| OCR Text |
Show took what came and prepared to4 give back the blows. The time is at hand for the Axis to demonstrate demon-strate its ability to stand up under un-der the great pounding-. The vital difference is that the resources of the Axis powers have been depleted in unsuccessful offensives of-fensives and neither the Germans, Italians or Japanese have the reserves re-serves necessary to win the battle bat-tle that is certain to be more intense in-tense than any that have thus far developed. tions completely reverses the mil- itary picture for the Nazis. Instead In-stead of possessing great superiorly, superior-ly, as when France collapsed, the Germans are up against enemies that continue to grow stronger. Gradually, the war potential of the United Nations is reaching the battlefronts and the day approaches ap-proaches when it will overwhelm the Hitlerites. In the air, instead of the overwhelming over-whelming control that contributed so much to Germany's earlier victories, vic-tories, the skies are filled with the planes of the United Nations. The bombing squads grow stronger. The luftwaffe, hopelessly outnumbered, outnum-bered, is unable to protect vital centers, much less undertake retaliatory re-taliatory bombing attacks. Germany's weakness in the air is nowhere more apparent than in combat. In North Africa the allied aerial strength contributed mightily to the triumph In Tunisia. Tuni-sia. From Russia comes reports of air activity that were entirely absent in the 1941 and 1942 Summer Sum-mer campaigns. At sea, the United Nations slowly tighten the noose of the blockade, which, despite its ina bility to win the war, is a power- ful factor in limiting Germany's war effort. The construction of thousands of cargo ships and the steady flow of new warships enable en-able the United Nations to make full use of sea power, despite the U-boats. Exhausted Resources Trouble Axis ... Plainly, the defensive era of warfare has ended for the allies. They no longer wonder whether Germany can break through the cordon that bars the Nazis from the outside world. The period of preparation is drawing to an end, with mobilization of strength fast reaching the stage of readiness for a decisive land battle. Instead of seeking to avoid engagements en-gagements the United Nations now plan offensives, both in Europe Eu-rope and in the Pacific. There is no hesitant doubt less a failure produce defeat. Back of the accumulated ac-cumulated hitting power is a line of supply, along with reinforcements reinforce-ments of all kinds are moving in great volume. The Axis powers, having delivered deliv-ered powerful, if foul, blows knows that the United Nations 4 MARCH By II. S. Sims, Jr. nrVTII BLOW BEADY FOB n MY AND GERMANY; IWs BITTER FIGHT AGAIXST HEAVIER ODDS The war has suspended in a lull that foretells a fury that will suddenly break without warning as to intensity and direction. The defeat of Germany seems certain but the events that will precede the Nazi collapse cannot be foreseen. It is not possible to predict, with any basis of fact, the nature of the plans that have been adopted and are now on the verge of execution. The attack upon the Mediterranean Mediter-ranean islands may be underway by the time this article appears in print. Many signs now point to early efforts to hit Italy a death blow but, obviously, until the offensive of-fensive begins there will be no way to anticipate its exact date. Much the same situation exists in the Pacific, where Japan's inaction in-action has allowed the United States to prepare for a power drive. No official report reveals the extent of the preparations made and there are no predictions as to the location of the offensive that may come in the South Pacific, Pacif-ic, or elsewhere. German Position Deteriorates . . . The situation of Germany is pre-' pre-' carious, although the Nazi army remains a formidable fighting force. In the East the Red -army waits quietly and in the West looms the Anglo-American invaders. invad-ers. Overhead the aerial bombers bomb-ers steadily blast factories, facilities facili-ties and ports. News from the Atlantic is bad, with the U-boat campaign failing to stop the flow of men and material to fighting fronts. It is questionable whether the German army will be beaten decisively de-cisively in the field. It is possible that the German home front will collapse, thus cutting off supplies and munitions from the army. Certainly, if this happens the Nazi generals will surrender rather than face the butchery of battle against odds that make defeat inevitable. in-evitable. If Germany elects to fight for victory the long-delayed offensive against Russia ought to be underway. under-way. Only through the decisive defeat of the Red army before an Anglo-American attack can the Nazis hope for success. The strategy strat-egy of defense, which Hitler indicated indi-cated would be adopted, will be shattered by the bombs that are slowly destroying productive power. pow-er. Allies Slowly Gain Ascendancy . . . The fact that Germany is now confronted by three strong na- |
