Evening star., 1939-09-21

DisiIlusioned Poles
See Futi|ity Of
Resisting Germans
Many Embittered by
Army's Collapse; Poor
People Hope for Relief

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Army's Collapse; Poor
People Hope for Relief
BY WALLACE r. DEUEL.,
Chicago Daily News Foreign Correspondent.
WITH THE GERMAN ARMY IN
GAL1CIA, Sept. 20. Delayed How
do the Poles feel and think about
the conquest and subjugation Of
their country? What goes on in
the hearts and minds of a people
whose nation has been crushed and
overrun by an alien invader?
To one who has spent eight
days and has travelled almost 1000
miles through occupied Poland, there
seem to be three answers to these
questions:
First, the vast majority of
Polish people hate the invader
with a hatred which is nonethe-
less bitter for being tragically
tinctured with despair.
Second, many Poles-perhaps
most Of them-are also bitter
against their own government for
having so completely misled them
as to the ability of the Polish
army to defend Poland, and as
to the strength of the Reich.
Third, some Poles, possibly a
fairly large number, whose own
personal destinies have thus far
not been shattered by what has
happened, are either Indifferent
to the loss Of their national in
dependence, or Realistically re-
signed to it. or even positively re-
lieved.
Hope for Relief From Poverty.
This third group seems to be in a
decided minority, but such a group
does exist. 1t is made up of four
principal elements: OF people who
lived IN tragic poverty in independ-
ent Poland and who think they are
going to be better off economically
under German rule; of people who
think little and care less about ma
tlonal independence-who are SIM
ply Indifferent to it; of people who
now SO hate their former Polish
rulers for their glib promises of an
easy victory against Germany that
they are prepared to submit to a
rule they think has at least the
merit OF being substantial and DOW
erful and stable; and of people to
whom the independence of Poland
always seemed more or less of a
dream too good to be true.
The poverty among large sections
OF Polish peasantry and in the big
cities is appalling, and love of a
political system is notoriously feeble
among those whom the system al
lows to starve.
Devasted by Truth.
The bitterness of disillusionment,
in face of the crash of Polish in
dependence, is deep and widespread,
too. For years Poland's rulers told
the Polish people that the Nazi
colossus had feet of clay; that 1t
would collapse of its own internal
weaknesses under any undue strain.
such as that imposed by a war: that
the German mechanized equipment
would break down If ever put to a
real test, and that the Polish cav
airy was more than a match for
German tanks and armored cars.
Hundreds of thousands, perhaps
millions, of Poles really believed that
the Polish Army would actually de-
feat the Reich and dictate peace
terms in Berlin. The disillusionment
which has now come is so devas-
tating that it has paralyzed the
thoughts and feelings of many and
prepared them to accept almost any
form of subjugation without the
emotional power to hate it as they
would have it under other circum-
stances-and probably will hate it
when the first shock has passed.
Experiences and observations dur
ing eight days travel by plane and
car through occupied Poland show
how real these states of mind are.
All over the country the German
signal corps has run its emergency
telephone and telegraph lines along
the open bitches beside the road.
Any child could cut these lines, and
If enough of them were cut, appreci-
able damage might be done the in
vaders' system of communication.
Yet not one German officer could
be found who had heard of single
line having been cut.
DeSpair GrfnS pe0nJe
Terrible reprisals might we'll be
taken against regions where lines
were cut, and the Poles may realize
this. But this consideration would
not deter a good many people from
taking this means of striking at a
hated invader. The fact that this
means has been taken-little or not
at all-seems to indicate numbness
of despair and apathy among the
people.
For another thing, this reporter
necessarily made all his tours in
German cars, accompanied by Ger
man officers, but in eight days of
constant travel, during which direc-
tions had to be asked scores of times
OF Poles along the road, not once
was a false answer given. It would
have been natural-one would have
thought inevitable-that at least
some Poles would take special pleas
ure in misdirecting a German car
with German officers in it. Retribu-
ton would have been impossible.
False directions could have been
given with impunity. Yet not once
were they given.