Courage Of British Women

Northern Advocate, 27 February 1941, Page 6

Courage Of British Women

[British Official Wireless ] (Received 2 p.m.) RUGBY, February 26.

Speaking at a London lunch Mr Menzies spoke of the strange belief of the Nazis that British women have less courage than the British men.

Mr Menzies added: “The Germans will never win the war by knocking out-houses over. They cannot win this war until they have knocked over the spirit of the British people. “Very many people in this city and this country have said to me and other Australians how marvellous it is that the Australians, all those thousands of miles away, should be doing what they were doing in this war.. “Our Fight Too.”

“This is generous emotion but I have a grave intellectual quarrel with it. It is not marvellous that Australians should be doing what they are doing. “If this were your fight and we were courageously helping you I should say that would be true, but this is our fight just as much as it is yours. “If there is one thing that is clear it is that every British citizen living in any part of the British world says that your fight is mine and my fight is yours.”

400,000 Munition Makers.

Mr Menzies said that nearly 600,000 Australians would be engaged in war services before 1942. Already more than 400,000 were engaged on munitions work.

Australia envisaged building aeroengines up to 1800 h.p., and there was a possibility of exporting training aircraft by the middle of the year. Many millions of rounds of ammunition fired over the city of London and in defence of these islands were supplied by Australia.

“Whatever our achievement has been so far,” he said, “there is not the slightest doubt that the achieyement of the next 12 months will be three times greater.”