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THE BATTALION -
SATURDAY MORNING, FEBRUARY 14, 1942
The Battalion
STUDENT TRI-WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
TEXAS A. & M. COLLEGE
The Battalion, official newspaper of the Agricultural and
Mechanical College of Texas and the City of College Station,
h published three jimes weekly from September to June, &
sued Tuesday, Ptrarsday, ana Saturday mornings; and is pub
lished weekly from June through August.
Entered as second-class matter at the Post Office at College
Station, Texas, under the Act of Congress of March 3, 1870.
Subscription rate $3 a school year. Advertising rates
upon request.
Represented nationally by National Advertising Service,
Inc., at New York City, Chicago, Boston, .Los Angeles, and
San Francisco.
Office, Room 122, Administration Building. Telephone
4-644-4.
1941 Member 1942
Dissociated Cotle6iate Press
E. H. Rosenthal Acting Editor
Ralph Criswell Advertising Manager
Sports Staff
Mike Halkin Sports Editor
W. F. Oxford Assistant Sports Editor
Mike Mann Senior Sports Assistant
Chick Hurst Junior Sports Assistant
Circulation Staff
E. D. Wilmoth Circulation Manager
Photography Staff
Jack Jones Staff Phohographer
Boh Crane, Ralph Stenzel Assistant Photographer
Saturday’s Staff
Lee Rogers : Managing Editor
Keith Kirk Junior Editor
Robert L. Freeland , Assistant Editorial Writer
Jack Lamberson Assistant Advertising Manager
Reportorial Staff
Calvin Bromley, Kenneth C. Bresnen, Arthur L. Cox, W. J.
Hamilton. Jr., N. W. Karbach, Jack Keith, Tom B. Joumeay,
Tom Laiand, Charles P. McKnlght, C. G. Serugsa, John May,
Douglass Lancaster. '
Kadet Kapers
Tonight there will be a christening, the
christening of a child which is already on
its way to fame.
This will be the child’s fourth appear
ance in public. At first few paid any atten
tion; by the third appearance more than
2,000 gathered to see what was being hailed
all over the campus. Again tonight a capac
ity crowd is expected in the Assembly hall
to see the fourth showing and public naming
of Richard W. Jenkins’ new hit, Kadet Ka
pers,
Jenkins deserves much credit. He is pro
viding entertainment each Saturday night
for the entire corps at a cost of nothing to
free don’t think for one moment that it isn’t
first class. The tickets for some of the pro
grams planned would sell at a minimum of
$1.10 each in a large city. All of the pro
grams would be first class entertainment
for any Town Hall show.
But what makes the show so popular
with the corps is the informal manner in
which Jenkins acts as master of ceremonies.
He has the ability to put his audience strict
ly at ease and makes them feel like part of
the show. In fact this is what they are, for
the people on the other side of the footlights
provide half of the laughs which are so
numerous throughout most of the perform
ances.
For the corps, a hearty vote of thanks,
Richard Jenkins, to you and all of those stu
dents who have made Kadet Kapers possible.
We sincerely appreciate what you are giving
us.
Radio Censorship
Recently adopted by the office of censorship
in Washington, the new radio censorship
code is designed to prevent spreading infor
mation that might be of value to the enemy
and to exercise careful control over certain
programs that might be used as espionage
tools.
Radio presents many problems that
were never met by George Creel and his
board of censorship during the first World
war. Magazines and newspapers can be cen
sored as they leave our borders, but many
stations can be heard in foreign countries;
yet no control can be exercised over pro
grams after they are broadcast.
The radio code follows the lead of news
paper censorship in permitting no material
to be sent out that might be of aid to the
enemy. Weather reports are banned; news
of troop movements, ship sinkings, defense
production and casualties are limited to gen
eral information or official release.
Greatest changes in censorship arise in
special programs where the radio may be
used as an espionage tool of the enemy.
Quiz programs, ad lib speeches, panel dis
cussions and interviews present special dif
ficulties because it is impossible to pre-cen
sor the material.
Enemy agents may be able to use man-
in-the-street interviews, quiz and similar
programs in making reports to espionage
headquarters if precautions are not taken.
The radio code specifies that programs
using impromptu speakers must choose the
participants from large enough audiences so
that no one person is reasonably sure of be
ing able to speak on the radio. Foreign lan
guage broadcasts come under special consid
eration. Scripts are to be carefully checked
for information that might be harmful to
the war effort. Furthermore, station man
agers are to check scripts carefully during
broadcasts so that no deviations from the
originals are possible.
