The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1943-06-21
Hugh Baillie, president of the
United Press, has transmitted the
following cable from London.

London, June 81 - CU.P0 This
is the pause before the storm. But
it Is not a complete pause by any
means since Germany is being saw
agely mauled by Allied air power.
The last time I sent one of these
informative notes from London
there was another pause-that of
the phony war which ended on
May 10, 1910, when Hitler fell upon
the low countries and France.
This pause will end with the
Allies falling upon the European
Axis in such a manner that, as
President Roosevelt said, the enemy
won't know their stern from their
bow.
The atmosphere here now, how
ever, is entirely different from that
prevailing when the German blow
was impending. Now there is no
feeling of uncertainty nor yet of
false security. Instead there is a
vast sense of rapidly accommodating
power, military redispositions swing
ing into line for action. The teams
are on the field for the second half,
and the one that is wearing the new
uniforms possesses plenty of re-
placements, is confident of victory
but aware that it won't be easy.
Scene OF Blow Uncertain
There is no telling, of course,
where the blow will be struck first,
but it is a pretty safe bet that the
British and American airmadas'
steadily increased tempo and their
pulverizing operations are engulfing
important German military areas in
a hell fire of destruction and in
time will be putting German refu-
gees on the roads similar to those
in Belgium and France 1t is also a
safe bet that the names Eisenhower
and Montgomery will soon be in the
headlines again.
Here in London where so many
important military decisions are
made, you have the feeling of being
on battlefield which has been
fought over and which might be
again if the Germans try something
desperate. Indeed it is a battlefield,
having been the center of the bat
tie of Britain, and looks it. The
structural face of London is bat
tered and shows many ugly scars,
but the people are grim and conf
dent. Most of the ruins have been
"tidied' up and forgotten until af-
ter the war. The fact is that while
at first you are shocked, especially
by the ruins of historical edifices
which are the common heritage of
all English-speaking people and
which have been so cruelty desc
Grated, you soon cease noticing
them. People who have been through
the blitz resemble members of some
fraternity who have a bond in COM
mon which no outsider can under
stand.
Raids Barely Noticed
This is a community where you
hear air raid sirens often in the
middle of the night, where you see
lights Winking like sudden stars and
then learn that a bomb has fallen
here or there and killed people; yet
everybody Surges ahead practically
OOAAFAOuss AAAC PlNoSAAI WI AAAoAA AAAS-
run raids are barely noticed in the
London newspapers, but after all OF
the complicated air raid drills in
New York, it gives the visitor a
strange feeling to hear the brief
doleful wailing then the distant
rumble and bubble of the guns.
When you see the wink wink wink
of the shells and hear the drone of
enemy planes, you realize that this
Is small sample of the real thing
There is no excitement whatever;
in fact, there is more concern shown
over trying to get taxis than over a
lone Nazi up in the sky.
With all this seeming leisure
there is no real lapse of actual of
fensive preparations. There is stern
Encouragement of anything smack
ing of over-optimism. There is a
Smplacable determination to destroy
anything standing in the way OF
victory. Casablancas unconditional
] surrender announcement is take