The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1943-01-28
British Drop Hundreds Of
Tons of Bombs on Dues
seIdOrf Center
RAID AFTERMATH OF
CASABLANCA FARLEY
Americans Miss Chance Il
Bomb Large German
Fleet By Fluke

London, January %. -
(UP) - Adolf Hitler, faced
by disaster in Russia, has
abandoned attempts to di-
rect the war by his own in
tuition and has turned back
the direction of military af-
fairs to his generals, reports
from the French frontier
said today. The German
general staff, removed from
control of military affairs
after the German retreat from
Moscow last winter, once again is
making all the decisions, 1t was
said. At present, all the energies
Of Germany's professional soldiers
are concentrated on saving some-
thing from the disastrous Russian
campaign.
Among the decisions already taken
by the general staff, 1t was said, was
a plan for retreat to 750-mile
defense line in Russia that would
be based on Kursk, thence run
southwark through Kharkov and
have its southern end anchored on
Sevastopol in Crimea.
The reports said some military
men in Germany felt that Hitler
had waited too long to abandon In
tuition as means Of waging war,
and there was reported to be con-
siderable pessinism about the abil-
ity of the general staff to extri-
cate the Germany army from the
difficulties into which Hitler had
plunged 1t.
Earlier reports had said that the
defeat at Stalingrad was the factor
that finally convinced Hitler that
he had better leave the conduct
Of the war to men who had devoted
their lives to military problems,
Hitler and a small group Of Nazi
officials insisted on keeping the
German in front Of Stalingrad until
well into the winter, giving the Rus
slams time to launch their counter
offensive.
The prolonged siege Of Stalingrad,
1t was said, was conducted against
the advice Of some of Germany's
ablest generals who urged a retreat
to gain time to regroup and re-
equip the German armies for spring.
Commute Raid
London, Jan. 29-(UP)-- British
heavy bombers attacked western
Germany during the night. drop
ping hundreds Of tons of high ex.
plosives in q Commute raid on the
Nazi industrial center Of Duessel'
dorf.
The raid, q new Allied air often.
sive, implementing the Casablanca
decision to hammer the Axis into
unconditional surrender, was the
51st upon Dusseldorf since Sept.
10.
Heavy clouds made 1t difficult for
the flyers to observe the results Of
their bombing, but the glare Of great
fires could be seen and 1t was be-
lieved the attack was highly effec-
tive.
Dusseldorf Is one of the great
centers of German armament pro-
duction and has important trans
port facilities.
An air ministry communique said
that Industrial targets in the Ger
man Rhineland were heavily at
lacked by q fleet of Lancaster and
Halifax bocsbe-E e the night raid
and reported six planes missing.
American and British air forces
nave struck within "a hours over
900 mile European front from
southwest France to northern Dem
mark.
British night bombers had at
lacked the big French port of Bor-
ieaux and the submarine base OF
Lorient, United States Flying Fort
,esses had attacked the key German
naval base of Wilhelmshaven by
daylight yesterday while Liberators
bombed nearby Emden, and British
Mosquito planes had made a day.
light attack on war industrial tar
gets at German occupied COpen-
hagen.
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