TURNING POINTS IN THE WAR

Press, Volume LXXIX, Issue 23974, 15 June 1943, Page 6

TURNING POINTS IN THE WAR

* MR NASH’S REVIEW TRIBUTE TO SPIRIT OF BRITISH PEOPLE “We are going to win this war. Make no mistake about that,” said the Minister of Finance (the Hon. W. Nash) in a review of what he termed epoch-making events in recent times, when addressing the Businessmen’s Club in Christchurch yesterday. "But we could never have achieved what we have in the face of great difficulty but for the spirit of the British people.” "It is not so much a question of guns,” the Minister continued, “though at times we needed them badly enough, and they are. of course, important. Neither has it been so much a matter of aeroplanes, though they have played a vital part in this war. But it is the spirit of England for which we have to thank God.” ■ After referring to Lord Burghley, M.P., as a representative of . the British Conservative Party, and himself as a member of the New Zealand Labour Party, Mr Nash emphasised that there were no party politics in this war as far as the British peoples were concerned. “Neither is there any question of party politics as far as the relations of New Zealand and Great Britain are concerned,” added Mr Nash. In fact, New Zealand, from the point of view of time, had declared war on Germany first. "But then, of course, we are always ahead of the world,” remarked the Minister amid laughter. “Miracle of the Ages” In September, 1940, the war might have been lost, Mr Nash proceeded, had it not been for one of the miracles of the ages. The British Army was then desperately in need of munitions, and “little New Zealand had sent 5,000,000 cartridges” to its aid. He believed that the fact that New Zealanders, Australians, and Canadians had come to the aid of the Motherland at that time had had a heartening effect on the British people. Yet if the Germans had only kept on they could have driven Britain from the air. “The people to whom I want to pay tribute are the ordinary men and women of Britain,” said the Minister. “Instead of accepting defeat they, went into the factories and made munitions. There is nothing like it in history. The spirit of the ordinary man and woman of England inspired the world. Thank God, we still held the seas, and w8 were able to get food to them. Not a grumble came from those people. When I was in England I was astonished at their spirit. Despite their privation and suffering they could still smile and fight on.” In June, 1941, said Mr Nash, Russia had saved the world. If the Germans had turned their armies completely south and not east, he believed that they might have achieved what they set out to do. But Russia held. “At the same time I think we did something then to help in Greece and Crete," he said, "though we owe a tremendous debt to Russia." Another turning point was March, 1941, when “that great man, President Roosevelt,” had conceived the idea of Lend-Lease. Before that Britain could not buy goods on credit in the United States. After the President’s proclamation munitions flowed out of that country, not only to Britain, but to Russia as well. Since then no less a sum than £305,000,000 had been expended in goods. The Atlantic Charter

Another momentous happening in the history of the war was the meeting of President Roosevelt and Mr Winston Churchill in August, 1941, for the signing of the Atlantic Charter. “I believe that these two men will stand out as beacon-holders in the history of the next few centuries,” Mr Nash said. Though there were difficulties in the way of giving expression to the idealism of these statesmen, he still believed that the .Allan-

tic Charter represented the hope of the world. “I believe, too,” he continued, “that we in New Zealand had a contribution to and we have made it. This little country, with all its failings, has much to be proud of. But we could not have existed without Great Britain. We have also saved ourselves. I was tremendously honoured to act as your representative at Washington, and also to attend the meetings of the War Cabinet in London” Recalling his association with the War Cabinet in London, Mr Nash mentioned how Admiral Sir Dudley Pound had announced on one occasion the Admiralty’s plans to get a convoy through to Malta. Out of the 14 ships that sailed, he said, nine had reached their destination. That was another critical turning point. It was essential that Malta should receive supplies, particularly of oil,” he added. _ The occupied countries, France, Holland, Norway, were all looking to England for their freedom. The British people were responding in no uncertain manner.. No fewer than 7500 combat aeroplanes were turned out of the factories last month, and the Minister believed that the objective this year of 125,000 aeroplanes would be reached. , . . , The speaker, m conclusion, referred to his visit to. Guadalcanar on his way back from Washington a few weeks ago. He spoke of the excellent comradeship that existed between the American and New Zealand forces in the Pacific and paid tribute to the work of New Zealand corvettes on patrol-duty in those-waters.