The Daily Alaska empire. [volume] (Juneau, Alaska) 1926-1964, 1950-07-31
u, 5. TROOPS
WALK ASHORE
KOREAN PORT
Are Armed with Armor,
Go Immediately 10 Front
Macarthur in FOrmosa
(By the Associated Press)

10y lilt A1SobJldNCu 1000
Fresh troops of the us Second
Infantry Division landed with armor
in Korea today and began moving
at once toward the desperately sag
ging defense lines.
The troops walked ashore at
| busy South Korean port directly
| from the transports that brought
them from the United States.
They were no more than in time,
for North Koreans swung the main
weight of their offensive from the
central to the southern sector, where
they punched two wedges in Ameri-
can lines.
The Communists captured Chinju,
near the south coast, splitting the
Americans there an1 1o-.,'.g them
to retire along difsger roads to
new positions lee tim so miles
from the main Allied port of Pusan
BEAT Hell Out of Us"
They beat the hell out of u.s."
said an American commander.
Only IL miles southwest of Kum-
chon. main hub of the present de-
lenses; Chirye changed hands twice
and became no-man's land.
First Cavalry troopers defending
the central sector adopted
scorched earch policy and put the
torch to hundreds of matched huts
to smoke out guerrillas and enemy
regulars using infiltration tactics.
Officers Killed
| The Americans acted after an
enemy band had slipped up to an
American command post. poked
guns through the windows and killed
four Americans officers and one
South Korean and wounded eight
Americans. Five of the is or 20 raid
ers were killed.
About 20 miles south of Chirye
the Americans also were forced
back further to the east of Kochang,
and in the Kumchon area as well,
despite orders to hold their positions
or die fighting
Reds Pushing Hard
All along the 70-mile line from
Chinju to Kumchon the Reds were
pushing hard with tank-tipped
columns, but American officers said
Kumchon would be held "at all
costs"
Gen. Douglas MacArthur's COM
munique, issued early Tuesday in
Tokyo, said the present lines ran
from Chinju northwest to the west
ern outskirts of Hamyang, northeast
to a point seven miles east of Ko-
chang, four miles west of Kumchon,
| four miles west and north of Ham
chang, one mile north of Yechon
and to the east coast just south Of
Yongdok.
On Northern Front
Pressure was reported to have
! lightened on the northern front,
though the enemy infiltrated into
Hamchang behind the front lines.
Both the Second Infantry Divi-
sion and the First Marine Division
have been enroute from the us.
West Coast. The First Marines left
more than two weeks ago, and the
Second Infantry few days later.
Either would fight as unit merged
in the us. Eighth Army in Korea.
Even if both divisions joined the
three from Japan already engaged
in Korea. along with other unidenti-
fled units from Okinawa. the de-
| tenders still would be considerably
| outnumbered by the invaders.
Gen. MacArthurs intelligence Of
ficers estimated the North Koreans
have mustered an army of 100000
men by frantic mobilization" U.s.
South Korean forces would be only
about half that.
Macarthur in Formosa
Gen. Macarthur arrived on For
mosa for a visit with Generalissimo
Chang Kai-shek and his Nation
alist Chinese aides. The trip could
mean that the long-expected Com
munist invasion of Formosa was
about to be attempted Chang was
expected to renew his offer to send
troops to Korea, but this offer was
not believed likely to be accepted in
view of Formosa's danger. Acting in
! self -defense," Nationalist warplanes
attacked 500 small Communist in
vasion boats near Annoy Sunday and
claimed to have sunk or damaged
$50. 1t was their first such action
since President Truman asked them