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Zurich Herald, 1942-03-05, Page 7VOICE OF THE • PRESS SIX WORDS b An unnamed young soldier out In Hawaii has a message for you. He didn't know he. had a mem- sage. But he had. ,A. correspondent, touring the new defences of Hawaii found him in a secluded dugout, where he was sleeping on the hard ground. Asked if that wasn't 'pretty tough, the young. moldier grinned, spat, and deliv- ered his message: "Was. Not now. Used to it." The sooner we get into that frame of mind about how tough it is to undergo the thousand little inconveniences that go with war, as well as the real sacrifices, the better. The end of the war will be In sight when 11,000,000 people are saying about how tough it is to make their own sacrifices: "Was. Not now. Used to it." —Calgary Albertan —0_ "IF WE CARE ENOUGH" Mise Byrne Hope Saunders, 'peaking to women of Western Ontario on the price ceiling law, gave all of Canada a motto for this war. Women, she said, can be unbeatable, "If we care enough." What better rallying cry could be coined for this country at war? in it lies the whole spirit that wb must have to win. Canada has everything for victory, either in war or peace. Nothing on earth can beat us, "If we care enough." Thus far, there have been too many evidences that we do not care enough, do not care enough to serve, do not care enough to work, do not care enough to sac- rifice, do not care enough to give. "If we care enough,". we ca.n go forward without one worry for the future. If we do not, the struggle is lost right now. —Windsor Star —O— OUR DEBT TO RUSSIA Our debt to the Soviet is a hundredfold heavier than is the Soviet debt to us. For all we need to do le contemplate what would have happened to us had Stalin chosen to go along with the Axis —as so many writers predicted he would do just a year ago. We have our hands full as it is, with Hitler and Japan—even when a million Russian lives have been sacrificed to help hold our lines. Had those lives been sacrificed to break us, we would not be argu- ing about the petty things which concern us in Canada today. —Vancouver News -Herald —0— TOO MUCH ROPE Eskimo sends word from the northern tip of Alaska that he's corning into Nome in the spring for a divorce. We always thought the chance of a husband to stay out all of a six-month night was too much of an opportunity to last very long. —Windsor Star —0— DON'T FORGET THE GUN! A famed biologist thinks the great American sense of humor will defeat the Jap. Particularly if one has a gun trained on the fellow, while saying, "This one will slay you." —Chicago News —0— "FIRELESS" COOKER A rich Illinois bachelor married his cools. That's reducing the marital chance to a minimum. An- other newspaper paragrapher re- marked that he got a fireless cooker. —Chatham News —o— JAPS ACT AS ONE Let's face it; 80,000,000 Japs who think and hate and act as one can lick 130,000,000 people who won't pull together. —Detroit Free Press —0— HEADACHE TABLETS There may be something in the theory that the modern income- tax form was devised by the mak- ers of headache tablets. —Ottawa Citizen South African Sheep Help British. Sailors The skins of South African sheep are helping to save the lives •of shipwrecked British sailors. Sheepskin gloves, large and warm, are now included in a. life- 'aoat's equipment. I+ine gloves are got from each sheepskin and big quantities are being turned out by the makers. They are also prdoucing a great member of other types of gloves, mostly for the Royal Air Force, aaot to mention leather flying hel- mets at the rate of a thousand a week: The Army is getting from them glovees of ample size for protecting ellen at bayonet practice and they are also distributing quantities of boxing gloves to the forces gen- erally. The Amazon River is navigable ter ocean Steamers for 2,300 3aailere. THE WAR - WEEK -- Commentary on Current Events National Unity Strengthened By Changes In British Cabinet A wave of criticism has been slowly gathering force against Prirne Minister Churchill's gov- ernment as the British lost hold in Singapore, as the Imperials fell basis in Libya, as the German ships of war escaped through the Strait of Dover. The nation was demanding explanation, insisting in changes in the cabinet in order to strengthen Britain's war effort. Public opinion in Great Britain is a mighty force, and Mr. Church. ill is a strong-minded man. Such, however, is the potency of British democracy that he bowed to the demands of an aroused people by making changes essential to the strengthening of his government. The shake-up was a thorough one and the present small group of cabinet members will now be able to devote 'all 'their energies to the conducting of the war. Closer Ties With Russia Sir Stafford Cripps, former Ambassador to Russia, was ap- pointed leader of the House of Commons. His entry into the cabinet appeared to be a response to growing demands that his views