1941-09-09 — Page 2

THE CHINA MAIL, SEPTEMBER 9, 1941,

Another Italian Convoy Caught In Mediterranean

Torpedo 'Planes Go Into Action

ITALIAN

CLAIM

RIDICULED

the

Further light on THE ENEMY CONVOY mentioned in the achievements of the Im- Middle East R.A.F. communique was attack-perial Forces in the East |African campaign is shed ed early on Sunday morning in the narrow gap by Lt. General Cumming between Pantellaria and Sicily, says the Airham, who commanded Ministry News Service.

The 6,000-ton vessel was left listing heavily and sinking, with a destroyer stand ing by, while other destroyers slowly shep- herded the remaining two ships, one being a badly damaged 6,000-ton tanker.

them.

The outstanding fact was the оп Addis

lightning advance Ababa 1,360 miles in 50 days. took seven monthe to cover 425

Five years ago, the Italians,

miles with only

IRANIANS STALLING?

HARDENING

COURSE FOR OFFICERS

IN

It is believed that the Iron Cabinet is still considering the Anglo-Russian Note.

short Although a routine session of Parliament was held in Teheran yesterday only secondary mat- ters were considered. NOW UNDERGOING, Another meeting it is expected will be held to-day. Reuter.

STEEL HELMETS AND BATTLEDRESS WITH RIFLES SDUNG, BOOTS ROUND NECKS, A DOZEN OFFICERS OF MID- LAND-AA. DIVISION SWAM AN SIXTY YARDS DURING INTENSIVE HARDENING-UP COURSE WHICH THEY ARE

Abyssinian MAY PAY

tribesmen to oppose them.

The General "ridiculed the Ita-

A physical training officer showed them how to swim with rifle and boots slung, how ex- perienced and strong swimmers can help along colleagues not so experienced in the water and how *** officers full kit can be propelled though wrapped in a ground sheet and anti-gas ‹capés. -*

Nian claith that large British FOR WASTE

forces had been tied up in Abys-?

The attack which caused great destroyers in diamond formationsinia. confusion was led by the Lieu- around it. We flew in through "In March, we offered to send tenant who torpedoed a destroyer the gap between two destroyers. the South African units to the front. British off Tripoli a few nights ago and Another aircraft picked out the Mediterranean also took part in a recent attack first ship in line and I took the forces throughout the campaign. on a convoy of Cape Spartivento. second, a six-thousand toriner. wäre never large.

"Dropping my torpedo from "In the Battle of the Lakes, with 40 close in 1 pulled away Just in three other

British brigades

About the same time, Fleet Air Arm aircraft were completing a brisk work.

crews

night's

After starting for Stelly, a ma-. chine developed engine trouble so the crew unloaded its bombs on Comiso and returned to its base, stepped into another machine and returned to Sicily where they dive-bombed and machine-gunned} three enemy aircraft.

They repeated the performance at Gerbino where they also drop- ped bombs and started fires be- fore flying home to bed.—Reuter.

Listing Heavily

The hardening course was off!- cially for officers under forty but several over, that age took part.

The hardening course includes route matches in respirators, rope A big new

drive to stop food climbing in full equipment, bomb- wastage at Army camps and bar-throwing, complicated obstacle racing, tug-of-war and unarmed racks is to begin at once.

combat, apart from normal daily Beltish Wire- physical training. less.

Plans are to mako officers and men pay for wastor food. Results of the recent economy come up to the push have not expectations of Major-General J. Buckley, Controller-General of was Economy.

time to miss hitting the ship, guns engaged 40,000 Italians with myself. I could see the splash| 200 guda. where the torpedo hit the water, and the wake going towards the ship. There was a terrific thud and 'from the port side we saw the torpedo hit the vesse! amidships. There was the violent explosion and she started list ing heavily and pouring out black smoko.

"Allegations will be rigidly in-

V

CAPTIVES KEEP

POULTRY

The

riskiest moment when 30,000 Italians were threa~ tening the Addis Ababa-Jibouti vestigated and, if substantiated, British officer prisoners at the those responsible may be called Sulmona Camp, Italy, are going on to pay," a "War Office spokes-in for extensive poultry-rearing

says the Red Cross. man told the "Daily Mirror."

was

Railway and this lifeline defended by only two British bat- tallons."

the In rating the marile of Italian Army, General Cunning- ham put the Eritreans highest. then the Somalis and last the Black- shirts, though he palā tribute to the Duke of Aosta.

Y

SOUTH

desire to

Bri-

Low Barrage

"Meanwhile the destroyers were circling, 'frantically trying to "He had an intense cover their charges with a smoke fight clean but in practice it was screen. The one ahead swung not always carried out." to starboard and the one to porttish Wireless. side followed the leader round, Bring a low barrage at us as it went. None of us was hit but the confusion was such that The successful attack above re- shells from one destroyer were ferred to on a convoy in the Medi- seen bursting on the denk of the terranean is mentioned in the Mid-other which, in turn was firing dle East Royal Air Force com- back dropping shells just short of. muníque issued yesterday, which the other ship. The last vessel states:--

in the convoy opened up on us with a couple of light flak guns. "Mediterranean; Aircraft from aft, but we were climbing out of the Fleet Air Arm made a success- range and as we went we could: Tul attack on a convoy of three see the leading ship in the con- medium-sized merchant vessels, voy sneaking away on its own. protected by three destroyers in out of, the smoke screen." the Mediterranean on Saturday: British Wireless. night.

