Tho Insider
Tear complete morning
newspaper The Statesman,
offers you pertinent com
ments . en war news Of the
day by Kirke Slmpiti,
Washington analyst.
Dimout
; Tuesday sunset, :2S p. m.
YTednesJay tunrLr, S:21 a. m.
Weather: Sua. max. teirp. 43,
mln. '33. Son. rain .11 in.
Mob. rlTer 18.4 ft. Weather
data restricted by army re
quest. PCUND3D 1CZ1
KHIETY-SECOND YEAH
Salem. Oragoxy Tuesday Morning, February 8. 1S43
Price 5c
I7o ZZZ
r - IT ' - Tf : ' '
9S
1 v.. y. I - ' X I V 1 I I I i i f IX
Tlax Cuts
Crged by
Governor
School Fund Ceiling
Asked ; Legislators
Agree in General
By RALPH C. CURTIS
Temporary reduction of in
come and corporate excise
taxes; a $5,000,000 ceiling on
the annual distribution of sur-
-- plus income tax funds to school
districts, with any additional
surplus earmarked for precise
ly the same use in subsequent
years; these were uie major rec
ommendations of Gov. Earl Snell
in his special message transmitted
on Monday to the legislature.
Grateful for the influential sup-
port thus volunteered," members
of the house and senate taxation.
LEGISLATIVE CALENDAR
- Third readings Tuesday:
In House: HB 145, 146, 160, 238,
283." SB 51, 63.
In Senate: SB 39, 55, 128. HB
317, 321, 324.
committees were careful not to
mentlon. out loud, that this was
approximately the program they
already had in mind. Instead, the
house taxation and revenue com -
mittee proceeded to report out
forthwith bills designed to accom-
plish two of the lesser objectives
upon which its members agreed
with the governor or vice versa;
from intangibles, and adjustment
of gift tax rates to bring them
more closely into line with -the
inheritance tax.
A third minor recommendation,
quarterly - payment of income
taxes, has been approved by both
houses of -the legislature though
in separate bills.
Since the tax committees and
the governor are in virtual
agreement en . fundamentals, , it
ij safely . be. assumed that
UJ will t the program, with
only details remaining to be
decided. These Include the nee
essary amendments to the sur
pin-to-schools law, and - the
rant and application of the
income and excise tax redne
tlona. ' "
Th, S.i '
lustrated when Sneaker William
n I
M. McAllister, after praising the
M M.Aiiut-r
governor's message as "very con-
atructive and timely,- and in his I
worn of , the session," went on
record in opposition to a flat
percentage reduction "because of
the fact that in view of the hih
federal taxes, both individuals and
corporations in the high income
i i t . . ......
oracxexs wouia get little benefit I
. auraieu a su per
cent reduction for lowbrackot
taxpayers, a smaller deducUon to
those in th hiah,r,. I
.
xnciaentauy McAllister did dis-
- wiiiumauq way oz saymgivisers, in a drive to put into ac
what the tax committees wnniHnt t firm H;.;nn. . .
aay; that the governor's recom-
menaauons were -sound it l
wie mam in accora with tho ideas I
"-vc n ciysuuiizett Our- i
in the inton.iv. .t,,, I
. - w.u
have been conducted by the com-
mittee. ..."
These were the specific recom-was
tnendations of Gov. Snell:
"The full application of a snr
. pins to - farther reduction ef
taxes would be in exact accord
with the purpose of the Income
tax law and I earnestly reeem
nsend such action. The recent
expression of the people In ap
proving the mitUlcd measure
should be our guide In framing
this legislation. . . . The Initiated
measure mast of necessity be
amended so as to provide the
mechanics, properly integrated
with ar administrative vtMC
tiees, essential to its effective
operation. ...
"The distribution of these sur-
plus fund, should definitely eflert
m reduction in school district taxes
and. I am convinced, thero chmiM
1 . ,. . .. " . 1
. ceumg on tne amount to be
apportioned in
any year the i
?L-,Lr?
amount to be bv Toil detormiriMf
.vi.k v x - i I
vu wmui suggest 81 Uie XigUre I
of $5,000,000. While the placing
departure from the provisions of
ucjuimc xixjm vam provisions OI I
xne toitiated measure, it would In
my opinion most effectively serve v
the purpose of property tax
duction by spreading" that reduc-f
won over a period of years, in-1
.Oil 4 in n mI. v A . I
wuuiue, wiwiw, wBi-wir jean
when such reUef may be needed
farmore than during the income-1
w peoo. . i . i DC-
lieve provision should be made
for impounding all surplus income
tax revenue in a special fund de-
4 I 1 J!4J 1
LTici
tax reduction. ... I
, . l
As an adjustment to compen-
uiu w rtzw oiory s; i
A Oft ia 1
Med :Bped.