on closer relation with Russia be given more authority. Sir Staf- ford knows Russia, her strength and her trends. Isn't Russia the only nation that has conducted a brilliant war aganist Hitler, aha the only nation that has carried out a grand strategy? General MacArthur, in a greeting to the Red Army, said: "In my lifetime I have participated in a number of wars and have witnessed others, as well as studying in great detail the campaigns of outstanding leaders of the past. In none have I observed such effective re- sistance to the heaviest blows of a hitherto undefeated enemy fol- lowed by a smashing counter-af- tack. The scale and grandeur of this effort marks it as the great- est military achievement in all history." Task of Red Army The courage and endurance of the Russians must be backed up with the machinery of war, and Britain and the United States must supply all that is necessary to enable the Russians to sus- tain their offensive against the. invaders and to drive them from their land. The task of the Red Army is clearly stated in Premier Stalin's speech to Soviet Russia's 200,000,000 people in the twenty- fourth anniversary of the found- ing of the Red Army of Russia. He said "statements appear from time to time in the foreign press to the effect that the Red Aa -my aims at the destruction of the German people. This is a wic- ked, foolish libel. It is probable that this war will bring about the end of Hitler's clique. We would welcome this solution. But it would be ridiculous to identify Hitler's clique with the German people and the German state.'. History teaches that Hitlers come and go, but the German people and the German state remain The task of the Red Army consists of liberating from the Genian invaders our Soviet land, in liber• Ming from the whip of the Ger- man invaders the citizens of our villages and towns." Responsibility For Defeats It is important to understand that responsibility for the unsat- isfactory, conduct of the war does not fall on any one man, but on a system that made early defeats inevitable. Before this war, the 'British Empire was a loose association of nations and colonies, relying on the mother country for Protec- tion. None maintained an ade- quate fighting force, not even Britain herself. Britain did, how- ever, have a powerful navy which was considered sufficient to pro- tect her possessions and com- merce in all parts of the world. Reliance was also placed in the French fleet, particularly for con- trol of the Mediterranean. Bri- - depended on the French armies—they failed. She de- pended on American naval super- iority in the Pacific—that failed. Task of British The task of total war was too great for British preparedness. Britain was called upon to protect her island home, to safeguard the Mediterranean shores of Africa, to build up an army in the Middle East, to arm her forces in the Far East, to furnish war mater- ials to Russia and China. It was not so much a matter of faulty strategy on Britain's part but a case of sheer physical incapacity that caused initial re- verses. The British Empire was not equipped for war and no government, whether headed by Churchill or any other man, could have hoped to achieve victories with the materials on hand. In the reconstruction of his cabinet, Mr. Churchill retained the post of Minister of Defence but, to free himself of routine duties, appointed Mr. Clement R. Attlee to the new position of - Deputy Prime Minister. The changes made by Mr. Churchill should meet with the widest approval. There is a feel- ing of great relief that the Primase Minister has by his prompt ac- tion eased the growing tension in Parliament. Renewed confidence will now be felt in the cabinet and the national unity will be strengthened for whatever lies ahead. LIFE'S LIKE THAT By Fred ]_Fuser "You dance heavenly, Mr. Bolt!" WINTER CONVOY By Lieut. E. H. Bartlett, R.C.N.V.R. Behind closed doors a question of naval warfare was under die- eussion, "If any enemy submarine is sighted, • the sighting ship must open fire immediately," a quietly- spoken officer was saying. "If you are not sure whether he's an enemy, open fire anyway," he continued. Then, grimly, "we must not waste opportunities." There were appreciative nods from his audience. They were captains all, masters of ships bound for the war areas. Not captains of ships built for war, but men whose peacetime cargo carriers have been armed with guns against both submarines and aircraft, so that they will have some means of defence and so that "opportunities will not be wasted." They were sitting in what the war has made familiar as a :`con- voy conference," getting their final instructions before their fleet sailed from a Canadian port, outward bound with food and sup- plies and vital necessities for those other parts of an Empire at war'. It was a formal conference, with formality natural to men bearing responsibility. There was nothing of the atmosphere of class -room ar