AMERICAN CONSULATE
 
      Southampton, England.
 
      December 13, 1940
 
      Air Raid Report. Weeks ending December 1
 
      end December 8, 1940.
 
      
 
 
The nights on which heavy bombings were made on Southampton 
      have been reported in special reports and it been made in cleaning 
      up the streets of Southampton and light and water and even gas 
      have been restored to a large number of districts. The consulate 
      has still not been able to secure any statistics of casualties 
      believed to be reliable. The figures given out by the municipality 
      were 370 casualties of which 116 were fatal. This appears to 
      be entirely too small considering the number of houses completely 
      destroyed.
 
      
 
 
Telephone service has not yet been restored. The consulate 
      itself is without a telephone or electricity although it now 
      has heat and water.
 
      
 
 
As previously reported the entire retail shopping distinct 
      is wiped out, but some of the shops are attempting to open in 
      a small way in other sections of the town. How they will get 
      stocks for their new premises I do not know. People have been 
      allowed to purchase rationed goods in any shop that is still 
      open, not being restricted to those at which they are registered. 
      There is still considerable confusion about the new ration books 
      since the Food Office was destroyed and all the books were burnt. 
      The applications for new books which, as you know, were made 
      on the backs of the current ration books, were also burnt, so 
      that people have been instructed to send in the fronts,
 
      
 
 
I have been informed by the maneuver of the British American 
      Tobacco Company that hi company lost 6 1/2 million pounds of 
      tobacco in the destruction of warehouses M and N in the old docks 
      during the blitz of November 30/December 1.
 
      
 
 
Very truly yours,
 
      G. K. DONALD
 
      Consul General