The Wilmington morning star., 1942-09-17
Interpreting
The War =
,,I!, by kiRkE lis L. SIMPSON
Wide World War oN

,lei sallaht defenders and n. 's'
Hitler that time again is Warn
dangerously for him in the Fes. SooIas
From the Baltic to the o.,
MOSCOW reports the coolest splaR. ds,.
the season in the wake of anV uay Of
rains. The drop in temperatpra,' r,'aal
parently came earlier this ysa. .r's ap'
last in Russia, even tbonrS ' 'lan
only an advance showing =, fo Il is
six-month long winter moris to' the
behind it. By every portent s Up
remain some weeks, but onl, Qele
before ice and snow again s,'' '''SS
Russian front and drive va Tie
vaders into winter ouart.,- UT III
have not yet attained aIar uey
Don or the Volga or on tba s 'ls
of the towering Caucasus rsna hanks
guarding the Baku oil field ''s' S'II
In the circumstances
phrase from a broadcast bv Ta S.pO'
highest ranking army genosa, a@p'aS
China, picked up by a Rirtia' III
ton, must catch attention fia. a S@'
its possible bearing on tba '''
in Russia. ''NR
Asia in cooperation with y
is about to take simuItanoo1 a'0F
ton toward realization of 80 Dc
world order,' General sbn,ras. nr'
Hata, was quoted as saying. '''''l
Short of a Japanese assam.
Russia to help Hitler achieve W.
Immediate aims before wintor .. lily
in to halt his conquest naval 's
is difficult to see What fou,
operative Axis military action
Asia and Europe could tsls
justify the Hata cryptogram
japanese attempt to invade l,d',
would not have the same sioria
ance. Evolution into major onsr.
alton of the new japanese effor,
regain lost ground in the Solor,.
Islands torn from the enomvs prD
by American forces would not
On1V Tanapacn 9, rr...
Russia would seem to fill the m i
unless Hata Was talking about
new political gesture, not aim
military action. And it is ror
ward, toward Russia, not soutbwa
against Australia Or eastv,a
against India, that Chinese report,
have consistently contended that
Japanese forces being Withdraw
from Southeastern China wer
moving.
1t is against Russia too that
Japan is offered the shortest and
best protected route for expanding
her campaign of conquest It is
only 900 air-flight miles from Tokyo
to Vladivostok; and reinforced Jap
anese armies in Manchukuo are
already in face-to-face contact with
the Russians on the Siberian Dor.
| der. BY contrast. mounting an in.
vasion campaign against either Aus,
tralia or India would involve STU
pendous long distance transpora
ton difficulties.
AS this is written, news from the
Solomon Islands battle still is too
meagre to indicate its scope wheth
er the second japanese attempt 10
drive out American forces ousted
them from important sectors in the
southeastern section Of the great
group is a local action, screen
ing operation Or the beginning Of
a pitch battle test of American abh-
ity to retain control of the South
western Pacific is yet to be reveal
ed. 1t could be any Of these IN
strategic concept.
intensified japanese reaction to
the first American offensive move
of the Pacific war was to be ez-
: pected. Military prestige and the
reputation of the japanese COM
manders army and navy in 'ao.
area, urged it if nothing else i
1t was ordered by, Toxic ho"e'r'
and has been or is to be backed w
mass movement of air power lls"'
ing ships and troops southwark "a, ~
support it. a crisis in the P'ei1
Is impending. The greatest ',a1. "a,
conflict of the whole war eoD'u ''
shaping up.
What seems more likely as YET
that Toxic has authorized its COL.
manders in the solomons area
use their available reserves III q
attempt to restore the close '@.. mr..
to to American.Australian ", commute,
lion lines, but views that prin''.
as a covering operation. Cer,'i'l
if. as the Hatq statements .., ..
japan is about to attack haa .'r
It would be logical to engage .'" .,
lean attention at some poI0l Ill
Pacific too remote to perm" 1'
aid for the Russians.
The same thing would ar.a NJ
the event India is 10 be att''nD
the Japs. but TO lesser 's
British sea and air power -,, -
Indian ocean. now app~
further entrenched ON Mad'-. b,
is the prime factor Jaoan n''% y. r
slider If an invasion OF lna'S
| purpose. .;r5f
The Hata remark is so u M
to recall what happened in p
and Asia last winter. Hitter q
ed the peak of Wis "
offensive that year Mt t'o.'. a,
ember %. He su'Tand5r1'
a week later and the fer.~
treat to winter lines Was o. 1.'r
That was clear to oF7,J ~.
-, - and that "dar