THE FINAL BATTLE

Grey River Argus, 23 November 1944, Page 5

THE FINAL BATTLE

Eisenhower’s View WILL BE IN RUHR AREA 8.0.W. RUGBY, Nov 21 supreme Heauquaiccrs, io-aay General Eisenhower ioia corresponuencs mac he expecteu ihe German ziimy- would rigiiu ouc tn e bame ror Geimiany west ur tne nmne where me ttunr is. Tne Germans were up agamsc Allied rorces wnuse massive am superiority eiiauied tnem to mast retreat onuges across the rtnme, ana so tne enemy naa no alternative out to stand anu iignt. a question many people were asKing, h e saiu, was wiieuier tne Germans will right a great batue west or the Rnme oi wiviiuraw. Artex- a rouu-miles tour ox the rront he could orter only a personal opinion on the matter, anu ne put it nke this: It tne Germans put a great army across tne nrnne to uerena tneir irontier and then tried to draw pack again tney would he riskuib disaster.

General Eisenhower said he could see no signs or tne Germans retreating across the Rnme east ox Aacnen. i Tne Germans, could quickly puna; neid wonts east of the Kmne, tne | crossing of whicn was practically a navai operation. Tnere was nd I sign oi a crack in German morale. I He said tnat tne Aines were keep- I up pressure and oatties were oemg, I sustained at maximum strength an I aiong me vvestern Front. Ail along j me ironc gams nave oeen made. I A correspondent asited General Eisenhower if the situation was . brighter than had been expected ht saiu: "Decidedly Bright. No one comd have believed me Allies by Novemoer would have been massed Delore tne Siegtried Bine m thief present strength, but most people on D uay would have douoted that tne Germans would fight on after sutlermg sucn defeats as had been inflicted on them. Flans are to hit the Germans with increasing pressuie. There is every reason for optimism, but not for complacency.” Ashed if there were any indications that the German troops (were being transferred from other quarters; General Eisenhower said that the enemy had been transterring some from Norway, but he did not thing they could spare anything nom the East. Referring to the individual German wishing to continue the tight General Eisenhower said that me Gestapo was as firm as ever He felt that the leading gangs of brigands had nothing to los e . and as long as they had the powerful GesUpo weapon in their hands to make others fieht thev did not care and weic Xng Ufight it out to destruction. Of recent advances h e said an forces had had a tough time because of the weather, but had . cont “™ed to do their necessary and vital woi mid had dore it well. The ueavy bombing effort against Ger many hau been carried on and would be cariiea bn to the limit. “One thing that conSues to grow to my faction, is the team work betwee the Airies, the Navies and the An Forces. -It continues to be a miracle and a most pleasant one. Refer ing to the Walcheren Island he said, ft was one of the most ° p eia tions and though not advertised like some was an extraordinary piece ~ of work. The British Navy deserved great kudos for what they did g H e said he would make no pre dictions. He was convinced that the, neoole at home were at one with tne. Army in their determination Biat the BHtain and th e United States were j tLmf nwst ed beK? e ‘ they had, and must continue to be hit . o f the victory.” Stre . that the maximum effort should be lon the last day he said To get this peace we. have got. to BghOike ne for it Now let’s do it. ne ALLIED BOMBERS ALOMGvTHE RHINE. n 4m I ONDON, November 22. Telegraph W."* 1 XLerHeadquarters says, bixtee Qn A-ich-rffenburg, a railway key POhR £SS of Frankfurt and two synthetic oil plants in the Ruhr. Raid on Merseburg OVER 60 ENEMY PLANES CLAIMED. 40 US BOMBERS AND 17 fighters missing (Rec 95) LONDON, Nov. 22. The United State qJ e Tdav ' ou? communique says: On Tues y fighters shot down 73 out 01 ove j 250 enemy interceptor P ly in the Merseburg area, duiung our attack against oil targets. Six other enemy aircraft were destroyed on the ground. The bombing generally was done under adverse conations. Some groups were able to comb v._ ually through cloud breaks. The tern perature ranged down to 43 degiees below zero. The .anti-aircraft fire was very intense around the o- 1 tai gets but moderate elsewnere. Only one of our bomber formations was attacked by enemy fighters, one of which it destroyed. There are 40 of the United States bombers and 17 of the fighters missing. -