Evening star., 1943-10-03
Nozis Commanded by Romme|
Fight Fierce Reor-Guord Action
In Retreat North From Naples
5th Army Hommers
Hard at Foe SEEKING
New Defense Line
By the Associated Press.

BY Inc Associated Press.
ALLIED HEADQUARTERS IN
NORTH AFRICA, Oct. 2.-Brisk
fighting ragged north of Naples
and of Avellino in Italy today as
American and British troops pur-
sued the fiercely resisting rear
guard of that master of retreat
Marshal Erwin Rommel.
Enemy troops and armor were
battering vigorously and giving
ground only foot by foot as the
Allies doggedly pursued them north
of Naples. The Germans obviously
were determined to hold back the
hard hitting columns of 1t. Gen
Mark w. Clark until new defense
line could be prepared somewhere
to the north.
The same brand of resistance was
being encountered by American
troops advancing through the
mountains north and northeast of
Avellino An Allied military Spokes-
man said there was slight chance
that many prisoners would be taken
as the Nazis backed up the Italian
peninsula.
1T should be mastery retreat,
he conceded, They have got Rom
mel in Italy, and he is a master at
rearguard fighting. He ought to be
He's done more of it than anyone
else"
No Lull in Fighting Expected.
At the same time, there was
every indication that the Allies
could continue to hammer hard at
the foe, and the belief here was
that there would be no lull in the
fighting soon.
Hitting furiously to block the Ger
mans retreat from the Naples area,
Allied bombers last night attacked
pontoon bridges at Grazzanise. 20
miles north of Naples, where there
is a crossing of the Volturno River.
Formla, coastal city along the an
clent Appian Way to Rome, also
was heavily attacked.
On the Adriatic coast Gen. Sir
Bernard l.. Montgomery's British
6th Army still was meeting only
light opposition and had surged
80 miles northward to occupy the
Gargano promontorv and to seize
the inland towns of San Severe and
Iucero.
San Severe is l8 miles north of
the great aerial base of Foggia, and
Lucera is II miles to the northwest
Their capture tightened the Allied
hold on the 13 airfields in the Fog
gia area, from which heavy bombers
soon are expected to smash targets
in the Balkans and Southern Ger
many.
NaziS Retreat in Good Order.
Making the most of the lessons
gained while retreating thousands
Of miles in Egypt, Libya, Tripoli-
tania, Tunlsia, Sicily and finally
Southern Italy. Marshals Rommel
and Albert Kesselring were with
drawing their troops in good order.
So far they had given no hint where
they hoped to make a real stand.
Berlin dispatches to Stock
holm said Hitler had ordered the
two marshals to establish blood
wall" in Northern Italy and there
to defend the fortress of Europe
with the last drop of blood" A
Nazi military spokesman was
quoted as declaring the German
Army could hold such a wall MANY
years-''if necessary until the
Allies are convinced the war is
futile"
(SWiss dispatches to Stockholm.
on the other hand. quoted Italian
sources as saying the Nazis we're
taking up strong new defense po-
sitlons in the historic Castelli Ro-
mani region along the Appian
Way only dozen miles south
east of Rome. The Popes sum-
mer residence at Castel Gandolfo
is in the area
Record raids into Germany and
Austria yesterday by American Fly
ing Fortresses and Liberators of the
Northwestern African Force gave a
convincing demonstration that the
day already has come when Ger