Evening star., 1939-04-16
Hitler Rejection
Of Conference
Indicated
Peace Developments

FNcO1DEIN ftOO0Gt ELL AK
PEALS to Chancellor Hitler and
Premier Mussolini to keep peace;
plans arms relief If dictators &C
cept. Page Al
BRITAIN AND FRANCE seize on
idea of non-aggression pact;
Chamberlain lauds Presidents
'statesmanlike initiative
Page Al
NAZ1S SCORN PRESIDENT Roose-
velt's appeal for pledge to Keep
peace 10 years; Hitler rejection Of
conference indicated. Page Al
DEMOCRATIC, REPUBLI ICAN
LEGISLATORS hail Presidents
plea for peace, but caution against
any entanglements; some skepti-
. cal of results. Page Az
BASIS FOR SOVIET participation
in bloc against aggression report
ed found in France; Roosevelt
plea spurs peace hope. Page Al
POLES PREDICT EARLY talks
with Germany on Danzigs future;
Berlin rumors of invasion next
week are discounted by Warsaw
officials. Page Al
By the Associated Press.
BERLIN, April 15.-In terms
which left no doubt that Adolf Hitler
intends to reject President Roose-
velt's appeal for world conference.
the controlled German press tonight
attacked the American peace mes
sage which asked for an Italian
German 10-year non-aggression
pledge.
The same view was expressed In
semi official circles in Munich, where
Hitler weighed his possible answer
and consulted by telephone with his
Rome ally, Premier Mussolini.
At the other end of the telephone
line to Rome, Field Marshal Her
mann Wilhelm Goering was con-
ferring with Mussolini and it was
considered possible joint Italian
German reply might be made.
The offlcially inspired commentary
Deutsche Dienst said Mr.. Roose-
velt had directed his message Ito
the wrong address"
Hitler Sees Ribbentrop.
In Munich, the Fuehrer and
Foreign Minister Joachim Won Rib
bentrop mixed q casual tea in with
their conferences.
In Hitler's absence from Berlin,
Mr.. Roosevelt's message was opened
by Foreign Minister Won Ribbentrop
who gave his chief a quick, pre-
liminary indication of the contents
by telephone.
The Chancellor then motored
down from his tranquil retreat at
Berchtesgaden, where he had re-
tired a week ago. to the spacious
Fuehrerhaus in Munich. scene OF
last September's fateful four-power
conference over Czecho-Slovakia.
Won Ribbentrop was summoned to
Munich with the text of the Ameri-
can Executives appeal. Immediately
the Fuehrerhaus became q beehive
of activity. A staff of translators
set to work to make a complete
German translation of the message
for the Fuehrer's continued study.
Hitler's trusted press aide, Otto
Dietrich, was at his side. Dietrich
formulates all important press COM
' muniques.
Personal Reply Uncertain.
There was still no definite indi-
cation whether Hitler would reply
personally to the peace message
which President Roosevelt sent di-
rectly to the Reichsfuehrer.
The bitter German reaction came
while rumors persisted that the
Free City of Danzig and its pre-
dominantly German population
might be taken over by troops from
East Prussia as birthday present"
for Hitler before he celebrates his
50th anniversary next Thursday.
Officially inspired comment re-
ferred to the American Presidents
action as "a dumb diverting maneu-
ver," new proof of the intellectual
helplessness of the democratic west
ern powers" and "a shabby propa-
ganda pamphlet"
Deutsche Dienst, distributed by
the official German news agency,
DNB. said Germany once had found
out where trust in a message of
an American President can lead"
1t compared Mr.. Roosevelt's mes
sage with President Wilson's IA
points in the World War settlement.
The Nazi press harped on three
reasons for scoring the peace mes
sage and President Roosevelt's pro-
posal that peace conference be
called should Germany and Italy
give 10-year, or possibly 25-year,
> pledges not to make war on any
European nation:
l. Bolshevism would be ian equal
partner" at such a conference table.
2. Germany had been denied re-
dress at international conference