Evening star., 1939-03-19

ago under the godfatherhood, among
others, of these United States of Amer
lea.
Prospectively, Rumania will suffer the
impact of German aggression before the
Nazis essay their drive against the Rus
sian Ukraine. With Rumania's oil and
wheat at its disposal, the German war
machine would be geared almost to the
point of invincibility. The Nazis are
now able to menace Rumania not only
by land across their new Czecho-Slo-
yak colonies" but also by water, viz,
by way of the Danube. From the moment
the Reich seized Austria, the German
Navy has been developing an elaborate
fleet of gunboats and lighters specially
designed for Danubian operations, in
Guiding military offense and troop trans
port. Rumania is coveted by the Ger
mans not only for its rich cereal and
mineral resources. but because of its
Black Sea harbors, which give easy
access to Odessa, the great Black Sea
port of the Russian Ukraine. In control
of Rumania. Hitler would be in posi-
ton to threaten the Ukraine by land
water and air. The Rumanians may be
counted upon to offer the sternest re-
sistance they can to German invasion
and occupation, but without powerful
allies or the support of Hungary and
Yugoslavia the capacity of King Carols
government to ward off the Germans
would be very short-lived Hungary
seems harnessed to the Nazi chariot.
Timing Spectacular.
Speculation is widespread as to the
motives which primarily and directly
impelled Hitler to strike again in Central
Europe. His sense Of timing has been
a conspicuously striking feature OF his
successive and successful strokes, which
customarily find his foes and rivals of
guard. Without exception all of his
ventures were undertaken at moments
which found democratic Europe so pre-
occupied with other concerns that the
Nazis were able to accomplish their pur-
poses practically unopposed. Remilitari-
zation of the Rhineland was risked under
such conditions. Austrian AnSchluss was
achieved while Britain and France and
even Italy, were looking in other direc-
tions The September crisis, which
brought Germany the Sudetenland. was
staged at the moment Goering was able
to assure the Fuehrer that neither
Britain or France possessed air power
to prevent devastation of London and
Paris by German bombing squadrons
The bombing plane came into its own as
an instrument of national policy and as
weapon of intimidation and blackmail
Last weeks crowning achievement of
Nazi aggrandizement also had its timing
aspect. The Christian worlds gaze was
riveted on Rome where a new Pope was
being crowned. London and Paris were
immersed in what might happen in
Franco-ruled Spain and in maneuvers at
Burgos to frustrate plans for Italian
and German footholds in the Mediter-
ranean, North Africa or the Atlantic
Ocean, as rewards for their contribu-
tions to Franco victory.
Propitious in America.
Even here in the United States, re-
mote and isolated from and totally dis
interested in Central Europe as we are,
the Nazis envisioned propitiouS mo-
ment. They saw Senate rocking with
attacks on President Roosevelts foreign
policy-because he had indicated that
American moral sympathies and material
resources would be found on the side of
the democracies in a critical showdown
with the totalitarian powers. The NaI
high command was convinced that di-
vided counsels prevail at Washington
and in the country at large on foreign
affairs. Only few days previously Ber-
lin had been deeply impressed and cor
respondingly irritated by evidence that
the great strength of this country would
be made available under certain condi-
tions-not necessarily in the form of
armed Intervention on the democracies'
behalf-but by converting this country
into an arsenal and commissariat for the
French and the British, to the extent of
their capacity to buy for cash and trans
port sinews and supplies of war. The
Nazi press must have reported the re-
NCAlG OPCCSAACo VI 0CIldVOlS NldIh, wye,
Hiram johnson, Vandenberg, Bridges
and Reynolds, found them comforting,
and deduced that the upper branch of
Congress, which controls foreign rela-
tions, is not only at violent loggerheads
with the Roosevelt-Hull international
program, but is in position to thwart it.
Not the least disturbing and deplorable
feature of the Notification of Czecho-
Slovakia is the fact that that truncated
states 400, 900 odd Jews are automatic
ally subjected to the tyranny of the
Nuremberg anti-Semitic laws. They
have already felt the lash of the new
master of the land. Those unable to
emigrate or flee face the brutal lot that
descended upon the Jews of Germany
last November and has become pro-
gressively harsher since. The refugee
problem, of course, becomes correspond
ingly acuter, for the United States and
other countries represented on the Evian
1ntergovernmental Refugee Committee
now confront the necessity Of ameho-