FRIDAY, AUGUST 1.1, 1944
ASTP Sergeant Relates Vivid Tales
Of Misery, Pestilence In Burma
First Sergeant Byron Lewis,
now attached to the ASTP on
campus, fought the Japs in India,
Burma, and China. Stationed in
Burtna during part- of the famine
in 1943, he vividly recalls the
misery, hunger, and pestilence
which walked the streets with the
hungry poor.
American troops tried to of
fer- aid, but rather then violate
religious edicts, the Indians
would choose starvation. They ac
cepted no food from the Ameri
cans.
But, Sergeant Lewis had. not
.gone to Burma to inspect the rav
ages of famine, Attached to the
' ATC and the 14th Air Force un
der General Chenriault, he shut
tled from one patrol to the other
in the battle to keep 'supplies
flowing into China.
Only the northern sector of the
road, running from Kunming to
Chunking was open then. The av
erage 1 truck lasted seven months.
There was no convenient depot
from which to draw supplies for
repairs. Worn-out trucks were
dumped in the “graveyard” where
they were dismantled' to provide
spare parts.
Transportation difficulties were
.only one problem. Overhead Jap
Mitsuibi planes would suddenly,
appear and dive, strafing every
thing b.®J°w. Sgt. Lewis describes
the, ppotectjon their position, af
forded by comparing those trav
elling. ...the.. road to docks on a,
pond—an easy -target for a power-,
ful. plane.
Chinese worked, with .American
(soldiers. .‘Although the. sergeant
found them curiously unsuitcd tp
truck; driving,' he ■ commented, on
their ' fighting spirit: " “Chinese
morale is high. They, really mean!
to go back and do business.” .
jj.' When Americans stationed in
j the. Far East- speak of "hie Hump”
• they- refer to the towering range
of .mountains, stretching between
, India and China. To airmen “the
: Hump” represents one of the
. most dangerous stretches of the
; air,, cpmparab'le in number of cas
ualties to the toll taken in the
, “graveyard of the Alleghenies”
when plane travel was in its in
: fancy. According to 'Sgt. Lewis,
, a .common description of “The
: Hump” at 22,000 feet is, “clouds
full of rocks.”
Sgt. Lewis made 12 trips over
“the Hump.” After he had been
wounded in October of 1943, and
- partially recovered, he was,
scheduled to make" his last trip
over it in a hospital plane. It al
most became the last trip he
: would make anywhere.
■/. “I usually sat in the back of
the- ship. Captain Ross, the pilot,
• called me to the front and .point
ed'to the right. He asked me
I saw. I looked over and
saTjy.a swarm of planes, which I
■tols Captain' Ross were P-40’s.
“P*r4o’s, hell!” he exploded, “those
, arg Zeros!”
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. Captain Ross beat the Zeros to
the field. All aboard dashed for
the nearby rice fields when the
wheels touched land. No members
of the crew or passengers were
hurt, but the plane was destroyed.
Having - arrived in the States
pfter an attempted .torpedoeing,
the sergeant enjoyed the sensa
t’ion of ordering almost anything
and. getting it. The inflation of
the Chinese dollar had. sept prices
soaring in China. A, steak dinner,
if one. had been available, would
haye cost at- least $3O. It was
a common occurrence to lose thir
ty or forty thousand dollars in a
poker game if the stakes were
Chinese money. American soldiers
were paid' in silver.
Sgt. Lewis enlisted ,in the Army
in 1930. He has refused two com
missions. When he returned from
the East he felt that a chicken
farm would provide the ideal
home. State College, with its quiet
and lack of excitement, fills his
specifications.
Although Sgt. Lewis had heard
much of the apathy of civilians
towards the war 1 , he does not
agree that it exists in large meas
ure. He also feels that the war
in the East will be won through
China.
Prize Holstein Cows
Win National Awards
For M ilk Production
’■ Penstate Inka. Hqjyjl, Penn
State's prise, cow wqlked pff with
the title of champion milk pro-,
dycpr of. the-U. S, in. the class Qf
•fuli-aged cows milked four times
daily - during ten months of -1,943.
She gay.e 2.0,572 pounds of milk
and. 8-1.1.2 pounds of butterfat dur
ing that period.
