Evening star., 1939-04-02

Are the Germans united behind
Hitler and ,DiH they back him to the
<rlinit? A careful examination of Ger
man psychology is giDen here. in the
first of a series OF three articles, by
peteran foreign correspondent Dho
has Just returned to the United States
after stay of nine months in Ger
many, during 1Uhich he moto7ed
through many parts OF the Reich.
He was> inpited last week to address
the Army War College.
After several months on Germany's
daily mental diet of government-con-
trolled newspapers and flamboyant
speeches by NaN party spellbinders. the
expatriate from home gets picture of
the United States slowly sinking into a
morass of impotency, with about tenth
of the population standing in line for
food or jobs, while politicians fill the air
with useless chatter-a totalitarian
synopsis of democracies.
AS he crosses France, the American
is told with knowing whispers that the
Nazi organization is all ready to crack
up, and the wise ones in England are
quite sure of it. BY the time the distance
from Berlin has stretched to a Hudson
River pier a revolt is just about to break
in Germany.
One bright-eyed young woman, feet
aching but spirits undimmed after the
stop Hitler" parade in New York.
seriously asked this correspondent for a
password or high sign to give if she met
a stranger on the street or in a beer
hall in Berlin and wanted to start a
confidential discussion of revolutionary
plots.
Germany has controlled news, and in
the United States it is uncontrolled. In
Germany the government censors what
shall be printed, or said over the radio,
and little is told the public which is
favorable to any country except Ger
many, and occasionally Italy or Japan.
In the United States the fertile
imaginings of columnists and COM
mentators are easier to remember than
the serious cables of correspondents who
are in the countries about which they
are writing and are sure of their facts.
A gossipy report that revolution is
brewing in Germany is hot news"
Like Master Chess Player.
AS wishful thinking it is satisfactory,
though as childish as a college football
team pinning its chances of winning on
the hope that the rival eleven will get
acute indigestion or forget its signals. AS
oo% SNy,
cramps, though what it is swallowing may
be unpalatable, and Fuehrer Hitler has
not mixed any of his signals. On the
European checkerboard he is like chess
master playing simultaneously against 20
opponents, each of whom is whiz in his
home club. One or two may get draw,
but Hitler does all the winning
Hitler knows in which direction he Is
steering Germany, and it need be no
secret to the rest of the world, as he
charted it in "Mein Kampf," years before
he started. If Prime Minister Chamber
lain had laid aside his stage umbrella
long enough to grab an unexpurgated
copy of that book, he would have lost
even his hours of jubilation over the ap-
peasement of Munich.
Today it looks as though Germanys
march across Europe will continue to be
q game of checkers until it clashes with
the Soviet Union in the Ukraine. Ger
many believes that England and France
can be bought off, even then, just as
these two countries count on placating
Italy for a consideration If they come
into conflict with Germany. Both re-
member when italy switched to the
Allies during the World War and how