Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-09-21
Nazis Sapping
Strength at
StaIingrad
Air Punches at Britain
Feeble and Blind
BY PAUL MALLON

WASHINGTON, Sept. 2l.-
w Hitler SKINNED the last OF
the cream of his military
strength for the conquest of
Stalingrad. What he produced
there, therefore. offers a worth
while estimate OF what power he
has left.
He used about 100000 men in
the drive. The Russian press
sometimes thought the Reds
were facing a million. but their
latest count would be around
half that sum.
These were not used oil at the
same time. Flying wedges of
about $4,000 troops manned the
front attacking lines. They were
withdrawn every few days for a
rest and another $4,000 replaced
them.
Not more than a million NaZi
troops are strung along the vast
expanses of the rest of the front
line, from the Arctic to the
Caucasus.
THE best troops were. of
Il course, called in to the Stall
ingrad front and the million
holding the other sections of the
line represent what was left,
some being newly trained, some
Italians, Rumanians and Firms,
who have been practicing for
months under German supervi-
sion.
About 100000 italian troops
have been retrained by the Ger
mans. Yet these are still about
the worst of the lot. The Firms
and Rumanians are much more
highly regarded.
Behind this front line are
about a million men in what
might be called the third class
troops, the reserves to relieve
the front lines.
On the only other Nazi fight
ing line. in Libya, .Rommel has
never had more than 1000,
including Italians, although pub
lished reports of his strength
sometimes exaggerated this fig
ure by so per cent or more.
GO YOU see the total German
~ military machine now in this
third year of the war is not the
same vast, efficient striking
force which went spinning
through Poland, Belgium, Hol-
land and France,
In actual fighting power. 1t
seems TO number only little
over 2,500,000, of which the So
600 facing Stalingrad can still be
classified as crack troops land
these have been rapidly used up.)
While the NaZis still talk
about their army of 5000, 900 or
100000 men, about three
fourths of this Wanted strength
represents fourth-class troops
doing police duty in occupied
regions. This fourth class in
cludes many soldiers who have
recovered from wounds, the very
young. the unframed, and the
over age.
At STALINGRAD. Hitler also
"A produced about $500 planes,
representing practically all his
remaining air striking power. 1t
is still a good air force, but far
from the 5000 planes Goering
used to brag about.
Shortage of pilots, as well as
materials. British bombings, and
sabotage probably have cut Hit
ler's air arm to this extent.
Pilots cannot be made in day,
or a year, and the training which
gave the original air force a
superior efficiency will never be
possible again during this war.
We have been fooled too often
by reports and expectations of
German disintegration to relax
our efforts even in the face of
these encouraging trustworthy
figures.
But they show that the war
is not necessarily being lost by
us on that front. They remove
cause for Encouragement.
TNHE British have been putting
Il out a sentence or two every
night about German bombing
raids on Britain, finally announc-
ing a few days back that 400
civilians had been killed in the
last month during these raids.
These nightly Nazi forays
seem to-have no military objec-
tive. They are not aimed at in
dustrial centers or munitions
works and. apparently, have no
continuing plan.
About Is or 20 German bomb
crs come over and hit a town,
generally a point near the coast.
For a while they concentrated on
cathedral cities and those of |
purely historical value. Most of |
the British 400 casualties were
suffered in one town one night.
The Germans are merely |
feebly and blindly punching at
nonmilitary British detectives
to keep as many British planes
as possible at home at night, and
away from continental raids.
The weakness of the effort Is