Greymouth Evening Star. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 1944. SECRET WEAPONS.

Greymouth Evening Star, 10 November 1944, Page 4

Greymouth Evening Star. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 1944. SECRET WEAPONS.

weapons,” of varying power and horror, have long been familiar material for propagandists faced with a scarcity of successes on the battlefronts, but few of these “secret weapons” remain secret for long, and not many as weapons fulfil the predictions. The Germans are now attempting to demoralise Allied peoples by threatening them with various types of flying bombs, but in England, the most menaced land, the inhabitants are remaining calm, and, indeed, becoming flippant. With reference to the V weapons one correspondent points out that they read like the Roman figures VI and VII, which merely goes to show that the Germans are again “all at sixes and sevens.” It would be foolish to pretend that the German V weapons are of no account, the damage and loss of life already caused by them prove the contrary,—but there is nothing decisive about them from the military viewpoint, whatever may be their nuisance value, temporarily. Little mention comes from Britain about the V2 weapon’s havoc, and this silence contrasts strongly with German claims of London being more or less destroyed. The Germans are fishing for information as to the effect of the new V2, and for security reasons the British are saying nothing, if there is anything to say. In due course, the outside world will learn if the V2 rocket is as the answer to a German prayer, or whether British resource and courage have again nullified devilish research by Nazi chemists and other scientists. The Allies are not without secret weapons of their own, but do not advertise these unduly, preferring to let them speak for themselves. The German people may be cheered by broadcasted claims of the powers and possibilities of VI and V2, but German optimism must be difficult to maintain with the Allies’ approach on West and East. The Germans may find comfort in the British admissions of loss of life and property caused in London alone by aerial attack in various forms. Lord Woolton, Minister of Reconstruction, recently gave the following impressive figures: Air raids, 1940 to Spring 1944: 84,000 houses destroyed; 142,000 houses still to be repaired, of which 42,000 are not fit for occupation. Flying-bomb attacks, 1944; 23.000 houses destroyed; 1,104,000 houses damaged (in a large proportion the damage is slight). Total damage: 107,000 houses destroyed (representing accommodation for 500,000 persons) ; 170,000 seriously damaged and in need of repair; 700,000 have received first-aid repairs, but need further work to make them reasonably comfortable. Total of men at work on house repair on September 12, 62,000; on repairs to other types of building, 15,000; on demolition and debris clearance, 6,000. Material required includes 150,000,000 tiles and slates; 200,000,000 square feet of ceiling and wallboard and 50,000,000 square feet of glass. To all this has to be added later damage in London, and, also the enormous destruction caused in other towns since the German attacks started. The havoc has not all been on the one side, and it is probable that far more has been done in Germany by Allied raids.

The German reliance on “secret weapons” is regarded as one of the dangers of the post-war period, and plans are being discussed to prevent the Germans being able to manufacture/these menaces to world peace. Viscount Maugham, a former Lord Chancellor, expressed a general opinion, when he declared that when the war is over the danger of aggression in Europe will not arise for many years. “But,” he added, “it would be most unwise to take the view that the Germans as a whole will change their mental attitudes and become a peaceable race. That process will probably take not less than 50 or even 100 years. Germany should be hampered in her research of new secret weapons by steps to prevent her from getting any supplies of necessary metals and substances not found in the Reich, except on Satisfying the Powers that these are for commercial purposes. In the meantime we must realise that in the hands of a nation like Germany a ghastly new invention enabling vast quantities of peaceable men, women, and children to be killed, and destruction caused at great distances, is a terrifying menace.”