The Wilmington morning star., 1943-08-23
Interpreting
The War
By KIRKE L. SIMPSON

tions, is too imminent 10 u1on YEA
conjectural flights of fancy =. 'I'
what may be so. 'S 10
The bald fact about the o,,
conference to date is that dssn;S vgec
the wistful efforts of the ar,',s qSpAe
Allied press and radio me7 w. VI
rounding it by official invita-, sur
it has kept its own council as '"roa
fectly as if it had been stano5 per-
the North Pole or in mid.ocsegapn sgp al
There have been no leaks f..
the Citadel-Chateau Frontenarr riGm VI
liberatlons, and no official word Ue, :,
their scope and nature bevond tt' VI
statement that they mean de,% a,V
mischief for Axis enemies in i''ply Wy
rope and Asia. AU'
The weekend lull, which did ~,
represent, certainly, anv T s,nuI nu'
down in detailed plan-makinp ,ga' s,a,
prevailed tonight. It was m9tcbos %',.,
by a lull of sorts, appare3tIv ea
the European and Russian b,+H5
fronts except for unconfrno5
Axis reports of Allied landing1
from Sicily on the toe of Italv Ss .ss
another Allied paratroop descao. r,.u
upon Crete.
1t would not be SURPRISING i+
Commando raids from Sicily a7orn
the Italian coast, or trv.om az,
borne thrusts against Crete had
occurred, despite Londop's % ov
pressed doubts of the Axis broad
cast rumor of such action Tbs,
is one way of finding out definite
ly something about the streno,
of enemy defense dispositions n,
in Italy of testing the ItaBsl
army's will to put up a despers+o
fight against an actual inyagm
attempt across the Messina Strait
The Allied commander-ir14f
has specifically warned Itah n
his purpose to take by force Of
arms in due course the bass m
facilities on the Italian maLai
necessary to press the ataA
without delay against Germany
they were not yielded by the Ital.
ians without opposition.
Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower and
his staff certainly would like to
know, il preparation for that, just
where in southern Italy Naz
troops have been deployed to sti
fen Italian resistance.
That is not easily determined
by air alone. In ground fighting
the trench-raiding tecnique was
evolved in the first world war to
CLEAN such information from
across no-man's land. Commando
operations across water hazards
have the same information gain
ing value in this struggle, as well
as serving to keep enemy nerves
on edge with invasion expecta'
tions.
Nor can it be doubted, in the
light of the terms Eisenhowef
broadcast to Italy many days ago
on which her mainland cities, rail
roads and other communicates
facilities would be spared Allied
air, sea and heavy short gun bonn
bardment, that his army in Sicily
is preparing to take what Italy
has not yet given up-bases from
which to carry the war at closer
range to Germany and her Waver-
ing Balkan satellites.
The day of grace, Informally
granted to await Rome's reacuoN'
long ago expired. Allied planes
have been busy ever since POM
ing up that fact as have AM
naval craft along the Italian ma.
land coasts. Commando raids Il
find soft spots for invasion or con
fuse the foe as to just where \
will come would be a logical to'
loW-up.
There also was dearth o.
fresh news from the Russian 1fo"
reaching Quebec. 1t left the sl'ul,
ton of the Kharkov and BryaGa
pivots of the Nazi defense line
both closely beset by the hFa
army, in doubt, beyond the MN
cow admission that German re-
sistance was stiffening aad lax,
ing advantage OF natural obslaci.,
like the Bryansk marshas-~
slow up the Russian advance llog Hun
the east down the Orel-bIya'''
rail and road system.
Of greater significance, ho%er
er. was Moscow's continued =,
lence as to the progress o. 'ai
most lethal Red drive, that alh'i T
at the Poltava junction "es'
Kharkov and Threatening me WIZ ~
Dnieper crossings upon Whlcn
whole Nazi left flank in RuSS-a
dependent. Win hs
It seems clear that Berlin l,so, ns.
ordered a suicide defense OF Mic,
kov at the risk of annlhIlauon .rr
it's garrison and had thrown ns". '',<
reserves into the fighting w wv
and southwest Of KharkoT p pra
desperate attempt to olocN ,ro;, nj
sian march to. those Dnlepel Wv
ings. rhs
The crux of the present. .,las pa@
of the Russian summer IrntI> Unt
seems developing there o-,~ oa.l
outcome is clear, the lmPatt+
that massive Russian blo" a. al
Axis upon the war in huLoPs . o+ts5
whole, or upon Allied ne" rev .".Qe 90"
designs bearing the made
bee label, cannot be 8ase''