April 23.
The official Norwegian claim that the Bri~ tish and Noowegian forces have recaptured Hamar, and the unconfirmed report that Elverum is being freed of the German troops is more than a little gratifying, as indicating the speed with which the Allies are moving fence their landings have been effected. Coming as it does oh top of Herr Hitler's birthday when it was reported that the Germans hoped to announce some striking success,—indeed that probably accounts for the alleged damage to two British war vessels and a couple of transports, as something in the nature of a consolation prize in lieu of anything belter—it has forced the Ger~ man command at long last to admit the var= fous Allied Inndings after days of denial. The methods followed by the Reich in making this admission were obviously designed to soften the blow to the German masses, who now, having believed in the possibility' of a further lightning stroke in Scandinavia, have been brought to the realization that nothing of the sort has happened, and that Herr Hitler has condemned what may prove fo be an important part of the German armies to a long. dour Aight with, at present, the advantage in favour of the Allies. Tt was Inevitable that the German forces should have made some headway after the manner which they completely surprised the Nor~ wegian with their Trojan horse tactics, but the celerity with which the Allies have moved. and the speed with which they have thrown their forees into action have already had the effect of holding up further German progress, and permitting the Norwegians to complete their mobilization in all those other arts of the country beyond the small areas at present held by the Germans. The Ger= man adventure at Narvik may be said to have been a complete fiasco. "Whether the British have actually occupied the town or Rot, and there still seems to be some doubt about it, that port is no longer of any use to the Germans in connection with the transportation of Swedish ore to Germany, and until the ice melts in the Gulf of Bothnia, liberating the port of Lulea—and that wilt be in about a month's time,—German supplies of Swedish ore are definitely held up.
The speed of the British advance to the assistance of the Norwegians in the nelghbourhood of Hamar, and Elverum is to be accounted for by the fact that Andalsne, where they Janded, is connected by railway with Oslo, passing through the town of Lille~ hammer and thence to the junction at Hamar, an advance by rail and road was. possible, particularly in view of the fact that only small bodies of Germans were to be found anywhere near the railway, though they did endeavour to destroy it by landing detachments by parachute, which apparently failed. The position now is that the Allied forces, for Norway has to be included amongst the Allies, have now met, the spearhead of the German advance northward from Oslo, and have not only checked it, which the Norwegian appear to have done unaided, but have actually succeeded in driving it back from the most advanced point at Hamar. With an open road for supplies, and a steady inpouring of them, the Allies appear to be in a much better position than the German troops operating out of Oslo, Their lines of communication by sea are likely to be cut at any moment as they have been in the past, and their supply system is not only precarious but not at present producing sults necessary for the undertaking of opera tions on a greater scale than has up to the present been possible. "It is to be expected that, in the not too distant future, operations will' be commenced against the German forces in Trondheim, They are now isolated, Whatever supplies reach them have either to run the Allied blockade, or be despatched by airy and it is quite obvious that no very amounts can be transported in that manner, and certainly not enough to main= fain any considerable force at Trondheim. way are obviously designed for the purpose of rendering them useless until the Allied land forces can recapture them from the invaders. The fact that they are being carried out so frequently, and with such apparent success raises the question as to how effective the much-vaunted German air arm is after all, With such a short distance from the bases which they have established in Denmark it should have been possible for the Germans to have given more adequate protection to their new con: quests, and the fact that this is not the ca must create some scepticism as to past man claims in this respect, It would be foolish in the extreme to believe that these Initial successes will prove decisive in the campaign which the Reich has brought upon itself in Scandinavia, but the more the Allies progress against the invaders the better will be the prospects for Sweden being able to' evade embroilment, 'That country is taking every precaution against any such surprise as was given' Norway, and, being practically. now in a state of mobilization, should be able to give the German command much food for thought before seeking to extend the scope of their operations. With the substantial. and well equipped Swedish army prepared to resist any encroachment upon the neutrality of their country, the Germans will probably need as much as a million men in the Scan dinavian peninsula it they are to have much hope of ultimate victory. Until that is gained there can be no question whatever of securing the much coveted ore supplies, and even with the use of such a strong force there is no very veal promise that even then they will succeed. It is difficult to escape the final conclusion that, far from being the stroke of genius which some people believed this invasion of Norway would turn out to be, it shows every indication of proving to be the biggest mistake that the German command has made up to the pre sent. Herr Hitler: has brought upon himself the task of fighting on two fronts, despite his oft repeated intention of not committing the same mistake as Imperial Germany did. In this, save for growing desperation, may be found some hope for the other neutrals, perhaps not so much for Holland and Bel-glum as for the Balkans. for the dispositions of the Allies have made it quite plain that an incursion into south eastern Europe would again bring them into action in support of those neutrals who wished to resist.
Matter of Opinion "Tuixx about Hitler at least once a, d Leading article in the "Dally Express." ease retrain for atime foi Your Ply. Can ye 5 3 said to the airman, patrolling our coasts, [As with ratelers "he Joined in. the fray "Now, all Joking' apart, with your hand on your heart, Have you thought about' Hitler today?" questioned the neutral (whose ship had been Jor tried it on soldiers in trench tu France, Jon Churchill, engaged tu his task, "And Feeord with 2 sigh They" would only reply: J-what adam' silly question to ast"
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.