May 31, 1945 (4 pages)

in the light of global war’s . The Nugget is delivered to your home twice a week for only 30 cents per month “God grants liberty only to those who love it, and are ready to suave and defend it.” —Daniel Webster Nevada City Nu CCVERS RICHEST GOLD AREA IN CALIFORNIA igge . > Tis paper gives you complete . coverage of all local happenings. . If you want to read about your friends, your neighbors, and your town, read The Nugget. Vol. 19, No. 43 _The County Se eat Paper NEVADA. cITy, CALIFORNIA The Gold Center “THURSDAY, MAY 31, 1945 = THINKING OUT LOUD By fH. {M. iL. The war in Europe is over, but in its wake there is left a series of extremely sore spots on the map of Europe. We note a tendency of foreign correspondents to Play up these minor events, now that the big show is over. Probably they are for the moment at loose ends and have time to write up the various clashes, most of them small and from a Yankee. point of view, not too important. For instance, there’s the story of French troops firing on Syrian mobs jand killing some 100 plus 300 or more wounded. In the news it is given almost as many words as the leveling of Berlin, a city of 3,000,000. It is probable that each air raid over Berlin finished off ~ several times more human beings than were killed in the rioting in Syria. But viewed holocaust the Trieste incident, the Polish impasse, the Syrian riots, disturbances in this churning wake of universal bloodshed, are really very small potatoes. We grant of course that any di Spute that is not settled rightly and promptly can lead to another cancerous spread of all consuming war. We remember-too well what happen-} ed when the Japs took Manchuria, when Italy took EB Germany took Czechslovakia. the standpoint of your pone of these ously important. From . Uncle Sam, } taking “was tremend-} All three “takings” we concluded, were in the category . of big banditry, but it was none of . our business, at least to the extent . of sufifering 1,000, 000 casualties, that might be incurred ag a world} knight errant, going about the globe) resenting poor little nations, from big bad wolves, ( We were wrong, as it turned out, in all three of those instances. By . trotting out the navy and calling. up an army promptly,-we might have deterred Japan, Italy and Germany from embarking on earrers of blood and plunder. A little muscle flexing then might have saved a good many American lives. Roosevelt did talk of “‘quarantining” agsressor nations, and got a lot of booing for mention: . and other thiopia, Hnd when! HELENCHAPMANRED CROSS . In letters to her father, Dr. ‘Chapman, Cc. W. Helen Chapman describes the sudden change from war to peace. The letters follow: It seems as if I hadn’t written for months, but it is because everything has changed so comipletely in one week’s time that it seems that months have passed. I left the town of Calbe near ‘the Elbé River south of Madeburg last Sunday. It was turned over to the Russians. I went from the division ‘back to my corps headquarters at Oscherleben and I am now 250 miles west and south of there. We traveled from 10: ps m: until 1 a.m. on May 9 VE day. It was-the most exhausting trip we have ever made, but is was through absolutely beautiful country. It was like a tremendous park, deeply green rolling fields dotted with villages, and from time to time a forest. There was little destruction in this area. Not so where the 9th Army passed by. Once by .the Roer River, however, the destruction of small towns was slight because the army was no longer fighting from village jto village. But Germany’s large cit: lies are utter shambles. I am now in a resort town and ex. pect to move to another one: a few quarters.have been prepared. The ; town T shall be in its very beautiful. At present we have very . ters. nice quarFive of us live in. a seven room May Phillips, Rahl, comes in housework. . apartment. . Stuart, . iI. A woman . do-our . Jean every day to jit is like being over of a war. here at the end I think that only. a . espeare could describe ,part of it, especially the . and feelings of people. Confusion is . vife because no one knows what is . to happen. The soldiers have upperbales on their minds whether they . . will get home or stay here or go to ‘the Pacific. My group has no idea . what to expect. We are still with the Pes Corps and don’t know whether we will continue with them or will be transferred to another outfit. We don’t know what is going to happen to the 19th Corps either. We do knowthat at this minute we are occupying Germany. I shall probably serve occupation possibly any ; ‘oops for the time being at least. ing it. We are a peaceable people and root : < ‘we believe in minding our business. . meaning that everything outside our . boundaries is not our business. That ‘was the general sentiment of the country in those days. Well, we have learned the hard ‘way. We have learned it is our business when one of! our neighbors on this small globe attempts to murder another neighbor. We believe, in peace, but to have peace it seems, we must fight for it and keep on fighting whether there is war going on or not. When brickbats begin to fly hereafter we must cease to be innocent bystanders and get right’ in and start pitching. With that new spirit of watching out for No. 1 by seeing to it that No. 2 or No. 3 is not abused, we eye these various disturbances in the war’s wake, Syria, Poland and Trteste and others, warily, but with the certainty that British and American, and perhaps Russia, diplomats will not let these matters fet out of hand. What the world wants is peace and plenty of /it, enough to last a century or two, So, while the correspondents in the European area, having no big war to write about, have taken up small