Evening star., 1939-03-25
II Duce Has the Floor

Benito Mussolini is scheduled to-
morrow to bask in his natural ele-
ment-the limelight-and perhaps
to enact the decisive role in the world
tragedy which had it's inception ten
days ago when Germany seized
CZecho-Slovakia. II Duce plans to
deliver an address indicating what
plans he has to secure territorial
booty for Italy, in order that she may
no longer be condemned to the Gin
derella role in the Berlin-Rom axis
partnership. Upon the question as to
whether or not Mussolini makes i'm
possible demands upon France, peace
In Europe now primarily depends.
The situation has suddenly reached
that point because it is now ap-
parent that Hitler's conquests in
Central, Southeastern and North
eastern Europe-Czecho- Slovakia,
Rumania and Lithuania-are not 60
ing to be challenged except by inef-
fective protests on the part of Great
Britain, France and Russia The
Nazis have gambled again, and won.
ProtestationS in London, Paris and
Moscow that further German ag-
gression will not be tolerated can
not and will not dislodge the Ger
mans single square mile from their
ill-gotten gains.
Fortunately, the political barom-
eter registers fair weather when
Mussolini speaks, though, running
true to breast-beating form, he may
hold forth tomorrow in bellicose
accents, chiefly for home consump-
tion. King Victor Emmanuel, whom
II Duce graciously permitted to in
trude momentarily into the interna-
tional situation Friday, indicated, in
the speech from the throne read at
the Inauguration of the Chamber of
Fasces and Corporations, that his
Premier's song will be attuned to
pacific theme. Italy's desire for a
long period of tranquility in which
to develop her empire was the Kings
keynote. Even more significant was
his reminder that the questions
which divide France and Italy were
defined by the Roman government
on December II last. Italy then re-
called the Laval-Mussolini agree
ment of 1895, which, never having
been ratified, was therefore regarded
by Italy as invalid. The Italians now
indicate that if the French care to
resume negotiations on the basis of
the 1885 pact, Rome is ready to do
business.
That accord made territorial ad-
justments between Libya and French
Equatorial Africa, and between
French Somaliland and Eritrea. It
also dealt with the status of Italians
In Tunisia. 1t provided for italian
participation in the French owned
DjiboutiAddis Ababa railroad, and
reaffirmed Franco-Italian non-inter-
ference in Austria, then still an in
dependent state. Laval and Musso-
nni finally pledged mutual colonial
economic collaboration and agreed
to Franco-Italian naval parity in the
Mediterranean. Co-equal control of
the Suez Canal comes within the
scope OF this understanding.
In both Rome and Paris it is as
sumed Mussolini's demands on France
are now confined to these various
concessions, and that Paris, on it's
part, Is no longer averse to granting
them. Should II Duce sound off to-
morrow, or later, with pretensions to
the cession Of Tunisia, Corsica, the
Balearic Islands or any other French
or Spanish territory, he is likely to
meet with stone-wall French resist
ance. There is reason to believe that
IL Duce's emotions over the expan-
sion of German power and territory
are far from those of elation. He is
correspondingly reported to be in no
mood to launch demands that might
bring Italy itself dangerously within
the Nazi orbit through necessitous
dependence on Hitler's support.