Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1944-03-18
! NEWS
BEHIND
THE NEWS
ByPauI
MaIIon

y ~ III \
WASHINGTON, March II
W The Germans have been
able 10 get together enough
bombing planes 10 stage a new
campaign against London.
The number of planes at their
bases back in from the French
coast indicates they may be able
10 send over 50 10 100 planes
three or four nights a week.
That is all there seems TO be
behind their heavy scale $50
10 200 bomber) attack on the
British capital early this week.
Our best check lends confidence
10 the conviction they cannot
sustain even such a moderate
scale offensive as that one. and
have no facilities TO expand their
newly opened air front
Stories have been circulated
that the bombings of London
have been more severe than Of
ficially reported There may be
some truth in this general Sus-
plcion since il is not considered
good military custom TO divulge
bombing damage. But the more
significant truths of the Situa-
ton are simply these:
A BOUT six weeks ago the
"A Germans renewed small
scale night air attacks using
about SO planes one or two
nights a week tone week five
attacks). They hit some south
England cities but concentrated
mainly upon London.
Their raids necessarily were
pOt-shot hit-and-run bombing on
large area targets. No accurate
attack on war industry center
has been made. They may have
Int some military detectives,
but their main objective plainly
was 10 offset psychologically the
effect of BritiSh-American raids
on Germany with some show Of
encouraging retaliation.
If they could get the planes,
they might make it hurt, be-
cause their bases are closer 10
their oblectives than ours are.
But great stores and replace
mentS are needed for sustained
air campaigns and these the
Germans obviously do not have.
They got these few planes to-
gether apparently by sacrificing
them from the Russian front,
and saving from their dwindling
production for some months
past.
The most they can do, there
fore, is to knock down some
buildings, start fires and cause
suffering and death 10 the
British civilian population. They
cannot impede concentrations
for the second front by precision
raids, or bring decisive con-
sequences of any military
nature
incidentally our b om bling
ventures over Germany the past
week significantly have en-
countered little or no German
fighter plane opposition Hit
ler's fighter force was weakened
by the previous two weeks of
battling.
THE Chinese have shown on
Il the north Burma front
what they can do if armed,
trained and fed
They routed the famed 18th
Jap division famed as far as
the Japs are concerned for hav-
ing taken Singaporet, killed
$500 andudispersed into the jun
gle those who were able TO run.
In this, they beat all kinds of
Jap fighting, frontal assaults,
lungle-circling, tree-hanging and
what not.
Their main objective was 10
destroy the Jap threat TO the
new road into China from India,
still nearing completion.
The Chinese used American
tanks and equipment well, fight
ing under a solitary American
officer, Col. Rothwell II. Brown,
son of George Rothwell Brown,
chief Washington correspondent
for the Hearst newspapers. In
charge of planning the opera
ton was Gen. Stilwell, who
somehow always seems able TO
produce strong, moving action.
Although the British have
Just about come out even IN
their south Burma campaign,
this north Burma experience
should impress Lord Mounthat-
ten as TO what may be possible
in the Burma jungles.
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