Screaming Japanese fled before Australian infantrymen fiercely attacking a knoll of Poker Hill about 2000 yards north-west of enemy headquarters on Tarakan. In the face of wood-pecker machineguns, the Australians made a direct attack on this nest of opposition, with its seven tunnels from which the enemy could cover all approaches. Despite casualties, the Australians pressed on within a few feet of the machineguns, hurling grenades. Two wounded Japanese committed harakiri. After the battle only 11 Japanese dead were counted, but others are believed to have been trapped in tunnels sealed by blasting. A blast at one tunnel entrance shot a Japanese from another opening like a cork from a bottle.

Eighty more Japanese were killed in bitter clashes in the Wewak area of New Guinea on Tuesday. The Army Department said that in one action in the Wewak sector 3000 rounds of 25-pounder fire were poured into a strongly held Japanese position east of Koiglu. Attacking infantry found wrecked bunkers littered with enemy dead. On higher ground a machinegun party was wiped out. Many patrol clashes have occurred over a wide area extending from the Sauri villages, on the western track and from Wewak, to the east, near our position in Dove Bay. Several enemy outposts, guarding the approaches to Yamil, have been captured. There have been further deep penetrations into enemy territory, east of Maprik. An Australian patrol was ambushed near Malabasakum, where our troops are finding difficulty ousting the enemy from positions covering approaches to this group of villages.

In one of the fastest advances yet made in southern Bougainville, Australian infantry raced forward two miles and are now within a mile of the Hari River. The early stages of the drive were unmarked by any major incident, but towards nightfall spearheads encountered strong enemy resistance. Our artillery kept up intermittent, harassing fire all night long before the attack, and at dawn 32 New Zealand Corsairs pounced on the enemy defensive position of bunkers and pillboxes, extending over 100 yards, which the battalion had marked as its first objective. The commander of the attacking force described it as one of the most accurate air strikes he had seen.

"Nothing was left of the position but a foul stench," he said. When the planes left, 25-pounders and mortars took over for 40 minutes. From dawn onwards one shell or bomb was bursting on the target every three seconds."

The infantry went in and found that the Japanese had cracked under the pounding and fled. The Australians pressed home the advantage and drove down Buin Road over two creeks 1500 yards from the Hari River.

Harassed by Australian troops on Bougainville, the Japanese are retreating from Bonis Peninsula and are thought to be making for Buka Island, says the Air Department. In conjunction with RNZAF Corsairs, the RAAF has bombed Japanese concentrations of naval personnel and stores at Bougainville Harbour, opposite Buka Island, smashing 22 huts and damaging 17.

Reductions in the coupon rating for men's, women's and children's underwear have been announced by the Director of Rationing (Mr. Cumming). The most important coupon reductions are for vests, singlets, spencers, scanties, pants or trunks without legs or with legs of less than knee length. These items are reduced for men's wear from five to three coupons, for women from four to two coupons, and for children from three to two. Men's long underpants have been reduced from six to four coupons, and flannel undershirts from four to three.

After the war, members of the permanent military forces would not be entitled to retain the rank they held while serving in the Australian military forces, the Acting Minister for the Army (Senator Fraser) said in the Senate. Many members of the permanent and citizen military forces had held a rank in the AMF during the war far in excess of that held by them in their former units. It would not be possible for them to retain their higher ranks. The position was under review, and a statement of Government policy would be made in due course.

Five hundred soldiers were imprisoned in civil gaols in NSW, Mr. Abbott (CP, MHR) announced in the House of Representatives. He added that many of those men had been imprisoned for two years for offences which if committed in civil life would merit a fine of about £5 ($10). He said Cabinet Ministers should go into the gaols to see the conditions in which soldiers were imprisoned with some of the worst criminals in the country. Mr Abbott said that recently, with Ministerial permission, he visited Long Bay Gaol and interviewed a soldier serving two years for having struck an officer at Lae. This man suffered badly from nerves as a result of service under some of the worst bombing in the Middle East and the Owen Stanley Ranges, and his mother and uncle had died insane. Mr Abbott demanded to be allowed to see the file of this man, who, he believed, might have struck the officer as a result of his nervous condition.

