Show l j RAID BLASTS LONDON Hundreds o of Tons of Bombs Tu Turn rn British Capital Into Shambles S r r hi hia f a q I Ia It a W Associated Press LONDON CLEANS UP AFTER GERMAN BOMBERS GIVE CITY HEAVIEST POUNDING OF WAR This scene of destruction was in heart of or city Note wrecked omnibus at left A ATTACKS IT ACKS FILL ALL MORGUES SPREAD FIRES Lord Lady Stamp Killed in Reprisal Assault Assaults FLASH BERLIN Yugoslavs BERLIN Yugoslavs capitulate capitulate capitulate capit capit- armistice Friday LONDON April 17 AP AP- AP Hundreds of nazi planes roared co continuously t over London for eight hours Wednesday night and early Thursday to drop un uncounted uncounted uncounted un- un counted tons of high explosives and fire bombs in the heaviest raid of the war Morgues w were were re crowded and hospitals hospitals hospitals hos hos- were jammed dammed There were blocks on blocks of wreckage No one had any accurate Idea of the number of dead or wounded or of the vast amount of property damage in n the capital but there were no doubts of the intensity of the attack Thousands of explosive explosive explosive sive and fire bombs fell Observers compared it to the fierce raid on on Coventry and said it was worse than anything seen in London during the height of the nazi assaults last autumn Among the dead were Lord Stamp the governments government's economic adviser and his wife His body was recovered but searchers were still burrowing in debris for Lady Stamps Death struck air raid service servicemen servicemen servicemen men in all all parts o of the city Members of a rescue squad were killed by liy a bomb which exploded in front of their truck as they sped to the scene of a previous blast Firemen high on a ladder pouring pouring pour pour- ing water into a blazing building were killed when a bomb hit the foot of the ladder Five fire watchers were killed by bya a hit on a church To an observer standing on the roof of a aVest West Vest End apartment Continued on Page Pace Two Column One Worst Raid on on London Crowds Morgues Continued from Page One building it seemed all London was burning or exploding as bombs crashed down and the antiaircraft batteries poured unending streams of shells Into the skies The air was filled with thick smoke and dust and sparks danced over the sky The very earth seemed to shake Screams could be heard even above the roar of guns and bombs In spite of the heavy antiaircraft barrage and the activities of the R RAF A F night fliers only five German German Ger Ger- man planes were reported shot down The German high command described described described de de- de- de scribed the raid as reprisal for the English destruction of the cultural and historic center of Berlin on April 9 9 Firemen and rescue workers dug In the debris throughout the mornIng morning morn morn- ing to bring out dead and injured Among the places where casualties were believed heaviest was a hospital hospital hospital hos hos- pital where a bomb hit a women women's a ward At least seven other hospitals were d damaged aged A London theater was wrecked and two motion picture houses were smashed but the raid came after most patrons had left In west central London a bomb demolished demolished de de- de- de an apartment house pinning pin pinning pin pin- ning fling a 6 number of tenants under concrete Another high explosive bomb fell felt in a tenement courtyard wrecking a surface shelter Plane Crash Starts Fire One raiding plane brought down downIn In the night exploded In a residential resi residential rest rest- garden and set fire lire to three houses A big bomb plowed a 6 foot 15 crater in a West End square and the blast sent tons of masonry spilling across the thoroughfare West End cab drivers tough veterans veterans veterans vet vet- erans of many an air raid said this undoubtedly was the worst of the lot and everywhere on the streets could be heard the comment comment com corn ment It was sas worse than last September Septem Septem- ber berThe The raid was just as long as most last autumn and as intense as Coventry and the December 29 fire raid here The autumn attacks attacks attacks at at- tacks were punctuated by lulls but this one was Vias practically continuous ous otis There were more planes Inthe in inthe inthe the sky and observers agreed that more snore and heavier bombs were also dropped For hours after the clear all sounded at a a. m m. p p. p m m. Wednesday M S T I the wall wail of ot ambulance sirens carrying victims to hospitals and the hoarse shouts of firemen and rescuers still echoed through smoke-shrouded smoke debris- debris filled streets The Germans had promised to retaliate a hundred told for last weeks week's Berlin raid and this ancient capital heart of empire stood today today today to to- day as a 6 scarred rubble littered witness to the efforts to do just that thatA A government this morning said the raid was as very heavy and sustained and added that early reports show that casualties casualties cas cas- ces- ces were heavy and that considerable considerable considerable con con- coni i damage was done Bombers dive-bombers dive and com corn combat combat bat planes observers S said there were of them them all 11 participated in the attack dropping thousands of ot bombs from the smallest Incendiaries incendIaries incendiaries diaries to delayed action explosives and missiles of the super bomb type British sources said the Germans Germans' had all alt the bombers in ln the air over London that it was possible to have there They just wouldn't Nave have had fields to fly from or room to fly if it there had been any more over London one said Her Heres Here's s 's What a Blitz Raid Leaves in Wake in London I i t. t I A to j t tt t t rr I t P. P y y S- S t Above All that is left of business house in The City after affer nazi bombing Lower left leff grim reminders like these are a always I w way a y s around British capital Associated Associated As As- As- As Press t |