1940-02-22 — Page 4

Thursday,

HONGKONG TELEGRAPH

February 22, 1940.

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The

Hongkong Telegraph.

Thursday, February 22, 1940.

Wyndham St., Hongkong Telephone: 26615

THE prefix "Special to the Telegraph" Is wed by the "Hongkong Telegraph to indicate news which is strictly copyright ander the provisions of the Telecommuni- rations Ordinance, 1934, auch GWI MA bears the indication "Up" is received in Hongkong on the date of publication by the United Press Associations, who re- serve all righia and forbid republication. either wholly or in part without previone arrangement

Air Power

"What I have seen since I began," says the old engineer in Kipling's ballad, "leaves me no doubt of the machine. But what about the man?”

The range of the Wellington bomber is far greater, with full war load, than a thousand miles each way. We have already a smaller type which has done more than 7,000 miles without a stop. R.A.F. machines now passing from the factories to units are far superior to those of a year ago, and the output has been more than doubled. But however good the aircraft, long Germany over range flights would not be possible without great daring and enterprise and the highest level of skill in piloting and navigation.

of

Both men and machines the R.A.F. will hold something more than their own against those which Hitlerism can send

up.

In these first months of the war the Air Force has had a testing time, with the results of which we may well be satisfied.

It has inflicted a heavy pro- portion of losses on the enemy aircraft which have tried to break through our defences, Ita bombers have made effective attacks on German naval and scaplane bases.

In baffling the campaign against merchant shipping it has given valuable help, so valuable that we may now consider the theory of the rise of air power weakening Bea power to be proved fallacious.

A country of superior naval strength, it is clear, may increase its command of the sea by the use of the air arm. .

Decisive air action has yet to come, and it is, of course, im- possible to predict in what man- nor the Air Force may be used in major operations.

We have to expect that a more strenuous struggle may soon be fought whother only one or all the three elements are the scene of desperate effort.

But every day we havo Д better prospect of establishing our ascendancy in the air. Be- yond the plans of production and training at home now coming to full development lies the forma tion of Imperial air power of overwhelming strength."

Strange goings-on, your Majesty! A lot of passenger liners and

cargo vessels have sunk in the last week or two.

Ah! Germany must be at war again.

Sidelights on the PEOPLE at war

IN GERMANY..

IN BRITAIN..

Hushed and Your voice

W

anxious

'ITH the war not yet three months old how

with BOCs it the enemy? What are the German people think- Ing and feeling? How is their

morale? How does the Fuehrer stand with his own people?

Important questions: and not too easy to answer. For really reliable evidence is hard to come

by W. N.

EWER

(Diplomatic Correspondent)

by. And the other kind rumours, propaganda, sen- sational storles- is too plentiful.

But rellable evi- dence is to be had. The prevailing mood in Germany today at any rate in the towns- seems to be one of growing disillusion and depression. People are anxiolis. uncertain and worried about the pos- sibilities of the future.

Tis a sharp swing back from this confidence of the past few years.

had come to have an almost super- stitious bellef in Hitler's genlus-or good luck. Success followed glittering success; and always it was victory withi out war.

The coming of war was the first shock. But not an over-severe one. For Nazis and anti-Nazis alike had been persuaded that war would bring swift and shattering victories for the irrealstibio might of Germany. They had believed the bonsts of their fenders. It is not the coming of war, but the absence of any spectacular feat of arms that is undermining confidence. For the first time the Nazi leaders seem unable to perform what they so loudly promised.

Faith in them weakens. But so far one can put it no higher. The mass of the people still put their trust in Herr Itler, still believe that he will some how pull them through.

They cling indeed to that faith. For they see no alternative; or only alter natives which they drend. Where else shall they look for leadership?

VERYBODY dreads defeat, tho possibility of coonomie collapse, the possibility of political dia integration: and the party propaganda plays adroitly on these fears.

The country then rallies to the Fuchrer because it must rally; and be cause there is nobody and nothing elso to rally round. It has become sceptical

about victory; but it believes that he

may be able to win peace without de feat, and that nobody else can.

Therefore the great bulk of the Der- man people is still loyal to the regime. There is no sign and no likelihood as yet of any serious "crack."

But except among the blindly faith- ful of the Party-the leynity is with- out enthusiasm. The Nazi leaders' ex- pectation that the Munich outrage would ovoke demonstrations of pas- sionate devotion to the Leader has There been completely disappointed. is no enthusiasm.

With the war as it is the mood is ena of nerves uncertainty, of growing apprehension, of resentment at increas ing hardships; but of acceptance of it ail because no one can see what to do except look to Herr Hitler to get the country out of the situation into which be has led i

In that mood the anti-British pro- paganda campaign has had great effect. The human mind--perhaps the German mind especially-needs to throw blame on somebody for its mis

loath The German people a

fortunes.

blame the Fuehrer: for it sill needs to trust him. Moreover, blaming the Fuehrer is a dangerous occupation. So it grasps cogerly at the sugges tion that everything is due to the wickedness ot Chamberlain and Churchill.

