Battle Creek Enquirer from Battle Creek, Michigan • Page 1

THE BATTLE CREEK MEMBER OP THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Full Leased Wire Report of THE UNITED PRESS and NEW The Weather Fair and Cooler VOLUME XLIX NO. 319 BATTLE CREEK, MICHIGAN, TUESDAY, JUNE 6, 1944 CITY EDITION PRICE 5 ENQUIRE hi ii i rancnn nfwrnr ctm if fiLL? rmsw mw wmm I -US-'PLYMOUTHLa i.c...-...i I LENCE Americans, British and Canadians Thrust Newsmen Flying Over Invasion Coast Say Landings Go Smoothly; No German Planes Interfere with Allies. CM rA DEAUVUU. "AMIENS y' FRANCE IE MANS sfX" 'f y- V-e BY ROBERT RICHARDS A. U.

S. Fighter Base, England (U.R) Thunderbolt pilots returned from the invasion area today and reported that Allied troops were piling onto the shores of France apparently with little opposition and that the skies had been virtually cleared of German planes. "From" 4,000 feet I could see trucks and jeeps all over Along Northwest French Coast; Land Between Cherbourg and Le Havre in Powerful Offensive BY WES GALLAGHER Supreme Headquarters, Allied Expeditionary Force (P) Allied forces landed in the Normandy area of northwest France today and have thrust several miles inland against unexpectedly slight German opposition and with losses much smaller than had been anticipated. The grand assault scheduled for yesterday but postponed until todayna because of bad weather found the highly-vaunted German defenses much lesaJ formidable in every department than had been feared. Bb Airborne troops who led the assault before daylight on a history-making scale suffered "extremely small" losses in the air, headquarters disclosed tonight, te Avon frlMirrV.

tViA rrroaf nlanA 1 a ovtnr TOO the beach and more coming," said Lieut. Wayne Swan- ALLIES PUSH AHEAD Latest word from the second front which Allied troops opened in northwest France today is that our forces have smashed the Hitler line and pushing into France. Allied landings were made between Cherbourg and Le Havre and the Germans admit heavy fighting at Caen. bery, Wilkes-Barre, Pa. "One truck blew up but that was the only sign of enemy activity." SEE FLEET OF SHIPS Other returning pilots who covered the invasion coast during the morning made similar reports emphasizing the lack of German resistance.

Pilots from this base were among the first back from covering the landing operations. They said they saw troops scrambling on the shore at 7 a. m. apparently without much opposition. The pilots, who criss-crossed the invasion coast giving cover to the ground forces, said they could see a huge fleet of warships standing off the coast pasting enemy positions.

Initial Successes Told By Confident Churchill LONDON (P) Prime Minister Churchill told a cheering house of commons today that the Allied liberating 'assault upon Hitler's European stronghold was "proceeding according to plan and what a plan!" In tones of confidence he reported that the Allied forces had been transported across the channel to the BY GLADWIN' HILL A Maurauder Base in England (JP) From the cock pit of one of many hundreds i 1 1 I 1 1 not proved so difficult as was ap tue. riuliiaas nuriucrn rrdntc eany imj niui -ing I watched a battle royal rage on' the sea and in the air. The fields along the French channel coast were dotted with parachutes of Allied airborne forces who had landed fa few minutes before, and shores of France by 'an lm-f mense armada oi 4.UUU ships with several thousand smaller craft "probably the greatest fleet ever assembled." Mass air-borne landings also have been successfully effected behind the enemy's lines, he said. "There are already hopes that actual tactical surprise has been attained," he continued, "and we hope to furnish the enemy with a succession of surprises, during the course of the fighting. "The battle which is now beginning will grow constantly in scale and in intensity for many weeks to come and I shall not attempt to speculate upon its course.

"The landings on the beaches are proceeding at various points at the present time," Churchill said. "The fire of shore batteries has been largely quelled." He said that "obstacles which were constructed in the sea have prehended. The prime minister said the American-British Allies are sustained by about 11,000 first line aircraft, which can be drawn upon as needed. "So far," he said, "the commanders who are engaged report that everything is proceeding according to plan." "And what a plan!" he declared. Churchill said the vast operation was "undoubtedly the most complicated and difficult which has ever occurred." To cheers by parliament members, Churchill took "formal cognizance of the liberation of Rome," and added: "American and other forces of the 5th Army broke through the enemy's last lines and entered Rome, where Allied troops have been received with joy by the population.

