The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1945-02-22
.edsHacking
Route to
Berlin


1t. Gen. George s. Patton's Third
Army infantry plunged across the
Saar River In assault boats today.
scooped up ~ more German towns
Ia the Moselle Valley and poised a
double threat aimed at Coblenz on
the Rhine or at outflanklng a ma
por part OF the industrial saar
basin.
Allied airmen carried the mighty
offensive against the Reich into
it's tenth straight day, as German
alefts indicated they were out by
daylight in force.
A fleet OF more than 100 Raj
night raiders blasted the western
front rail ccnters OF Worms and
Duisberg and struck fresh twin
blows nj Berlin. now crowded TO
the bursting point with bomb-stun-
ned refugees The blows followed
a day In which 1900 u. s. Eighth
Air Force heayies. In the greatest
concentrated raid on n single tar
get in more than four months.
blasted vital marshalling yards a.
Nuremberg.
Nearing Berlin
The Battle for Berlin, city
honeyeembed with a maze OF has.
tily improylsed barbados, moved
closer TO the capitals Spree River
as the Russians hacked their way
through Brandenburg's snow'blank-
! eted forests and lakes. Marshal
Ivan s. Konev's first Ukraine army
thrust main armored columns
few miles from Forest and gouged
dceper holes westward in the Spree
Valley triangle OF Guben. Cottbus
and Luebben. Guben was shelled
severely In the Russian drive To
wipe out the Nazi salient there
and prepare for a full-scale assault
by Konev's and Marshal Gregory
X. Zhukov's armies.
The Raj blow at Worms by some
500 heayies was In support OF Pat
tons troops. only some so miles
away. The Third Army's drive
has toppled some 60 towns In two
days. has invested Saarburg. clear
ing a major part OF that fortified
road center, and has all but erased
the triangle formed by the con-
fluence OF the Moselle and the Saar.
long a Nazi defense stronghold.
Trler important Base
The Americans now were s IL
miles southwest Of Trier, most i'm
rortant immediate obstacle 10 Pat
] toms drive which has lunged II
miles in two days. Big guns may
already have Trier. base for the
entire central section of the west
wall. under fire.
British and Canadians in the
north charged within little more
than mile Of Calcar. strategic road
hub, and fought through the bloody
streets OF Moyland, frightening the
threat 10 the Ruhr Valley. Hun
dreds OF planes gave tactical sup
port to the drive, and filled the
skies over other sectors OF the
! front. More than 5000 planes took
TO the air during yesterday.
In the south the us. Seventh
Army moved within . IL miles OF
devastated Saarbruecken. Saar-
land capital. and fought house TO
house in Forbach. French rail GEN.
ter nearby. Spicheren on the Dor
der was taken.
Give Ground
Russian forces in the Polish cor
ridor were only 80 miles from Dan
zig by last night In East Prus-
STA. the Germans apparently we're
attempting TO set the stage for an
evacuation of the Koenigsberg area.
and the Russians gave some ground
before stiff counterblows at heavy
German cost. Russian planes rang
ed the Baltic coast stalking any
German ships which might attempt
an evacuation from Pillau, TO which
port the Germans said they had
established a corridor from koen-
igsberg
In Italy, L. S. Fifth Army troops.
exploiting capture Of Monte Belve-
dere, 30 miles southwest OF Bolog-
ma. gained 1000 yards in a new
local attack against stiffening Nazi
resistance Furious fighting ragged
Just east OF Monte Belvedere.