Weather Forecast I T \Todgy,i War New> T° pair and^ooi'with lowest temperature M I H 1 M^r , Nighttime on Europe's Battlefields about 50 degrees tonight; tomorrow A W jM ■ Wf . t- . Tl_ cf/lll cloudy and warmer. Temperatures J ■ ■ IS "reSS I ime On I He MOT today—Highest, 67, at 2 p.m.; lowest, W 51, at 6 a.m. ( ■ ...„ ____—-y (JP) Meant Ataociated Prett. _Closing N. Y. Markets—Soles, Page 16._—- - --- ' 87th YEAR. No. 34,838 WASHINGTON, D. C., MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, -1939—THIRTY-FOUR PAGES. ***,THREE CENTS. _ """' "" ... I ._ _ Sub Sinks British Plane Carrier; Soviets Capture Border Towns; Reich Turning Air Force to West Courageous First Warship Lost in Sea Struggle By the Associated Press. LONDON. Sept. 18.—The British admiralty announced officially today the loss of the aircraft carrier Courageous “by enemy submarine action”—the first warship casualty of the war reported by Britain. An undetermined number of sea men and flyers aboard the 22,500 ton warship were saved. The ministry of information in an authorized statement said the full complement of the Courage ous, plus the personnel of the fleet air arm, was “about 1,200 officers and men. When sunk she had a re duced complement of aircraft and therefore presumably a somewhat smaller crew.” The admiralty said the usual air craft complement of 48 planes had been reduced since August. Sub Believed Sunk. The brief official announcement In reporting this Diow to tne neet said that destroyers "heavily at tacked” the submarine which tor pedoed the Courageous and were believed to have sunk her in turn. There was no indication of where the Courageous was sunk, but pre sumably she was attacked in sea lanes close te home waters, either in the Atlantic or North Sea. "Since the opening of hostilities She had been performing very good service in protecting ships of the mercantile marine against U-boat attacks,” the admiralty said. Presumably this meant the Coura geous had been a major factor both in convoying merchant ships and in launching aircraft to attack sub marines from the air. Converted Cruiser. Jane's “Fighting Ships,” authorta tive work on world fleets, described the Courageous as a converted cruiser of 22,500 tons (26,500 tons full load). She originally was in tended for Baltic service. First built in February, 1916, Jane’s figures showed her to be the oldest, but one of the largest of the six British warcraft used as aircraft carriers. Jane's gave her thickest armour plate as three inches on her sides and amidships. She carried sixteen 4.7-inch guns, four 3-pounders and 17 smaller pieces. The beam of her flight deck was 100 feet and her overall length 786>4 feet. The admiralty's announcement ol «tne loss of the Courageous came twc weeks after the worm learned inai the British liner Athenia had been Bunk by a torpedo in the first hours of war between Germany and Great Britain. 24 Merchant Ships Lost. Since the hostilities began on September 3. 24 British merchant ships have been announced as vic tims of what the British govern ment has described as unrestricted German submarine warfare. On the other hand, the fleet and the Royal Air Force have ranged far afield and have been officially reported as sinking numerous sub marines. Simultaneously a general convoy system had been pressed but this had naturally been a slow undertaking on British sea lanes Which circle the globe. The urgencies of military strategy prevented an accurate estimate ol the effect the sinking of the Coura geous would have on the Britisl war against undersea attack or or the position of the fleet as a whole it was said. The Courageous was called out ir the precautionary mobilization ol the reserve fleet in August. Hei movements since that time were secret until today. Text of Admiralty Statement. The text of the admiralty state ment follows: “The admiralty regrets to an nounce that H. M. S. Courageous ha: been lost by enemy submarine ac tion. “She wTas commissioned with the reserve fleet in August with a re duced complement of aircraft am since the opening of hostilities Ha: been performing very good service In protecting the snips ot tne mer cantile marine against U-boat at tacks. "Survivors have been picked Uf by destroyers and merchant ship: Which are now returning to Harbour "The submarine was immediate!; heavily attacked by destroyers anc Is believed to have been sunk. "H. M. S_Courageous is one of th< earliest aircraft carriers. She was '(See COURAGEOUS, Page A-4.) The Safety Dog The story of Knee-Hi, the wonder dog who follows all safety regulations and who doesn’t cross the street in the middle of the block or against the red light, will be told over WMAL at 3:45 p.m. tomorrow. The broadcast tomorrow will launch a safety campaign during which Knee-Hi will rtf lnnnl o r% V-* r\nl n in nVtnm i t* _ T.w.v wv o*»wn children how a dog obeys the safety regulations. Speaking on the radio program will be Dr. George E. Brunson, Knee Hi’s trainer; Maj. Ernest W. Brown, superintendent of police, and William A. Van Duzer, director of traffic. The broadcast is arranged by The Star with the co-op eration of the National Broad casting Co. Rumor of Warsaw Civil War Outbreak Heard in Berlin Germans Refrain From Destroying City; Await Arrival of Negotiator By the Associated Press. BERLIN, Sept. 18.