1940-06-20 — Page 23

Thursday,

HONGKONG TELEGRAPH

June 20, 1940.

IMAGAZINE PAGE.

EMPIRE

ARMS

SIN

SUGAR ISLAND

MAURITIUS

In tho Indian ocean 500 milles east of Mada- gascar, became a British possession "towards the end of the Napoleonlo wars. It was ceded by France by the Treaty of Paris in 1814, after the British had been in possession for four years."

The Dutch were the first Euro- pean settlers, but they abandone this volcanic Island in 1710. Boen afterwards the French occupied It, named it the Isto de France,

French

Influence is still traceable, particularly

religious affairs. man Catholics are twenty-fin

HT

an numerous as Protestants. Mauritius covers 720

aquaro miles, has a population of 420,000.

Burar is easily the most impor tant product of the island, which lias an overseas trade worth more than £5,000,000

Year, mainly

with Britain, Canada, India, South Africa and France.

DIVIDE AND CONQUER

W

THAT are the German plans for the invasion of Britain?

To answer this question we must realise how Nazi soldiers and politicians think.

They are still greally influenced by one of the main "command- ments" of classic German military thinking; don't go for places, go for armles.

Therefore the first thing they want to find is some way of cut- ting our defending forces in two parts, so that one part can be mop- ped up while the other part is held qulet.

This business of culțing on army into two parts is an essential pre- liminary, in the German theory of battle, in which one of the sections of the enemy army is surrounded and destroyed.

Ludendorff. In the grent battle of Tumenberg in 1014, concen- trated everything against one two Russlan armies..

of

DI

General Franco's forces, in the spring of 1030, carried out operation that was doubtless plan-

ned

In part by Germans, and looked now like a dress-rehearsal for the job of May, 1940.

General Franco's army broke the Republican line in Aragon, and then had two objectives in front of , the efties of Barcelona and Va- lencia.

GRIN AND BEAR IT

127

By Lichty

"-so we quarrelled, and I returned all his gifts-all except

the licorico!"

The Bank Has Lost Its Gold

"ESTERDAY, said a “United Press" message, the YES

Bank of England ordered the suspension of dealings in French currency.

This is one of the few glimpses which the "Old Lady of Threadneedle-street" permits us into her private affairs.

Who owns the Bunk? What is ita capital? Does it pay dividends!

The idea of the Bank of England originated in the fertile brain of a Scotsman named William Pater- son, who was in turn a pediar, a lay preacher, a buccaneer, and the greatest financial adventurer of the seventeenth century.

William III's Government was desperately short of money. Pater- son conceived the idea of finding it for them in return for privi- leges which included the monage. ment of the National Debt.

Staff Trebled

The Bank began business in the staff of Mercers' chapel, with a nineteen, and the highest salary paid was £140.

In 1914 there were fewer than 1,000 employees, To-day there are than 3,000, of whom 1,200 are

more women.

Deginning as a money-lending Institution with В capital of £1,200,000, the capital of the Bank today, which 1 ls held by private" stockholders, and I bought and sold in the open market, is only £14,553,000,

The average dividend, of the past seventeen years has been 12 per cent., and as recent quotations for the stock range round £320 for £100, the return is under 4 per- cent.

In the Dark

One hundred years ago, when gold coins were in circulation, the Bank issue of notes was £20,000,- 000. To-day the notes actually in clrculation total £340,000,000, and there is a further reserve of £40,- 000,000.

The Bank holds only £250,000 of gold, compared with £220,000,- 000 a year ago. Nearly all its gold has been transferred to the Ex- change Equalisation Account in return for Government securities which now form the backing · for the noto Issue.

The "Old Lady of Thread- needle-street”, still, stands on the In-

emblem of British finnuclat tegrity, but the public would now and gall, like to how ng more of what goes on behind the brazen doors,

1

Ia did not push towards either. but pushed between them, reaching the sea almost exactly midway be tween the two.

By this means he separated the Republican army in Catalonia from that holding Madrid and Valencia.

Then, a good deal later, he was able to deal with the smaller part of the army cut off in Catalonia.

