Evening star., 1937-04-30
Spain
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,tarboard and shot under the sea at
GAS am.
The feat, government officers said,
will have the widest of repercussions
in naval and air circles, not only In
Spain but over the rest of the rearm-
ing world.
Partisons OF strong air force now
may point to the sinking in their
arguments against partisans of q
stronger feet. The Espana, however,
vas built In 19l3-before the days of
great armor plating designed espe-
clally for protection from the air.
Some persons said even Great Brit
sin, with her narrow Mediterranean
route to the east. might have cause
for deeper reflection as to the pos
sibility Of air attack. For today's news
confounded many who have insisted
plane could never sink q battleship.
The disappearance of the Espana
likewise left the Spanish government
with Spains only remaining capital
ship with 12-inch big guns, the
Jaime L
Government in Control.
1t seemingly gave the government
the balance of sea power in the civil
war. which has ragged on land and
water since July 18, 1886
The insurgents have the cruisers
Raleares, Canarias and Almirante
Cervera. The government has the
cruisers Miguel de Cervantes, the
Mendez Nunez, the Llbertad and the
Eepublica.
The Republica, however is believed
oct of commission, and the Baleares
and Canarias are new ships.
After the bombing the freighter
Broda WAS reported to have reached
Santander.
(1nsurgent sources, while not men
tioning the Espana, made these claims,
meanwhile: That Bilbao was "un-
tenable" and that two militia bat
tallons there had mutinied; that ref
ugees were sleeping in the streets; that
an lnsurgent column was 1917 miles
from Bilbao on the road from Du-
range; that the Basques had offered
to surrender on conditions and had
been told: Surrender to the victor
has no conditions')
The government planes, sent to the
aid of the beleaguered Basques by the
main Valencia government, struck
back at sea while insurgent armies
rolled toward Bilbao's "Maginot Line"
Of trenches from the southeast and
east and while insurgent planes blast
ed ferociously at Bilbao's last lines Of
defense.
Bilbao, city of near -hysteria,
awaited foreign aid for the evacuation
OF her 100000 noncombatant refugees
OF war. France was reported pressing
Britain to aid at once in the rescue
OF half that number from the proud
Basque capital on Spain's northwest
ern sea-
Madrid Told of Feat.
Juan Antonio Aguirre, President Of
the Basque autonomous republic noti-
fed Madrid of the Espana sinking,
1t also was announced by the ministry
OF marine at Valencia.
For months the Espana had harried
the government coast line. Govern
ment planes had made numerous At
tempts to sink her. Early in April
she was bombed viciously of San
tander by five pilots, but escaped with
captured coal boat, and the next
day turned her 12-inch guns on the
Basque coast. Only yesterday she
wirelessed a warning that she would
nre upon any British merchant ship
venturing within Bilbao Harbor.
Two other food ships, the Blackhill,
bound for Bilbao; the Consett for San
tander, left French ports today.
Along the beleaguered, fort-encircled
IA Snlle fr01t aShora 4l,o An, ~ o;ll -