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THE SUN, NEWHERRY, 3. C„ JANUARY 8, 1943 Washington, D. C. ‘INSIDE’ HERO STORY Behind the award of the Congres sional Medal of Honor to 31-year-old Lieut. Com. Bruce McCandless of the U. S. Cruiser San Francisco is a story almost without parallel in the annals of naval warfare. Inside fact is that shortly before he was cited for heroism “above and beyond the call of duty,” in the smashing November 13 Solomons naval victory, McCandless wasn’t sure whether he would be decorated or hauled on the carpet for insubor dination. His citation was one of glittering generalities, but here is the whole story of what happened: McCandless was on the bridge of the San Francisco when it led a spectacular assault between two col umns of Jap vessels, firing point- blank at both. In the roaring 35- minute engagement, Rear Admiral Daniel J. Callaghan, commander of the task force, and Capt. Cassin Young, skipper of the San Francisco, were killed, as well as other officers outranking McCandless. The young lieutenant commander did not notify superior officers on other vessels in the task force of Callaghan’s death, but immediately took command and began giving or ders to the other vessels in Cal laghan’s name. Ordinarily, this would constitute a rank breach of discipline. However, McCandless acted as he did for two reasons: (1) He was thoroughly familiar with the plan of attack, having been present at strategy powwows of Callaghan and Young when it was mapped out, and he feared there might be a slipup in carrying out the daring task maneuver if the command passed to another ship after Callaghan's death. (2) It was vital to keep the news of Callaghan’s death from the Japs, and they undoubtedly would have intercepted the radio communica tion. After the engagement, when a friend suggested that he might be decorated for his brilliant “incog nito” leadership, McCandless is quot ed as replying that he would be lucky to get off without a “court martial.” However, the navy was only too glad to give praise where praise was due. » • * MARCHING INTO TOKYO Mel Maas of Minnesota, who is both marine corps colonel and con gressman, has two mementos from the Solomons—a 50-yen Jap note and a 10-shilling note of Jap invasion money. Maas got the money off dead Jap soldiers. The other day he was displaying it to Representative Gordon Canfield of New Jersey and two British WRENS, comparable to our WAVES, who were having lunch with Can- field in the house restaurant. The WRENS, Third Officers Dorothy Taite and Elizabeth Gibson, were especially interested in the yen note, which was covered with bright- colored designs and pictures. “Be sure to give that money back to me,” said Maas. “I have big plans for it.” “Yes, these notes will make a wonderful souvenir to show your grandchildren,” commented one of the WRENS. “Souvenir — nothing,” exclaimed- Maas. “I’m keeping that money to spend in Tokyo.” • • * GUARDING THE WHITE HOUSE The White House called Speaker Sam Rayburn the other day, asked him to come in to see the President, bringing with him a group of con gressmen of his own choosing. When they arrived at the front gate of the White House, in the speaker’s car, the chauffeur said to the Secret Service men: “This is the speaker and members of con gress.” The guards were skeptical. “The speaker is all right, but how about these other men?” Whereupon they insisted upon a personal examina tion of the other members of con gress. When Rayburn got inside the White House, he was as mad as that good- natured Texan ever becomes. He found a senior officer of Secret Serv ice and said: “Look here, when I am asked to bring members of con gress to th? White House, I want them to be admitted without any third degree examination. You ought to know I wouldn’t bring any bomb throwers!” Note: The White House has been more closely guarded in this war than at any other time in history; including World War I. Streets on three sides are blocked off, and no one can get near without a pass, even a member of congress. • • • MERRY-GO-ROUND c. The Germans are trying to scare Franco out of making a commercial deal to sell us certain critical ma terials which have been going to Germany. C. Practically every young officer in the navy department here is asking for active duty, and many are get ting it. Waves of WAVES are re placing them. C The Pennsylvania Quaker village of Swarthmore is subscribing for a bomber to bear the name “Swarth more.” STUDY OF MAN GONE SLIGHTLY MAD THROUGH RATION RULES Mr. Twitchell took two more let ters from ration boards from the letterman and weighed them care fully. Then he handed them back. “Sorry. Can’t use ’em,” he said. “I’ve already had my two and a half pounds this week.” “Get the sugar bowl," he com manded, addressing Mis. Twitchell. “What for?” she asked. “Got to turn in all but five lumps,” he said. • • • Elmer then stood on his head in the middle of the living room and put on his glasses. “What on earth are you doing now?” demanded Mrs. Twitchell. “Got to copy the serial numbers on the sidewalls of all my oil burn ers,” he snapped. At