WHAT LONDON THINKS

Timaru Herald, Volume CLVI, Issue 22991, 7 September 1944, Page 5

WHAT LONDON THINKS

War Will Soon Be Over * N.Z.P.A.—Special Correspondent (Rec. 7.30 p.m.) LONDON, Sept. 5. People here can still scarcely believe the good news. The rush of events has been so swift that the majority of the assessments of the position are almost out of date before they are published. While everyone has watched with deep satisfaction the liberation first of Paris and then of Brussels, Londoners and the people of Southern England are also quietly enjoyed at their own liberation—from flying bombs, and, in spite of official warnings that the danger must not yet be regarded as over, the people have decided for themselves, after reading the war news and studying maps, that Southern England’s second and last blitz has ended. Hundreds are returning to their homes from evacuation areas, believing not only that flying bombs are finished, but also that the war in Europe will soon be over. In London the indication of the trend of opinion is an increase in the theatre takings, while restaurants and cinemas are again packed. In many places preparations are already being made for celebrating victory night. Advance bookings in hotels have doubled, and estate agents are being flooded with inquiries about flats ’ and houses to let.