September 17, 1944; SIEGFRIED LINE LOST:

THIS WAS REPORTED TODAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1944:

MADISON, SUNDAY, SEPtEMBER 17, 1944

Siegfried Line Lost

for Active Defense,

Berlin Radio Admits

ALLIED SUPREME HEADQUARTERS,

London — (U.P.) —

American troops, fanning out over Germany from at least five gaping breaches in the Siegfried line, smashed Saturday to within "25 miles of Cologne and sent the battered German armies of the west in retreat to the east bank of the Rhine for a last ditch defense of the Reich.

(A Berlin broadcast heard, by Blue network Saturday said that "the west wall no longer exists as an active defense lines.")

The' invasion of Germany now was progressing along an unbroken 100-mile front, extending the full length of the country's frontiers with completely liberated Belgium and Luxembourg, and penetrations as deep as 15 miles had been made. New border crossings Saturday resulted in the capture of the German villages of Kalte'nberg, 8 miles south of Roetgen, and Eschfeld and Luetzkampen, across from the Luxembourg frontier.

Slash Neck

of Island

in Palaus

Allies at Halmaherd

Rush Construction

of Pitu Airfield

0. S. PACIFIC FLEET HEADQUARTERS,

Pearl Harbor—(U.P)

—Marine veterans of Guadalcanal have captured the 4,200 – foot Peleliu airdrome in an advance o£ 1,500 yards against stubborn resistance, beating off several strong counter-attacks and taking a toll of more than 1,400 Japanese dead,

The excellent figure-four shape airfield fell during bitter fighting Friday (west longitude time) after the leathernecks clamped a three-way pincers on the airdrome in a drive aided by field artillery, tanks, warships, and carrier aircraft.

The Japanese launched several strong counter-attacks against the U. S. positions, but were thrown back each time, Nimitz' communique said in the drive on the field which opened Friday morning when the marines cut across the narrow neck of Peleliu, by-passing Japanese forces in the southern sector.

The American troops have extended their beachhead to 2 ¼  miles and occupy the entire southern end of the island with the exception of two small bulges on the extreme tip. The biggest penetration was 2,000 yards, while gains along the entire front ranged from 200 to 1,000 yards in the 24-hour period covered in the communique, indicating the tough'1 resistance being encountered.