—Indications that the German air force soon may take a hand in the fighting on the western front were contained for the first time in today’s communi que of the supreme command. It said the air force regarded its work in the east virtually ended and now was ready for tasks else where. Berlin citizens yesterday and today observed members of the air force from the east arriving in the capital. The German communique again emphasized complete dissolution of the Polish forces by an encirclement movement. The situation in Warsaw, Polish capital, was left unanswered. The communique merely said that no Polish negotiator had appeared by last midnight although Warsaw had asked for his reception. Authoritative sources, however, said threatened bombardment of the city had not begun. The fate of Lwow, capital of the Polish Ukraine, 225 miles southeast of Warsaw, seemed sealed after its complete encirclement and after Lublin, about miaway on tne war saw-Lwow road, had been captured, Germans said. One-fourth of the Polish Army, the communique claimed, faced de struction or dissolution in a narrow compressed space southwest of Wys zogrod, which is about 40 miles west of Warsaw. The communique described the western front as quiet except that one French plane was shot down. All expectant mothers were re moved from Aachen on the western front in first or second class train 1 compartments, informed sources re vealed. Hospital patients also have been removed farther inland in order to accommodate soldiers in the event the western campaign assumes larger proportions. It was denied, however, that Aachen generally has been deserted : by civilians, although preparations ; have been made to do so if the need arises. With the German military ma ! chine on the west, and the vast So | viet Russian Army on the east, placing Poland in a mighty vise, I (See BERLIN. Page A-107) Red Armies Sweep Deep Into Poland; Peace Move Looms Wedge Between Russian And German Forces Is Narrowing By the Associated Press. ! MOSCOW, Sept. 18—The Red Annies of Soviet Russia swept deeper | into war-weakened Poland from the East today as diplomatic circles predicted the buffer state created after the World War would be di vided again between its two in vaders. Poland ordered her Ambassador, Waclaw Grzybowski, to leave Mos j cow in protest against the Soviet : march into Polish territory. (Reports reached Paris that Soviet Russian troops driving west into Poland had occupied Wilno, historic capital of Lith uania, which was taken from Lithuania by Polish troops in 1920. It is Poland's northern city in the strip of Polish territory between Lithuania and Soviet ! Russia.) j Word from the Red Army general staff of a constantly narrowing wedge between Russian and German troops revived reports an armistice in the European war will be proposed 1 as soon as Poland's fate is deter mined. Such a proposal, diplomatic sources said, might be made by Russia or Germany's axis partner, : Italy. i With the first move from the east that pinned Poland in a vise yester day, Moscow informed Poland's allies, Britain and France, the Soviet Union would follow a neutral policy toward them. Called Protection Move. In a radio broadcast by Premier Foreign Commissar Vyacheslaff Molotoff and in his notes to 24 gov ernments represented in Moscow, crossing of the frontier was de scribed as necessary to protect once Russian minorities in Eastern Po land. Molotoff said the Polish govern ment “ceased to exisb.” and the minorities—11,000,000 White Rus (See MOSCOW, Page A-10.) " German Reserves Rush to Bolster Western Front French Consolidate Gains On Nazi Soil; Russian Move Called Treachery By the Associated Press. PARIS. Sept. 18.