THE BOMBING OF MADRID

Evening Star, Issue 22596, 13 March 1937, Page 11

THE BOMBING OF MADRID

AH UHCEHSURED ACCOUNT The Madrid correspondent of «The Times ’ writes, under date January H. Madrid has suffered 33 aerial bombardments in 10 weeks, a unique and unenviable record for a great city. This represents a total of some 50 tons of high explosive, besides the daily shelling from the enemy at the gates. Civilisation may well look with pitying eyes on the Madrilenos and the League of Nations send experts on evacuation. But other experts must bo following with interest actual experiences which in thought constitute a nightmare for all those who envisage the effects of modern warfare on civilian masses. Madrid has not yet been, and let ns hope never will be, gassed; no lessons are to be learnt to lighten that great mystery which gives sleepless nights to scientists and administrators in London and Paris. But as one raid follows another evidence accumulates of the destructive effect of bombs on buildings and public services, and on the people themselves, physically and mentally. Of the 33 raids, one took place in October, 23 in November, seven in December, and there have been two in January so far. Only 10 wetre night raids, which seems to indicate that darkness no longer affords good protection for bombers, even when it is remembered that the anti-aircraft defences of Madrid have hitherto proved unconvincing. The defence provided by air patrol appears to some extent efficient. Day raiders have been attacked and driven off. Once 32 huge Junkers flew across Madrid in the middle of a bright, sunny day without dropping a bomb. This great fleet in two squadrons was an awesome, inspiring sight. A STRANGE RUMOUR. On October 30, while the insurgents were rapidly approaching Madrid, a single small bomber, flying _ high, dropped six small bomb's in a line in the crowded streets of a populous quarter. Sixteen persons were killed and 60 wounded, mostly women in queues or children playing. _ The moral effect was great, but indignation counterbalanced it. As it was denied by the insurgents that any machine of theirs had bombed Madrid, the rumour arose that a Government aeroplane had been told to commit an act of frightfulness, to brace the apathy of Madrid towards the war. In spite of. the toll of death and the hideous form in. which it was, freely viewed in almost every part of the city, there has been no flight. At first, under orders from the authorities, people ran to underground stations and descended to cellars, but common sense s6on taught them to remain at home and not waste time and effort carrying bedridden old people and scared children, outside. People in the streets have learnt to take cover rapidly when aeroplanes are about, and windows have been carefully taped, which may be due to' dislike of draughts as much as to fear of glass splinters. In one especial detail shines the individualism of the Spaniard. A careful town council painted all tramcar lights blue; the public, desirous of reading the newspapers in comfort, hastened to scratch the paint away,, and now w’heri a raid is on the conductor has to extinguish all lights. . THROUGH SEVEN STORIES. Modern bombs cut through sevenstory houses like cheese, and have twice penetrated the Madrid underground railway vault where it is near the surface. The lighter bombs have hardly done more than scratch the ponderous granite copings of old buildings. Raids directed against administrative centres have proved ineffective. A vast quantity of incendiary bombs has been showered on Madrid. Except in certain cases and circumstances, for reasons it would not be fair to explain here, they have not proved effective. In one of the night raids the Prado Gallery was hit by nine incendiary bomba, without much damage beyond broken glass. Three heavy bombs that made huge holes in the roadway near the building would have wrecked it had they fallen on top. Thanks to the foresight of the Government, the art treasures had been removed, BOMBING OF EMBASSY. An insurgent communique has denied that the nocturnal raid .on January 8, in which the British Embassy buildings suffered,, was carried out by them; The night was clear and starlit, the sort known to airmen as “ tramrail nights ” owing to the reflection burnished steel affords. The pilot must have been able to distinguish clearly the broad, dark river of the Castellana Avenue, divided into sections by the plazas, notably the Colon Plaza near the Embassy. The aeroplane circled for some time, passing over the course it subsequently bombed. At least eight explosive and 20 incendiary bombs fell. The explosive bombs, though powerful, were of the type that explode immediately on contact, and did not penetrate deeply into buildings. .Nobody likes the raid, least of all the militia. They show their displeasure by firing off their guns. A volunteer worker from the British Consulate was walking home when the Embassy raid took place. He had reached the broad Calle Velazquez when rifle shots and the whizz of bullets made him fling himself to the ground, while ail irate gentleman posted behind a tree fired 15 shots across the avenue, to which an apparently equally irate, but less wasteful, comrade replied with six.