Evening star., 1941-03-04
Hitler Must Successfully Invade Isles in Six Mont
Or Certainly Lose War Correspondent Declares


invade the British Isles? Forty
years, monsieur. Forty years. Their
airplanes, they can do nothing
against British nerves. British nerves
will win this war. Don't make any
mistake about that"
This, after inspecting the Channel
port preparations, is the opinion Of
japanese naval commander. Per-
haps his 40 years was a figure OF
speech, but certainly he cut through
to one Of the most powerful factors
in this war when he cited the in
calculable importance of British
nerves" Throughout eight months
of the most terrific punishment that
any nation save the Spaniards has
ever taken, the nerves Of the British
people have never been shaken.
According to universal testimony Of
on-the- spot observers their nerves
have not been touched. let alone
shaken. This, more than anything
else, is due to one thing. At this
juncture of human history (perhaps
we had better not say development)
the British people are so incredibly
fortunate as to have been born with
what comes very close to being the
lowest quota of imagination Of any
people on earth.
British Nerves" Ready.
Because they are an astonishingly
practical people, and so are not tor
mented by vivid imaginations, the
British masses go about their rou-
tine war duties amid showers Of
bombs with courage and confidence
that would otherwise be incompre-
hensible. From the beginning. Brit
ish nerves" have been ready and
constitutionally adjusted for long
war. Every one in Europe knows
that the nerves Of the German
people, after eight years OF war
preparations, cannot remotely meas
ure up. You might as well compare
Hitler's nerves with those of Winston
Churchill. When Britain has some
thing family approaching air equal
ity with Germany and a good many
squadrons of long-range bombers,
you can be absolutely certain that
German civilian morale will begin,
however inperceivably at first, to
crack. That moment. believe, will
come during the spring Of 1912, II
not somewhat before then.
When I say that Hitler will have
to conquer the British Isles within
six months or lose the war, I have
several things in mind:
First, that NaZi leaders have ad-
mitted to their pro-Nazis sympa-
thizers throughout the Balkans, ever
since last June, one important fact
namely, that Hitler's whole strategy
was based upon defeating Britain
before large-scale shipments of
American war materials could reach
the British.
Second, that the same Nazi
spokesmen have admitted they must
win the war before the United States
could possibly enter it.
Third, that their major battle
front must be on the propaganda
front-to strengthen all the forces
of isolationism inside America and
to foster both defeatism and pro-
Nad sentiment in the United States
Gasoline and Oil Needed.
Fourth, that Balkan conditions
warn very clearly of one thing-ii
the war goes into next winter Ger
many's raw material and food sup
plies and her economic strain are
certain to become an increasingly
grave handicap.
The problem of future supplies OF
heavy lubricating oils for airplanes
and submarines is already of great
concern for Germany, and II
threatens to prove an Achilles hee.
for the Nszis II the war goes on fol
many more months. Germanyt
stores of heavy oils are reported tc
be dwindling steadily and the Ru.
manian Oil fields are deficient in
this vital kind of oil-but Italy, too
must depend uniquely upon German
and Rumanian stores for her future
gasoline and oils. In a longer wal
how can the axis keep going, with
warplanes and submarines and mo.
tor transport operating at full po.
tentialitieS, unless the Nazis get
great deal more gasoline and OF
from somewhere?
The NaZis could get them either
by going through Turkey to the
Mosul oil fields in Irak-if the Turks
will let them. Or by going all the
was to the Baku fields in RuSsia's
southern Caucasus-if they invade
the Ukraine or persuade Stain tc
cooperate at his own suicide. In
the case of either Mosul or Baku
there would remain the stupendous
obstacle of railroad transportation
This is what renders the over.
whelming proportion Of Rumania's
gasoline production unavailable tc
Germany now, for she was only able
to find transportation facilities fol
about 100000 tons per month, by
rail and by the Danube, during the
last months of 1910.
Russia Would Resist.
It seems highly improbable thai
Soviet Russia would let Hitler take
over the Ukraine and the Baku OF
fields without a fight. But even il
Stain let the Nazis in to manage
and organize railroad transporta.
tion, Germany's extended lines oi
supply would be formidably Ions
and most dangerously exposed tt
sabotage. Just as railroad com
munications become increasingly
exposed to accidents" after Naz
troops have occupied Rumania, ane
now Bulgaria. There are moi
enough German soldiers in tn,
world to patrol every mile of tract
through all of Southeastern Europe
and deep into Southern Russia. Anc
there are millions of Balkan people