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Show . i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i-i FORWARD MARCH By H. S. Sims, Jr. pends upon the development of 4 transportation facilities behind the front, through devastated areas, and this task will be pushed during the bad weather when the front-line fighting is handicapped. Italian Campaign Worries The Nazis . . . The campaign in Italy has not resulted in spectacular allied gains but there is no doubt but that the Germans are making desperate des-perate efforts to prevent the capture cap-ture of Rome. The campaign engages en-gages increased numbers of fighting fight-ing men on both sides. rra. An:,3 :t-inna eppm tO be EXPECT DECISIVE RESULTS WHEN ALLIES SYNCHRONIZE THEIR SUPREME EFFORT AGAINST GERMANY The campaigns in Russia and Italy are overshadowed by the confident expectation of decisive results which accompanies preparations prepa-rations for the cross-channel invasion in-vasion from British bases, which is being preceded by our all-out aerial bombardment of German-Europe. German-Europe. Nobody knows when or where the Anglo-American offensive will begin but the United Nations are sure that it will be the beginning begin-ning of the end. This optimistic estimate of the situation is widespread. wide-spread. Even the Russians count on victory in 1944 if the allied "second front" equals the struggle strug-gle in Russia. The Germans are not asleep. They know that their fate is to be determined upon the battlefield battle-field chosen by Gen. Eisenhower. Moreover, Nazi strategy in Russia has been dictated by the supreme necessity of preparing for the attack at-tack from the West. Nazis Prepare Strong Defenses . . : Our enemy continues strong, with many well-trained fighting men and with an army that has escaped disaster despite a prolonged pro-longed retirement from Russian soil. Nazi strategy includes, no doubt, a supreme effort to inflict X I1C .M.111CU pU-MClV' " relatively safe but supplies, moving mov-ing across the Mediterranean, offer of-fer a problem that involves ships and must therefore be solved with due consideration of demands that are associated with the big push. Occupying interior lines and enjoying en-joying every advantage of supply routes, the Germans, while holding hold-ing on, have not been able to dislodge dis-lodge the Anglo-Americans. This, to some observers, indicates a shortage of Nazi . troops, which are now being husbanded for the defense of western Europe. The presence of our forces in Italy creates a secondary front and presents the German high command with a potential menace that must be parried. As the war develops this peril will increase and the harder-pressed the enemy becomes the greater the danger in Italy. New Moves Coming In Pacific ... In the Pacific the war has been marked by a lull, following the seizure of Kwajalein and the attacks at-tacks upon Truk and the Mariana islands. This was broken by the attack upon the Admiralty islands about 200 miles northeast of New Guinea, and the probability is that naval forces, under Admiral Nim- heavy losses upon the Anglo-American Anglo-American invaders and, If possible, possi-ble, a military disaster. To meet the new invasion the Germans have adopted a defensive strategy, accepting the inevitable losses of territory and prestige that were necessary in Russia. The strong Red army has bounced back with great power and already al-ready Stalin's sturdy soldiers have reclaimed two-thirds of Russian territory lost to the Nazi invaders. On the eastern front the Germans Ger-mans are confronted with a stubborn stub-born foe, willing to fight for victory. vic-tory. Offensives alternate between be-tween the various fronts, with iust enoueh oauses to permit the itz's direction, are about ready for another foray in the mid-Pacific. mid-Pacific. Occupation of the Admiralty islands is-lands almost completese the ring around Rabaul, the former Japanese Japa-nese strongpoint, rendered useless for enemy offensive use by our gains in the Solomons. There is reason to believe that the enemy has many thousand troops cut off and isolated by sea and air action and that starvation or surrender sur-render must eventually result. Strategy May Save Many Lives . . . Japanese garrisons, scattered through the south seas, it seems, face a peril from loss of their supply lines. This points to possible possi-ble elimination of these groups without heavy infantry losses, because be-cause if they are isolated from reinforcements re-inforcements they will be in the same position that Gen. MacAr-thur MacAr-thur found himself in the Philippines Philip-pines in the early days of the war and the same result is inevitable. inevi-table. ! This is an encouraging development develop-ment because it suggests that our losses in fighting the Japs will not be as high as originally calculated. So far, we have made great gains with a minimum of casualties. The same process, if it continues, will mean the saving of thousands of American lives in the recapture of territory seized by the enemy in the early days of the war. regrouping of armies and movement move-ment of supplies. Nowhere along the entire eastern battle line are the German positions "safe" or permanent. Russians Continue Pressure ... This Russian pressure is important impor-tant to the successful completion of Allied strategy. Obvously, nothing noth-ing much would be gained if, when the Anglo-Americans attack, the Russians take a rest, permitting the Nazis to transfer troops from Russia to defend the eastern wall. Consequently, Soviet gains before be-fore the Spring thaws slow down operations are important. They provide jumping off places for powerful offensives that will begin be-gin the Summer campaign. The better the positions attained by the Red army the greater the effect ef-fect of future blows. Much de- |