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The Brussels Post, 1942-12-23, Page 3DAILY MILEAGE OF B.G,A.T.P. PLANES In three years the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan has grown from a vision and a few blueprints to a vital factor in the confident hopes of the U-nited Nations. The Plan whicb already has placed thousands of trained airmen in the aerial fighting fronts of the world is still growing and its production of aircrew is still accelerating-. Day in and day out, trainiag planes of the BCATP in Canada fly an average of 2,000,000 miles, Trips to the moon are still fantastic but the distance travelled by training aircraft is ap- proximately the equivalent of nine one-way trips to or from the moon. CHRISTMAS IN P E -WAR By: George M. Speeclie There were eight of us all told and we were gathered from widely different parts of the world, The Christmas season is always a epe- cial time when sailors foregather. Even after the lapse of years, I recall that big fellow from some- where In South America, the two sailor Iads from Glasgow and two from London—both pairs appar- ently anxious to compete for a prize in their fine sense of humour. There was a man from Denmark, also; but the one who interested me more than others was a young sailor from Toronto. It was Christmas Eve, and prep- arations for the celebration of Christmas were abundant, The Christmas tree—the largest that could be had—ay at the end of the Hall, waiting for the sailors from the home vessels to erect in its proper plebe and to decorate according 'to the usage of Past * * This place of meeting for those young sailors 'from all over tae seven seas was the British & American Sailors' Institute in Ham- burg, Germany, 1 was there for years as the Chaplain to the sail- ors frequenting that great port. "Great" is permissible, for at that time it was the third. or fourth largest port in the world. On this Christmas Eveiwe gathered around the fire. As Chaplain, I suggested that we each tell our best Christ- mas story. It was simple to get -Mein to talk. The galling ship .stories were particularly interest- ing. The Toronto seller confined British Colonial Empire Is Not Corning To End Lord Cranborne Asserts Cit. leans Have Mission To Do Replying authoritatively to wit ice of imperial 'poliey, Lord Oran. borne declared not long ago that "the British Colonial Empire is not coming to an end." "The work we have to do is only beginning," the House of ' Lords was told by Lord Oran. borne, retiring colonial secretary, who replaced Sir Statford Crams as lord privy seal in the recent cabinet shakeup. 'We citizens of the British Ulm pire have a mission to perform essential. to the welfare of the world . . . to ensure the survival of the way of life for which the tinned Nation a are fighting and in harmony with the principles of the Atlantic charter," he said. "In that great mission we must not and Filial] not tail." "Let uti not forget," he • said, "that what stood between Hitler and absolute victory in 1940 after the fall of Matinee was not Bri- tain, an isolated island standing alone In the Bea, but the British Empire, that commonwealth of face peoples and dependenefee vrtitea only. clung • clotier as the Mager grew." "We sey, and hada, that the ahimatia objective of our policy le promote selageeernment In the eethniee," ho said, • himself for the most peat to the Christmas stories he had heard at' the Sunday School of which his parents were members. He told his stories differently to the other men. He was educated and had had experience on the Lakes as a sailor. All would have gone well but father and he had had a seri- ous misunderstanding that drove theyoung chap to sea. Something opened the gates of memo-ry and he thought of Home. There was a motto on the wall just over his head "A Home From Home" which probably made him think of his. home in Toronto. We encouraged him to talk of it for it was Christ- mas. * * Strangely enough, perhaps, Christmas was usually a quiet day at the Sailors' Institute at Ham- burg. For one thing the Maces oa the British Consulate downstairs were closed. The vessels going to the British Isles and the "Tiaurops" to all parts of the world had a free day as Inc as it could possibly be arranged, and the English people in Hamburg had their Christmas at home with their friends. It was the occasion for the quiet eaten.