—Thousands oi steel-helmeted German reserves were reported flooding into the Sieg fried line today to strengthen Ger many’s stand against the French advance on Nazi soil. The movement of German reserves toward the western front was re garded by military experts here at | a sign Nazis expect Polish resistance on the eastern front to collapse soon Heavily outnumbered, the Poles appeared from reports reaching here to be surrounded by Germans on the west, north and south and by Rus sians on the East. Russia's invasion or Poland shocked France although the nation ex pected it. The press condemned it almost unanimously as treachery. Officially, however, France gave no hint whether she would classify the Russian move as an act of wrar against allied interests or accept the Soviet explanation that the inva sion was undertaken merely to pro tect Russian interests on the as sumption the Polish government no longer existed. Official circles, nevertheless, em phasized France and Great Britain were determined to “crush Hitler ism” and free Poland of foreign troops. Informed sources here regard the entry of Russia into Poland a blow to neutrality of small states of Southeastern Europe. They consider Rumania particularly endangered because she holds territory once be longing to Russia. Daladier Back From Front. Premier Daladier came back from the German-French front to study the new circumstances. He had been visiting his army of Poilus in lines reported within German territory. Even as the Premier returned (SeeTPARIS, Page A-3.) The War Situation x lie in Ob waioiiip ivsoo i biic war was revealed today to have been the British aircraft carrier Courageous, sunk by a subma rine. The British admiralty stated that it was believed the attacking undersea boat had been destroyed in the hot coun ter-attack by British destroyers. The British government reaction to the Russian march into Po land was only to become more determined than ever to destroy Hitlerism. (Page A-l.) Russian troops marching deep into Poland after crossing the frontier yesterday were reported to have captured the towns of Z&leszczyki and Sniatyn, on the Polish-Rumanian border, and to be closing in on Kuty. German forces were reported 31 miles from the latter city. Polish President Ignace Moscicki and Foreign Minister Josef Beck were in Cemauti, Rumania, but expected to leave soon for Paris or London. (Page A-l.) The German Army was re ported in Berlin ready to turn its huge air force against the western front. The status of Warsaw was not revealed, but civil war was rumored to be in progress in the Polish capital, with the Germans refraining from bombarding the city, as they had threatened, pending outcome of negotiations for its surrender. (Page A-l.) As Russian armies drove deep er into Polish territory, diplo matic circles In Moscow specu micu uu tuc pwoojwiuvj armistice proposal after German and Russian military action in Poland is completed. It was be lieved such a proposal might come from Russia or Germany's axis partner, Italy. Russia claimed it was continuing to fol low a neutral policy. (Page A-l.) In Washington, the White House announced that Alf M. Landon and Col. Frank Knox, titular leaders of the Repub lican party, had accepted invita tions to attend President Roose velt's conference with congres sional leaders Wednesday to plan legislative program for the spe cial session opening Thursday. (Page A-l.) In Paris it was reported that Germany was throwing large numbers of reinforcements into the fighting along the western front. France was shocked by the Russian invasion of Poland, but gave no indication whether she would consider it an act of war against the allies or accept the Russian excuse that it was to protect Soviet interests. (Page A-l.) Response to Russia’s move was immediate in Southeastern Eu rope, where the small nations watched apprehensively. They asked whether Russia's reclaim ing land lost after the World War would have any effect on their own territorial holdings. Bulgaria hailed the action widely as providing hope for revision of the boundaries set up after the World War. (Page A-4.) Reds Advance Swiftly; Are 31 Miles From Nazis By LLOYD LEHRBAS, Associated Press Foreign Correspondent. CERNAUTI, Rumania, Sept. 18.— It was reported here today that the Russian army, striking swiftly since its entry into Poland yes terday, now held the Polish-Ru manian border towns of Zaleszczyki and Sniatyn and was closing in on Kuty. Zaleszczyki and Kuty are about 40 miles apart; Sniatyn is about midway between them on a line running southwest. Germans in their eastward drive still were reported more than 50 kilometers (about 31 miles) from Kuty. Foreign circles considered it likely the Soviet divisions would seek to sweeD the entire length of the Polish-Rumanian frontier and meet the Germans on the Polish Hungarian border. Battered remnants of the Polish army fled headlong across the Ru manian frontier, barely escaping the advancing Russian troops. President Ignace Moscicki, Foreign Minister Josef Beck, other members of the government and the Polish general staff had reached here earlier. Mos cicki and Beck were in virtual cus tody of Rumanian authorities who denied them permission to confer with other diplomats here. It was believed the Polish officials would leave shortly