Evening star., 1942-12-30
North African Arabs
Reported Being Won
By Nazi Propaganda
Allies Held NeeIectine
importance Of Seeking
Friendship Of Natives
BY WILLIAM H. STONEMAN,
War Correspondent of The Star and
CHICAGO Daily News


% Delayed The most dangerous
word heard in the North African
campaign to date is "gook"-a term
coined by some unknown idiot to
describe the people who have in
habited North Africa since some
900 years before the Anglo-Saxons
first ventured onto the shores of
the Americas.
A "gook" is North African Arab,
who just happens to be the most
permanent resident of these vast
regions stretching from Casablanca
French Moroccan Atlantic port to
Tunis.
The Germans. who hold all nom
Aryan peoples in disdain, have con-
vinced the Arabs that the Axis re-
CARDS them as the salt OF the earth.
French Failed.
The problem of turning the half
nomad, half -citified population of
this enormous and, to us, strange
expanse of country into a lot of
upcoming, self respecting, we'll =
bathed citizens remains to be solved
The French have done wonders. as
is witnessed in their excellent free
hospitals, agricultural stations, fine
roads and bridges and schools. To-
day they consider themselves just
about beaten in what must be re-
garded as magnificent attempt
at intelligent colonization Of the
country.
We, with all our great resources
couldn't do much more. What We
might do and haven't done until
this date, however, would be to do
as much as our enemy and per-
Suade the common Arab that we
are out to improve his lot immedi-
ately by donating a few of the SIM
pie things he needs.
The common inha bitant of North
Africa needs certain things des-
perately. He needs cotton cloth
most OF all, and after that coffee.
sugar, tea and wheat -four. He
also needs medicine, but he doesn t
want it until his condition is really
tremendous What we must do at
the first possible moment is to sup
ply clothing and coffee.
No L. S. Aid Given.
You couldn't believe your eyes
this Christmas eve if YOU could
suddenly be transferred hither and
see the state of undress practiced
by the North African Arabs in war
time. Even to an old visitor to
Ethiopia and the Arab countries of
the Near East it is shocking. We
know that this condition existed
before We arrived. and we made
plans to correct it, but the stuff
didn't arrive or wasn't unloaded
AS result the Germans got the
jump on us.
Every day now the Germans are
allowing Arabs to pass through
their lines from Tunis to spread
the glad tidings in our neighbor-
hood that they, the Germans. have
opened up French warehouses and
shops in TunlS to the Arabs, are
treating all Arabs we'll and are 60
ing to subdivide the large. rich
farms, which the French have pro,
duced from shrub and desert coun-
try, among the original inhabitants
We have done virtually nothing tc
correct the startling impression this
has created among the locals.
Our first secret weapon, in the
estimation of my Arab friends
should have been few carloads
of cotton cloth and some Well-or-
ganlzed counter propaganda to ex-
plain to the Arabs that their lot
after the war would be easier.
Germans Successful.
AS far as I can ascertain there
has been only one propaganda
among the Arabs. and that has been
German. Since this is of vital in
terest to our country, I am sure
that no censor will stop the express
sion Of this wellbased opinion.
Having spent my entire time in
this neighborhood with Arabs and
local French and Italian colonists
l can testify that the problem of
making the North African Arab
into a new man during the course
of campaign like this is beyond
our depth; all we can do for the
moment is to convince him by pro-
ducing the goods that We are here
to help.
The least We can do is to accept
the Arabs as they are. We have
provided neither the cloth nor the
understanding. 1t is beyond the
comprehension of a simple news
paperman that our country, in
which Arabs always have been such
natural favorite, should be able
to treat him in a moment of such
urgency with such indifference and
complete lack of understanding of
his metality. I have still to meet
even one American officer up here
near the front who understands
Arabic; the most one can expect
is an odd citizen who can speak a
few words of very pidgin French.
That. considering the elaborate
preparations for this campaign
seems scandalous. Personally am
sick and tired of interrupting my
work by running hither and thither
translating for Arabs, French and
Italians complaining about Incl
dents to officers, both British and
American. who should have been
properly prepared linguistically for
such an important expedition as
this.
You keep asking yourself how in
the world, if they can't even speak
French. they can expect to deal
with the Arabs. The answer. OF
course. is that they can't unless
the Arabs want to deal with them,
Sometimes they do.
Copyright, 1912. by Chicaso Daily News
BHbo Will Be Silent