Show u. u S. S DUTCH UNITS SINK JAP WARSHIPS tAllies allies Take J I Offensive Offensive j H Hammer mer Nipponese Nipponese- v Driving Toward Java 1 i i United Nations Report 2 Enemy Destroyers Sent Down Bomb Hits on 3 Cruisers 4 Transports During Two-Day Two Naval ova Battle ate By Asso Associated Press United nations forces taking the ini initiative for the first time smashed at Japans Japan's invasion hordes near Java Saturday Rising Sun troopships naval vessels and warplanes were battered The navy department in Washington reported that six American destroyers ac- ac companied by Dutch warships sank two enemy destroyers off the island of Bali with only slight damage to American American American Amer Amer- and and- loss ican vessels minor of personnel Earlier the war department said Bald four Japanese plan planes were downed and that direct hits were scored on three enemy cruisers and four transports Accounts from allied headquarters in Java said dive bombers and fighting planes aided the bombers and naval craft The allied said the flaming sea and aerial battle re resulted resulted re re- suited in the explosion of of one Nipponese cruiser and damaging blows were dealt two other cruisers cruis crula- ers two destroyers and four tour trans trans- ports Trouble Brews Breus for tor Axis Trouble was brewing for the axis on other fronts also Portugal protested to Japan against occupation of Timor island half halt owned by Portugal by Japanese Japanese Japanese Japa Japa- nese forces The government did not indicate what action would be betaken betaken betaken taken if It Japan refused to evacuate evacuate evacuate ate the island Brazil protested to Germany over the sinking of two Brazilian freighters in the Atlantic off the American coast With relations between the nations already ruptured ruptured ruptured rup rup- Rio de Janeiro did not disclose disclose disclose dis dis- dis- dis close what action would be taken if it Germanys Germany's answer was factory Submarines stabbed at American American Ameri Ameri- can shipping sinking the tanker Pan Massachusetts off the Atlantic Atlantic Atlantic Atlan Atlan- tic coast with a loss of 20 lives Eighteen survivors ors reached FlorIda Florida Florida Flor Flor- ida in a rescue ship Bomb Railhead To Town The railhead town of Bassein west of Rangoon was wan bombed by Japanese planes but otherwise the situation In Burma was obscure Latest reports declared the British were holding firm but Tokyo refuted re refuted refuted re- re this claim American warplanes will save Java or the lack of them will ill cost coat the allies the only first class naval base left in the southwest Pacific a Netherlands source declared in London The Japanese know is excellently equipped and they will fight desperate for its Ita yards steel mills and factories factories fac tac- fac- fac tories he said Java will fight back just as desperately he pledged The rhe island is bigger than England has more people and a colonial army of at least J But warplanes will decide th the issue It depends depends' on how many the United States has been able to divert dhert there As the battle batUe raged into its second day In the shark-Infested shark Java Jan sea dispatches from Batavia said it was potentially greater than the fight for tor strait the tho scene of Japans Japan's worst naval disaster disaster dis dis- dis aster uter of the war United States cruisers and heavy bombers combined with Dutch cruisers and destroyers under the tho aggressive command of the Dutch Continued on Q Put Two T wo ma j Column Three U. U S.-Dutch S. Sea and Air Forces Sink Jap Warships Off Bali Continued from Page Pane One Vice Admiral C. C E. E L. L Helfrich was reported blasting furiously at atthe atthe atthe the invaders The N NEI E I warships steaming out to battle must have seemed like a ghostly return of the legendary legendary legendary legen legen- dary Flying Dutchman for imperial imperial im im- im- im penal Tokyo headquarters proclaimed proclaImed proclaimed pro pro- claimed on February 6 that the Dutch navy was practically entirely entirely entirely en- en en en- wiped out On that date a Tokyo que that two Dutch cruisers cruisers cruis cruis- ers were sunk and a third Dutch cruiser comprising the main N NEI E I fleet and a Unit United d St States tes cruiser were damaged in a fight in the J Java va sea This followed the bloody b battle of I strait trait in which various estimates listed Japanese loss losses ss s high as as 46 warships and I Bombers Attack Armada A war department bulletin Issued is issued issued is- is sued in Washington said at least 10 heavy American bombers attacking attacking attacking at at- tacking the Japanese armada off Bali scored direct hits on three enem enemy cruisers cruisers' and four transports transports transports trans trans- ports and also shot down four Japanese planes Four American planes were acknowledged acknowledged acknowledged ac ac- ac- ac