French Sympathies Swing to Britain

Manawatu Times, Volume 66, Issue 3, 4 January 1941, Page 5

French Sympathies Swing to Britain

Jubilation Over Italian Defeats VALUE OF FLEET AND AFRICAN ARMIES United Press Association—By Electric Telefetaph—Copyright. Received Friday, 8.30 p.m. NEW YORK, Jan. 2. A United Press correspondent returned from Martinique reports that passengers from the first ship which has arrived from France for three months state that there is widespread opposition in unoccupied France against the growing demands of the Germans. The French fleet and the armies in Africa are being used by Marshal Petain in a desperate effort to avert the complete occupation of France. It is said the French jubilantly hailed the Italian reverses in Egypt and have ended their recriminations against England, which has been restored to high favour. The French morale is high and the people are saying that France ought to have a chance to repay Italy’s stab in the back, and that the British should not have the sole pleasure of battering the Italians.

French Seamen Desert to de Gaulle BIG LINER STRANDED AT SHANGHAI Received Saturday, 1.30 a.m. SHANGHAI, Jan. 3. The largo French liner d’Artagnan is stranded here following the desertion of 26 members of the French crow, who suddenly went to Hongkong in a British steamer to join General de Gaulle. The d’Artagnan since the armistice has been plying between Saigon and Shanghai.

Empire Providing New Tonnage CANADA, AUSTRALIA AND SOUTH AFRICA (British Official Wireless.) Received Friday, 9.20 p.m. RUGBY, Jan. 2. Empire shipbuilding yards by providing new tonnage are helping Britain to defeat the U-boat menace. Canada, which before the war had about 1,250,000 tons on its shipping registry, has launched new vessels from yards at Vancouver, Montreal and Halifax. A large number of merchant ships are now on the stocks and it was announced recently that Canada is to build 18 merchant vessels for the British Government. There are some 40 shipbuilding and repairing establishments in the Dominion and even bofore the war about 4000 permanent workers were employed. In 1938 repair work was done to the value of over £3,000,000. Although South Africa has no real shipbuilding industry, large scale repairs can be carried out at Durban, where there is a well-equipped repairing yard and drydoek. Australia built only a small number of vessels before the war, but has since greatly enlarged her shipbuilding industry. A yard is to be established at Whyalla (South Australia) to build merchant ships up to 12,000 tons and Hon. W. M. Hughes (Navy Minister) has declared that shipbuilding must become one of the great national industries of Australia. The Commonwealth has yards at Mortis Dock in Sydney and the Williumstown dockyard near Melbourne. Orders amounting to £250,000 for engines and machinery have been placed in Queensland.