Evening star., 1940-06-02
On Fighting Fronts

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On Fighting Fronts
AS week began, most vicious fighting
was under way in Boulogne- Calais areas,
with hard-hitting Nazi divisions sweep
ing up Channel coast from Abbeville
Back at Arras- -Bapaume- -Peronne angle,
French and British were trying futilely
to cut 20-mile corridor through which
German supplies and reinforcements had
been pouring since initial break in Allied
line. To north. Belgians held stubbornly
to Courtrai, British were atop Vimy,
French were maintaining salient near
Valenciennes.
But with momentum scarcely checked,
Germans swirled through Boulogne then
up coastline to picturesque Calais Eng
lands gateway to continent. Not unex-
pectedly, Berlin n-Paris-London accounts
differed daily, but invariably Nazi claims
of successes were acknowledged within
4S hours by Allied capitals.
BY this formula it was definite by mid
week that Boulogne had fallen, that
Calais at best was cut off
Foil OF completely, that Dunker-
BouIoone que was threatened. On
Somme 'front.' massed
French forces admitted no progress in
thrust at Nazi bottleneck, although
Allied artillery was reported raking en-
tire corridor at heavy cost to German
columns.
And as Nazis broke across Lys River to
capture first Ghent, then Courtrai, Allied
units in deepest part of pocket, around
ValencienneS, were assaulted with fierce
ness said to surpass that of massed Ger
man attacks on Verdun in World War.
With heavy losses to both sides, French
drew back toward industrial city of Lille,
while British made stand on Vimy
Ridge, where B. E. F. of Is years ago
made history by courageous resistance
to Kaisers armies
In Tightening triangle early in week
were nearly 100000 Belgian-British-
French troops, but early Tuesday came
most damaging blow to Allied cause
since hostilities began last September.
Startling rest of world, even though
apparently anticipated by British
French leadership, Bel
leopolds gums King Leopold or
Surrender dered his army to cease
fighting To Allies action
meant loss of at least 250,00O men on
north side of pocket-unopposed sweep
of German legions through zeebrugge,
Ostend and Belgian corner.
From that time, French British. hopes
of breaking through to south or even
holding last stretch of continent facing
Southeastern England melted before
heat of Nazi drive. Blasting defenders
out of Vimy and Labassee, Germans
pinched toward Lille from two sides in
threat to complete encirclement of Allied
troops caught within apex of triangle
YEARLY then, rear-guard action was
started down ever narrowing bloody cor
ridor to Dunkerque.
For lives of at least 100000 fighting
men, both sides poured forth utmost in
ath-dealing powers.
Retreat From Nazi lines pressing
In Flanders on both sides Of salient
came vicious quick
thrusts of tanks and mechanical corps,
armadas of bombing and machine-gun-
ming airplanes estimated to number as
high as 600 in single attacking squadron
Steadily, they poured death and de-
struction into retreating forces, blasted
at docks and debarkation piers in Dun
kerque, loosed incendiary and high ex-
plosive bombs on transports, on troop
and hospital ships attempting to bridge
Channel. Effective, too, were dozens of
high-speed little torpedo boats of Ger
man fleet slipping down Nazi-controlled
Dutch coast to snap at bigger British
ships.
For their part, Royal Air Force and
British French vessels braved blizzard"
of bombs and Nazi fire to keep port clear
and debarkation under way. Without
denial from Berlin, toll of German
planes must have been in hundreds while
British in turn admitted or accepted
without comment Nazi claims of de-
struction of 16 troopships within single
48-hour span plus loss of miscellaneous
warships by bombs or mines.
On Thursday, Dunkerque defenders
opened moats on two sides of city to
permit nearly -mile-wide stretch of
muddy water to swirl around city-leav-
ing only two or three tightly guarded
approaches clear for continuing process
sion of retreating troops.
On Friday, London communiques an
nounced that 10000 French and British
had been evacuated from
Eurtoin Flanders up to that time,
OF Fire with precedence given
wounded. Concentration of
British naval vessels and r. A. F. fight
ers, it was said, had created wall of
fire" behind which rescue transport was
proceeding successfully.
While Nazi planes and artillery poured
explosives into seaport city, British and
French naval vessels actually were en-
gagged in bombarding German land bat
teries during hasty loading of fleeing
troops. Amid this exchange of destruc-
ton, fishing boats, Channel steamers,
barges under tow and virtually every
kind of vessel was being employed to
ferry retreating army across to Eng
land.
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