DUTCH DELIGHTED

Waikato Times, Volume 130, Issue 21653, 13 February 1942, Page 4

DUTCH DELIGHTED

HELFRICH’S COMMAND

MAY SAYE EAST INDIES PACIFIC DEVELOPMENTS (United Press Assn.—Elec. Tel. Copyright) (Received Feb. 13, 3.15 n.m.) BATAVIA. Feb. 12 Admiral Helfrich’s appointment as commander-in-chief of the unified Pacific command has delighted the Dutch and met with the approval of British naval cucics. Admired Hart’s inactivity irked the Dutch. A body of opinion in Batavia believes that only strong Allied naval action can save Java and that there is not time to wait for aerial reinforcements which are trickling in. They see hope for early action in the appointment of an aggressive naval commander, who will save the Indies if they can be saved by sea. Helfrich certainly will not allow his country to be sacrificed for any long-range strategical plan. His success so”far with the small Dutch force is most impressive, especially as he has lost very few ships. The New York Times’ Washington corespondent says the shift of command for thd* first time gives the Netherlands Ea « Indies major positions in the A.B»D.A. command. The United States hereafter will have only one member of the joint command, Major-General Brett. Admiral Hart’s Position Admiral Hart, the paper says, relinquished his command for the alleged reasons of ill-health, but it is stated authoritatively that he will not retire athough he is 64. The correspondent says diplomats of the United Nations conversant with the Far Eastern situation have conveyed to Mr Roosevelt their belief that Japan is preparing to move a heavy part of her fleet into the Indian Ocean in the hope that the Germans will drive eastward from Bulgaria, thus effecting a junction. , The Japanese are fully aware that their eventual victory or defeat depends on a Nazi victory in Europe. There has been very little ground or air fighting in the Batan Peninsula in the past 24 hours. The enemy is reorganising his forces and awaiting additional supplies and reinforcements before resuming the offensive. The island of Masbate, near /the centre of the Philippine Archipelago, has been occupied by Japanese troops. Reports reaching General MacArthur’s headquarters from the occupied areas of Luzon indicate that Filipino farmers who were evicted from their homes by the Japanese crowded into Manila or have hidden in the mountains to escape the Japanese. As a result there is a great scarcity of labourers to tend crops, and food supplies are becoming scarce. The Japanese General Homma issued a proclamation urging the farmers to return to their farms and secure feed supplies promptly as starvation or prosperity will be determined by their efforts.