WAR TOPICS

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 2, Issue 108, 10 January 1940, Page 5

WAR TOPICS

SUGGESTED INVASION OF HOLLAND RESIGNATION OF SECRETARY FOR WAR (By the BBACON Watchman) The resignation of Mr L. HoreBelisha from his position as Secretary l'or War is the biggest political sensation for some time. Even ha'.l not Britain been engaged in a war, the announcement of this Minister's retirement would have caused more than a ripple on the surface of the political pool. So far the facts behind the. change in the British Cabinet have not been made public and discussion on the . probabilities would be out of place. It would be idle to speculate. Yet it seems surprising in view of the fact that Mr Hore-Belisha, since taking over the important position, has done more for the British Army —and for Britain's security—than anyone who lias held the post. This Minister introduced many reforms into the Army and the result is that, in the words of the "Sunday Despatch" 'the whole problem of Army expansion is going forward smoothly to a solution on universally agreed lines.'

Slilli a young man., as politicians go, Mr Hore-Belisha was formerly Minister of Transport and is wellknown for his introduction of the safety beacon which was named after him. « 9 W • It has been reported that the German General Staff is con si (Icri n g the possibility of invading Holland by using aluminium boats to transport troops over the flooded areas. Considering the question without a thorough knowledge of the topography of the Hooded parts of Holland, it seems ridiculolus that the enemy headquarters should give seiious thought to the proposal.

Each 3>oat, it is said,-holds fifteen | men and draws about eleven inches of water. The areas in Holland at present under water are covered by from fifteen inches to two feet. Discounting the difficulties the attacking troops must face in getting their boats across such shallow water, it still looks to- be foolhardy to attempt an attack in this manner. The aluminium would offer no resistance to bullets and fifteen men crowded together offer a machinegunner's dream target. 11, through rilie lire or other causes, the craft were to be grounded, the occupants are faced with the task of continuing the advance through the ■water. K * * »

There is a popular belie! that the Dutch are sympathetic towards the Allies. It might be better to suggest that if they had to chose between the warring parties they would incline towards Britain' and France as the course appearing to them to.be the lesser of two evils. It would be a matter of military : policy, too. A Whakatane resident who returned a few months ago from a tour which embraced Holland said that public opinion there is against Britain and anything British. According to this gentleman the Dutch have not yet forgotten the Boer War Then again, the Dutch aristocracy are mostly German and the word Dutch is but a variation of Deutsch, which means German. There is a Nazi party in Holland which has a number of seats in Parliament and which is capable of influencing ; Dutch policy. Rrincess Juliana married a German in Prince Bernhardt. The Anglo-Dutch oil magnate, Sir Henri Deterding, was Hitler's financial backer. Dutch banking is controlled by Germany. The Mendeilsohn Bank, which recently failed, was run by the German-Jew Manheimer, who helped Hitler finance the Nazi regime. But Holland, neutral throughout the Great War, wishes to preserve r her neutrality in this conflict.