With another amphibious landing Australian troops have extended their grip on Bonis Peninsula, Bougainville, moving two and a half miles closer to Buka Passage, where Japanese naval troops are active, says the Department of the Army. The Australians landed from barges at 4am, moved quickly into the plantation and advanced 300 yards before they met the first resistance from Japanese strongly entrenched in bunkers and pillboxes. They came under heavy small arms and machinegun fire. Fighting every inch of the way, Australians of the Third Division have made gains of up to 1000 yards in South Bougainville. The Japanese fought back savagely to offer the fiercest resistance since the battle for Egan's Ridge, little more than a fortnight ago. This for them is the "battle of the gardens." Already several big potato, bean, pumpkin, papaw and rice gardens have been conceded by the Japanese, but only after bitter clashes. Our line now runs approximately through a third of the entire fertile garden area. Forty four New Zealand Corsairs opened the attack, dropping about 22 tons of bombs on Japanese positions forward of the Peperu River. Then infantry and Matilda tanks followed up in two prongs. Heavy rain for 72 hours made the tracks quagmires, and heavy tanks and bulldozers churned, slithered and suffered many minor checks. About midday 32 Corsairs appeared to flatten another strong enemy position with 1000-pounders. Three calls were made back to artillery by infantry and a 25-pounder barrage was laid on hot spots of Japanese resistance.

Forty soldiers, experienced in the discharging and loading of operational vessels in Sydney, began to load heavy logs and other equipment at a Newcastle wharf for a vessel which has urgent war cargo. The employment of soldiers was caused by a decision of members of Newcastle branch of the Waterside Workers' Federation to strike because of the suspension of 44 wharf labourers. The soldiers arriived in Newcastle on Monday night. They were to have started work at 8 a.m. Tuesday, but were prevented by the weather from starting until 5pm. They will work the ordinary shifts of waterside workers 13 hours for the day shift and 11 hours for the night shift. They had "smokos'" at the same times enjoyed by waterside workers - 8.15am, 10.15pm, 3.15am and 5.15am. Their meal hour was from midnight to 1am. The policy of the Federal Government is that experienced soldiers will be used on operational vessels at any time the Army thinks fit. This means that military personnel can be used by the Army on such vessels even if union men are available. Government policy also provides that these soldiers will not be required to work commercial vessels. Because of this, it is unlikely that soldiers will be used to work five other vessels held up in port because of the strike.

Australian landings on the mainland of Borneo place Allied troops on one of the greatest oil and rubber producing centres of the world. The Japanese occupied them in the first month of the war. Landing points were in Brunei Bay area of Borneo's north-west coast and on Labuan Island guarding the mouth of the bay. When Allied control is established, airfields in the area will bring the Japanese naval bases at Singapore and Saigon, Indo-China, within reach of Liberator heavy bombers and long-range fighters. From these fields Allied aircraft will also be able further to endanger the enemy's supply lanes through the South China Sea. One of the Australian landings was at Brooketon, also known as Maruru, on Hamilton Point, guarding the entrance to Brunei Bay on the south-west. Australians are driving towards Brunei City, 12 miles south-west of Brooketon. Brunei City is the capital of the small sultanate between British North Borneo and Sarawak. This port city was used by the Japanese as a naval base. The main bay is deep enough to accommodate the largest battleships. One of the richest jewels in Japan's stolen Pacific Empire, the island of Borneo is the largest in the Malay Archipelago, and the third largest in the world. Its area is slightly less than Germany and France combined. Its population is estimated at 3,190,000. While these landings will bring both Japanese sea supply routes and overland supply routes on the Asiatic mainland within range of all types of Allied aircraft, they do not assure any quick occupation of the great island. Borneo is about 730 miles long, and up to 600 miles wide. No highway or railroad penetrates far into the jungles of the mountainous interior, and trails are few and difficult. Balikpapan - Borneo's greatest oil centre, and one of the greatest in the world - is on the island's south-east coast about 450 air miles from the landing points at Brunei Bay.

The question of fixing the age for youths for call-up to the services at 19, instead of 18, would be considered, Acting Prime Minister (Mr Chifley) said in the House of Representatives. He was replying to Mr Haylen (Lab, NSW), who asked if this could be done in view of the present state of the war. Mr Haylen said Australia was defeating its own ends by putting 18 year olds into the Army, while servicemen were withdrawn for industries depleted of young manpower.

George Henry Boulden, Cessnock; James Convery, Weston; Maxwell John Evans, Neath; Kevin James Hardy, Adamstown; Charles Edward Marsden, Warners Bay; Maxwell John Murray, Maitland; William Mason Philip, Cessnock; Edward John Proud, Pelaw Main; Lottie Thelma Shayler, New Lambton; Thomas Edward Petrie, Cessnock; Basil Wentworth Thorley, Newcastle; James William Doherty, Maryville; John Frederick Humphries, Wickham; Annie Coleman, Newcastle; Noel Richard Frost, Newcastle; Ronald William Finch, Maitland; John Ronald Grierson, Cooks Hill; Manning John Sullivan, Adamstown.

Private Owen Andrew Rennie, Marks Point; Gunner James Herbert Travis, Cooranbong; Sergeant Richard David Walton, Cessnock; Private Ernest Charles Nicholson, Mayfield; Private Cecil Reginald Blacker, Tighes Hill; Gunner Ernest William Henry Kennell, Scone; Corporal Noel James Kilroy, Adamstown.