"The Faroes felt the pinch of adversity early in the war, and flour, tea, tobacco, coffee (the chief drink), and engine and radio spare parts and petrol have been very scarce. Under Allied protection it is certain that the people will be better off. Stratetically the islands are important for the Allies. Hitherto enemy ships Could run for shelter in the mist-covered fiords. Now the Allies have a useful base, if they wish to use it, for refuelling and other operations, half-way between the Shetlands and Iceland. There are several good har-hours; Torshavn, with its town of 4,000 inhabitants, the capital, is best known, The mountainous nature of the islands would make the establishment of aerodromes extremely difficult. Few airmen have risked a landing in the Faroes, but in 1933 of Lindbergh landed and took off at Suderoe.
Now the faithful pray to our Lady of Victories so that she may safeguard them from the scourge of war and that all men may live as brothers. It was a cold grey afternoon when I went there, There was no service, but in the chapel of Our Lady of Victories was a great crowd. Rich and poor together, they sat and knelt in silence, men of all ages, women young and old, and prayed, and some of them wept.
There were high officers with the Legion of Honour on their tunics and private soldiers in their drab uniform, I saw a young strapping boy come in, he might have been just twenty and soon would go to the war, and standing at the back, ashamed perhaps to join the throng, with a set, serious face, his lips just moving, utter his silent supplication, Now and again someone stepped forward with a tall candle and gave it to the attendant who lit it and Placed it in one of the great stands on each side of the altar. The altar blazed with candles so that you could only just discern the shadowed statue of the Blessed Virgin, with the imperial crown on her head and the crowned child in her arms.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.