The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-02-22

At present, German prisoners are reported being taken on the Western Front at the rate oi about 1900 a day, but there seems to be no general breakdown of German army morale. Dur ing three weeks in late January and early February, the Amc.i- can 7th Army and French 1st Army took over 15,000 NaZI pri3- oners, which is a good haul. But 1t does not mean that large blocs of the German Army are surren- dering en maSsc, as the Italians did i'll North Africa
 Judging by all the standards of the last war, Germany should have capitulated long ago. It was on Sept. 28, 1918, six weeks before the Armistlce, that Lu- dendOrff and Hirdenburg made up their minds that defeat was inevitable. At that time, as now, it was the civilian govern ment in Berlin which wanted to resist longer.
 One of the significant docu- ments of the lst war was Hinden- burgS reply to Prince Max of Baden, who had formed q new German government and who ap- pealed to Hindenburg on October 2, 1918, to continue fighting.
 Hindenburg, replying next day, was brief and to the point. He wrote:
 "The Supreme Command in- Sists on It's demand of Sunday, 29th September, that a peace offer to our enemies be issued at Once."
 However, the civilian govern ment in Berlin still held out. ana it took until November II to ar range an armisticc.
 BERLIN PEACE RUMORS
 Knowing just what is going on inside Germany today regarding an armistice is one of the Allied handicaps. A certain amount of information leaks out via the neu- tral countries. It is reported. for Instance, that German business leaders would like to use Hjalmar Schacht or Franz Won Papen as peace negotiators. But there is no definite indication that Hitler himself or Himmler is ready for peace. On the contrary, there are no definite indications that they are determined to fight fanatlcally to the end.
 This time, the Nazi leaders have organized q Secret Ser vice infinitely more ruthless than anything known in the Kaiser's day, with the result that they have maintained the whip hand so far over any Ger man military leader who may pine for peace.
 Finally the Volksstrum or Peoples Party, thrown in to fill the gaps in the regular Army, has made up in ferocity what 1t lacks in experience.
 Weighing all these factors, top Allied military strateglsts figure the war In Europe prob. ably won't end before April 1, and should not last longer than July l, But in this war any thing can happen.
 STASSEN AND COP
 Several COP Senators were furious when they heard that President Roosevelt had named Commander Harold Stassen, cx- Governor of Minnesota, as one of the oiOht American daIa0afaq fn the United Nations Conference aL San Francisco.
 Some felt FDR was trying to catapult Stassen into the leader ship of the Republican Party, and deliberately kicking Tom Dewey in the shinS.
 Cracked MLchigans hard-hit- ting Senator Vandenberg:
 T assume Stassen is going tO the Conference representing the Navy Department"
 NOTE: The man who sold the White House on appointing Stas- sen was his old friend, Senator Joe Ball of Minnesota. The senator has not heard from StaS- sen since Ball deserted Dewey and came out for Roosevelt. How ever, Ball still thinks Stassen is the logical COP candidate for 1048 and is quietly plugging for him.
 INSURANCE LOBBY
 The insurance lobby is headed for trouble regarding it's bill to