After the brank-through on the Meuse last month, the Germans followed exactly the some strategy. They had two objectives; Paris or the Channel parts.

But their real object wan tre cutting off of part of the Allled

army.

Because I knew this strategy of theirs I was able to tell readers that they were Ilkely to head for Amiens, on the same day that The Times and other papers were suggesting that they were driving straight towards Catals.

in fact they did go towards Amiens and Abbeville, breaking through to the sea almost exactly half way between their two main objectives.

ས་

How would this general scheme apply to the invasion of England?

Clearly it means that they are not likely to do the obvious thing of trying to land near Dover and push straight up the roud to Lon- dun.

They may take action near Dover or along the south const.

But this action would be intended to pin down there the British aimles available for defence.

They may also try to distract our attention to Ireland or Scotland by -landing troops from the

air.

But if they wish to attempt their

classic manoeuvre of splitting the defenders' in two parts, they must start from the east coast and try to drive right across the country,

I am not predleting that either of these places are likely to be the points for German attack.

I am merely pointing out that German Weas of war would lead them to attempi such an attack if they found it possible.

If you look at the map of Eng- land you will see two big inden- tations on our west coast, towards which they could head in order to split the country in two.

#Blackpool

Manchester

Liverpoo

Sheffield

• Stoke

-that will be Hitler's aim in Britain, too——

says TOM WINTRINGHAM, woll-known Military Correspondent

If the bridges on these rivers could be destroyed at the right mo- ment. the German tanks would never get any further,

Too many people are thinking in terms of a German movement front

Boulogne to Folkestone.

It; then pro

ays been the way}

iousṣdangersas

Yorkshire

Moors

Jimmingham

thorpe,

Lincoln

"Nottingham

Certainly there is need for extra precautions near the Straits of Dover.

But the whole of the area from the Humber to Poole Harbour in Dorset is a danger area..

Therefore, let us make all our preparations quickly for the de- fence of the British Islands by means of volunteers, units of ex- Servicemen and troops in training.

Many of our trained troops have been sent across the Chounel again to form a new BEF. in France, and help the French.

Let us be as ready for any alter- alive that the Germans may spring

145 ת1

BRITAIN'S CONVOYS

In the article Taffrail do- scribes the Atlantic convoys that day after day reach and leave Great Britain's shores under the eye of the Royal Navy.

ately

Gale or calm, fog or clear weather, the Atlantic convoys must continue. to run if Britain is to ba fed and supplied. Brigaded into. sizeable fleets, each shepherded by its attendant watchdogs, approxim- n thousand merchantmen of every type arrive at or sail from, the parts of the United Kingdom every seven days. That an aver- age of only one ship in every Ave hundred salling in convoy is sunk Handre by enemy action speaks volumes for the emency of the system now. in force.

One is the Bristol Channel and the River Severn, and the other is the River Mersey near Liverpool. It will be remembered that the German wedge driven across -France-and-Belgion-from-near-regular-three

Sedan to Abbeville was 140 miles long.

It is exactly 140 miles from the River Severn.

thet

u

It is considerably less from Im- mingham and Hull on the Humber

Mersey. to the

Another reason why the blow might fall on the cast coast is that are several deep patches of running inland which the Germans could use for convoys of ships loaded with men and torks.

These include the Thames Es- tuary, the River, Crouch, Black- water and Stour, the Wash and the River Humber,

water

The German iden would be to at- tract the main forces of the British

Navy elsewhere, and then to bring some of the German Fleet and d large number of troop and supply ships into one of these rivers.

Then they would try "to shut the gate" behind them, so that our Navy could not get in and sink,

their ships.

They would try to shut the gate by means of a very large number of mines and a great concentration of their air force.

Not many who sit down to their

meals a day can realine the In- triente pr

organisa- lon that is re-

uired

nt the

0

needs Their gallant story special emphasis, for an U-boat attacks unseen with her torpedoes, and in a gun duel on the surface with a single merchantman usual- ly has the advantage of superior speed and a for larger target Moreover, having sunk a ship she makes no effort to place the sur- vivors in a place of safety. Hence the Convoy System, where the merchant ships travel in groups protected by naval vessels fitted with those deadly submarine de- tecting devices known as "Asdics." As to how they work, the less sald the better.

