Evening star., 1945-07-04
By the Associated Press.

SAN FRANCISCO, July A.
Five American warshipS shellec
the Karafuto area yesterday ir
their deepest penetration ot
Japanese waters, the Tokyo radio
reported today.
Karafuto is the Japanese-helt
half of Sakhalin Island, Just off tn,
Asiatic continent north of Japan
The northern half is held by Rus.
sia. In March, 1914, the Russian!
ANNOUNCED that Japan had agreed
to surrender her oil and coal lease!
on the Russian-held territory
leases originally scheduled to rur
until 1870.
Shikuku Reported Shelled.
The Russian warships reportedly
trained their guns on war installa.
tions off Shikuka, a port in the Bay
of Taraika near the Soviet-Japaness
border. Shikuka is on the east coast
of Karafuto, nearly 400 miles north
of Hokkaido, northernmost of the
main islands of Japan.
There was no confirmation of ths
broadcast which was beamed Il
America and picked up by the Fed.
+eral Communications Commission.
The Tokyo radio later reported
that submarine shelled the Shi-
kuka coast yesterday for about 1C
minutes but denied damage.
The broadcast added that on the
previous day a submarine made
three successive shelling and ma
chine gun attacks on Kaihyo Islanc
of the Aaraika Cape The latter
shelling lasted nearly five hours.
Karafuto-Sakhalin divides thu
Sea of Japan from the Sea Of Ok.
hotsk. Only once have American
warships penetrated these waters
when a task force of the North
Pacific Fleet recently steamed
through the Kurile Islands ano
knocked out an enemy convoy.
Apprehensive About Attack.
To reach Karafuto a task force
from Vice Admiral Frank Jacl
Fletcher's 9Th Fleet would have hao
to steam out. of Alaskan waters, sir
through the Oft bombed Kuriles anc
penetrate roughly 500 miles of ia
pans most distant seas.
Tokyo, which has long been wor.
rying about an invasion from thu
south, became apprehensiye last
week about an attack from the
north. These broadcasts said the
9th Fleet was being increased ano
paratroops and Alpine units added
to American ground forces sta
toned in Alaska.
The Tokyo radio today claimed
that a great chain of underground
fortresses, girdling the entire coast.
line of the main island of Japan
was being rushed to completion.
The broadcast warned that Amer
ican troops would find japanese
fighting to defend their home sol
much tougher than those encoun-
tered outside its borders.
women hlu DclcHSc.
Little old women with shovels'
were said to be helping men and
soldiers at the might and day
digging of the emergency fortifi-
cations. The broadcast also echoed
one of Japan's chief fears, that
bombings will disrupt communica-
tions during the critical invasion
period.
1t mentioned pig farms. poultry
farms and the sowing of potatoes ir
the fortified areas to make them
self sufficient in daily life"
The 10 per cent cut in Japan's
staple food ration in the next few
weeks brought an announcement
from the government today thai
specialists will educate the public
in making best use of the foods they
have. The Japs will be urged te
use powdered food and other sub
stitutes as well as greens they car
grow at home.
Meanwhile, Japanese are carry
ing canes-so they can get about In
the dark without falling into bomt
craters.