"This entry and liberation of Rome means that we shall have (Please Turn to, Page 10, Column 1) 200 miles of sky and used navigation lights to keep formation. Naval losses for the seaborne forces were described at headquarters as "very, very small," although 4,000 ships and several thousand smaller craft participated in taking the American, Canadian and British troops to France. Coastal batteries were virtually silenced by the guns of the British, American and Allied fleets, including battleships, and the beachheads were speedily consolidated. LANDINGS 'FIRST OF SERIES' The German radio said the scene of the landings was a 100-mile stretch of coast from Cherbourg to Le Havre, around the bay of the Siene and the northeast shore of the Normandy peninsula. Britain's Prime Minister Churchill, in announcing the successful invasion to the housp commons at noon six hours after the first seaborne tr.

landed said the landings were "the first of a Churchill disclosed that 11,000 Allied planes were available as needed for the battle. The Allied bombers, climaxing 96 hours of steady pounding, lashed German coastal defenses this morning with 10,000 tons of explosives. Fighters who went out to guard the beaches had little to do, however, as the German air force up till noon had flown only 500 sorties against the invading forces. The Germans were known to have probably 1,750 fighters and 500 bombers to meet the attack. Why they did not use them at the start was not apparent, but Allied airmen warned that a violent reaction might be expected soon, noting that Hermann Goering in an order of the day had told his air forces, "The invasion must be beaten off even if the luftwaffe perishes." German broadcasts said the Allies penetrated several kilometers in between Caen and Isigny, which are 35 miles apart and respectively nine and two miles from the sea.

REPORT 'LIFE-OR-DEATH' BATTLE German opposition apparently was less effective than expected, although fierce in many respects, and the Germans said they were bringing reinforcements continuously up to the coast, where "a battle for life or death is in progress." The seaborne troops, led by Gen. Sir Bernard L. Montgomery, surged across the channel from England by 4,000 regular ships and additional thousands of smaller craft. They were preceded by massed flights of parachute and glider forces who landed inland during the day. Several Miles Inland HCOOVarplaneS; ii Help in Invasion' Great Air Armada Bombs, Strafes Beaches, Blasts Nazi Communications, Supreme Headquarters, Allied Expeditionary Force Through a rolling ocean of clouds 5,000 feet thick Allied air forces threw 11.000 aircraft of almost every type into the grand invasion of Europe today, bombing and strafing miles of Normandy's beaches and flying Inland to break the enemy's communications.

Two things stood out in the air operations launched in support of the landings in northern France. The first was the mass of airplanes the Allies were able to put into the sky in weather described as "just fair." The other was the absence of German resistance. French Coast Pounded In a blasting herald to the invasion, the British bomber command sent more than 1,300 of its biggest ships roaring across the channel last night and early today in the heaviest aerial attack ever aimed at German batteries along the French coast. Ten attacks were executed between 11:30 p. m.

and sunrise, each with 100 or more of the heavy bombers. Other British aircraft attacked the northwestern German railroad city of Osnabruck without loss. The stunning aerial bombardment fell on the Normandy landing beaches as the first phases of the coordinated assault began. There was a complete cloud cover over some of the RAF coastal targets during the night, but the air ministry declared it was no obstacle to the well-trained Pathfinder crews. The RAF had begun to attack the coastal targets in earnest on May 7.

in undertaking one of the most difficult assignments. The targets were very small and well-protected. They had. to be hit at night. Liberty Bell Rings Out Freedom Message Again PHILADELPHIA (JP) The Liberty Bell, which heralded this nation's independence, rang out today as the liberation of Europe began.

Striking the great bell six times on a broadcast heard throughout the United States and Mayor Bernard Samuel quoted its inscription "Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof" and commented: "Let it indeed proclaim liberty throughout the land and the return of liberty throughout the world." HOW SMART ARE YOU? each member oi the family writs down bis or ber own answer, or it at school, let each pupil write down the answer to each question, or the 10 questions four correct answers is a fair average for adults, three for children under 12. The correct answers will be found on the news notes page.) 1 What and where Is Lima? 2 What is another name for marionette? 3 In what war was the battle of Bull Bun foupht? 4 What kind of a gem Is a carbuncle? 5 Of what common article- of men's clothing is It necessary to have but one item in order to have a pair? 6 In saluting an officer, where in the act of addressing him at how many paces does an unlisted man have to be? 7 In Ireland, what Is a colleen? 8What part of the armed forces of the United States Is "shove-off a popular expression? 9 What is eiderdown? 30 Th names of what three of Gilbert and Sullivan, operas begin with, the jut irtf Eisenhower On Roof As Ail-Fleet Starts BY EDWARD V. ROBERTS Allied Advance Post, England ftj.R) Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower stood on a rooftop on invasion eve and watched a mighty airborne armada form In the dusky sky and wing toward France to begin the final phase of the war of liberation.

