CHEMICAL WARFARE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20591, 14 December 1928, Page 9

CHEMICAL WARFARE

THE GENEVA CONVENTION. DEBATE IN THE EEICHSTAG. (United Press Association,/ (By Electric Telegraph— Copyright.) LONDON, December 12. (Received Dec. 13, at 11.30 p.m.) A large Ijomb,,was-introduced into the Reichstag during a debate upon the Geneva Convention for the prohibition of chemical warfare.

■ A Communist declared that the convention was an empty international gesture. The German chemical trust was at present producing new ■ and more potent poisonous gases aud large quantities of phosgene were being produced at sevejral works. The whole industry was capable of producing gas, and 24 hours after war was declared civilian aircraft j was quickly trrmsferable into gasemitting machines. He declared that the Communists had discovered another gas depot at Hamburg, which, when analysed, proved to be what was known during the war as "blue cross.” No )ess than 163,000 kilogrammes of this was stored in the centre of Hamburg. The Communists reported that after the discovery the gas had been removedr

The speaker and his colleagues then carried in a large bomb, which the speaker declared was one of hundreds of thousands which were being manufactured secretly at the Schiohau works at Elbing,- which the ' Govprmneut proposed to purchase.

The Minister for Defence did not reply, but he treated the story with amused contempt, and he refused to be lured into taking notice of it.—Times Cable.