The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-03-17

Edson intended to pre- vent the Nazis from taking over South America, then where, the South Americans wonder, will help come from for them.
 Argentina, for instance, not so very lorg ago decided to abandon German, French and British planes for its airforce, and standardize on American aircraft because the United States would be able to make deliveries. But the Argentine republic has had an order on file with U. s. plane makers for months, and hasn't been able to get deliver- ies.
 To the charge that South Amer lea is being dominated by the Nazis now, the Sud Americanos re- ply that they have more fear of what the fifth column will do in the United States than they have In Latin American republics.
 BRAZILIANs SAY
 THEY CHECK NAZlS
 There has been particular concern about Nazi penetration in Brazil, but the Brazilians claim that they have a much better stranglehold on | the German menace than have the people of the United States. Ger man pamphleteerlng and newspa- pers in the United States go prac- tically unchecked, but whenever German language newspaper in Brazil prints foreign news, 1t Is re- quired to print in the next column a literal translation in Portuguese, Brazilian national language.
 Similarly, all radio broadcasts In Portugfuese or German, to the German people of Brazil are re- Stricted almost entirely to music and entertainment. News bulletins are limited to simple statements of fact. No comments.
 Efforts to improve commercial relations with the South America republics are just about where they always were. Every discus- sion on this subject sooner or later comes to the stone wall argument that we can't trade with South America because the raw materials that they formerly sold to Europe Wheat, meat, cotton, corn and sugar are the commodities which the U. s. already has In abundance,
 LAMOUR WILLING
 TO DO HER BIT
 What has perhaps been overlook cd Is the possibility that the south ern sister republics might try lit- tie more selling of their excess gro- cerles to each other. Travellers who come back. drooling about the ten- derness and juiciness of Argentine steaks will tell you in the same breath that the best filet mignon ip the other South American countries is obtainable by Slicing off the sole of your own shoe. Recently, an air express shipment of steaks was sent over the Andes as a publicity stunt. It was front page news, and 1t did re. suit in an effort to drive cattle herds from Argentine into Chile for slaughter.
 Spreading Yankee culture Is still much on the trail and error basis, with emphasis on the error. Grapes of Wrath" which was to educate South America about American life, was 0 terrible floperoo. The people just wouldn't believe 1t was true picture of life in the U. s. A. Mis- takes In staging, such as putting palm trees in the Andes or Argen- tine cowboys in Brazil, leave the cousins very disgustado, but with experts on every lot In Hollywood now, that may be overcome.
 Best idea so fur seems to be to send a string of stars on personal appearance tours. Dorothy La- mour Is dying to go, at govern ment cultural relations expense and should fix everything up dandy. BRITISH ASSETS
 MAY BE POOLED
 How much good the government loans will do remains to be seen. Palms -- hands, not trees - are supposed to be out all along the line. One big problem will be to keep the American loans from help ing finance foreign competitors, particularly the British, whose trade In South America has always been way out in front of U. S. commerce.
 One plan, which you will hear more of, and which will give you an idea of how some people in Washington are thinking, is to take all the British assets In Latin America and have them pooled under some joint custodianship like the Havana Conference of 2l American republics, already or ganized to take over administra- ton of British territory in the western hemisphere, should Brit ain falter.
 Secretary Morgenthau has esti- mated these British assets in South America as currently worth $4,000,- 000, 900, or more than double his de- partment's estimate of British hold ings in the United States. It's a nice jackpot, and, the South Americans wouldn't mind having 1t themselves, SO that they could nationalize their railroads, mines, and other assets, and so drive out foreign competi- ton.