lost Batavia dispatches said the Java sea fight was the first allied naval offensive in the critical battle battle bat bat- tle f for r the Indies One allied destroyer was torpedoed torpedoed torpedoed torpe torpe- and sunk A bull bulletin tin from united nations headquarters in Java said the planes sank a large Japanese transport and scored a series of direct hits on enemy cruisers and destroyers One of th the cruisers which received received received re- re two direct hits of heavy bombs was seen to be stationary and on fire a said Thunders Toward Climax Dispatches from Batavia said the fighting began shortly after midnight Friday in Lombok strait east of Bali Ball and continued on a major scale Saturday as the struggle struggle gle for the last united nations stronghold in the Indies thundered toward a climax Allied submarines and treacherous I ous coral reefs were reported playing play play- ing havoc with Japanese landing forces Bali Ball already Invested by Japans Japan's sea-borne sea Invasion hordes lies across a wide mile-wide strait from Java With the far Pacific conflict surging ever closer to her shores Australia ordered civilians to evacuate evacuate evac- evac evac evac- Darwin twice-bombed twice naval base on the north coast of the commonwealth and military authorities au au- au- au clamped strict control on the area I Report Japs Repulsed On the Burma front British headquarters reported that Japa Japa- nese invasion forces had been thrown back In bloody fighting west of the Bilin river 75 miles northeast of Rangoon with British troops launching repeated counter counter- attacks Casualties were heavy on both sides Supported by American volunteer volunteer volunteer volun volun- teer group fighters R RAF A F bombers bombers bomb bomb- ers and Hurricanes British Imperial Imperial Im Im- Im- Im penal defenders were reported still holding their lines intact against increasing g pressure The enemy tried to cross the river ne near r the mouth of the Bilin Bum but our troops threw them back into the river a British said Dispatches from said Generalissimo Chiang shek's Kai ChIne se vete veterans s aiding iding hi In the e defense of Burma crushed a Jai L a-L 0 nese attempt to cross cross a river w west st of in the northernmost tip of Thailand Jap Raid Destructive Japanese bombers were officially official official- ly declared to have destroyed 27 21 planes aloft or aground at Kalid- Kalid field 60 miles east of Batavia and a said widespread widespread widespread wide spread destruction as well as fires was caused to other military ob ob- ob- ob Domel Japanese news agency reported the Batavia raid without details Dutch forces whose aerial support support support sup sup- port includes some United States squadrons sought to blunt Japanese Japanese Japa Japa- Japanese nese pincers groping toward Java nerve center of the allied war effort effort effort ef ef- ef- ef fort in the Pacific Aneta Dutch news agency said the Indies army is ready for full action virtually unimpaired by losses in delaying engagements on outlying islands It asserted that the allied fleet will be able to concentrate for the fighting rather than split up on offensive and defensive de de- defensive de- de missions and that united nations air forces can operate in full strength Coastal defenses were believed capable of checking the first Japanese blows Direction Not Known The only question now is whether er tile Japanese will attempt an invasion first from Sumatra to the west of Java across the to 14 wide mile Sunda trait strait or from Bali the picturesque island which lies only a a. mile off Javas Java's east co coast st st. Swastika symbols the symbols the markings markings mark mark- ings of German war planes were planes were reported in a royal Australian air force to have been borne by several aerial raiders which struck at Bathurst island in an atta attack k correlated with a mass assault upon Darwin Thurs Thurs- day Denying a statement by the Tokyo Tokyo To To- kyo radio that Japanese bombers avoided a hospital ship In the harbor harbor har har- bor at Darwin north Australian city Prime Minister John Curtin declared the hospital ship was at at- tacked and there were casualties Tokyo dispatches quoted by the Rome radio said Japanese planes had bombed the Dutch East Indies Island of Flores midway between Bali and Timor where two Japanese Japanese Japanese Japa Japa- nese parties parti were reported to have landed Friday Summarizing Japanese claims In the seven-day seven conquest of Singapore Singapore Singa Singa- pore imperial headquarters in Tokyo Tokyo To To- kyo de declared lared British Imperial imperial imperial impe impe- rial troops of them wounded were captured capture l and said war booty Included field guns 2000 machine machine ma ma- machine chine guns and tanks and armored armored ar at- mored cars The cost for Japan was said to be limited to about men killed and wounded |