“Great Infantry Victory Related”

The text

By Don Whitehead

WITH AMERICAN INFANTRY IN GERMANY, Sept. 15. (AP)—Smashing forward on a wide front east of Aachen in a 24-hour drive, doughboys of Lt. Gen. Courtney H. Hodges' U.S. 1st Army today broke through the main Siegfried Line.

This headlong attack, carrying into Germany the same sweep that had won France and Belgium, found the line weakly defended in places and in some places discovered that apparent defensive positions were fakes.

The doughboys were well supported by tanks but essentially it was an infantry victory—one of the greatest of the invasion.

The assault on the Siegfried Line began yesterday. In this sector there was a double belt of defenses—one before Aachen and the second on the other side.

First Line Cracked

Troops led by Capt. Kimball Richmond of Vermont fought their way through the first-line defenses yesterday. The infantry kept right on driving. In 24 hours the doughboys pushed forward 6000 yards and then stood before the second belt of pillboxes, dragon's teeth antitank defenses and trenches.

Then it was time for someone else to carry the ball. And this time the spearhead of the drive was a unit under the command of a young lieutenant, Frank Kolb of Kentucky.

"We thought we'd get hell knocked out of us when we began to move on the last line of defenses," said Maj. John Lauten of Glendale, Cal. "We sent a patrol toward the line and thought we would be lucky to get the boys back. The next thing we knew the boys were sitting right smack in the middle of the defenses."

They not only sat in the middle of the defenses but they kept driving forward to knock out enemy pillboxes one by one until they cleared a wide path by knocking out 21 concrete emplacements or by occupying them.

Dragon's Teeth Blasted

Then armor came up the roads. Engineers blasted away some of the concrete dragon's teeth set in wide belts before the fortifications.

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One of the most amazing things of all the invasion has been the unexpected weakness of German defenses within the Siegfried Line. Had they manned all these formidable forts with their six-feet thick walls then our troops would have had a bloody battle to break through.

But for lack of man power, or because they believed the Rhine River would be a better defense line, the enemy did not make his big fight in the Siegfried defenses. The Germans left only part of the forts occupied by machine-gunners and comparatively light artillery.

In 24 hours our crack infantry moved 6000 yards through the very heart of the potentially strongest defenses ground troops ever assaulted. They did it swiftly and methodically and with extremely few casualties.

And now Hitler's famed wall of defense against attack from the west is broken. Once such defenses are breached then the entire line has lost its real worth. And that is what has happened.

Fighting men were heaping praise on 21-year-old Lt. Kolb, who is a veteran warrior despite the fact that he looks like a lad of 18.

"That guy is absolutely fearless," said Maj. Lauten, "and look what he's done—led the drive to break this line. His men did the job. I remember when he was made a company commander. We worried about him being able to command 35-year-old platoon sergeants. But now they would follow that kid anywhere he wanted to take them."

The Germans were shelling Kolb and his men when they finally broke through and opened the way for others to follow, but the shelling did not stop them.

Amazed By Speed

At the command post in Aachen Forest reports came in from the front on the assault troops. The lines on the map moved forward so fast that command officers were checking back to make sure they were correct.

"I was completely astounded," said Lauten, "look at those positions with their beautiful fields of fire. If they had put their artillery back here and manned boxes they could give us hell, but all our men are getting is machine-gun fire and a little artillery."

The command post within the Siegfried Line was electric with excitement and the men were happy over the ease with which the troops drove through.

Morale is high within this great regiment over the spectacular achievement. Each time there was a report of enemy artillery a call went out immediately to the Piper Cub observation plane to locate the batteries. The little plane droned lazily over the forest, spotting enemy guns and calling for the concentration of American fire on them.

Through a gap made in the first line defenses rolled tanks, trucks, guns and supplies—that magnificent supply line of Gen. Hodges' 1st Army, which has been the key to the drive all the way across France and Belgium ...

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