THE INVADER PROVOKES

THE SAME FEELINGS EVERYWHERE

We have reproduced here an article published by France, the French daily newspaper in London. This article, written by a Dutchman, could just as well have been written by a Belgian, by a Norwegian, a Greek, a Czech, a Pole, or, of course, by a Frenchman. Because everywhere the invader and his accomplices provoke the same implacable hatred.

Having carefully prepared their attack, the Germans thought that they would unite Europe in slavery. Today, when their armies are sustaining bloody defeats, they are realising that rather than uniting Europe in slavery they have actually united it in its quest for liberation and for the settling of scores.

"The Dutch are here…..". This is what a Dutch commander of an anti-submarine craft said to the German commander of a small warship, sunk in the Channel.

He fished him out with a group of his men. When the Boche went into the Dutch commander's cabin he was astonished to see a large portrait of Queen Wilhemine hanging on the wall. "What…..the Dutch are still fighting at sea" he exclaimed.

He didn't know, the poor man! This fact had been hidden from him in the same way that so many facts have been hidden from the Germans. They are fighting their blitzkrieg in shadows.

Yes, the Dutch are here. And they will fight as long as the Boches remain unconquered and they will resist as long as the Boches are still in Holland. One day they will throw them out with an almost sadistic joy.

"The memory of Rotterdam lives in each of us like a wound"

It is the Boches who have changed the Dutch people in this respect. This people were tranquil and good-natured, lovers of business and peace and, above all, liberty.

But they are a people who shouldn't be irritated for too long. The Dutch are a little like the English. For a long time they stay unruffled. Then, at a certain point, they have had enough and that's it. One can cajole them, try to convince them with vague and gentle promises but they won't buy it.

The Dutch people have sworn an implacable hatred for the Germans and they will only assuage this hatred at the end of this war when they celebrate victory.

To give you proof of this I'll tell you a story, the story of a true Dutch patriot who met up with his friend, another true Dutch patriot. At this point, I must tell you that 97% of the Dutch are like this. The 3% who are traitors, the Dutch nazis of Mussert are closely watched by the rest of the population.

Anyway, on meeting his friend the true Dutchman found that he was looking worried. "What's wrong with you, mate?" He asked. "Haven't you been able to get any rations? Did a Boche sit next to you on the tram?"
"No", he replied, "but my Dutch nazi has gone."
"How do you mean, 'gone'?"
"He left for the Russian front, against his will, but his bosses made him".
"But I don't understand, why has this upset you?"
"But, you well know, he was my own nazi. I was to deal with him on the day of deliverance. Now I shall have nothing to do on that day."

That is how the Dutch think. They speak openly amongst themselves of the famous day, as it is known in our country, not as the 'H hour'*, even though many Dutchmen have an axe hidden for this day of the last judgment.

Yes, the Dutch have become like that. And who's to blame, if not those who assassinated our women and children in the streets of Rotterdam, who have helped the invader and still support them in their effort to break the spirit of resistance, who rob us of our worldly goods and our independence?

The memory of Rotterdam lives in each of us like a wound. The deaths of our hostages burn in our hearts as a terrible outrage. But the symbol of the House of Orange guides us on our path, the path which will end in liberty, because we will never accept slavery. Never.

*I may well be wrong but I think the author of the article is using a play on words here. 'H' in the French alphabet is pronounced in the same way as Hache (axe). Thus, in French, even though the day is not known as 'L'heure H' many Dutchmen still have 'un hache' hidden. I don't know if 'H hour' was a military expression similar to D-Day.

Translated by Annabel Forbes