he official
Col| cgeSiaiior l
1940'
1945-
The Battalion is forced to
publish only weekly because of
war restrictions on materials.
Spring, 1947 —
The only known extra edition of The Battalion is run
off on a mimeograph one Saturday afternoon.
The paper ran to cover the excess stories happening
that particular weekend.
Fall, 1947 -
The Battalion begins
publishing daily again.
&
The Battalion becomes an associate
member of the Associated Press wire
service. In 1986, the paper is elected
to Regular membership, and
becomes one of only a handful of
college newspapers in the nation
that are Regular members.
the presi-
ny class-
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2 issue of
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irk of the
■ire. Tem-
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■ Jan. 29,
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Thursday, September 30, 1993
1893 •The Battalion • 1993
Page 3
1941 — Aggies battle global tyranny on land, in air, at sea as World War II rages
A&M cranks into gear contributing to war effort
“Give me an army of West Point graduates, and I’ll win a battle.
Give me a handful of Texas Aggies, and I’ll win a war.”
— Gen. George S. Patton
The government restricted travel during
the war years because of the its use of rail
road, tires and gasoline for the war effort.
On Oct. 22, 1942, The Battalion re-
By Carrie Miura and Mark Smith
The Battalion
Gen. George S. Patton’s words symbol
ized the spirit of the young men from Texas
A&M that left home to serve their country
during World War II.
Almost 20,000 Aggies served in the
armed services during the war, 14,000 as
officers. Not even the U.S. Military Acad
emy at West Point could boast more offi
cers fighting the Axis than Texas A&M.
Japan sparked America’s entry in the
hostilities with its surprise attack on Pearl
Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. In its Dec. 9 is
sue, The Battalion polled students on
their reaction to America’s involvement in
the war.
‘Beat the hell outta Japan!’
“We’ve been fooling around so long
I’m glad things finally came to a head,
said Chuck Chalmers, Class of ‘42. “Now
the only thinp; to do is to ‘beat the hell
out of Japan.”
This statement typified the way many
students felt about the war.
Cadets showed their support for Ameri
ca's war effort by displaying spirit signs
outside their dormitories.
“I feel that the war was inevitable, and
now that it has come, we can only hope
for the best,” said Bill Delaney, Class of
‘43. “Above all, cooperate with those men
who are capable of leading our country to
our ultimate victory, which we all pray
will come.”
I Col. M. D. Welty, infantry comman-
fl dm, wrote a message in the Dec. 9 issue to
the cadets at A&M.
“I urge each of you to remain in college
at the present time,” Welty said. “Every
American will have a place in this nations
defense efforts. At the present, your place
in national defense is here at college where
you can better prepare yourself for the task
ahead. You can rest assured that when your
country needs you, it will call.”
Soon after the declaration of war, the
United States called many A&M students
to active duty. Although many Aggies were
eld
' Electrical
course in
mzzer prac-
to become
Air Service,
n unication
also
-ell Hall in
problem of
v students.
jf them to
;sue of The
1917-1918
e largest in
stationed overseas, the College remained
open during the war and Aggie spirit and
camaraderie stayed alive.
Throughout 1942, The Battalion was
published three times a week. During the
war, The Battalion focused mainly on cam
pus news and contained a limited amount
of information on events that occurred on
the front.
Streamlined school year
The war forced many changes in the op
eration of the College. On January 8,
1942,The Battalion reported the Academic
Council’s proposal to the Board of Direc
tors of a new, streamlined plan to begin a
tri-semester year, in which students would
attend classes year-round?
“The plan would prevent the $13 mil
lion college plant faedities from lying idle
during the summer months but would use
them continuously in the production of
trained men and Army officers,” A&M
President T. O. Walton said. s
The Academic Council, which was cofti-
prised of the deans and heads of depart
ments of the college, met on Jan. 7 to con- ;
sider the recommendation.
“The total war in which our nation is
now engaged has created an urgent demand
that young men be trained both for certain
essential industries and as reserve officers as
rapidly as possible,” the recommendation
read. ‘ Both industry and the Army have re
quested the college to graduate the students
as rapidly as possible.’’
The Board of Directors adopted the
plan Jan. 22, 1942. Pour days later, classes
began under the new system. Because of
the change in the structure of the academic
year, drills increased and there were more
reserve officers in training. The average
age of entering freshmen was 17 years and
three months.
Changes on the home front
The war caused many changes in day-
to-day procedures of the College. On Jan.
30, 1943, The Battalion reported several
changes in the students’ work week.
Classes would be held six days a week,
and a supervised study and compulsory
physical education was added to the
school’s operation.
“These measures are necessary to satisfy
War Department requirements on essen
tially MC Colleges (Military College) of
which Texas A&M is one, and the success
of the new program here will be a deciding
factor in the future of A&M and of its stu
dents in the war effort,” Walton said.
companies
ollegt
to pr
with transportation. Federal regulations
prevented special trains from running.
