Evening star., 1942-11-28
Some Submarines
And Destroyers
MoyHove Escaped
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
LONDON, Nov. 28.-Allied
ports held out the hand of well
come today for any surviving
units of the martyred French
fleet which defiantly chose mass
suicide at Toulon rather than
the clutch of Adolf Hitler.
Even as great explosions still were
tearing out the vitals Of the stricken
men o. war, Admiral Jean Darlan
went on the air during the night
to appeal to what surviving units
there might be to make for the
haven of United Nations bases.
Whether any of the ships got
away was problematical, conflicting
reports reaching London said some
smaller units, possibly including sub
marines and destroyers, put to sea
before Hitler sent his armored
columns racing into the Mediter-
ranean naval base.
Regardless of whether all the
Toulon fleet was lost to the Allies,
the scuttling in itself was regarded
in United Nations capitals as the
most hopeful symbol yet of French
resurgence.
France Believed More United.
AS the Russian government news
paper Izvestia put 1t, the incident
undoubtedly will be one of those
cleansing France Of shame and
capitulation.'
While arch -collaborationist Marcel
Deaf was quoted by the pro-Nazi
Paris radio as saying this means
France must unreservedly take Ger
many's proffered hand" reports from
the continent indicated France fast
was becoming united against the
Axis
Incidentally, crystallization of
French sentiment is expected to
help resolve the disagreement
among pro-Allied French which
came to the surface with acceptance
of Darlan as temporary high COM
missioner in Allied occupied North
Africa.
Some London observers inter-
preted the Toulon incident as
vouchsafng Darlan's sincerity but
pending Gen. Charles de Gaulle's
forthcoming visit to Washington,
the admirals status still remained
in question.
Darlan's Second Appeal.
Darlan's appeal last night to any
remaining French ships to make for
Allied ports was the second he had
addressed to the squadron to come
over to the cause of the United Ma
tions. The admiral, one-time heir
apparent to Marshal Petain but now
an active collaboration with the
Allies, sent his first appeal after
Hitler marched into Southern
France on November IL.
The small French armistice army
made ready for disbandment today
and the last pretense of an inde-
pendent Vichy government faded
out as smoke still rose at Toulon
from an action which German re-
ports now say was the scuttling Of
most of the French warships there.
Muff1ed explosions from the
sunken hulls continued to reverber-
ate over Toulon harbor through
out the night, Vichy broadcast dis
patch said.
After first declaring that some of
the vessels were saved by German
troops who overran the quaran-
tined naval base before dawn yes
terday, Berlin radio reports acknowl-
edged that the fleet mostly scuttled
herself"
frances old glory sank into the
grave" a Nazi broadcaster said.
Possible Resurrection of France.
Allied observers here saw in the
still confused and uncertain picture
the first stage in the resurrection
of France" The reported destruc-
ton of some so warships was re-
garded as a severe setback for Ger
many and a definite lift for the
hard pressed Allied navies.
washington official quarters
urged caution in accepting the
story of the wholesale scuttling
at face value, pointing out that
the information came from
enemy or enemy controlled
sources.
Although all information con-
corning Toulon came from German
controlled sources. there was little
disposition in London to question
lCan r,OI1I an rono A q 4