AIR REPRISALS

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3134, 12 July 1917, Page 5

AIR REPRISALS

STATEMENT BY BRITISH PRIME MINISTER

BATTLE-FRONT HAS FIRST

CLAIM THE GREAT FRENCH RAID London, July ID. Official—Speaking in a secret session | of tho House of Commons, Mr. Lloyd 1 George stated that twenty-two Gotha aeroplanes, each carrying eight hundred pounds of explosives, came over London on Saturday. Three of them were destroyed. The Germans had organised protecting squadrons, i" order to assist the raiders to return, and six. of theso were destroyed, and one was injured. Therefore, the attack was not made with impunity. Ho pointed out that complete protection in the air could never bo secured. British machines daily crossed the German lines at tlie front, in spite of terrible anti-aircraft fire f.ud powerful air squadrons, and bombed stations and headquarters. This proved that no measures we could take would givo complete immunity. We must i.iin at making the visits as costly as possible. Our naval aeroplanes in the last four or five months had dropped seventy tons of explosives on German aerodromes iri Northern Belgium. Six tons were dropped duning the night preceding the German raid," whereas the Germans only dropped two tons on England. The Government's first consideration was to see Uiat the army in France was sufficiently supplied with aeroplanes, without which advance was impossible. Thero were twenty-eight civilian fatalities in London. These were regrettable; but unless there was a sufficiency of aeroplanes at the front the army's losses might easilv be twenty-eight thousand. Tho Germans realised as much as we did the.importance of the work of the aeroplanes securing the protection of soldiers' lives. Do Not Flay Into the Hands of the Enemy. Nothing would encourage the Germaus more than to know that, by bombing English towns, we could be forced to witndraw fighting squadrons from France. Nothing- would be more disastrous to the conduct of military operations than to encourage the Germans to believo that raids would excite a clamour in England, resulting- in tho Government being unable to resist the demaud for the withdrawal of aeroplanes from the front. If we are unable to provide aeroplanes for tho front as well as for defence against raids, the Army must come first. It was vitally important that Germany should know this. He saw people in the raided district a few hours after the raid, and lie had never seen people face a disaster with greater cheerfulness and constancy. There were no signs of panic. He was convinced that if the country realised that it was necessary to establish air supremacy in order to win victory at the front, it would be prepared to take risks. Tho Germans realised the importance of supremacy in the air, and had made prodigious efforts to attain it. During the past twelve months we had enormously incronsed our capacity for manufacturing . machines. In the last half of the year we had increased tho number of employees' in aeroplane works by 211,000, and had also improved the methods of organisation and the type of machines. The Government's information showed that the German capacity for production was inadequate to compcto with ours. Hitherto our increase :n production had been only gradual, now it was going up by leaps .and bounds. The strike in April" had lost us between 150 and 200. machines.

French Raids. Mr. Bonar Law, replying to questions, said that in the opinion of experts our tjpes of machines were as good :>s Ilia Herman. Ho pointed out that tho Vrcneh front was nearer to imiiortant German cities than ours; and it was therefore natural that the French should play ;i larger part in offensive operations against them. This was done with remarkable success and impunity during tho last few days. While he did not regard the raids on London as of no importance, the balance of military advantage must he considered. People who demanded tho instant production of large numbers of aeroplanes were apt to forget the inherent limits to the extent and rate of such an increase, and the imperative demands of other services. Major J. Norton Griffiths, M.l'., related liis experiences at the front, giving evidence of the British aerial supremacy there—Aus.-N.Z. Cable .Assn.-Eeuter.