Allied
Jap-Occupied
Tovn Mostly
Destroyed
Aroe Islands Area
iln Flames; Ground
; Troops Inactive
By MURLIN SPENCER r .
ALLIED HEADQUARTERS
j IN AUSTRALIA, Tuesday, Feb.
Q-jriPUAllirl hnmhon virtnnliv
' . ... . ;
nave aestroyea tne Japanese-
occupied Dobo in the north
western Aroe islands, leaving
fullv thri-ouartPrs of the town
'
j ourning ruins alter an aiiacic
I Monday.
The Aroe islands lie in the Ara-1
fura sea between northern Aus-
tralia and the western end oi New
Guinea, about 500 miles north of
Darwin.
1 The attack, made by Dutch
j fliers in American Billy Mitchells
and Australians in Hudson bomb -
ers, was part of a wide sweep by
Gen. Douglas MacArthur's air
force which also destroyed - a
shore from Buin on the island of
I Bougainville in the northern Sol-
omons.
Allied planes also raided Jap-
occupied points at Babo in Dutch
New Guinea, Gasmata in New
Britain, and Finschhafen and Lae
I m northern New Guinea.
Ground activity in the south
west . Pacific war theatre was
confined to general patrol ac
tion In the '-Wan-Mob, area
where one" patrol stf miles east
T the Wm airdrome wiped nt
Japanese pocket. The shte of
the enemy force was not report
ed.
In nearby Dutch New Guinea.
Jamnou nin. m.,...l.
ST "raldK M"e
" ' " I
rT . "Uk Jeai ueu 1
Tlle communique announced
L' m.su",t " Ausxra-
X 1 . .
lLIf 'LfTZZ Zl V
lla 8 ea8t coast, survivors' were
LTT " v" ZZl H JU I
""'uA ,1 1, TJ "i,
Ghurchill
:s into
"l
mZ' JJT
- awuiuj inio aay
MM meM FOnftrPnr
Mondav
With his military and nnlitinal a1-
toxic north African talks wito
PrcMnf n,, lul v
returned Sunday.
While tho countrv was left
olivine
. " "'ime close committee session coro-
is"4 w uie prune minisxer I
postponed an exnected mvirt J
narl amn w; CiV "v-Vi I
electrified by the immediate
- -- u i
parleys with military, naval and
air chiefs and cabinet officers' who
were said to be translating into
S..ftrnJJd!;
at Casablanca.
Phni.!ii.:'..-:; .
in all 'ma4S... . .1
we press ov I
strong new demands that a second I
fhTL rLi TT W5llC vision of the Marion county civfl
the Germans were still staggering i Aomm 0t4
under th- .Mm.. i 5f.-- ian oef enso organization and phy
j under the blows of the Russian
winter offensive.
I While Churchill's report to par
liament on tho Casablanca talks
Snw9 faves. ftAa -t-W tin. , r ., .. a v
met Inonu of Turkey and British 1
Bst am.. j v j- 1
uv - mumiui sci vive . uetua : at 1
Cairo and Algiers was put aside
onl tar few dy. political ob-
servers expressed doubt that he
': WOU- I
- ,rt,,ij isi-
" - rT""!
on expected new front and tho I
outcome of the 4alk will, ih-
heads of Rr-italn'a nrm.Vill!artt
" " 1
aB m Mtern Mediterranean.
nn . fii : rr " 1 1 I
011108 JLmaea
Aef t T
re-JTOr Oy U1JUUS
! NEW YORK, Feb. S-irTWapa-1
J .LI..! I .
i msramni mppmj
has suffered severe blows since
Pearl Harbor, with a total of 459
iFPwese amps sent w me ooiiom
of the Pacific by allied forces, a
tabulation of United Nations an-
nouncements revealed Monday. ;
, T - r .v.-,-i5 I
u wuiLwison, uie wouiauon
showed only 89 announced United I
. - I
States naval and merchant ship
losses m me raciuc area. I
W I .
Bombers
Embattled Yanhs on Gualcanal Hold Ridge
i i i i i i i i ii ' i 1 i ip i win i ,tmm " ". j i I f -1 'in i ,- '
i
I
1 United States warriors are pictured here ellmbin a steep ridge '
adeptness at Alpine tactics enabled them to gain and hold the
post below. UN Soundphoto.