disputes, is, relatively small, out first class news’ stories about them, let us try to see them in perspective and temper our concern: with the knowledge that we will have for sometime to come, the biggest navy in the would, the largest airforce, and, while not the largest, at least the next biggest and the best equipped and the stoutest army in the world. If we must, me can settle these disturbances in short order. We don‘t even have to make any threats. All our diplomats need do, isto express displeasure. and are turning So with the big battle of Eurone at end we can view the horrid dead fish welling up to the surface in the. wake of ware without too much concern. But we do insist that our State that am waiting just to see what the . Shape of things to come will be. Most . of. us are rather depressed about the ; Job, because the readjustment to occupation troops is not going to be easy. Of course, that doesn’t sound right. God knows we are glad the war is over. It is just that one can’t keep pounding away in an abnormal life for months and suddenly be dropped into civilization and know ones way around immediately. ‘Shortly, however, we shall have settled into a new’ groove, which threatens to be-social. I always had a yen to be a social butterfly. A taste of it for awhile ought to be good for my social graces, which have never been too good. We shall see what we shall see, and I’ll try to keep you up with events as they pan out. Your loving daughter, HELEN. Friedburg, Germany, May 15, 1945. Dear Poppy: It seems funny to put the name of a town at the head of a letter, but I understand the new censorship rules allow it now. At first those of us in Germany ; Were to be restricted, but I-guess there was a change of mind. Being . inside Germany has its advantages now because a new rule bars every one outside from coming in, but T can come and go at will—provided, of course, I have leave. It seems also that we may tell about our trip now, so I’ll devote this letter to giving you a chronological tour with me. I left England on a combination cargo and passenger ship from Southampton and proceeded across the Channel during Department exercise due diligence. We should carefully gather and inter these pestilence spreaders before they become virulent. In other words, we can put the fire out now with a garden hose, but it may take more water than flows in the St. Lawrence River to put them out later. : d miles from here in a few days when} Annie! Liz Hansard and T Suppose you are wondering what! ss . Shak. } thoughts . the night on a sea so calm I could hardly feel we were moving. It a . that seas are always calm when I am. . on them so I am in demand by many seasick addicts ag-a passenger on boats returning home. We sailed to the newly opened Port of LeHavre and waited out at sea all day for a pilot boat to guide us through a mine field. A ship had been blown up the day before. We were transfered to LICTs and made the landing right onto the shore through the dropped down prow of the ship. That was my first step on France. This port had been opened about six weeks before, but there ‘were no ‘dock facilities other than {that. That night we slept in a Fr ench general hospital, but first I had to spend half the night tracking down my duffle bag which was carried off the boat by a man who had taken to a staging area. It was purely. accidental but caused a battalion to have a show do inspection, the port officials a lot of telselontie and me a bouncing around in a jeep in a rain, but I got the duffle bag. There was no one but French nuns at ‘the hospital, so I had quite a time getting to bed but I finally made it! via sign language. The ‘next day we took off in the back of a truck for Paris. My truck broke down about half way there and} ;a couple of slaphappy drivers decid;ed one truck of the trucks . would tow us. We were tow-. Goo Te7 convoy ed so fast that my heart Was in my} throat most of the time. I was riding . in the cab so I was goine through . ; all’the anguish of our @river. There was, by the way, about a dozen ; . French refugees in the back of our . truck and the one towine us. They returning to Paris from England. In the cab was another ARC. . I and the driver. Well, we got lost ~ night came, dim® lights and a crazy . driver towing us lickety split up and down hills and over plains. Finally our truck caught fire. It’s a wonder the truck didn’t blow up. The French were half crazy by now, and, thinking I was a nurse, expected me to do something for the nerves. A few aspirins were consumed. It was decided to put all the French women in the one good truck and take them to Paris. All the Frenchmen (six) and our driver were to stay and wait for someone to come after us. The other ARC and I decided to stay, too, because the poor driver was so upset we couldn't let him down. So we spent all night sitting somewhere in France. The next morning we got towed more calmly to Paris, which I loved immediately even under my circumstances. We were in Paris about four days and then we were assigned to our groups. All of us were taken in one truck and dropped off from place to Place. Jean and I were the last. We went from Paris through Rheims to Luxomburg®City where we stayed over night in hotel. I didn’t see much of LikenPang because we left early in the morning. We traveled from there to Bastogne where we had our Thanksgiving dinner at noon with an MP company. As you know that place was later leveled during the Ardennes offensive. We dropped off one girl there. We continued on to Spa and let off another girl—from there to Chaufantaine and left two more—thence to Eupen where we spent the night, and two more girls remained there. We had a -second Thanksgiving dinner and it was my first amazement of how civilized. it. ageould