SECRET DEVICES LOYALTY FULFILLED GALLANT SKIPPER MR. CHURCHILL WATCHES FIERCE AIR BATTLE NEW PRETENDER

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 53, 30 August 1940, Page 7

SECRET DEVICES

LOYALTY FULFILLED

GALLANT SKIPPER

MR. CHURCHILL WATCHES FIERCE AIR BATTLE

NEW PRETENDER

BRITAIN'S DEFENCES WHAT JOURNALISTS SAW (By Telegraph—-Press Association—Copyright.) ! (Received August 30, 12.50 p.m.) LONDON, August 29. Journalists who were taken on a tour of the coastal defences under the Southern Command were most enthusiastic about the strength and ingenuity of what they saw.

The entire southern coastline abounds with every conceivable form of trap for invaders. One device, the nature of which is a close secret, is described as terrifying. A news agency says that the latest of many ingenious methods of confusing the invader has been installed in the far west. "It gives the toe of England the kick of a mule." "The Times" says that behind the defences there is an army on wheels which can travel 70 miles a day. It is now being prepared for the offensive. Men are being withdrawn behind fortified beaches and trained for mobile warfare as automatic arms replace rifles.

The General Officer Commanding, Lieutenant-General C.' J. E; Auchinleck,"who led the Narvik expedition, declared: "We will improve on the German methods and beat the enemy at his own game. Such an astonishing amount of defensive work has been achieved since the middle of June that the enemy will find it just as forbidding a task to land troops on the south coast as in any other part of the country. There are very few stretches of sand that are not covered by guns, wire, and other unpleasant surprises, There are few useful beaches on the Atlantic seaboard. The great seas themselves offer protection. Many divisions in this area fought with the 8.E.F., and their experience against German tanks and whistling bombs is proving invaluable to the younger recruits." , "

HONOURED BY HOLLAND (Britisb OfflcSal Wireless.) RUGBY, August 28. Queen Wilhelmina has decorated the captain of a Dutch ship with the Willemsorde (the Dutch equivalent of the Victoria Cross) for gallantry during an air attack on his ship, which twelve German planes bombed and machine-gunned. The captain personally manned a machine-gun and brought down one plane after which four Germans concentrated their attack, wounding the captain and several members of the crew, who all carried on with their duties. One seaman did not give up till he collapsed. He died ashore. The captain and crew drifted for hours on a raft till they were rescued by a British ship. The captain was given a blood transfusion and is now recovering. , The members of the crew were decorated for conspicuous bravery.

" LONDON, August 29. j The Prime Minister, Mr. Churchill, when inspecting air-raid damage in Ramsgate and other parts of the southeast coast yesterday, saw seven planes '■ shot down in one of the fiercest air battles of the war. One plane plunged to the ground in flames several miles away, and Mr. Churchill drove to the spot. An officer was already guarding the wreck, and Mr. Churchill asked: "Is it one of theirs or ours?" The officer replied: "One of theirs." Mr. Churchill remarked: "Good. That's another off the list."

Such or the cabie news on this page as la so headed has appeared In "The Times" and is cabled to Australia and New Zealand by special permission. It should be understood that the opinions are not those of "Xhe Times'* unless expressly elated to be ao.

EGYPT'S OBLIGATIONS

WHAT ITALY HAS TO FACE IF SHE ATTACKS (British Official Wireless.) . RUGBY, August 28. The possibility of an Italian attack on Egypt from Libya is discussed, with particular reference to the position of [Egypt, in the "Manchester Guardian," which says:—

"If Italy moves, she will have to face the opposition of a united Egyptian nation, strong in the strength of British military, naval, and air power.

"The transformation of a semiindependent kingdom under tutelage ' into this country's ally has made all the difference. The fourth anniversary of the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty last Tuesday produced eulogies in the entire Egyptian Press and a bark from Signor Gayda, who complains Of Egypt's 'pretended neutrality.' The phrase is singularly ill-chosen. Egypt's position of non-belligerency in the true sense has been made perfectly clear. Diplomatic and commercial relations were broken off, as with Germany, last September, when Italy came into the war, while the Government is loyally fulfilling its treaty obligations in placing its ports at the disposal of the British Fleet and giving facilities to the British air and land forces whereever the war strategy may require. "At the same time, Egypt's attitude was properly described by Aly Maher Pasha, former Prime Minister, as basically, defensive. Once Hassan Sabry Pasha, the present Premier, reiterated that Egypt would fight if any attack were made on her territory or her army or if any casualties resulted from Italian hostilities against Britain. His War Minister recently said that Egyptian troops had already taken up strategic positions in readiness to1 meet an invasion. "The protection of Egypt," he explained, "incidentally involves also th* defence of the Sudan. Nothing could be plainer. Indeed, the present relationship between England and Egyi* is an object lesson in placated nation-* alism." RECKLESSNESS OF NAZI *■' PROPAGANDA. Reports from Egypt show that much indignation has been aroused by a recent instance of the reckless mertdacity of Nazi propaganda. Berlin alleged that Britain had caused celebrations to be forbidden. The false report was actually circulated when celebrations were in progress all oyer Egypt and even when the newspapers, with descriptions of the morning's pro- -\ ceedings, were already on sale in the streets of Cairo. This lie has been denounced by the whole Egyptian The particular resentment felt at the blatant attempts to exploit Egypt for Nazi propagandist purposes was typically expressed in a headline inthe newspaper "Misr," which read: ' German propaganda lies do nqt even spare Saad's memory." The newspaper Al Masri," which had only recently made some comments upon the Axis propagandists' lies, recalled these to its readers, and added: "Egyptians have no difficulty in judging these worthless concoctions when they concern things appearing under their very eyes m their own country." The moral was drawn in a leading article by the "Egyptian Gazette, which pointed out that propaganda on the scale and of the type used by the Germans and their junior partners, the Italians, is only effective so long as it cannot be checked. When tne Egyptians find that the Axis claims about Egypt are demonstrably false they can judge the amount of credence which they should give to their claims about events in other parts of the W Another instance of a false report was a grossly exaggerated account by the Italians of damage caused hy an Italian air raid on Alexandria. On that the "Gazette" observed: All Alexandrians know that it was practically untouched and that the damage was so slight that it needed careful search with a guide to find it."

THE THRONE OF FRANCE LONDON, August 28. The Comte de Paris has succeeded the Due de Guise as the Pretender to the Throne of France. He has ae* sumed the title of Henry VII of French