THE MANCHESTER GUARDIAN. FRIDAY. MAY 31. 1940 NAVY TAKING OFF B.E.F. HOMECOMING OF THE MEN OF THE B.E.F. Thousands Arriving Hour by Hour FRENCH AND BELGIAN TROOPS ALSO LANDED AND FRENCH Screened by Allied 'Planes WOUNDED AND MANY OTHERS SAFELY WITHDRAWN 3 Destroyers and Small Troopship Lost FIERCE BATTLE STILL RAGING IN FLANDERS Screened by Allied 'planes, the B.E.F and French troops are being evacuated from the Flanders coast by the Allied navies. By last night the wounded and many other troops had already been taken off, and the Admiralty announced that the operation was being continued " ceaselessly by day and night." In carrying out the evacuation the Navy has lost three destroyers, a small troopship, and a few auxiliary craft. The first news of the evacuation of the British and French forces was given in the following statement from the Ministry of Information : In view of the increased German pressure on their northern and southern flanks, the B.ELF. and the French forces in the north have been forced to fall back towards the coast, where the battle is now raging. This operation has been carried out with great skill and daring. The troops not immediately engaged have been evacuated with the assistance of the Royal Navy. This operation is proceeding with success, and numbers of troops have already reached this country. The withdrawal and evacuation have been screened by the R.A.F., who have been constantly engaged with the enemy. Over seventy enemy aircraft were destroyed and many others damaged yesterday on this front. British troops are operating with the French in the sector south of the Somme. " With Spirit Beyond All Praise " Later the Admiralty announced : The Royal Navy has been and is giving all possible help and support to the British and French land forces which are operating in the vicinity of the French and Belgian coasts under heavy enemy pressure. Warships are giving supporting and covering fire to the troops, impeding the enemy's movements, and have inflicted considerable punishment upon the German advanced forces. The wounded and a large number of other elements have already been safely withdrawn. These operations are being conducted ceaselessly by day and night with coolness and determination in the face of fierce opposition, particularly from the air. The German High Command has claimed to have inflicted very large losses upon naval units and the transports which they protect. As usual, these bear no relation to the facts. Operations of this nature cannot be carried out without losses, destroyers Grafton, Grenade, and Wakeful and certain small auxiliary craft have been lost. Next of kin of casualties are being informed as details become available. One small transport, the Abukir, of 689 tons, has been sunk. The spirit and conduct of all concerned are beyond all praise. The operations are proceeding. The fighting in Flanders continues in a narrow corridor inland from Dunkirk. The Germans claimed yesterday to have cut this corridor in two, "splitting up numerous enemy groups and encircling them." In Paris, however, it was said that the Germans had advanced only on the west of the corridor in the region of Cassel. On Wednesday, the Air Ministry announces, 77 German 'planes were destroyed by R.A.F. fighters. In Paris last night it was estimated that the Germans had lost 75 yesterday in Northern France. THE STRUGGLE IN FLANDERS Fighting in Narrow Corridor In Flanders yesterday the B.E.F. ! and the French were still fighting their great rearguard action. The fighting is taking place in a narrow corridor stretching inland from Dunkirk perhaps as far as to the north of Lille. The British are protecting the eastern side of the corridor, from Nieuport through Dixmude and southwards. They are being helped by the flooding of the Yser Canal region, where the locks of the many canals have been opened. The western side of the corridor from St. Omer to Cassel is being defended by the French. The Germans, who have been strongly attacking at Cassel. said yesterday that they had cut the corridor in two south of a line from Cassel to Poperinghe. so isolating the Allied forces to the south. THE FLANDERS HILLS The struggle in this region has been for the hills dominating the Flanders plain, in particular Mount Cassel and Mount Kemmel. Strong Allied defences have been established along the " line of mounts" from near Cassel to Ypres. The French military spokesman said yesterday morning that the Germans had made only one advance, "perhaps" the capture of Mount Cassel. which rises to 600 feet two miles from the town of Cassel. The fighting, he added, had reached a rare pitch of violence during the night, when the Germans threw into the battle the full weight of forty divisions, supported by the bulk of their mechanised forces, in an effort to cut the Allies' road to the sea-Last night he said that the Allies were still holding on to the Yser region while the Germans continued to advance in the Cassel area. These threatened to isolate General Prioux's