Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-05-19
War Rumors
Have Smell
Of Maxi Stuff
They May Preface Drive
on Propaganda Front
BY PAUL MALLON

w plague of rumors is flying
out OF Europe. Typical is the
one that Hitler has banished
Goering. who is going to Lisbon
with Count Ciano to negotiate
a peace through the British am
bassador there.
This unbacked tale has many
ramifications, one that the Ital-
ian ambassador in Spain has
been whispering sweet sellout
terms on the side to the British
diplomat, Sir Samuel Hoare. at
the instance of King Victor
Emmanuel, who is supposed tc
be plotting coup to decapitate
MuSSolini.
Now no one knows where
these stories come from.
USUALLY London and Mos
~ COW pass them along with
smiling doubt, as if to say:
I'VE don't believe them either,
but there might be something
In them"
The only thing similar about
all these tales is their purpose.
They all create an impression
that the Axis is webbing on its
last legs. Without a single ex-
ception they all serve to spon-
Sor the notion that the end of
the war is near and therefore
they imply that foes of the Axis
need not break their necks
hurrying their production or
Fastening TO the battlefront.
TAKE that rumor about Goer-
L ing and Ciano going to
Lisbon. There are fairly good
grounds for believing Goering's
influence has truly declined
since his air force lost the
battle of Britain. and that
Himmler has edged him out of
his position as official heir ap-
parent to der fuehrer.
Goering is primarily an army
man and flier, while Himmler,
as head of the secret police, has
control of politics in the Nazi
party.
But IL Goering Is out. as the
rumors say, he could not go to
Lisbon as an emissary of the
German government, or in fact,
of any one except himself. He
would merely be another Hess.
THE Nazi scheme Of propa-
Il ganda has always included
the circulation of sly self-de-
featist rumors to hull their foes
into false sense of security.
Clever NaZi attacks on the
psychological front have always
been divided into two categories.
For home consumption.
2-For foreign effect.
Goebbels customarily tells the
home folks all is we'll with the
world conquest, and passes to
outside nations such familiar
stories as the one that Hitler
wants no more territory; that
he would not attack Russia,
CZecho-Slovakia, Austria: that
the Maginot line was impreg-
nable-adding a little contrary
confusion now and then to cover
his purpose.
COEBBELS well known il is
~ human nature for individu-
ais to believe what they wish to
believe, even if it comes to them
in the form of rumors.
Officialdom here is naturally
unable to track down all the
rumors to their source and show
them to be untrue. But most
officials have adopted the wise
policy Of paying no attention to |
them.
The fact Is, whether true or
untrue, they should not make
the slightest difference to us in
our war purposes. They cannot
be helpful. so we should neither
believe nor disbelieve them, but
Just refuse to accept them until
they have backing of authority:
just forget them, let them 60.
They are simply worthless and |
should be treated as such.
'THE current flock of intangible
Il tales started after Hitler's
last speech. All kinds of stories
developed telling of unrest in
Germany. President Benes of
CZecho-Slovakia was quoted as
seying Hitlers speech was a
forerunner of a Nazi attempt 10
secure stalemate peace.
Our papers Of April % carried
several such stories. One from
Berne expected a purge in Ger
many. One from Washington
said Hitler was desperate and
had broken with the high COM
mand.
A few days later came the
Victor Emmanuel story, and
hardly a day has passed since
without some similar story. the
latest ones concerning a Nazi
attempt TO kidnap Mussolini and
the possibility that Won
Brauchitsch had gone to a sana-
forum with a breakdown.
Before that, came yarns from
Buenos Aires that King Victor
had dismissed Mussolini; that II
Duce had permitted rumors that
he would sell to the highest
b oder. From Ankara came the