be within 20 miles of the front. The ynext morning Jean and_I arrived at Heerleen, Holland, There we_ had very good quarters at the Hotel Neerlandia, but the second night the Jerries decided it was too good for us and dropped in the 2280mm shells. We moved back in about two . weeks after spending time in an of« . ficer’s club, rest home and maternity hospital. We were in Heerleen about a month when the Ardennes offensive upset the applecart and the corps was sent to hold the northern flank It was then we moved to Aachen where it is amazing to Say we had-excellent quarters, and much cold weather. On New Years day I hit the ditch 3 times’ just in case the Jerry straffing the roads was a good shot. He wasn’t. When the offensive was over we moved to Kahlssheide three miles j . were . cessed foods . E1_F1 G1 to Wiederbrucke, Setinheim and from there to DeschMT. ST. MARY’S WORKER TELLS OF HER ADVENTURES COMMENCEMENT SET FOR JUNE 4 The Sisters of Mercy have an-. nounced their annual graduation exercises for the high school and business school departments for Monday evening, June 4, at St. Cecliia’s Auditorium. Friends of the Sisters and of the graduates are cordially invited to attend the commencement exercises, which have been set for 8 9. m. sharp. His Excellency, the Most Reverend Robert J. Armstrong, D. D. Bishop of Sacramento, will confer the graduating honors on the high school and business school graduates, the names which will be published at ‘a later date. The Nevada City girls who will be among the business school graduates are: Lotus Wales, Dorothy Thompson, June Moore and Betty Noren. NEW RATION. STAMPS JUNE 1 Five new blue stamps worth 10 points each—a total of 50 points— and five new red stamps also worth 10 points each for a_ total of 50 . points wall be good for buying proand meats and fats, re® June 1, 1945. The five new blue stamps are D1 and H1. The five spectively on Friday. new red stamps are Y2 . W2 X2 V2 72. Both red and blue stamps validated on June 1 will be good Sunday, Seutemlber 30. Five red stamps—Y5 Z5 A2 B2 C2! and D2 and five blue stamps—H2 J2 . K2 L2 and M2 will not be good after . . Saturday June 2. As announced earlier, sugar stamp 35 will not be good after June 2, but sugar stamp 36 will.remain good for five pounds through Friday August 31, OPA said. through . away, in order to stay in corps area. There we sweated out the crossing of the Roer, which was being held up by the big dams in German hands. Finally the day, or rather night, came when to the accompaniment of every artillery piece in the corps the érossing was made. What a noise! Once the situation was in control We moyed across the Roer to Korchenbroich and sweated out the crossing of the Rhine. I was never in any danger again after the crossing of the Roer River. Buzz bombs, shelling and any other long distance ‘weapons never came our way again. But we were left miles behind the army once it crossed the Rhine. Then began the merry chase. We would move, stop a few days, move again, etc. From Korchenbroich we moved from there to erlieben near Madgeburg. The Grand Canyon wag sent on detached service to the 83rd Division at Calbe a town south df Madeburg and albout 50 miles south east of Berlin. From Calbe we crossed the Elbe bridghead to serve the units of the 83rd Division on the’ front line. The first night we were there the Luftwaffe attempted .to bomb out the bridgehead. The next morning they came again, and that was the last noise I heard from the Germans. From then on we wandered the front almost as freely as the back areas. The war was over except to meet the Russians. I have written about that. When that was accomplished the corps headquarters and we moved back to our own occupation area. We are near Frankfurt. Whether this_is permanent or temporary we do not know. We do know that tremendaus readjustments are being made and there is no clear picture of the future as yet. I am sitting tight awaiting eventualities. In the mean time we shall be serving troops doing the work of occupying. All this has been a tremendous experience which I am really incapable of expressing. You remember . that one of the reasons I came was to see first hand what happened to people and to be able to help them. I can’t begin to say what insight into human relationships it has been my opportunity to acquire, but it is wonderful. Well this letter has srown to length so I‘ll let the bottom of the page stop me. Keep well and be careful—HELEN, jligations at a . will be decreasing. APPROPRIATION BILLS IN FLOOD TIDEEXPECTED Warning against the flood of special appropriation bills that will be loosed with the final clearing up and passage of the state budget by the legislature, California taxpayers association said today: “California taxpayers cannot afford more state spending during ‘the next biennium if-the-problems of the post war years are to be met successfully. When the state budget is adopted, taxpayers should ‘be on guard against the:more than $400,000,000 of special appropriation bills which have been introduced in the legislature. i Points to be considered. the taxpayers association said, include: The original budget proposal for 1945-47 is the largest in California history, almost $100,000,000 greaier than this biennium’s expenses. The January budget ample provisions for all vices. = If the special appropriations were! needed they would have been budgeted. In the 1930s state taxes at no time . produced enough to pay the state’s . bills; the decade ended with an $82000,000 deficit in the general fund. The present temporary yield of state taxes is spending. eontained state serhigh caused by war In post be under services— war will; many schools, inescapable obyears the state heavy expense for aid to the and other