships
success to the fact that Americans
can learn things in half the time it
takes anybody else"
Tribute to Men.
The youth of this generation is
soft, like nails" he said, and our
men today are better than their
fathers, who fought the World War
and have been up against tougher
proposition"
If we can sit back and not give
them the things they need to fight
this war, then we deserve to be
japanese slaves" he concluded.
Miss Mcdonald. weary after long
train ride, but still looking chic in a
tailored suit, told of her reaction
to a brief visit in hospital train
while en- route East. The impact of
seeing the manned and wounded
men drives home the sheer folly of
permitting the war to last one
minute longer than necessary" she
said
She related how the men she saw
made her feel ashamed for herself
and for all of us, by wanting to know
If they could buy bond from her.
Some had lost an arm, leg. or
an eye. They had risked their lives
and given parts of their bodies and
still they wanted to know If they
couldn't pay in cash to help win the
war" she said.
Year of Decision.
Reminding her listeners that this
is the year of decision, the year
many of our boys will die, she ap-
pealed to them to exert themselves
to the utmost to encourage all
Americans to support the campaign.
Maybe your bond will buy some
boy his ticket back home" she said.
Both Franchot Tone and Lloyd
Nolan said it seemed unnecessary to
remind Americans of the pecuniary
advantages of buying War bonds.
Il am surprised and full of won-
der and embarrassed that we in
America need this kind of appeal"
Mr.. Tone said.
Mr.. Nolan, reading from a letter
written by a marine who described
IeD C. Suffrnne