World War: Dorothys, Hyderabads

Photographs of a vast “boneyard” of wrecked Nazi planes came out of London last week (see cut), emphasizing that each German shot down is a dead loss to the Luftwaffe, a source of salvage to Britain, whose recovery ratio from her own wrecks alone was placed at one in three. Chipping in to buy replacements for R. A. F. has become the most popular form of war subscription among the British. Women named Dorothy, spurred by Mrs. Dorothy Clarke (wife of an R. A. F. squadron leader), have banded together to buy Spitfires. So did mothers of R. A. F. pilots. All towns named Rochester (there are 17 in the U. S.) were asked to subscribe because Rochester, England, where Short planes are made, was lustily bombed.

Last October the Nizam of Hyderabad showed his loyalty and opulence by donating an entire Spitfire squadron. Cost: £100,000. When the Battle of Britain got hot, the Hyderabads were in the thick of it, scored 27 kills, but themselves grew thinner. Last week from the Nizam’s loyal subjects arrived another check for £100,000, to buy 20 Hurricanes. Owner John Wilson McConnell of the Montreal Star last week matched Hyderabad, gave R. A. F. $1,000,000.