Milford chronicle., 1938-12-23
The Foreign Situation
Under A Microscope
(From the Foreign observer)
Glum Peace

NffOm the FOreign ODSefVer)
Glum Peace
Never was a peace treaty signeC
by two nations with less jubilatioi
than the Berlin-Paris Pact on De
cember 6. Usually gay Parisiani
were described as silent and sull-
en- as Joachim Won Ribbentrop
German Foreign Minister, rode
through the heavily guarded boule-
wards. In short, the emissary Of &
Once-conquered nation arrived al
most as the conqueror-and was
treated as such bya nation shamed
The Leftist press found deep and
bitter distrust" of the agreement
signed with France to lend our long
and historic dispute" In what was
believed to have been government
inspired article, even lie Temps
semi-official newspaper, asserted
that the pact could become valuable
"Only as the foundation for a gen.
eral European settlement"
Marshall Henri Petain, famous
French World War commander, re-
fused to attend a banquet following
the signing of the treaty, in a pro-
test against barring Colonial Minis
ter Georges Mandel and Education
Minister Jean Zay, both Jews, from
the fete in honor of Won Ribbentrop.
And the people Of France remem-
,bered what Hitler wrote in "Mein
Kampf" about them:
Only a simple-minded ass will
be impressed by offers (from
France) Of friendship to Germ
any /. we must be absolute
ly clear about this: the inexoE-s-'
able nemy-to-the-death of the
German people is. and remains,
France.
Even as the ink was still wet on
the treaty, Italy's demands for Tun-
isia, Savoy, Corsica, Djibouti and
Suez were growing vehement after
a long and intense propaganda cam
paign (FOreign Observer, December
-. Italy, as the ally of Germany,
plainly expects help from Hitler in
return for non-interferenee with the
Nazis in the seizure of Austria and
the dismemberment of Czechoslo-
vakia.
NsOnNGA odlAOAb UCtMEEA NuAA ANAU-
beBtrOp and French Foreign Minis
ter Bonnet had to be abruptly brok-
en- off while the German envoy wait
ed word from Hitler for a reply to
BOnnet's direct question: what will
Germany do If France goes to war
with Italy over the eoloniesT Rib
bentrOp was frankly stumped. The
Franco-Italian situation had gotten
beyond control; Hitler was back of
ii Duce "in principle" but stalling
for an answer. Meanwhile, 250.000
French and Italian troops modified
quickly and were facing each other
across the Tunisian frontier.
France Prepared
Chaotic as France is with it's in
ternal wrangling, the nation Is ready
to unite behind General Marie Gus
tave Gamelin, chief OF the general
staff Of national defense. II, as last
week the Giornale d'Italia announc-
ed, "The Italian nation is ready to
march," France is ready too. Came I
lin has known for a long time the !
seriousness Of the Italian menace.
Last summer he held maneuYers in
Tunisia, which is half-populated by
Italians, while King Victor Emanuel
was watching Italy's legions play at
war under the hot African sun of
Libyra. Early this autumn, Gamelin
watched his troops in mock war
high in the Alpts, on the Italian
frontier where he has been rushing
an extension Of the Maginot Line TO
keep II Duce from seizing Savoy and
Nice. which Napoleon III grabbed In
1860. 4
II was Gamelin who saved Paris
in 1914, although the credit goes to
Joffre, on whose staff Gam
Elm was an adjutant. When the Ger
nan war machine rolled toward the
French capital, the advice of Joffre's
5taff was to retreat to the Seine.
iamelin advised a counter attack,
which resulted i'm the famous Battle
IF the Marine Paris was saved.
iamelin, the brain behind the Mag
not Line, designed to block all in
Iasion, Is determined that the COM
ng war shall be fought outside
boundaries. A.,
Bluff d
n II Duce is taking a leaf from
Iitler's strategy book. the italian i
demands may be considered In every !
aspect an impotent but impudent
'luff. II is known now (Foreign OBJ !
erver. December /. that Italy was |
ll-prepared to go to Hitler's aid /
Iad The democracies decided to fight
o save Czechoslovakia. II Duce's !
Ethiopian adventure all but broke {
he nation. and the Spanish inter- |
ention has proved tremendously
ostly undertaking. Reports long I
go from Spain were to the effect q
hat the Italians. after suffering dis '
strous defeats, were used only as I
abor battalions. They cannot fight. '
hey made poor showing against I