needy; highways, time when revenues Special appropriations often pro-. vide underserved and unnecessary . benefits to special pressure groups and localities at the expense of all the people. Special appropriations seldom receive the same eare ‘and study as items in the executive budget. Every unnecessary appropriation made now reduces the state’s post ‘war reserves—reserves which will ibe. needed when révenues drop to Peace time levels and expenses inerase. Now is the time to say no to unnecessary spending proposals. _ ENGLE CLAIMS COLD CLOSING ILLEGAL (Representative Clair Engle, of California, today declared that the gold closing order L-208 was issued and is ‘being retained by the WPRB without sufficient legal authority and that fact is well known in the inner councils of the WPB. Engle charged that a former general counsel for WPB had rendered an opinion to the effect that the WP B could not legally issue or retain limitation orders on the basis of manipower considerations alone. He claimed further that the matter has been recently discussed with WPB and that it.is generally agreed by WPB that the order was a mistake and is on shaky legal ground because of being retained on Manpower considerations alone. WPB, Engle stated, has been caught in a colossal bluff, and doesn’t know just which way to go. Engle charged that the gold. mining industry was preparing to bring claims against the federal government because of the illegal action of the WIPB in-issuing and retaining the order. He stated: “It seems proper to point out that the resentment aroused throughout the industry by the continuance of thig illegal order will increase the liability imposed on the government by*the WPB for the continuing losses of gold operators, who will make demands for and undoubtedly receive reimbursement through relief legislation, through the courts, or perhaps through both of these channels.” “This order,” Engle declared, “was originally imposed ppon the gold mining industry as an arbitrary and brutal action. The casual freatment and disregard of the propetty rights of the victims of this action by the WPB were aptly expressed in a reply given by Donald Nelson then chairman of WPB, during his testiVITAMINS SENT TO BELGIANS Helping to relieve the acute suffering of thousands of long-oppressed victims of nazi terrorism, vaat suantitiesof” jitamins, pills and dehydrated foods have been shipped to Belgium by the Belgian War Relief Society, according to a report today to Vernon Stoll chairman. 6f Nevada County for the National War Fund which finances the work. of thatorganization. § ~Inan-effort~ to help theck the spread of famine and disease left in the wake of the vanquished Germans, 14,000,000 vitamin tablets, pills and rugs, shipped overseas during the first quarter of this year, are now being distributed among the Berlgian people, the report stated. Included in the shipments. were: 3,000,000 vitamin tablets, 3,000,000 mineral tablets, 2,000,000 yeast tablets, . 2,000,000 aspirin tablets, 1t,000,000 each of ascorbic acid tadlets, sulfathia%ole tablets and ‘millc of magnesia tablets; and 500,000 each of liver and iron pills and soda 'bicordonate tablets. In addition, there was also shipsph Shoe sa ped: 37,000 pound packages of dehydrated stew, 34,500 pound packages of dehydrated soup, 24,000 pounds of powdered whole milk and 6,000 cans of powdered orange juice, together with immense quantities of soap, toothbrushes and powder, misceHaneous drugs and first aid kits. All of the packages have imprinted on the wrappers: “Gift of ‘the Belgian War Releif Society of: the U.S a fhe report concluded. Belgian Relief ig a part of the California War Chest campaign which supports the work of USO, United Seamens Service, War Pris. oners Aid and the local Home Front . Social agencies. HONORABLE DISCHARGE FOR U.S. MARINES Limited duty ex-marines discharged since March 1 for the conhvenrience of the government will be given honorable discharges under -a new policy announced by the Marine Corps. The men formerly were granted discharges “under honorable conditions’’. They will. receive their new certificates upon application to marine headquarters in Washington. The new ruling also will apply te limited duty men discharged in the future for the convenience of the government, according to the announcement. Limited duty men, not fit for com‘bat because of overage, physical defects, or disabilities acquired since enttring the’ service, upon their own application hiajve been duchargea “under honorable conditions” since March 1. Before that time, they received honorable discharges. The new policy will apply only tothose men whose proficiency ratings were above 3.8 and whose conduct ratings were aboveT 4.0. Limited duty men whose markings are below those figures will continue to be discharged “under honorable conditions” the Marine Corps gaid: Also ineligible for honorable dischargeé are men fho received two summary court martials or one general court martial. NEW MAPS OF GRASS VALLEY The Grass Valley. Chamber of Commerce is now able to distribute complete maps of the city to all those who apply at the chamber’s headquarters in the Holbrooke Building. The maps are free to those who need them, especially new comers who expect to make Grass Valley their. home. The. maps were compiled and printed under the direction of Gene Ingalls, chairman of the committee assigned to the task, They contain a directory of all _business firms in the city. mony before the subcommittee on mines and minerals: ‘industry, senate small business committee on April 1, 1943, regarding the ppertbeone. \of the order Nelson‘said, ‘hen did it we believed it was the right thing to do. We didn’t study — Sometimes the only way you‘can set the right evidence is from oceu: ces after the fact.” :