Three other registered Holstein
cows from' the herd owned, by
the College also ranked among
the nation’s highest producers in
1943. .
Penstate Inka Betsy with 21,-
566 pounds of milk and 784.4
pounds of butterfat is the’ high
est producing' senior four-year
old in the same division.
The other leaders are Penstate
Inka Doris, second highest four
year-old, and Penstate Inka Lady
Josie, • third highest producing
full-aged cow. They were also
scored on the basis of four daily
milkings throughout ten months.
These records will be listed in
the 1943 Honor List which is
based on production exceeding ad
vanced registry requirements by
06.6 per cent. It Is announced an
nually to show the status of cows
meeting the high standards.
“Betsy” and “Hazel” will also
be listed in .the yearly division
as third and sixth respectively in
their own.’ classes.
THE} OQUUSOIW
War News
Analyzed
By
CARROLL D. CHAMPLIN
Professor of Education
The news is good to know. The
papers are definitely worth read
ing today. The magazines are still
better if you wish interpretation;
and if you want to acquire a gen
uine perspective, some of the re
cent books, are best of all. So
much for our educational plug.
Now for the facts.
Books
First of all three books. Do you
care to understand the transition
period between war and peace?
Sumner Welles can help you in
his “The Time for Decision.” The
same motivation holds for Walter
Lippman’s “U. S. War Aims.”
Willard Waller, of Barnard Col
lege and formerly a Penn State
sociologist proves hmiself to toe
way ahead of Congress as a post
war planner in his “The Veteran
Comes Back.”
Battle Fronts
The Russians have come into
a phase of fighting that means
more difficult battles and slower
advances. Cutting through White
Russia and Eastern Poland was
not so serious, but knocking the
Nazis out of the Baltic States and
subduing Warsaw may require
conlidera.ble. time. Our lend-lease
contribution tp the series of Sov
iet victories has Ibeen 200,00.0
trucks and j.peps, 8,00.0 airplanes
and a. phenomena}' supply of food.
Foe this generosity Stalin is.
grateful,
The situation in France is some
what hi reverse to the Eastern.
Front, . o.wing to. the phenomenal
manner in which, the Americans,
British and Canadians have click
ed cooperatively. • These comrades
in this, latest, version of the BLITZ
have their hardest battles behind
them. They are fanning, out to
ward fresh conquests, under th e
spell of the proximity of the
French capital, which at this writ
ing is 80 miles away. Wednesday,
August 9th, is claimed to have
been our best day so far.
In three days we have moved
forward 100. miles, equalling the
best rate of the Russian pace
makers. Nazi resistance is soften
ing, and their vaunted efficiency
is conspicuously absent. The West
ern Front—the long awaited, no
torious Second Front —has usurp
ed the headlines. Lovers of Paris
and her famed institutions hope
they will fare as well as Rome
and Florence in escaping the full
wrath of the retreating Germans.
The Marianas
We have slain 5,000 Japanese
on Tinian,- ■ 10,000 on Guam and
20,000 on Saipan. Even the prof
ligate policy of human sacrifice
practiced by the Japs throughout
their lpng war will respond to
these tragic statistics with strokes
of “Japaplexy” among their strat
egy makers. Rota has been occu
pied, and now pur forces are
reaching out to Wake to avenge
another long-standing grievance.
German Purge
German generals,. colonels and
captains have surrendered and
committed suicide with reveal
ing satisfaction. They have plotted
against their Fuehrer, faced trial
haughtily and been hanged igno
miniously. They were not our
friends, any of them. There was
no apparent conspiracy with any
Allied authorities. This has been
merely a family quarrel, but it
presages probable early negotia
tions between Nazi Fifth Column
leaders and agents of the United
Nations. No . verification yet of
Himmler’s assassination and Goer
ing’s injury.
Predicting the End
Pessimists say the war in. Eu
rope will run five or six month.
The moderates say ten weeks or
three months. The optimists one
mcmth. The early fall of Paris, and
.the landing, of a large force- -of
paratroopers in -Southern France
or in Belgium or Holland would
(Continued/ on page eight)
'Penn Stale Engineer'
Features ASTP Column
“The Army At Penn State” will
be a new feature in this month’s
Penn State Engineer. Two ASTP
trainees on campus Pfc. James
Hale and Pfc. Nate Cooper of
Barracks 28 will be writing the
monthly feature which will be de
voted in its entirety to the ASTP
men* stationed on our campus.
