Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1940-09-13
Destiny Of Britain
May Hinge on Arms
Sent by America
Nearly Half Of Army now
Bears Guns Originally
Bought for A. (. F.
BY EDWARD Z. BOMAR,


Britain's extremity appears to be
such at the moment that store OF
outmoded weapons discarded by the
United States Army is capable of
playing an important and even de-
cisive role in the drama of threat
ened invasion.
The half-million or more rifles
and other arms shipped to England
last June are largely infantry
weapons and it is a military maxim
that in the last analysis it is the
infantryman with his gun who de-
cides battles and wars.
From fourth to a half of the
troops forming Britain's last line of
defense bear rifles originally pur-
chased by the United States %
years ago for the American Expe-
dictionary Force. Thousands of World
War machine guns and hundreds of
field artillery pieces taken from
American arsenals arm other de-
tenders.
History has turned on smaller
hinges than Britain's possession
just now of these arms, as techni-
cally obsolete as some are.
B. E. F. Stripped of Equipment.
How great was England's need
after the British Expeditionary
Force lost most of its equipment in
France was limited at the time by
Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
He told the House of Commons that
only portion of 100000 defensive
volunteers possessed firearms of any
kind.
From his and other disclosures, 1t
appears that Britain now has under
arms some 100000 men to oppose
any attack on English shores. They
include territorials. corresponding
to the American National Guard,
and volunteers and conscripts I'M
equipped by training or experience
to cope with Nazi veterans of the
Polish and Lowlands campaigns who
since have been trained for grim
war on English beaches.
Taking an optimistic view, Lord
Lothian, the British Ambassador,
said that England had 100000
trained and equipped men to oppose
the 100000 or 100000 he estimated
the NaziS might try to put ashore.
But on the realistic basis of first
line divisions. neutral military men
suspect Britain possesses only about
a dozen, compared with possibly IS
available Nazi divisions.
Should Adolf Hitler's generals win
. desperate military gamble and
land, reinforce and supply a sub
stantial number of these, Britain
obviously would need every weapon
for a tight which MI, Churchill
the fields and streets and in the
hills
Details Kept Secret.
Details Of the transaction by which
the Army turned over the arms to
Britain were kept officially secret.
Gen. George C. Marshall, War De-
partment chief of staff, explained to
Congress that disclosure of full in
formation was believed contrary to
the public interest"
1t is we'll substantiated, however,
that they included 100000 and pos
sibly 100000 Lee-Enfleld rifles along
with some $1,000, 900 rounds Of am
munition, thousands of Lewis and
Maxim machine guns and hundreds
Of IS nm. field guns.
One Congressman reported this
week he understood there were TO-
900 machine guns and 5000 of the
artillery pieces. They were sold as
surplus for 1900 ,0OO according to
an official announcement, less than
q third of their cost.
1t Is historic coincidence that
the arms were originally intended for
Britain in the first place. Manu-
featured in the United States to
England's order prior to American
entry into the World War, they were
turned over to United States troops
because there was insufficient time
to turn out Springfield rifles. The
then new Browning machine guns,
which the Army still uses, did not
see service until 1918,