April 27

People's War memories

In fact the first contact was made between patrols on 25 April when a first lieutenant and three men of an intelligence and reconnaissance platoon of the US division met forward elements of the Russian Guards division.

First Lieutenant Albert Kotzebue of the 3rd Battalion, 273rd Infantry, 69th Infantry Division took his men in a boat across the Elbe to be greeted by Lt Col Alexander Gardiev, Commander of the 175th Rifle Regiment of the 58th Guards Division, 34th Corps.

They made arrangements for the formal handshake in front of photographers at Torgau the following day.

By joining forces at Elbe, the American and Soviet troops have successfully cut the Germany army in two. However, The Times correspondent warns of the of the possibility of "a protracted period of mountain warfare".

The American and Russian military leaders have paid tribute to their troops. In Moscow 324 guns fired a 24 salvo in honour of "victory of the freedom-loving peoples over Germany".

General Omar Bradley, commander of the US 12th Army Group, praised the Soviet troops for their determination in forcing the Germans to abandon Russia and push them back to the Elbe River.

He went on to pay tribute to the American forces: "In 10 months you have advanced 1,120km (696 miles) from the invasion beaches. All this has been attained thanks to your courage, your spirit and initiative and thanks to your comrades who died in order to achieve this."

The British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, said: "We meet in true and victorious comradeship and with inflexible resolve to fulfil our purpose and our duty. Let all march forward upon the foe."

President Harry STruman welcomed the news: "This is not the hour of final victory in Europe, but the hour draws near, the hour for which all the American people, all the British people and all the Soviet people have toiled and prayed so long."

Marshal Joseph Stalin spoke of the war still ahead: "Our task and our duty are to complete the destruction of the enemy to force him to lay down his arms and surrender unconditionally.

"The Red Army will fulfil to the end this task and this duty to our people and to all freedom-loving peoples." 

The The House of Commons has elected a woman to the post of Speaker for the first time in its 700-year history.

Betty Boothroyd, the 62-year-old Labour MP for West Bromwich West, won her historic victory by a decisive 134-vote majority. It is the first time since World War II that a member of the opposition party has held the job.

Her appointment was contested, for the first time since 1951. Five Conservatives are known to have said they were interested, but despite a frantic last-minute campaign, only two, the former Northern Ireland Secretary, Peter Brooke, and former minister Sir Giles Shaw, had enough support to be potential candidates.

The fact that it was a contested election adds, I believe, to your success.

Prime Minister John Major

Sir Edward Heath, who as the new Father of the House presided over the election, called on Mr Brooke's supporters first to put their case. They were followed by the former Conservative cabinet minister, John Biffen, who proposed the amendment to substitute Miss Boothroyd's name.

More than 70 Conservative MPs filed in to the lobby to vote for her, and her election was carried without asking for more candidates.

MPs broke with Commons protocol by standing and applauding her to her chair.

Clearly moved, she said, "I wish to thank the House for the very great honour it has bestowed on me. I pray that I shall justify its confidence and I pledge that I shall do all in my power to preserve the Speakership and its traditions."

The Prime Minister, John Major, congratulated her and said, "You have become our Speaker-elect because this House trusts you. It believes you enjoy in abundance the qualities necessary to protect and sustain the House and to safeguard its rights. The fact that it was a contested election adds, I believe, to your success."

Miss Boothroyd, 62, is from Yorkshire, and worked for Britain's most famous chorus line dancers, the Tiller girls, before she became an MP in 1974. During the last five years, as deputy Speaker, she became popular with MPs across the political divide. She is known for her briskness and good humour. Famously, when MPs asked what to call her when she took up the post of deputy Speaker, she replied, "Call me Madam." 

Vocabulary:  

lieutenant: 陆军中尉，海军上尉，副职官员

reconnaissance: an inspection or exploration of an area, especially one made to gather military information（侦察，搜索）

frantic: highly excited with strong emotion or frustration; frenzied（狂乱的，疯狂的）