MERCHANT NAVY

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 255, 25 September 1940, Page 8

MERCHANT NAVY

MAGNIFICENT RECORD

ENEMY DEFIED

(United Press Association—Copyright.) (British Official Wireless.)

(Rec. 11.38 a.m.) RUGBY, Sept. 24. The Minister of Shipping (Mr R. H. Cross) reviewing the year’s war effort, stated that British merchant vessels had unceasingly sailed the oceans of the world.

“Liable to attack throughout by submarine, raider, and mining aircraft, and more recently the E-boat, one might well have supposed our position would be worse than the countries whose ships had bolted to safety, but the fact is we have lost by enemy action only about an eighth of our prewar merchant fleet. We have made up —and more than made up—this and every other loss. Captures, new building, and transfers from foreign flags, have brought us reinforcements in excess of our losses,” stated the Minister. “The overseas supply position and consequently the shipping position, has taken on a wholly different appearance.

“Timber steels, and ferro alloys which formerly came from Scandinavia must now be carried from North America; iron ore formerly derived from Sweden, Norway, and France is fetched to-day from more distant sources. Australian and New Zealand dairy produce takes the place of Danish and Dutch supplies, tiie workshops of the United States’ are turning out engineering products which in the past came from Belgium. Moreover the ships bearing the products of India and the Far East are no longer ordinarily routed through the Mediterranean, and the longer voyage round the Cape means a larger 'number of ships are required to bring the equivalent cargoes. “The scale of our shipping needs, therefore, to be greatly augmented. “But it is also a fact that the fortunes of war have brought us augmented shipping resources on a commensurate scale. Germany, by her inexcusable assaults on Poland, Denmark, Norwa'y, Holland, and Belgium, has put out of emploj’mcnt great quantities of tonnage which formerly served the commercial needs of those peaceful lands. The greater part of this tonnage now carries cargoes for the Allied cause, and compensates for the greater distances, which many supplies must now be carried.”

Mr Cross said a great fleet of British, Allied and neutral vessels were bringing to Phigland between four and five million tons of imports a month (enough to meet essential needs) compared .with a peacetime total of about six million a month. “We are beginning the second year of the war in a good position to feed our people and supply our factories,” he said.