BRITISH LOSS AT SEA

Southland Times, Issue 24106, 20 April 1940, Page 5

BRITISH LOSS AT SEA

Rate Lower Than Last War EVERY FORM OF ATTACK TRIED (British Official Wireless) RUGBY, April 18. Reviewing the effects of the first seven months of the war at sea on Britain’s mercantile marine Sir Arthur Salter, Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Shipping, in a speech, said that the enemy had tried every known form of attack against British ships and had been restrained neither by the rules of law nor by considerations of humanity nor, with a few exceptions, by the honourable traditions of seafaring men. “The German Navy was weak in relation to ours last September,” he said. “It is now much weaker. The German mercantile marine has been swept from the oceans and is now sheltering

in neutral ports or is shut within the Baltic. But even this has not given it safety. About a tenth has been captured, sunk or scuttled—three times the proportion of the loss sustained by the British mercantile marine, although the latter has been freely sailing in all seas except the Baltic. “In these seven months the enemy has destroyed less than 3 per cent, of our ships and we have replaced nearly all these by new building, by capture and by purchase so that we now have well over 99 per cent, as much tonnage under- our flag as at the outbreak of the war.”

Sir Arthur compared tire average monthly rate of loss by enemy action during the whole of the last war—of 154,000 tons—with the monthly average so far in this v r ar of 88,000 tons. He said that the loss in 1914-18 was 75 per cent, higher. Nevertheless Britain in 1918 was still supporting an army of more than 2,000,000 men in France and half a dozen other great expeditions. Yet the civilian population suffered no intolerable hardship, no military effort was ever impeded and no vital service was ever impaired by the shortage of ships. Despite the much more favourable position today it was still essential to bring home from overseas only essentials. In one respect the Allies were worse off in importing cargo capacity than last time. Now they had to pay cash for their purchases in the United States which forced them to buy more from distant countries and less than they otherwise would from the greatest industrial country on one of the shortest ocean routes. Sir Arthur warned his audience against assuming that the losses by enemy action would always be as low as they had been during the last four weeks. Danish ships which obeyed German orders would be seized and confiscated. Danish ships coming voluntarily to Allied ports would be treated generously and compensated. As to Norwegian ships, the Allies were cooperating with the Norwegian Government and owners in enabling, these vessels to sail under the British flag upon their proper work. He mentioned as an example of the Allied aid the arrangements being made to provide valid insurance.

The British steamer Swainby, of 4935 tons, was torpedoed off the north coast of Scotland last night. The crew has been landed.

MAN-POWER RAISED BY BRITAIN OVER 1,000,000 SOLDIERS TRAINED AND EQUIPPED (British Official Wireless) RUGBY. April 18. Major-General John Hay Beith, known in the world of letters as lan Hay, Director of Public Relations at the War Office, in a speech said that Britain had made tremendous efforts in the raising of man-power. In less than a year Britain had trained and equipped over 1,000,000 soldiers. “Some of these today are in France; some are in the Middle East; some are in Norway. Where the next lot will go to we don’t know,” he said, “but it is certain that they will be needed somewhere if freedom is to be restored to the world ”