CHINA MAIL Spotlight On The War
"WINDSOR HOUSE
FINANCING "ALL AID"
The late Lord Lothian, on step- ping from his returning plane at LaGuardia Airport at the end of last month, with one brief and simple statement frankly raised a problem which every one knew to exist, which in any event had to be faced sooner or later.
The United States is dedicated to the policy of all aid to Britain short of war. But so far it has. not relieved the British of the necessity of paying cash on the barrel head for every item of ma- terial aid which they have got from the United States. It has been a policy of all aid on a strictly cash basis. And, as Lord Lothian
observed, the cash J running out. The gold and se- curities, which ure their only means of making cash payments, will be used up "before long"; sotne time in the coming "other nicans of payment have
year
will
the
to be found" unless Americans are suddenly to dry up the stream of supplies.
For it is important to realise is
that this problem of payment not simply a British problem; it is an American problem. The maintenance of that stream of supplies is vital to the United States only less vital than it is to Great Britain-and it is folly to suppose that the U.S. could bring it to an end merely because Britain was no longer able to pay a cash profit for the privilege of fighting a battle the Americans have now deeply realised to be their own. As the "New York Times" said the other day, it is not for Americans to wait on Bri- tish pleas: it is for Americans themselves to decide how they are to meet the financial necessities of American policy to which they are committed.
The immediate stop-gap solu- tion would be to throw American credit resources open in the same way that American industrial re- sources are now open. Only two legal barriers stand in the way- the Johnson act and the financial provisions of the neutrality act. Neither has much application to the present situation. The Arsi was primarily an attempt to col- lect the old World War debts-a dend issue now, and one which is certainly not going to paralyse the British war effort and so deliver the world to Hitler. The second. enactment sprang mainly from the idea of preventing the na- tion's being "dragged" thought- lessly or unintentionally into war by the creation of a financial in- terest in one side. Nothing of that kind is now involved. The policy of "all aid" was not adopt- ed for financial reasons; it was forced upon the American people as the one best way of preserving. their democracy and their secur- ity in a world-shaking time, and it is incredible that this clause of the neutrality act should prevent their making that policy good. The clause itself, incidentally, has nothing to do with legal neutral- ity, which has never forbidden
|
Our victory should be noised abroad for all that it is worth in order is, produce its full moral
"In days to come," said the surprising is that the British the enemy has turned openly and ing ceases to be a military objec “Star” “historlane xnay well de- | people has taken this striking unashamedly to terror-bombing. tive in total warfare, which is scribe the failure of the air offen- achievement. with phlegmatic This can only be done effectively waged by the Germans to-day sive to destroy Britain's resistance calm, as if it were a matter of at night, since in the daytime his without mercy and without any this summer as one of the de- course and not a glorious salvation bombers and fighters encounter regard for the so-called laws of cisive battles of the world.” That which few people oratside the Bri-
R.A.F. pilots conscious of their international warfare. is a just estimate of the implica- tish Isles thought possible,
superiority, und deliberately avoid As long as they are strong, and veloped since tions of the air war as it has de-
direct combats. They slip through deem themselves secure from de- of the surrender France.
here and there, but always at feat, the Nazi leaders will con- hazard.
tinue to destroy private houses and The nocturnal fury of the enemy private citizens indiscriminately. bombers is still concentrated on They will stop only when they are London. Night after night hunn danger of losing the war or dreds of high explosive bombs discover that the morale of their and incendiaries are rairied upon own people is visibly weakening. different parts of the Metropoli- tan area, for the most part at ran- dom, and apparently with, the sole. object of attacking civilian morale
Hitler's. High Command un-
believed,
that
deplorable event, that by usinBy A.J. Cummings
its air power to the full it could bring Britain to her knees with the same overwhelming, rapidity which had caused the collapse of lesser enemies.
The complete failure to ac- complish our destruction by this. means-n fact nove admitted in Axis circles and recognised with gratitude by the friends of Bri- tuin-is a positive and serious defent for the enemy. What is
SURE
I CAN PLAY IT
effect in countries which are still doing reluctant obeisance to the Nazis or are uncertzain, how to act until they are convinced that Germany is not a certain winner.
Terror Bombing
|
and
Bo disintegrating the social and economic life of the capital.
British Bombers
Up to the present British bomb- ing crews, carrying out what I know to be strict instructions, in accordance with a carefully de- vised stralogie programme, have aimed only at specifled military Ju "total" warfare that
targets. ís a the_R:A.F., I military objective; indeed, noth- His Pupil
Having, at least for the Lime boing, abandoned his vain at- tempts to destroy The Master And
Military Objectives
Air Defence for Convoys
Britain may need to call upon the supply of credit to a belliger- its power in the air to redress the
balance of its power on the seas.
ent.
there is any chance of the sub- marine being seen from the ship. Previously when it became neces- Studying the intensified Ger- sary for a submarine to sub- man attack upon British shipping | merge, it had to expose its peri- leaves the inescapable conclusion scope briefly from time to time that further adaptation of aero- planes
These two laws do not apply to the desperately practical problema which the exhaustion of British cash resources will produce. And to stop simply with the repeal of naval use holds a possible answer to convey and geheral the Johnson act and the financial to Britain's shipping. problem. section of the neutrality act
That problem is greater than in would be to take a dangerously the World War, as has been made narrow view of the real problem. clear in prețious articles. Perhaps it would be something to permit Britain to borrow. But could private capital come any- where near
New Submarine - But the danger of the German attack lies not alone in the addi- tional bases from which the Nazis are operating. There are two other significant reasons:
The destruction of the great synthetic oil plant at Politz was a magnificent example of legi- timate aerial bombardment,
But it would be foolish to pre- tend that when military targets are attacked in the heart of Ber- lin and in other great German towns the misses and near-misses do not affright and slay and wound large numbers of human beings who do not wear a soldier's uni- form.
