In Liverpool there were plenty of signs that the Germans had been there on numerous occasions but the of that great port had not been disrupted in any way when this British ship berthed in the river and discharged her cargo. In the city Itself there were public houses with whole fronts blown to bits. In full view of passers-by the Liverpudlian was taking his pint of mild and bitter and still enjoying it despite the noisy Jaccompaniment of tramcars, buses and other vehicles in the street outside.
There was one popular dance hail in the city which had had al its Windows blown. out. Possessing rather a low root which made things hot inside when a crowd gathered, it proved to be much more. popular without windows than with" them.
When the management proposed to Dut in new windows there was a General outery from the young Liver-col bloods and the windows stayed without glass until the weather grew too cold in October.
"You people out here," this seafarer told me, "have gained an entirel wrong impression of what is gol fon in England. You believe London is in ruins und that huge areas have been destroyed. Tt is not so, Naturally. there has been some damage, specially in London, but to wipe out whole city is practically impossible. As soon -as houses and streets are bombed the debris is cleared away ahd builders get to work immediate-Jy, clearing away the mess and repairing the damage, for very few Duildings are completely destroyed. They are only damaged."
In London the dock areas have suffered badly and so has the West End. In the Strand, at Trafalgar Square, in Fleet Street, Kingsway and In many other famous areas signs of German frightfulness meet the eye. But life goes on in London as it did in happier times. The buses still roar down Oxford Street in endless streams, past many damaged shops ud department stores. The trams stil run on. the Embankment and [Cleopatra's Needle is still there to remind one of the victories of the British Army outside the borders of the country from which the obelisk
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.