DEVOTION TO DUTY

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 58, 5 September 1940, Page 10

DEVOTION TO DUTY

GIRL WORKERS IN MIDLANDS

(British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, September 3. When the Minister of Supply, Mr. Herbert Morrison, visited .factories in a Midlands area which have been subjected to heavy but hardly effective bombing raids, he told of gallant devotion to duty on the part of girl workers. At one factory a bomb fell about 50 yards from the office, but failed to explode, and four girls who had important work to do carried on cheerfully and without fuss for three days till the bomb was made harmless. In another place a number of heavy delayed-action bombs which missed their objective fell in a store, and because it was not certain that all the bombs had exploded the whole of an adjoining office building was evacuated except the telephone exchange. If the telephone service had been shut down the production would have been affected, and calls were made for girls to volunteer to operate a skeleton service. Six of'the eight girls then on duty asked to be allowed to stay at their switchboards, though they were fully aware of the risk. Finally the selection was made by seniority and the four senior girls stayed at their posts in a room almost immediately above the position of a bomb till the danger was over five hours later.

statement without reference to his reading experts, who maintained the road for many years prior to its being declared a main highway, and therefore should have a very intimate knowledge in regard to maintenance costs. In conclusion, I would like to say that I am one of those who have a very high appreciation of Mr. Appleton's public activities, and my only reason for correcting him is, if possible, to avoid misunderstanding in the minds of the public in regard to this association's advocacy that the Paekakariki Hill Road should be kept open as an alternative means of access to and egress from the city.—l am, -etc., EDWARD A. BATT, Chairman of^ Executive, The Automobile Association (Wellington) Inc. j