Evening star., 1944-01-10
Americans Seize
Peak OVERLOOKING
Road to Casino
MAP on Page A-3.)
BY the Associated Press.

glers, Jan. 10. - Fifth Army
forces bit deeper today into the
tough defense belt of Casino,
with American troops plunging
forward in a two mile advance
northeast of the stronghold and
the British crossing the Peccia
River and firmly holding a
bridgehead to the southwest of
the town.
In a thrust from Mount Maio the
Americans battered their way
through strong opposition and cap
tured the 3,500-foot peak of Catena
Vecchio overlooking the road from
fallen San Vittore to Casino.
Despite intense artillery fire, the
British clung to the bridgehead they
forged across the Peccia west of
Mount Maggiore near the western
end of the l0-mile offensive front of
1t. Gen. Mark w. Clarks 5th Army.
Gen. Clark's troops also occupied
other heights preparatory to an as
sault directly on Casino itself.
Seize 1,500-Foot Peak.
Americans captured l,5OO-foot
Mount Chlaia, south of the Casino
road, and still farther south they
completed occupation of 9OO-foot
Mount Porchia by mopping up sur
viving Germans intrenched on the
mountains western slopes after
tanks had entered actively into the
push.
"a field dispatch Saturday said
group of American troops led
by Capt. Ralph c. Fisher of
Hyattsville, Md, had pushed to
the peak of Mount Porchia in a
battle which opened at 8 pm.
Tuesday and held their ground
against counterattacks by nu-
merically superior enemy forces.
A statement that the 5th Army
had won the mountain proved
premature)
The Americans thus overlooked
the village of Cervaro, miles due
east of Casino, both from the north
and south.
The troops who captured Mount
Chiaia continued their advance
northWard toward Cervaro, support
ed by fighter -bombers which at
tackled German positions. Capture
of the village of Giusto in this area
was announced yesterday.
Shows Curb 8th Army.
Deep SHOWS in the mountainous
sectors of the 9th Army front re-
stricted fighting to patrol activity
and heavy artillery and mortar fire
exchanges.
Practically every peak in the
mountainous section of Italy along
the 5th Army front blazed with
battle, and an American or British
flag was planted at the crest of each
only at heavy cost.
Field guns arched their shells at
the enemy in virtually steady rum
Die and supporting aircraft swooped
low, but only direct hits could pene-
trate the deep and solidly placed
Nazi defenses. The weight of the
battle rested heavily on the shoulders
of the infantrymen and they ad-
vanced by plunging through ma
chine gun fire and minefelds and
dislodging the Germans from deep
trenches and dugouts, one by one.
Dispatches from the front yester-
day said the Germans had brought
up strong reinforcements and had
sent series of counterattacks with
out avail against various points of
the advancing 5th Army line.
Port of Ancona Bombed.
The air command said medium
bombers attacked the port of Ancona
on Italy's east coast, while fighter
bombers bombed and shot up trains
and motor transport back of the
battle line in the Aquila area.
The score of aircraft DESTROYED
during the day was even. one Ger
man plane against one Allied craft
missing.
RAF night bomberS struck anoth-
er blow at German fighter power in
Northern Italy with an attack on
the fighter base at Villorba, north
of Venice, on Saturday night.
Passing over the target at medium
altitude, Raj Wellingtons dumped
their loads on hangers, workshops
and barracks. Crew members re-
ported seeing at least II fires and
explosions in the darkness.
American Spitfires, sweeping along
the coasts of Southern France and
Northwest Italy, scored near misses
on an enemy destroyer off Toulon
Saturday and caused pieces of
small liner to fly into the air from
two hits amidships during an attack
off San Pietro.