During a recent trip in a des- troyer in the "Western Approaches" which lasted more than a week we escorted one con- voy out to a cer- tain rendezvous. and another... home.

by TAFFRAIL

British Admiralty and at the head- quarters on shore to sail the con voys regularly out and home in the face of the submarine peril. Fewer still understand the Immense strain. and responsibility placed upon the of the British Merchant personnel of Navy; upon the Commodores of convoys, many of whom are retic- ed Flop Omcers

the tem-

porary rank ofore. Royal Naval Reserve; and upon the young officers in command of the Naval escorts who shleid and protect the convoys within the area of netivity of the U-boats.

The Royal Air Force, with aero- planes many times more mobile than the fastest ship, co-operate most valuably and whole-hearted- ly in the onerous task of trade protection. But whereas the con- tinuous spell of a single acroplane be measured in hours, that of a ship must be counted in days and even weeks.

may

To take the Humber (not beenuse I think it the most likely, but be-

Some destroyers and escort ves- cause I know the ground best), they

sels.

ail of them small craft of 1,400 would attempt to land at Imming-

tons or less, have been continuous- hom,

at New Holland, ly at sea, for thirteen days on end, at Hull, which is just across the river

and have been from

running for as Hull, and even perhaps at Goole, many as twenty-five days in a which is much fürther up stream. month. Since the beginning of the wor some of them have spent 73% If they prevented the British Navy from entering the Humber, of their time at seal Their вре by mining the channel there, by

in harbour. during which

with fuel and must complete mining the channel there, ther would probably attack Scunthorpe stores, good running defects, within two hours of landing, be-

with the and compete

masses of raturn's official cause of the importance of the Iron

and correspónderico works there.

with which even the smallest ver- are Burdened, have scis-of-wat lasted on, occasions no more than 30 or

or 48 hours.

Next place on, their list would' be Shefeld because of its 'mini- tion..

, the tanks would be attempting to find a way through the hilly country round the Peak or Central Derbyshire, in drder to press south of Manchester across to the Melsey

I mention this possibility, not in order to scaro ́my; friends in North Lincolnshire and in Yorkshifo, but In order to make it clear that we cantiot affordmerely to plan for the defence of Kent, Essex and Sus BOX.

And there are good lines of de-. fence against such a move,, Includ- Ing the Lincolnshire, and Yorkshire Wolds,

If these hills cannot be held, there are two great, TIVER. NÚ Trent to the south and the York- alilee Oure to the north),

a general rule the worse the weather the longer the trips, and many of the older destroyers used for escorting the Atlantic convoys are supremely wet and uncomfort- able in a heavy sca

Moreover, they lack such ameni- tica

steam ics as refrigerators and heating. It is a case of tinnbil food and biscuit after the first three days at

sen, and the dismal sights on

a destroyer's battened down mess deck while plunging against the huge breaking seas of a winter gate in the North Atlantic must be seen to be believed..

The ships of the Merchant Navy now go armed for self-protection,

· ALM it is lawful for them to go. They may Fighttuny retaliate, with their guns if attacked; but may not take the offensive..

We had vari- able weather, including three days of fog and the tail end of an easterly gale blowing against heavy westerly swell."

Life was not easy. It was dis tinctly irksome; but the way the ships of our convoys responded to the orders of their Commodores and kept station excited our ad- miration.

There were ships of varying nominal with different types

Their officers were not speeds. ordinarily accustomed to steaming and without in close formation lights at night, or to being drilled more or less, by flug signals and Yet they winking morse lamps, might have been at it for years. If ever there was a time when the two Sea Services were interdepen dent and Indivisible, it is now.

For obvious reasons I speak exactly of the complexities of how the of the Convoy System, of how merchant ships are collected into convoys, their routes chosen, and the

necessary escorts provided. That must remain until the end of the wor.

our.

