WAR PRECAUTIONS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 14 July 1941, Page 7

WAR PRECAUTIONS

ANONYMOUS ENGLISH UNITS. The peculiar censorship rule, copied from the last war, but now even more stringently enforced, that no mention is to be made by name or designation of English units, while Australians, New Zealanders, Scottish and even Irish, if there are any, can be freely referred to as such, seems again to be giving rise in the minds of the public to the strange notion that the troops of the named portions of the Empire, and particularly of the Dominions, are carrying more than their fair share of the burden of fighting, writes BrigadierGeneral John Charteris. Nothing could be more inaccurate or unjust. When the veil is lifted it will be found, as it was found in the official history of the last war, that great, indeed invaluable, though the services rendered by the troops of the Dominions have been, they have by no means outstripped those of the English units who have had perforce to fight anonyymously. There are obvious military reasons why English units cannot be designated. Each designation would give an identification which might enable the German Intelligence to locate a particular British Division. It is these identifications that are always so eagerly sought by the General Staffs. It would be far better’ if the British General Staff could have had its way in this particular and enforced the complete anonymity of all units in action. It is understood that this was the wish of general headquarters of the B.E.F. in France and Flanders, which sternly refused permission to correspondents to mention one particularly praiseworthy feat by an English county regiment of the New Army. Had it been performed, as it well might have been, by a Dominion or a Scottish unit, its fame would have rung, and rightly, round the Empire.