Imperial Valley Press

TRIBES PLEAD TO ATTACK FOE

(Continued from Page 1)

They reach Makale, 50 miles south of their front lines.

Italians Killed

Meanwhile soldiers from the Ogaden front brought to the capital an unconfirmed report that three Ethiopian machine gun crews killed 400 Italians in a roadside ambush near Ualual on the southeastern front.

The soldiers said the machine guns were placed in pits under camouflage, invisible in a waste of scrub and rocks on the present loosely drawn battle front. The machine gunners withheld their fire until an advancing Italian column was directly under cross fire, the soldiers said, and then opened up from both sides, demoralizing the marchers and spraying them from behind as they fled.

The capital also rejoiced, while unceasingly preparing for expected great battles on both north and south fronts, over official reports from Ogaden Province that an entire Italian advance unit had been killed by mines it prepared for Ethiopians.

Trap Reversed

A runner from headquarters of Habte Mikael, leading 25,000 men in the south with his well-educated but Amazonian wife, reported that approximately 5 Italians were blown to bits by their own mines.

The Italian unit detected approach of an Ethiopian raiding party, the messenger said, and hastily placed mines of high explosives under their camp site. When Mikael's men charged the Italians fled.

One of the Italians, simulating panic too realistically in hope of luring the attackers into the trap, stumbled and tripped the mine trigger. The entire force of Italians disappeared in a blast of flame, smoke and dust, the runner reported.

The runner said the Ethiopians were able to estimate the number of invaders killed only by the fact that they had two tents and 15 police whistles were found among mutilated bodies.

Emperor Haile Selassie dispatched a medal to Mikael's wife. The medal was for an exploit Friday. The plump little woman usurped command of a company of her husband's men during his absence from camp to raid and rout a camp of Italian scouts.

The commanders of the northern troops concentrating around Makale and eager to start a big push against the Italians are Ras Seyoum and Ras Kassa, both veteran fighters. The reserve force moving up to reinforce the troops already within striking distance of the Italian lines is under command of War Minister Ras Mulu Getu.

Ras Seyoum was understood to be among those urging the emperor to immediate battle. In his telephone conversation with the King of Kings a few days ago he is understood to have sought permission to lead an advance.

The wilder heads, both at Addis Ababa and in the north, favored an attempt to recapture Adowa and the Holy City of Aksum. Some calmer experts believed such an offensive would be suicidal. Any position which the Italians have had time to fortify with guns must be stormed only as a last resort they argued.

Near Makale, on the other hand, the Italian front lines presumably would be spread out along a wide front.