for Paris or London. Members of the Polish general staff also arrived and, together with Moscicki, Beck and other members )f the government, planned to leave for Bucharest later in the day. Army Tanks, Planes Surrender. Marshal Edward Smigly-Rydz. Polish Army commander, although expected here, had not arrived. The United States Ambassador to Poland, Anthony J. Drexel Biddle, jr., who came here last week, went to Bucharest last night. There was no immediate word here of two Americans, William Morton of the consular service and Rich ard Mowrer of the Chicago Dailj News, last reported in Zaleszczyki. (Ambassador Biddle will pro ceed to France, Secretary of State Hull said at his press conference today. There he will await or ders, but it is not yet decided whether an American Embassy to Poland will be set up in Paris. (The State Department, Secre tary Hull said, is at present cut off from communications with Warsaw, the beleagured Polish capital, and it has no immediate knowledge of the situation of our consuls assigned to Poland. How ever, the Secretary said the con suls were safe in Warsaw when he last heard from them.) Tanks, planes and artillery as wel as hundreds of Polish soldiers wer< said to have surrendered to the Rec army. More than 250 planes hac landed in Rumania, many of th< crewmen wounded. Privates an( non-commissioned officers weri taken to a camp, the officers to t concentration center near Bucharest Two planes of undetermined na tionality were reported to havi dropped incendiary bombs on Cris ceatec, Rumanian border town which already was suffering from i similar raid of last night when t sugar refinery was set fire. Eigh peasant homes were destroyed an< six persons were killed in the sec ond attack, advices reaching heri said. Four were killed by bombs at an other Rumanian border town—Kot ringeni—Rumanian dispatches re ported. Government May Go to London. Moscicki and Beck were reportei planning to take their governmen to London. Col. Beck was expected to notif; heads of diplomatic missions to hi country that their work was ended Plans after thatewere not imme diately disclosed. The Polish ofli cials have been informed they mus engage in no political activity whil in the country and arrange to leav as soon as possible. Archives of the Polish governmen were brought into Rumania yester day. Protests Nazi Bombing. Meanwhile, through Franklin Mot Gunther, American Minister to Ru mania, President Moscicki sent telegram to President Roosevelt pro

testing that German planes hai “bombarded methodically and witl premeditation” opdn towns in Polanc Latvia Confiscates 60 Polish War Planes RIGA, Latvia, Sept. 18 (£>).—Mor Ulan ou fousn warpmnes, many o them damaged in combat, were con fiscated and their crews lnternei when they arrived at Daugavplis air port here today. Polish citizens, including numer out officials, started crossing the bor der last night. Britain Will Loosen Gag on War Reporting By the Associated Press. LONDON, Sept. 18.—The ministr of information announced today th war cabinet had authorized greate freedom in the reporting of war new and that press comment was to b given more latitude. The worl press will be represented temporar ily at the Western front, until othe correspondents are authorized, b one man, A. G. Clifford, Reut* (British news agency) corresponden who worked formerly in Berlin an Spain. Lord Camrose, publisher of th Daily Telegraph,' has been name chief assistant to Lord MacMillai minister of information. /jv / Airplane May Obviate French War Impasse, British Officer Says Craft Can Cut Supply and Communication Lines, Making Dugout Untenable By THOMAS R. HENRY. Star Staff Correspondent. LONDON, Sept. 18—A nightmare of soldiers is that this war might settle down into a winter stalemate, with armies facing each other from muddy trenches—as occurred in the World War on the western front. It is a prospect which has been much discussed in British service journals, where what can be re vealed of the progress of military science is reported. There is little question in the minds of the military leaders of the desirability of a “war of movement." It has the possibility of decisive victories and perhaps a quick conclusion. But, when two ap : proximately equal forces “dig in,” there Is little to oe done dm wan, 1 with the inevitable bad effect on morale. Always the weaker side, in this case—with great odds—the Germans, i seeks to resort to trenches after ini 1 tial reverses. It enables it to hold on in the hope, if nothing more, that something will turn up. The stronger force can be stalemated for a time. This was a natural move in 1915 and 1916, and it might be the natural move today, military com mentators say, except for one thing —the airplane. Break Supply Lines, Then Trench