Connot

Through our dependence upon Merchant Fleet, the enemy has all the targets. So during the ear- Her stages of a maritime war It perhaps inevitable that

escort

craft Brithin should be overworked. can never have toa many of them. the Convoy Syntem

But

ding success, as it was 1017-18, Thanks ako to Bri- tain's striking forces and anti-

in

submarine measures and appli

Germany

WHITEAWAY'S

THE HOUSE FOR FURNISHING FABRICS

Freshen

WITH

your

Outlook

NEW CURTAINS

Cretonnes 48" G 60" wida From $1.25 to $6.95 yd.

Jaspe 48" wide $1.75 yd.

Taffeta 48" wide $2.50 yd.

Cotton Slub 48" wide

$2.25 yd.

Repps 48" wide $2.75 yd.

Brocades 50" wide

$3.95 yd.

Printed Linen 48′′ wide

From $4.25 yd.

THERE HAS BEEN MUCH CONTROVERSY RECENTLY

REGARDING THE BEST WAY TO HELP THE OLD

COUNTRY IN ITS HOUR OF NEED.

ONE. WAY WOULD BE TO STRENGTHEN

LANCASHIRES WAR DRIVE FOR EXPORTS.

PART OF THIS DRIVE IS REPRESENTED BY

THE FURNISHING FABRICS ADVERTISED. YOU WILL

FIND A LARGER AND MORE INTERESTING SELECTION

THAN EVER BEFORE.

Whiteaway, Laidlaw & Co., Ltd.

HIS MASTER'S VOICE

A VARIETY PROGRAMME, BY popular afTISTES

B 4009 Trees.

I want your heart. B 4059 Little brown jug.

'Granny old arm chalr,

B 4120 No, No I don't want to.

Song of wise Oleg.

B. 8909 --Sweethearts-Wallz,-.

I'm falling in love with someone. Gypsy Idylle.

B 4022

BD 741

Hungarian melodies.

"Mikado."

A wandering minstrel I The sun whose rays. BD 420 South Sea island Medley.

Aloha Oc. Song of the islands etc. BD 350 Romance in the Moonlight.

Intro,

De Groot Trio. Frank Crumit.

Balalalka orch, & chorus

. (In Russion)

Allen Jones."

Viideseus gypsy orch.

Kenny Baker.

Twilight Serenndërs.

Intro.....Campoli and his orch.

Pale moon, Gipsy moon. Moonlight and roses. I love the moon. Pagan love song. BD 307 Echoes of the Orient.

Intro Paramount Theatre orch."

Chanson hindoue. Ballet Egyptien. Warriors dance. Dervish chorus etc, D5257 Jealously. Tu sula.

Tangoes..... Waldorf Astoria orch.

TSANG FOOK PIANO COMPANY 19 Queen's Road C.

Marina House

N.Y.K.

Phone 24648

ALINE

IMMINENT SAILINGS

·PASSENGER AND FREIGHT

LIVERPOOL

via SINGAPORE, TOWN.

LISBON; etc.

CAPE

CASABLANCA,

THIS WEEK

LOS

[ Shanghai, Japan, HONOLULU,

SAN FRANCISCO.

SYDNEY, MELBOURNE, via MANILA atid Way Ports

VANCOUVER and SEATTLE.

ANGELES: U-boats, that one-half the ances: assessed at the outbreak of hostilities have probably bren destroyed. They are being sunit faster than they can be built, and if there is a recrudescence of their activity during the coming spring and summer, when the increasing daylight is all in the favour of an Increased number of hunters, their Iosses Will ba. proportionately greater,

This wor at sea is diffcient from the last. Viewed as a whole, it la more a matter of small, aingie ships, commanded by comparative- ly funfor officers, than of large flects or squadrons. It is a war of Individuals and wite, a

of test Initiative,

above

a struggle which has brought out the hardi- hood, endurance and superb mitifl of the men of the two Sen Services upon while the antety and wel foro of Great Britain and the Em pire so vitally depend.

FREIGHT ONLY

NEW YORK via JAPAN, LOS ANGELES & PANAMA

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