HEROIC TROOPS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LXI, Issue 154, 2 June 1941, Page 4

HEROIC TROOPS

.NEW ZEALANDER HET from <nu max. (YZ.T-T. 05'. ~1-j .N.V-V.'i % ice / (' A, J jrliT). rtU>'V yU■ Whilo ihr ;h femu&wiu* wore Uu'icr. -.' tl vine hard <o g«u? itilu- 3 **" landors : Aat iv-Xtg li‘»v c>; marching iv.r:_. :cc cud distinctive :.t [.uvuit. wore seldom. to be m M; r .n*t -ul the boys were oLu agj cut'-uvU oured ami ffid;;£sj»u* i -sruttib • mainly of army ivu; bim, •o>bwuW 3y a wardrobe eoiir-cC'Cd .at neudisvai with an oye io n? um.c. f :y>y.’t y trj tiie momer.i. One man was {snvi:n y guiyud ui what he calu-u hss y'k-isai one.. J-t.tv comprised a Minting . •'•>'•*** trousers in the- Xrieatr..>:>tlA'r *• kilter jerkin, a .croca -JxiiT- t'.ttC; *- tweixi can- wmh a pair *c-S A uytiU' t< r .ti. .Most of them wore t:a .yifaiub jai quite a few cases were •utaou.tMc mark o: many a eict*e had many days' growth cd t-tH'.r uc.uv • thev had no; had a snart wow buy 19.'and aboard ship they were suo u.«c so bother. None of them were ssrsagm t* v.:» country, and in briliiant •afterattctti sjttt shine the peaceful ir.y ‘tf ’ : t’ vmtu was a very welcome -•-tat. "“C-ifec. to lx has k her*. 1 f cue .ad v nr 1 * ••Too right «e are. was t.ve fav.. ••We wan; to catch up vj-.-r. r. sleep.” Xev«tb«teß. every tr.e voev. was a little serry ars aim; ybi'! the island, which had for »uco a n time provided them wr.b a haven -Jt-.t-the Greek campaign. Over the ajoucta?c? in a Kern, v •••vr?' line tame the men who had her •ttys, and nights been *■■;: y-te , the ne-••«••. attack yet made by German • >'•••• t troop*. "The sky was a v ■ .pT'-.l- " tee of plane*. yirttr: swj rr at-cr-,*-esmninc all the tiare. sard 're .'*■* Zealander, who has i»>ttt through three cartpsircs stj -bis. —ar. _ H- *b-'wed the .-'prs-vert.at'vr. - ! ym Xew Zealand OScea. 's*- i9rr -•* vteei helmet, through which tm-e Tr: ' ! a hole at least- one inch in diameter at she base of a dent t.cree r--.r.:..*■•? t "■'*-* Tt bed beer rrac®- r- a p3e>*« t shrapnel. "Tret wa* tt * T have had.'* he serf. addFnc *.cet t -•? shrapnel had re- !»k the lea-f of a mark on bib head. ARDU 0U ' <OSDIT IOX ~. On lim ivHunty .: lit ~tc.’-r.at-t.y Li.xSt u .n.-'.st ajm...t i«r tiic tiampoi" aad me iiiytty iscu. or tlse raea m&ivusa a4J tbe v.,a;. wtutsa, after the hard DtrJjtrma. th.-.-y iatii under"pne. was a •Tip-erb teat ot pibyit.c.a'J c_au ranee. Antony these were a arest nutaher of walking woaadeh. Cut «£ from. co_omur.rcat.or. wills the r uasti. suaasy or these heroic men fcah reoctved ••.~y primary neid treatment, an-d Lad net nad a further opponosrty of ccat&cting a dressing staticn. yet stjii they had struggled on. yitioising. wal’srLg. running, and stuasbSsg. with tae.r arm- in slings- and lens oi body lend* aged, quietly determined to "make the grade." From all accounts the medicas *errice in Crete ha? performed a wocoer* nil task. The doctor*. .*-:means _smd orderlies foncht day and ntubc ttt a u!or>us attempt to save life, and many of the doctors slept only aoc-ut two irowrs a day. The New Zealand treops hsa r<e*;a stationed in the ?uda Bay area, which had borne the fiercest attack or the enemy. They put -ip a croud show. In one hatch, of 30>i) parachutist,* which landed on a New Zealand battalion not one landed alive. "We are not worried about the German soldiers. We have got them number. It is lus air some which gives us

me trouble is an opinion mat w heard on even’ tide. One Now Zealand soidier sa:d he had found the German to be fairly well educated men. and meat of them spoke good English. How- : ever, he had been to : d by several prisoners that the parachutists never ; expected to find troops underneath them, and they a!! said they had been ; misinformed before setting out.

NAZI WEAPONS BY AIR. Tilts soldier bad m Greece rcwcv. seven milts in a dinghy to rejoin u.a ’ unit, irom which he mui been cut oit 'lie was quite cheerful. but he was naturally somewhat worried about his comrades. He stated that the Germans had landed howitzers and light armoured vehicles by parachute. Several soldiers confirmed the rumour that the German pre-war boxer Max Sehmeling. was seen among the parachutists, and was taken prisoner by New Zealanders. Sehmeling, it is stated, had caused a lot of trouble with tho other prisoners. Many of the parachutists had landled in trees and some even in telegraph wires, and when caught in such a proi dieament many of them lost their nerve. One man who was caught ill ! a tree had called out: “Save me.Anglais! Save me!" while it was quite common to hoar all round cries of j ‘‘Kamernd. Anglais! Don't shoot. Knmerad! Water, please!" | From several came a claim that i German troop-carriers were minted try i women. An amusing story i> told of | the initiative of the New Zealanders, j Apparentlv the Germans pinned Nazi | flaes to. tbe ground as a signal to the | supply-carriers as to where to drop j their loads. Store '-noucdi. an hour i l ater would come the sip-,pile; and ! land right in flic vio-'nitv. Th - New '’io.nlanders "-ore not slow to take advantage of this custom. Tn snaeious man-mad*’ eaves in Crete i the eommandor of the New Zealand ! Division ami leader of the defence of ; Crete. Major-General Freyherg. held ; his councils of war. Throughout the : Cretan campaign he worked from early morning til! late into the night, living 1 a simple, regular life, eating plain soldier'- food and wearing throughout * campaign the clothes lie stood in. Ho was cool and deliberate—an inspiration to all.