House of Commons Told by Mr. Churchill War To Be Prosceuted with the Utmost Vigour London, July 5.
"Lies and rumours have suggested we have had some intention of entering into negotiations with the German and Italian Governments; all idea of that should be completely swept out of existence—(cheers)—by the very grievous and drastic action we felt compelled to take," declared the Prime Minister, Mr. Winston Churchill, in a statement to the House of Commons yesterday afternoon, "There is no talk of negotiation.
There is no talk here of peace.
We shall, on the contrary, prosecute the war with the utmost vigour by all means open to us until the righteous peace for which we entered upon it has been in all respects fulfilled—(Cheers).
By "grievous and drastic action" Mr, Churchill referred to the engagement on Wednesday between the French and British Fleets at the port of Oran, in Algeria, and the taking-control by British boarding parties of French warships anchored in Portsmouth and Plymouth harbours, to prevent their falling into German hands.
Several French warships were sunt or damaged when a British squadron attacked the French Fleet at Oran after the French Admiral refused to comply with a demand to turn the vessels over to British control.
Two battleships, two light cruisers, some submarines, including the large, Sureouf, eight destroyers and 200' small mine-sweeping and antl-submarine craft in Portsmouth and Plymouth were boarded on Wednesday atier brief notice to their captains, the Prime Minister disclosed,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.