The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-03-09
ROMMEL'S ATTACK
 FUTILE ENDEAVOR
British Positions at Mareth Line Undented After Nine
 Hours of Fighting
Nv NED RIISSELL

United Press stan COFrespondent)
 With the British Eighth Army Facing the Mareth Line, March 6--' (UP)-(Deiayed) - Marshal Erwin Rommel hurled many tanks, heavy artillery, planes and infantry against the Eighth Army In Q full-seale as. sault at dawn tdoay, but after nine hours of fierce fighting British poe sitlons were still undented,
 The attack was regarded as Q desperate effort to disrupt Gen. Sir Bernard l.. Montgomery'S plans for 0 final assault against tho Mareth line and the Gabes bottleneck. Ron- mel's Afrika Korps is battertng Montgomery's defenses along the whole front, which Is crainmed with hundreds of Nnti-tank guns.
 I stood on Q slope overlooking most of the S0-mile front and saw Q few German tanks blazing In the sandy, flat no-InAn'S land where they had tried to penetrate the cer- ter of the British lino under cover of c violent artillery bayTage.
 In the distance, squadron after squadron of American and British fighters and low.level homborB bombed and shot up Axis positions.
 RomInel opened his attack tot c Q. m. with an artillery barrage which was centered then on the British right flank IS miles northwest of Medenine. Minute after minute the thunder deepened, as Axis big guns hidden in tho foothills worked down tho southern flank of the British arc west of Medenine.
 At 2 Q. rn., 0 force of tanks came out of ArraTn, four miles southeast of the town of Mareth and were met with Q withering fire from British artillery and Rnti.tank guns.
 About the same time, alarger force of tanks pushed forward from the foothills in the direction of Toujane, AS) miles west of Medenine, while another force, including at least six Mark VI "Tigers" (S0 to 60 ton monsters) began an attack against the southern sector from the direc. ton of Kreddage, 20 miles south. west of Medenine.
 The British were puzzled at the start of the three- -pronged drive, be- cause 1t Is not Rommels habit to disperse his tank strength, especial ly when he has too little. But 1t soon became clear that the main attack was aimed at the center, when two formations of tanks join cd forces for drive across the flat battlefront.
 Thick low clouds hung over the battlefield. Veteran anti-tank gum ners held their fire until the tanks in the south were 300 yards from their sights. Then they opened ur and knocked out five.
 The tanks. which were feeling their way along bumped into 6 British minefield and turned nortt to join the center force, where British gunners set ii on fire.
 Two columns of tanks had ap' preached British forward positions in a long, single file, one tank about 100 yards behind another. They churned up clouds of dust in thC early morning haze.
 Up to midday, British tanks hat not been thrown into action. Btu many, including American-madt General Sherman were poised be. hind the guns, waiting to roar ou' if the Germans cracked the line.
 After the initial tank drives, the battle developed into a violent due between long-range artillery, witt each side trying to knock out the others batteries and wreck road' behind the front.
 German shells crashed all along the front with a ceaseless roar British guns cracked back, but the British guns aimed mainly at Ger. man defenses, because the British were interested only in breaking the attack. The British time to attack will come later.
 As the artillery duel grew in in- tensity, the German air force en- tered the battle. gliding through thick shafts of anti-aircraft fire but all the time Royal Air Force and American army planes seemed to be making four attacks to the German air forces one. American Kittyh- hawks swoped dangeroulsy low over German gun emplacements to ms load cargoes of light bombs.