warfare is impossible with out an adequate and efficient service of supplies. Trenches are untenable once communications are broken 1 with the rear. This may be. mili I tary experts believe, as revealed by ' their recent writings, the crucial element of the campaigns this fall. Thus, Maj. C. A. R. Swinnerton, writing in the August issue of the : Journal of the United Service In stitution says: , "The only weapon which seems to . offer us an opportunity of avoiding , the protracted agony of trench war fare is the airplane, which may bring a war to a rapid conclusion before the opposing land forces are really at grips. The achievement will de pend on two factors, interruption oi the enemy's communications, at the same time safeguarding our own and destruction of the enemy's air craft.” ! Both these objectives, he continues 1 (See HENRY, Page A-5.) :| WAR BULLETINS 5 BERLIN, Sept. 18 MP).—DNB, German official news agency, reported tonight the German t military effort to force War '■ saw to surrender had been : resumed after failure of Poles l to negotiate for withdrawal of the city’s inhabitants. It was not stated whether the beleaguered capital was being t shelled. i MOSCOW, Sept. 18 M5).— | Germany and Soviet Russia | gave what was interpreted as a strong hint of intentions to create a small Polish buffer state when their invading armies finish conquering ; Poland. A joint Soviet-Ger [ man communique was issued, declaring that the intention 1 of their armies was to help the Polish people “reconstruct conditions of their state existence.” CERNAUTI, Rumania, Sept. 18 (iP).—Maj. William H. Col bem, United States military attache, said today the com mander of a Soviet Russian l tank he encountered in Po 5 land told him the Russians jj were “against the Germans.” \ BUDAPEST, Sept. 18 UP).— Ungvar, official Hungarian r news agency, reported today V Polish refugees were “pour T ing” across the boundary into 1 Hungary. Refugees said sol diers also were fleeing for e safety. The government * agreed to accept civilians ang give them aid. U. S. Polish Attache Reported Overtaken By Soviet Troops By the Associated Press. BUDAPEST, Sept. 18. — The Hungarian Telegraph Agency carried a report today that Maj. William H. Colbern, United States military attache in Poland, was overtaken in his car by Soviet troops at Kolo myja, in Poland, near the Ru manian border. The report said Maj. Col bern's Polish chauffeur posed as a German and managed to proceed and reach the frontier. The major has been in the in terior of Poland in the role of military observer. He left the Polish capital with American diplomatic represent atives about 10 days ago. 61 Are Sen! fo Trial By Marine Board In Shipping Strike Labor Leader Demands All 500 on Seven Ships Be Called at Once Br the Associated Press. NEW YORK. Sept. 18.—Sixty-one seamen charged with disobeying j sailing orders in a strike for a war ; bonus went on trial today as sevenj United States vessels, scheduled to remove war-stranded Americans j from Europe, remained tied up at1 their piers. The trial by the Bureau of Ma j rine Inspection and Navigation j opened in confusion as Joseph Cur I ran, president of the National | Maritime Union, demanded that "all ! 500 seamen on the seven ships tied up in New York” be summoned for trial simultaneously. Capt. Karl Nielsen, chairman of the Trial Board, ruled that the 61, all members of the crew of the U. S. liner American Trader, should be tried jointly. To Mr. Curran's ques tion as to why the 61 had been se lected for trial when seven ships were tied up, Capt. Nielsen said it was because the United States Lines had made the “only full report” on the situation. Conference Set Today. Meanwhile, union leaders and ship owners planned to meet this afternoon to discuss modified union demands. The union announced it had re duced its war bonus demand from $250 to $150 and, pending action by the special session of Congress, had waived the demand for $25,000 war risk insurance. The Marine Office of America, marine insurance underwriters for a group of stock fire insurance com panies, announced today it would sell war-risk insurance up to $5,000 for sailors on American flag vdSsels. The firm said it was the first time in history an American company offered such insurance. The union had already expressed its hope the Government would take care' of them. Maritime men foresaw the possi Wi M11V1 IVUVtV/il MJ A ibOiUtUX Roosevelt If the four-day strike is not settled soon. The President could order the United States Mari time Commission to “requisition” the ships and operate them as Gov ernment vessels. The strike also spread to a ma jority of 69 British seamen brought here on the Aquitania to man two British oil tankers consigned to a British port. The British sailors demanded that their $36 a month wage be raised to the American scale of $78 a month, and that they get $5,000 war risk insurance each. French Remove Tvto Men From American Ship BOSTON, Sept. 18 MP).