GENERAL WAR SITUATION

Greymouth Evening Star, 8 September 1939, Page 7

GENERAL WAR SITUATION

REVIEWED BY MR. CHAMBERLAIN STATEMENT MADE IN COMMONS

[BRITISH OFFICIAL WIRELESS.) (Recd. Sept. 8, 11 a.m.) RUGBY, September 7. The text of Mr. Chamberllain's Commons statement is as follows: “The House will, I am sure, realise that it is impossible for me to give more than a general indication of the present situation, and of the state of our defences. There are necessarily a number of matters to which, in the public interest, it is impossible for me to refer. With the necessary preamble, I will give the House a resume of the position. “In the East, the Poles are fighting hard against the strong, ruthless enemy, who are relying on weight of numbers and material to crush all op-i position. The Polish soldier has ever shown himself to be a courageous, determined fighter, and to-day he is worthily maintaining this tradition. Against overwhelming superiority in the air, out-numbered and out-gunned, he is contesting every yard of the German advance. The Germans have often stressed the need for a short war and a quick decision. In pursuance of this idea, the German aim appears to be to concentrate its first main effort against Poland, and, as the House is aware, the country was invaded just over a week ago, without any formal declaration of war. In spite of the human and material losses which they have already suffered, the morale and courage of the Polish people remain unaffected. Britain and France to-day signed an agreement with Poland, for the provision of further financial assistance to Poland to enable her to replenish her resources. In the West, France has, like ourselves, mobilised her forces with complete efficiency and smoothness, and they are in contact with the enemy of their common frontier. Certain information has been published of what has taken place, but for obvious reasons no details can yet be disclosed.

“The outbreak of war has found the same spirit of determination and solidarity among the French people, as is evident here. The understanding between the two countries is complete, and the arrangements which have now been put into force, for co-operation in all activities concerned with the prosecution of the war, are working smoothly and well. PREPARATIONS IN BRITAIN “In this country, the defensive military dispositions of our army, which cover a very wide field, were made in good time)- owing to the precauti,onary measures which it was decided to adopt during the period of tension. The manning of the anti-aircraft and coast defences was efficiently carried out. Within a short time of the calling out of units, guns and searchlights were fully manned. Since a large number of anti-aircraft units were in camp, and away from their home stations, this reflects great credit on their organisation. The guarding of vulnerable points has been taken over by the national defence companies, supplemented by the personnel of the territorials. The personnel reached their posts with a minimum of delay/ and under trying weather conditions. The mobilisation of the remainder of the Army has been carried out with the greatest smoothness. The morale of all ranks is high. In particular, the spirit of the reservists recalled from civil life, some of whom already this year had been called up for training, is excellent. 1 should like to make some special mention of the women of the auxiliary territorial services, who are performing many tasks under arduous conditions, and thereby relieving soldiers for fighting duties.

NAVAL ACTIVITIES . . “Turning to the naval side, the mostimportant feature up to the present has been the development of the German U-boat attacks on our shipping,” said Mr. Chamberlain. ‘The sinking of the Athenia, with its scenes of death and terror, virtually opened the war, and no denials or inventions on the part of Germany will convince the public of German innocence of this crime, which has profoundly shocked and horrified the world. Apart from the case of the Athenia, there have been attacks on other British merchant ships by German U-boats, and three or four have been sunk. On our side, the Admiralty has taken immediate counter-measures. British destroyers and other anti-submarine and escort vessels are rapidly becoming available.

“As my right honourable friiend the First Lord has already informed the House, steps are being taken to establish the convoy system at the earliest possible moment. This method of protection can obviously only be instituted after the outbreak of war, and it takes time to bring it fully into operation, but the House can be satisfied taht it is being applied with the utmost possible speed and vigour. Most of t|ie ships which have been attacked hitherto are vessels which commenced their voyages before war had broken out, and naturally for them the full scope of our defensive organisation could not immediately be provided. While a certain proportion of weekly losses must be expected, and I do not minimise the threat to our shipping, I think that the House and the country may be assured that the Navy, with all their war-time experience of handling this problem, and with the added advantage of methods of submarine detection and destruction which have since been developed, will have a definite influence on this phase of the war.

TRIBUTE TO AIR FORCE “I should next like to pay my tribute to the very gallant attack .which was made by units of the Royal Air Force on certain German warships off Wilhelmshaven, during which at least two hits were secured on one of the pocket-battleships. It will be realised that the objectives attacked, namely, the German fleet bases at Wilhelmshaven and at the entrance to the Kiel Canal, are probably among the moststrongly defended points in Germany. The manner in which the R.A.F. attacks were pressed home, despite the strength of the defence, - is worthy of the highest praise. I should also mention the weather conditions prevailing on the afternoon of the attack. The visibility was extremely poor, and the final stages of the attack are stated to have been carried out In a blinding rainstorm. A high degree of navigational skill was thus necessary to enable the attack to reach its objective at all, and the fact that hits were registered demonstrates the ability of the R.A.F. to carry out its attacks under conditions of great difficulty. Finally, I think it is right to stress the fact that a high proportion of the. officers and men in the squadrons concerned have entered the Royal Air Force and received their training since the expansion policy began. , “The House may also be interested to learn that those who took part in the attack included a number who came from the Dominions.

