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Show I 'l'lllll'Mllll'l!II!tM!llll!lllHtlnMl!!lt FORWARD MARCH By H. S. Sims, Jr. liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiimiiiiiiHHiiiiiiimimiiiiiiimiiiiiiil GRINDING PROCESS OF WAR GOES ON AS ARMIES STAND AND FIGHT TO ASSEP.T SUPREMACY There is no reason for the folks at home to become impatient with the progress of the war. After all, battles are not won by arm-chair warriors but by men who face the difficulties and the bullets of the enemy. They seem to be doing very well. There is a danger that the people peo-ple of Allied countries will become be-come dissatisfied with less than smashing victories and rapid advances. ad-vances. This is just what Adolf wants. He is anxious for us to believe be-lieve that the struggle cannot be won and that a stalemate is inevitable. inevi-table. This will give him a way out. Pause Before The Great Attack . . . The situation along the borders of Germany may be somewhat similar to the period in the early days of the invasion when our soldiers sol-diers seemed contained in the Norman Nor-man peninsula. However, after due preparations had been completed they cut loose with one of the most spectacular military victories in the history of war and marched up to the borders of Germany, bypassing by-passing the famous battlefield of the first World War with comparative compar-ative ease. Naturally, the Nazis, bolstered by the defenses of the Siegfried Line, present a tough proposition. Our men outran their supply lines, pushing vigorously ahead and a pause became inevitable. The same thing has happened on other fronts during the war and will happen on all fronts during any prolonged struggle. Allies outran Supply Lines . . . We may rest assured that Allied leaders are busy moving supplies to the front and that, upon a given giv-en date, the attack upon Germany will exceed anything that has been seen in the west. The battle is not a pushover in any sense but there is no sense in being pessimisti about what will happen. The Germans are weakening. They have suffered terrific defeats de-feats in 1944. They are making a last-ditch defense of their homeland. home-land. They have the advantage of prepared positions, skilfully designed de-signed to withstand the attack of a superior army. Naturally, they will not quit until the decision has gone against them. Whether the pause is ddue to unexpected German strength is a question that cannot be answered except by the authorities who know all about the situation in Europe. We have not the - slightest slight-est idea. The chances are, however, howev-er, that Allied soldiers extended themselves in th rapid advance through France and the Low Countries and that some re-grouping, both of men and supplies, is necessary. Manpower . . . We attempt no prophecy as the time that will be necessary to go through the Siegfried Line, or to turn the northern flank of German Ger-man positions. hTe attack will be made and continued until the Germans Ger-mans are blasted out of their line or until Nazi reserves are exhausted. exhaust-ed. The process of grinding German Ger-man manpower goes on relentlessly relent-lessly on three fronts. As we have emphasized time and again the capture of territory is immaterial. The destruction of the fighting armies ar-mies of Hitler is the objective, and it matters little whether they fight along the Rhine or the Vistula or in Italy. When the German army falls before minimum strength to make a stand under heavy pressure, pres-sure, the war, as an organized struggle, will end. |