FRANCO’S TRIUMPH

Greymouth Evening Star, 4 February 1939, Page 8

FRANCO’S TRIUMPH

ALFONSO’S MESSAGE [BY CABLE—PREBB ASSN. —COPYRIGHT.] (Rec. Reb. 4, 8 a.m.) BURGOS, February 3. Ex-King Alfonso, from Rome, telegraphed his congratulations to Franco, saying “As a Spaniard, 1 reiterate my confidence in the reawakening of oni country.” FRENCH OBSERVER LONDON, February 3. “The Times’s” Paris correspondent states that Senator Leon Minister of Justice, has gone to Burgos, as French official observer to the Nationalist Government. REBEL ADVANCE LONDON, February 2. ’ “The Times’s” St. Jean de Luz correspondent says that the rebels have entered Berga, and are advancing towards Ripoll, in order to block the outlet into Loyalist territory, open from the Puigcerda sector. CLAIM AGAINST U.S.A. WASHINGTON, February 3. The U.S.A. Government has acknowledged to-night that it has been sued by General Franco’s Government tor the recovery of ten million dollai » worth of silver which was purchased by the United States from the Spanish Loyalists. N.Z. RELIEF CONTRIBUTIONS.

WELLINGTON, Febzruary 3. Mr Eric Reeves, chairman of the National Relief Fund for Spanish refugee children, makes the following final statement about the work done by the committee: — “The total funds collected throughout New Zealand’ amounted to £ 331 a, of which, after providing for expenses, there remained £3040 to be forwarded to the High. Commissioner for New Zealand (Mr W. J. Jordan) to be handed by him to organisations which is his opinion will faithfully use the money in feeding and clothing the children of Spain, irrespective of religious or political beliefs. After providing for exchange, a net amount of £2440 has been remitted to the High Commissioner, who has advised that, bearing in mind, the conditions under which the money was raised in New Zealand, he distributed it in such a manner that it will be faithfully used for the relief of the children of Spain. “On behalf of the committee I wish to thank the newspapers throughout New Zealand for the publicity they have given to the commitee’s work. I also wish to thank the city treasurer and those officers of the city treasury who assisted the work of the committee. The thanks of the committee are due also to mayors, town clerks, town chairmen, and others who in various parts of New Zealand assisted in raising the amount stated. As chairman I personally wish to thank the trustees and all members of the committee for the untiring zeal and effort they have so willingly given in carrying out the work.”

N.Z. NURSES’ SERVICE Sisters Shadbolt and I. Dodds, who recently returned .to the Dominion after nine months’ service in Spain under the auspices of the New Zealand Spanish Medical Aid Committee, arrived in Greymouth this morning, from Westport. They will leave on Monday for Christchurch. At a public meeting at Wellington, Sister Shadbolt detailed the work done in Spain with funds raised in New Zealand. She said they could not have gone to Spain without the support and maintenance provided by the committee. The morning they arrived in Spain Fissifort was destroyed. They joined an American convoy and went through Tanagone and on to Valencia, which was being bombed when they arrived. From there they went to the base hospital at Madrid, where 400 patients were lying on the floors and in the corridors. At the base hospital there was acute shortage of equipment and no proper sanitation or water supply. Women who had never done such work before came and helped in the hospital. Food was very scarce during the winter. All they had to depend on was a meagre supply of I bread and beans. After each attack | hundreds of patients came in. They were splendidly disciplined and never complained, although they had been in snow with canvas shoes and no socks, and their feet were black with frostbite. The shortage of food was particularly acute in the villages, and there was no fresh milk. In spite of this the spirit of the people was wonderful and they remained cheerful. This was evident even amongst the refugees. Later the nurses went to a 1200-bed hospital on the outskirts of Barcelona. Food and equipment were scarce, and the civilian population in the city suffered dreadfully. The people searched the garbage tins for bones or crusts. The New Zealand nurses, along with nurses from other countries, had to leave Spain, as did the soldiers under the non-intervention pact. They could not do otherwise than speak very highly of the kindness they had received from the Spanish people. Sister Dodds said that thousands and thousands of Spanish people were without homes or food. The urgent problem was one of food and in all democratic countries efforts were being made to meet, that need.