J JVfQ C11T4 iaCirC
1 1" CcliS 111 C xsLolVo
Worker Draft
s-y 41
noover sees Snipping
As Key, Says Home
V-
rront r eeos Help
Ir J
troduced leeislation MoidaT to
draft worken for war fao
and farms where necessary while
r sj a ti i t- .
I lul"ic x-xuCm serpen noover
niggesiw inn ; me , manpower
could be eased by
military inductions and munitions I
making to shipping limitations.
Hoover made his suggestion for
trimming the pace of the war ef- ski 15 miles over the rugged ter
fort on the basis that "time runs rain to Sumpter, where be caught
inur ,avoxT "i the war. ,
in our favor" in the war.
v ppm? ne "w. " T w
quuu" llulum " 80ia:
reis wiu wuuii, cum uuisj ana
guns, need not be produced "fast
er than can pass (through) the
shipping bottleneck," : with con
sideration for reserves against
1944.
Declaring that one million
more workers are needed to
remedy "acute shortage points'
In farm, metal and oQ indus
tries, he said he believed suffi-
cient labor could be obtained by
employing trained women, im
porting workers from Mexico
and fnrlonghing some men
from the military services. . - ' '
Hoover presented his- views be-
H 8mat tudying
f'uii u
press conference. Senator Nye
(H-MDJ and others who attended I
mented that
committee members
ved the Hoover ar-
PP
guments.
Meanwhile Senator Austin (R-
(Turn to Page 2 Story C)
Puryine Assigned
TV TlistiA TTanA
sawo
n. n.i.k -c n. 4
. , .j.i J;
sician for Willamette university,
reported for active duty at state
selective service J headquarters
Monday as a naval lieutenant.: He I
" t ICr ,r7,.
v-xiiur. Kuen fa nuts-
ZLS2r!&
Lg. TV ni
mfinVorp' le
.11 , W - X-
w Kegan an assignment at met
an assignment at the
state selecUve service office here
. . 61
Monday.
TTf " m . ' -m
Mynn Reelected
- a w aiau iUl JL U91
NEW YORK.1 Feb.
ward J. Flynn, former democratic
lTl2tLiebA
was elected democratic leader of
T . . . . . . ...
ue oaiui assemDiv aistriet the I
first step toward resumins his r
post as head of the Bronx county I
execuuve committee. ? ,
; This action came a few hours
after Flynn announced he would
accept i reelection to the Rmn-r
. . . .r I
county post one of three partyi
nositinna b
- -- w uM, wv o I
being considered as US minister
to Australia.
. ' I
i-
f
r
i v
Town's Food
Low
BAKER, Ore, Feb. t-(JFh-A
clrinv Vk to -Mravsi' mi4
I auavtv uia ws Wfr Ui
snowbound granite, BlueJ moun-
rJ?11 northwest
I of here, and told Monday of fast
diminishing food supplies land
fear for the health .of Jnfants and
The skier. G. R. Allen, said the
town had been isolated since Jan
uarf, 19 811(1 grocery store
I in the fommnninr of 41 ;tprsnn
.
i ""-
N le canned goods left. The
own exists principally on cereals.
& 1CX-
Allen said he took 14 hours to
i. bus. In Baker he bought what
food he could carry on his back
and left for Granite.
Prisoner
I4-
V
r
. - f r
4.
-a-J
.-: . voVomW b6m
Staff Sgt. Earl T. Watson of Dal'
las, who was reported, hy the
war department Monday as be
ing among a newly listed group
of American soldiers held pris
oners of war in the Philippines.
His mother, Mrs. Agnes Cooper,
postoffke box 19. Dallas, was of
flciaDy notified of her son's
whereabouts a few -days ago.
He v was reported missing and
probably' a prisoner last May
22. He was one of the defenders
of Fort Mills in Manila bay.
British Ambassadors "
To Confer in Cairo
xrv a-o a n 1 u s n-
k-m . Vl-i . n JTJTi
Minister Churchill's visit to Turk-
kh lesdoni lart week British Am.
blorSuHu KnS-
Hugess was eportederoute
r
1VUV Uiftu. wx.l
with Richard Sasey, British min-
1SU7 fJJL tunc UiC UllUUlC VCUai.
rh. , .c. i
nr V i.rtrri.
aaaa-w M w.v w
Supply
Heavily
i
by means of a hand rope: Their
ridge position bearing on an enemy
British Troops
Ready to Hit
Allied Planes Busy
Over Axis Ships,
Fortifications
-imTX)N, Feb..cWThe Brit
ish : Eighth army driving hr from
Libya at the heels of Marshal
PAmnukl. - A 1 .... .
uvw vutp. uu
reached the region ol the Tunisian
announced that Gen. Sir Bernard
Montgomery's troops had been in
contact with the enemy west of
Pisida, itself 10 miles from the
boraer. ,
action against Rommel's transport
over a wide area.