The Allied supreme commander radiated supreme confidence. It was contagious among those about him. He had spent the greater part of the day among the troops, seaborne and airborne, going from group to group, chatting and laughing with the men. At 2:30 p. m.

yesterday, Eisenhower met a small group of British and American press and radio representatives and told us when the invasion of Europe would be launched that the machinery already was in motion. Eisenhower talked to us for an hour and one-half. The conference took place in his command tent a plain, bare-walled structure about 20 feet square with a canvas roof set on walls of stamed pine boards. GIVEN 60 DAYS JAMESTOWN, Term. (U.R) Sergt.

Alvin C. York, "one-man army" of World war No. 1 fame who says he's just itching to take another crack at the Gjrmans, today gave Hitler and his gang just 60 days to stay in the war now that the invasion has started. "Mr. Hitler and his butcher boys can start thinking about 'hara-kiri' or some other quick powder out of the mess they started for the end is in sight for them," he said.

resident Pens cry Prayer Roosevelt to Lead Nation Solemn Supplication on Radio Tonight. in WASHINGTON OP). Closeted in his bedroom, President' Roosevelt spent the early-morning hours of the Invasion writing a prayer for victory for the Allied forces of liberation. The chief executive, who received reports of the invasion through its early phases, will go on the air at 10 o'clock tonight, eastern war time (9 o'clock Battle Creek time), with the hope that the nation will join him in the prayer which he wrote. Presidential Secretary Stephen Early, who described Mr.

Roosevelt's activities to reporters, said the President went to his bedroom early last evening and began working on the prayer shortly after he delivered a nation-wide radio broadcast on the fall of Rome. Working behind blackout curtains which darkened the White House to night-time passersby, Early said the chief executive received steady invasion reports complete and in detail from 11:30 p. m. on into the actual hour of the assault against the coast of France. Abreast of Operations "He knew when the first barges started across the channel and ne knew when they landed," Early said.

"He knew of other operations in just as great detail." The reportscame into the White House by telephone from the army's nerve center, the nearby Pentagon building. Early said he could not disclose from whom the President received his information because of security reasons, but he gave the impression Mr. Roosevelt was intimately abreast of the operations. Early called his regular morning press conference 30 minutes earlier than usual, telling reporters he (Please Turn to Page 10, Column 2) Retain Urges French To Heed Nazi Decrees LONDON OP) The Paris radio today broadcast an appeal by Marshal Petain to Frenchmen to refrain from actions "which would call down upon you tragic reprisals." "Fiance has become a battlefield," said the eged Vichy chief. "The circumstances of battle may compel the German army to take special measures in the battle area.

Accept this necessity." He called on officials, railwaymen. and workers to remain at their posts where they would serve the German military machine "in order to keep the life of the nation and in order to carry out your 'Do not listen to outside voices calling on you not to listen to our degrees," he said. Navy Reveals Sinking Of Carrier in Atlantic WASHINGTON liP On thf of the invasion, the navy revealed for the first time the sinking of an aircraft carrier in the Atlantic. She BULLETINS (By United Press) LONDON (JP) Prime Minister Chilrchill announced today that Allied airborne troops had captured several strategic bridges in France before they could be blown up and that "there is even fighting proceeding in the town of Caen." "Airborne troops are well established and the follows-up are proceeding with very much less loss than we expectd," Churchill reported in a second statement of the day to the house of commons. of planes which supported it 1-.

interspersed among the para chutes were aircraft prob ably gliders. The first signs of battle were flashed from the channel below, which through the mist and a naval smoke screen gradually became distinguishable as gun detonations, on warships shelling the coast. The channel wasn't "jammed with shipping" as might have been expected. The channel is a big place, but on every hand there were forces of ships either battering the coast line or bringing up forces to take advantage of breaches. BEAR NEW STRirE The aircraft dotting the fields bore the distinctive Allied invasion black and white zebra stripe, which was hurriedly slapped on the aircraft late yesterday.

(A broadcast from supreme headquarters said the black and white identifying stripes on the planes were one step toward preventing confusion and repetition of such mistakes as Allied gunners firing on friendly planes, as happened in Sicily.) United Nations convoys are bringing up additional reinforcements to support this initial invasion drive, and thousands of Allied planes are hammering the coast. BY AUSTIN BEALMEAR An 8th USAAF Photo Reconnaissance Base (JP) Allied landing forces have established beachheads on the coast of northern France and are slashing their way inland, the first photo reconnaissance pilots back from the scene of the initial thrust said today. From a ringside seat only 500 feet above the burning, smoking rim of (Please Turn to Page 10, Column 6) a. and continued to carry all details of the invasion throughout the day. Extra Out At 5:30 However, those who slept throughout the night, unaware of the invasion, needed no alarm clocks to awaken them this morning.

