Arkansas State press., 1944-03-03


Washington. D. c.
"Arms are what we want. arms,
arms. arInsl"
My companion leaned across the
table and pounded II with Gallo
iervor. his black eyes flashing.
II was our first meeting for more
than . year. and l knew that those
eyes fixed on me SO earnestly had
net the light Of the desert sun, for
he had fought with the Free French
forces under De Gaulle In Africa
and had had many an adventure
serving his country abroad before
he returned for this visit to his tenn
porary home.
I'VE have a quarter Of million
men in the French underground,
ready, willing, able and anxious to
bear arms--only one out Of 20 Of
those has single firearm. and that
means that while 10 men can har-
rass the German forces, as they are
doing every day and every night
despite their inadequate help from
the outside. 228 others must sit,
tWiddling their thumbs. They are
getting very tired Of waiting but
their ennui would leave them II fire.
arms could be put in their hands, II
America will provide them. we will
guarantee to get them into France,
we will guarantee to transport them
iand distribute them
| It is very difficult to write Of that
aadowy world. the European under
found. for even the few scraps Of
Attenuation which one might piece
iogether make a dangerous pat
tern which might bring swift enemy
reprisal D
There is no question about the
efficiency and the effectiveness Of
this silent army In France, in all
the occupied countries for that mat
ter. There Is no question about the
fact that through 1t flows steady
stream Of information out of the
heart Of the enemy territory right
back to the Allied high commands.
I Today two-shirds OF the Creusot
factories, once the makers OF the
famous Fr1nch 75s. long a vital
source 81 IN German arms supply.
lseve besR put out Of commission
~ agroup of loyal Frenchn1en, ac-
cording to story that is now cur
rent in Washington.
Few InUolUed
They did 1t at very little expense,
few men were involved, and not
single civilian life was lost. They
did 1t by blowing up key dam and
thus cutting off the electric power
from the plant. AT least three ex.
ncnsive Allied air raids, long and
carefully planned, had failed to de-
stroy this dam.
Not long ago. word came to an
other group of these French guer-
rillas that a German munition train
was about to move over certain
stretch of track. The bolts were re-
moved and the rails spread. Then
came the word that ahead of the
munition train was a passenger
train. Immediately men were sent
out to flag the passenger train and
order 1T to slow down while other
men worked feverishly to put back
the bolts. The passenger train went
on safely. Once more, the bolts
were withdrawn and before long,
the munition train was a wrecked
and smoking mass. No French CT
william had been injured, .
Less dramatic is the thankless
and difficult task which the French
National Committee of Liberation
has before it, attempting to work out
with the provisional assembly. the
machinery for administering the
areas Of France as they are liberat-
ed by the Allied armies. The COM
mittee must labor In an atmosphere
Of elaboration and enforced delay
which the mood Of the underground
finds 1t hard to grasp.
The members Of the French Ma
tional Committee Of Liberation, with
headquarters In Algiers, have grad
ually achieved more and more au-
thority under the Allies. There have
been many obstacles TO overcome
and the French, of course, feel that
they have not been given the free
hand which they desired and de-
served, However, within recent
weeks. IL has been evident that the
Allies are changing their ultra-con-
servative policy and 1t is now taken
for granted that representatives of
this committee, and later the pro-
vlsional assembly, which meets in
Africa, and which is made up Of
persons representing various groups
in France. viii be given the respon-
sibilitos Of administering the re-