Even the request program is to be
changed under war conditions. The code says
that stations are to grant no telephone re
quests for musical pieces. All mail requests
are to be held for an unspecified length of
time to prevent effective use of musical
codes over the air.
The office of censorship emphasized that
the code program is based largely on com
mon sense. The code aims to allow stations
the widest possible freedom without endan
gering the war effort. American radio’s posi
tion as the most free in the world will not be
threatened. 1 ■
/ Maintenance of American radio’s free-
Open Forum
Not So Fast, Mr Babcock
It was with amazement that I read in Tues
day’s Battalion Charlie Babcock’s insulting
attack upon Roland Elliot.
I felt highly indignant over this verbal
blasting of a speaker of the calibre of Mr.
. Elliot—even by the honorable Mr. Babcock.
I have talked with numerous ones present
at Cashion Cabin last Friday night and all
heartily agreed that his article in Backwash
was at best uncalled for. They did not hear
Mr. Elliot say “And what is A. & M. going
to do to help America win this war.” They
couldn’t have, because he didn’t say it! I
also attended the eleven o’clock lecture and
talked to him personally for about an hour
and I repeat that he did not at any tiijne
make such a statemept!
For Mr. Babcock’s information Mr. El
liot wasn’t even discussing or thinking of
total war effort at Cashion Cabin. He did
explain the program that the Y.M.C.A. has
undertaken of furnishing text books for
those students of occupied countries in Eu
rope and for prisoners of war; a program
that has already worked wonders in the
morale of those people, principally in that
it shows them there are other people some
where in the world who consider them yet
a part of society—even though Adolf, and
perhaps Charlie, doesn’t. In conclusion he
asked if A. & M. students and faculty would
care to help in this program. I for one think
it an excellent opportunity to do “a good
turn”! But he didn’t ask what we’re going
to do to win the war.
And now in view of the fact that Mr.
Babcock has either (1) unknowingly serious
ly misrepresented some important facts or
(2) he has out and out lied, I suggest that
he hasten to apologize to the student body
for writing such “tripe” and to Mr. Elliot
for such an unjust scolding. How can we
expect to get good men to come here to lec
ture to us if they must be subjected to
malicious attacks such as this?
BOB POWELL, ’42
This letter approved and endorsed by:
J. J, Neu, ’42
Paul J. Wolfe, ’42
W. A. Massey, ’42
Clarence M. Cunningham, ’42
Sam Kisner, ’42
Harold C. Ballard, ’42
C. C. Sprinkle, ’42
D, L. Duncan, ’42
J. W. Thompson, ’42
Fred Smitham, ’42
J. W. Clayton, ’42
D. C. Clark, ’42
L. M. Pearson, ’42 v
The World Turns On
=By Dr. R. W. Steen:
The British in Singapore are still fighting,
but London has already conceded that the
hours of the great base are numbered. The
ease with which the Japs gained a foothold
on the island came as a shock to most Amer
icans who had looked upon Singapore as an
almost impregnable position. The base was
intended to be impregnable if attacked from
the sea, but the Japs did not attack from the
sea. Its defenses against land attack were
not so good. The garrison on the island is
apparently giving a good account of itself,
but it is simply a new version of the old
story: Too little and too late.
The striking successes of the Japs leads
one to think in terms of enormous armies.
In fact they have used very few men. Their
forces in the Philippines, Malaya and the
Dutch Indies probably number well under
500,000 men. They have won for two chief
reasons: In the first place they have en
joyed air superiority in practically every
engagement. In the second place the Allied
forces have been even smaller than the
forces of the Japs. The British seem to have
had no more than 60,000 men at Singapore.
The American force in the Philippines has
made a remarkable stand, but it is little
more than a token force. The Dutch force
has never been large.
Americans want to win, but before
America can begin an offensive the Japs
must be stopped. The chief question now is
whether or not the Dutch islands can be held.
It will be much better to begin an offensive
from Java than to begin it from Australia.
So the question is: What will it take to hold
Java? The first requirement is, obviously,
planes. After planes must come men. And
after planes and men must come naval vic
tories. The Allies can win, but it is going to
take able leadership and determination to
win. They will first have to kick out their
old friends Too Little and Too Late.
The loss of the Normandie is a serious
blow. Publicly, 'at least, the navy is con
vinced that the loss of the vessel was due
to an accident and that no sabotage was in
volved. Some of the New York papers are
convinced that carelessness would be a better
term for what happened than accident, and
a few of them insist that the possibility of
sabotage should not be lightly cast aside.
