THEY’RE HERE AND WE WELCOME THEM

Dominion, Volume 35, Issue 290, 5 September 1942, Page 8

THEY’RE HERE AND WE WELCOME THEM

American Troops In N.Z. AN ORDINARY MAN’S VIEW OF THE WAR

(By

Obseever.)

It commonly happens that important news is released to the world in an oblique, almost matter-of-fact, manner. Thus the presence of American forces in New Zealand was first publicly announced by the Prime Minister of New Zealand in a homely broadcast to the American people and to whomever else the wireless waves might reach. A national figure, particularly if he is speaking in another country to other people will, if he is wise and shrewd, look about him for a way into their hearts. What better way for Mr. Fraser to reach American hearts than by telliug his vast audience at their own firesides that “down under” iu far-off New Zealand, New Zealanders bad met American boys and come to regard them us their own. It is fairly certain that Mr. Fraser would first haveoutlined to President Roosevelt the substance of what he proposed to say. It can therefore be reasonably assumed that the President, as Commander-in-Chief of the United 'States forces, would agree.with Mr. Fraser that the time had come to end the gentle play-acting about Americans in New Zealand. And why not? American forces all this time were officially iu Australia, New Caledonia, Britain, Northern Ireland, the Middle East, India —everywhere but at the Pacific strategic base of New Zealand. And now. according to yesterday’s 8.8. C. news, United States troops have made their appearance in Leopoldville, in the Belgian Congo. Then again obliquely a more detailed and really newsy picture comes over the air, this time from British Official Wireless. A formal report from Washington on Lease-Lend transactions between the United States and the British Empire mentions, casual-like, some arresting points about the Americans in this Dominion, new even to New Zealanders.'

Well, the reaction of every New Zealander will be, “Good luck to the American boys. If we have to go short on some things, potatoes for example, to keep them supplied and fighting fit it’s a small price to pay for their most welcome presence here.” We are going to be a happy Ameri-can-New Zealand family, with many mouths to feed. It’s a grand challenge to us to produce like mad to see that those fellows in forest-green, like our own in khaki, don’t go short of a potato that will out-fight a bowl of Japanese rice.

It Works Both Ways.— The reaction of the New Zealand man-in-the-street to Mr. Sullivan’s revelations of the extent to which the Dominion is able to give reverse lease-lend assistance to our American, allies will be one of pleasure and satisfaction. Our debt to the United States for her provision of warlike supplies which we could not get elsewhere is large, and we are grateful. That we are able to give something in reverse in the form of foodstuffs and defence constructional services is a matter for satisfaction. News of this kind makes first-class reading, and it will please the country. Those Tokio Tyrants.— The periodically recurring Cabinet changes. in Tokio are beyond the comprehension / of mere Westerners, except that we can be assured that those rascals with the similar names, Tojo and Togo, have fallen out over something. But this we do know: ’Twixt Tojo and Togo There differs one letter; If Tojo were To go The world would be better.