"One merchant ship was hit three times, causing violent ex- plosions and much black smoke. The vessel was compelled to stop, isting heavily to port. A tanker, hit with two torpedoes, was see verely damaged.

Benghazi Raid

V

BLACK MARKET CLOSED

(SPECIAL TO CHINA MAIL") "Libya: On the same night a

Shanghai's black mar- heavy raid-by R.A.F. bombera on ket for foreign exchange Benghazi resulted in a number of went out direct hits on military stores and

buildings. The Fleet Air Arm yesterday when fourteen landing grounds at El Timimi, El banks, licensed under the

made a series of attacks on

the

Gazala, Martuba and El Adem, freezing regulations for "Five enemy aircraft were exchange dealings, dis- destroyed at El Gazala and an: continued quoting black damage was caused to a num-market rates.

other at Martubd., Considerable

AFRICAN

HEROISM

How a South African air-gunner saved his com- rade's life was told by the Air Ministry yesterday.

Sergt. Francois Joubert was one

GROWING SENSE

OF FRUSTRATION IN GERMANY

A GROWING SENSE of frustration in Germany is reported by travellers arriving in Ankara who tell how the people are openly asking "For what are we fighting?" and "Why is the Russian war not finished?“

These sources stress, however, that the morale is in no way near breaking point. Gen- two gunners in a Maryland eral recrimination over the Soviet war has led set, on fire by Nazi fighters. to a feud between the Army and the Nazi

of

bomber, which, was attacked and

-During this attack, his fellow-

gunner was badly wounded. Party.

Flames spread rapidly through Goering and List, who are de- the machine and eventually the manding more and more power, at order was given to abandon the the expense of the Party, met with strenuous opposition from Himm- jer, who has since been backed up by Hitler.

aircraft.

man's parachute harness became

Himmlere victory was Immo- diately reflected in the despatch of more storm troopers to the #front where they are very un-

popular with the army.

FATHERS-TO-BE HOSPITAL GUARD

With great courage, Joubert of existence went to the assistance of the help-

less wounded gunner,

Helping him from the turret to

Anxious fathers-to-be the escape hatch, he was again in difficulty when the wounded

pacing up and down the tangled on the mechanism of a Believing that political commis- gun but he solved this by drop-sars are the backbone of the Red roof of a London mater- ping both the gun and wounded Army, the storm troopers merci-nity hospital form one of man through the hatch.

|lessly ill-treat captured commis- bor of others. Fires were" caused The banks have now agreed to.

"As he did so, his own ripcord sars. The army protested to our most efficient fire at El Adom and damage to the quote only the Stabilisation caught in a gun and his parachute Berlin several times, fearing majority of these aerodromes, Board's fixed rate of 5 5/16tha immediately opened inside the air-Russian-reprisals, but Berlin sup- watch services.

ported the storm-troopers. Enemy gun positions east of To- U.S. dollar cents per Chinese craft.".

About forty do duty at Perivale "bruk defences

came in for a dollar, approximately NC$18.82 Grasping the folds of the para-

chute in his arms, Joubert jumped Lack Of Confidence severe bombardment, from air for US$1.

Maternity Hospital, Ealing. The idea was suggested by one of craft. of the South African Air The Stabilisation Fund is to safely, but it was a long while,

release exchange at the fixed before the parachute opened out It is now reported that the Army them some days ago. Now they rate for a large number of legiti- and even then it was found to are telling the commissars to dis are the hospital's official fire- "'Sicily: On Saturday night mate business transactions. Pre- have a number of holes burned in card their insignia in bryder not to watch. Fleet Air Arm aircraft attacked viously the fund released ex-it from the fire Inside the air-expose themselves to the brutal-G Comiso aerodrome and raided Ca- change only for limited business craft. Joubert has been awarded ity of the storm troops.

the D.FM British Wireless. tani and Gerbini aerodromes, deals. Enemy aircraft on the ground were bombed and machine-gun- ned."-Reuter.

Force,

Diamond Formation

The list of goods Vincludes, the majority of commodities, Inpluding petrol, motor-care and parte, and othep Important. Arkistos providing ample meana,

Wrong Department

**

These volunteers work shifts to Travellers are much struck by protect their wives and unborn the complete lack of confidence reor newly-born babies. garding the Dnancial stability of

the Reich und point out that the The response was immediate ordinary German is not able to buy when the idea was first put for food and clothes, preferring to ward, an Ealing Health Depart- to sustain local trading activity, It was inadvertently stated in spend his money in cafes and res-ment: ouicial told the Daily Mir young Sub-Lieutenant, des-

The action-is seen as a valus the "China Mall" yesterday, in tuurants rather than invest it in ror." cribing the scene said: "The ablements of stabilising the the case in which a merchant is the banks. weather was not quite so good Chinese dollar and keeping com- charged with the alleged offer of The man in the street has open "Now we provide sleeping ac as on our last outing. Some, low modity prices at a steadier level, a' bribe, that Mr. Humphrey John ly admitted, that Berlin is not able commodation which they can use haze narrowed down the moon's Speculation in foreign exchange Cruttwell is Assistant. Controller to stand raids like London, while when there is no Alert, Apart path so that we could only see has now been rendered impos- of Food, Mr. Cruttwell, in fact, the new British bombs have creat- from taking an active part in pro- one ship at a time. But we spotsible. International News Ser- is Assistant Controller of Trade. ed uneasiness throughout Ger-tecting their womenfolk, they seem

We regret the 'ërror."

muby-Reuter.

less worried when on the spot. ted the convoy all right, with vice.