HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Seaforth News, 1943-07-08, Page 6TH4 SkIJAFORTH NIT+ WS
THURSDAY, JULY 8, 1943
Battleship tirs A
Baroaaside
' By W, F. Martin in "Britain."
T suppose T can claim the privilege
of" having. been present at as many
naval bombardments as any layman
.—fpr in tWe years with the Eastern
Mediterranean Fleet I: saw the fif-
teen -inch broadsides of battleships
poured at dawn into Bardia, Tobruk,
and Tripoli, besides the night bom-
bardment of Valona. I watched from
the bridge as cruisers pounded the
coast roads of Libya and Syria; and
saw the vicious strafing of enemy po-
sitions from innumerable destroyers.
Let me try to give you a picture
of all the planning that goes to make
up the simple sentence of the com-
munique: "Enemy positions on the
coast were shelled by our naval' un-
its."
When you go aboard a warship for
such an operation you have no idea
what is in store. Indeed, genuinely
ignorant officers in the wardroom
will pull your leg with some such re-
marks ' as, "well, correspondent, you
ought to know all about it. What are
we going to do?"
Apart from the eaptain and com-
mander, the only officers to have any
idea will be the navigator (for he
has to be given charts on which to
plot the firing course) and a gunnery
officer, who has been provided with
data of enemy shore batteries, land-
marks and other details. By these he
can study the tactics of his bombard-
ment to obtain maximum effect with-
out unnecessary risk to"the ship.
All these details and orders have
come from the Admiral's Operation
Staff, so already quite a few people
know, The smaller that figure can be
kept the better chance has the fleet
of appearing literally out of the blue
without meeting a reception of sub-
marines or specially laid minefields
which a forewarned enemy might
prepare. Air counter-attack can nev-
er be dodged in the Mediterranean,
but at least secrecy reduces to a min-
imum the chances of a bomber con-
aentration to meet the fleet.
Thus only when we are well out
to sea does the commander broad-
cast on the loudspeakers to the.ships
company telling them what the oper-
ation is. Then I feel at liberty to vi-
sit the pilot and pore over his fascin- , Canning" which has been prepared
ating chart in the little house at the by the Consumer Section, Dominion
back of the bridge. The chart is pin- I Department of Agriculture. Though
pointed with all the highly secret de-. the amount of sugar is limited due
tails of hazards we know about, as Ito the war, it does not follow that
well as of the assistance we get from the greatest amount cannot be cann-
our own submarines or some other ed, because, in the mtater of fruit,
"friendly" arrangements. A fine pen- after the sugar has been stretched
cil line, with hours and minutes to its utmost, fruit can be canned
marked' at various points on it, rep- without sugar.
resents the firing course. Everything The bulletin states: "All fruits
is in pencil so that it can be rubbed inlay be successfully canned without
out after and the chart returned un' sugar. Use boiling water instead of
blemished to store. Reports of re- ! syrup. Add five minutes to time of
connaissance planes and the ground i sterilization given in the timetable.
intelligence may be pouring in to the ,Strawberries, raspberries, blueber-
last moment. I ries, cherries, currants, plums, and
As the blackness of the night is rhubarb can be packed in sealers—
giving place to the first gray streaks crushed until the juice overflows,
of dawn, every man is standing at and sterilized allowing 5 minutes
his action station. Anti-aircraft guns .longer than time required when syr
and look -outs are manned, main tur- • up is used. Fruit canned without
rets "closed up," the engineer offic- ,sugar is excellent for pies and des-
ers available stand by with their serts and may be sweetened as used
specialist crews, and the ship's ARP with a little sugar from the weekly
posts—known as damage control— ration. Chemical compounds and
prepare to meet the havoc of shell or canning powders are not recommend -
bomb. The doctors wait at their im- ed because heat sterilization is suf
provised dressing -station 'with mor-ificient £or preservation."
phis syringes and first-aid kit. The bulletin contains information
Every fitting in the ship—such as and directions on every phase of
lights, pictures, small doors of cab- canning fruits and vegetables in the
ins—has been removed, but even so borne, and many practical recipes for
the blast of our first salvo will split jams and jellies. It may be obtained
and rend half a dozen at six unsus- by writing to Dominion Department
of Agriculture, Ottawa.
petted points.