—Carrying 172 passengers, 40 more than her usual complement, the American export liner Exochorda arrived to day from Mediterranean ports with news that French authorities at Marseilles had seized two passen gers—one the German husband of an American citizen—for war-time internment. Capt. Wenzel Habel said one of two Germans removed was Joseph Wagner, 39, construction engineer for an oil firm. Mr. Wagner’s wife, a Memphis. Tex., resident, was not disturbed by the French. She sent radiograms to United States Am (See TRIAL, Page A-10.) }. C. School Bells Summon Thousands Back to Studies Beginners and Seniors Alike End Summer Vacation Period (Pictures on Page B-l.) With clockwork precision the Dis trict's public school system swunf into action today as thousands o children wound up their summe: vacation under sunny Septembe: skies. Out at Central, a typical higl school, returning students were con fronted with blackboards and bulle tin boards telling them where to re port, so that while the corridor hummed with vacation post mortem before 9 a.m„ the final bell quickl: emptied them into the adjoinin rooms for assignments. The faculty came in for a shar of comment, favorable and un favorable. “I don’t like that guy,” complaine one. “He looks right through you. Information desks were set up i: the hall outside the office and sev eral seniors wandered about oflerin help to any who appeared not quit sure what to do. The office counter were lined with eager questioner and there was standing room only i the small anteroom outside th principal's office. Dog Fails to Enroll. The one who really stole the shov however, was an unidentified Iris] terrier who tried about six times t enroll. The dog was ejected fron one entrance and then another, bu always reappeared and peered int classrooms until he finally trans ferred his interests to the activit; of a street cleaner out front. Tears were shed at some elemen tary schools as much because th youngsters could not enroll as fror fright at the first experience. At the Thomson School a mothe led a wet-eyed youngster out th door with the explanation, “Your too young.” But he still waved a: oversized cap pistol in vigorous pro test. “You’ll be all right, sonny,” sai another mother. “The only thin you'll have to watch is your con duct.” "What’s conduct, mommy?” cam back Sonny in tolerable Bab Snooks fashion. “Your behavior,” said momm shortly. There was no lack of bustle at th Franklin Administration Buildin either, although most of the em ployes will tell you that the wee before opening is worse than th opening day. The two telephone operators, how ever, had to work at top speed t take care of the flood of caljg to a parts of the building as parent wanted to know what schools to sen their children. A typical call came in to Sup! Frank W. Ballou's office. “Where do you live?” asked th clerk. “I know, but where in North east. The 1400 block of what stree though? Oh, well, he would go t the Hine junior mgn ai oevenui an C streets S.E..” Statistics Being Prepared. In the statistical office prepara tions were going ahead to prepar the first-day enrollment figure phoned in from the various schoe buildings. With no rain or othe unfavorable weather conditions ham Dering the registration, more tha pering tne registration, more man 80,000 ought to be signed up by the end of the day if last year’s first-day figures are any criterion. An unfortunate note in the open ing day history, however, was the need to set up a double shift of classes at the Garnet-Patterson Junior High School for colored pupils. It had been thought the new Banneker Junior High at Eighth and Euclid streets N.W. would be ready for the beginning of the new year, but delay in getting in the equipment on hand forced a tempo rary double schedule. When this was announced at the opening meeting of the Board of Education last week Col. West A. Hamilton, a colored member, criticized the failure to have the building ready. Principal John Paul Collins at Anacostia Junior-Senior High has also been forced by heavy enroll ments to continue a staggered shift whereby the higher grades come in a half hour early and the lower grades at 10:30 a.m. Land has been j purchased for a new Junior high nearby to relieve the congestion, I (See SCHOOLS, Page A-10.) lUVUlilTimV) Ull vupiiui Aiiii f Vlib Associated Press reported that (See NEUTRALITY, Page A-3.) Carmody Will Explain Federal Reorganization John M. Carmody, adminis trator of the new Federal Works Agency, will be the guest speaker tonight on the National Radio Forum over WMAL at 