Evening star., 1944-12-21

man factory. The girls were
Army of its best chance of pulling
down the German offensive to &
complete halt Immediately.
With the fields crawling with Ger
man armor and roads jammed with
German transport, the weather wa.
a tragedy for Allied air power. Only
six Allied planes got off the ground
yesterday.
The last reported positions of the
Germans were two days old be-
cause of supreme headquarters
time lag in announcements for Sc
curity reasons.
But dispatches from the 1st Army
front said Marshal Won Runstedt' s
offensive had Slackened slightly in
violence today and showed signs
OF slowing up to consolidate posi-
tionS.
Farther Nazi Progress Expected.
Other dispatches from the British
I'd Army front to the north said
Allied countermeasureS on the
north side of the German wedge
were beginning to take effect, but
that the German offensive must be
expected to make more progress.
The dispatch did not explain what
these countermeaSures were.
From Monschau, the northern
shoulder of the German wedge,
north along the Roer front to Duren
and Linnich the situation was un-
changed.
South of the LIST Army sector, the
Sd Army of 1t. Gen. George S. Pat
ton, jr., hacked deeper into the Sieg-
fried Line after penetrating its pri-
mary defenses by finally clearing the
Germans out of all Dillinger, 3 miles
north of Saarlautern.
The 7th Army, in slow going,
drove the Germans out of two Magi-
not Line forts, Simserhoff and
Schiesseck, and miles, respec-
lively. west of Bitche, and ham,
mered at Siegfriend Line defenses in
the Wissembourg Gap near the
Rhine after penetrating 7 lines of
dragons teeth.
Counterattacks Repulsed.
The Sd Army repulsed two Ger
man counterattacks northeast of
Sarreguemines. The 7th Army, un-
der intense artillery fire, was thrown
out of Bundenthal, 2 miles inside
the Palatinate and miles north
east of Wissembourg.
The French in the VoSges ad-
vanced a mile south of Lake Noir, 13
miles west of Colmar, and reached
Les Hautes Huttes.
The stand of the Germans all
along these other fronts had stiff
ened surprisingly considering the
fury they had concentrated into
their new drive, and apparently was
intended to tie up Allied forces
which might otherwise be diverted
to the Belgian-Luxembourg sector.
Considerable enemy movement
was observed around Linnich and
Lindern, north of the lst Army
sector.
There was feeling at headquar-
ters that it may be weeks before the
damage resulting from the Nal
drive can be repaired. with Gen.
Eisenhower's winter offensive torn
to shreds.
While it may be the death battle
OF the German Army, coming out
into the open in a last blaze of Of
fensive power, the Germans we're
making it one of the bloodiest strug-
giles of the whole war for both sides.
Hold on MaImedy Never Lost.
Contrary to some reports, Gen.
Hodges troops never lost their hold
on Malmedy.
In single area due east of But
genbach ground and air forces
knocked out % tanks before the
weather closed in. But Won Rund-
stedt's armored formations were still
out in strength and operating in
groups of 20 and 30
Fresh massing of armor for new
attacks on key objectives were re-
ported this morning.
The Germans intensified their use
of V-bombs against Belgian targets
to interfere with American supply
and reinforcement movements, but
the main weight of this barrage fell
on Belgian civilians.
Some Welcome Attack.
Despite the American reverse-al-
ready the greatest setback suffered
in two years of fighting in Europe
and Africa-there was some tend
ency among military men to well
come the German attack. A belief
prevailed that this was 1.-THE big
battle that could eventually lead
down the road to final victory.
There was no doubt that the Ger
mans were expending vast reserves,
and defeat of the attacking forces
could be so decisive as to shorten
the war materially. An American
officer in the field declared that "the
war can be won right here"
An American flyer said last night
the roads Immediately behind the
60-mile long German attacking
front were lined virtually bumper
to bumper with enemy transport of
every description.
Unbelievable numbers of anti
aircraft guns, apparently massed
especially for this offensive, guard
the German supply lines. he said.
Clear Weather Hoped For.