lecture hall, though, for this was a conference of equals recognizing that each had his own duty to perform, and that each was dependent upon the other. On the one hand were highly trained, keenly specialized Cana- dian naval officers, with all the experience and knowledge of the Navy behind. them. And all the knowledge, too, of the hazards into which the conferees were go- ing,•and which they were to share. On the other hand were the captains of the merchant ships, Each, in his own ship supreme. Bach, after years of command, grown used to independent action and to making his own decisions. And each, at the dictates of war, abandoning his prized independ- ence for the extra strength and the extra safety which conte with the sending of ships to sea in closely guarded convoys. They were veterans of the At- lantic Battle at the conference. Presiding was a "convoy commo- dore," the man who was to direct the fleet from the bridge of one of the merchant ships. Already, this war, he has many crossings behind him, and a reputation for "getting the ships through." "Getting them through," he said bluntly, was the only thing which mattered to him. "I don't intend to leave any- body behind, we all will get across together," he declared. "We don't want any stragglers, and we don't want anybody losing the convoy at night. If you are hav- ing any trouble, let me know, and we'll do something about it." Calmly and confidently he out- lined his plans. Each captain had a copy of the convoy orders, and a chart showing the cruising dis- positions of the ships. Orders and charts were given close attention as the commodore went over then point by point. This to be done if a ship was damaged; that if the enemy at- tacked. Precautions to be taken against making too much smoke, which would give away the con- voy position in daytime; or against showing lights, the flare of a careless match or the glare of an improperly shielded lamp, which would draw danger at night. Smaller points, too, which, these Oren of experience recognize as being imiiortant. The need for dumping rubbish overboard only at certain dark hours, so that no trail may be left on the sea's sur- face to guide the submarines which strike from below. Care that no slick of oil be left to pro- vide yet another trail. Carefully the captains noted each point as it was made. Thee wear no uniforms, and do not claim to be fighting men, but they are men wise in the ways of sea warfare and know the tricks of circumventing the enemy as well as the art of fighting hint if he appears. To them this study of convoy orders was not an empty gesture, staled through repetition, but a meeting of their board of strategy, making ours that all Wass in order before theirs tl et put out to sea. Sitting with there were uni- formed officers of the fighting service, captains of Canadian as. cort ships which were to throw their shield around the merchant fleet, They, too, studied their orders in intent silence, complet- ing their plans so that the protec- tion they could give would be of the greatest. The conference drew to a close. The commodore had given his last verbal orders, his next would be by signal from the bridge of the merchant ship in which he would lead the :deet. There remained only his pod wishes. "A good and safe passage to you all," he said, "and the best of good luck. I hope we meet safely on the other side." The wishes were echoed by the Naval Control Service Officer and by the Naval Officer in charge of the port where the fleet had as- sembled. Not effusive wishes, by any means, just a quiet but ex- tremely sincere "safe and pleas- ant voyage." There is no room for demon- strativeness in a convoy confer- ence, and the men who take their part in it are not looking for kind words, More sstlafying to these merchant ship captains was the knowledge that the naval auth- orities had bent their every effort to making their voyage "safe and plearaut" That they had wtwteho t over cite arrival of their Ships in Canadian waters, had cleared *b way tor them through the intrios, oi,s of unloading and loading, re. fuelling and taking ,supplies oz board, arranged for minor repaine. and been on hand to straighten away the difficulties and delay which beset a ship In poet. And, in all this, had done their job under the cloak of secreey with which they cover ship movements as one of the most important fac- tors for safety, The conference broke up, and there was a general mingling of all those who had taken part. A senior naval officer (four rings of gold nn his sleeve told of his captain's rank,' and rows of col- oured ribbons on his coat told of the service he had already given his country) was host, for the conference had been held in the ward room of his base. For that matter, he had been host to the captains for the time they had been in port, throwing the ward room open to them as a club, where they could relax in their short hours off duty. Business, for the moment, was