The Wilmington morning star., 1944-08-23
AMERICANS DRIVE IS MILES
IN SMASH ACROSS FRANCE:
TOUZOW ENCzRCLED, DOOMED
NAILS OFFERING
WEAK OPPOSITION
Allied Troops Reported
Half Way To Germany
In Armored Push

SUPREME HEADQUAR-
TIERS ALLIED EXPEDI-
TIONARY FORCE, Aug. %.
American armor-
ed column has driven more
than half way scross France
on the road to Germany,
plunging past the ancient
town of Sens, So miles SOUTH
east of Paris, in a 65-mile
smash against only meager
opposition, a dramatic dis
patch disclosed tonight.
Sens is a full 1870 airline miles
from the original Normandy inva.
sion beachhead - much farther
over the road of battle-and only
l65 miles from the German border
to the northeast near the Saar
town of Neunkirchen. Germany
also lies due east, 200 miles away
CIV Lllc IlIllllc.
West of Paris 1t. Gen. Omar N.
Bradley's American armored and
infantry forces mounted a new
drive northwestward along the
Seine toward the sea in an effort
to encircle more thousands of bat
tered Germans caught on the south
of the wide, almost bridgeless riv-
err.
On the Allied extreme left flank
along the Channel coast, British,
Canadian, Belgian and Dutch
troops spurted forward with swift
drives on many sectors running
up to almost score of miles, clos
ing in on the threatened German
forces from the west.
Among the many towns from the
coast to south Of Paris which fell
during the day were Cabourg and
Houlgate On the Channel; Dozule,
five miles inland; GAGE, IS miles
to the south; Etampes, 81 miles
south of Paris; and Pithiviers, ID
miles below Etampes.
In addition Allied troops fought
into the outskirts of the world
famed resort Of Deauville on the
coast, battled in the streets of
Lisieux, Is miles southeast of Dea-
vile, reached the fringes of Orbec,
II miles farther southeastward, and
beat their way around Nazi resis-
lance at Rambouillet, % miles
southwest of Paris.
Nowhere along the entire front
from the Channel to Sens did the
Germans appear able to check the
Allies, whose pauses-notably be-
fore Paris-Were rather from AL
lied choice than because of enemy
opposition.
Between the new wheeling drive
toward the sea west of Paris and
the spectacular plunge into the
heart of France at Sens, the metro
politan area of the old French
capital lay ready to fall at the
will of the Allied armies, which
for the moment were racing to
chew up still more German troops
rather than to conquer territory.
The American tank smash be-
You'd Sens carried across two riv-
ers, the LONG and the Yonne, and
represented the latest ara per-
haps most spectacular Of series
of lightning armored thrusts which
headquarters has permitted to be
disclosed after day or two OF
silence on the theory that they were
so swift the Germans did not know
exactly where they were.
The Americans were racing be-
yond Sens in the direction Of
Troyes, 81 miles to the east, d
large communicate center on the
upper Seine. Sens itself is a minor
communications hub, lying on the
Yonne near it's confluence with ~
Vanne.
The movements of these forceI
had been hidden for some hours.
The depth of their penetration, plllI
the informatio that it was against
only meager opposition, disclosed
that the Americans under 1t. Gen.
Omar N. Bradley still were FAM
pant on a grand scale without the
81 ghtest evidence of being check
ed
Northwest of Paris the Amer
leans sought to shape trap APP
proXimately 40 miles square
around the Germans, still reeling
in a tailspin of confusion, who
managed to escape from the Ar
gentan-F alais pocket in Normandy.
The final liquidation of this first
pocket was announced at headquar-
tiers tonight, with 10000 prisoners
counted and a total toll in killed
and captured expected to reach or
pass the 100, 000-mark.
The drive along the Seine was
launched from the Mantes-GasS-
court area Is miles west of Paris,
where the doughboys had establish
ed bridgehead across the Seine.
Paris itself, with patriots fight
ing Germans it's streets and
with American forces across the
Seine both to the west and south.
east, was left apparently ready to
fall at any time the Allied mill
tarv leaders give tho Siona1 ~