Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1940-08-23
LuII in the Bottle

One phase of the battle of Britain
seems to have come to an end At
least, there has been decided
change in German tactics within the
past few days No longer are the
skies over the English Channel dark
ened by massed formations of Nazi
bombers and fighters, laundering
westward in wave after wave, to be
met by outnumbered but grimly de-
termined fighters of the Royal Air
Force, by anti-aircraft fire and by
balloon barrages. Latest dispatches
tell, instead, of sporadic forays by
"hit-andrun" bombers, singly or in
small groups, supplemented by long
range bombardment across the
Channel by Nazi shore batteries. The
German propaganda agency aScribeS
the falling of in aerial activity to
the weather-but the same weather
has not prevented British flyers from
continuing their harassing raids over
Germany.
Two articles in yesterdays Star
contained information which may
offer a more plausible explanation
for the letup in sky raids over Eng
land One was Chicago Daily News
dispatch from correspondent whose
personal survey of bombed English
naval port bluntly belied Nazi claims
of devastation there. The other was
Major George Fielding Eliot's expert
opinion, based on all available fig
ureS, that in the masSed flights the
Germans suffered an average loss of
twenty per cent of their bombers en-
gaged-a tremendous toll, and one
out of all proportion to the amount
Of damage inflicted on the enemy.
Both articles support the contention
of British authorities that the Ger
man aerial blitzkrieg has been any,
thing but success to date. While
British and German claims of losses
by each side are at variance, Major
Eliot estimated that the British
losses have been about one-fourth
those of the Germans, and that the
Nazi toll has been costlier because it
included so many bombers and so
many men. If this casualty rate
were to continue over long period,
with no more damage to British
military detectives and to British
morale than advices indicate, Ger
man numerical superiority in planes
and pilots would dwindle to the
vanishing point and her goal, the
subjugation of the British Empire,
would be further away than ever
1t would be unwise at this stage of
the battle to indulge in too much
wishful thinking, however. The
relative lull may be only breathing
spell preliminary to greater and more
frightful assaults according to a
definite plan. There are signs that
some new phase OF the siege of Eng
land is about to begin. Troop con-
centrations are reported all along the
continental coast, opposite Britain.
Nazi mine-sweepers and other YES
sells have been active in parts of the
Channel and the North Sea, perhaps
clearing path for an invading fleet.
1t is rumored that Hitler and others
OF the German high command have
gone to Paris in connection with i'm
pending military developments. 1t
may we'll be that the long promised
all-out" invasion attempt is about
to begin. Meanwhile, Britons and
their American friends will find some
comfort in contemplation of the fact
that for once Herr Hitler has fallen
behind schedule in his vaunted plans
OF conquest. He and his propagan-
dists had boosted that they would be
IN London by August IS. The British
are still waiting for him-and the
longer the wait the better prepared
they will be to resist his entry.