WARFARE AT SEA

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24413, 26 September 1940, Page 8

WARFARE AT SEA

LOSSES FOR ONE WEEK BRITAIN’S SOUND POSITION REVIEW BY MINISTER (British Official Wireless) RUGBY, Sept. 24. Mercantile losses due to enemy action in the week ended September f 15-16 were nine British vessels, totalling 29,246 tons, four Allied (12,575 tons), and three neutral (7379 tons) Both the British and the total losses were below the average for the previous 53 weeks of 54,323 tons. German claims during the same period amount to 12(.350 tons of merchant shipping sunk. The German losses (captured, scuttled, and sunk) up to September *22 amount to approximately 1,043,000 tons, and the Italian to 291,000, a total of 1,334,000 tons. In addition, some 33,000 tons of ex-neutral ships which had been seized or brought under control bv the enemy have been sunk. Ronald Cross) x-eviewing the years war effort, stated that British merchant vessels unceasingly sailed the oceans of the world, liable to attack throughout by submarine, raider, mining and aircraft, and more recently the E-boat. “One might well have supposed that our position would be worse than that of countries whose ships bolted to safety.” said Mr Cross, “but the fact is that we have lost by enemy action only about an eighth of our pre-war merchant fleet. We have made up, and more than made up. this and every other loss. Captures, new building, and transfer's from foreign flags have brought us reinforcements in excess of our losses. “The overseas supply position, and consequently the shipping position, has taken on a wholly different appearance. Timber, steels, and ferro alloys which formerly came from Scandinavia must now be carried from North America. Iron ore, formerly derived from Sweden, Norway and France, is fetched to-day from more distant sources.. Australian and New Zealand dairy produce takes the place of the Danish and Dutch supplies. The workshops of the United States are turning out engineering products which in the past came from Belgium. Moreover, ships bearing the products of India and the Far East are no longer ordinarily routed through the Mediterranean. and the .longer voyage round the Cace means that a larger number of ships are required to bring equivalent cargoes. The scale of our shinning needs, therefore, has been greatly augmented, but the fortunes of war have brought us augmented shipping resources on a commensurate scale. “ Germany,’ by her inexcusable assaults on Poland. Denmark, Norway, Holland and Belgium, put out of employment great quantities of tonnage which foimerly served the commercial needs of those peaceful lands. A greater part of this tonnage now carries cargoes for the Allied cause, and compensates for the greater distances many supplies must now be cai’ried. “A great fleet of British, Allied, and neutral vessels is bringing to England between four and five million tons of imports monthly (enough to meet essential needs), compared with the peacetime total of about 6,000,000 tons. We are beginning the second year of the war in a good position to feed the people and supply factoi'ies.”