VERY GALLANT ACTION

Wairarapa Times-Age, 15 December 1939, Page 7

VERY GALLANT ACTION

FOUGHT BV BRITISH SHIPS STATEMENT BY PREMIER IN COMMONS. GERMAN GAS SHELL STORY ■•CHARACTERISTIC.” (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 10.5 a.m.) RUGBY. December 14. The Prime Minister gave the House of Commons an account of the naval action and repeated the denial that gas shells or grenades had ever been made for or used by the Royal Navy. He declared that the German statement that the Graf Spee losses were due to mustard gas was "characteristic" and without foundation. He continued: "Although details arc not yet available. I think it is already apparent that a very gallant action has been fought by three comparatively small British ships against a much more heavily armed adversary, the result of which may well be to free the South Atlantic from the depredations of this raider.” The House would also welcome news that the same British submarine which reported sighting the Bremen, later sank a U-boat and torpedoed an enemy cruiser. After reference to the air, the Premier proceeded to speak of Empire co-operation and ended with the declaration that the Allies were fighting to defend Christian principles and ideals.

WATCH & WARD

IN ESTUARY OF RIVER PLATE AM ADMIRALTY REPORT. BRITISH REINFORCEMENTS. (Received This Day. 9.30 a.m.) LONDON, December 14. An Admiralty communique does not reoort the number killed and injured in the Graf Spee action. It states that two cruisers pursued the Graf Spee towards the River Plate and now, strongly reinforced, await her in the Estuary. Very large forces had searched the South Atlantic, both by air and sea, for weeks. GERMAN LIES ADMIRAL GRAF SPEE UNDAMAGED. "COMPLETE VICTORY" CLAIMED. (Received This Day, 10.50 a.m.) LONDON. December 14. According to the official Berlin News Agency, the latest Montevideo despatches state that the Graf Spee shows no signs of damage and that life aboard is normal. The control towers and the hull are intact. Other German reports continue shamelessly to claim a complete victory. Thus, the semi-official “Deutscher Dienst” says the Ajax fled and the Exeter was shelled to pieces, while other reports claim that the Achilles was sunk.

The Berlin radio, on the other hand, admits that the Graf Spee was hit several times, but says she put the Exeter out of action, and heavily damaged another cruiser.

IDENTITY OF RAIDER STILL DOUBTED IN LONDON. POSSIBLE CHANGES OF NAME. (Received This Day, 9.0 a.m.) LONDON, December 14. It is reported from Berlin, that the authorised spokesman, confirmed that the German warship concerned was the Graf Spee and not the Admiral Scheer. It is claimed that six British sea captains, presumably from British ships sunk by the Graf Spee, were aboard her during the fight. It is also claimed that all three British cruisers are sheltering at Montevideo. London sources, however, are still doubtful as to the ship’s identity. It is suspected that one pocket battleship has been changing her name frequently since she escaped from Germany, operating one day as the Von Scheer and another as the Graf Spee. There is no confirmation in London of the report that the British cruisers put in to Montevideo.