THE LION RAMPANT

Evening Post, Volume CXXXI, Issue 100, 30 April 1941, Page 11

THE LION RAMPANT

BRITONS FIGHT BACK

THE SPIRIT TO ENDURE

"CANNOT BE BROKEN"

The people of Britain were facing German onslaughts with great endurance and were eager to strike back, said two members of the Mercantile Marine, who addressed those attending the Wellington R.S.A. luncheon today. The British spirit could not be broken and the people of Britain would sacrifice everything to retain their freedom.

Both speakers had made recent visits to London and Liverpool.

After seeing what the people of Britain were going through, said Mr. J. S. Hoare, he felt that he had a duty to tell the people of New Zealand what was being done for them. The full meaning of the war had not been driven home to New Zealanders or there would not be strikes by the workers. Mr. Hoare told of how people were buried under fallen buildings and, although they could not be rescued, could be heard cheering one another on to the end. The air-raid shelters were occupied by rich and poor together and many spent the nights sitting up/on steps and in corners. They were all happy and jovial, although even in the tubes 80 or 90 feet down the jar of a heavy bomb could be felt. He had seen one bomb crater 45 feet deep and when a building was hit the effect was terrific. There was also danger from shrapnel dropping from 20,000 feet up. Steel helmets would turn a glancing blow but a direct hit could go through. The people of Britain would never weaken. Only very old people were"cracking up" under the strain. Men who lost everything reacted by going straight into the forces. AN INSPIRING SIGHT. The most inspiring sight of all was a visit by the King and Queen. They had arrived in Liverpool while he was there and had walked through the streets unattended and in and out of the homes. "What a contrast," he said. "Our friends over the way—the dictators —have their bodyguards to protect them. It makes us realise that I we are lucky to live in a democracy."

Mr. A. Nichols, a member of the British Legion, said that the damage in London was only temporary, because Britain would secure a victory no matter what the enemy did. The British people might lose their homes but their spirit would never break. England was taking everything with courage for one ideal —the maintenance of freedom.