Great Britain has come through the first week of the greatest air battle of history in the manner which was expected of her, and, despite the damage which has been done, despite the hundreds of people killed and thousands wounded, the moral of the country unimpaired. London has been sub-"to many air-raids during the week,—several daily—and the manner in which civilians have stood up under the hammering has aroused the admiration of the world. pitch in an endeavour centre of the Empire and. of the defence of Britain gree that up to the present -it has not succeeded, and with the noticeable defences there is that it never will. new week will see bir! a yao their efforts. Time is going them, and the necessity of forcing an issue is becoming increasingly and if the Germans throw more and more aeroplanes against London in particular and Britain in general there need be surprise. enemy confined their bombings objectives in the east of London very little cause for criticism. But not suffice them. Their aim was the moral of the Londoners and} have signally failed. Their on the West End and Buckingham Palace that Their Majesties,—it will be remembered that the King took the risk of visiting the East End immediately after the first big bombing, and thus associated himself with his people in their suffering,—have also been has the whole nation together as made the recipients of the enemy's attentions
never before, and given the lie to the cheap German jibe that the King and Queen and the Government had left London.
There has been nothing passive about British resistance to the German onslaughts. Defences around London have clearly saved it from an immense amount of damage, and the enemy is being shown that there is a vast difference between bombing comparatively Warsaw and interfering with the metropolis in the world. that the Í have carried... German capita} itself, 'a signi-for Hitler promised the Berliners never be attacked. Fur-
\thermore the air force has carried out huge raids on the various concentrations which the enemy has made in preparation for the long-expected invasion of Britain. Details of the damage done are not available, but there is every reason to believe that these raids have proved most effective, and that the enemy has suffered considerably. It is to be assumed from this that the enemy are a long way from that control of the air so necessary if the invasion of Britain is to be attempted.
The decision of the Central British War Fund committee to remit £2,500 to the Lord Mayor of London's air raid relief fund is welcomed. So also is the action of a correspondent, whose letter appears in today's issue enclosing a further gift as an express sion of his admiration for the courage which Londoners are displaying. Much money will bei required to help those who have suffered 80 at the hands of the enemy, and At is that other Britons in China will desire to mark their sympathy and approval in a like manner. It is hoped they will come forward. While it is fully realized that the British community, despite the disadvantages it is labouring under, have done excellently, it is hoped that they will dig down a little deeper to help their fellow nationals exposed to all the fury of the enemy. It is little enough*to ask in all conscience. The money should be forthcoming at once, for never was it truer than it is now that he gives twice who gives quickly.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.