• “As the House knows, extensive reconnaissance flights have been carried out over Germany, on three successive nights, during last week, by units of the bomber command. Over 10,000,000 copies of notes to the German people have been distributed over a wide area of northern and western Germany, including the Ruhr. Althoifgh on each occasion the enemy defences were set fully in motion, no contact was secured by enemy fighters, and all our aircraft returned safely.

The activity of the fighter and coastal commands, if less conspicuous, has been no less intense. From the early stages of the emergency, all squadrons of the fighter command have been at their war stations, and in a state of instant readiness. The coastal command has also been busily engaged in extensive reconnaissance over the surrounding seas, in order to locate and destroy enemy submarines. HOME DEFENCE. “I now wish to say something of the organisation of the home defence services, which are being rapidly completed. The regional organistaion is functioning well. There is still some shortage of whole-time personnel, but this is chiefly now to be found in country districts.

The enforcement of the “blackout” is proceeding satisfactorily. With the help of Air Force reconnaissance every night, it has been possible to discover lights irregularly showing, and action is at once taken to deal with offenders. The Government decided, last Thursday, that the plans for evacuation, mainly in respect of school children, young children and their mothers, should be put into operation. The evacuation started on Friday morning. In a number of towns it was completed by Saturday. In London, where the problem was exceptionally large, it was completed by Monday. The operation has now

been substantially completed, and has covered not only those towns for which plans had been, worked out beforehand, but also a. number of other vulnerable areas. So far, approximately 1,475,000 children and mothers have been evacuated, in the country as a whole. The arrangements for evacuation and transport were carried out without a hitch and those responsible for reception, In the receiving areas, displayed remarkable enterprise, efficiency, and goodwill. The process of assimilating this large increase of population in the receiving areas will take time, and calls for tolerance and mutual understanding. “The schools are to be re-opened in the receiving areas as quickly as possible, and both public authorities and voluntary effort will be busily occupied with measures for the welfare of the children, and for the assistance of the householders who are so generously providing homes for mothers and children.

“More than 200,000 hospital beds are to-day ready for air-raid casualties. Of these, 56,500 are in the London region, 15,500 inside the county, and 40,000 outside the county. Beds in any region would, of course, be available to meet the needs of any other hardpressed area. More than 11,000 trained nurses, 4000 assistant-nurses, and more than 50,000 auxiliary nurses, have joined the civil nursing reserve for service in hospitals and first-aid posts. But more of both trained nurses and auxiliaries, are needed, especially women who can give wholetime service in any part of the country. Nearly 2,400 doctors have accepted enrolment in the emergency medical service, and acceptances are being received, daily. FIRE-FIGHTING UNITS. “The auxiliary fire service was mobilised quickly, and on the whole smoothly, and in the main the available fire-fighting units are being kept permanently manned and ready for action. In London, for instance, there are more than 1,800 fire-pumps ready for action, as against about 125 in peace time.

“I hope the statement I have made will show the House and the country that our war effort, in its many aspects, is rapidly gaining momentum. I know it has behind it the full weight of all the people of this country, who are united in their conviction that no nation ever went to war in a higher cause. We are greatly heartened by the knowledge that, in the struggle for the defence of liberty and free institutions, and the preservation of all that makes life worth living, we can count on the support of the overseas members of the British Commonwealth. Of their own free will, and under no form of compulsion save the moral ..compelling force of right and justice, these self-governing' nations have declared their intention-of cooperating in the cause which is no less precious to them than it is to the people of the Homeland.” He added: “Those who have taken up arms in such a .cause are assured, whatever sacrifices they may be called on to make, of victory in the end.”

DESIRE FOR INFORMATION Mr. Greenwood emphasised the necessity for telling the public as much about the situation as possible. He said that had Mr. Chamberlain’s statement on the Kiel attack been made on the same day as the raid, it would have heartened the people. If the people were told of a temporary reverse, they would not.be disheartened. The people should know that nothing was being withheld, and they should be trusted with the truth, no matter how distasteful.

Mr. Chamberlain replied that the Government was putting into operation a complicated machine, and there was apt to be a little creaking at the beginning. He fully appreciated Mr. Greenwood’s point, which the War Cabinet had actually discussed that morning. He did not want, however, to give the public information which might be inaccurate. It was not possible always to be certain of all the facts immediately he had word, but, in the light of experience, he hoped to do better in this respect in future. Discussing a statement made in the Lords by Lord Stanhope, similar to Mr. Chamberlain’s, Lord Snell said it was at present possible to get more information from America than in England, which should not be allowed to continue.