Evening star., 1940-09-15
J Azis Beaten Off Four Times
IN Attempts to Raid London;
Italians Driving Into Egypt
300 Reich Bombers
Reported Thrown
Back Over Coast
By the Associated Press.


by the dark of night were beaten
back last night and early today,
three of them by British fighter
planes alone and the fourth by
laundering anti-aircraft barrage.
Some bombs fell. whiStling, but
the clear signal came at 1927 am,
when the noise of plane motors died
away after two-hour and II min
ute alarm.
The attack, by a few German
planes shutting. over the capital,
was the lightest in more than a
week. Only odd bombs were dropped,
and the raid appeared similar t.
the "insomnia" flights over London
preceding the past week of all-nlght
onslaughts.
The guns blazed away for 20 min
utes before an alarm-the seventh
since Saturday morning - was
sounded. Heavy barrages from the
Thames estuary direction and from
North London indicated the Ger
mans attempted to break into the
heart of London from two direc-
tions
The gunfire along the Thames
crept toward the north, apparently
tracing the course of the raiders.
Departure From Nazi Tactics.
The successive night alarms. with
"clear' intervals up to three hours.
constituted a departure from the
week-long German tactics of all
night raids and came as Britain's
own bombers pounded heavily at
German invasion ports" on the
coast of France.
The British Press Association said
these latest blows for Britain were
heavier even than the fierce British
attacks which ceased at dawn Satur-
day.
The British defense by fighter
planes alone against the first three
German night raids was without
precedent since the start September
7 of the almost continuous German
air offensive
The Air Ministry news service
said that despite help of the clouds
only a few bombers managed to
penetrate to central London in
yesterdays raids.
The gunfire meeting this morn
ings raid grew heavier as the
drone of plane engines increased by
the minute. Guns in the southwest
burst into action, and shell frag-
ments fell on roofs and streets.
When the clouds rolled back the
main London network of guns
opened up. Buildings shook with the
intensity of the barrage as the
planes passed over.
Bombers Estimated at 800.
The Nazis came in great num-
bers-the high drone of many mo-
tors was heard over central London.
The Press Association estimated
that 300 bombers had been thrown
back by early evening in a huge
battle over the southeast coast
which watchers described as the
biggest ever"
The raiders first evening ap-'
pearance hereafter three forays
made by late afternoon-was at
81, o'clock, their second at TAT.
their third at 9:36 This third alarm
was the shortest of all three, last
ing only II minutes.
Bomb Hits Catholic Church.
In the fourth raid of the day
the first evening alarm-one bomb
ploughed into the crypt of Ro-
man Catholic church in London
district and killed and injured an
unannounced number sheltered
there. The bomb fell just outside
the church and went straight
through the ground into the crypt.
The church was not damaged-even
the windows were not broken
Also, some persons were killed
by high explosive bomb dropped
by lone raider on a Midlands
town.
BY the habit of week that had
seemed endless, London's people
had gone to their accustomed air
raid shelters, and the unexpected
freedom-if only for the time being
-astonished them.
All this time, the Royal Air Force
had been defending the metropolis
alone, and only an occasional
searchlight crept about in the sky.
A. A. Gunners Idle.
The anti-aircraft gunners. who
night after night had been throw
ing steel all about the horizon, idled
through the early evening raids.
UP to $50 pm, the Air Ministry
tSee LONDON, Page A-9D