EX-SERVICEMEN

Evening Post, Volume CXX, Issue 8, 9 July 1935, Page 18

EX-SERVICEMEN

GESTURE TO GERMANY

FRIENDLY CONTACT

(From "The Post's" Representative.) LONDON, June 15. The Prince of Wales's support of the suggestion that members of the British Legion should visit Germany has met with the most favourable comment in Germany. Colonel E. C. Heath, a secretarygeneral of the Legion, said at the annual conference of the Legion:— "Major Featherston-Godley, the chairman of the Legion, and Colonel G. K. Crosfleld are going to Berlin in the near future. They will investigate the possibilities of establishing friendly contact with German ex-ser-vicemen. The national executive will decide what further action shall be taken." The gesture had, to some extent, been anticipated in the reverse direction, for a deputation of 30 German ex-servicemen is coming to Brighton. The visit arises from a German ■father's request to the British Legion to find the grave of his son, who died as a prisoner of war and was buried at Brighton. When the Prince of Wales was addressing over 1000 delegates from branches of the Legion assembled at Queen's Hall, he referred to this proposed visit. "When I was speaking with the president the other day," he said, "there was one point he brought up which commended itself to me. That was that a deputation or visit might be paid by representative members of the Legion to Germany at some future time. I feel there could be no more suitable body or organisation of men to stretch forth the hand of friendship to the Germans than we exservicemen who fought them in the Great War and have now forgotten all about that." The response in Berlin was immediate. "Der Angriff," the newspaper founded by Dr. Goebbels, Minister of Propaganda, printed in large type in two lines across its front page the words: "Prince of Wales sending front fighters to Germany," and headed its telegram reproducing the remarks with "The British Friendly Hand. An appreciative gesture by the English Heir Apparent." Other evening papers drew attention to the remarks with striking headlines. General Goering stated: "If the Prince of Wales said that, then it can indeed be welcomed. This would be perfectly in line with the leader's policy, and would help to preserve world peace." Herr Hitler's ambassador, Herr yon Ribbentrop, remarked: "British exservicemen will certainly be heartily welcomed by German ex-servicemen and by the German people in general. The spirit which prevails in the exservicemen's organisations will prove a great support to the various Governments in their endeavours to establish peace and co-operation in Europe."