1939-12-20 — Page 6

THE CHINA MAIL, DECEMBER 20, 1939.

SOVIET BATTLESHIP

GOES TO THE BOTTOM Sunk In Engagement With Finnish Coastal Batteries

VIOLENT ASSAULTS ON MANNERHEIM LINE CONTINUE

Helsinki, To-day.

are

RUSSIAN ATTACKS ON THE Mannerheim Line

now the fiercest since the fighting began, but the Finns say that they have driven them all back with heavy losses.

Soviet troops now claim to be within 60 miles of the Gulf of Bothnia, and it is clear now that they have made a rapid advance in the far north. Reports of a Finnish victory at Suomosalmi were con- firmed yesterday by the Commander-in-Chief. It is reported that a Soviet division of 17,000 men was destroyed.

Smallpox, it is reported, has broken [four miles of the shore, fired a terri- out among the Soviet troops, and has fic salvo which hit and, it is believed, already reached epidemic proportions. (sank the battleship.-Reuter. The wholesale vaccination of Finnish troops is now being carried out.-Reu-

ter.

SINKING OF SOVIET

BATTLESHIP

Helsinki; To-day.

LATEST MOSCOW

COMMUNIQUE

(SPECIAL TO "CHINA MAIL") MOSCOW, TO-DAY. AN OFFICIAL SOVIET COMMUNI-

bombarded the Finnish coastal bat-

teries at Bjorkoe, while Soviet planes SOVIET RAID

engaged in extensive reconnaissance activity.—Havas.

"OCTOBER REVOLUTION"

GOES TO BOTTOM

London, To-day.

The Soviet warship reported sunk off the Finnish coast was the large battleship, "October Revolution," ac- cording to reports from Helsinki.

The battleship was shelling coastal their

batteries, standing-off outside range, when the Finns brought

up

some heavy howitzers and scored a direct hit with the first salvo, disabl- ing the craft. They then pounded

the doomed ship until she sank, with- in an hour.

No official claim has yet been made but the Finnish authorities stated that

"it is quite likely."--Reuter.

SOVIET RAIDERS SHOT DOWN

Helsinki, To-day.

Several flerce engagements between Soviet raiders and Finnish anti-air- craft defences occurred yesterday, and it is claimed that four Red bombers were shot down.

The Russians bombed Hangoe on four different occasions, but the only serious damage was to a hospital on the outskirts.-Reuter.

THE "OCTOBER REVOLUTION" (SPECIAL TO "CHINA MAIL") Helsinki, To-day.

It is unofficially reported that the Finns have sunk the "October Revolu- tion," one of the biggest unifs of the Red Fleet.

A report on the sinking of a Soviet | QUE STATES THAT THE RED ARMY battleship asserts that the Russlans HAVE CAPTURED PITAJAERVI, knew the range of the biggest guns in | EIGHTY KILOMETRES TO THE the Finnish batteries to be only about SOUTH OF PETSAMO. three miles and accordingly kept their warships just out of range.

The Finns, however, brought up bigger and better artillery, and when the battleship was cruising within Units of the Soviet Baltic Fleet and in a few minutes these sank the

It is reported that intense artillery action is proceeding in the Karellan Isthmus, the prelude to another violent Red Army assault.

ON HELSINKI FOUGHT OFF

HELSINKI, TO-DAY. SOVIET 'PLANES YESTERDAY RAIDED THE OUTSKIRTS OF HEL- SINKI IN A REWEWAL OF THE AERIAL ASSAULT · ON THE FIN- NISH CAPITAL. EIGHTEEN MA- CHINES TOOK PART, BUT ONLY ́ FOUR MANAGED TO GET NEAR THE CITY.

The first alarm was sounded at 11.20 a.m., the "all clear" being sounded at 12.15 p.m.

A little later, Soviet 'planes raided Viborg, one being shot down by anti- aircraft fire. There were no Finnish casualties.

Raiders approached Helsinki in scattered formation from the north, and anti-aircraft guns went into action, two 'planes being shot down when they tried to bomb the airport.

Further raids were expected in view of the clear weather now prevailing. -Reuter.

A typewriter valued at $100 was stolen from No. 32, Connaught Road Central yesterday.

Soviet ship.

The warship was six miles off the The "October Revolution" was built in Finnish coast, knowing the Finnish | 1911 and modernised in 1928. She coastal batteries' range was only five was of 23,000 tons and carried 12 12- miles, but in the last few days the inch guns. Finns had secretly placed new guns

. In the Imperial Russian Navy she bore the name Gangut.-Havas.

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