The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-09-30

The War On
Many Fronts
b. United Press

The American Fifth Army drove
hard for Naples today through last
ditch German shellflre and demoli-
tions as Gen. Sir Bernard L. Mont
gomery's Eighth Army took q az
mile stride to capture the east coast
italian port Of Manfredonia.
Advancing five miles along lines
now showed deep into the Naples
plain, Fifth Army troops were only
II miles outside Italy's third largest
city.
The ancient ruins of Pompeil, 10
miles from Naples, fell and Allied
artillery was blasting Tore Annur1-
ziata, on the bay of Naples, beyond
Pompeii.
AS the enemy retreat continued,
only German demolitions hampered
the Allied advance. There was no
confirmation Of a Swiss report that
Fifth Army troops had entered the
Naples suburbs.
The Eighth Army troops showed
rortheastward from Foggia to take
Manfredonia, thus completing q new
line across the peninsula and in
creasing the threat to fold the Ger
man defenses against the western
side Of the peninsula by q quick
leap forward while the enemy pulls
slowly from the Naples area.
The Nazis gave indirect contirma-
ton that Naples was q torn and
ravaged wreck. Berlin radio reports
said 1t had to be put down by harsh
told Of Communist uprising In the
city and the German high command
measures. Harbor facilities, Berlin
said, were wrecked to prevent any
Allied landing In connection with
the internal difficulties.
Heavy Battles
Heavy battles on the Russian
front centered at the approaches
TO Gomel, important White Russian
railroad junction, and along the
banks Of the Dnieper river at Kiev
far to the south, where major
Russian lunge across the stream APP
peared in progress.
The Swedish press said that Adolf
Hitler had journeyed to the Soviet
front to see his disorganized and
retreating troops, telling them
fatty that the Dnieper must be held
as the last natural defense line be-
tween the armies.
The Russian efforts seemed to be
keyed to the determination the
Dneiper line would. be preached,
Soviet troops had won an island in
the river before Kiev and squarely
under German guns. Gomel was
partially flanked and the Russian
army newspaper Red Star said the
Germans were bringing up REIN
forcements trying to prevent Its
capture and collapse Of the defense
lines in the area.
Russian troops were streaming
through the Smolensk gateway,
north Of Gomel, and bidding to
keep the Germans on the run towarc
the Polish border. German reports
limited that autumn rains had begur
/ to impede the action In some areas
Air Offensive
The air offensive against Germany
found Britain's fleets Of giant bomb.
ers returning to the devastated Ruth
to plaster block-buster explosives or
the arms center at Bochurn, losing
only eight planes and laying trails
Of wreckage through giant steel and
chemical works.
The RATS September bomb tom
mage so far totaled only $4,000, far
below last months, because Of ad-
verse weather.
The small but vital Jugoslaviar
battlefront had developed into the
first penetration Of reich territory
A communique from the partisan
army Of Gen. Josip (Tito) Brozo-
vich said several thousand Of his
tropS had crossed the old Austrian
Jugoslavia frontier, raided Nazi
railroads and were still holding out
against German frontier units. Loss
of Split, important Dalmatian port,
was acknowledged. It had been the
object of a 15-day German seige.
In the Pacific, an American Lib
orator bombing raid appeared to
have completed wrecking the Japa-
nese base at Wewak, New Guinea.
Gen. Douglas MacArthurs COM
munique said the big bombers had
unloaded las tons Of bombs on
Wewak in the third straight at Ack
there this week and exploded o
huge munitions dump.
II Fighters Downed
The raid was made Tuesday and
eight of II enemy fighters were shot
down out of a force that tried
futilely to intercept.
Down the New Guinea coast, Aus
tralian troops gained yard by yard
in q bitter fight against the final
defenses before Finschhafen and a
supporting force was coming up to-
ward the base from a point is miles
to the south to cmplete its invest
ment.
Any chance of reinforcement by
49, TaNauaeo moe EVapnlyad OlIt nv q