Evening star., 1942-02-03
Neutral Swiss, Paying Heavy Price for q War
They're Not In, Gumb|e on an Allied Victory

land will be self-sustaining. And
the Swiss are suffering no delu-
sions. They count on long wsr.
"It won't be a very rich diet"
says the soft-spoken man in charge
of the program, but we can live
If we have to-"
Living conditions, complicated in
the first two years OF the war by
price increase of about 40 per cent,
have plunged rapidly down in the
last six months. They are still the
best in Europe, for when one buys
meat, one gets good meat in large
>helpings, but it can be obtained
only four days q week. Coffee, tea,
sugar, butter, cheese, milk, grains
of all kinds are closely rationed.
Leather and textiles can be pur-
chased only q against coupons, a
years allotment of which is about
sudlcient for a suit and a pair OF
shoes.
Supplies of coal have been cut
more than so per cent. To conserve
the precious stocks of gasoline, less
than one-tenth of Switzerland's au-
tomobiles are permitted to operate
at all. Most Of them have been con-
verted to various substitute fuels.
Gasoline rations for those with spe-
cial permits are about 3 gallons
a month.
Swiss Dilemma.
Swiss industry, distorted as all
economies have been distorted by
the strains of war. Is operating at
full blast, mostly for the Germans,
because it can operate for no one
else. This has caused the British
to tighten further the blockade pro-
visions. The Swiss face this di-
lemma: unable to export to any one
but the Axis without German per-
mits, they must produce for the
Axis or shut down their factories.
Widespread unemployment, they
fear, might produce fertile ground
for fifth column activities, for the
average Swiss already has drawn
heavily on his savings to meet the
increased living costs.
Using this economic weapon. the
Nazis were able to compel the Swiss
to sign trade agreement last sum-
mer which is little more than black
mail. Among its provisions, the
Swiss government agreed after
weeks of negotiations to finance ex-
ports to Germany, in return for the
vital iron and coal, to the extent Of
almost 100000 900 annually. This
equals about half of all Swiss ex-
ports to the Axis
In the face of all this, the average
Swiss are pro-Ally. Considerable
criticism is heard of the government
because its policies are 50 carefully
neutral. The government, in its
turn. has pointed to three-century
tradition and insisted this will be
maintained, agreeing at the same
time that the Swiss citizen Is en-
titled to think what he pleases pri-
vately.
The Nazis continue to rage and
froth about almost every aspect Of
Swiss activity. The handful Of
Swiss correspondents In Berlin is
scolded and threatened as no others
except the Americans were before
their arrest.
The Nazis are furious because the
Swiss buy tiny R. A. F. emblems as
contributions and wear them proud
ly; because they show a preference
for American movies; because they
won't speak German-which every
one of them knows-if they. can
avoid It but Use their peculiar dia-
lect; because Swiss gunners never
seem to hit the British bombers on
their way to Italy, but show an
amazing accuracy If a German plane
fnfringes the border a yard-in
short because the Swiss are Swiss,
and there is no room for them or
democracy in the new order.
(copyrisht 1e41. BY CHICAGO Daily NewsJ