Evening star., 1940-01-28
MAP on Page ABB

AVA NP Wv = wy a. ASy
By the Associated Press.
HELSlNKI, Jan. 27-The beaten
fragments of four Soviet divisions,
once 10000 strong, were reported by
Finnish couriers tonight to be scat
tered in headlong flight after strew-
ing the SHOWS and icelocked, lakes
and rivers with thousands of dead
and wounded.
The casualties end heaps of
abandoned war materials were the
price paid in a futile endeavor to
outflank the Mannerhei milne, to
cut behind it by encircling the
frozen suores of Lake Ladoga.
When the whole story is told, the
Firms saidr it will show the worst
disaster of the Russian invasion.
Offensive Declared Broken.
The nightly Finnish communique
was tersely non -committal on the
extent of the victory. but military
reports from the front indicated the
backbone of the Russian offensive
north of Lake Ladoga had been
smashed despite elaborate advance
preparations and a week of constant
day and night assaults.
These reports said the Russians,
attempting at point after point to
break through the Finnish lines,
had been led into death trap.
Moving sluggishly, the Red army
columns were caught in a whitening
cross-flre that broke their communi-
cations, smashed supply lines. pre-
vented the arrival of reinforcements
and took a terrible toll.
Finnish light artillery, machine
guns and automatic rifles wrought
almost unbelievable destruction in
the waves of solidly packed Soviet
infantry.
Foreign observers said the fact
the Russians failed to outf1ank the
Mannerheim Line indicated surpris-
ing strength in the Finnish mobile
defense.
Tonight's army communique re-
ported merely that attacks at various
points northeast of Lake Ladoga had
been "repulsed with heavy losses"
and that some of the attacking
detachmentS were dispersed in en-
tirety" The communique also an
nounced capture of numerous auto
matte weapons"
Unofiicial sources. however, said
the communique was a cautious un-
derstatement. Hundreds of tanks,
armored cars and motorized anti
aircraft weapons were reported to
have fallen into the hands of the
Firms as the Russians fell back.
Some sources estimated the Soviet
dead at 5000.
These sources said at least three
or four men were wounded to every
one killed. which would bring the
total Russian casualties to approx
mately 10000.
Excitement High in Helsinki.
Excitement ran high in Helsinki
as news of the fighting filtered in
from the front. The capital had
been stirred for several days by re-
ports that two Russian divisions had
been trapped north of Lake Ladoga
and that two others were in a
critical position.
On the Karelian Isthmus to the
south, where the Firms have held
the Mannerheim Line against. re-
peated Russian assaults, there were
only artillery exchanges and patrol
clashes.
Yesterday, the communique said,
Finnish artillery silenced certain
enemy batteries and front line
weapons" while patrol captured
one Russian officer and II men.
The Finnish communique also
announced that a Russian subma-
rine had been destroyed several days
ago in Finnish mine field.
The Russian air force was active
again yesterday in Northern Fin
land, bombing Ivalo, Savukoski,
Kuusamo and Valtimo
One woman was killed in the
raids and three Soviet warplanes
were shot down, the communique
said