over. The men who had mot, on equal foot- ing, as conferees at a board of strategy now were meeting as mu- tually appreciative friends. There was good reason for their easy friendship for the bond be- tween them, these captains in lounge suits and their brothers in uniform, has been forged strongly during the months they have been fighting — and winning — the Battle of the Atlantic together. IV! AN MAURICE iRWPN A Weekly Column About This and That in The Canadian Army Funny how on thing leads to another, isn't it? Last week's column ended with a reference to the pronunciation of the word, "Lieutenant." Two correspondents and a large volume of the Oxford Dictionary supplied information on the origin of British mispronunciation of an Anglicized French word. As the two correspondents (could they be the sum total of this column's readers?) also made some entirely irrelevant comments upon the writer's mentality we'll pass them by and concentrate on the diction- ary's explanation. Apparently both pronunciations are correct. The dictionary points out that the derivation is frons. the Latin "locum tenons" which be- came in French, "lieu"—in place of, "tenant"—to hold. In the 19th and 15th centuries English scriveners wrote the word vari- ously as "lieu" and "liev"—ten- ant and the latter spelling later degenerated into "luv" or "luf" —tenant. Hence the British pro•• nuns iation—"leftenant." Yes, I know the pronunciation doesn't match the spelling. But just think for a minute—how do you pronounce "plough," "cough," or "through," for example? The foregoing isn't as irrele- vant as it might seem for the subject of today's essay is --offi- cers. Officers all the way from Lance -Corporal to Field Marshal. You didn't know Lance -Corpor- als were officers? Sure they are —and very important ones, too! To be meticulous, he is a Non - Commissioned officer, one of the three types of officers to be found in the individual citizen's army. Another type is the officer who holds His Majesty's commission ianging in rank from Second Lieutenant to Field Marshal. There are more Lieutenants than Field Marshals! And thee: are more Lance -Cor- porals than Lieutenants. To get the record straight here is the infantry list. Lance -Cor oral, Corporal, Sergeant, Company Quartermaster Sergeant, all these are Non -Commissioned Officers. Next conies, Company Sorecall+ Major, Regimental Quartermaste1 Sergeant, Regimental Sergeant- Major; these are warrant officers. Commissioned officers are, Second Lieutenant, Lieutenant, Captain, Major, Lieutenant-Colonel, Col- onel, Brigadier, Major-General, Lieutenant -General, General and Field Marshal. And don't ask me why a Lieut- enant -General is senior to a Major- General when a Lieutenant is jun- ior to a Major! Where does the Canadian Army get its officers? The answer is, from the ranks. Every candidate for a commission today, except in a few cases where civilian tech- nical qualifications are the decid- ing factor in the appointment, is dressing in khaki serge at the time his name is considered. He may reach commiss;or,.ed rank in one of two ways. I al- most said one is the hard way. As a matter of feet both ways are hard from the point of view of the outsider but quite possible of attainment, by the soldier who has the necessary quality of lead- ership, educational qualificat.ons, and guts. Many an officer has worked his way up through the eon-ccu mis- sioned and warrant ranks. ;h- ers, and they are more numerous when there is 0 WV. - on, have 1:1201 selected as privates to go to the Officer• Train;ag Centre. for a strenuous course. In each can tlx: r<','u'.: +"t 7ad a - tion is made by the, man's com- manding officer who sair;Iir, the name to the I)ist:'ict Uifl:zer Blanding If the hatter cc,e._,a's, the natrp is placed apo: the eligible list and in due sour-. , ora var'a.ncles occur .it '`the i::,'. 'r. centre, the (oteeyo a:'ii •e.r eon!, up for training. Appointments to the rat,].. of Lance -Corporal and pronlot'o:.:i to higher non-commissioned issioned are trade by regimental ini- tnanders upon the recoa„;r,c:.;da- tion of Sampan, er other offid,re. Warrant office,:s. with the e: -cep - tion of Regimental and Staff Sergeants -Major whose • wan"' nts are issued by the Minister of lda- tional Defence, are promoted in the sante way. U one tit;ng you may be eel• tain—the man v ho leads your boy into *mien, or your boy, when be leads others into nation, will be well-trained and thoroughly e in- petent to undertake his heavy responsibilities. REG'LAR FELLERS -Correcting a Mistake YOU SEE WHAT THAT 514m SAYS' DON'TCHA ? WEL.LesTAKE MY ADVICE AN' WALK! r AW, PHOOEY/ 1 r4 TOO TIRED TO WAI.Ft / .I'M GONNA HAIL A RIDE FROM "i'HI'i CAR COMIN' DOWM THE ROAD NOW WELL PINHEAD CERTA!N'T HA5 NERVE,HEY,WHERE YA CwOI1,4; PINHEAD ? By GENE BYRNES rr- 71-IOUqHT 1I-IA1 KID WANTED A. RDE 14r. O. eJ• hut. Dalen Arl righty reee:aed t ra w+ai:«.o..catmresae�m:.em..,d SIOSWer seeesai's-1 iu.:Fvaaa'.s..,rc