In the Mediterranean, y
shipping remained under pun
ishing attack from the British
fleet and it appeared that tho
battle of the straits was being
won by the allies.
Recapitulations from Cairo dia-
closed that during the past week
i enemy snips naa been sunk or
so badly damaged as to be aban
doned; that two others were dam
aged and four more believed sunk.
Montgomery rolled up his tanks
and artillery just inside the Tuni
sian border for a move abainst the
Mareth line, which, Reuters re
ported, is manned now mostly by
Italians. His patrols sounded out
tacked axis vehicles west jt Ben
Leaving the Italians to protect j
his rear, Rommel was said .-..to
have re-equipped I the African
corps with new weapons from CoL I
Gen. Judgen Von Arnio's stores I
ward the Gabes Gap, where the I
to cut their way to the sea.
Police Seek
Jail Escapee
ncvnmt s-mnr w.i. . I
r""" ...T
who escaped from the Clackamas
.n u i I
nigni wr virgn jj. jueyers, 12,
from the Clackamas
jtvi.. . j Vlv.i j I
vvuuj . joua - jnvuuai ssll vorar : uireXJUr I
uiii . auu iuuuu
..1 .1 ! MM
uvy sneriu in a ceil.
Tho deputy, AI Scheer. said
Meyers, who was booked as a
-T j . w I
hltweeksa na
here last week, was a parolee from
the California state prison at Fol-
som. -'
Scheer said Meyers held him up
when he took breakfast to his cell.
How the gun was obtained was
undetermined.
Hawaii Military Rule
To Be Modified Soon
WOTMOT TTTTT VK RiTVH.T?I I
fixation of th . mnitarv ml In I
tt im TtsursiTan l. fcland 1
sine ths Jaw attack of DMmber I
7. 1941, and the return to civil
authority In 30 days of 18 func-
tions of government were" an- j
nounced Monday by Lt Gen. I
Delos C. .Emmons, military gover-1
nor, and territorial Governor In-1
gram Stainback.
- ' ...
MfTOPill 717)1
ij-ju. vjiA j
Axis
-4-j ---- - - .' - -
at
Ship and U-Boat
I m
oases named;
Lorient Blazes
Evacuation of Frencn
Port Ordered ; ' Yank
Planes Hit Italy
LONDON, Tuesday, Feb. 9
(-Heeding ." demands that the
U-boat menace be beaten,4 the !
RAT , was .reported early.,Tuesr
day to have blasted the big
Danish shipyards at Copen
hagen after .wreaking; such de
vastation at the Lorient sub-
marine base In France that the
German radio said the Lorient
I district . had been ordered evac
uated.
While German i radios went off j
the air Monday night a sign that
the RAF was paying a visit to the
continent explosions heard on
the Swedish side of the Skag-
gerak late Monday night indi
cated that Copenhagen, home of
the world's largest diesel engine
works, was given three doses of
RAF terror. i
The Burmeinster and Wain
shipyards at Copenhagen were at
tacked for the first time in this
war January 27.
. The raid on Lorient was one
of a series ef devastating blow
by 17 S a n d British bombers
against key axis bases in Italy,
Germany, and France Sunday
and Sunday night, and fighter
planes - sped hat k to Franco
Monday : afternoon In a con
tinuation of the. huge, sky of
tenure. , , ,
am-a tLyL..
Italian port, in flames with a pow -
.tfsrV hiHHh ,m.
,j , .aLZ,,
Cagliari in Sardinia. British bomb-
- than fn)lnr SK .1
olanejI werB lost m JihoRe
I ... i
Iuptrrauuna. :
t v . Tm K T-ifc ifff,
bombers roared lover Lorient, Bay
of Biscay U-boat base, and left
the target area "one man of
flames" with "their two-ton block
buster bombs.' f
It was the 65th raid of the war
on Lorient, and, London observers
figured there was little left of the
Rar nf Risray nort first French
j town to be designated in its en-
j tirety as a target of the RAF.
