MERCANTILE MARINE SWEPT FROM SEAS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 93, 19 April 1940, Page 7

MERCANTILE MARINE SWEPT FROM SEAS.

HEAVY NAZI LOSSES.

Under 3 Per Cent Of British Ships Destroyed. SECRETARY'S REVIEW. Briti-h Official Wirek-s*. (K<'C<-ivo<} 2 r , ra.> lU'c.HV. April I*s. Reviewing- the effects of ihe fir-1 >cvcii monlhs (if ilio war :ii >ea mi Britain's mercantile marine. Sir Arthur Sailer. Parlianu ntary Secretary io ihe Ministry of Shij»j»i»<r. **m<l in a >jic<-<-h i!i;ti iho enemy lin<l tried every known form of r.llack airainM Brilish «hiji>. and had been restrained neither by rule- of law nor rtin>iderations nf humanity nor. with a few exception.-, tiie hoiuturable iradition? of >eaffciin:r wen.

"The (ierman Xavy was w«tak in rela tif»: t<> our* la-t St"]'l<?a>l>er." he ?-aid

"'Jt ii- iKiiv n]u<li weaker. The (iernian mercantile marine ha> lieen from the oceans and hex -hip.- are now sheltering in neutral port.- or r-hut. within the liaHic.

"Even tliis 3ia»i not {riven it safety. however. About one-tenth ha«; been captured, t-utik or scuttled —three timc.the proportion «i the sustained hv the British mercantile marine, although the laiter has l«*en freely in aJI i-eas except the Baltic

British Losses Replaced. *"In ilh*-<- kvch month*. th<- enemy hadestroyed le>s ihaii :> per rent of our ship?, and w<? ba\c replaced nearly all tlir-c by new c-ajilnre and pur-<-liar-e. so that we now hate well over 39 per cem as much tonnage under our flag a.s at the outbreak,"* Sir Arthur compared the averapx' monthly rate of Jo*. \>y enemy action durin? the whole of the last war. of 154.000 tons. wilJi the monthly avcrajie so far in this war, of SH.OtHI. He the loes in 1914-IHIS was 7-"> per cent higher. Xevertheless. Britain hi Iflls wa.s still snpportinjr an army of more. Ulan two million* in France, and half a dozen other <rreat expeditions. Tincivilian population sufft'itvil no ini*>Vral>le no military effort wj> ever impeded, no vital service was over ini}iairt*<l liy a shortage of ships.

I)ei-piie Jli<> niiK-h more favourable po>ili<in to-day, it was i?till eseential to home from overseas only r.-MMitials. Worse OS in One Respect. In one respect the Allies were worse off in regard to importing cargo capacity than last time. Now tihey had to pay raeh for purchases in the United States, which forced them to bny more from distant countries and less than they otherwise would from the greatest industrial country one one of the shortest ocean routes.

Sir Arthur warned his audience apaiwt assuming that losses by enemy action would always be as low" as they had been during the last four weeks.

Danish r-Lijis which ol»pyed Oerman orders would bp. seized and confiscated; Danish ships ooniin? voluntarily Ut Allied port* would be treated generously and compensated.

As to Norwegian ships, the Allies trer<» co-operating with the Norwegian Government and the owners m enabling these vessels to sail tinder'our fla.jr, upon their proper work. He mentioned *f~ an example of Allied aid the arrangements being made to provide valid insurance.