The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-04-18

Nazi Spokesmen admitted somber- ly, however, that the stiffening had come too late to prevent the break up of their western defenses into patchwork of disorganized islands of resistance, many of them out ot contact with the German high corn- mand
 Infantrymen and fiame-throwing tanks of the U. s. Ninth Army ran into ferocious resistance from Nazi Elite Guards and some 1,400 mem- bers of the Hitler Youth Organiza- tion in the streets of Magdeburg but they were reported making steady progress toward the city'd four Elbe river bridges.
 Late dispatches said the Ninth Army's 30th Infantry Division and units of the Second Armored Divi- sion had cleared all of Magdeurg' g southern and southwestern districts except for two streets in which the teen-aged Hitler youths were dug in for death battle.
 Having gangs of these boy sol- diers were reported infiltrating the American lines at a number of points inside the city and attempt ing suicidal attacks on the Amer ican tank columns.
 British Second Army forces crowding up on Hamburg were pill ing up more confusion and disorder along the enemy front. Advancing against weak opposition across the Luneberger Heath south of Ham, burg, the British Seventh Armored Division captured the big railway center of Soltau, 30 miles below the port and rammed ahead another ten miles this morning for an overall advance of 32 miles in 36 hours.
 On the Seventh Divisions right flank, the British 11th armored di- vision and the Red Devils" of the Sixth Airborne Division rolled ur to within 13 miles or less of the Elbe river on a 30-mile front, cut ting the main Hamburg Berlin rail- way line.
 The advance carried eight miles north of Uelzen into Wickmanns- burg, eight miles southeast of Lune- burg, the last big German position between the British and the Elbe. Scottish Infantrymen followine up the armored leaders fought their way into Uelzen and cleared half oi the town by this morning.
 The British drive, coupled with the Canadian First army sweep te the North sea coast farther to tht west, appeared to have doomed any Nazi hope of prolonged stanc around the northwestern ports.
 Allied flyers reported heavy shir and barge traffic moving down tht Elbe from Hamburg and apparently evacuating German troops from tht German and Dutch coastal areas tt the west.
 The Canadians finally cleared thu strongly y-held Dutch railway centel of Apeldoorn on their extreme west. ern flank and advanced another seven miles westward to link up a Ammersfoort with dominion arm ored column that drove 16 mile north from Arnhem.
 On the American First army front the 69th and Second infantry di visions threw a siege arc all arount Leipzig and fought their way int, the streets of that great German military base from the east ant west.
 5000 Trapped
 Hundreds of American guns main tained a drumfire barrage on tn trapped German garrison, estimated as high as 30,000 men, but front re ports said the Nazis were strongl, entrenched and apparently bent ol a suicidal defense of the city.
 An equally fierce fight ragged il the streets of Halle. Is miles to tn, northwest. although the smalle German force there was reporte, on the verge of knockout cary to day,
 A military blackout obscured tn progress of the First army's Nintl armored division which drove nor than 22 miles beyond Leipzig to cap ture Colditz and seize a g mil stretch of the Nude rivers wes bank. There the Americans wer only 24 miles west of tho Elbe am about 90 miles from the last report