The Pahiatua Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 1943. FOUR YEARS OF WAR.

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XLXII, Issue 15443, 2 September 1943, Page 2

The Pahiatua Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 1943. FOUR YEARS OF WAR.

Today marks the expiration of four years of war. On September 3rd, 1939, Germany, in spite of an existing nonaggression pact, struck at Poland and t!iu s fanned the flames oi war. Britain and France had followed a weak policy of appeasement for many months too long, and the Nazis were justified in believing that the conquest of Poland would not be» opposed by the democracies. However, public opinion was so strong in England that Mr Chamberlain found that further appeasement would not be tolerated, and war was declared following an ultimatum to the Fuhrer. The trend of the war since that flay is now history. It has been a critical stage in the story of mankind. Ther© were times in the days of bloou, sweat and tears, when the British people must have felt that all was lost. But they proved again that they still possessed that attribute of failing to realise when they were beaten. Since then the dark clouds have lifted, but the storm of war has not yet ceased. When the epic storie s of the Axis defeat are written, the claims of many to have contributed their share will be advanced and with justification but n the final analysis men will come to admit that the courage, the stamina and the refusal to contemplate defeat by the common people of the British Isles in the grim, hard days of 1940 and 1941, were the vital faetor s in the final and irrevocable defeat of the Fascist hordes Tomorrow, we look forward to brighter, better days m the sure knowledge that victory is in sight, although tremendous sacrifices will yet have to be made before the peace is signed.