Helsinki, Feb, 22. hope of the Red Army to capture Viipuri on February 23, 22nd anniversary of its foundation, have been shattered by the resistance of the Finns. The withdrawal of the Finns from some sectors of the Karelian front had raised the hopes of the Russians, but it would now seem that. the manquvre lessened the chances of the capture instead of increasing them. The Finns shortened their front and compelled the enemy to spend some time fortifying their newly-conquered positions, wh were completely destroyed by the Finnish troops upon their withdrawal, It is estimated that the Finns did not retreat more than six kilometres"at any point of the front.
Meanwhile, in a desperate effort to case the position of the Soviet ai ions which are surrounded on the Lake Ladoga front, the Russians hurled two divisions against Finnish positions in the Taipale River sector.
Having prepared their attack by heavy artillery fire and aerial bombings, the Russians were taken by surprise by the powerful resistance of the Finns, who had remained shells and bombs alike. tions in the Viipuri experts agree that the lines occupied by the Finns are much stronger than those already evacuated, The Russians bombed this sector with their planes, concentrating on the litre town of Tiisimaki which was badly damaged.
"An American volunteer airman declared that the Russians threw at Toast a thousand bombs on the town, adding that he had never in his life seen such a waste of munitions. One Civilian was killed and about twenty houses damaged by the bombing. Havas.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.