in the light of global war’s . The Nugget is delivered to your home twice a week for only 30 cents per month “God grants liberty only to those who love it, and are ready to suave and defend it.” —Daniel Webster Nevada City Nu CCVERS RICHEST GOLD AREA IN CALIFORNIA igge . > Tis paper gives you complete . coverage of all local happenings. . If you want to read about your friends, your neighbors, and your town, read The Nugget. Vol. 19, No. 43 _The County Se eat Paper NEVADA. cITy, CALIFORNIA The Gold Center “THURSDAY, MAY 31, 1945 = THINKING OUT LOUD By fH. {M. iL. The war in Europe is over, but in its wake there is left a series of extremely sore spots on the map of Europe. We note a tendency of foreign correspondents to Play up these minor events, now that the big show is over. Probably they are for the moment at loose ends and have time to write up the various clashes, most of them small and from a Yankee. point of view, not too important. For instance, there’s the story of French troops firing on Syrian mobs jand killing some 100 plus 300 or more wounded. In the news it is given almost as many words as the leveling of Berlin, a city of 3,000,000. It is probable that each air raid over Berlin finished off ~ several times more human beings than were killed in the rioting in Syria. But viewed holocaust the Trieste incident, the Polish impasse, the Syrian riots, disturbances in this churning wake of universal bloodshed, are really very small potatoes. We grant of course that any di Spute that is not settled rightly and promptly can lead to another cancerous spread of all consuming war. We remember-too well what happen-} ed when the Japs took Manchuria, when Italy took EB Germany took Czechslovakia. the standpoint of your pone of these ously important. From . Uncle Sam, } taking “was tremend-} All three “takings” we concluded, were in the category . of big banditry, but it was none of . our business, at least to the extent . of sufifering 1,000, 000 casualties, that might be incurred ag a world} knight errant, going about the globe) resenting poor little nations, from big bad wolves, ( We were wrong, as it turned out, in all three of those instances. By . trotting out the navy and calling. up an army promptly,-we might have deterred Japan, Italy and Germany from embarking on earrers of blood and plunder. A little muscle flexing then might have saved a good many American lives. Roosevelt did talk of “‘quarantining” agsressor nations, and got a lot of booing for mention: . and other thiopia, Hnd when! HELENCHAPMANRED CROSS . In letters to her father, Dr. ‘Chapman, Cc. W. Helen Chapman describes the sudden change from war to peace. The letters follow: It seems as if I hadn’t written for months, but it is because everything has changed so comipletely in one week’s time that it seems that months have passed. I left the town of Calbe near ‘the Elbé River south of Madeburg last Sunday. It was turned over to the Russians. I went from the division ‘back to my corps headquarters at Oscherleben and I am now 250 miles west and south of there. We traveled from 10: ps m: until 1 a.m. on May 9 VE day. It was-the most exhausting trip we have ever made, but is was through absolutely beautiful country. It was like a tremendous park, deeply green rolling fields dotted with villages, and from time to time a forest. There was little destruction in this area. Not so where the 9th Army passed by. Once by .the Roer River, however, the destruction of small towns was slight because the army was no longer fighting from village jto village. But Germany’s large cit: lies are utter shambles. I am now in a resort town and ex. pect to move to another one: a few quarters.have been prepared. The ; town T shall be in its very beautiful. At present we have very . ters. nice quarFive of us live in. a seven room May Phillips, Rahl, comes in housework. . apartment. . Stuart, . iI. A woman . do-our . Jean every day to jit is like being over of a war. here at the end I think that only. a . espeare could describe ,part of it, especially the . and feelings of people. Confusion is . vife because no one knows what is . to happen. The soldiers have upperbales on their minds whether they . . will get home or stay here or go to ‘the Pacific. My group has no idea . what to expect. We are still with the Pes Corps and don’t know whether we will continue with them or will be transferred to another outfit. We don’t know what is going to happen to the 19th Corps either. We do knowthat at this minute we are occupying Germany. I shall probably serve occupation possibly any ; ‘oops for the time being at least. ing it. We are a peaceable people and root : < ‘we believe in minding our business. . meaning that everything outside our . boundaries is not our business. That ‘was the general sentiment of the country in those days. Well, we have learned the hard ‘way. We have learned it is our business when one of! our neighbors on this small globe attempts to murder another neighbor. We believe, in peace, but to have peace it seems, we must fight for it and keep on fighting whether there is war going on or not. When brickbats begin to fly hereafter we must cease to be innocent bystanders and get right’ in and start pitching. With that new spirit of watching out for No. 1 by seeing to it that No. 2 or No. 3 is not abused, we eye these various disturbances in the war’s wake, Syria, Poland and Trteste and others, warily, but with the certainty that British and American, and perhaps Russia, diplomats will not let these matters fet out of hand. What the world wants is peace and plenty of /it, enough to last a century or two, So, while the correspondents in the European area, having no big war to write about, have taken up small disputes, is, relatively