- tainment of "Boys away from Home"—lonely lads on the great sea of life, and our Toronto friend was among them. There were quiet heart to heart talks with him about his early experience of Sun- day School and Cbureb, and the Pilot of the Galilean Lake and he said, "I will arise and go to my Father." Probably that is not quite the exact way he phrased it but, looking back over the years, let me say that with the decision lie reached on that Christmas Day years ago. * * Yes, years have passed, .and I am flow in Toronto. When first I ea.me, I looked up my frieud of Hamburg days but changes had taken place. The house had been demolished, And so: we had niet and parted like ships meeting In the night—the pathos of it1 It is surely a matter for thank- fulnets at this ChIrstmas season that organizations such as the Brit- ish Sailors' Society are keeping open door and a hearty welcome to the Sailors of the Navy and of the Mercantile Navy all over the Buell seas. VOICE 0 F II E PRESS IMPARTIAL R.A.F. While some people are busy trying to ecu the maudlin idea that we are fighting the Nnzis and not the dear, good German people, it is comforting to find that the Royal Mr Force draws no such distinctions. With all dun respect to Hie Grace of Center - limy, or anyone else who may feel sentimental at times about the enemy, the bald feet is that, without the enthusiastic support of the 'German people' aforesaid, there would have been no rise of Naziem. —Brantford Expositor, —o— WITHSTOOD A LOT The human body is a wonderful instrument. Although he lived without water and had only ane - half an orange to eat for twenty- two days Capt, Edwaxd V. Rickel'. backer was in excellent shape when rescued from a rubber life- boat in the mid-Pacifie, according to U. S. Navy Pilot Lieutenant Joseph, Isner. —Sault Ste. Marie Star —0— HELPS TO EXPLAIN IT War orders placed in Canada by the United States so Inc total al- most a billion dollars. That's how close relations are between the two countries did it helps to ex- plain why Canada, has been able to pay its way without relying on lease -lend aid. —Sault Daily Star —0— A BIT TOO THICK Remember hearing: "No matter how thin you slice it it is still ba- loney?" Well, no matter how thin you spread it, the butter situation is still a bit too thick. —Woodstock Sentinel -Review —0— COST OF DEFEAT Stalingrad, it is said, cost the Boche 3,300 men a day in killed alone over the 90 -day siege. A terrific price even Inc victory— but Hitler paid it for a defeat. —Ottawa journal --0-- BRITAIN'S GREATEST. WEAPON Not since mid -summer of 1940 has there been any doubt about Britain's greatest weapon and the source of her unconquerable • strength. It is Winston Churchill. • —Detroit Free Press —o— HAVE NOTEBOOK HANDY Even a &actor will tell you the best thing to take when you are run down is a license number. —Guelph Mercury --o— DEFLATED Mussolino must be feeling so small right now that he could crawl with ease through a stick of macaroni. —Hamilton Spectator Prime Minster's Day Of 24 Hours Mr. Churchill Adds Two Hours To Working Effort Sy Midday Sleep There are 24 rows in Um day of each Prime Manatee', measured by (he clock. The use made of them depends on physical stam- ina, mental vigor, gifts of organ- ization. No man, can long endure the strain of the Position who Is not endowed with au iron consti- tution or is unable to restore his strength with sleep. The greatest commanders and the greatest statesmen have beau able to sleep at will and to do so at the height of a campaign or a oriels. 