March 4, 1940; VIPURI ENCIRCLED BY REDS

THIS WAS REPORTED TODAY, MARCH 4, 1940:

Russians Claim Six

Forts. Big Guns
Captured

MOSCOW—(AP)—Red forces closing in on Viipuri reported new advances to the north and south of the shell-shattered port city today and Indicated strategy of encircling it and severing all supply lines before the knockout blow.

Two newly won positions were Tupuransaari, a bay of Viipuri island 15 mi.es to the south, and Saarela, a hamlet an undisclosed number of miles to the north, the Red army announced.

On the island, the Reds reported capturing six fortifications, five of them iron and concrete forts with heavy coast defense guns in full working order. At Saarela, the Russians said they took the fully equipped headquarters of a "large military formation" and four 75-millimeter guns.

The communique reporting th gains did not mention fighting in Viipuri itself, into which the Russians had said they battled their way Saturday, seizing the railway station and the surrounding southern end of town.

First Raid West of

Dover; Press Raps
War Leaders

LONDON—(AP)—Rumblings of dissatisfaction with Britain's war leadership sounded today in the press with reports of the first German aerial attack in the English channel.

A Heinkel bomber swooped on the 8,441-ton liner Domala with bombs and machine-gun fire, probably killing 108 persons—the heaviest toll aboard a merchantman since the Athenia went down, with a death list 113 on the first day of the war last Sept. 3.

Never before had a German war plane raided shipping west of the straits of Dover.

Attack Made at Dawn
The attack occurred about dawn Saturday. It and five other weekend blows to British shipping became known amid mixed foreboding and confidence over the course of the six month- old war.
It was disclosed later that a German plane bombed and machine gunned the Dutch freighter Jonge Willem before the steamer went to the aid of the Domala. It was believed to have been the same plane that attacked the British vessel.
A crewman said the plane dived in the Jonge Willem and dropped a bomb which fell about 20 feet away and also attacked the ship with machine guns. There were no casualies.

"A little later," the crewman said, we saw flames several miles away and steamed to the spot. "Although the Daily Mail found “proof of our supremacy" in the activities of the British navy and airforce, H warned of the necessity of knowing "we have the right men" in the government.

Ask Younger Officers
It may become necessary to inquire whether we- are as well served as we should be by the higher command of the royal air force," it declared, "and whether these posts should not be filled with younger officers familiar with up-to-date machines and strategy and tactics appropriate to their use."