Food stocks are sufficient. But there is lack of fats and of other things needed for a properly balanced diet. The result-ns doctors were beginning to nola even before the war- iessening of physical emelency, growth of nervousness and irritability. In recent weeks neutral observers have noted how much people talk about food. That is an eloquent sign.

G

n

ERMANY then is a long way from anything like starvation, probably long way from any. thing like an economic breakdown through shortago of raw material.

But the shortages which exist, coupled with the ever-increasing pressure of longer hours and speeding up, begin to tell on the nation's nerves.

Outward expressions of discontent are few. The Gestapo sees to that.

There have been some signs of un- rest in a few cities, But these are rara; and too much should not be matte of them, Germany in the third month of war is neither "on the verge of revolt " nor "seething with discontent," nor anything like it.

But it is depressed and anxious, dis- Illusioned and uncertain of itself. Tho war of nerves is beginning to have effect; and it is the Gerpian nerves which are beginning to be frayed by the strain.

counts

(more than ever before)

[HROUGHOUT the last

few

has weeks there been revealed a clue to one of the greatest mis- calculations Hitler, Gooring and Goebbels havo ever made.

Not so long ago it was the fashion in this country to poke fun at Parliament as a dithering and time-wasting institution cluttered up and hampered by red-tape.

Parliament suddenly showed its new- found night on that amazing Satur

day evening silting of the House of

by H. R. S. commons on Sep-

PHILLPOTT

(Parliamentary Correspondent)

tember 2 when "Arthur "Greenwood,

rising

from the Labour front bench. was greeted with

cry of "Speak for England!"

On the Sunday morning war came and the first stren sounded its note aver London. There is a great story s to be told about that Saturday night and that Sunday morning,

But it is supremely important to point out that during those few drama- ile hours Parliament, realising that it represented, perhaps as never before. the people's will, took charge.

No one who looked on that historie scene could believe that henceforward a democratie Parliament would fail to act properly.

Bo Hitlerism has strengthened that

GRIN AND BEAR IT

BILL

BLOODHO

By Lichty

SNATCHEM COLLECTIO

AGENCY

. "I've got a new angle on the Truffia fellow's account-his

wife gets monoy out of him by crying!"

Paria- which it wished to destroy. ment is to be prorogued to-day. I will meet again next Tuesday an institution more powerful than it has been for many generations.

During these weeks of war its pro- ceedings have been sometimes drama- tic, sometimes humdrum.

But always there has been effective-

пета.

There was nothing to equal it in the- Great War. Then, nine times out of ten, the Government influenced Parlia meat. The difference is that Parlin- ment now influences the Government, Day by day there has been an obvious and unconcealed anxiety of Ministers to meet the wishes of the House.

Constructive speeches or searching questions from the Opposition mem- vers aro cheered from the Government back-benches

That is not to say that Party issues. and Party principles have gone by the board. On the contrary. Since that first siren sounded they have been 18. clear-cut as ever on certain liquea, and na keenly fought. But nobody can now question the supremacy of Parliament..

+

The power of this new-found Parlia mcntary contral has been expressed in miany ways. Parliament forced the Government to review and improve the allowances for dependenta of men in. the fighting Services, to set up an in- quiry into a remodelling of the old-age- pensiona.

It Benured a Select Committee to keep a watch on war expenditure.

I insisted on measures to deal with profiteering, mado the Oovemment climb down on the regulations under the Emergency Fowers Act which would have brought back curfew, im- prisonment without trial, and punish- ment for the dissemination of news and the propaganda of opinion.

Recorded facta show how great a It is in- Dart Labour has played. disputable that but for the Labour Opposition and its constructive work much of what has been done either would not have been done or would have been tragically delayed.

Within a few days of Its insistence- on evacuation, "the greatest exodus Binoo Moses," to quote Mr. Walter Killot, was successfully carried out.

Industrial Labour has gone in'"oté the ground floor" in the organisation of war material output. The Miniatry. of Information has been re-formedi because of Labour's insistence, and; by the same pressure; the Ministry of Shipping has been set up.

Hardly a phase of national war-time- Jife has been loft uninfluenced by the pressure of free Parliamentary opinion.. Early in the war Mr. Greenwood do fined the functions of Parliament asi being twofold:

First, to hear statements by the Prime Minister and the Government! and if necessary to debate and quee- tion them.

Becond, for those M.P.8 "cloan to: the cart of the people" to bring home to the Government questions troubling the people's minds.

*I believe," he said, "that in this: way Parliament-a bated symbol to Killer...will grow in power during this war and will not become an atrophied! organ of an effets body."

Parliament has grown in power. I5j has grown more in three months than in thirty years. Nobody can move about among the people and fail to know that