5 * 5 Gladstone normally slept the moment he put his bead on the pillow and was not disturbed by a debate in the House but only by an unusual occurrence like the construction of a Cabinet. During the First Great War Lloyd George disciplined himself strictly at the table, went to bed about 10 o'- clock, woke early, read memoran- da, telegrams, newspapers, and sometime's dozed again before get- ting up for a 9 o'clock breakfast. During the day he snatched short spells of sleep. * "For every puepose of business or pleasure, mental or physical", wrote Mr. Churchill, "we ought to break our days and our march- es into two. When I was at the Admiralty M the wax I found I could add nearly two hours to my working effort by going to bed after luncheon." And today as Prime Minister he is reputed to continue the practice, to the dis- comfiture and disablement of his colleagues and chiefs of stall. The Duke of Wellington got up at 6 o'clock every morning and made appointments with Palmerston be - f o r e breakfast; Mr. Churchill makes them for after dinner and prolongs them Inc into the night. NEW BOSS To Paul McNutt has been given the tremendous task of allocating all U. S., manpower, both in in- diastry and the armed forces. LIFE'S LIKE THAT By Fred Neher "1 brought home a poor report card. - . What did you bring, Pop . . . half your pay envelope?" TI -IE WAR - WEEK — Commentary on Curren! Events Cleari g Tunisia Of Axis Powers Key To Open Sea Lanes To Allies Gen, Dwight D. Eirienhower, au - wean commander of the Allied forces in Northwest Africa, is un- likely to delay his task ot ing the Axis out Of Tunisia any logger than is absolutely necee- sary, for, until all of Tunisia is in his hands, the successful United Nations ventures elsewhere in North Africa 'cannot be fully ea. feetive, says an article in the Christian Science Monitor. Indeed the Namara mission of the cam- paign is to regain control of the sea route through the Mediterra- nean, Not until the narrows dividing the Eastern and Western Meitner. ranean are finally in Allied con- tiol can the route through that sea be again available to shorten the long haul around the Cape of Good Hope by about 10,000 miles and release vitally needed shila ping to other uses. While Tunisian ports remain in Axis hands, the enemy cap make the short runs from Sardinia and Sicily under cover of darkness. As long as communication of this character can be maintained, stores, mechanized equipment, and heavy materials can be provided in far greater quantities than would bo possible by air trans- port. So the sooner these ports are taken, the better. Importance of Sicily Fortitermore Hitler is reported to be hastening all available air strength to Sicily and Sardinia, where the Nazis have previously erected formidable fortifications. Control of the Mediterranean, as Mussolini's mouthpiece, Vir- ginio Gayda, pointed out in his took, "The Problems of Sicily," depends upon Sicily. Sicily, he said, was Italy's vital bas through which all historic move. zaents from Europe to Africa and vice versa had proceeded, The quicker Hitler's dispositions can be attacked then the less trouble there will be in project- ing future Allied operations, Once the Axis is swept from North _Africa, Hitler will have good cause to worry. Already he has moved troops into Southern France, and into Italy in antiei. Tuition of these areas being Select- ed by the United Nations as sec- ond front objectives, but there are many other miles of sea front that must be covered. From the primary mission of opening the Mediterranean flow several secondary objectives some of which bulk almost as large in their ultimate effect as does the primary mission. Among them is the lumping of the total destruc- tion of Axis forces in Libya, se- curity of the Suez Canal, and ob- - talning positions from which thrusts in force against areas in Southern Europe can be launched. Coasts to Watch Although the Nazis apparently have discounted the possibility of an Allied attempt being made through the Iberian Peninsula, probably because Of the difficulty of forcing the passes in the Py- renees, there are the Dalmatian and Greek coasts to guard in addi- tion to those of France and Italy. Nor is the possibility of a descent on the Atlantic coast of Europe to be neglected. The Russian whiter is now at work on the Nazis. What effect its grip will have during the next six months cannot be foreseen, but Hitler has many more 'worries with which to cope than was the ease last year when the Russian winter all but wrecked his east- orn front. Allied planes undoubtedly will play a conspicuous part in toreing the Axis from Tunisia, but planes cannot do it all. An armored divi- ion has been calculated to con- sume 75,000 gallons of gasoline in its, first 100 miles of march, To carry that fuel