rearguard, but latest reports reach ing Paris said that two of his divisions had reached Dunkirk. The German News Agency last night claimed that General Prioux, who is commander of the First French Army, had been captured with a number of high officers east of Cassel. Dunkirk itself is strongly holding out. The inundations south-west and north-east of the town are now becoming effective as the water from the canals soaks into the ground. The area to the south-west of Dunkirk from the neighbourhood of Gravelines almost to St. Omer is turning into a huge marsh. To the north-east the water-line stretches from Nieuport to Ypres along the valley of the Yser over a width of between two and three miles. For the past 48 hours thousands of tons of water have poured into this region with each tide through lock-gates controlled by a French division which was with the Belgian Army in the coastal area. The whole district, flooded to depths varying from 18 inches to several feet, has become impracticable to infantry and mechanised units alike, allowing the release of much-needed troops to assist in defending the " Flanders hills."' Aerial attacks on Dunkirk cost the Germans dear yesterday. The Germans employed hundreds of 'planes, and the toll taken by AJlied aircraft and anti aircraft defences is estimated in Paris at 75 "planes, though official figures are not vet available. The number of 'planes brought down by anti-aircraft fire is increasing every day. it is stated in Paris, while troops not trained to handle anti-aircraft guns are also becoming adept in attacking dive-bombers with machine-gun fire. Press Association War Special. British United Press, and Associated press. B.E.F. MATERIAL LOSSES It was emphasised in London yes terday that the main bases of the RE.F. were not in the Channel ports, and. therefore, although we have lost a great deal of material, our main base depots are not in uerman nanas. FIGHTING ON THE FLANDERS COAST , Marquise yAcd V RT 11 tPft NeDFel The Allies are fighting in a corridor running inland from Dunkirk to protect the withdrawal of British and French troops by sea. The eastern side of the corridor, from Nieuport through Dixmude and south-wards, is being protected by the B.E.F. and the western side, from St. Omer to Cassel, by the French. How far Inland the corridor extends is not known, but the Germans claim it has been cut in two south of a line from Poperinghe to Cassel. DIFFICULT TASK OF EVACUATION The Dunkirk Coast From our Naval Correspondent London, Thursday. Evacuation of troops from the Flanders coast under close pressure from the enemy, in face of aircraft attack and at speed, is a task of enormous difficulty, but plans for it were all concerted days ago, and neither the Navy nor the Army was unprepared for the possibility. There can be no comparison with the Gallipoli evacuation, for that was carried out secretly in two phases, one of which lasted ten rights and the other eleven nights. In the course of those operations 120,000 men, 300 big guns, 3,500 vehicles, and 9,000 horses and mules were transferred from the Gallipoli beaches to Mudros. Evacuation from the Flanders coast also has to be carried out largely from the beach. The only port remaining in our hands is Dunkirk, and the harbour there can take only a few ships of small draught at a time. German wireless reports to-day have referred to troops being taken off from the shore in small boats to the transports The coast off Dunkirk is thick with sandbanks and shallows. Some of the channels between the banks are no more than twelve to fourteen feet deep and few big ships can get close inshore. A few minutes' study of the chart of that coast shows one of the great difficulties of embarkation of large numbers of men. The possibility of taking off stores and heavy gear appears to be non-existent. The loss of Ostend and Zeebrugge particularly Zeebrugge must have considerably modified the first draft plan of the Navy for a possible evacuation. It will be important to learn if in the few hours after the defection of King Leopold naval demolition parties were able to get to work in both ports and wreck them adequately as was done at Ymuiden and the Hook of Holland. NAZI CLAIMS AND THE FACTS The German High Command yester day claimed what it called the annihilation "' of the British and French in Flanders and Artois At the same time it said that the B.EF. had "fled to the sea" to the British ships waiting off the coast. It went on to claim that three warships and sixteen troopships were sunk and thirty-one other ships and hve patrol boats had been damaged. Last night the Admiralty said that the German High Command's claims, as usual, bore no relation to the facts. The actual loss is three destroyers, one small troopship, and certain small auxiliary craft. The three destroyers are H.M.S Grafton (1.335 tonsl She was completed in March. 