BANANA SKINS

Greymouth Evening Star, 17 September 1940, Page 9

BANANA SKINS

IN WAY OF MARCHING GERMANS LONDON, August 3. Maman Candide, aged Parisian fruit seller on the banks of the Seine, had her own way of greeting the German invaders. She sliced banana skins finely and strewed them in the way of the marching enemy columns. The results were richly satisfactory to Maman and her friends. There were several Nazi casualties and much Nazi annoyance. The story can be told now as Maman Candide is beyond the vengeance of the Nazis. She died a few days ago under arrest. It is one of many tales told by neutral travellers who have recently arrived in Lisbon from France and Belgium. Pedestrians in Paris, it is said, are now barred from the Place de la Concorde —the daily goose-stepping parades through the square where the guillotine once stood might cause “incidents.” And the Germans do not want incidents. No cinemas are opened except some newsreels in Metro stations, where propaganda news films are shown. There are no taxis dr private cars, but sometimes one sees a sudden spate of captured cars, much the worse for wear, still bearing G.B. plates. . Hordes of smiling Germans on business and sightseeing trips are in evidence. The main boulevards _ are orderly enough, but in the workingclass quarters there are occasional demonstrations of a rebellious spirit. An American said that the saddest sight in all occupied Paris is the complete absence of children playing in the garden and parks. Neutrals returning from Brussels; report that conditions are more normal, but there is no telephone service. Germans are attempting “mass advertising campaigns” by offering seats in the tramways with exaggerated politeness, and treating townspeople to drinks in cafes. Butter is scarce, and the bread is; coarser. Farmers were alarmed at; the shortage of fodder and the de-; vastation of pasture land and: slaughtered livestock on a wholesale, scale. Many were punished for this; by the Germans. A future shortage; is inevitable, because the huge Brusseis refrigerating plants and stores; have been damaged by the bombard- r . ment of the Allied forces, and spare parts cannot be obtained. > All Belgians have been forced to; open safe deposits in the presence ofGermans and gold, jewellery, and; bonds have been confiscated. Generally restrictions are easier , than in Paris, but the unseen Ges- ? tapo activities go on. St. Gilles Prison; is crowded with prisoners and there are reports of frequent shootings. Meanwhle ’Holland suffers hardest, from the iron-yoke of the Nazis. Areturning neutral says that those' Dutch functionaries still working in. the Government offices because of special language or technical qualifi-' cations have armed sentries outsider their homes and offices. This according to the German authorities is to enforce continued work and not as a, protection. But the Dutch people use every device to annoy the invaders;' and arrests are numerous. Some shops; in Amsterdam and The Hague are; closed. /