Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1943-02-25

the belief that they are. ..
Without question, the. Germans
have lost heavily in men, supplies
and equipment, and they have given
up tremendous area
But it doesn't take the fine nose
of an expert to smell something
! phoney about the whole situation.
There are two phases that look par
ticularly suspicious, even to a lay
man
One is the doleful wailing coming
out of Germany. All the top Nazis
are somberly shaking their heads
From every neutral observation point
| in Europe comes reports indicating
growing German fear of ultimate
defeat.
It is too much unlike them. It is
wholly at variance with their prop
uganda policy to stress losses. They
are more likely to minimize them.
Last winter, for example, when we
were reading daily of the terrific
mauling to which their retreating
armies were being subjected by the
Russians, the invariable line with
the home folks was that everything
was going according to PLAN
What we are now hearing has about
it an aroma of deliberate propa-
ganda.
The other suspicious phase is the
sudden, unexplained disappearance
of the Luftwaffe. Not very long ago,
it had tremendous striking power.
Almost overnight, it seems to have
become impotent and practically to
have vanished from the skies.
It isn't lack of gasoline. A study
of pre-war production figures for
wells in Axis controlled countries
indicates this rather clearly And it
is doubtful whether it is lack Of
| planes or pilots. -. s'....
It is generally conceded that Ger
man factories alone have been build
/ ing upward of 1000 planes per month.
In addition are the planes produced
in French factories and possibly else
where in occupied Europe. Even if
! we take Allied claims at their full
face, Germany has still been produc-
ing more planes than she has lost.
Nor is the explanation convincing
that shortage of materials is the
cause. While we and Britain pro-
duce a great deal more, the fact re-
mains that steel and iron production,
as one example, is very substantial
in Axis controlled Europe. In 1910,
the combined output of Germany,
France and Belgium was 80 million
tons of iron and So million tons of
steel.
And lack of manpower isn't a sat-
isfactory explanation, either as to
soldiers or workers. Each year, the
| Axis allies of Europe have new
crop of ~ million boys reaching
fighting age: Their combined popu-
lations are over $50 million, while
that of conquered territory is over
100 million. This is more than the
white populations of Britain and the
| U. S. A.
Most of us have an erroneous i'm
preston of the extent of Europe's
supply of raw materials. While it
falls far short of equalling that of
the Allies, it is still very substantial
in amount and wide in variety; and
Axis controlled Europe has an enor-
nous capacity for production.
To urge that Europe's slave labor"
will not produce is to talk nonsense.
1t does produce, and probably at high
capacity. If person faces the choice
between working and starving, he
is likely to work. And experts agree
that sabotage, while spectacular. has
probably affected the output but very
little. ~ ".- :@-@
One wonders whether the Germans
have taken a leaf from the book of
Peter the Great. When his armies
were being routed by the victorious
Swedes, under Charles XII, he said,
philosophically:
well have to let the Swedes lick
us until we learn how to lick them"
The Russians did learn, and even
tually the Swedes were licked.
That the Germans may now be
using the tactics the Russians orig
inally used to good purpose is not
unthinkable. What we are now see
ing may be the Russian method in
reverse. Even if grudgingly, we
must grant the excellence of German
military leadership. They are entire
ly capable of learning from their