STRIPPED FOR ACTION

Grey River Argus, 20 March 1942, Page 5

STRIPPED FOR ACTION

BRITISH PEOPLES

‘ Lord Halifax’s Speech

[Aust. & N.Z. Cable Assn.]

NEW YORK, March 18. Lohd Halifax, British Ambassador, in his broadcast, said: This is a more expensive war than any ever rought before. In 1941, Britain's expenditure had risen to 60 per cent, of the national income. Axis propagandists are fond of asking what is the British Army doing. They try to suggest that it is sitting at home behind bayonets. Regarding the troops m England, two million are Home Guards or part time soldiers, whose full time work is mostly in war industries. The other million and a half are troops of the regular army, guarding three thousand miles ot coasts. The rest of the Army has been fighting in the Arctic Circle, through western and south-western Europe, North and East Africa, the Near East and the Far East to the Equator. It is a record of vaiour and sacrifice, and certainly not pl inaction. To the end of 1941 of ail of the casualties suffered by the British Commonwealth over 70 per cent, were • troops from Britain. To-day the British Army is fighting in Libya, and Burma. It is fighting too,, in raids by commandos and paraenute troops in occupied Europe, which, surely, will increase in number and strength. The Germans do not like these raids. They have not known where and when we will strike. That is one reason why the Germans are keeping more' troops idle in western Europe. The Imperial forces have totally destroyed two great Italian armies and inflicted heavy casualties upon a third well-stiffened by Germans. Although we have been d'sappointed not. to have cleaned up Marshal von Rommel’s force, half a million enemy troops were put out of action; a vast amount of war material captured 1 ; several Axis thrusts towards Egypt apd the Sluez Canal have been defeated, and Ethiopia has been set free. R.A.F. exploits have fired the imagination throughout the world. Coastal Command aircraft have flown over 50 million miles. In battle of Britain our fighter, command proved the German Air Force is not invincible). That wjas one of IT” turning points of this war. By averting invasion of the British Isles the R.A.F. saved the cause of freedom everywhere. Between September, 1939, and February 1942, the R.A..F. shot down 9396 German and Italian planes. A year ago Britain’s b:g cities were suffering savage German air raids. To-day the enemy is beginning to learn what heavy air attacks can 'mean to great centres of war production. Our aircraft are not only carrying more bombs than formerly, biit heavier ones of which some weigh nearly two tons. Bigger bombs are on the way. Britain today is turning out five times as many tanks as at the time of the Dunk'rk withdrawal in 1940. No. country has every had to endure such continuous, widespread heavy bombing as Britain. To the end of 1941 we lost 43,357 men. women and children killed. We lost also fifty thousand seriously injured. s If is a fact, never before published, that for months past 80 per cent, of our total military production and every soldier for whom shipping space was available have been sent overseas. The British really are peoples stripped for action. We are gathering our strength for a final d/ y of reckoning. We count no sacrifice too great for victory.