The Waterbury Democrat., 1940-04-30

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 town of 0odvalen, on an arm of the Sognefjord.
 Situation Reversed
 In the Namsos area, north of Trondheim, Allied troops were re- ported to be holding their positions as of yesterday, north of Steinkjer, and dispatches which reached here indicated that at present there was only patrol activity, with the Ger man and Allied lines more or less stabilized.
 Allied troops at Narvik, in the far north, has been reinforced and are closing in on the German-held town, 1t was said. Ore company prop erty at Namsos was reported afire, and 1t was suggested that either the Germans had set fire to wharveS and buildings or that Allied she'll ing had started the fires.
 A military informant, summing up the situation in Norway, said:
 Things are going well at Narvik, the situation is stationary and in hand at NamsoS and the situation is difficult at Dombaas."
 Allied troops and equipment were reported arriving in Norway now in an almost continuous stream, and hope rose that even yet the Ger mans might be prevented from join- ing effectively their forces from the south with those at Trondheim.
 Forced to New Route
 Reports that the Germans were now seeking to drive westward from the Oester valley were taken here to mean that their advance north of Roeros had been stopped and that they had been compelled to seek new route for their march northward-a route along which the Allies were increasingly strong.
 Reports of an improved Allied position came as members of the House of Commons prepared to question Oliver Stanley, war secre- tary, on the steps he was taking to get endorsements to Norway and to equip properly the Allied forces already there.
 Military experts who had been commenting pessimistically on the situation in Norway seemed now to incline toward the view that the Allies were becoming stronger al- most hourly and that the Germans were extending their communica- tion lines to the danger point.
 oHroiffnI1v1 Uyoc ron0occo1.xy fNr the Allies to get 8 larger number of airplanes to Norway and pro- vide them with suitable bases. Ex- perts held that Allied troops would be almost hopelessly handicapped unless they were given effective pro- lection against German bombing planes. sItswas understood that Royal Air Force staff experts now had arrived in Norway to direct airplane strategy and tactics.
 The war office in a special state- ment said:
 "The statement that the British commander at Namsos has been superseded by a French commander is untrue! The statement that our men Gin Norway are untrained and without reserves is nonsense. Exaggerated statements and reports have been based on conversations with a soldier influenced by his personal experience during the heat of battle and without knowledge of the situation as a whole"
 Naval quarters estimated that 28 German transports and supply ships had been sunk by the Allies since Germany invaded Norway. These were in addition to the German supply ship Maine, which was scut- tied; one which was set afire and ten which were said to have been struck by torpedoes and prob ably sunk. It was believed here that in addition, some German ships en route to Norway had been sunk by mines in the Kattegat and the Skagerrak.