The daily monitor. (Mount Clemens, Mich.) 1940-1942, 1941-02-01
Gas War

Continued From Page II
the Fascist high command noted
bitter fighting In Libya, appar-
entity among patrols, In which
both Italians and British sui
fered considerable losses"
Sinking Of q 10. 000-ton steam
ship froh . British convoy IN
the Aegean sea by . torpedo
boat was announced by the Ital-
ian high command. It Il through
the Aegean that the British have
been moving war supplies 70 the
Greeks for use on the Albanian
front. 3, .
In Berlin, the German high
command reported the sinking
of two merchant ships totalling
10.100 tons by long-diStance
fighting planes operating west
of Ireland and said IN enemy
merchant ship was severely
damaged off the British east
coast.
Informed Germans claimed
the destruction of six ships by
German action, four more than
the toll listed by the high COM
mand.
The Nazi-dominated Ruman-
ian government frightened, re-
strictions intended to suppress
the elements responsible for q
bloody Iron Guard revolt last
week. Premier Ion -Ahtonescu
ordered the immediate execu-
ton of any person found carry
ing guns without authority and
directed soldiers to fire on any
groups attempting to hold meet
ings.
italian forces marshalled in
the Bengasi port area were
threatened today by two motor
lied British columns driving
westward, one along the Medi-
terranean coastal road and the
other striking inland across the
hump" of eastern Libya.
Observers. meanwhile, await
ed reaction to General Charles
De Gaulle's direct appeal to
100000 French troops under
General Maxine Weygand in
French North Africa to throw
off their shameful" inertia and
help complete "the conquest OF
Italian Libya."
There was speculation that
General Weysand might answer
the appeal from the commander
of the Free French" forces in
q broadcast from Algiers, re-
portedly scheduled for tonight.
De Gaulle spoke last night over
the London radio.
Weykand and his troops are
in q powerful position, geo.
graphically and politically. They
represent a potential threat to
Italian Libya's back door, and
they form Chief of State Phil
ippe Petain's main lever in bar
gaining with the Germans.
Germany apparently still is
incensed over Petain's dismissal
Of Pierre Laval, who was his
vice-premier. Laval has been
reported in favor Of active "col-
Elaboration" with Germany
that is, French military action
against Britain on the side of
the axis and the grant of French
African bases to the axis for
the war in the Mediterranean.
Both Petain and Weygand are
said to oppose this.
Reports from Vichy indicated
the situation might result In
resignation of Foreign Minister
Pierre-Etienne Flandin under
German pressure and the return
Of Laval.
General De Gaulle, playing on
the success Of British arms in
eastern Libya and appealing to
the Vichy-bound loops in North
Africa, said:
Don't you see 1t Is up to you?
Are you going to stay inactive
with arms at your side, humii-
ated, broken-spirited, when the
fate Of France and her empire
Is being decided within range Of
your guns7"
The British estimate they al
ready have knocked out approx
imately 100000 of Italian Mar
shall Graziani's forces-perhaps
half or two-thirds of his troops
in eastern Libya.
Italian East Africa also Is
menaced by British drives into
Eritrea, Ethiopia and Italian
Somaliland.
In Albania, the Greek army
fighting Fascists north Of vital
Klisura and elsewhere along a
100-mile front was reported Of
ficially to have taken new Ital-
ian positions "of great impor-
lance" In mountain fighting.
An italian tank counter-attack
also was reported smashed.
Greek dispatches from the
front said the recent series of
Italian counter-attacks had end
ed so disastrously that the Fas-
cist commanders were forced to
call off their efforts to wrest
the offensive from the Greeks