The Southland Times. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26. 1940. Salute to Poland

Southland Times, Issue 24162, 26 June 1940, Page 4

The Southland Times. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26. 1940. Salute to Poland

AT THE beginning of the war there was a general feeling of disappointment with the briefness of Poland’s resistance to a powerful enemy. It was believed that a nation of 30,000,000 should have been able to avoid a military collapse after only three weeks’ fighting, even though the debacle was hastened by Russia’s attack from the east. Today it is clearly necessary to revise an early and unfair judgment. If France, one of the strongest nations of the, west, could be forced to the point of capitulation after a four-week campaign, the Poles must be given credit for proud military feats. They had no Maginot Line to encase hundreds of miles of frontier in concrete bristling with guns. Wide plains gave the German mechanized columns an easy entry to the heart of the country, and on these plains the Poles had to rely mainly on cavalry and infantry. Their small air force was greatly weakened in the early hours of the struggle. Thereafter the Nazi bombers encountered little opposition. It must be remembered, too, that the Germans were throwing a great weight of armoured columns into the advance, that they were using the technique of mobile operations by dive bombers and tanks for the first time (on a large scale) in modern warfare, and that the Poles were completely without help of any kind. Yet the gallant armies resisted with the utmost stubbornness. Wedges were driven deeply into the country; but the separated divisions continued to face overwhelming odds, forcing the Germans to pay heavily for territorial gains. The defence of Warsaw was an epic story of heroism and devotion: only after the last stores of ammunition were exhausted could the enemy march into the shattered capital. Nor was that the end of Polish resistance. Scattered forces disputed the remoter districts, and it can be judged from the terrible severity of German rule in Poland how sullenly and effectively the people have impeded the slow process of pacification. Undaunted in Exile

While the tragic fate was being consummated, a new Government and a new army were formed on French soil. Polish soldiers shared the rigours of the brief Norwegian campaign. They fought in France with valour and tenacity, and there are stories of exploits which brighten the sombre record of retreat and surrender. On the seas their destroyers and at least one submarine (now lost, after brilliant achievements) have taken part in naval operations. It has now been revealed that the survivors of the Polish army have landed safely in England, where they are ready to face the next phase of conflict. Broadcasting to the British people on Monday, the Prime Minister of Poland, General Sikorsky, reaffirmed the determination of his countrymen to continue the struggle. “Together with our great British ally,” he said, “we shall carry on in this effort. Our place today is in the line of battle. We are fulfilling our alliance' with Britain. The Polish nation will persevere in the struggle against Germany to the end.” It is customary to speak of Poland as politically backward, a nation that has lagged in the march towards democracy. This may be true: if it is, a country that has suffered four partitions in modern times could put forward reasonable excuses. But the words of General Sikorsky, and the war-time record of his countrymen (which show them to be no empty rhetoric) are sufficient proof that there is a true greatness in the spirit of Poland. After calamities which would have overwhelmed a lesser people, the Poles have an unshaken morale. They believe iri freedom, and have shown the world that they know how to fight for it. This is a nation that has earned, in blood and tears and iron endurance, its deliverance from oppression.