The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1945-01-29
Yanks Strike
In Blizzard;
SurpriiseFoe
1900 Allie d Bombers
Pound Railroads In
Rum, Rhineland

PARIS. Jan. %. - P) - Tit
y First Army opened new
Awe on the Germans westWall il
hitter. pre-dawn blizzard today
slugging two miles east to within
tve miles of the Reich along the
poloian route over which the Ger
mans sped in their winter counter
offensive a days ago.
Far ahead of the ground forces,
tiobtening pressure on the west
AGAINST an enemy reeing under
Pgs;jan blows from the east, near.
" 1000 U. S. and British heavy
and medium bombers roared
through the clouds, blasting at rail
road wards and bridges in the Ruh1
and Rhineland.
simultaneously, the U. S. Third
Army, rubbing out some OF the
last rearguards in northern Lux
embourg swung abruptly four
miles northeast into Belgium hard
on the First'S south flank.
Thus these two veteran Ameri-
can armies presented a solid 40
mile front within artillery range
Of the West Wall.
An ominous lull settled over most
Of the remainder of the snoW-lock-
ed Western Front except in south
en Alsace, where French and
American forces frightened a
clamp around Colmar-enemy cit
adei-and drove to with four
eS of the Rhine.
Patrols lunged out aggressively
along the U. S. Seventh Army
front in northern Alsace, and along
the Roer on the U. S. Ninth and
British Second Army fronts at
the gateway to the Ruhr valley,
where the British now were drawn
up along the Roer at a number of
places
Ii. Gen Courtney II. Hodges
First Army sprang a surprise at
tack at am. in blizzard which
heaped snoWdrifts seven feet high.
In the early hours the First over
vhelmed startled garrisons OF
three towns northeast of St. With.
Veteran First Division troops
Speared the attack, and with for
ces from other units charged
through waist-deep snow, captur-
ing BerScheid, Valender and Hep
pen0ach in cluster five to seven
miles northeast Of St. With. Hep
peAoacn is four and a half miles
from the German frontier.
there Was no advance artillery
PREPARATION After the first sur
Prise. the German resistance be-
gan 10 stiffen.
ehoWdrifts and mines were the
calef OBSTACLES. AP Correspondent
Hal Boyle said The drifts were SO
aeep that trail-olazing units had
70 cAange off every 80 yards-so
exhausted were those Flooding
through the snowfields.
Inc reopening of the First Ar
NY drive came 43 days after
gieid Marshal Won Rundstedt broke
through the Ardennes in his De-
cem0er offensive.
0oUoLL
Doughooys assembled shortly af-
,sF midnight in the bitter cold, clad
NJ SAoWcapes for camouflage and
ne"F-lsSued Arctic suits which
, ,ele designed by the Army for
'Orces in the far north.
d. 1ney struck out into the storm
seafed barbed wire entangle-
n.en!S' and were upon the German
e s@;1lSohS as they slept. Startled
s sn|o said they didn't believe
Wy, W. oAe would attack in such wea.
,o, m addition to capturing the three
o v@AS, the first division cleaned
brr,.N elchels Busch, heavy
m n,gsn"ood forest more than two
bach '''- 'i'edSt Oh Heppen'
Ar 0ss east Of St. With. the Seventh
i htpoFed Division dug a half mile
m ;I a thick fir forest some three
fb ele s from the border boarding
tona oeFmans in their woods posi-
af,as to which they had retreatee
'D 1l losing St. With.
THU Gen. George S. Patton
tonr .u Army, meanwhile. slashe>
in n't a miles miles northeastward, cuttin,
MAJ l mlle from the Belgian-Ger
Of 't ., border rae few miles southeas
Bel st. With. In the advance. tn,
mi isiSn town of Maspelt. foul
oyerTn9 southeast of St. With, wa
no 14e Ihi[d Army in Belgium wa
from aeIe farther than two mile
Lu D[s the border and along tn
On the border or no NOR
'"ued on Page Two; Col. 2