1936. was a sister ship of the Glowworm, and cost just over 300 000. H.M.S. Grenade, of the same class. H.M.S. Wakeful. She was built under the Great War programme and was launched in 1917. but she was rearmed as an escort vessel in 1938-9. She had a displacement of 1,090 tons. According to the French Admiralty spokesman, the number of Allied ships damaged or sunk by German air attack off Dunkirk is relatively very small. The French Admiralty is preparing a detailed report for publication. In the meantime, the spokesman said, :t can be revealed that compared with the number of snips taking part in operations off Dunkirk during the past few days Allied losses are " insignificant " Press Association War Special and British United Press. BRITISH DEFENCE OF CALAIS Refusal to Surrender The defence of Calais by a small British force "among the most heroic deeds in the annals of the British Army" was reported in the following statement by the War Office last night : " Last week a small British force was sent to hold. Calais and to attempt to maintain communication with the B.EF. Finding itself unable to carry out the latter task in face of strong enemy mechanised farces it concentrated on the defence of Calais. " In spite of repeated attacks by the enemy and of continuous air and artillery bombardment the garrison held out for several days. By its refusal to surrender it contained a large number of the enemy and was of invaluable assistance to the main body of the B.E.F. in its withdrawal on Dunkirk. "This action will count amnn the in thA anna! a f British Army." R.A.F. FIGHTERS DESTROY 77 NAZI PLANES IN A DAY Bombers' Efforts in Support of Troops The following announcement was made last night by the Air Ministry : ' Throughout Wednesday the main effort of the R.A F. was concentrated on relieving the pressure on the flanks of the Allied armies in Flanders. "Our fighter aircraft, in a magnificent series of actions, repeatedly broke up formations of enemy fighters and bombers. Very severe losses were inflicted on the enemy. The latest reports show thaf at least 77 enemy aircraft were destroyed by our fighters during the day " Meanwhile R.A F. medium bombers were attacking enemy transport columns and armoured fighting vehicles and destroying bridges and machine-gun emolacements. These operations continued all day. All our aircraft returned. One attacking Messer-schmitt was shot down " Operations by heavy bombers followed during the night. Aircraft of the Coastal Command and of the Fleet Air Arm engaged in reconnaissance and bombing operations on the French DEFIANT FIGHTERS' GREAT DAY A single squadron of 12 British j Defiant fighters accounted for no fewer than 37 of the enemy aircraft, which were shot down on Wednesday, bringing its " bag " to 50 in three days. On their morning patrol they met more German fighters and dive bombers than they could count. They brought down 17 of the fighters as well as a dive bomber. On their second patrol, later m the afternoon, thev shot down 19, possibly 21, bombers. During their first engagement one of the squadron's air gunners, apparently believing that his aircraft had been vitally hit, " baled out " over Belgium. Otherwise every British Defiant, every pilot, and every gunner returned safely. On their after-lunch patrol over Dunkirk the Defiants first sighted seven Messerschmitt 109's. Thev immediately attacked and one of the Messerschmitts was shot down. Hardly had tnis fight finished when the British Defiants were surprised Dy four more Nazi fighters diving on them out of the sun and fir.ng a stream of cannon shells. One of the Defiants was tnen hit. but was able to reach home safelv. It was from this fighttr that the gunner jumped. After a fight between the remaining Defiants and the other Messerschmitts the Nazi fighters finallv disappeared Then the British squadron saw two formations of nine Messerschmitt 111 bombers that wert attempting to bomo Dunkirk, but all their bombs fell into FOUR AIRMEN WIN D.S.O. AND D.F.C. Big List of Awards The biggest list of awards to officers and men of the Royal Air Force for gallantry in action is published this morning. It contains six appointments to the Companionship of the Distinguished Service Order, and four o these officers are also awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. One of these doublv decorated is Acting Squadron Leader J. R KaylL a native of Sunderland, and another is Flight Lieutenant W. M Churchill, who was educated at ' Sedbergh. Flight Lieutenant Churchill's squadron, wmle under his command in France, destroyed o2 German 'planes. There are altogether twenty-seven awards of the DJC- and two of the recip.ents are also given a bar to the decoration. One of tne winners of the VS.C. is Acting Squadron Leader G. Lowe, a native of Blackpool. Another Northern man in the list is Flying Officer K- H. Blair, whose home is at Heaton Moor, Stockport. There are fifteen awards of the Distinguished Flying Medal and two of the recipients are given also a bar to the medal. One of these is Sergeant R- C. Wilkinson, whose home is at Knar e borough, Yorkshire. There are two other Yorkshiremen in the list of DJALs