Imperial Valley press., 1939-10-19
BY NEA Service

PEACE RIVER COLONY, B. c..
Oct. 19.-Whiie death and oppreS-
sion stalk their homeland, 542 Su-
deten refugees are finding new
life of peace here in the vaStness
of eastern British Columbia
Since the first of their number
arrived in April of this year, 152
families have fled the terrors of
Central Europe to discover the free
dom and freshness of Canada's
frontier regions.
These new-day pioneers" are
saved the dangers and some of the
difficulties faced by the adventurers
who opened up the country. They
moved to their new homes en-
! maSSe.
Expert Guidance
They have had expert guidance
and modern tools to assist them in
erecting their new homes, in break
ing virgin soil to their crops for
their first winters food supply in
their adopted homeland.
They are becoming established on
a cooperative basis. With the aio
of tractors they have already brok-
en- $500 acres Of their 10000 acre
block of land.
They have worked together tC
till the common fields, to erect suf-
ficient shelter for themselves, then
ANNALS and their crops. Together
hey have erected two schools where
the common language of their new
continent will be taught to their 20O
children this winter Adults, includ-
ing 35 single men, will attend the
same schools at night
About the time of the Munich
crisis last year, Czechoslovakia re-
ceived a joint British French loan
of 100000 pounds. A portion of
this loan was made available for
settlement of Sudeten refugees in
other parts of the world.
1t is from this fund that the new
community has been established
here, at Tupper Greek near the
Alberta border, in what is known
as the Peace River section of rich
agricultural land.
Here are more than 500 German
speaking Central Europeans. most
ly Germans, with some Czechs and
few Jewish people who escaped
the terror of Hitlers storm troopers.
They were mostly residents of
western regions of CzechosloVakia
who were unsympathetic to the Nazi
regime. Some were members of the
German Democratic Party, anti
Hitler and anti-Nazi.
While CzeGnoslovakia still re-
manned independent, arrangements
had been completed for use of part
of The British-French loan for the
purpose of assisting these refugees
from Sudeten areas. Transporta-
ton in Canada and the cost of their
settlement was paid from this fund
through the Canadian government
Some were selected while there
still remained a Czechoslovakia as
an independent nation. They were
chosen by officers of the colonial
tion departments of the Canadian
Pacific and Canadian National Rail
ways.
Devious Routes
Most of them, however, escaped
from their homeland early this year
as the last vestiges of independence
were disSipated. They escaped by
devious routes to England, Belgium
Poland, Denmark, Sweden and Fin
land, They hurriedly gathered what
little they could, and fled before
the fear of Nazi concentration
camps.
Colonization officers of the rail-
ways selected those most likely to
be found adaptable to an entirely
new life in western Canada, and
these were then presented for final
inspection and approval by the Ca
madam governments civil and medi-
cal examiners.
Over a period of two years each
family viii receive $500 in food,
clothing, tools, supplies, and farm