Gold That Glitters

General Douglas MacArthur gets a copy every morning with his coffee. When his headquarters are in New Guinea, he grants Guinea Gold special permission to print his communiques 20 hours before any other newspaper, anywhere. He and some 30,000 other readers in the New Guinea battle area think Guinea Gold is the greatest army newspaper in the world.

Tiny (letter-size) four page Guinea Gold is a newspaper in the most literal sense. It is rarely illustrated, never runs "pin-ups." Its readers, polled several months ago, thumbed down such gewgaws. They voted for war news first, political news from home second, educational features third. There are a few standard informational sections (movie schedules, lost & found, etc.). The rest of Guinea Gold is packed, seven days a week, with more than 100 solid news nuggets, many filched from short-wave broadcasts.

An Idea, a New Major. Australian Newsman Reg B. Leonard launched Guinea Gold in his spare time while covering the New Guinea campaign for the Melbourne Herald. It made such a hit with Allied troops that Australian General Thomas A. Blarney arranged for Correspondent Leonard's transfer to the Australian Army, gave him a major's rank and a full-time (15-hours-a-day) job.

At first Guinea Gold was published only at Port Moresby, on creaky linotypes and antiquated flat-bed presses. A month ago a branch was set up at Dobadura, near Oro Bay. Copies are distributed by jeep and mail where feasible, are dropped from planes to forward troops and isolated outposts. Printing and distribution troubles are tremendous and frequent.

Twice Guinea Gold ran out of newsprint. The first time Editor Leonard scrounged some ghastly yellow paper, printed a limited edition on it. Next time he uncovered a batch of glossy art paper, for a week published luxury issues.

Dry Font, Ready Knife. Frequently there is not enough type to go round. In September the supply of "I"s ran out during composition of ARMISTICE SIGNED BY ITALIANS. A native Papuan printer chiseled some out of wood. Another time there were not enough "R"s. Editor Leonard gave capital "P"s tails cut from "L"s.

In its first year Guinea Gold had five extras. The headlines: ALLIED FORCES TAKE TUNIS AND BIZERTE, ALLIED FORCES LAND IN SICILY, MUSSOLINI RESIGNS, ITALY SURRENDERS, AUSTRALIAN TROOPS CAPTURE LAE.

On its first birthday last week came a back-pat for Editor Leonard's paper. Said Reader MacArthur: "News and informationon current events are the very breath of modern existence. To the combat soldier they are as necessary as bread and bullets."

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