Evening star., 1940-01-27
Trapped Reds
Abandon Arms
In Flight

Much War Material
Reported Captured
North Of Lodogo
JAPAN DISSATISFIED with Brit
ish reply on seizure of Germans;
demands points in note be recon-
sidered. Page A.;
VESSEL OPERATED BY AMER
ICAN FIRM is torpedoed; Nor
wegian steamer Songa sunk by
submarine; crew of Is safe.
Page A-3
EX-KAISER'S 81st BIRTHDAY
observance clouded by Europe's
new war: usual celebration miss
ing; visitors are few. Page A-3
END OF U. S. TREATY won't alter
program in China, says Japan's
Army, frankly discussing war with
America. Page Al
By the Associated Press.
HELSINKI, Jan. PA crushing
Russian defeat northeast of Lake
Lagoda with the capture of huge
quantities of tanks and other war
material by the Firms was reported
today by unofficial Finnish sources.
These reports said the Russians,
desperately trying to escape from
an icy trap into which the Finnish
generals had led them, had aban-
doned hundreds of tanks, armored
cars, motorized anti-aircraft guns
and other artillery.
More Red Army material was said
to have been destroyed.
Few Believed to Have Escaped.
How many Russian soldiers froze
to death, were killed or died of
starvation still was unclear, the
Firms said, but the belief here was
that only fraction of four divisions
engaged in long-draWn battle in
that area had succeeded in escaping.
Tonight's army communique was
terse and noncommittal, saying only
that attacks at various points north
east of Lake Ladoga had been re-
pulsed and some of the attacking
detachments were dispersed in en-
tirety."
Numerous automatic weapons of
various types came into our hands"
1t added.
On the sea the high command re-
ported a Russian submarine had
been destroyed.
Previous unofficial Finnish re-
ports on the fighting above Lake
Ladoga had indicated two trapped
Soviet divisions might be beyond
help while crisis was expected
momentarily for two others.
Text of Communique.
The text of the communique fol-
lows:
"Land-On the CKarelian) isthmus
January rs passed relatively quietly.
Our artillery silenced certain enemy
batteries and front line weapons.
In patrol skirmishes our troops took
one officer and II men prisoners.
Northeast of Lake Ladoga the
enemy attacked at various points,
but was repulsed with heavy losses.
Some of the attacking detachments
were dispersed in entirety Numer-
GUS automatic weapons of various
types fell into our hands. On other
sections of the front successful work
was done by our patrols.
"Sea-An enemy submarine was
destroyed a few days ago in our
mine field. On the f1anks of the
land front our coastal batteries con-
tinued to give effective support to
operations of our land forces.
"Air-On January 26 enemy air
raids took place in North Finland,
where Ivalo, Savukoski, Kuusamo
and Valtimo were bombed. Ac-
cording to reports so far one woman
was killed in these raids. During
the day three enemy planes were
shot down."
Benefited by the coldest winter
in go years, the Finnish forces have
launched attack after attack at Kol-
laanjoki and at Aittojoki, near the
Russian border north of the lake.
The Films said the Russian
troops at Aittojoki were the rem
nants of forces scattered in battles
at Aglajarvi and Tolvajarvi. An
other Soviet division was reported
battering vainly at the Finnish
lines at Kollaanjoki in attempts to
relieve comrades in two other di-
visions cahght too far from their
base in the region of Kitela, on the
north shore of Lake Ladoga.
The Finnish command reported
the Soviet dead were counted in
the hundreds" after a week-long
Russian assault on Finnish fortifi-
cations on the eastern shores of
Lake Ladoga. The Firms said their
fronts were everywhere retained"
Red Artillery Quiet.
A sudden hush of Russian artil-
1ery north of the Arctic Circle led
the Firms to believe the enemy was
moving back in preparation for
stand at the central Soviet base in
the Salla sector.
The Firms said they believed a re-
cent letup in air raids indicated the
Russians were experiencing difficult
ties in transporting bombs and gas
oline to their Estonian naval bases.
An official statement yesterday
said such activity was relatively
weak" and limited to Northern Fin
land, where about 14O bombs were
dropped on eight communities. One