AMERICA NERVOUS

Hokitika Guardian, 12 September 1940, Page 2

AMERICA NERVOUS

GERMAN PROPAGANDA.

HIGH MORALE IN BRITAIN

AUCKLAND, Sep. 10,

“New York, Boston, and central cities of the United States are in a state »f “jitters” as a result of the flood of German propaganda that is reaching JAmerica,” isaid Mr Edgar Anderson, of Bramley, Sussex, who arrived by the Monterey yesterday to spend six or eights months in New Zealand. Mr Anderson lias several times previously visited New Zealand, where some members of his family live. lie is accompanied by Airs Anderson. German propaganda, aimed at keeping America in a, state of nerves and 'out of the war, was pouring into the United States, Mr Anderson continued. Many people believed it, and it was spread by paid agents among the 2,000,000 or 3,000,000 Germans included in the population of the country.

Invasion Idea Grotesque “The Americans cannot help their, ‘jitters, ” Mr Anderson said. ' “They dj» not get a great deal of British information, because Britain does not niake some aspects public in case they would be of value to the enemy. Mostly they get lies from Germany, and seem afraid of what would happen to them should, ax some of them think possible, Britain be over-run and her fleet put out of action.

“I think the idea of a succcsslul Gorman invasion is so' grotesifuo that one can- only laugh at it. "We have 2,500,000 men trained and under arms, we have command of the sea, and of the air,too. In face of that how can Hitler land an army of 2,000,000 mechanised troops on our shores p Britain’s Huge supplies “Our fliers arc definitely superior to the Germans,” he said. ‘Odds of threw to one numerically are .cheerfully accepted. The Germans claim superiority in the air, hut we have done much more damage to thorn than they have to us. Night after night their armament factories, oil stores and transport centres have been bombed lam not going to pretend that we are not getting a certain number of knocks, but the German reports of their alleged successes are grossly exaggerated. ‘There are two main iactors about life in Britain to-day,” Mr Anderson added. “They are the fine, morale ot the people, and the fact that there arc huge supplies of foodstuffs and materials of all kinds. “Britain has no thought of defeat. There* is no possible doubt about that. 1 The capitulation of Franco has not 'affected us as much as might bo thought. We have no longer to keep an army and part of our Air Force abroad to help protect France as well as ourselves.” Mr Anderson said it could not be expected that when raiders came over four or fix e miles high none of them would get through, but the damage

done was surprisingly small. Fighter's of the Royal Air Force- were more than a match for the raiders, who came oply in superior numbers.