The August column is concerned
’hiefly with a brief history, of the
ASTP since its arrival at the Col
lege.
Other articles included in the
new issue are articles on penicil
lin, “Miracles From Mold;” the
helicopter, “Helicopters As Per
sonal Aircraft;” and the latest
news of the turbo-supercharger,
“Power Plus.”
Players
• (Continued from page one)
up: Laurette Swartz, manager,
Libby Peters.
Stage: George Rowe, manager,
Jack Simpson, Robert Whitall, Jo
seph Mayers, Walter Robinson,
Walter Falkenberg, William Sil
verstein; Advertising: Shirley Le
vine, manager, Louise Zimmers,
assistant manager, Libby Peters,
Eleanor Zins, Nancy George, Ter
ry Rosenthal, Dorothy Schumaker.
College Vets Organize
Fourteen veterans of this war
met at the American Legion
Home Monday evening to create
a new organization consisting
solely of honorably discharged'
servicemen. A committee was ap
pointed to frame a constitution
for the group.
former soldiers, sailors or
marines who, did not attend the
first meeting are urged- to be
present along with the other
members at the American Legion
Home 7:30 p. m. Monday, and
find out what- the. club has to
offer.
Surgical Dressings
The surgical dressings class
which met August 2 rolled 990
dressings. AEP continued 'to be
the best represented with 17 mem
bers present and Delta Gamma
had six. ,
During the month of July a to
tal of 79 coeds worked 15714 hours
and rolled 1743 dressings.
I WARNER BROS —STATE COLLEGE THEATRES
I Fri.
I WHITE CUFFS af DOVER
Thurs.
Fri.-Sai.
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Tbujrs.-Fri.
Sal.
Air Force Opens
Exam To Students
Lt. Vance Dunkelberger of the
Harrisburg Aviation Cadet board
will give the Army Air Forces
mental examinations for students
who are not yet 18 -years of age
in 417 Old Main at 9 a. m. August
18.
Successful applicants will then
be directed to report for their
physical examinations in Harris
burg.
The men who pass will be en
listed in the Air Force Enlisted
Reserves, but they will not -be
called until the close of the se
mester in which they become 18-.
Once. called, they will be as
signed to Air Combat- Crew
Training, with the upper 43 per
cent going on to training as pi
lots, bombardiers, or navigators.
Applications may be obtained
from the faculty adviser on War
Service in 243 Sparks. Completed
forms must be submitted at the
time of the physical examination,
accompanied by birth certificates
and three letters of recommenda
tion.
Lt. Dunkelberger, directing the
tests, is a veteran of the African
and Italian campaigns. He has
flown more than 50 missions as
bombardier, and holds the Air
Medal with bronze and silver
clusters.
Newman Club Opens Drive
Opening its membership drive,
for the- summer semester, the
Newman Club has inyited all
Catholic students to join. r Pros
pective- members are. asked to at
tend the weekly meetings, held at.
the rectory 7 p.rm Wednesday*
and to. be present- at the initiation!
in the State College High School
gymnasium 7:34 p,.i»* Saturday,
August 12. A dance for all mem
bers will follow-
One of the first social activi
ties planned by the club is a
swimming party and picnic, to. be
held at Justine Lodge, Sunday
August 27. Admission will be by
membership cards only.
IWA Elects Chairmen
Norma Shanholt and Harriet
Strauber Were recently elected
co-chairmen of the IWA social
committee to replace Virginia
Beirne who has resigned.
-program
CATHAUM THEATRE
SECRET COMMAND c s^°£S s
TAKE IT Rlfi J«* tfAley
l AaC 11 DIM Hmi9t Hilliard
STATE THEATRE
Red Skelton
BATHING BEAUTY “£”,""1!™
James and Cugat
THEY MADE ME A John Garfield
CRIMINAI
BROTHER RAT
UNDERGROUND „ M ..
GUERRILLAS
PACE' SEVEft*
Priscilla Lane