HUNS OVER GREECE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24635, 17 June 1941, Page 4

HUNS OVER GREECE

MINIONS OF A MADMAN WAR ON WOMEN AND CHILDREN NEW ZEALANDERS’ REACTION “Just murder by the minions of a power-crazed madman ” is how a Dunedin soldier, writing in hospital after his return from Greece, refers to the inhuman slaughter of innocent people by the German Air Force in Greece. “Man, he is a dirty swine is Jerry,” he says, and the whole letter epitomises a normal people's detestation of such barbarous methods and the New Zealanders’ admiration of the spirit of Greece.

“ Watching these peaceful and happy people on the roadside as we travelled through up to the front and then having to see their misery when the Greeks on our left flank broke and we had to fall back quickly,” the writer says, “ was more than enough to make anyone want to do an extra spot of slaughter. The roads were jammed with refugees, mostly old men, kiddies and women with babes in .their arms—every man who could shoulder a rifle was in the firing,line—donkeys, ponies or water buffalo pulling, or .at least trying to pull, ox-carts with all the worldly possessions of the families piled high upon them, while the folk with stricken, tear-stained faces trudged alongside them. “ Dope-crazed Beasts ”

“We were fighting the rearguard action to allow the rest of the troops to retire, and when we were changing our positions and had to pass these people, not one of us could look them in the face. We felt as though we were deserting them, but we couldn’t do anything except hoist out what bully beef and biscuits we had. Poor devils, running they knew not where, anywhere to keep out of the road of the dope-crazed beasts over-running their country. ' “ One minute a peaceful little hamlet would be dozing in the sun —fowls, pigs and goats • strutting in the street, the old men gossiping outside the local taverns, the women and •kiddies drawing water from the one and only village well. The .next minute there would be. the whining drone of 15 or 20 Hun dive-bombers. Down they howl, one following the other, the screamers attached to their planes for effect nearly effacing the whistle of the released bombs and their machine guns chattering. Anything that moves is their target. “ In 10 minutes all that is left is a shambles of bricks and blood. No military objects aimed at and no strategical gain. Just murder by the minions of a power-crazed madman. In one place where I saw this Hunnish trick performed one bomb accounted for 23 kiddies playing in the village square.

“Peaceful penetration! Ye gods! Sorry, folks, but I’m fighting mad. Hats off to the Greek nation for showing the whole world what determined and practical people can do to defend their country against aggressors with vastly superior armaments and man-power.”

“Chins Still Up”

When the New Zealanders arrived in Greece, every able-bodied Greek had for months been at the front where, the letter continues, “ he could do most good toward kicking Musso in the ribs, and every second girl or woman in Athens was in mourning; but • their chins were still up and they gave us welcome with showers b£ flowers and brave smiles. In the countryside, women of 50 and girls and boys of 12 years and upward were ploughing every available acre to grow cereals for the army and every road was being widened and improved by them to afford better transport- for war materials. It is perhaps not a pretty sight to see dozens of young girls and boys wielding man-sized picks and shovels in a manner that, would make a lot of our P.W.D. workers hide their heads in shame; but what a spirit of patriotism and sacrifice is behind their effort! I wish some of the half-hearted hagglers of New Zealand’s war effort had been privileged, as I was,, to see the Greeks fighting for their very existence. Don’t Blame the Grekko ”

“ Don’t blame the Grekko for breaking in the face of the Hun hordes. The odds against us have been estimated at from six to ten to one. He was out on his feet already through keeping Musso back, and Jerry delivered the knockout blow. The eternal cry in this war is for more and still more material. Man-power counts for little at this stage of the game. The Greeks are not conquered, and thousands of their soldiers got to their homes, maybe bloodstained. battered and toothless, but still clutching their beloved rifles and ready to have another kick at the Hun at a later date.

“ When we were making for the embarkation beaches, flowers were still being thrown into our vehicles, and • avrio,’ the Grecian word for * to-mor-row,’ was often heard. May this tomorrow, when we can return to fight alongside these brave people once more, be not too far distant! ”