this point, Mrs. Twitchell went upstairs and quietly summoned the doctor. • • • The doctor arrived as Elmer was leaning over a table repeat ing his name and address over and over again and giving his height, age and color of eyes. “Elmer, what are you doing now?” asked the wife. “Jnst another registration,” he snapped. The doctor motioned to Mrs. Twitchell to sit down and whis pered that it would be better just to observe Elmer without any comment for a while. * • • Elmer took from his pocket a small thermometer and held it in his mouth a few moments. Then he read it. “Seventy-nine degrees,” he an nounced. “They can make trouble for me for having a temperature like that. I could have avoided it all, though.” Mrs. Twitchell forgot herself and asked: “How?” “By switching from meat to coal,” he barked. “You remember all those warnings that all cars should keep down to two cups a mile.” • • • He then went into the kitchen, took the coffee pot and threw it away. “Got to get something small er,” he said. “I’m only an ‘A’ card holder. My allowance is to be cut to three gallons a week now. Used to be allowed four. Tried to join a Share-the-Mocha club but couldn’t do it.” Elmer walked to the telephone. “Hello. Is this Henderson?” he asked. “Just want to tell you about the butter. It was worth retreading so I called the ex press company and turned it in.” » • • “Quite a case,” observed the doc tor, making notes. Mr. Twitchell now got a can of gasoline, poured out a small quan tity, added condensed milk, a pinch of sugar and proceeded to drink it. “Tastes lousy,” he said, “but a ra tion order is a ration order.” Suddenly he put the cup aside and remarked, “I forget this was a cof feeless Tuesday.” * * * “How long has he been acting like this?” asked the doctor. “Just for the last day or two,” said Mrs. Twitchell. “Who’s that?” demanded El mer, suddenly noticing the doc tor. “Ah, I recognize him now. He’s the federal furnace inspec tor. It’s okay, inspector. I laid my furnace up for the winter and am heating the house by bicycle now.” The doctor at this point sneaked up behind Elmer and slugged him with a heavy paperweight, knocking him cold. “It’s the only way to handle these cases,” he said to Mrs. Twitchell. “I’m getting more of ’em every day.” • * * Father’s pretty dizzy now— They’ve tossed him into bed: To get those tire numbers he Stood too long on his head. • • • Sign over a Connecticut movie house: The General Died at Dawn with Jukebox Jennie * * * Now that butter is to be rationed we ought to see less of the fellow who always took about a pound of it on his knife and said: “Please put a little toast on this.” * * * New slogan: Praise the war and don’t pass the butter. m * m NO USE Last night 1 sprayed my radio IFith strong insecticide. But just the same Laval got through; He’s tough, as hippo hide. * * • Many stores are now rationing ice cream, and refusing to sell any to take out. One man says his wife | wanted a pint for a sick child, and so explained to the ice-cream clerk. But the reply—believe it or not— was: “You’ll have to get a prescrip tion.” • • • Horse meat, so labeled, is now being sold in many cities, and it is selling pretty fast. Some people say it isn't bad. Elmer Twitchell insists ifs pretty good. “It all depends on the horse,” he declares. Ransacking Davy Jones’ Locker Off North Africa Lieut. George N. Ankers of Seattle Is in eharge of raising ships sunk during the North African campaign. He is shown at right surveying Oran harbor, where American and Royal navy divers have already begun the task of raising battered ships, sunk mostly by Allied bombs. Left: When General Grant tanks were being unloaded at Algiers one fell Into the water. A crewman who went down with his tank is shown being brought to the surface by a French diver. The crewman recovered. Five Marine Fighters Bring Down 110 Jap Planes Five pilots of a marine fighter squadron which has accounted for 110 Jap planes in two months’ fighting are shown near one of their Grumman fighters on Guadalcanal, in picture at left. They are .deft to right), Lieut. Roger Hoberman; Lieut. Cecil Doyle; Capt. Joseph Foss (who tops the list with 22 planes shot down); William Marontate, and Lieut. Roy Ruddell. Right: A Jap fighter pilot, captured after being shot down during a dogfight over Guadalcanal, has plenty to say during an interview with a U. S. interpreter. The prisoner and others have shown a surprising willingness to give information concerning their own forces. Jungle Hikes Precede Action in Buna-Gona Best Fighter Plqne After being flown across New Guinea to the Buna-Gona area, U. S. troops hiked six days through the jungles before getting into action with the Japs. Here they found plenty of action, with the Japs coming out second best. Photo shows a group of American troops as they were gath ered around an exhausted Jap as he was lying on the ground. Maj. Thomas Hitchcock, who re cently returned to the United States from England, is shown in front of a P-51 Mustang, in Inglewood, Calif. On his return from abroad Hitch cock said: “Current opinion in Eng land, among bath American and British fliers, is that the P-51 with the Merlin engine will be the best fighter plane in the world in 1943.” While in England Maj. Hitchcock served as assistant military attache for air. ‘Flying Tiger’ Ace Decorates Aces in Chunking Flying Twins This radio photo (one of the first to be sent over the new U. S.