The Wilmington morning star., 1945-04-24
Reds Nearing
Meeting With
Ninth Forces
Three Allied Armies SET
225-Mile Southern
Front Ablaze

PARIS, Tuesday, April A-tP,--
A powerful new u. S. Third Army
offensive swept miles across the
northern approa hes to Hitler's
Alpine fortress yesterday az Rus
sian forces in radio contact with
the Americans on the U. S. First
Army front limited that the historic
junction might come today.
A Russian from the front south
of Berlin sent Cheerful greetings
to our American comrades" crack
ling across to the listening Amer.
leans. The u. S. Ninth Army saw
Russian flares on the Berlin front,
a possible indicator that the Red
Army was approaching the Ninth
Army under cover of night.
While the world waited for this
welding of the Allies of east and
west at the center Of the Reich,
three Allied armies set the whole
225-mile southern front ablaze with
a relentless onslaught that was
threatening hourly to burst
into Germany's last battle-ground
in the south.
Once more the power of 1t. Gen.
George S. Patton's Third Army
was turned on, and $4,000 prison.
ers were taken in the opening
hours of the drive. Now his tanks
and troops were hurdling the riv-
er barriers rs miles north Of Mum
ich, northern sentinel city of the
Alpine redoubt.
The hard-hitting tank columns
had been moved secretly 125 miles
south from the front pointed to-
ward the Elbe, and they fell upon
the fanatic SIS troops, chosen to
stand and die in the south, before
they knew what hit them.
A field dispatch declared that
tanks and troops were running wild
across the rivers and hills and
reports We're current on the front
that the Germans were hurriedly
clearing civilians from Salzburg,
eastern anchor of the redoubt.
Salzburg now is 108 miles ahead
of the American troops.
The French First Army and the
U. S. Seventh Army had torn
breaches in the Danube river line
Is and 48 miles from the western
outposts of the retreat at Lake
Constance.
The Seventh Army threw back
the Germans four miles from it's
bridgehead on the Danube SO miles
from Munich. Swift moving spear
heads drove up to the river for
close support at Donauwoerth and
Erlingshofen, only nine miles to
the northeast.
Here the Seventh was II miles
from the German city Of Augs-
burg and farther to the southwest
infantry battled nine miles west OF
the Danube stronghold of Ulm.
DISCRIMINATION spread through
German ranks north Of the Dan
ube. a battle dispatch said. Whole
units, surprised that all retreat
had been cut off, were surrender
ing.
While the Germans were holly
pressed to keep the French and
the U. S. Seventh army out Of their
Well-manned and. well stocked
mountain fortress, the Third Army
threw it's enormous weight into
the struggle.
The French First Army closed
up to the Swiss frontier on 4 49,
mile front east of the black forest
pocket and was driving east along
the north shores of Lake Con-
stance toward Friedrichshafen, IS
miles from the Austrian frontier at
the east end Of the lake.
On the British front far to the
north, Bremen - second greatest
port Of Germany-was under hea-
Wy assault and troops driving in
from the east last were reported
five miles from the heart Of the
city.
Troops. and tanks driving in less
than two miles south of Bremen
cut the mains furnishing the sity's
principal water supply.
Other British forces hammer
ing siege arc around Hamburg,
the No. port Of the Reich, SELF
ed Harsefeld, 20 miles to the west
and Esterbrugge, 10 miles west.
From the latter point they began
enemy shipping in the
Elbe estuary.
Canadians in western Holland
made a surprise crossing Of the
Mas river Is miles west Of Rot
terdam, and in the north Polish
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