small, out first class news’ stories about them, let us try to see them in perspective and temper our concern: with the knowledge that we will have for sometime to come, the biggest navy in the would, the largest airforce, and, while not the largest, at least the next biggest and the best equipped and the stoutest army in the world. If we must, me can settle these disturbances in short order. We don‘t even have to make any threats. All our diplomats need do, isto express displeasure. and are turning So with the big battle of Eurone at end we can view the horrid dead fish welling up to the surface in the. wake of ware without too much concern. But we do insist that our State that am waiting just to see what the . Shape of things to come will be. Most . of. us are rather depressed about the ; Job, because the readjustment to occupation troops is not going to be easy. Of course, that doesn’t sound right. God knows we are glad the war is over. It is just that one can’t keep pounding away in an abnormal life for months and suddenly be dropped into civilization and know ones way around immediately. ‘Shortly, however, we shall have settled into a new’ groove, which threatens to be-social. I always had a yen to be a social butterfly. A taste of it for awhile ought to be good for my social graces, which have never been too good. We shall see what we shall see, and I’ll try to keep you up with events as they pan out. Your loving daughter, HELEN. Friedburg, Germany, May 15, 1945. Dear Poppy: It seems funny to put the name of a town at the head of a letter, but I understand the new censorship rules allow it now. At first those of us in Germany ; Were to be restricted, but I-guess there was a change of mind. Being . inside Germany has its advantages now because a new rule bars every one outside from coming in, but T can come and go at will—provided, of course, I have leave. It seems also that we may tell about our trip now, so I’ll devote this letter to giving you a chronological tour with me. I left England on a combination cargo and passenger ship from Southampton and proceeded across the Channel during Department exercise due diligence. We should carefully gather and inter these pestilence spreaders before they become virulent. In other words, we can put the fire out now with a garden hose, but it may take more water than flows in the St. Lawrence River to put them out later. : d miles from here in a few days when} Annie! Liz Hansard and T Suppose you are wondering what! ss . Shak. } thoughts . the night on a sea so calm I could hardly feel we were moving. It a . that seas are always calm when I am. . on them so I am in demand by many seasick addicts ag-a passenger on boats returning home. We sailed to the newly opened Port of LeHavre and waited out at sea all day for a pilot boat to guide us through a mine field. A ship had been blown up the day before. We were transfered to LICTs and made the landing right onto the shore through the dropped down prow of the ship. That was my first step on France. This port had been opened about six weeks before, but there ‘were no ‘dock facilities other than {that. That night we slept in a Fr ench general hospital, but first I had to spend half the night tracking down my duffle bag which was carried off the boat by a man who had taken to a staging area. It was purely. accidental but caused a battalion to have a show do inspection, the port officials a lot of telselontie and me a bouncing around in a jeep in a rain, but I got the duffle bag. There was no one but French nuns at ‘the hospital, so I had quite a time getting to bed but I finally made it! via sign language. The ‘next day we took off in the back of a truck for Paris. My truck broke down about half way there and} ;a couple of slaphappy drivers decid;ed one truck of the trucks . would tow us. We were tow-. Goo Te7 convoy ed so fast that my heart Was in my} throat most of the time. I was riding . in the cab so I was goine through . ; all’the anguish of our @river. There was, by the way, about a dozen ; . French refugees in the back of our . truck and the one towine us. They returning to Paris from England. In the cab was another ARC. . I and the driver. Well, we got lost ~ night came, dim® lights and a crazy . driver towing us lickety split up and down hills and over plains. Finally our truck caught fire. It’s a wonder the truck didn’t blow up. The French were half crazy by now, and, thinking I was a nurse, expected me to do something for the nerves. A few aspirins were consumed. It was decided to put all the French women in the one good truck and take them to Paris. All the Frenchmen (six) and our driver were to stay and wait for someone to come after us. The other ARC and I decided to stay, too, because the poor driver was so upset we couldn't let him down. So we spent all night sitting somewhere in France. The next morning we got towed more calmly to Paris, which I loved immediately even under my circumstances. We were in Paris about four days and then we were assigned to our groups. All of us were taken in one truck and dropped off from place to Place. Jean and I were the last. We went from Paris through Rheims to Luxomburg®City where we stayed over night in hotel. I didn’t see much of LikenPang because we left early in the morning. We traveled from there to Bastogne where we had our Thanksgiving dinner at noon with an MP company. As you know that place was later leveled during the Ardennes offensive. We dropped off one girl there. We continued on to Spa and let off another girl—from there to Chaufantaine and left two more—thence to Eupen where we

