The Wilmington morning star., 1940-05-29
Editorial Comments
From Other Angles
ANDALS IN ALLIED LEADERSHIPS
charlotte Observer)


The full sweep of the significance of the
displacement of IS French generals in the midst
of the battle in Belgium and France is unre.
vealed.
1t may never be given in its entirety to the
public.
But it hints Of a situation that might be as
deadly in its effect upon the strength of the
battle forces of France as the devastating fury
of the Hitler military machine.
Only a few days ago Premier Reynaud pinned
the ears of the world back with his official
statement to the Chamber of Deputies that
fearful blunders had been made on the part
of the military leadership.
Immediately General Gamelin. head of the
fighting forces of the empire, was replaced by
General Weygand.
The blunders committed by Gamelin may
only have been tactical, but they may, in
stead, have been much worse.
And questions pound upon us in connection
with the more recent sweep of these Is lesser
generals out of their commands.
Of what have they been guilty?
Merely errors of judgment, mistakes in tech
nique of offense or defense?
Have their armies lost confidence in their
leadership or are they unable to get the best
cut of their forces?
Dr. has the subtle poison of intrigue and the
stalk of Trojan horses been scented in Their
official commands?
These are weird insinuations, to be sure, but
so much of the same sort has been going
on as a full-fledged organized and intricate
phase Of the German campaign that hardly any.
thing is too incredible to be believed.
And then back across the channel, the cor
respondent of the Chicago Daily News on the
field is sending his newspaper a story to the
effect that sensational developments ON the
home front are about to be broken to the pub
lie.
Again he speaks of the greatest story of the
war awaiting only a few days to be revealed
in all of it's staggering sensationalism.
He doesn't hint Of the detailed nature OF
these spectacular phases of the situation in Eng
land. but one senses clearly enough that this
correspondent has reference to the uncovering
of the work of spies and the plots of the Ger.
man sympathizers and incendiaries among the
English people.
Perhaps, the greatest story of the war;
may have to do with the unearthing of evidence
pointing to a gigantic scheme of treachery in
high places in the government of Great
Britain. The simple truth is that over here we
have as yet failed to appreciate and under
stand the amazing and unbelievable intrigue
of the fifth columnists who have made such a
historic and effectual contribution to the Berlin
victories.
The work of these gangsters has gone far
beyond anything ever achieved in the diaboli-
cal daring of the old-time spies.
Hitler has done his work in this field with a
finish and finesse comparable to the s%pectacu-
lar brillance with which he has created the
most stupendous war machine in all human
history.
His agents have been planted everywhere.
Manifestly. they have spent years in build
ing up their creations of deceit and treachery.
At any rate, when the propitious moment
came for them to strike, they were at white
heat and in all of the countries overrun, they
have gone before the marching phalanxes of
the armed forces to prepare the way and in
many cases to make occupation and conquest
relatively a matter of almost child's play.
When and if the full story of Hitler's Tro-
jan horse Vaccinations is ever told, it will
likely make the mind of the world to be stun
ned into a stupor Of amazement for its fantas-
tic and unbelievable adventures and successes.