PZ 5749/39(1) 'Propaganda: Articles forwarded to Persian Gulf, Kabul & Katmandu for dissemination' [‎277r] (553/715)

RECd.POL.DEPt.
1PQCT1939
INDIA OFFICE The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors.
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CQPY OF T£LSCrR AIvI « From Secretary of State
to Government of India, External iffairs
Department, Ko o 2330, dated 12th October,
1939 o
Addressed by Secretary of State for India to
Government of India and repeated to H.M's
Minister at Kabul and Governor of Burma,
Defence Department, 392o
Following telegram sent by Ministry of Information to
Ho M’s Missions abroad for guidance of Press. Begins , In
connection with Germany's claims as to her economic strength
and weakness of Britain, following points may be useful
Britain is second richest country in the world - second
only to United States 0 Average income per head of British
people is £112, whereas average income per head of people
of Greater Germany is only £46i. British people can
therefore afford to spend nearly twice as much on war as
Germans can 0 For every gun which Germany can afford to
make y Britain' can make twoj for every aeroplane which
Germany can produce, Britain can afford to make two. When
British war effort is fully mobilised, it can exert nearly
twice as much power as German 0
Britain is incomparably stronger financially than
Germany 0 She has a gold reserve of over £500,000,000,
whereas Germany has hardly any gold reserve at alio She
has foreign investments to a total of £3,500,000,000, whereas
Germany has none 0 Without exporting anything at all, Britain
could pay for her imports of food and raw material, for at
least eighteen months, whereas Germany has only enough foreign
exchange to pay for imports for two months u
In Britain, there are ample supplies of food, and it has
not yet been necessary to introduce rationingo In Germany,
rations are already in force, and ration is pitifully small’
British Enpire produces three times as much wheat and twice
as much sugar as Germany - and Britain has half as many people
to feed as Greater Germany, British Enpire produces twice
as much iron ore as Germany, four times as much oil and petrol
seven times as much copper and nearly three times as much lead ,
Government of India asked to repeat to Katmandu and to
inform Mr 0 Hennessyo