The Pittsburgh Press (September 1, 1944)
Simms: ‘Secret weapon’
By William Philip Simms
Washington –
Five years ago today, at dawn, Nazi land and air forces attacked Poland without a declaration of war as Hitler started out to conquer the world.
Today, competent opinion on both sides of the Atlantic regards Hitler as having reached the end of his rope. Only the coup de grace is yet to come. Lloyd’s, a hardboiled insurance concern, is offering 8 to 5 the war in Europe will be over by Oct. 31.
Reports that the Nazis expect to save themselves by using some sort of horrific “secret weapon” are discounted here. The Allies have now reached Amiens, well along the so-called rocket coast of France. Unless Hitler soon fires away with whatever he’s got, it will be too late.
There is also considerable doubt that even Hitler would dare resort to poison gas. Not that he would hesitate to murder the rest of Europe if it would have him. The point is, we have command of the air. If the Nazis use gas, Germany will be given a close of her own medicine which she would not forget in a thousand years.
Purposes of German threats
When the robots first fell on London, a section of opinion demanded retaliation, it was suggested that for every robot attack on Britin, some town in Germany be selected for a return plastering such as only the Allied Bomber command can administer. The government, however, was against the idea and so was the bulk of the people. But if poison or some other monstrous weapon were turned against the Allies, all hell would break loose against Germany.
History continues to repeat – even down to these German threats. In 1918, the British Army in France was deluged with bloodcurdling tales circulated by the enemy. They had two purposes – then as now – first, to buck up their own waning morale and, second, to frighten the Allies.
Propaganda had on effect
Like the present V-2 threat, one report was that Germany had a new “secret” poison gas. Gas masks offered no protection against it, the rumor was. The tale was almost entirely buncombe. The only truth in it was that the Germans did have a mixture to cause sneezing, nausea and finally death by chlorine or mustard gas poisoning but that was hardly new. It had been tried out at Cambrai in 1917 and the British had evolved a defense. Nevertheless, the propaganda had an effect. For a time, it even had the general staff worried and, of course, the soldiers.
That there is really a V-2 is known. It is said to be true rocket bomb which, of course, the V-1 isn’t. Reports say it weighs up to 10 or 20 tons. Until recent dare, however, it was certainly not ready for use. It may be that the unprecedented explosions heard on the “rocket coast” of France recently were V-2s blowing up at the wrong end of the line. Even the V-1, which weighs only a ton, is difficult to launch. Many launching crews are said to have been snuffed out by them when things went wrong.