The air ministry news service
said Lorient was raided by two
waves of bombers and that
smoke Xrom the ha go fires
(Turn to Page 2 Story A)
I:
IT J T Uaco
j JUCllU"JLA?clot3
tO luilllia
gO --"O J-s
VfCIS JLfOOSl
W A S H I N GTON, Feb. 8 -VP)
Sentiment for increased lend-lease
Monday as the house foreign -
of War Stimson and Shipping Ad-
ministrator Emory S. Land stress
the need for continuing the mu-
tuaL aid agreements for another
year,
An imnassioned clea br Ren.
Curlev CD-Mass) for steoDinx ud I
shipments of weapons to Chinese
fjffhtin fore won. vigorous an-1
Sh, . ri, nr h,
rTT'iVZ" tZ.
everju iOIC1"
everal members of the foreign
af fain committee. I
The former Bav State povernor I
. " r.V-i 7 v.L. .
- -V . . r
announcea ,u ne naa uicu ii
resolution wmcn wouia earmark
w P ena-ess money
for fThina . a ktjn which he aaid I
?
n th livoa of mnr thai 00.000 I
Americans. ' i , ; - . I
UToanwhilo Ktimann eYnrented
before the house committee his
personal conviction that thia na-
tion , could not and should not
seek a postwar fdollars and cents"
settlement of International debts
arising from . the lend-lease pro-
- !,.' ." ' It
- 1W Tjsnd nmu Out sltvlnnira I
that Amrlran-enntrolTid vmsse!. I
1 4 vr mHinf fWnhof 9t I
1042. had made1 1745 saHinpa load-
ed with lend-lease material 1375 1
for Britain, 304 for Russia and I
68 for China. S ' ? ! v I
Unortunately,,, he said, iot
every vessel that sailed arrived I
at her destination,-but by far the I
largest portion ox them 010."
Shoes Sell Again; "
Restraint Asked
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 -yip)
Shees go back oat sale again
Tuesday, nnder a rationing
program, but OFA Chief Pren
tiss M. Brown asked Monday
night that people refrain from
buying shoes until they actually
need them. ' v
The ration program, announ
ced by the White House Sunday
fat the ' name of Economic Di
- rector James F. Byrnes and
without advance notice, allows
three pairs of shoes a year a
person.,.;--,
'The order ordering the ra
tioning also put a - one-way
freese on sales, allowing them
to go back on sale Tuesday
morning. . .': '' '.. ,-'-
Brown, in new statement
Monday night, urged people not
to bay needlessly. He estimated
that there are about St.aoe.OOf
pairs of shoes lying Idle In clos
;. ets or being worn only occasion
ally and asked the public to
"get the maxlmnm wear from
the shoes yon now have.'
OPAtoSet
Milk
IVIaximum to Farmers
"Slated ; Committee
Discusses Here
WASHINGTON. Feb. S.-VPt-A
nation-wide ceiling on the prices
paid to farmers for ; fluid milk
will be issued in the near future,
the office of price administration
announcd Monday night -
In general, 'the order will pro
vide that no distributor of fluid
milk may pay more to producers
for his supplies than the highest
price be paid for milk delivered
in January this year.
The regulation will be tempor
aryj to be replaced within 60 days
1 b,.a permanent regulation n
milk prices.
Celling over prices of fluid
I . " " w J,CVCU''
riSCS UT UlC COS I OI WG DU
I uc ol this essential food."
I The announcement said OPA,
I m an effort to lower farmers' cost
I . . . . .
OI needing dairy cows and other
iivestock' would issue a Compan-
"er m p"cea 01 al"
"""J"' Oregon
X Washington by 4 to $8 a ton.
Twin prospects of an actual
milk famine in Oregon and of
a serious decline In the quality
of milk sold to the public, un
less the office of price admin
istration lifts tho ceiling price
in , recognition of production
costs, were emphasised by
speakers at a hearing before
the senate agrieultare commit
tee and the hoase food and dai
ry products committee of the
Oregon legislature Monday
afternoon. -
There was unanimous support
at the hearing for a senate Joint
memorial to the president and
congress, Introduced by Sen.
Merle Chessman and others, as
serting that "price fixing when
applied to milk must begin with
(Turn to Page 2 Story E)
Spprr1iT sH lOflfl
rwv ' - npv
JLlXeHt JLIrOPSo
. JT. 7
Uitch surges
threat of a second Willamette
river flood this year and with it
tne highest water recorded In
S7 subsided Monday.
