Evening star., 1941-09-14
tile for Atlantic Ocean May Spread Over Vast Area
BY BLAIR BOLLES.


tween Europe and North America,
Africa and South America, the
Arctic and the Antarctic.
The ramiflcations of the coming
war for the Atlantic-Winston
Churchill cautioned the world last
week that the battle was yet young
and far from decided-suggeSt that
it will spread over many miles of
land, along the coasts that fringe
the Atlantic.
| For the nation that would fight
on the Atlantic must have many
bases on it. The Germans seized
Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands
and Belgium to bring the German
strength closer to the seashore.
Thus in Europe for the present the
lines are drawn.
Battle for Bases Ahead
The shores of North America are
unassailed seats of Anglo-American
operation.
But what of Africa? South Amer
lea? Martinique? Guadeloupe?
The Azores? CanarieS? Madeira
Cape Verdes? On those Atlantic
coasts and islands battles may yet
be fought by nations maneuvering
themselves into position to win the
battle of the Atlantic itself.
The British, as Admiral Alfred
Thayer Mahan long ago pointed out,
require sea-dominance for them
selves to protect their island econ
omy and to bind together their far
stretching empire. They have now
an additional interest. the interest
of using naval strength TO thwart
the German design. The Germans
seek ea-dominance in order to iso-
late the British Isles and Starve the
English into submission by a water
siege. The Americans oppose the
German design because it is Ameri-
can policy to supply the English on
their island
So the Germans sink the Sessa
and the Montana and fire at the
Greer. So the Americans insist
that ships bearing American goods
continue to enter the danger waters.
So the British convoy. So President
Roosevelt orders the American Navy
to shoot.
Battle Inspiring Boundary.
The accompanying man of the
Atlantic Ocean shows how the bases
OF naval operation now are divided
among the warning parties and the
chief points over which may arise
a difference of opinion that can be
settled only by military struggle.
The opinion of some men in the
United States is that the Atlantic
Ocean is a protection for us against
the wicked desires of Europeans.
But the present situation seems to
show that the ocean is as much
a battle-inSpiring boundary as is a
land frontier. If the United States
takes any interest in the Atlantic.
1t can hardly escape being forced
to take a complete interest in it.
In the western hemisphere the
Americans and the British have the
Use of Labrador, Newfoundland, the
important port of Halifax and the
whole eastern SeacoaSt of the United
States, whose most important point
is Norfolk The United States has
a base in southern Cuba, at Guam
tanamo Bay, and it has developed
Puerto Rico into strong sea for
tress on the American West Indian
ramparts. With the British we
share Jamaica and Trinidad, ST.
Lucia and Antigua in the West In
dies and have rights in British
Guiana on the northern coast of
South America
Canal Always in Danger
These West Indian strongholds are
| protective sea and air fortresSeS for
| the Panama Canal which always
lies in danger. President Roosevelt
disclosed Thursday night that the
Germans have held secret airport
in Colombia, south of the Canal
There are links in our West Indian
base blueprint. The two large
French-owned islands. Martinique
and Guadeloupe, are always in dam
ger of falling into German hands
for use as submarine bases as long
as the Vichy government remains
in its present state of unhappy en-
forced divided allegiance to France
and to Germany.
Southwark in the western hemi-
sphere, along the Atlantic coast of
South America, the United States
and England have no bases. Events
have shown that Brazil and Argen-
tina are anti-Nazi, but it is ques-
tionable whether their navies and
air forces are powerful enough to
cope with a NaZi assault. Far IN
the South Atlantic, below the south
ernmost edge of this map, off Ar
| gentina. are the Falkland Islands,
where the British have base. There
is no base between British Guiana,
whose capital is Georgetown, and
the Falklands, 5000 miles away.
Nazi-held Ports in North.
From the Nazi-held ports con-
fronting the Atlantic in Europe, the
silent iaguars of the watery jungle,
the U-boatS, glide out into the open
sea to destroy the shipping bound
| for Britain. From Norway German
fighting planes fly out over the
| Atlantic and attack American-made
bomberS being ferried to England
from Canada and merchant vessels
carrying goods to Britain by the
Great Circle route atop the North
Atlantic. To protect this Great Cir
Gle route the Americans have set
up base in Greenland and are CO.
operating with the British in Ice
land. The potentialities for great
naval and airplane battle near Ice
land are present.
Unless the Germans can be showed
back from the European seacoast,
the U-boats will continue to dart
through the Atlantic. Now, accord
ing to reports from Vichy, the Axis
plans to extend further it's naval