There is much talk of salvaging the vessel,
but salvage will be a long and tedious proc
ess. If it can be salvaged, it will probably
be at least a year and a half before it is ready
to put to sea again. It is to be hoped that by
that time we will not need it as a troop
transport.
dom is essential to an Allied victory, radio
is a direct link between the heads of govern
ment, the centers of war and the people. It
is essential that the voice of radio speak
both wisely and calmly.—Minn. Daily. AGP
COVERING
campus dimous
WITH ^
Otom vannoy (H
Editors Note:
The absence of Backwash column was unavoidable due to cir
cumstances which prevented the author from writing it today.
The column will be back in its usual place at the next publi
cation.
AHIfHAL ODDITIES
BY
Tex Lynn
Modern design does not stop at
cigarettes. Even zoological gard
ens! are going modern these days.
In the very near future we may
have a chance to walk open-mouth
ed into a building housing the
world’s greatest insect collection!
It all started when curator Ray
mond Ditmars of the Bronx Zoo
in New York City brought back
from South America some 5000
colonists, unlike any that had ever
set foot upon the American shore.
These colonists are the rare, and
highly sought “Parasol Ants” from
Columbia, and they are ultra-mod
ern as tomorrow.
They will strike in true com
munistic style when all is not to
their liking, kill off their weaker
fellows in the subtle manner of the
Nazis during food shortages, and
participate in scientific farming
along true Aggie principles.
Ditmars daily serves a doz
en, specially selected hot-house
roses to this fastidious horde. The
ant workers are seen to break the
petals into convenient sizes, and
to carry the pieces “parasol fash
ion” back to their underground
city. Here the gaily colored petals
are chewed up by still further spe
cialized ants into standard sizes.
The staple food of this species, a
type of fungus, is grown on the
mass of rose petals. Trained work
ers reap, cut, and transplant this
“forage crop” in order to secure
maximum yields.
The habit of these ants to carry
bits of the colorful petals over
their heads as the belles of the gay
nineties carried their parasols led
to the name.
The zoo of tomorrow will soon
house many other interesting in
sects, such as the South American
bird-eating spider who, in fighting
form, can boast of a tentacle
spread of half a foot! The giant
electric light bug, powerful enough
to fasten onto a frog and* suck
out all his blood, will be there, in-
cadescent bulbs and all. Ferocious,
blood-thirsty ant lions will evoke
shudders from visitors as they lie
in wait at the bottom of their
crater-like traps for some harm
less little ant who might venture
too close to the trap’s treacherous
edge.
These, and many other exotic in
sects will become more common in
our zoos if the present shortage
of zoological animals increases to
any extent. Already some zoos
can see the handwriting on the
wall, and unless something is done
to alleviate the situation our chil
dren will think lions, zebras and
giraffes only figments of *the
warped minds of their parents.
This Collegiate World
AGP;
What happens to a collegiate
guest star after a trip to New
York and a $200 cash award for
appearing on Fred Allen’s radio
hour? Well, at latest reports all
of the 16 or 17 who have already
appeared have returned to their
respective colleges or universities,
and a good time was had by all.
But the story isn’t over at this
point.
Nearly every one of the students
has won the attention of either
radio officials or movie talent
scouts, and one of them had the
remarkable experience of being
called to the White House for a
“command performance.”
Back of the story is Fred’s per
sonal insistence that no one drop
his planned course of study for
the ephemeral possibilities of a
career in Hollywood, on Broadway,
or over the radio.
Alonzo Squires, mimic from
North Carolina, caused a flood of
wires when he brought to the
“mike” a fourfold imitation of the
Joe Louis-Tommy Farr fight as
described by Clem McCarthy and
Edwin C. Hill, with interviews of
the two pugilists at the end of the
battle.
Word reached Washington of
Alonzo’s ability to mimic the Pres
ident and the Big Man invited him
to the White House where he did
a “take-off” of a Roosevelt polit
ical speech to the great amusement
of F. D. R.
It is characteristic of Fred Al
len that no mention was made on
the air of the fact that Alonzo
Squires is blind.
Romance and music the way
that Deanna Durbin does it in
variably means the best in mo
tion picture entertainment. “IT
STARTED WITH EVE” is no ex
ception. Charles Laughton and
Robert Cummings are costarred in
this Cinderlella tale of a hatcheck
girl at the Campus tomorrow and
Monday.
Now that Deanna has acquired
a husband, she has been given a
more mature role and her singing
is just as grand as ever.
Charles Laughton has passed his
three score years and ten about
ten years ago' and is about ready
to die. In fact, he is supposed to
be on his death bed; He wants to
meet his nephew’s fiancee. The
nephew is Cummings. But the fi
ancee can’t be located anywhere
and as time grows short, Robert
gets Deanna, the hatcheck girl to
stand in for the fiancee just to
please the old man.