Corporal R- Jolly, of Bng-house, and Sergeant G. Allard. ol York. Sergeant G. L. Newell, of Wilmslow, Cheshire, also wins the D.F.M. TANK CORPS GALLANTRY The award of 16 decorations and medals to officers and men of the BJLF. by Lord Gort, the Commander-in-Chief, for gallantry in the field was announced yesterday. Fifteen of the awards go to members of the Royal Tank Regiment and the other to a signalman who remained at his post as operator in a wireless truck, and "was unperturbed even by the most furious onslaughts from the air and on the ground. niAr -t jaj, -ft Tirsrr and Belgian coasts shot down two enemy aircraft and damaged two others. Ten of these aircraft are missing, but the crews o at least three have been rescued. " Fuller reports have now been received of operations which took place on Monday in the Sedan area. Medium bomber aircraft of the R.A.F. operating from France attacked a number of enemy aerodromes, causing extensive fires in the hangars and surrounding buildings. They also successfully bombed supply depots and a train. All our aircraft returned. " On the same day our fighters on offensive patrol in this sector shot down 11 enemy aircraft and damaged three more. It was on this occasion that one of our auxiliary fighter squadrons engaged a formation of 24 enemy bombers escorted by 20 fighters and shot down 9 bombers and one fighter without loss to themselves. " In the Narvik area on May 27 and 28, 13 enemy aircraft were destroyed by our fighters." Earlier communiques on pace 9 the sea. They were attacked by British Hurricanes, so the Defiants looked for other quarry. 16 MESSERSCHMITTS SHOT DOWN Circling above them, ready to dive and attack, were a number of Messerschmitt llli twin-engined fighters. There was another fight, in which sixteen of the Naz' fighters were destroyed. Mixed up in this engagement were thirty to forty JU 87 dive bombers that were also atti.mpt;ng to bomb Dunkirk One of these aircraft was also destroyed by tne Defiants. The British fighters continued the action until they haa exhauster all their ammunition and thm made for home. On their second patrol the Defiants again encountered large numbers of dive bombers. Thev shot down eighteen JU 87's for certain, and possibly another two as well. The Defiants had still some ammunition left and resumed their patroi. They then met a JU 88, flying on its own. Having shot it down, they again set off for home. The Boulton Paul Defiant is a low-wing two-seater monoplane with a single Rolls-Royce Merlin engine of over 1.000 h.p It is capable of broadside fire, thanks to its use ol a 'power-driven gun-turret The turret houses a battery of guns and is operated by a gunner. Flying alongside a formaUon of hostile craft the Defiant can rake them with gunfire from nose to ta.l. for the pilot can place his aircraft in such a position that his bullets strike the enemy at an angle favourable to penetraUon of the vulnerable parts. ARMY'S "SEVERE SACRIFICES" German Admission " The victory of Flanders has exacted severe sacrifices from the German ! Army." said a military commentator, .' quoted by the official German News I Agency last night. He also spoke of the " desperate personal courage " of the men of the B.EJ. I called on to face a " terrible offensive by land and air. German allegations about maltreatment cf prisoners by the French were extended to Britain by the German radio yesterday. The announcer asserted that British officers " had beaten defenceless German prisoners and exposed them to the fire of German artillery." He added that " these crimes " would not go unpunished. The announcer then repeated the charge that British 'planes were bombing non-muiiary oojectives. tress Associa tion War Special. SIGNPOSTS BEING REMOVED Hindering Possible Invaders Sir Jonn Heiih, the Minister of Trans port, disclosed last night in a written Parliamentary reply that highways authorities had been instructed to remove innpmla and direction indica tions which would be of value to the enemy in rase ol invasion. The work, he added, was put in hand on Wednesday. Mr. Law Financial Seuefarj, War umcej sxswa m anocner written reply that teB are beine taken to zuard against the danger of parachute land ings oi men ana arms m pnsoaers-oi-war and alien internment camps. ON OTHER PAGES: Hlriaris Nest Ofajwtfw . ........ 