by land re- quires 50 lorries. Each 100 miles thereafter require another 50 lor- ries, siuce the lorries themselves use up gasoline, The United Nations are indeed fortunate In holdiug the Atlantic ports of Morocco through which supplies, as ueeded, can be sent in case the laboat menace looms Image in the Mediterranean. Other Allied Porta They also hold, in Algeria, Oran, Algiers, Bougie, and Ilene. Sep- arated from these by 131zerte and Tunis are the Libyau ports of To - bruit and Berne, in Meet, Um Sir Bernard L. flionlgmnery'e beetle. Bengasi should be the most valuable port thr General Mont - pinery in his drive on Tripoli - tenth. No official information is forthcoming here about the pre- sent state of that port, but prob- ably, for the time being, it Is tar. tually out Of roMnassjou, blyett witness accounts of tho much. bombed port deseribe havoc) in the harbor there as fur worse than anything else in North Africa However, It is extremely chili - cult to put a port out of milieu altogetber. Bizerte•Tunis Raids Tobruk may be virtually out of notion while 10 Is being repeatedly bombed. But when the bourtang ceases it can soon be batik In com- mission unless ships have been sunk in crucial places. Even then no port is completely out of ac- tion so long as there is water. Damage to port Installations, bowever, which was severe at Bengasi, considerably affects the amount of traffic which can be handled, Air raids are reported to la al- ready battering the Axis in the Bizerte -Tunis area, and heavy Un- ited Nations ground forces are said to be closiug in on their ob- jectives, but not until the enemy strength has been fell out and overcome can we be sure that cow primary mission in North Africa has been attained. However, Hitler realizes his danger full well, and he has been pouring reinforcements into North- ern and Eastern Tunisia by air and sea ever since the Allies made their thrust. He is reported to have withdrawn air support from his sorely pressed forces before Stalingrad and in the Caucasus in order to implement his strug- gle for a bridgehead in Tunisia, and German troops have been rush- ed to Southern France, Italy, and Greece. Russian Counter -offensive Pressure on the Russian Front is being eased, and the Russian counter -offensive, perfectly timed to the United Nations push In North Africa, is under way. Ger- man troops are said to be shunted first in one direction and then in another, and are being drawn from Norway and other lightly -held areas. Garrison duty is being tale. gated to Austrian, Hungarian and Italian troops, Taken as a whole, the bitsof information that come from Eu- rope seem to form a composite that is none too favorable for the Ari cause, and indicate that Hit. Mr at last bas been deprived of the benefit he hes so long derived from being sale to exercise the initiative in projecting an offens- ive. Duesseldorf Ruined 190,000 Homeless Dusseldorf is a ruined city with "no less than 190,000 people made homeless" and an undetermined number, killed, the Air Ministry news service said, quoting a letter written by one resident to an- other in Berlin. The letter, which reached Lon- don through neutral channels, said: "You may thank God you got off to Berlin in tine.. On September 10 we had the biggest 'blitz' over. The first raid was big enough, but no comparison with this ono. It is impossible to exaggerate how bad it was. Tbe bombardment at the front couldn't be worse. "The whole of Duesseldori was in flames . . . Duesseldorf has be. come a regular city of MIMS. it a pathetic sight, No lose than 190,000 people were nude Itome- less. Dona know how inauy wore killed. Material damage is coloasal, 'arhe uight train to Berlin is still in the station. It was just start- ing when it got 0 direct bit. It was crushed like a machboa, "You won't know Duesaoldort again . raars55,44monamorosownsexames.emam....n,,, -mnwtssammenm..caman***4 Bliley and Curley of the Anzacs NOW LOOK, 6UPP061h1C% THE, MILK ILI& IS B4GCHA.I To' BUTTER 15 THE AFRICAN IDsT., YEAH, CIO OM!! "Africa Manoeuvres" oUR. BoY6' 16 11' MUSTARD POT MOVING ALONG PAST i14 3AM SPOON SEE 4.4554444.4444545455.15mewsymmar4444.4.441 By Gurney (Australia) INEZ MUS6oe 1Q10B 13:116 ERE Pi, ATE. or Tra.1 PLR • .1/ • :11 1