Evening star., 1941-06-18
Nazi Cabinet Chiefs
Fear War Is Lost,
Lisbon Hears
More Victories Expected.
But u. S. Production
Moy Turn Tide
By JOHN T. WHITAKER,
Foreign Correspondent of The Star and the
CHICAGO Daily News.

Chicago Daily News.
LISBON, June 18.-The realiza-
ton that the war is to be long and
that Germany cannot win 1t has
swept through the highest NaZl
quarters, according to reports from
Berlin, and no less than three Ger
mans of cabinet minister rank have
said frankly in private conversations,
since the flight of No. 3 Nazi, Rudolf
Hess. that German defeat has now
become inevitable.
Without revealing the identities
of these three Nazi personalities,
or of the individuals who talked
with them, I feel that I can vouch
for the authenticity of the conver-
sations.
Adolf Hitler and the military in
tend to go down fighting in an all
out effort to spread the war to five
continents, but the men charged
with the financial, economic and in
dustrial problems of Germany feel
that defeat is now inescapable.
Brilliant new victories by the Ger
man military machine and the &C
cession of new allies is expected but
these informed Germans fear that
Britain cannot be knocked out be-
| fore the American armaments pro-
duction, now choking along in a
halting fashion, suddenly begins to
flow in a formidable and unmatch-
able torrent.
Industrial Breakdown Feared.
Americas potential industrial
power and the difficulty of a swift
invasion of Britain are the first two
reasons offered. The third is the
sudden worsening of Germany's own
industrial situation with far-reach-
ing disequilibriums caused by lack
| of machine tools and shortage of
certain blockaded raw materials
The general view in Berlin that
swift invasion is impossible was
voiced by a former banker, who is a
close collaboration OF Hitler and who
knows the world beyond Germany
Unless Hitler speaks from B. B.
c. from London by July IS, he will
never speak from London" said this
individual, who affects a caustic it.
You know and I know that Hitler
will never be there by then From
then on We will have brilliant mill
tary successes by our fool generals,
but the real war will start going
against u.s."
Another German. officially
charged with financial problems,
suddenly bowed his head in talk
ing with foreigner. There were
tears in his eyes when he looked
up. The foreigner was astonished
at this extraordinary behavior in the
midst of a serious discussion.
| Miscalculated Americans.
Il must tell you." said the Ger
man. that we have lost the war
know 1t. I can think of nothing
else. 1t preys on my mind. Oncs
again We have miscalculated the
character and nature of the Amer
leans. That the Americans would
sell arms to- England, we knew. But
we never believed that America woulc
give arms. I bear a terrible respon-
sibility before my Fuehrer. I tolc
him that the Americans would only
sell for gold and gain and that Brit
ain did not have enough money to
buy enough arms to overcome our
head start. Now I know that our
defeat is inevitable"
The profound Embellishments ir
Germany's own production program
were revealed by Naz expert, who
is reorganizing the industries in the
occupied and amenable countries
He said that the most serious bottle
neck came from the difficulty of re-
placing worn out, or manufacturing
new, machine tools. He revealed that
machine tools were being trans
ported from France and Italy to
Germany at the same time the fac
tories in those countries and the
Lowlands were being placed directly
under the Germans.
Rubber Badly Needed.
The same source revealed that
while gasoline needs are being met
by synthetic production and enough
lubricating oil is being gotten in by
devious means, the British blockade
is pinching on several raw materials
without which whole industries are
held up. The most serious of these
shortages. curiously. is rubber
Though excellent for tires, buna (the
Nazis' ersatz producD proves useless
as rubber substitute for certain
purposes. Buna cannot be made,
moreover, without the admixture of
one-third real rubber.
This source frankly fears that
other difficulties will appear with
each month Of continued war and
that bottlenecks may become
chronic. with danger of the whole
industrial setup becoming unbal-
anced and unavoidable. He was
quoted as having said:
There Is serious disequilibrium
in German economy with danger
that if it worsens it will shake our
whole industrial system to pieces"
Read against Hess flight, these
conversations-three of the many
reaching me-are interesting and
believe significant. A few Germans,
even in 1916, realized that the bid
for world domination was doomed
once America was aroused.
tcoryrisht, 1e41, CHICAGO Daily News, lnc)