Granaries; Storehouses Left For Japs

Northern Advocate, 24 December 1941, Page 4

Granaries ; Storehouses Left For Japs

(Rec'. 2 p.m.) SINGAPORE, Dec. 23. The report from London that the “scorched earth” policy was followed in Penang, was greeted with mixed feelings in Singapore, where the absolute failure to destroy the greater part of valuable installations. in north Malaya is well known. It may be true that the smelting works and power station were destroyed, but thousands of tons of tin ingots, thousands of tons of stacked rubber and thusands of gallons of petrol were left at Penang ready for the use of the invaders. Members of 1 the services and correspondents returning from up-coun-try state that in the British withdrawal whole towns are being left intact for the Japanese.

Shops completely stocked, are being abandoned. In the first fortnight of the war thousands of tons of very valuable food stocks must have fallen into Japanese hands. In Penang warehouses, it is reliably reported, there were supplies sufficient for Penang’s population for two months. Looting, which broke out at Penang first, is being repeated elsewhere.

Invading “Waves”

A Scottish trader named Reade, who has lived many years on the Malaya east coast, told a strange story of the Japanese “landing” at Kuantan. He said that there was no actual landing and that the original report was due to a false alarm caused by heavy waves on the beach detonating land mines, whereupon the beach defenders fired. Nothing else happened, he said, and the defenders concluded ihat the invaders had retreated. Reade declared that Kuantan was safe, reinforced and in good hands. Any attempted landing there, or lower, where the Australians are ready, would meet with the hottest reception. The trader and a few others were among the last British subjects to leave the area. They made their way up the coast meeting others coming down from Kuala and Trengganu. Reade learnt that a dozen , MalayaJapanese were at large in these latter districts, where they had taken command and established themselves in a local rest house.

He and his companions crept up and found Japanese sitting round a table drinking whiskey from a bottle iabelled “Britain delivers the goods.” The Japanese had laid aside their arms, which were presumably secured by overpowering the lonely police. The whole of the enemy party was arrested and bundled off in two ancient buses to the nearest military post. ,