Evening star., 1944-02-08

wrought, but just as the British
people were not put in a surrender
mood by the air raids of 1910 ano
l941, 50 is it beginning reluctantly
to be believed that air warfare doe.
not Of itself destroy the will tc
fight"
The only thing that counts
finally is the amount of actual
damage done to sources of supply
and manufacture and military
positions. Stories of the 95 per cent
destruction of Berlin count in g
military way only if it can be
ascertained what percentage of in
dustrial production for war was
originally concentrated in Berlin OF
was moved from that capital.
Period of Pure Defense.
What then will force the sur
render of Germany? Will land
invasion do it? The speeches OF
Hitler and Goebbels around New
Year reveal a confidence on their
part that the invasion will be a
fiasco. Undoubtedly their predic-
tions are what hold the German
people together and strengthen
their will to fight" Hitler said to
the army on New Year Day:
The plutocratic world may carry
out its announced attempt to make
a landing in the west. The attempt
will fail. The year 1914 will be a
hard one. Our common task in the
coming year will be to overcome
the period of pure defense and in
flict heavy blows on the enemy until
the hour arrives when destiny can
give victory to the people which
deserves it,"
The emphasis here is on "the
period Of pure defense" Until the
success of an invasion is demon
strated. the Nazis argue, what
reason is there for giving up? The
German people repeatedly are
shown motion pictures of the de-
fenses along the French Channel
coast. Our War Department has
shown these movies to our own in
dustrial managers, labor leaders and
the press. 1t must be conceded that
the German heavy guns and the
miles and miles of entangling de-
fenses behind them which penetrate
far into the interior from the
beaches give a superficial impress
sion of impregnability.
The German propaganda, more
over, is aided by significant speeches
from London from time to time
which intimate that the Anglo
Saxon alliance means to punish
and enslave in an economic strait
jacket for decades to come the
entire German nation. This, of
course, prolongs the war because
very little inducement to surrender
has gone out from the Allied coun-
ellis.
If people come to believe they
are going to be destroyed anyway,
they will often choose to fight to
the last ditch rather than capitu-
late. On that assumption as to Ger
many. what about the will of the
American people to fight for three
years or perhaps longer? Are the
American people being prepared for
a long war or are they being told
victory is just around the corner
sometime in 1944-in Europe any,
wa?
Pessimistic Side.
The public doesn't like the pes
simistic side, but letters from our
troops overseas often express Won
der whether sugar-coating the news
and the repeated predictions that
Germany will crack by the sum-
mer Of 1914" are not leading to a
dangerous trend toward relaxation
on the home front. Strikes and
threats of strikes are only a reflec-
ton of the belief of those responsible
for them that a little interruption
here and there doesn't hurt because
the war will soon be over anyway
There may be big disappoint-
ment in store for those who think
1914 will see the end of war in
Europe solely on account of a col
lapse in German morale. Already
air blows unparalleled in intensity
and frequency have been delivered
but the German will to fight has