9 After Ifarrik t 9 of IMUaja r - , r- Hour by hour thousands of troops of the British Expeditionary Force are reaching this country from Flanders. Late last night men were still being landed at south coast ports. With the British troops are officers and men of the French and Belgian armies, as well as a number of naval men who had assisted in the difficult embarkation operations on the other side of the Channel. People living in houses alongside the railways in some southern suburbs of London have been watching a stream of troop trains bringing men back. Train after train went down empty on south-east coast lines, many through the night, and returned full of weary-looking figures in khaki. Many of the trains are made up of L.M.S. dining cars. Through the windows tired-out soldiers, some with several days' growth of beard, can be seen sprawling fast asleep, their heads on the dining table. A woman shopkeeper opposite out: railway station said yesterday : " We have lost count of them going up. I think it is thirteen or fourteen since breakfast." Two more went through shortly afterwards, and it was then on.v 2 15 p.m. AT THE HOME PORT An indomitable spirit shone through the grime-stained faces of the men as they marched briskly ashore at a port of disembarkation. Crowds, kept back by barriers to allow free passage through the streets for the waiting motor-buses and Army lorries, stood silently to give them sympathetic greeting. But there was no spirit of dejection among them. They were the first to wave cheerfully to the crowds. Yet all had been through an indescribable inferno. Few had scarcely anv sleep for weeks, and many had been without food for several days. The transport organisation worked perfectly and there was a constant stream of vehicles ready to take them to the railway station where trains were also waiting. No provision had been made to feed them, but shops were quickly emptied of supplies to enable volunteers amone the citizens to cut sandwiches and hand out cups of tea. MURDER OF THE REFUGEES Men told of the terrific and incessant bombardment they had undergone from the air. More terrible still were their descriptions of the mass murder of refugees by the German aeroplanes. " Flying only 200 feet above the ground, they spared neither man, woman, or child," said one, typical of others. " They mowed them with machine-Bun fire like grass under a mower." Weight of numbers had been a deciding factor, an N.C.O. who fought in the last war said. " I never saw anything like the barrage we put up to stem the advance, but the Germans advanced right into it. and as many seemed to come through it as went in. Their losses must have been enormous." All the time they were being embarked the troops were bombed and machine-gunned from the air. Many were still wet through from having to swim and wade out to the ships to take them aboard. The gallant naval crews who brought them home had to be relieved on arrival. They were dropping from exhaustion after achieving acts ol magnificent heroism. GERMANS " BOMBING EVERYTHING " " It has been simply hell," one of the naval men told a' reporter, " but we are getting off the boys who have stood in the triangle and resisted the worst that the Germans could do to them, and, believe me, the Nazis don't love you. Their 'planes are everywhere. Our airmen have done magnificent work, but it is volume we need. " We were continually bombed and machine-gunned from the air hospital ships, troopships, everything. When we EVACUATION OF CHILDREN An Urgent Appeal In the view of the Government it may be necessary to start the evacuation of school children from some evacuation areas in addition to the east and south coast areas from which the movement is to be made on Sunday next week. If this evacuation does become necessary the date will be announced in accordance with developments. Mr. Malcolm MacDonald appealed to parents in a broadcast last night to register their children not later than the normal school closing hour on Monday, It was the Government's declared policy that no further organised evacuation should take place until bombing actually began, but " that time may be very near, and the Government, with the full facts and prospects before them, feel that the risk of that aerial bombing is so real that it is right to make as complete as possible now the plans for early evacuation. Mr. MacDonald asked parents in all evacuation areas to co-operate, and warned them that children who were not registered by Monday would run the risk of being left behind. Schools in evacuation areas would be closed when evacuation began. "The Government respects the sacredness of family ties. In these days of trial and danger there is no question of compulsory r-pai rtion of parents from their children, but we do, in simple and forthright language, ask fathers and mothers to recognise that the transfer of their children from places most likely to be the subject of aerial attack to areas much less liable to attacs makes for secmlty. It will have two consequences. It will increase our ability to shelter from harm the general population remaining in the evacuation areas, and it wfU ensure that the limbs and lives of your children will be safer where they are going than where they are now. NO HALF-TERM HOLIDAYS In view of the present situation, the Government hopes that those schools uuvciuujcut xwpea uiai ixmac mm which usually give a half-term holiday! to enable pupils to go dispense with this holiday. home will were hit we swam ashore, but when the ship did not go down we swam back again to take her out of the harbour. But sh turned turtle and we had to swim again. Some of us were swimming for hours and then picked up by a British