Up on the bridge feeling becomes prevent Bruises
tense as the pilot, now at the helm,
says to the captain, "We are on the Have More Meat
firing course, sir, with ninety seconds
to zero." A considerable percentage of the
Your stomach begins to feel a live stock marketed in Canada has
little empty in spite of that lovely bruises—and bruises mean waste
cup of hot cocoa you had half an food, wasted labor—and of all things
hour ago. 'these days, wasted meat, say officials
Not a signal flashes between the of the Production Division, Domin-
ships as the coastline emerges from ion Department of Agriculture. In a
the gloom of night and suddenly year's time in Canada the quantity
changes with the quickening light in- of meat wasted by bruising is en -
to hard, silhouetted lines, ough to feed several thousand per-
The gunnery officer, from his sons for a number of months, This
perch aloft, tells the captain he is waste by bruising can be prevented.
satisfied with his sight of the target Bruise prevention to save meat is
sand the ranges. worth making a feature in a wartime
There is nothing more to be done live stock conservation program.
except plug your ears a little more Farmers and drovers can help pre -
firmly, ease the Balaclava helmet of vent bruises by avoiding: — rough
white cotton, which is your anti- handling or striking animals with
flash head-dress, and gulp, waiting canes, whips, clubs or pitchforks;
for the two words you can see the also by avoidin govercrowding of
captain is about to utter, They animals in chutes or trucks or ears.
come.
the ship reeling.
Brown and white smoke is hint/W-
ing over the sea, but .au offshore
wind is already carrying it seaward,
and soon the blank mute Strip of
land that is enemy territory is wait-
ing for you to hit it again.
You feel you cannot stand an
hour of this, but already your
thoughts are caught by the majestic
aspect of the other ships, with their
tongues of fiance licking out after
thebrown and whiteclouds they
have belched.
Many seconds later the echoing.
noise of their' explosions rumble
round. Majestic they are, indeed, as
they steam on, guns recoiling •vic-
iously and then slowly resuming the.
firing position, slavering, as it were,
with a last wisp of smoke.
Suddenly there isa shout: "Here
it comes!"
Someone has seen` a little golden
wink of light from the shore. Soon
there is a whistling. It rises to a
scream, and at the same moment a e
giant spout of smoke jumps from the
sea some distance away,
Now the crash of the ship's salvo,
the more soothing cannonade of the
consorts, the eerie whistle and dis-
concerting scream of enemy shells
from the shore are all mixed up to-
gether, punctuated now and then by
the unpleasantly near explosion of
what the naval man calls an "enemy
prof,"
Men grin at you joyfully in excite-
ment, or with the rather tense grins
of taut nerves,
Believe me, there are no armchair
seats in a naval bombardment. You
are in it whether you like it or not
until you get to harbor to have a liv-
ely "run ashore" with your ship-
mates, who also want to relieve their
feelings.
Can Do Canning
Without Sugar
Because it is necessary in wartime
to save the greatest amount of fruits
and vegetables for winter use, home
canning is now of greater import-
ance. Home canning may be carried
out successfully and without waste,
if strict adherence is given to the
directions to be found in the house-
hold Bulletin No. 751 "Wartime
Taking care to see that injuries to
"Open fire!" he yells down the animals from 'bumping. against gates,
voice -pipe. A little gong, like an om- posts, doors, or sharp corners are
nibusbell, goes "Ping, pig," You shut avoided. Loading and unloading
your eyes, crouch a bit, and hold slowly is recommended, so, too, is
your ears. the use of the separating gates sup -
The next moment you are sur- plied by the railways, for use in live
rounded by a flash that penetrates stock cars. •
your closed eyelids as easily as vivid With a little more care in the pro -
lightning. The explosion seems to per handling of meat animals farm_
punch you, the sound waves seem to era can get practically all their live
apply artificial respiration, the deck stock into actual use—and this is
you stand on shudders, and you feel very important now,
The Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air
Force, co-operating with other United Nations Air
Forces, have forged a mighty link in the war -time
bomber route which joins the rugged Labrador coast to
embattled Britain. The Canadian -built outpost at Goose
Bay is one of the world's largest and most important
air bases. The combined air forces operate the air Tine
taking the vital ships to battle zones, Canadaian Army
units guard the area and Canadian construction gangs
enlarge and maintain .the outpost facilities. Mighty
bombers are readied for the trip to Britain by the Royal
Air Force Training Command. Runways going into the
distance are 6,000 feet long,
1
THREE SERVICES BACK MALTA'S ALL-OUT OFFENSIVE
For month after month of intensive blitz Malta showed the world how bravely she could "take it." Now,
backed by men of all three services, Army, Royal Air Force and Fleet Air Arm, Malta is hitting back. Axis forces
in the Mediterranean are feeling the full weight of Malta's offensive.
Picture shows: The Army take a hand; a Bren Gun Carreir towing trolley loads of bombs to the dispersal
points ata Malta airfield.
counter
Check Books
•
We Fire Selling Quality Books
Books are Well Made, Carbon is Clean and Copies . Readily.
All styles, Carbon Leaf and Black Back. Prices as Low as You
Can Get Anywhere. Get our Quotation on Your Next Order.
•
The Seaf.orth News
SEAFORTH, ONTARIO,