“Under the new cut system, if the stu
dent feels that he is up in his work and will
miss no quizzes, it is up to him to decide
whether or not he can make the out of
town games,” Dean Bolton said in the Oc
tober 22, 1942 issue of The Battalion. “But
the question of special transportation is
definitely out.”
An article in the June 19, 1943 issue de
scribed the recent troubles with Aggies in
their attempts to hitchhike. The article,
written by Ben Fortson, said that as a result
of tire and gas rationing, motorists were in
scarce numbers.
“With Schickelgruber, Tojo, and II
Duce raising all the ruckus around the
drink, tire and gas rationing, and what
have you, this highwaying situation has be
come pretty serious at times,” Fortson said.
Bolton initiated sugar rationing on
April 25, 1942 under the direction of the
registration board to help supply sugar to
the men stationed overseas. Those 18
years or older applied for their own ra
tioning books. Students under the age of
18 fifed an application under their
guardian’s names.
The College even restricted the wearing
of senior boots because of the clothing and
textiles shortage in the United States dur
ing the war. There was also a nationwide
steel shortage, which delayed the plans for
an outdoor dance area. The structure —
now called the Grove — was re-designed to
make do without the steel.
Because of its all-male student body,
dances \yere a large part of life at A&M.
These socials were held on campus in
Sbisa, Walton and Guion Hall — A&M’s
theater at the time. The students’ dates
came from women’s colleges around the
state, particularly Texas State College ft^
Women (now Texas Women’s University)
in Denton, A&M’s sister school.
The war even affected the dances. For
one dance, the tickets were printed before
the College was placed on Central War
Time — the time on the tickets was off by
half an hour.
Thirty seconds over Tokyo
Victories for the Allies were slow com
ing in the eariv years of the war. Howev
er, former stuqent Maj. John Hilger, Class
of ‘32, was one of the first Americans to
strike back at the enemy. Hilger was sec
ond in command to Brig. Gen. James H.
Doolittle, who led the April 18 bombing
of Tokyo.
As the war dragged on, Texas A&M pre
pared cadets for military duty in many
A U.S. aircraft carrier launched B-24
bombers — originally designed for land-
based runways — to bomh the Japanese
capital, after which they would fly to Chi
na. The planes, however, were forced to
launch early and many of the crews did not
make it safely to China.
Hilger made it to the Chinese coast and
later returned to A&M to tell of his ex
ploits. Although the raid did not cause
much physical damage to Tokyo, the Unit
ed States used it as a propaganda tool to
raise morale.
Another former student. Ensign George
H. Gay, Class of‘40, became famous after
his plane was shot down after a failed at
tempt to sink a Japanese aircraft carrier
during the Battle of Midway on June 4.
Gay witnessed the battle from the water,
using his plane’s seat to stay afloat, al
though occasionally he had to dive beneath
the surface to avoid shots from Japanese
fighter planes.
Because U.S. Navy planes sank three of
Japans top-class aircraft carriers, the battle
was one of the major turning points in the
ways, both in the classroom and with ac
tivities such as Commando training.
war in the Pacific.
Many other Aggies received decorations
for their courage and resourcefulness dur
ing the war.
‘Above and beyond ...’
The headline for the March 9, 1944 is
sue of The Battalion read, “First Aggie to
Receive Medal of Honor comes from Class
of 1943.” Second Lt. Lloyd H. Hughes
was posthumously rewarded the Congres
sional Medal of Honor. Hughes lost his
life when he flew his B-24 bomber in a raid
on the oilfield at Ploesti, Rumania on Aug.
1, 1943.
“Approaching the target through intense
and accurate anti-aircraft and dense bal
loon barrages at dangerously low altitude,
his plane received several direct hits from
both large and small caliber anti-aircraft
guns which seriously damaged his aircraft
causing sheets of escaping gasoline to
stream from the bomb bay and the left
wing,” read the citation to Lt. Hughes.
See World War ll/Page 12
if JfiV,
Serving Aggies for 20 years
Saluting
The Battalion
on your
100th Anniversary
See our weekly specials ad in
The Battalion every Thursday
1600 Texas Ave. S.
College Station
693-2627
1219 Texas Ave.
822-1042
Bryan
To: The Battalion
Happy 100 th Anniversary
Come Celebrate With Us!
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and Evening Classes
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764-1183 or 776-6696 • 14 Years in the B/CS area
See our ad in next weeks Battalion for Open House Info
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Post Oak Mall
Sttfflwaiting' {for goaf 0
to come in?
Why wait? Complete your education by
studying abroad. Discover the opportunities at
Representatives from various study abroad programs
will be in the MSC from 10:00-2:00.
Co-sponsored by Study Abroad Programs
161 Bizzell Hall West (845-0544) and the
TAMU Student Government's
International Programs Subcommittee