spent the night, and two more girls remained there. We had a -second Thanksgiving dinner and it was my first amazement of how civilized. it. ageould be within 20 miles of the front. The ynext morning Jean and_I arrived at Heerleen, Holland, There we_ had very good quarters at the Hotel Neerlandia, but the second night the Jerries decided it was too good for us and dropped in the 2280mm shells. We moved back in about two . weeks after spending time in an of« . ficer’s club, rest home and maternity hospital. We were in Heerleen about a month when the Ardennes offensive upset the applecart and the corps was sent to hold the northern flank It was then we moved to Aachen where it is amazing to Say we had-excellent quarters, and much cold weather. On New Years day I hit the ditch 3 times’ just in case the Jerry straffing the roads was a good shot. He wasn’t. When the offensive was over we moved to Kahlssheide three miles j . were . cessed foods . E1_F1 G1 to Wiederbrucke, Setinheim and from there to DeschMT. ST. MARY’S WORKER TELLS OF HER ADVENTURES COMMENCEMENT SET FOR JUNE 4 The Sisters of Mercy have an-. nounced their annual graduation exercises for the high school and business school departments for Monday evening, June 4, at St. Cecliia’s Auditorium. Friends of the Sisters and of the graduates are cordially invited to attend the commencement exercises, which have been set for 8 9. m. sharp. His Excellency, the Most Reverend Robert J. Armstrong, D. D. Bishop of Sacramento, will confer the graduating honors on the high school and business school graduates, the names which will be published at ‘a later date. The Nevada City girls who will be among the business school graduates are: Lotus Wales, Dorothy Thompson, June Moore and Betty Noren. NEW RATION. STAMPS JUNE 1 Five new blue stamps worth 10 points each—a total of 50 points— and five new red stamps also worth 10 points each for a_ total of 50 . points wall be good for buying proand meats and fats, re® June 1, 1945. The five new blue stamps are D1 and H1. The five spectively on Friday. new red stamps are Y2 . W2 X2 V2 72. Both red and blue stamps validated on June 1 will be good Sunday, Seutemlber 30. Five red stamps—Y5 Z5 A2 B2 C2! and D2 and five blue stamps—H2 J2 . K2 L2 and M2 will not be good after . . Saturday June 2. As announced earlier, sugar stamp 35 will not be good after June 2, but sugar stamp 36 will.remain good for five pounds through Friday August 31, OPA said. through . away, in order to stay in corps area. There we sweated out the crossing of the Roer, which was being held up by the big dams in German hands. Finally the day, or rather night, came when to the accompaniment of every artillery piece in the corps the érossing was made. What a noise! Once the situation was in control We moyed across the Roer to Korchenbroich and sweated out the crossing of the Rhine. I was never in any danger again after the crossing of the Roer River. Buzz bombs, shelling and any other long distance ‘weapons never came our way again. But we were left miles behind the army once it crossed the Rhine. Then began the merry chase. We would move, stop a few days, move again, etc. From Korchenbroich we moved from there to erlieben near Madgeburg. The Grand Canyon wag sent on detached service to the 83rd Division at Calbe a town south df Madeburg and albout 50 miles south east of Berlin. From Calbe we crossed the Elbe bridghead to serve the units of the 83rd Division on the’ front line. The first night we were there the Luftwaffe attempted .to bomb out the bridgehead. The next morning they came again, and that was the last noise I heard from the Germans. From then on we wandered the front almost as freely as the back areas. The war was over except to meet the Russians. I have written about that. When that was accomplished the corps headquarters and we moved back to our own occupation area. We are near Frankfurt. Whether this_is permanent or temporary we do not know. We do know that tremendaus readjustments are being made and there is no clear picture of the future as yet. I am sitting tight awaiting eventualities. In the mean time we shall be serving troops doing the work of occupying. All this has been a tremendous experience which I am really incapable of expressing. You remember . that one of the reasons I came was to see first hand what happened to people and to be able to help them. I can’t begin to say what insight into human relationships it has been my opportunity to acquire, but it is wonderful. Well this letter has srown to length so I‘ll let the bottom of the page stop me. Keep well and be careful—HELEN, jligations at a . will be decreasing. APPROPRIATION BILLS IN FLOOD TIDEEXPECTED Warning against the flood of special appropriation bills that will be loosed with the final clearing up and passage of the state budget by the legislature, California taxpayers association said today: “California taxpayers cannot afford more state spending during ‘the next biennium if-the-problems of the post war years are to be met successfully. When the state budget is adopted, taxpayers should ‘be on guard against the:more than $400,000,000 of special appropriation bills which have been introduced in the legislature. i Points to be considered. the taxpayers association said, include: The original budget proposal for 1945-47 is the largest in California history, almost $100,000,000 greaier than this biennium’s expenses. The January budget ample provisions for all vices. = If the special appropriations were! needed they would have been budgeted. In the 1930s state taxes at no time . produced enough to pay the state’s . bills; the decade ended with an $82000,000 deficit in the general fund. The present temporary yield of state taxes is spending. eontained state serhigh caused by war In post be under services— war will; many schools, inescapable obyears the state heavy expense for aid to the and other needy; highways, time