n with factory A.R.P., but does not
60 ern itself with the S.H. D.

‘Since the service is compulsory, a higher
proportion of the population is engaged in
ARP. services in Germany than is ithe case
here, though the disproportion has been
greatly lessened by the extension of volun-
tary, and the introduction of compulsory,
fire watching here. But although many more
German het British women are active in
A.R.P. there is evidence that they have been
far less satisfactory than the women here.

As here, black-out and siren warnings are

among the provisions made. A complaint
commonly made is that the siren is not heard,
and many hand sirens are used to reinforce
the public warnings.

‘When the sirens go, all must take enero
apart from people on urgent and vital
| missions, such as doctors and midwives, and
the police and A.R.P. workers on duty.
There have been repeated warnings that
pensions and compensation will not be paid
for people killed or injured outside shelters
unless they were on duty. ~

~ Convicts ON Boms DIsposaL
The fighting of the bigger fires during

|raids, and the rescue work afterwards, are
the concern of the S.H.D. Its efficiency has
‘been much reduced since the attack on
Russia by a steady drain of men to the

Army. There has been frequent publication

of instructions to the civil population on how
‘to fight incendiary bombs, and these have
become almost continuous since the R.A.F.
started its heavy fire raids. As in this
country, householders are advised to have
handy stirrup pumps, pails of sand and
water, and a long-handled spade, with, in

addition, a Feuerpatsche, a kind of wet mop
used to “extinguish smouldering debris and
sparks and to cool hot floors after a fire has
been put out, and the Sandbombe, a thin
paper bag filled with sand for throwing on
incendiary bombs.

There are no specialist bomb disposal
squads. The work is done sometimes by
technical units of the $.H.D., and sometimes
by convicts. Early in the war raid damage
was tidied up with startling speed—so much
so that there were complaints that the haste
meant leaving people to die under ruins.
A Hamburg letter of September, 1941,
states: “In whole rows of houses windows
were smashed; the next morning they were
repaired. There were glaziers everywhere—
there must have been hundreds.” Among
those who were impressed for such first-aid
repairs were French prisoners of war. But
this phase has long since passed. Not even
German organization—and A.R.P. has been
minutely organized—can arrange for such
quick repairs after raids of the kind which
the R.A.F. are now regularly making; nor,
however efficient the pre-provision, would
the state of Cologne, Dusseldorf, and other
cities after recent raids permit of anything

of the sort being attempted. Indeed, inten- .

sive raids such as that in which, in a short
time, 175,000 incendiaries were rained on
Hamburg, overwhelm not merely the mili-
tary defences but the A.R.P._ services
as well. The fire-fighting services espe-
cially seem destined to be called upon to
engage in many losing battles in the future.
Lack of materials and the pressing need to
employ all available labour (including
foreign) on war production have further
slowed down the repair of raid damage.
The German A.R.P. services are less well-

Mile 98 on the Alcan Highs
—Photo by Const. L. W.

Clay, Fort St. John Detachment

equipped than ours. For instance, it was
only a few months ago that a power-driven
trailer pump was introduced, and there is
reason for believing that it is a copy of the
Coventry Climax. The Germans were behind
us, too, in introducing the stirrup pump,
and the one they have is a copy of the
English model. There is évidence that they
lack fire-fighting material. A.R.P. workers
wear a lighter version of the army steel
helmet; the police wear the Army pattern.
Provision of respirators has been less satis-
factory than here. Their services generally
are, under pressure, much more dependent

P,. LEO ANDERTON
Notary Public

Real Estate and Insurance
Phones 42 and 364-R

Courtenay British Columbia

Phone 357 P. O. Box 143

LOWE'S GREEN GROCERY

Specializing in
FRUITS AND VEGETABLES

Also Dealers in
Confectionery, Tobacco and Oriental
Fancy Goods

COURTENAY, B.C.

Phone 192

BRAMMALL-MASON LTD.

HOME OIL PRODUCTS FIRESTONE TIRES

DODGE AND DE SOTO CARS
DODGE TRUCKS
SALES — SERVICE

COURTENAY, BRITISH COLUMBIA

RIVERSIDE
HOTEL

COURTENAY, B.C.

It Pays to Deal at
LANG'S DRUG STORE
COURTENAY, B.C.

e

You Can Buy Your Copy of
THE SHOULDER STRAP from Us

TYEE BAR—B—Q
DINE AND DANCE

Light Lunches and Confectionery
Best Coffee on the Island

3 Miles from Courtenay 1 Mile from Royston
On Island Highway

COURTENAY, B.C.

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