The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-07-16

(Ook1fnk1JGQ rom .R8@S lJ the Germans had aain paused for breath after meeting stubborn re- sistance at all points.
 The coRnmuniQue said that on fronts other than those of Leningrad and Moscow there were no large scale operations during the night and there had been no changes of con- sequence in the relative position Ot troops.
 Today's first communique had re- ported that both Germans and Rts- sians were suffering heavily In casu- alties on the Moscow front where great battle was raging.
 Red Air Fleet Busy
 The high command reported that the Red air fleet carried out at- tacks throughout the night upon German motorized and Inechanized columns and renewed their bombard- ment of the ploesti oil fields, causing great fires to break out in the Ru- 1nanian oil area. L
 The communique reported that l4 of Q group of IS German tanks were destroyed when they attempted to cross 0 narrow dike bisecting Q swamp which was defended by ca- rnaufiaged Russian artillery bat- teries under command of Captain OsolSin.
 The Russian artillery held its fire until the tanks had mounted the dike, then opened up with 6 hail of shells which destroyed all but four German machines, the coEnmuniQue said.
 Tn the Porkhov sector, Rus- sian troops surrounded German tank and motorized infantry and artillery, the coHnmunique asserted, and de- stroyed them section by section.
 The Russians captured . consider able quantity of tanks, motor cars and various sorts of weapons and forced the remnants back westward,
 Porkhov Is 4 miles east of Pskov and i50 miles south of Leningrad.
 On the Moscow front, in the direc- ton of Vitebsk, a fierce fight is be- ing waged in which big German tank and motorized infantry Enasses sought vainly throughout yesterday to break through toward the east, vitebsk is 285 miles west-southwest of Moscow.
 StubbOrnIy Resist
 On the Ukrainian front, in the dl- rection of NovoSrad Volynsk, the communique reported the Russians stubbornly resisting the attempts of German infantry masses to break through to the east to join the ad- vance tank spearheads, and 1t was asserted that the German tanks were now in Q difficult situation, cut of from the main German forces.
 Novograd Volynsk is 142 miles west of Kiev. Though the coEnmunique made 1t plain that German tank forces were considerably to the east of 1t, military reports implied that despite German claims, there had been little real change Of this front in the last two weeks.
 Yesterday Russian planes bombed and machine gunned German tanks and motorized infantry and artillery. raided German airdromes, and bombed the Ploesti oil fields, supply depots at sulina and transports of Tulcea, Rumaria, the communiqne reported. Sulina and Tulcea are ports at the mouth of the Danube river.
 Russian trawlers in the Gulf ot Finland saw Q German submarine explode after striking mines, the communique said. A Russian de- stroyer, attacked by German planes in the Gulf of Riga, brought down two German planes with antl-air- craft guns, it was added, and two Russian, flying boats, attacked by four German fighter planes, brought down two of the German craft. one Russian plane was down but its crew were rescued, it was said.
 Surprise Attack
 The conmunique said that in c sector 1t designated as TX" Russian troops made Q surprise attack, de" stroyed two German infantry bat- talions (about 1000 nen) and took 320 German soldiers and ofncers prisoner.
 Tn this fight the Russians took six anti-tank guns, four trench mOr- tars, l2 motorcycles, wireless installa. tons and a quantity of ammunition, 1t was said.
 Search of the German prisoners, the communique said, showed that their kits were filled with vaiuables stolen from Russian villages. Non. Commissioned O11icer Otto Oppel had eight gold and silver watches, l2 wedding rnigs and various silver church. utensils. 1t was charged.