FATE OF WARSAW

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24418, 2 October 1940, Page 8

FATE OF WARSAW

GERMANS BEING REPAID . •/'s.: ■; *' V • • -..'• * ' POLJSH AIR;iQUADRONS NXzf; PUpS; SHOT DOWN . ***’* njrlttelv Official Wireless) f-,',-? .Press Association) J (By •'Eleptrtt-'Telegraph—CopyrigUt) Sept. 30. ' • on the garni-., of Warsaw by-the Bplish Minaster - the. ruthless.-and ’systematic destruction of the Poli|S:piipitari : mans, afteitYts 'uefericfe's Had beefi . overwhelmed, with ; the. 'resistance >/fo the similar terroristic ;on .if London, backed by .'defeii'ceS tynich > proved themselves rrnore y'than' a 1. match for the German Air Force. €■ Professor Stronski says: “ To-day }r. is the anniversary of the entry of % the German troops into Warsaw. The % story of the siege of Warsaw begins i. on the first day of the outbreak of 5 hostilities—at dawn on September M 1, 1939, with the invasion of Poland by the air forces of Germany, withti out a declaration of war. The first y air raid on Warsaw took place at 6 f a.m. on September 1. On September V 18, after the German ultimatum to % the city to surrender had been ref jected, there began the systematic f destruction of the city by artillery £ bombardment and air bombing, t which lasted without interruption $ for 10 days. By September 24 all the "f public utility services had been de- ! stroyed. The city lacked water, % electricity, and gas. Bread became V scarce and ammunition nearly ext hausted, but the defenders of War- % saw, aided by the civilian popula--4' tion under the leadership of their M heroic Lord Mayor, .Stefan Starzynii: ski, fought on. H “A City of Ruins ” ,>i “Infuriated by the continued ref sistance, the Germans increased the f intensity of their bombing and bombardment, which they maintained I; for three days, and which came to it a climax on September 27, The X next day the Warsaw Command, % lacking all means of defence, capitu•f, lated. When, on October 2, the German ‘ army entered Warsaw, the § capital of Poland was a city of || ruins, graveyards, hunger, and dis€’fiSo. HH “No one in Poland regrets this 'it destruction. Every Pole knows the of Warsaw was unavoidii>able, because through it Poland de- ' w monstrated before the world her determination to defend the, freedorp :attd independence l 6f The .natipitj just, V ; ,a?CLoh'don densbngffates Row .the of -Great- Bntain : ;to her Empire and the. civilisavv'ftjQh of thg .wholftpworldL London ##ls;jnadj£il§-‘ owh : ."decision, with the -the'; df..,Warsaw,,; but—fortuniCot r the. :, fr€ted6Tari’;Df the"%btldr-" . adv.an-t than- , r “After three weeks of the present blitzkrieg •on London it is possible to draw a comparison between the -two capitals. Warsaw -was completely isolated from the outer -. world. The ring of besieging armies 7. cut off all supplies of food and ammunition. The defence of Warsaw '‘had neither a balloon barrage nor, after a few days, an air force. Its anti-aircraft artillery was silenced ip the’ second week of the siege. The . German heavy artillery destroyed all public utility sendees, and the Polish capita} had no water,, gas, or electricity. London’s Defences Intact “ London, on the other hand, has all its marvellous defences intact. The city is functioning normally as the capital of the Empire. Thanks to the might of the British Navy, it can draw unhampered upon the resources of the world. An elaborate balloon barrage is protecting the " city. Powerful anti-aircraft artillery is increasing its strength every day. - The city is plentifully supplied with food, but, above all. the defences of London can rely unori the assured and growing superiority of the R.A.F. over the, German Luftwaffe. Owing to the enormous strength of the British fighter squadrons, the Germans can hardly reach London during the day. and during the night they do not dare to fly low enough to cause as much damage as they did in Warsaw. London may feel secure under the protection of the R.A.F. Every day brings new victories to the British Hurricanes and Spitfires. “The Polish fighting pilots are. particularly happy to be able to have their share in the Battle of London. ■ Already the famous Polish SquadOn No. 303 has shot down during the month of September over 100 German planes. By its successes in the Battle of London in September, 1940, the Polish Air Force is repaying the Germans for the tragic fate of Wai’saw in 1939.”