The Archive · 1939

Raider Says Mr

Churchill — Tribute to British Cruisers Broadcast; German Navy's Enterprise Broken; Scuttling Condemned

London, Dec. 18. IHE entire German Fleet has abandoned whatever enterprise it had.... German warships hardly ever venture out of port," First Lord of the Admiralty, Mr.

Winston Churchill declared in a radio broadcast tonight when he dealt in detail with the Admiral Graf Spee's defeat and scuttling, the exploits of the British submarines Salmon and Ursula and the series of aeroplane attacks on 24 British and neutral ships yesterday and today. In his most fiery vein, Mr. Churchill condemned the pocket-battleship Graf Spee for not coming out fighting from Montevideo.

He recalled that the Rawalpindi, armed British merchantman, preferred to fight rather than go down scuttled even though she had not a single chance against two German cruisers.

"The pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee," Mr. Churchill declared, "which for many weeks has been preying on trade in the south Atlantic, has met her doom and shipping of all nations may, for a spell at least, enjoy the freedom of the seas.

"In spite of her far heavier metal and commanding gun range, the German warship was driven by three British cruisers to take refuge in a neutral harbour.

"Once in harbour she had the choice of ordinary internment or coming out 'a fight and go down in battle like he Rawalpindi. This would have "een honourable for her.

"She discovered a third course, however, and came out not to fight, out to sink herself.

Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.

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