LONDONERS FACE ORDEAL

Southland Times, Issue 24237, 21 September 1940, Page 5

LONDONERS FACE ORDEAL

COURAGE SHOWN IN BOMBARDMENT

LIFE OF CITY NOT PARALYSED

(British Official Wireless)

RUGBY, September 19.

Now that the German air fury has been unleashed upon the greatest city in the world, a city whose streets, buildings and monuments enjoy the sentimental regard of millions scattered through five Continents, the damage inflicted by bombs has a far in excess of its intrinsic importance. The result might well be to give those abroad a distorted picture of the actual injury inflicted by these wanton attacks. But the reports of foreign newspaper correspondents, to judge by the extracts from their newspapers telegraphed back to London, have in fact succeeded in keeping the tale of destruction in its proper proportion. The New York Times reminds its readers that out of the millions of buildings in London only 2000 have been destroyed and 3000 seriously damaged, while the toll of life, terrible as it is considering that 95 per cent, of the victims are helpless civilians, is even less damaging. An American Agency message surveying the 10 days’ constant raids on London says: “They demonstrate how difficult it is to paralyse London’s life. Traffic at many points is dislocated, but

in no sense is it halted. No public utility in the London area has been put out of commission for any considerable length of time in any large district.” In the same sense The New York Herald-Tribune’s correspondent bears witness that most of the rail services in and out of London continue to operate at full schedule. This fact was also noted by The Chicago Tribune’s correspondent, who adds: “This means that food supplies are assured.” The plentiful supplies have also impressed a Finnish correspondent, who says that no difference whatever is visible in restaurants.

Mr Wallace Carroll, Press correspondent in London; who was given the opportunity of consulting the confidential reports of the Ministry of Home Security telegraphed that these reports had convinced him that the furious German air bombardment through 10 days and nights had inflicted severe damage and suffering on London, but had left Britain’s war machinery as a whole unimpaired. “Not one aerodrome has been put out of action. The reports stated that the aircraft industry has hardly been scratched,” he said. “The oil stores destroyed were said to be only a fleabite in Britain’s reserves. No power station was put out of action, but one gasworks has been disabled. Most of London’s railroad stations are operating normally, but some services on others have been suspended. Ships continue to move in and out of the Port of London. These and other assertions contained in the reports correspond to my own inspection of aerodromes, factories and other military objectives.”

Naturally, reports are flashed from London when it is known that great departmental stores such as those of John Lewis and Peter Robinson have been hit, or that bombs have fallen with a possibility of serious damage to cultural treasures in such places as the courtyard of the Wallace Collection, the Inner Temple Library, and the Public Record Office courtyard of the British Museum, but foreign observers’ reports show that to them the real news story lies in the spirit of Londoners under nightly bombardment.

From two widely separated parts of the world comes comment in which a large part is played by oral or visual proof of the effectiveness of the defence .measures in creating confidence. An American correspondent tells the readers of his newspaper in the Middle West that “the English are finding the constant sight of wrecked German warbirds throughout the city the best possible medicine for their morale. With the charred remains of Junkers on every hand they do not need the Propaganda Department to tell them that their defences are effective.”