DARK HOURS OF 1941!

Evening Star, Issue 25714, 11 February 1946, Page 5

DARK HOURS OF 1941!

A CHURCHILL SPEECH U-Boats Sapping Vitality WHEN BRITAIN AWAITED INVASION (Bee. 9.45 a.m.) NEW YORK, February 10. " If, at the beginning of 1940, we had been told' that the enemy would effectually command all the Continental Atlantic ports from Narvik to Bayonne, most high naval officers and air experts would have said that the problem of supplying Britain would be insoluble," said Mr Churchill in a secret speech in the House of Commons, delivered on June 25, 1941. The test of the speech has been released by ' Life ' magazineMr Churchill said that in the last war it was thought that if London port was closed the chances of supplying Britain would be extremely pessimistic. Now London port was reduced to one quarter of its traffic and all east coast ports were enormously shrunken. The Allied shipping losses at the end of 1940 totalled 5,000,000 tons. New buildings, captures, purchases, and charters brought the total to only 1,500,000 tons less than the peace-time total. However, safety measures, convoys, and delays had severely reduced operative fertility. " During the winter months the U-boats developed a new technique, attacking by night," he said. " The losses mounted heavily, and the New Year demand upon us is black and grim. Besides, there is a growing form of air attack upon our western approaches by long-range Focke-Wulfes, which are operated in wireless communication with submarines. A submarine could fire volleys of torpedoes which ran through the convoys, striking three or four ships at once. Nothing that happened in the last war is comparable to the dangers now besetting us."

Before reading in the House a memorandum drawn up on December 26, 1?41, recommending a reduction; in British imports of food and war materials to 31,000,000 ions compared with 60,000,000 tons in the best peace year to compensate- for shipping losses, Mr Churchill said: "I must emphasise that the figures in this memorandum should not on any account be made public. In this way I answer the reproaches which have been made here, also outside, that we are complacent and lacking in foresight, and that there is no concerted plan' which, all departments are following. "As to complacency, let me say: Don't let anyone suppose that inside this enormous Government we are a mutual admiration society. 1 don't think—-and my colleagues will bear witness—that any expression of scorn or severity which I have heard used by our critics has come anywhere near the language I myself am accustomed to use, not only orally but in a continued stream of minutes. I wonder, in fact, that a groat _ many of my colleagues are on speaking terms with me. They would not be if I had not complained and criticised all evenly alike. But bound together, as

we are by a common purpose, they put up with a lot more. "It is the Prime Minister's duty to use the power which Parliament and the nation have given him to drive others, and in a war like this that power has to be used irrespective of anyone's feelings. If we win, nobody will care; if we lose there will be nobody to care."

Mr Churchill said that as the result of important reductions they had to remodel the shipbuilding and Army programmes, with the Army carrying out internal economies in order to provide for a much larger proportion of armoured divisions and other technical Units. "The size and scale of our armies are wrapped in mystery. I am not going to give the precise figure, I wish, however, to correct, in secret, exaggerated ideas. People talk of armies of four to five million men. If the Germans believe it, so' much the better. In fact, however, the actual 6ize is only about half that figure. I mentioned in addition that there was a home guard of 1,750,000, and also the dominions, Indian, and colonial armies which were large and important, and for which we provide many essential services. I had to ask the Army Council to accept a reduction of jusi; under half a million men.

Frightful Invasion Impends

"They did so, and recast the organisation accordingly, but having done that I must warn the House that J cannot and will'not have the army drained, mulcted or knocked about any further. ," in a few months, or even less we may be exposed to the most frightful invasion the world has ever seen. We have a foe who, in order to wipe us out forever, would not hesitate to lose a million msn. If he tries to come we have to take care that he loses that number, or better. For this purpose military training must be carried to the highest degree." Mr Churchill said he would discontinue announcing the monthly ship loss figures, because the effort for survival was surely hard enough without the British Government becoming an effective branch for the German Intelligence service. "Only the other day our great friend President Roosevelt stated some of the figures about our losses in relation to Anglo-American new . building in the most startling and most alarming form. There was

nothing very new about the facts and figures, and we assented before hand to the President using them. The statement certainly had a bad effect on all the balancing countries, —Spain, Vichy France, Turkey, and Japan. " The Japanese Ambassador, Mamoru Shigemitsu, who was a man most friendly to peace between our countries, in leave taking the other day inquired anxiously of me about President Roose--velt's statement, which he evidently felt might be a factor in an adverse decision by Japan which he hoped to avert. We cannot afford to paint over affairs in the darkest' colours before neutrals' eyes, and discourage our friends or "encourage our foes throughout the world. If we can bring in 31,000,000 tons of imports in 1941 we can carry on life at home and the war effort in east without < any further serious restrictions. I believe we shall sueceed, and may- be there will even be some improvement. This would become certain if we obtained more direct assistance from the American flotillas and flying boats, and still more if the United States took the plunge in good time."