when revenues Special appropriations often pro-. vide underserved and unnecessary . benefits to special pressure groups and localities at the expense of all the people. Special appropriations seldom receive the same eare ‘and study as items in the executive budget. Every unnecessary appropriation made now reduces the state’s post ‘war reserves—reserves which will ibe. needed when révenues drop to Peace time levels and expenses inerase. Now is the time to say no to unnecessary spending proposals. _ ENGLE CLAIMS COLD CLOSING ILLEGAL (Representative Clair Engle, of California, today declared that the gold closing order L-208 was issued and is ‘being retained by the WPRB without sufficient legal authority and that fact is well known in the inner councils of the WPB. Engle charged that a former general counsel for WPB had rendered an opinion to the effect that the WP B could not legally issue or retain limitation orders on the basis of manipower considerations alone. He claimed further that the matter has been recently discussed with WPB and that it.is generally agreed by WPB that the order was a mistake and is on shaky legal ground because of being retained on Manpower considerations alone. WPB, Engle stated, has been caught in a colossal bluff, and doesn’t know just which way to go. Engle charged that the gold. mining industry was preparing to bring claims against the federal government because of the illegal action of the WIPB in-issuing and retaining the order. He stated: “It seems proper to point out that the resentment aroused throughout the industry by the continuance of thig illegal order will increase the liability imposed on the government by*the WPB for the continuing losses of gold operators, who will make demands for and undoubtedly receive reimbursement through relief legislation, through the courts, or perhaps through both of these channels.” “This order,” Engle declared, “was originally imposed ppon the gold mining industry as an arbitrary and brutal action. The casual freatment and disregard of the propetty rights of the victims of this action by the WPB were aptly expressed in a reply given by Donald Nelson then chairman of WPB, during his testiVITAMINS SENT TO BELGIANS Helping to relieve the acute suffering of thousands of long-oppressed victims of nazi terrorism, vaat suantitiesof” jitamins, pills and dehydrated foods have been shipped to Belgium by the Belgian War Relief Society, according to a report today to Vernon Stoll chairman. 6f Nevada County for the National War Fund which finances the work. of thatorganization. § ~Inan-effort~ to help theck the spread of famine and disease left in the wake of the vanquished Germans, 14,000,000 vitamin tablets, pills and rugs, shipped overseas during the first quarter of this year, are now being distributed among the Berlgian people, the report stated. Included in the shipments. were: 3,000,000 vitamin tablets, 3,000,000 mineral tablets, 2,000,000 yeast tablets, . 2,000,000 aspirin tablets, 1t,000,000 each of ascorbic acid tadlets, sulfathia%ole tablets and ‘millc of magnesia tablets; and 500,000 each of liver and iron pills and soda 'bicordonate tablets. In addition, there was also shipsph Shoe sa ped: 37,000 pound packages of dehydrated stew, 34,500 pound packages of dehydrated soup, 24,000 pounds of powdered whole milk and 6,000 cans of powdered orange juice, together with immense quantities of soap, toothbrushes and powder, misceHaneous drugs and first aid kits. All of the packages have imprinted on the wrappers: “Gift of ‘the Belgian War Releif Society of: the U.S a fhe report concluded. Belgian Relief ig a part of the California War Chest campaign which supports the work of USO, United Seamens Service, War Pris. oners Aid and the local Home Front . Social agencies. HONORABLE DISCHARGE FOR U.S. MARINES Limited duty ex-marines discharged since March 1 for the conhvenrience of the government will be given honorable discharges under -a new policy announced by the Marine Corps. The men formerly were granted discharges “under honorable conditions’’. They will. receive their new certificates upon application to marine headquarters in Washington. The new ruling also will apply te limited duty men discharged in the future for the convenience of the government, according to the announcement. Limited duty men, not fit for com‘bat because of overage, physical defects, or disabilities acquired since enttring the’ service, upon their own application hiajve been duchargea “under honorable conditions” since March 1. Before that time, they received honorable discharges. The new policy will apply only tothose men whose proficiency ratings were above 3.8 and whose conduct ratings were aboveT 4.0. Limited duty men whose markings are below those figures will continue to be discharged “under honorable conditions” the Marine Corps gaid: Also ineligible for honorable dischargeé are men fho received two summary court martials or one general court martial. NEW MAPS OF GRASS VALLEY The Grass Valley. Chamber of Commerce is now able to distribute complete maps of the city to all those who apply at the chamber’s headquarters in the Holbrooke Building. The maps are free to those who need them, especially new comers who expect to make Grass Valley their. home. The. maps were compiled and printed under the direction of Gene Ingalls, chairman of the committee assigned to the task, They contain a directory of all _business firms in the city. mony before the subcommittee on mines and minerals: ‘industry, senate small business committee on April 1, 1943, regarding the ppertbeone. \of the order Nelson‘said, ‘hen did it we believed it was the right thing to do. We didn’t study — Sometimes the only way you‘can set the right evidence is from oceu: ces after the fact.” :