BRITAIN’S EFFORT

Wairarapa Times-Age, 25 July 1942, Page 3

BRITAIN’S EFFORT

IN WAR FOR WORLD FREEDOM MR EDEN’S SURVEY UNPARALLELED PRODUCTION OF MUNITIONS. EIGHTY PER CENT. SENT OVERSEAS. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, July 23. Declaring that the world struggle was now at its climax, the Foreign Secretary, Mr Eden, in a speech at Nottingham, again expressed the determination of the United Nations to fight the war to a victorious conclusion, no matter how long the fight might prove to be. He also expressed the opinion that the outcome of the present battles would go far to decide the duration of the war. Two years ago, said Mr Eden, the British Empire had stood alone against the 120,000,000 of the Axis Powers. Now Britain and the Allies were again facing one of the gravest hours of the war. Britons should draw inspiration from the past, and confront the formidable dangers that had to be overcome. Today, as two years ago, the British Commonwealth had faith in its destiny, and still stood for the continuance of freedom.

Because they had dared greatly, they had given a chance of salvation to mankind. When the British were at the height of their danger and the depth of their defencelessness, they had thought of others and had struck at the enemy, at the risk of leaving the centre of the Empire open to attack. While the people of Britain had withstood almost constant bombardment, the Italians and Germans had been fought in Africa and Greece, and those battles had disorganised the German plans and delayed the attack on Russia. History might well record that the Allies had saved the world by the toll they took of the enemy and the delay they imposed. Mr Eden paid a tribute to the Royal Navy and the Mercantile Marine for the way in which they had enabled Britain to carry on and give Russia all assistance possible. Industrial Britain had also done magnificent work to replace industries which Russia had lost. There was good reason to believe that British factories were turning out more in proportion to population than any others in the world. Japan had succeeded at the outset because she had crippled the American Fleet and Britain had neither ships nor men to hold her Far Eastern possessions. That did not mean that Britain had been, keeping muunitions of war at home, because she had been sending 80 per cent, of her output overseas, and every soldier for whom she could find shipping. No setback or disappointment or lost battle could alter the resolution of the United Nations to continue the fight against the Axis till the dictator Powers were finally disarmed and rendered powerless to do further injury to mankind. The clearly established policy of frightfulness adopted by Germany in the occupied countries had proved the necessity for that.