-China photo link) shows Gen. Claire L. Chennault, left, pinning a Distinguished Flying Cross on the tunic of Maj. Edward F. Rector of Marshall, N. C. Brother aces Maj. David (“Tex”) Hill of Hunt, Texas (seated) and Col. Robert L. Scott of Macon, Ga., look on. Cause of much confusion at the navy’s pre-flight school in Athens, Ga., are Gale and Hale Grebe, twins from New Florence, Mo., who are being trained to fly navy bomb ers. Gale is at left in this picture of the twins studying model planes. QNE of my favorite athletes for some 20 years has been a fellow by the name of Heafrtley Anderson— better known as Hunk. With George Halas, former coach and owner of the Chicago Bears, now in war service. Hunk is one of the head co-coaches. Pound for pound. Hunk is the tough est physical speci men I’ve ever known, and that in cludes Joe Louis and Strangler Lew is. As a guard un der Knute Rockne, weighing 170 pounds. Hunk made 240 pounders surren der and leave the field. They want ed no part of Hunk, who, in addition to amazing quickness and unusual strength, always has had outstand ing fighting spirit. He was the type they might kill— but never whip. An Anderson Angle This takes us back to the timv Notre Dame decided to try out field hockey. A big squad had assem bled—then Hunk appeared. His presence scattered most of the hockey squad. “Do you mean,” one of them asked, “that I’m to play in a game in which they are giving Hunk An derson a stick? I don’t want any part of it.” As a coach in the old days, Hunk may have been a better top ser geant than a general of the Rockne type, but that still goes as a tribute. He certainly never has had a su perior as a line coach. He was given the impossible job at Notre Dame of following Knute Rockne. At the time this was an impossible assignment. His Toughest Job Hunk’s toughest coaching job came at North Carolina State some years ago. Hunk had assembled a strong Southern line and a Northern backfield. “I made one big mistake,” Hunk told me later. “I thought the Civil war was over. I soon found that my Southern line was tackling and stopping my Northern backfield be fore it got started. I’d just forgot ten to brush up on my history. I discovered down South you eouldn’t mix up Stonewall Jacksons and Rob ert E. Lees with U. S. Grants and William Tecumseh Shermans and Philip Sheridans.” The Strong Man I doubt that football has ever pro duced a stronger man than Eddie Hart, Princeton’s old football cap tain, now installed as a major in the marines. His strong man rival was Eddie Glass of Yale. The new marine is no kid. He was Prince ton’s leader back in 1910 and 1911, when he played with a broken neck protected by a special leather har ness. Now over 50, he is still in fine physical shape and still one of the strongest men I know. Something after the manner of Pudge Heffel- finger, who was still a football star at 53 and not so bad at 65 when he played a full period in a charity game. Two Eddie Hart examples—the night he won a bet that three All- Americans in the room couldn’t bowl him over as he stood on one. foot—the day in Paris during the* last war when a 195-pound football pal called from the second floor of a Paris hotel—“I’m jumping, Eddie, catch me.” Hart caught him. The marines get a true marine in Eddie Hart. Eddie Hart coached the Army football team that played in Paris after the Armistice. Eddie Mahan was on that Army squad. “It was after this game,” Hart told me, “that Marshal Foch said, ‘Any army that plays this game is already well trained for war. It is a game that belongs to the strong and the fast and to those who must think under pressure. It is the type of competi tive sport an army needs.’ ” Efficiency Col. Bob Neyland remarked a short while back that when you can get a team up to 80 per cent ef ficiency in blocking and tackling you have about reached the summit of human expectancy. This is true, with a few excep tions. Holy Cross passed 90 per cent in this respect against Boston College, and Washington’s Redskins were close to 100 per cent against the beaten Bears. I’ve never seen a team that tackled harder, blocked harder or ran harder, going all out, than the Redskins did against the Bears. They had a record wound to cure that had been festering for two years, 73 to 0, and you could see on practically every play they meant to effect the cure. Here was full proof of what a foot ball team can do when it becomes emotionally aroused. Here was the answer to many of the season’s upsets—to the way Au burn felt about Georgia and Holy Cross felt about Boston College. Gran Uand Rice A PPLIQUE animated dishes are •tY- a clever idea for a breakfast cloth, especially when they are used above a colorful plaid border and complemented with napkins of the same plaid. 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