Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1938-09-29
INTERNATIONAL
NEWS REVIEW
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the Milan Hodza ministry resigned,
to be succeeded by cabinet headed
by the immensely popular Inspector
General of the Army Ian Syrovy.
Then Mr.. Chamberlain returned to
Germany to report to Herr Hitler that
his bidding had been done: Czecho-
Slovakia was ready to hand over the
coveted part of its territory. On this
occasion Chamberlain called on Hit
Ter at the Rhenish summer resort of
Godesberg, and conversation moved
along smoothly enough until it struck
snag which now appears to have
been in the nature of additional de-
mands on the part of Hitler.
On the Berchtesgaden visit Cham
berlain had been exceedingly willing
to yield to Hitler-while the British
people and most of the world shouted
"Shame" at him. Between the two
visits to Germany he very evidently
recognized the unpleasant fact that
his actions were disliked, so at Codes
berg his back was considerably stiff
fened-he wasn't quite as ready to
yield as on the former occasion. And
when Hitler asked for more than he
originally was promised, Chamberlain
baked; temporary rupture took
place, then conversation was re-
sumed, and soon thereafter Chamber
lain returned to London
Cabinet Conferences.
The world still ignorant about the
new Hitler demands, France and
Great Britain summoned extraordin-
airy cabinet sessions to discuss them
The French government at once said
they were entirely unacceptable
whereupon Premier Edouard Daladier
and Foreign Minister Georges Bonnet
flew to London for their second talk
within week with Chamberlain and
the British foreign secretary, Lord
Halifax.
Hour after hour the British and
the French ministers conferred, fl
nally announcing that they were in
full agreement, and then it was
learned that what they could not &C
cept was the fact that Hitler had
demanded surrender of the Sudeten
land before October l, and that he
refused to guarantee the frontiers
of the remaining part of Czecho-Slo-
vakia. That was too much for Great
Britain and France especially when
the two governments learned that
Czecho-Slovakia itself resolutely had
turned down the latest German pro-
posal and would fight to death rather
than accept.
War Preparations.
Already while the Godesberg con-
versationS were in progress, the
Prague government had decided to
mobilize its army; it did, and within
six hours two million soldiers were
at their posts ready for anything
that might happen. At the same
time partial mobilization began in
France, Belgium, England and other
countries, and Europe began to look
more like dangerously armed camp
than at any time since the days of
the world war. Feverish talk of the
inevitability of war was heard on
every side.
Then Sunday evening Hitler an
nounced that he was going to speak
Monday evening at the Berlin
"Sportspalast' at the last mo-
ment President Roosevelt cabled from
Washington moving appeal to Hit
Ter as well as to President Edouard
Benes of Czecho-Slovakia asking them
to do their utmost to prolong negoti-
ations rather than let them end in
horrible and bloody conflict.
Speech.
Hitler then made his Speech-with-
out any reference to the Roosevelt or
other messages of a similar tenor
He made ferociouS attack on Benes,
calling him repeatedly liar, his
government criminal administration
using, in short, such vulgar invec-
tive that the world was amazed to
witness the spectacle of one govern
ment head calling another dirty
names.
His speech was largely an alibi;
a justification of what he had done,
what he had demanded; an assurance