Evening star., 1943-08-09
Germans May Prefer
To Hold Against Reds
BIZ Maj. George Fielding Eliot.


generals taking power in Berlin have
any substance. Such move long has
been a subject of speculation.
The Nazis built up for themselves
legend of invincibility. The Fuehrer
could do no wrong. He could not lose
For time, he did not lose. He won
every trick. And the legend grew. Now
it has been rudely shattered-not by
one blow, but by failure after failure.
Defeat stares the Germans in the face.
No intelligent German can longer
cherish any hope of victory. The sole
remaining hope is to escape some. at
least, of the consequences OF defeat.
If opinion in Germany is divided, it
is divided between those who would
throw the Nazis out in the hope of
making better terms, and those who
have no such illusions and consider that
Germans might just as we'll fight on to
the bitter end-tnat to die in battle or
under bombs will preferable fate. In
either case, one would imagine that
military leadership would seem prefer
able to Nazi leadership.
But there are also certain military
too. The chief of these is the Russian
situation.
We sometimes tend to forget that the
Russians are still making the main
Allied effort in Europe. The German
leaders, whether Nazi or military. do
not forget it. They are we'll aware that
they are spread out too far and too thin.
They know that they must reduce their
commitments in order to be able to de-
fend what is really vital to them. They
know that collapse on the Russian
front, due to German over-extension,
might be an irreparable disaster, might
bring to an end, suddenly, all the re-
naming hope they have.
But the Nazis have never been able to
bring themselves to agree to a general
withdrawal on that front to shorter and
more easily defended lines, because that
would be an admission of defeat which
the German people could not fail to
understand, and might bring about
complete crackup of civilian morale-or
might bring about the downfall OF the
Nazi party at least, with most unpleas-
ant personal results to its leaders.
Now-with the fall of Orel and Bel
gorod, with the Russians pressing on for
Bryansk and Kharkov, with the whole
Donets salient again in dangerAthe Ger
mans must choose under the pressure of
imminent necessity either to execute a
withdrawal in the face Of the advancing
enemy, or they must throw in their
precious general reserve to check the
Russians and thus finally and definitely
render themselves impotent to check an
Anglo American attack in force, as was
Gen. Won Arnim In Tunisia to check the
final Allied assault when his last reserves
had been absorbed.
That means a showdown between the
Nazis and the generals. for it seems un-
likely that the generals will, if they can
possibly prevent it, consent to the latter
suicidal course. Indeed, the sudden fall
Of Belgorod and the swift Russian ad-
vances beyond both Belgorod and Orel
suggest that German withdrawal may
be already in progressively even have
been ordered by the generals without
Htler's consent, which may be the rea-
son why we are hearing from Berlin OF
"momentous conferences" and the like.
1t is necessary, however, to say that
nothing has yet been learned of any
German withdrawal from the Donets
salient This would certainly be taking
place now If the Germans have de-
termined to give up Bryansk and Khar-
kov, without which the Donets area can
not possibly be held.
1t is to be doubted whether even the
Germans, with their inability to under
stand the psychology OF other peoples,
have any idea that military regime can
patch up a negotiated peace with the
United Nations. They may think we
would In the end give better terms to
the generals than we would to Hitler,
Just as Badoglio apparently thought he
could secure the naturalization Of Italy
by oyerthrowing Mussolini and abolish
ing Fascism. But they can hardly sup
pose that they can escape unconditional
military surrender, as prelude to the de-
termination Of Germany's ultimate fate.
The one horror which haunts the Ger
man mind and what passes for the Ger
man conscience is the realization that
unconditional surrender means the lay
ing down of German arms and the
leaving Of Germany at the mercy of the
peoples who live. around her, the neigh
bors she treacherously attacked, con-
quered, tortured, massacred and enslayed,
So in the end the remaining German
power OF military decision may boil
down to this: Shall we defend in the
East, and give way in the West and
South, or vice versa? In other words.
under exactly what military conditions
shall we surrender?
1t has not come to that yet. But If the
German generals are thinking that far
ahead, they may well consider that they
would be much happier If strong
Angio-American army were at hand
when the day of surrender comes. Thev
may well consider that the breakdown
OF the Russian front now, or the use of
their last reserves to bolster 1t up, NAV
take the power of even that decision out
OF their hands. They may therefore feel
That, since 1t Is increasingly apparent
That the Russian front can be really
stabilized only by withdrawal to
stronger and less expensive positions
there Is nothing to be done but to sweep
out OF the way any one, Hitler included
VINO ODDCSeS that r,roroejtio,,