VICTORY THIS YEAR

Timaru Herald, Volume CLIII, Issue 22470, 4 January 1943, Page 5

VICTORY THIS YEAR

American Admiral’s Prediction

Messages For Japanese

Leaders

By Telegraph—N.Z. Press Assn.—Copyright WASHINGTON, Jan. 1. Interviewed by the Associated Press of America somewhere in the South Pacic, Admiral W. F. Halsey, the Allied naval commander in that area, predicted a complete Allied victory in 1943. To the question, "Can you give an idea of what 1943 holds in store?” Admiral Halsey replied: "Victory,.for the Allies and the complete and absolute deleat of the Axis. But let us not stop this tune until tilings are fixed so that they will never arise again.” Asked whether Japan was included in ills prediction, Admiral Hajsey replied: “Yes Sir, and here are a few messages I wish you to send to Japan for me.” "To Hirohito: ’As Emperor of traitorous and brutal Japan during the year's foul attacks on peaceful people, your time is short.' "To General Tojo: ‘When you released your cowardly attack on December 7, 1941, you started something you cannot finish. Wc have good evidence of your atrocities and wc know where they were perpetrated. They will be properly repaid.’ "To Admiral Yamamoto: ’You will be present at the peace if you are still alive. That peace will be in the White House, but the White House will not be as you envisaged it.’ “To Japanese people: 'The heavy rumbling you hear will gradually grow to the shock of bursting bombs, shrieking shells and clashing swords on your own soil. You had better stop before it is too late.’ ” Offensive Soon Asked if he foresaw an Allied offensive over the world soon, Admiral Halsey replied to a correspondent of the Associated Press of America: “I definitely hope so.” Asked if the United Nations had passed to the offensive, he replied: "Definitely.” Do you foresee the bombing of the Japanese mXnland?” he was asksa. He replied: 'I hope so.” Asked on behalf of the fighting forces whether there was a good “Liberty Town” in the offing, he replied: “For the boys, yes. We will by-pass ail the small towns and let them loose in Tokio. That will be the ‘Liberty Town.’ They’ll really enjoy it.” During the interview, Captain Mi'es Browning. Chief of Staff, interposed: “I think the Admiral will agree that it’s safe to say now that we were engaged in a highly hazardous effort to rescue some white women from an island, where they were in imminent danger of violation and death.” Captain Browning did not elucidate further. Next Allied Move Rear-Admiral Yates Stirling, noting the Allied success in New Guinea, believes that the next move will be New Britain and New Ireland, but even with these islands and the Solomons in Allied hands Japan’s main defences will be undented. "To crush the Japs island by Island would probably require many years, men, warships and aeroplanes,” he declared. “Therefore, more rapid means must be devised to reach Japan’s source of power—the home islands. There are two avenues of approach, by air, which is our best bet to knock out Japan in the minimum time and at the minimum cost of lives. The first is from the Chinese mainland, and the second the natural bridgehead in the Aleutians and Kamchatka, but so many other fronts need our men. aeroplanes, and ships that it does not seem that sufficient strength is available at present to open an Alaskan front. The time is coming, however. When it does, the end of the Japanese Empire can be sighted.”