October 23, 1944;

THIS WAS REPORTED TODAY, OCTOBER 23, 1944:

Salt Lake City, Utah, Monday Morning, October 23, 1944

Gain Full Control of Leyte Coast

As All Units Expand Positions;

Drive to Capture Burauen Road Hub

United States (Official)—By United Press

GEN. MACARTHUR'S HEADQUARTERS, Leyte, Philippines,

Monday, Oct. 23 (UP)—

American invasion forces, in full control of the Leyte coastal road, are driving the Japanese toward the wild hills of the interior behind their path-blasting flamethrowers, tanks, artillery and dive bombers, Gen. Douglas Mac- Arthur disclosed Monday. Mac Arthur in a communique said that, with the American

forces steadily expanding1 their positions on all fronts, the enemy supply problem already waa becoming difficult and that, if the Japanese should be forced into the hills it would become acute.

Threaten Road Hub

Front reports indicated that the infantrymen of the 24th corps, at the southern end of the invasion line, were threatening San Pablo and the important road junction town of Burausn above the narrow waist of Leyte.

British, Patton's

Armies Open

New Offensives

Allies (Official)

By United Press

ALLIED SUPREME HEADQUARTERS,

Paris, Monday, Oct. 23 —

Canadian troops captured Breskens and near-by Ft. Frederik-Hendrik at the mouth of the Schelde Sunday, opening the way for early allied use of Antwerp, while the British Second army and the American Third army gained two miles each in twin attacks on the flanks of the western front.

The Germans abruptly withdrew from Breskens after putting up a savage house-to-house resistance on the outskirts and almost no opposition was met. at Ft. Frederik-Hendrik although the two positions were the most powerfully fortified points on the south side of the river.

Planned Withdrawal

Breskens was found heavily booby trapped, indicating that the Germans had planned their withdrawal, presumably to join the pocket still holding out inland.

Sunday night, German big guns at Flushing, across the estuary, opened up against the Breskens occupation forces and. as Canadian artillery was hauled into the town a roaring duel developed across the three miles wide waterway.

The fall of Breskena and Ft.Frederik-Hendrik virtually ended the battle for the south bank of the Schelde. The Germans still technically control the- river with

their guns . at Flushing and elsewhere on the Zeelahd Islands, but now U. S, engineers can begin clearing mines and other obstructions from the channel so that supply ships can slip through by night;