BATTLE OF SINGAPORE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24835, 7 February 1942, Page 7

BATTLE OF SINGAPORE

DUEL

I*M

, f WELL PROVISIONED

a >t".,■■■' Press Association) j (Rec. 11.30 p.m.) SINGAPORE, Feb. 6. The Battle pf Singapore hasbegun in earnest. British and Japanese guns to-day exchanged terrific fire across the straits from dawn to sunset, while high-flying Japanese bombers attacked shipping, and lighter dive-bombers strafed various areas of the Japanese !. ; -'v guns-andi'alsoMdrihroyed'observation posts;^ .-. IULjFv reconnaissance planes oyer Malaya reported that large convoys of enemytransport ;. vehicles wereymoying,southward. Althoughi."there two-way artillery Are across the Jbhore Strait, there are ho signs of the Japanese massing ships lot an attempted crossing tothe ' island::. The Tofcio newspiper, Asahi, has warned the Japanese people that /terrific fighting will be necessary to take Singapore, which has water foir at least six months, and isvmuch J better supplied with provisions than.-was, believed. ? Certainly," it states, there is no hope of the fortress surrendering because of a lack of supplies." : It is offlciaily announced that the Singapore air raid casualties on ' Wednesday were. 41 and 138 injured. An A.R.P. official broadcast ; made' an Outspoken appeal to the authorities to tunnel in the hills around the city: for shelters for- the poorer Asiatics who have no prootectioWr'^l£is r no-^ ?an«Jhhas stuck it; or-thai Chungking has had worse than Singapore," Ithe- announcer iiaid. " Those; places haveideal shelters, but we have nothing but drains; and odd slit trenches."

AIR DE FENCES SINGAPORE'S STRENGTH RESOURCES OF ENfIEMY LONDON VIEWS DIFFER 'Some commentators on Singapore'! air defence* point out, encouragingly that the Allies will be in a position Jtd operate a bomber force that can harass ythe Japanese on the Malayan mainland, bombing aerodromes from which raiders set out to attack the island. ■ The aeronautical correspondent of whtch'lrsUgg^sted*by 1 larcK Of a fighter • somewhat misleading. It is idle to pretend that the Allies' airistrengthuttbe Pacific is yet adequate, but-there are welcome signs of reinforcements arriving steadily. .. Arrival ef Hurricanes "The arrival of, Hurricanes shows that reinforcements were sent immediately attacked,- although Itheir' absence before that- date is Open •to criticism;* *j ' .4-' ■•':--: *.> ■'•- ■ The correspondent adds: "It is be-"-lieved that the .enemy 'threvir >the;; bulk of his aircraft into the vicious initial onslaught ■;--vAr the" -more' and more territory, and spread "oyer awide.'vulneraMe area, their air strength is likely- to be stretched to its limit'' . ■' ' , The' correspondent treads on controiversiat ground when he> says:; "All-in-*ormation available in -Britain - suggests that tjapah'sv Air:Force is fhot ; very Jtnmgvinumwicallyj.VX-The' ■ Japanese, productive. potential is strictly limited?' § i cThes Sydney Herald r correspondent reports Mhat he is aware of at least one well-informed source' which highly regards both Japan's numerical strength and her 'productive capacity. Many members Of the RAJ 1 ., he says, would like to have available in the Far East only half the number of aircraft the, Japanese are capable of throwing into the combat. Japan's- Cembat: Strength '

LITTLE DAMAGE EFFECT OF GUNFIRE ISLAND WELL PATROLLED SINGAPORE, Feb. 5. v" Singapore is rapidly becoming accustomed to the sound of sheTlflre, which ; has increased- -in. intensity in the last 24 hours," says: the Australian official war. correspondent ' "The Japanese have sufficient artillery to keep up a fairly, continuous fire, and our gunners have been busy in coun-ter-battery work..- So far little - damage has been done to anything on the island. The Japanese are also pounding away with larger-type mortars. - "Troops have been busy patrolling the .lonely creeks, and ..estuaries that vCtit':ihto._thft Idreshore pf;.the..islandJ There ~wfilVsbohKjiiibtf be: one such spot that is hot familiar. to .the men guarding, the; area, and. mobile patrols will deal swiftly with any Japanese attempt to steal .parties across the strait in an . effort to establish , a bridgehead..., ,: ;.' ,-••-■• ;* , : "The ilessong of. Crete are not forSotten in Singapore, and special atmtion is being paid to the parachute danger: Luckily the island does not offer Use' same opportunities to use this mode of; attack as; Crete, but ho risks are being taken." HOSPITAL SHIP ATTACKED ACTION BY JAPANESE PLANES : /LONDON, Feb; 6: : The United States, Navy. Department states that, .while conveying wounded Americans' from;-the Philippines to Australia, a hospital ship was attacked by Japanese planes. ADMINISTRATOR OF NEW GUINEA (ReC:7 p;m;) ' -SYDNEY; Feb; 6; The Administrator of New Guinea, Brigadier-general Sir Walter McNicoll, arrived to-day. He is reported to. be very: ill from fever, contracted prior to'his departure.'

There is no reayon to doubt that the Japanese' reserve will be found inadequate when the United- Nations are able to bring their maximum strength to bear against Japan's farflung fronts, but until that maximum is attained, well-informed circles here prefer to warn against belittling japan's combat strength,, her reserve, or her productive capacity. > Marshal of. the Royal Air Force Lord Trenchard, in an article in, the Daily Telegraph, sees the answer to Japan's present airsuperiority in ah offensive use of bombers. He points out- that the Bomber Command "is a supremely flexible J weapon which, in the past, has been used too much for defensive purposes,, such, as supporting the -navy in critical' sea operations, bombing enemy naval forces, and sowing mines. It is also kept in reserve ready for invasion." . • ■ .Lord Trencahrd claims that the tendency - to': use the Bomber Command in support of other services has been and is allowed' to outweigh its true functions of offensive action. '■'•:'■.