STORY OF THE AIR RAIDS

Dominion, Volume 19, Issue 79, 29 December 1925, Page 7

STORY OF THE AIR RAIDS

ZEPPELINS AND GOTHAS HOW BRITAIN WAS ATTACKED “FRIGHTFULNESS” THAT FAILED

“Ths German Air Raids on Great Britain, 1914-1918” (Sampson Low, Marston, and Co., Ltd., 16s. net), is written by Captain Joseph Morris, late of the Royal Air Force (states the "Morning Post”). While the Air Ministry accepts no responsibility for the book, or for the facts or opinions stated therein, the maps it includes are from official records, reproduced by permission of the Controller of His Majesty’s Stationery Office. The purpose of the book is defined as follows: — , _ _ "During the war nearly 9000 German bombs, of a total weight of some 280 tons, were dropped on British soil in the course of 51 airship and 52 aeroplane attacks. Jxmdon was bombarded twelve times bv airship and nineteen times by aeroplanes. Ju all 1413 persons were killed and 3408 wounded as the result of these raids, Jzmdon suffering more than half of tin? casualties—67o killed and 1962 injured. . "The underlying motive of these raids was to unnerve the British public, to make life unbearable by destroying their homes and by crippling their means of supply, and, by inflicting heavy casualties, io compel them to sacrifice their national honour rather than suffer a continuance of air attacks, ‘n this the Germans failed.” Two “Scraps of Paper.” The Kaiser, apparently, was. not one of the early believers in frigfittulness. After a British attack on German airship sheds .on Christmas Day, 1914, the Chief of the German Naval Sta.. v rote “I hold the view that ™ Rho l d > no means untried to crush that successful air raids on London, in view of the already existing nervousness of the people, would prove a valuable means to this end. . . On January fl. 1915. permission was given, but the Kaiser decided that these raids were to be “expressly restricted lo military shipyards, arsenals, dock., and, in general, military establishment., and that London itself was not to be Bombed.” That order became a scrap of paper, like the subsequent order tha Im’ attacks of German submarines should bo confined to ships flying under "The'nUa S cks of Zeppelins baring failed to attain their object, that of breaking the a spTrit of the British, an aeroplane Captain 6 Morris makes this " When th© war shall be but a faded will be forgotten. V ictor Lt It «liin was a symbol of tenor, yer public. Gotha proved the more sinister and deadly weapon.” The Daylight Raid. Instances are given of an attack in 1917, in which the casualties re ached the formidable grand total of 287 killed and injured. Then came the histone daylight raid on London, on June 13, 1917 Twenty machines were 1 , i?a; - S"' k 5 j sl U “X t J]’ Pt The main attack was withheld until, at a signal given ® leader, 72 bombs were released witmn a radius M a mile from Liverpool Street Station between 1140. and 1.42 a.m. Three fell on the station itself. . . Death and destruction was spread un - formly Irom Barking to, Bermondsey, from Aidgate to Hoxton. Ato sr .»■£ 11 “The Ut cas r ualtks caused, if c S“ sld t ® r t ®i bombs expended,’ were more severe than in anv other airship raid beioie or alter. Breithaupt reserved most - 111 ® bo c^ S until well over the centre of the mtv, wveh, the ’ Royal Courts of Carey Street. Lincolns Inn. Cffianceiy Lane, Holborn. Grays Inn Hatton Ga dpn and Farrirgdon Road. . •. • “Fultlier. many of missiles mostly incendiary, were dr °P p ® d Woolwich, causing d «niage to taliack s there and to some shops, m the Arsenak Tn all for the fire ships, we counted Ifla high explosive and 87 incendiarj boml dropped. The total easiialt.es mid were 71 kiDcd and jured. London suffered 38 killed and 87 injured. Gallant Airmen.

Captain Morris admires a skilful and valiant airman, to whatever country he wav belong. There ore 27 references in his book, all generous and appreciative to that great German soldier, Kapitanlentnant Mathy, ending with the story of his death He went down game Co the end.”