9:30 o’clock. Mr. Carmody will explain the consolidation of various agencies under the Reorgani zation Act and describe how these agencies are function ing. The subject of his speech is “Unified Federal Works Program.” The National Radio Forum is arranged by The Star and is heard over a coast-to-coast network of the National Broadcasting Co. Landon, Knox Asked to Parley At White House Will Attend Meeting On Foreign Policy Wednesday By JOHN C. HENRY. Alf M. Landon and Col. Frank Knox, titular heads of the Repub lican party, will participate in the bipartisan White House conference on foreign policy and emergency legislation scheduled for Wednesday afternoon, it was announced today at the White House. The invitation to Mr. Landon and Col. Knox was extended by Presi dent Roosevelt in personal tele phone calls to the two men last night. Their acceptance was imme diate, it was said. Summoned to chart as nearly as possible the legislative course of the special session of Congress conven ing on Thursday, the conference will be attended by Mr. Roosevelt, Vice President Gamer. Secretary of State Hull, Speaker Bankhead, Senate Majority Leader Barkley, House Ma jority Leader Rayburn, Senate Mi nority Leader McNary, House Mi nority Leader Martin. Chairman Pittman of the Senate Foreign Re lations Committee. Chairman Bloom of the House Foreign Affairs Com mittee, Assistant Majority Leader Minton and Assistant Minority Leader Austin, both of the Senate; Senator Byrnes. Democrat, of South Carolina, and Representative Mapes, Republican, of Michigan. The addi tion of Mr. Landon and Col. Knox today brings the list to 16 in number. No Governmental Coalition. Remarking that the President is "very happy” at the acceptance of the Republicans who headed the party's presidential ticket in 1936, Stephen T. Early, presidential secre tary. denied the action presages for mation of any governmental coali tion or bi-partisan advisory group. Actually, Mr. Early said, those in ; vited are “national leaders" without .; regard to party or politics. To . stress this angle he cited a para graph of the President’s radio ad [ dress of two weeks ago in which he ' tdiicu lin nauuuai uimj niwi au . j adjournment of partisanship and . | selfishness. ’ ; The invitation to Representative ? Mapes also was a development of ’ the last 24 hours, his name not be , ing in the original list of those in ’ i vited Mr. Mapes is ranking Re , publican member of the House ' | Rules and Insterstate Commerce I Committees and is a close adviser of j Minority Leader Martin in the ,, House. He is known to be particu 1 larly interested in problems of inter national communications. ; Hoover Not Invited. ; Asked why an invitation had not 5 been extended also to former Presi 5 dent Herbert Hoover, Mr. Early re l plied only that Mr. Landon and » Col. Knox are titular heads of the Republican Party. Although Senator Byrnes Is not a member of the Foreign Relations , Committee it was indicated that i he wTas included in the conference ) list because of his acknowledged l skill at handling important legis t lation. ) The meeting is to be held at 3 - pm. Wednesday. r With Congress due to convene at noon Thursday, Mr. Early said the - President still has not yet begun ; the actual drafting of his message l to the legislators. Neither has it ; been decided whether he will pre r; sent it in person or have it read ; ' for him. “ Mr. Roosevelt planned to lunch i today with Secretary of Treasury - ; Morgenthau. Earlier he was to see Chairman Fly of the Federal Com 1 munications Commission and also l Donald Richberg, attorney for - American Oil companies seeking ad justment of expropriation damages ; in Mexico. f As the precise shaping of our future policy toward the European y war seemed to be pending the Presi dent's message and the action of b the special session, the Government ; I took steps today to prevent the - 1 fraudulent registration of bellie»rent s ships under the American ag, a e device which in effect wov’ oe un neutral conduct. Warning to Collectors. 3 The action was taken by the De 1 partment of Commerce in a warning s to collectors and deputy collectors of 1 customs to scrutinize thoroughly any asserted sale of a foreign-owned ship to American interests. Any clause in a sales contract by which the seller 2 would be permitted to repurchase the - vessels would be sufficient for refusal t of American registration, the de 3 partment said. i In addition, it was pointed out that Federal law provides for forfeiture of a vessel if her documents are ob _ tained or used fraudulently. e The warning was prompted by the s possibility that belligerent countries ,1 might seek to escape opposing block r ades through fraudulent identifica . tion of ships as American-owned. _tti 11 iu .