HEROES OF THE HARDY

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 121, 20 April 1940, Page 7

HEROES OF THE HARDY

FIRST LORD’S TRIBUTE SURVIVORS REACH LONDON (United Press Association.-—By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright.) (British Official Wireless.) Received April 20, 11.5 a.m, RUGBY, April 19. “Your gallant captain was killed. Captain Warburton Leo, who took the responsibility for ordering this determined attack upon the enemy, sealed big great decision with his life. But you, although your vessel was sunk, did not hesitate with your rifles in your hands, to carry on the war on another element, and thus proved again the amphibious character of Britain and her Navy. You are actually the vanguard of the armies which we and our French Allies will use this summer to purge and cleanse the soil of the Viking—the soil of Norway —from the filthy pollution of the Nazi tyranny!”

In these words the First Lord of the Admiralty (Mr "Winston Churchill) welcomed in London to-day a number of*survivors of the destroyer Hardy, which led the first heroic attack on Narvik, hitherto believed to have gone inland in Norway, and who arrived at a Scottish port wearing Norwegian caps, skiing suits and fishermen’s scaboots.

AMAZING EXPERIENCE. Despite a heavy rain in London tonight, large crowds flocked to the Horse Guards parade to cheer the 160 survivors of the Hardy on their arrival to be inspected by Mr Churchill and the Board ot Admiralty. After being damaged in Narvik Fiord in the first naval action,'the Hardy hud run lor the beach. She kept firing as she made fo* the shore, and her crew believe a number of hits were made on the German vessels. After scrambling over the jagged rocks for a mile, they eventually reached a farm house, where a woman and her daughter “were simply wonderful to us.” They then proceeded to a small village, where they remained lor lour days before being taken olf by British warships. One said when the Hardy was beached many jumped into the sea and scrambled up the jagged rocks. The villagers gave them spare clothing. “We stayed in Norway ior four days and watched the second great battle in Narvik Fiord. The Warspite and her escort of destroyers played hell with the Germans.” The crew of the Hardy later made contact with a British naval force. The normal complement of the Hardy was 175. Mr Churchill, welcoming the men, who made an odd picture from the varied assortment of clothing in which they were dressed, said: “Your countrymen are well content with the manner in which you discharged your duty. You have shown courage and readiness to take*opportunity by the hand and make your way through the difficult situations which are always associated with the flotillas of ' our destroyei forces. You were placed in a situation where danger and difficulty surrounded 3 ° U ' GERMANS CAPTURED. In connection with Mr Churchills reference to the Navy fighting on another element, an interesting repoit is now received that after the hazardous escapade in reaching the Norwegian shore, the Hardy’s men captured 120 sailors from German destroyers and handed them to the Norwegian police.