Th. main rive rin
w " "A - " V. , "ZL" ""I
n
Monday from
d Sunday night. The rise re-
suited In flooding arafn of W
-.rd. Bnd .m nt w r,.M
' :r " ,r J.. V
.7: " " . i .1 1
- Tho Santiam river also t
17
three feet above flood stare. Sun-
uay, v "
A one-day rainfall of 2.09 Inches
m ialem ana meiung snOWS aDOV
I .-.A 11 JSAt A I At- a
"r1,0tr,r.Uilr, . wlUiiZ1 ""
? bankl' many plac
'f S"?' ,E"eer
?avij "f"- Several bridges were
damged to ! """f "tent
The exceptionany heavy rato
An -J Ml A .
w uowlea any OUCr Ume
m many years, tne engineer re-
POTted,
School Doard BleetS
Details of the next rationing
registrations to be carried on
through the schools may be pre-
sen ted at tonight's meeting of the
Salem school board, Supt Frank
IB. Bennett said Monday.
Ceiling
Jmii
Kharkov,
Rosiov
Encirclement Works
Again; Qty Held
By Nazis Since Ml
By EDDY GILMORE ,
- MOSCOW, Tuesday, ' Feb. 0
(rT)-Sweeping westward with
unprecedented speed, ; the red
army has recaptured the pivotal
city of Kursk, a major bastion
in the nazies 1941-42 winter
defense line, has fanned out
over a tremendous area and is
threatening vital objectives both
to the. northwest and south. "
Kursk was one of the bizeest
German bases in all Russia, and
the red army in its offensive last
winter, although able to push to
the immediate area, failed to take
it then, and it remained in German
hands to . become an ' important
springboard for the nazi 1942
spring and summer onslaught.
Now. however, the triumphant
Soviet army toppled the city
quickly. MajV Gen. Chernyakov
sky led the occupation, a special
communique announced Monday
night, making the advance of 24
miles from Zolotukhino and other
towns north and west of the city.
With the fall of this strong
point, more of the same kind of
operations may be expected, and
Kharkov and Rostov both are
now in Imminent dancer and -appear
to be under threat of
encirclement a maneuver the
Germans dreadfully fear after
their debacle at Stalingrad cans- '
ed by these Russian tactics.
" Pressure was Increased V an
other of the -key Nazi defenses
Rostov, gateway to the Caucasus,
where the Russians are besieging
the city from the south and an
other column Is driving down from
the north. , .
The capture of Kursk Imperilled
the entire German defensive le
in Russia. ;
The railroad city had been fe
German hands since November 11,
1941, falling to the nazis only 4
months after they launched their
drive into Russia.
Kursk was occupied after Ma
violent attack" assisted by "an En
circling movement from the north-
west," said the special communique
as recorded here by the Soviet t
Monitor. '
The announcement came as a
surprise, for previous Russian
communiques1 had not indica- .
ted that Kursk was under di
rect attack. It had been out
flanked with tho capture ef
Fatesh, 35 miles to the north
west, announced Sunday, and
other soviet columns had been
moving up from tho . southeast "
and east, and down from the
north.
Kursk ranked with Orel, Bry
ansk, and Kharkov and Rostov as
pivots of the German 1941-42
winter line.-
The communique also announ
ced the fall of Korocha, northeast
of Belgorod, and east of the
Kursk-Kharkov line.
It freed more soviet forces for
an attack on Kharkov, 125 miles
to the south. Soviet spearpoints
aimed at Kharkov already stand
within, 65 miles to tho northeast,
and 43 miles to the southeast
Rostov on the high north bank
of the Don was dominated by
masses of Russian artillery on tho
south short of the 1400-foot river
while another Red army was re
ported striking swiftly south from
the Donets toward -the Sea of
Azov threatening a quarter mil
lion or more Germans with an
other "Stalingrad death trap.1
The Russians declared they
had beaten back counter -at
tacking Germans trying to re- .
gala lost positions south of Ros
tov, mowing them down with
powerful mortar fire. One
frontline dlspatoh suggested
that the Russians had given the
German garrison inside the an
cient city some kind of ulti
matum. The Don at Rostov is covered
with 50 to 70 centimeters (19 to
27 inches) of ice, Tass reported.
Russian artillery already was
reported lobbing shells across the
Don into German positions in
Rostov.
(The British radio carried the
unconfirmed report that the Rus
sians "are now fighting in the
suburbs of Rostov." Similar re
Next
ports have come from Stockholm
for two days.) . ' - .