Evening star., 1940-07-15
y the Associated Press.

CAT VI ~110I
~ the Associated Press.
LONDON, July 15.-The tert OF
the radio address yesterday By
Prime Minister Winston Church
W JollotDs.:
During the last fortnight, the
British Navy, in addition to block
aiding what is left OF the German
fleet, has had imposed upon 1t the
a sad duty of putting effectually
out of action for the duration of
the war the tactical ships of the
French Navy. These, under the
armistice terms signed in the
railway coach at Compiegne,
would have been placed within
the power of Nazi Germany.
The transference Of these ships
to Hitler would have endan-
gered the security both Of Great
Britain and the United States.
We therefore had no choice but
to act as we did and to act forth
with.
Our painful task is now COM
pleted. Although the unfinished
battleship Jean Bart still rests
In Moroccan harbor, and there
are number of French warships
at Toulon and in various French
ports all over the world, they are
not in condition, or of a char
acter, to derange our preponder-
ance of navy power.
AS long, therefore, as they make
no attempt to return to ports
controlled by Germany or Italy,
we shall not molest them in any
way. That melancholy phase in
our relations with France has,
SO far as we are concerned, come
to an end.
Let us think, rather, of the
future.
Today is the 14th of July, the
national festival of France. A
year ago in Paris, I watched the
stately parade down the Champs
d'Eleysee of the French Army and
the French Empire. Who could
foresee what the course of a year
could bring?
Who can foresee what the
course of other years will bring?
Faith is given to us as a help
and comfort when we stand in
awe before the unfurling scroll
Of human destiny. And I pro-
claim my faith that some of us
will live to see a 14th of July
when a liberated France will
once again rejoice in her great
ness and in her glory, and once
again stand forward as a cham
pion of the freedom and the
rights of man.
Soul Of France Will Turn
With Comprehension.
When that day dawns, and
dawn it will, the soul Of France
will turn with comprehension
and with kindness to those
Frenchmen and French women
wherever they may be, who in
the darkest hour did not despair
Of the republic.
In the meantime we shall not
waste our breath, or cucumber
our thoughts, with reproaches.
When you have a friend and
comrade at whose side you have
faced tremendous struggles, and
your friend is smitten down by a
stunning blow, 1t may be neces-
sary to make sure that the
weapon that has fallen from his
hands shall not be added to the
resources of your common enemy.
But you need not bear malice
because Of your friends cry of
delirium and gesture of agony.
You must not add to his pain.
You must work for his recovery.
The association interests between
Britain and France remains.
The cause remains.
Duty inescapable remains.
So long as our pathway to VIC
tory is not impeded, we are ready
to discharge such offices Of good
will toward the French govern
ment as may be possible, and to
foster the trade and help the
administration of those parts of
the great French empire, which
are now cut off from captive
France, but which maintain their
freedom.
Subject to the iron demands of
the war. which we are waging
against Hitler and all his works,
we shall try to conduct ourselves
that every true French heart
will beat and glow at the way we
carry on the struggle.
All Oppressed Countries
To Rejoice in British Victory.
And that not only France but
all the oppressed countries in
Europe may feel that each Brit
ish victory is a step towards the
liberation Of the continent, and
the foulest thralldom into which
1t has ever been cast.
AL goes to show that the war
will be long and hard. No one
Gull Gcll WllCIC IL WILL Spl CdO.
One thing is certain: The peo-
pies OF Europe will not be ruled
for long by the Nazi Gestapo.
Nor will the world yield itself to
Hitler's gospel of hatred, appe-
tite and domination.
And now it has come to us. We
must stand alone in the breach
and face the worst that the
tyrant's might and enmity can
do. Bearing ourselves humbly
before God, but conscious that
we serve an unfolding purpose,
we are ready to defend our na-
tive land against the invasion
by which it is threatened.
We are fighting by ourselves
alone. Here in this strong city
Of refuge, which enshrines the
title deeds of human progress
and is of big consequence to
human civilization-here girt
about by the seas and oceans,
where our navy reigns, shielded
from above by the prowess and
devotion of our airmen, we
await undismayed the impend-