Evening star., 1941-08-01
(Fitth OF a Series.)
BY ALLAN NEVINS,

Pulitzer Prize-Winning Historian.
NEW YORK, Aug. J (N.A.N.A).-
How do you expect victory to
Gomez" This is a question which
American visitors naturally ask the
British, although they know well
that no definite answer is possible.
Even before Hitlers invasion of
Russia, sensible Britons always re-
piled that extraordinary changes
were certain and that nobody could
predict the shape of the world six
months in advance. But they were
sure that victory would come. And
most of them all winter and spring
expected that it would finally be
won by a combination of three
factors-the strangulation of the
blockade, British domination of the
air before the end of 1912, making
it possible to land, protect and push
forward expeditionary forces at
strategic points in Europe, and up
risings in the occupied lands to
cooperate with these invasions.
This last factor may be vitality
important, and for this reason-as
well as others-the British main
tain a close scrutiny Of the lands
which now lie helpless under the
swastika. The larger newspapers
get fairly steady flow of news from
the continent. The London Times
has an especially active correspond
ent who dates authentic dispatches
from "the German frontier; for 1t
and other journals Stockholm, Ma
drid, Berne and Istanbul remain
good listening points. The refugee
governments-Polis Dutch, Bel
gian, Norwegian, Free French-have
valuable sources of information.
Perhaps most interesting of all is
the steady trickle of refugees who
escape by sea from the French,
Dutch and Norwegian coasts. They
are eagerly interviewed by the de-
fenSe authorities, and the Ministry
of Information and British Broad
casting Corp. make use of them
whenever possible.
Discomfort Restrained Hitler.
Throughout the spring most
Britons believed that Hitler was
eager to issue some formal proclama-
ton of his United States of Eu-
rope" and apparently he was as
much restrained by the constant
disclosure of the discomfort and
misery rife on the continent as by
the Balkan fighting, Marshal Pc
tain's hesitancies and Spain's re-
fusal to meet all his wishes. His
plans for consolidating Europe had
clearly taken on more practical
shape.
A predominantly industrial Reich,
much enlarged, highly organized
and heavily armed would draw most
of its food and part of its man
power from an outer Europe that
was predominantly agricultural
Germany would monopolize all the
heavy industries. all the scientific
and technical skill and all the f1nan-
cial controls.
The agricultural lands would be
offered security, but 1t would be
a security of serfdom, without free
dom, prosperity or hope. Production
would be regulated in detail from
Berlin, and all trade would be con-
tro1led by the multilateral clearing
system which Germany has already
set in operation among II or Il
European states.
But this new Europe would re-
quire more than submission; Il
would require a far larger degree
of consent and collaboration than
Hitler has yet begun to secure. The
British look with disdain on the
empire which the Nazis have sc
swiftly conquered by tank and air.
plane. They believe that if it equals
Napoleon's in size, it even surpasses
Napoleon's in fragility. For one rea-
son, it has no real economic foun-
dations so long as the British block
ade and the British grip on colonial
areas grows stronger. DIR. KarI
Haushofer, in an article in the
Zeitschrift Fuer Geo-Politik, which
attracted much attention just before
I left, admitted this. He declared
that the experience of the wal
proved that Europe could not be
economically self-supporting, and
that Africa must be absorbed as q
reservoir of raw materials-all Brit
ish and non-European participation
in its use being excluded.
But above all, Hitler's military
power is not a true conquest. He
has enforced partial obedience, but
he has nowhere gained acQuiescence
and without acquiescehce he can SCI
up no enduring government. Ir
fact, resentment, hatred and stifleC
rebellion are evident from Norway