That is one of the inevitable horrors of war in the air. Air- parity between two great belliger- ent nations does nothing to dimin- - ish the horror. It serves only to equalise the casualties. I am afraid that, as the British bombing forces approach in numbers and then overtake those of the enemy, and carry their menace deeper still into enemy country, the civilian casualties on both, sides will rise and this form of the conflict will develop into a ferocious war of naked reprisals.
Hitler's Eastern Front
Other possibilities, of course, are the default of the German Air Force under increasing pressure or the diversion of large elements from Western to Eastern Europe; It is improbable that any large diversion will be made to Egypt. But in a war against Russla, or against Russia and Turkey com→ bined, the German. High Com- mand would be compelled to transfer a very considerable pro- portion of her air power to the Eastern Front.
Is there the slightest chance find herself that Germany will at war with Russia before she . has been able to settle her ac-- counts with the British Empire? It is a fascinating speculation; and it is not altogether beyond the bounds of possibility in this strange and fluctuating conflict of mutual fears and rival ambitions.
Two-Frant War
But my ow belief is that Ger- many, having
the beginning averted the peril of a two-front war, will not incur it now or at any time, even though the mili- tary night of France has melted away. British striking power grows stronger every day; and "America is moving with ever in- creasing impetus to the verge of
war.
marine's most dreaded foe because It ':not only can attack with bombs, but
in many instances it can spot'a:sub- ́ marine that is submerged at con- siderable depth. When a plane is sighted, the submarine, dives and away. This change in procedure sure the 'plane has departe
remains submerged until it feels is entirely due to the development So it would appear that ar of the magnetic firing device for rangements should be made to the torpedo.
provide convoys with aeroplane
By Capt. Frederick the latter's small draft made it means for early detection of sur
L. Oliver
in order to plot its position with relation to the intended victim. Trained eyes, alert for the telltale wake a periscope znakes, fre- quently were able to give an alarm irr time to permit the submarine's attack being frustrated, and an attack being launched against the submarine.
meeting the real needs? The real issue has been posed by Mrs. Roosevelt, wife of the President. Is it sensible to
With the new listening device bequeath. another insoluble war-
1. German submarines have it is unnecessary for a submarine debt problem to the ruined dawn adapted the "listening" devices to use its periscope. It not only of peace? The policy of "all aid" used by surface craft to detect tracks its target while completely is not a policy of only such aid as submarines. Equipped with these submerged, but is able to aim tor Britain can beg or borrow the same device, they are able to pedoes by the same means. At money to pay for; it is now pos-track ships and fire their tor-night the same device enables a cd as a policy of all aid that the pedoes blind without exposing submarine to detect and attack
their periscopes,
United States can give, because the United States has a vital interest in' British survival. That means not only ships and planes, not only loans, but subsidies. In the✨ financial as in every other field It means the broad view and the boldest 'action.c
**
2. Using torpedoes detonated by adavics actuated. magnetically, rather than by contact, the gub¬ manines, no longer fear shallow draft, destroyers.....
During daylight, a submaring on that surface cap sight a ship when it is rulles ANAY,-
vessels that otherwise would have passed, unseen, poolt
In the World War the sub-escorts which will afford proter-" marine had practically no means tion against submarines and of attacking a destroyer, because enemy aeroplanes, and also be a
necessary for torpedoos to be set face raiders. to run so close to the surface that, Convoys to and from North break surface and run erratically most from Nazi attacks. It is only except in a smooth sea, they would America seem to be suffering the
A torpedo advertising itself in some 1,800 miles from Newfound- this manner was an open invita- land to Land's End, and modern tion, for the destroyer to charge flying boats at both ends of this clown its wake to ram the sub-route should have no difficulty in marine or shower it with depth conducting patrols over this area. bombs.
What can be done is indicated
The advent of the magnetic fir by the fact that the United States ing device has entirely changed Navy planes are flying daily from this state of affairs, and incident Southern New England to Nova ally is responsible for the havoc Scotia and back between morn- torpedoes have wrought in this ing and mid-afternoon. *Flones war, because they now explode can fly from San Diego to Fanarna directly under, a ship instead of or Pearl Harbour without stop- against its side where part of the ping. force of the explosion would be. With performance of this kind. dissipated in disturbing only there is no reason why the 1,800 water blan
miles between Newfoundland and
A submarine now can set its Britairy cannot be covered several The submarine does not show torpedo to run deep enough, to pre- | times a day. If the weather is the same wholesome respect for vont broaching, and yet be assured good, the "pinnes carr see the sub- the destroyer that it did during that when it runs under sa dla marines, for the most part. If the the World War : when the more stroyer, the magnetic device will weather is too bad for lying, sub- appearance of the latter on the cause it to detonate, and no after-marines are likewise concerned horizon was usually sufficient to math of depth bombs will result with looking after their own wel-
marine scurrying The aeroplane is the sub-fore.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.