HEROIC CALM

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20077, 25 October 1939, Page 5

HEROIC CALM

PEOPLE OF BRITAIN DAY WAR BROKE OUT GRAPHIC PICTURE GIVEN Written from a village in Wiltshire, on September 3, the day Britain declared war on Germany, a letter received in Now Plymouth from Dr. Doris Gordon. Stratford, gives a graphic picture of conditions in England at that time and the attitude of the people towards Hitler and the war.

“The German-'Russian pact certainly seemed to bring the world toppling about our ears on Tuesday, August 22, but it has been a privilege, well compensating for holiday plans all upset, to be among the English ai this juncture and observe the reactions of the average citizen,” she writes.

“After six months, spent mostly in Switzerland to be near my three juvenile charges, one got comparatively used to major and minor crises and felt it was necessary to invent a new word, as “crisis” could not strictly describe something occurring every four weeks. The feeling last March amongst neutral Continentals was, “Well let Hitler have all Czechoslovakia for a while; he is only gathering into his Reich trouble at the near future.” No “Heiling" of Hitler "We were about to go to Berlin on July 8 when the Zurich Consul practically forbade me to leave my boys. The elder one later had the satisfaction of biking up to and into Germany in company with three Italian students who, strangely enough, announced before they started that ‘they would not gre the "Heil Hitler” salute’ and kept their word. The general impression gathered in North Switzerland from people returning from Germany was that economic conditions were very thin there and that Hitler could not attempt a war.

"There is also a strong feeling amongst vario s Continentals that his present move and amazing pact with Russia is the move of a man driven to desperation lo keep his Nazi machine going. If so, it augurs hopefully for the democracies, but one has to guard against permitting one’s wishes to be father to the thought. "Anyway, rid John Bulf has been magnificent these days, from the flower jcliers and Cockneys in London to the wrinkled old dame in quiet Bath who was heard this afternoon commenting on the outbreak of war and paying, ‘Weil at least we now know where we are.’ That feeling of uncertainty and being constantly keyed up by Hitler’s alarms has, contrary to his expeditions, only made the British public more doggedly determined tu have a war of democratic discipline any time he, Hitler, overstepped file next clearly defined limit.

New Zealand Receptionist “I never saw one white face, one trembling lip, heard one panicked word in those two days when they fully expected bombers over London for the week-end. The chief heroine who crossed my path was Miss Hanlon, receptionist at New Zealand House, who, always noted for tact and courtesy, simply shone in those two days, calmly and cheerfully directing 300 New Zealanders in all how to get boats home and how to get across States. They were ‘phoning her right up to 2 a.m. and when she was not on duty for New Zealanders she was fulfilling air warden duties in her own village, fitting gas masks on babies, and (I have her own word for this) last week filling sand bags at night after her office hours were over.

“The rush for U.S.A. boats lias been positively amusing. Many folk will be sitting dollarless on the Californian coast waiting for a Pacific liner.

“Our host is an air warden and half the village filters into his office at any hour of day and night for gas masks. An air raid siren has been, erected in the onion patch since we arrived and generally young New Zealand is getting a new perspective of civilisation up to date. The evacuation of the 300.000 children appears to have been a masterpiece of organisation and several hundred are in our village. Our children are mistaken for Londoners. So far the city youngsters seem to have fallen on their feet and to have excellent homes hereabouts. I hope the whole 300,000 are as lucky. Black-outs and patching up windows keen us uusy.

“Bets are running high as to whethe. Hitler can run this war into a five or 10-year affair or whether his foes within will let him down at an early dale. If Hitler thought lie could intimidate the British with his war of nerves he has certainly failed and the only result is a united people who, strangely enough, now accept cheerfully a national discipline which 18 months ago they would have described as ‘undemocratic.’"