Evening star., 1937-11-26
Nv DOROTHY THOMPSON.

happening in Europe is job
for Agatha Christie or S. S.
Il Van Dine. There Is combi-
nation Of secret diplomacy, internal
cabal, organized social forces with
policies and q press. international
propaganda and clandestine warfare
which at no moment adds up to any
consistent picture.
Take the strange case Of the Brit
ish destroyer Havock, which was fired
at in the Mediterranean prior to the
Nyon conference. Who fired at the
Havock? Does anybody know? The
Russians used this and other Incl
dents to address a most vigorous pro-
test to Rome. fatty accusing the Ital-
party. Part of the British press
agreed Now, weeks later, a British
journalist who is known often to
speak for the British foreign Office,
makes the following statement:
THE day will come when the truth
will be told about the clever news
paper maneuver, the object of which
was TO make the British public believe
that the British destroyer Havock had
been attacked of the Spanish coast
by an Italian submarine. 1t is now
known that the false news about the
Italian nationality OF the submarine
| was introduced deliberately to work
public opinion up to the boiling point.
But what the British authorities know
now Mussolini knew on the first day.
Therefore to him Nyon appeared
the result of a plot to create delib-
erately a front against Italy. This
must be remembered If what follows
is to be understood"
Whose Plot?
I have talked with numerous peo-
pie who cover the European scene
| intelligently and carefully. None Of
them knows what this means. Was
there plot? Whose plot? Who was re-
| sponslble for the newspaper maneu-
ver"-if there was one? If the Ital-
ians did not fire on the Havock, who
did? Or did anybody? And why does
the correspondent, who hints at SO
much, not tell the story? He throws
no light. He introduces a new con-
fusion. Is this also newspaper
mAneuver?"
The case of the British cruiser
Basilisk is even more fantastic. On
October 4, the Basilisk, on submarine
patrol duty under the Nyon agree
ment. was attacked by a submarine in
the Mediterranean between Malaga
and Valencia, according to the Lon
don Times, which gave the origin of
the submarine as unknown" The
story stood for days. when suddenly
the British admiralty issued an Off
cial statement that the cruiser had
not been fired on at all But on Sun
day, November IA, in the Herald
Tribune's This Week" the French
journalist Pertinax. who is often the
spokesman of the French foreign Of
fice, states categorically that the Bas-
ilisk was attacked, and by German
submarine. the U-24, from Wilhelms-
haven. He also says that the Basilisk
returning fire, sent the U-24 to the
bottom.
Now, where did the London Times
get its report unless from the British
admiralty itself? 1t hasn't got re-
porters stationed out in the middle
of the Mediterranean. If from any
other source, and untrue, why did the
admiralty not deny it Immediately?
According to Pertinax, the denial
when it came was lie. II Pertinax
himself is indulging in propaganda for
the Quai d'Orsay, for what purpose?
And if the statement is untrue-now
that he has bluntly given the number
and base of the submarines not
that easily provable? Certainly the
Germans can refute it--by producing
U-24.
Isn't it clear that despite the pre-.
tension that there is a free press II
England the public there are getting
highly colored and even censored
version of plain facts?
And isn't it clear that strange
"undeclared warfare" is going on al
ready between the chief nations o
Europe? On September 13 this col.