London, June 23. OUR million men, aided by thousands of tanks, planes and every known modern weapon of destruction, were clashing along a lo from the Baltic to the Black Sea today on the eve of Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia 129 years ago as Germany flung its greatest hordes of men and machines in history in a four-pronged attack on the Soviet Union.
With only a few official details available, the' ictual_ posi was obscure, but it appeared that the first thrust by the German bombers and tanks leading the infantry was from the Karelian Isthmus and aimed at Leningrad.
The second attack was from East Prussia and the third from Poland, both directed against Moscow. The fourth attack was from Rumania and was pointed at the Ukraine and the Caucasus, with Kiev and Odessa as the immediate objectives.
According to all available reports, the Russians were ghting bard on the frst three fronts, but had strate~ ideally. retreated along the fourth to he old Russian frontier along the River Dniester. In this area the Rus-slang were preparing for a major Stand a8 reinforcements started pour-
Tt appeared that the fourth front may prove to be the main battlefield here were suggestions here that Chancellor Adolf Hitler's hordes would. over-run the Ukraine and Caucasus and then strike south into Tran, Traq-and Syria towards the Suez Cano}, thus. eliminating the necessity of fighting the Rritish Mediterranean Fleet. mans were held along the whole front except In Soviet-occupied Poland, where the Germans are admitted 10 have occupied three villages, At dawn yesterday, the communique states, "the German army. attacked Jour frontier forces along tue whole front from the Bailie to the Black [Sea and were held by us during the rst part o€ the day, "Later, after stubborn fighting. the enemy was repulsed, sustaining heavy losses. "Only in Soviet-occupied Po-and did the enemy succeed in oblaining slight successes, occupying.
Willer Must Hurry Military commentators here argued that Chancellor Hitler' must strike hard and quickly toward the south Decause if the Russians can hata him out of the Ukraine and Caucasus for {three months: then, for various nea they claimed, he will have lost Four factors govern the issu The known quality of the German forces versus the unknown qual fly' of Russian. troops.
'2, The conquest of all supplies by Germany versus time. Tt timated that Germany could not connel fulleseale operations for three months without additional supplies of gasoline and lubricants.
Summer versus winter.
4. The principle of versus depth of front and sustained resistance.
With huge distaness to cover—600 miles from the frontier to Moscow lone—the German lines "of -communication would be strung out and the mechanized units would require repairs Military commentators also pointed cut that Russian bombers can. now become active in bombing Rumanian all fields, now one of Germany's main sources of petrol and lubricants. United Press,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.