But the aged uncle does not pass
on, and somehow recovers. The
necessity of continuing the mas
querade and keeping everyone hap
py is what makes the story a real
ly enjoyable one.
It is calculated to make your
hair stand on end. Basil Rathbone
as “THE MAD DOCTOR” loves
them and leaves them—dead. Ev
erything goes along fine for the
doctor, that is, until Ellen Drew,
John Howard’s sister, falls under
his spell. This super-blood chiller
L S U, Yale Profs
Find Substitute For
War Denied Product
BATON ROUGE, La. — Dis
covery of a new source for nat
ural musk, a rare and extremely
valuable ingredient of expensive
perfumes, is announced by scien
tists at Louisiana State university
and Yale university.
Formerly obtained only from the
musk deer of Asia and the civit
cat of Abyssinia—sources now cut
off by the war—musk now can be
produced from the muskrat by a
process just developed. Muskrats
are found in large numbers
throughout North America, espec
ially in Louisiana, but also in Penn
sylvania and Canada. This dis
covery may open up new markets
for trappers, who up to now have
been discarding the carcasses of
millions of muskrats after obtain
ing their fur pelts.
Dr. J. L. E. Erickson, associate
professor of organic chemishry at
L. S. U., and Dr. Philip G. Stevens,
instructor of chemistry at Yale,
announced the results of their col
laborative research in the Journal
of the American Chemical society.
Preliminary work on various nat
ural musks began as early as 198 l 5
and is now being furthered at both
L. S. U. and Yale.
will be at Guion Hall today.
As far as murder mysteries go,
this is a fine one. But if you do
not care for this morbid type of
entertainment, then “The Mad Doc
tor” is not the picture for you.
Don’t overlook the Saturday
night goings-on at the Assembly
Hall tonight at 8 o’clock, Jenk
ins and the Singing Cadets are go
ing to do their best to provide a
little distraction for the campus,
and it will be great fun.
Leon Errol has to have an alibi,
but the one he chooses backfires,
and in more ways than one in
“HURRY, CHARLIE, HURRY,”
at Guion Hall Monday. It’s some
thing about inviting the Vice-Pres
ident of the U. S. A. to a party
and three phonies plus the real
one show up. The whole thing is
rather slow and too drawn out to
be very entertaining. Mildred
Coles, a newcomer to the ranks of
leading players, plays the part of
Errols daughter.
The only real funny thing about
the whole show is the way that
Errol’s legs fold up on all occas
ions.
WHAT’S SHOWING
AT THE CAMPUS
Saturday — “THE LIVES
OF A BENGAL LANCER,”
featuring Gary Cooper and
Franchot Tone.
Saturday prevue, Sunday,
Monday — “IT STARTED
WITH EVE,” with Deanna
Durbin, Charles Laughton
and Robert Cummings.
AT GUION HALL
Saturday — “THE MAD
DOCTOR,” starring Basil
Rathbone, Ellen Drew, and
John Howard.
Monday — “HURRY,
CHARLIE, HURRY,” with
Leon Errol and Mildred
Coles.
( Rambus
\ . #
Dial 4-1181
Box Office Opens at 2 p. m.
LAST DAY
“Lives of a Bengal
Lancer”
Gary Cooper — Franchot Tone
Merrie Melody—Porky Pig
NEWS OF BURNING
“NORMANDIE”
• • •
PREVIEW TONIGHT
11:00 P.M.
SUNDAY AND MONDAY
“It Started With Eve”
with
DEANNA DURBIN
ROBERT CUMMINGS
CHARLES LAUGHTON
Go in at 9:30 p.m. and see
both shows
ir=innr
[=]□□[
ii—innr
%/ Ml
Gel the Newest in Both Styles on
VICTOR and PS UFRIRD RECORDS
VICTOR RECORDS 50e BLUEBIRD RECORDS »Sc
KEEP ’EM FLYING by Glenn Miller
SOMEBODY NOBODY LOVES by Lillian Lane
CANCEL THE FLOWERS by Mitchell Ayres
ST. LOUIS BLUES by Maxine Sullivan
RECORD SESSION by Harry James
HAS WELL’ S
□□□E
3GJG3E
Movie
GUION HALL
Saturday, February 14
1:00 P.M., 6:45 and 8:30
Ellen Drew
Basil Rathbone John Howard
in
“The Mad Doctor”
SELECTED SHORTS
-Coming--
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday
Mickey Rooney Judy Garland
in
fr Babes On Broadway”
Comedy
News
Cartoon
V