Evening star., 1941-01-01

probable winner is better defined,
We may easily witness acts of des-
peratiOn beside which the effort to
burn the heart OF the worlds
greatest metropolis is mild
One Of the ghastly possibilities is
the use of poison gas.
II Is with considerable hesitation
that I raise the stIbjeCt Of chemical
warfare. The world has been praying
that this horror might be averted
and has avoided discussion Of the
subject
However. with the smoke rising
from old churches and other monu-
mentS which have linked England
with an ancient past, there would
seem to be small reason not to face
the possibility OF the employment
OF gas.
Fear of ReprisaIs Strong.
There has been no report of the
use OF gas thus far in the present
war This probably has been due to
two things: % The mechanized war
Of motion on the ground has been
too fast TO permit Of its employment.
C2) Fear Of repriSals has restrained
any belIgerent from spraying gas
from Warplanes or dropping gas
bombs.
There are TWO SchOsls Of opinion
among military men One holds that
fear Of repriSalS will continue to
preclude the use of gas. The other
believes that it VIII be employed if it
seems to serve any useful purpose.
Many experts have been watching
for its use from the air against mobi-
lizatiOn and manufacturing Centers
and even against civilian pOpula-
tions to break mora!e. Despite the
fact that al major countries are
prepared TO defend themselves
against gas. there is small doubt of
its effectiveness under many condi-
tionS.
First Used by Germans.
The Germans introduced gas as
an effective weapon in warfare in
April Of 1915 during the world con-
fliCt They used chlorine against
the French on a four-mile front and.
because Of the surprise, paralyzed
resistance to depth of several
miles The Allies were quick to
reply in kind.
The upshot of all this was that
gas accounted for 100000 casualties
in the World War.
Most of these. however, were
among the fighting forces. The
world is still awaiting the use of
this frightful weapon against
civilians.
At least a section Of British mill
tary opinion believes that gas will
be used against England, and the
country is prepared both defensively
and for reprisals. Germany hasn't
expressed any view publicly, but
she, too. is set for action if and
when the occasion arises. For that
matter when I was in Berlin at the
time Of the Munich crisis, year
before var began, civilians were
provided with gas masks and were
ordered to keep them handy.
Britain Easier Target.
However, while civilians in all
belligerent countries are supposed
TO carry gas masks constantly, and
there are gas detectors everywhere
in public places, experts have small
doubt that there would be great
loss Of life if gas were employed
against big cities. Masks get worn
or damaged, and people are careless
about carrying them.
The way things stand at the mo-
ment, were gas warfare to break
out between Germany and Britain,
the likelihood is that the latter
would get the worst of the eX-
change. Britain is tiny, and her
big industrial population is concen-
trated in the central part of the
Country-a ready mark for gas.
Also, since the Nazis are able to
work from airdromes in occupied
territory, they are but short fight
from their objectives. The British,
on the other hand, have vast area
to cover, and the flying distance to
Germany is great.
Apart from possible attacks on
civilian populations to shatter
morale, gas could be used effectively
against airdromes and industries to
inmobiIize them. Even if no loss
of life were caused, there might be
a serious holdup of operations.
One is inclined to believe that
gas will be employed only as last
resort. 1t may be used by country
which is on the verge of defeat and
therefore desperate Or it might be
tried by a country which seemed
about to achieve a victory and want
ed to stupefy the enemy so as to