AFTER THE WAR

Grey River Argus, 25 February 1943, Page 5

AFTER THE WAR

Case of N.Z. Cited (Rec. 8.30) WASHINGTON, Feb. 23. “Our new Lend-Lease authorisation should make it clear that the United States expects permanent military rights over certain routes, ' Said Representative Maas to the House of Representatives’. Foreign Affairs Committee, which is considering America’s post-war air policy. Representative Maas said: “It is now apparent that the Axis would completely have succeeded if the United States had not intervened.” He added: “If the United States must, .again, bear the burden of maintainng the principles of freedom we have the right to establish permanent aviation prerogatives. Representative Maas said: “New Zealand had built one hundred and five- airfields for the United States. New Zealand has charged the entire cost t 0 the United States under the Lend-Lease. Nevertheless, after this war, those fields will belong to New Zealand.” Representative Maas declared military, naval, and air officers disagreed with the present policy, pi “holding” against Japan in the Pacific until Hitler was defeated. They wanted to throw everything against Japan.

U.S. Naval Construction EIGHTEEN BATTLESHIPS IN SERVICE (Rec. 11.0) WASHINGTON, Feb. 23. The Navy Secretary, Colonel Knox revealed that the 45,000-ton “Iowa” had been commissioned seven months before schedule. Another 45,000-ton ship, the "New Jersey” is expected to be commissioned within two months. The American United Press says that three similar vessels are under cosstruction. The Navy now has eighteen battleships in service. 10,800,000 in Armed Forces AIM OF U.S. THIS YEAR (Rec. 11.0) PITTSBURGH, Feb. 23. The United States must have an army of 8,200,000 and a total of 10,800,000 in the armed forces beI fore the end of the year, declared th e Under-Secretary of War (Mr Patterson). He added that the latter figure represents only eight and a half per cent, of the American population, compared with the thirteen and a half per cent, of the German' population in the services, and declared that enemy superiority in the European theatre was of ominous proportions. The Axis commands over thirteen million men. Similarly in the Pacilc the Japanese outnumber the United Nations by many divisions. For that reason the needs of the armed forces must come nrt. The domestic manpower problems cannot be solved by shrinking the size of the army or navy, or granting blanket deferments to special groups. He pointed out that problems of labour turn-over and absenteeism solved in Britain, Russia, Germany and Japan must be solved in America.

U.S. War Workers INCREASE OF ABSENTEEISM'. Rec 9 p.m.) WASHINGTON, Feb. 23 The U.S. House of Representatives Naval Committee; in approving the “work or fight” principle, said that absenteeism at war plants particularly; on Saturdays and Mondays, has created a very ugly situation. The workers at the war plants were not on the job long enough, not steadyenough, and not reliable enough. The Committee has commended the transfer of the absentees into the Armed Forces if the situation is now corrected. In eighty one commercial shipyards, 7.7 t 0 8 per cent of the manhours were lost in October as a result of the absenteeism. In , some yards the absentee rate has reached from fourteen to eighteen per cent, and in one yard it has reached between twenty and thirty per cent.