SCORCHY SMITH
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PATSY
1
cp".
Reserves Dropped
To Besieged Fort
Dien Bien Phu
HANOI, Indochina, OP)—Waves
of Dakotas and Flying Boxcars
dropped men and equipment to
the besieged garrison of Dien Bien
Phu Saturday. The Communist
led attackers clung to dugouts
only 800 yards from the heart of
the fortress despite heavy ground
fire and air attacks.
Men parachuted in as reinforce
ments included a number of vol
unteers from the Red River Delta
area. A French High Command
spokesman said they would be
held as reserves for critical mo
ments during the next Vietminh
assault. That blow, which would
be the third big one, is expected
soon, before the Geneva Confer
ence opens April 26.
At the airstrip, the rebels clung
to dugouts just 800 yards from
the bunkers where Brig. Gen.
Christian de Castries, the fortress
commander, has his headquarters.
The 50-year-old De Castries
was hard at work directing the
fortress’ defenses when he re
ceived word the Paris govern
ment had officially boosted his
rank from colonel to brigadier
general. In acting on his nomina
tion to general, the French cabi
net reversed an earlier decision
that a promotion would be with
held until the battle for Dien Bien
Phu had been decided. This had
stirred up a political rukus, with
the French government denying
Hanoi reports that De Castries,
feeling slighted, had threatened
to resign.
A French plane parachuted to
De Castries the two stars which
the French use to designate a
brigadier general.
* * *
PARIS, UP)—The French Press
Agency said Saturday Commu
nist-led Vietminh jungle fighters
had stopped a Cambodian train
with mines and slaughtered more
than 100 men and women passen
gers.
Anchorage, Alaska, has grown
from about 4,000 population in
1940 to more than 50,000 today.
Nome Directory
ROTARY CLUB
OF NOME
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LESLIE A. STEVENS
PUBLIC ACCOUNTANT
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ANVIL LODGE
No. 145
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I Meets 1st and 3rd Thursday each month.