Enquirer and News employes had come to work as soon as the first invasion reports were announced, and at 5:30 a. m. put out on extra proclaiming "France Invaded." Newsboys shouting the headline soon were going through the quiet residential streets. In the wake of the sellers of extras, radios began to blare forth the news. Thus it was that few persons came to work without knowing that the invasion had taken place.

The newspaper had carried the proclam- (Please Turn to Page 10, Column 5) LONDON (JP) The Paris radio broadcast a report that a last-minute flash from the battlefield" early tonight announced "a vicious battle is raging north of Rouen between powerful Allied paratroop formations and German anti-invasion forces." Rouen is 41 miles inland. LONDON (U.R) Gen. Wilhclm Hansteen, commander-in-chief of the Norwegian underground, broadcast an order to all organized fighting groups inside Norway today to "be prepared to take part in the great settlement." LONDON (U.R) The German DNB news agency said this that the invasion front "has further widened." Newspaper and Radio Sound City's D-Day Prayer Signal The British radio said today that two beachheads had been by the Allies in France. LONDON (U.R) German coastal artillery in France opened up with salvoes across the channel soon after noon today, shaking towns in southeast England. Eleven thousand planes supportec-e- the attack.

Thousands of highly-trained troops leaped down well behind Nazi lines from carrier sky trains boring through the rainy, stormy night, and a headquarters officer declared this "very large scale" operation was "carried out with great precision. Our losses in aircraft were ex tremely small. It was a fine job very fine indeed." The airborne troops carried the brunt of early battle, creating a large diversion and many demolitions. The German radio said the land ings were made from Cherbourg to Le Havre and later said additional landings were being made "west of Cherbourg," indicating that the Allies intended to seize the Normandy peninsula with its ports and airdromes as the first base of their campaign to destroy the power of Nazi Germany. The initial landings were made from 6 to 8:25 a.

m. British time (11 p. m. to 1:25 a. Battle Creek time).

The Germans said subsequent landings were made on the English channel isles of Jersey and Guernsey and that invasion at new-points on the continent was expected hourly. Silent on Location Aside from confirming tnat Nor mandy was the general area of the assault. Supreme Headquarters of the' Allied Expeditionary Force was silent concerning the location for tactical reasons, From Moscow came -word that the Russian army -was massing in preparation for. another great attack from the east its part in defeating Germany. All 'reports from the beachhead, meager though they were in specific detail, agreed that the Allies had made good the great gamble of amphibious landing against possibly the strongest fortified section of coast in the world.

Reconnaissance pilots said the Allied troops had secured the beaches and were slashing inland, some them actually running in a swift 'advance. The unofficial word at headquarters confirmed this, while the Vichy radio admitted the Allied drive inland was going right ahead. Fortifications Shelled More than 640 naval giinsVanging from four to 16-inch, hurled many- tons of shells accurately Into the! coastal fortifications whilch the' Germans had spent four years preparing against this day. Prime Minister Churchill was able to tell parliament that the shore batteries had been "largely quelled," the underwater obstructs ns had proven less dangerous than feared, tPlease Turn to Page 10, Column 3) LONDON (U.R) The German transocean news agency said today that about 80 medium-sized Allied warships were approaching the town of Ouistreham in the estuary of the Orne river. LONDON (U.R) The German transocean news agency said today that a battle was in progress in the English channel north of Le Havre between German naval units and Allied forces attempting to make a landing.

Battle Creek went through the motions of a normal workday today, but it was difficult for most citizens to keep their minds on that work. Instead, attention was focused on whst was happening thousands of milts away, along the channel coast of France. The invasion had come at last. Expectancy was over. In its place was tension a tension which had been created by full knowledge of the magnitude of the operation the American fighting men and their ailies were undertaking.

Many Battle Creek residents were sleepy-eyed today. They were the ones who heard the early-morning Nazi claims of the invasion over their radios and who stayed awake throughout the night to follow developments. Station WELL, which had signed off at 11:30 p. m. -fay, went back on the air at 1:15 Supreme Headquarters, Allied Expeditionary Force (JP) The Allied landings in France were postponed 24 hours due to bad weather, it was learned today.

They were originally scheduled for yesterday morning. LONDON (U.R) Military observers said today that a general Russian offensive coordinated with the-Anglo-American attack from the west may be launched within the next 48 hours and almost certainly will begin before the week-end. was tne escort carrier Block Island, the 15Sih navy ship lost during the war. i.