Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1943-07-27

Our inward pur-
pose to render
Italy impotent
a. . military
force In this war David Lawrence.
but it does mean that Britain and
America will attempt by cautious
step by step operations to bring
about the complete occupation OF
italy and at the same time to effect
the collapse of the Balkan resist
ance.
In the Balkans are many Italian
divisions which will be Withdrawn
ostensibly to defend the homeland.
And In the Balkans also are factions
sympathetic with the United Ma
tions but up to now kept in subjuga-
ton.
As the italian structure breaks
down, so also will there be in Yugo-
slavia, Rumania, Hungary, Czecho-
slovakia and doubtless in Austria a
trend toward revolution and per-
haps changes in the form Of govern
ment satisfactory to the Allied in
vaders.
Has Practical Drawbacks.
The news from Rome, while high
" gratifying to everybody who has
waited patiently through two dec
AIDES for this tyranny known as
Fascism to be obliterated, neverthe-
less Is disconcerting from a prac-
teal standpoint. 1t is essential that
the momentum Of our war machine
on every front and especially the
home front be kept at top speed, and
yet the tendency to slack off and
expect the end Of the war in a few
weeks will do irreparable harm to
our armed forces, who are not per-
mitted to relax their pressure or
their vigilance and who are count
ing heavily on the uninterrupted
now Of planes and weapons.
The danger especially exists with
reference to the war effort in the
Pacific, where any relaxation in Eu-
rope should be Of assistance rather
than handicap. There is, OF course,
no way to restrain the optimism Of
the Allied peoples and in a sense
this very confidence in victory acts
as stimulant in spreading through
out the occupied areas OF Europe
the tidinss OF success But there can
be no question, about the perils of
assuming that the end Of the war is
here or Just around the corner.
Our ofncials, are necessarily silent
on the course to be followed in Italy.
but It is plain that every attempt
possible will be made to prevent
leftist revolutions and to hold intact
some form of constituted govern
ment until the day that complete
victory has been attained and an
internal political upheaval in any
country abroad no longer can throw
. monkey wrench into our military
plans.
Military Facilities First.
Thus, If Italy should be plunged
into revolution now, our forces would
find their time table for invasion of
the heart Of Europe frustrated tenn
porarily while our troops became
engaged in the task Of pacifying
the country and preserving order.
What we want out Of Italy right
away are airfields and bases from
which to move into the Balkans so
"a to form pincers movement along
with Russia against the Nazis. 1t is
more important to obtain early mil
itary use Of italian territory than it
n to worry about who happens to
exercise authority over the populace
from the capital.
It should not be forgotten also
that the Pope undoubtedly has
welded powerful influence in urg-
ing the Italian King and the House
Of Savoy to declare Rome an open
city, and when Mussolini refused to
agree 1t unquestionably furnished
the pretext for ousting him. as 1t
always has been believed here that
whenever the italian royal family
and the Vatican combined against
Mussolini, he would not be able to
stand up against the popular cur
rents which would automatically rise
in support Of such an alliance.
The cry for unconditional sur
render" will be voiced again and
again but as 4 practical matter the
Allies will find themselves trying to
negotiate with the Italian King
some formula Of transition which
will not mean unconditional sur
render right away but in the course
Of brief period, during which every
effort will be made by the King and
the United Nations to avoid a rev.
olution from the left.
Allies Considered Eventuality,
1t will be vital for the King to
preserve. with respect to Germany
for the moment. an appearance of
unchanged relations because in any
effort to bargain for terms the only
leverage possessed by the present
italian government is threat Of
continued cooperation with Berlin,
which can mean to the Allies many
more weeks of useless fighting to
gain detectives on Italian soil.
While the news OF Mussolini's
downfall came as a surprise to
mankind generally. it is interesting
to note that from a hypothetical
viewpoint our Government and the
British have been discussing the
event for more than a year, prepar-
ing for every possible contingency
that has arisen or may yet arise.
Indeed, it may we'll be that with
the thousand and one Intermediates
and agents that customarily operate
in neutral lands like Spain, Switzer-
Land and Cu,Adns, ropvareo tone