warship." "I was very thankful," said another man, "when, after swimming about seven or eight miles I was able to get hold of a table, and another fellow and I sat on it until we were picked up. All of us were almost naked and we have had no food since yesterday at midday and no sleep for three days. But it's back again now to help the Army in its great stand. It's not only British troops we are bringing off, but French and Belgians, too. The Belgians don't want to give up fighting " If only they would give us more 'planes we could tell the Germans a different story. As it is they have got as much as they have given, and we have not been bombing and machine-gunning mvn m the water." BELGIAN OFFICERS' REFUSAL TO SURRENDER Five Belgian officers in the party said that they were astounded when the order came for the Belgian Army to cease fighting. " I was asked to hand over mv revolver," said one, " but I immediately refused. With my companions here I made for the coast and after many adventures we reached the British and French. We do not intend to cease fighting on the order that came from King Leopold, and there are thousands of other Belgian soldiers who arc of the same opinion. The British and French are still making a magnificent show in the North." The only thing that worried the Belgians was the fate of their wives and children. They did not know where they were. WOUNDED MARCHED 30 MILES A DAY Wounded B.E F. men who arrived at Sunderland last night, after being landed at a south-east coast port earlier yesterday, also told of the withdrawal from Belgium. A private from Liverpool said he had marched with a machine-gun bullet in his foot more than thirty miles a day for several days to the coast. " I cannot forget the way those Huns treated refugees." he said. A sergeant major from Whitley Bay said: "Although we have come back wounded, we have given them plenty to remember us by. At times the slaughter was wholesale. Column after column was mown down by our Bren guns. The moral of our men was superb. When they were embarking bombers raided the ships and one of the gun crews was put out of action. Wounded men went to take their share in feeding the guns." Private Bridge, of Barnoldswick, told how he was in an ambulance convoy when it was intensely bombed from the air. Ambulances were wrecked, and some of the wounded men had to walk ten or twelve miles to the coast. Charles Crighton, of Glasgow, said that wounded men lived like rabbits in the sand dunes until the Navy came along and " did a grand job of work." WADING OUT TO THE BOATS A.B. Bradley, of Hendon, Sunderland, said that when whalers of his ship were sent ashore to seek British troops men came wading out up to their necks in the water. Shortly afterwards German 'planes swooped down, and the rescue work was carried on in a hail of bombs. " On our way home, however," he added, " we got some revenge. Our gunners brought down five Dornier ' flying pencils.' " Among the casualties were a number of naval personnel and two members of the French Army. The one indelible picture bitterly imprinted on the minds of all, British and French alike, was the incredible inhumanity of the German airmen in mercilessly machine-gunning the civilian i refugees. It was a dreadful sight we shall never forget," said an N.C.O. at another port. " The civilian population t had no chance. They were bombed out '. of their homes and then machine-gunned as they trudged hopelessly along the road trying to escape," he said. STEEL SHELTERS Householders Must Erect Them Householders who have received Anderson shelters but have not erected them and covered them properly with earth are required by a new defence regulation to carry out this work before June 11 or to send a written communication giving their reason to their local authority. Failure to do so may lead to substantial penalties. Covering the shelter properly with earth means covering to a depth of 15 inches on top and 30 inches at the sides and back. If no communication is sent the householder will lose his shelter as well as being liable to penalties. If, for a good reason, a householder is unable to erect the shelter, the local authority may help. By " good reason " is meant, for example, that there is no able-bodied person in the house or neighbours to help. It should be realised that unless householders help themselves they are running a considerable risk of losing their shelter without any prospect, for the present at any rate, of getting anything in its place. CIVIL DEFENCE SERVICES "Alert" Call The Ministry of Home Security states: "In view of the tnrigKm iiiat- wben there is every orostrat nt - early call upon the Civil Defence services, the Minister of Home Securitv is most anxious that the services AmS be fully manned in a stata at and efficiency. Members of the Civil TW.!.. services, including the AuxniarTvl Service and police auxiliaries, and the j.tkm all - - . ' ! WW .-.ii, t - ST WU their meit m.' for snerial hu.i. sJJ 3T' officer in charge of their local servient
