Show I F CO COLONY L OR BASE AS E By v RAIMUNDO I ND DE OVIES VIE n 0 Take a ruler and open your atlas to a map of the world Look at atthe atthe atthe the western coastline of Africa and at the center of the curving dip in that coastline place the zero end of the ruler and measure the distance to Pernambuco Bahal Para and then Down to toRio toRio toRio Rio de Janeiro never Janeiro never mind the miles compare distance in inches for the moment Then measure the distance from Washington New York ork and Panama City to toRio toRio toRio Rio dc do J Janeiro The astonishing fact becomes apparent that the heart of South America can be more quickly reached by ship or plane from Africa than from any part of the United States This has been long known of course but only re recently recently recently re- re has the general public be begun begun begun be- be gun to realize it through articles in our newspapers and magazines What we should remember is that the point in Africa from which we have been drawing our lines is the territory known as the Came- Came a region which became part of a German trade protectorate in 1884 and which Germany held until until until un un- un- un til shortly after the beginning of the World war in 1914 Herr Hiter Hitler Hitler Hit Hit- ler er is already demanding the re return return return re- re turn of the together with other colonies formerly held by Germany Why Does lie Ho Want Vant Them If Great Britain France Italy Belgium Portugal and Spain were without their colonies in Africa we might easily understand why they would w want nt them back The white man can live in the British Dominion of the Union of South Africa the British crown colonies of Northern and Southern Rhodesia Rhodesia Rhodesia Rho Rho- desia British East Africa and in M Mozambique Madagascar or even the Belgian Congo and French equatorial Africa for a while at least and these territories offer rich rewards But all the northwestern northwestern north north- western coast is known as the white mans man's graveyard and not without reason The return of the could scarcely increase Germanys Germany's trade and there is lit lit- tIe tle that the can furnish furnish furnish fur fur- 1 nish to satisfy Germanys Germany's matena material material mate mate- na rial needs so why does she desire reoccupation The answer can probably be found from the ruler we have just laid upon the map of the world This colony would constitute a valuable air and naval base in the event of Germanys Germany's becoming even more ambitious to extend her sphere of influence in the South American republics and more de decidedly decidedly decidedly de- de so should Japan ever occupy occupy occupy oc oc- oc- oc cupy the major part of the attention attention attention atten atten- tion of the United States through her announced determination to control Asia and by necessity of that seek to control the Pacific Looking at the Past Germany cannot forget how her I Iown own and the Austrian ports were blockaded in 1914 and how supplies supplies supplies sup sup- plies were prevented from passing through Holland and Scandinavia Her fleet was helpless in the face of British superiority on the thc sea and such exploits as those of the German sea raider Emden were more spectacular than Enemy shipping was destroyed destroyed destroyed de de- de- de by both raiders and submarines submarines submarines sub sub- marines but that brought no potatoes potatoes po po- to empty German stomachs and no supplies for munitions The disastrous Dogger Bank action of January 1919 and the debacle at Jutland in May of the following year left Germany no course of hope except to starve out England by ruthless submarine attacks be before before before be- be i fore she herself starved The entry entry entry en en- try of the United States in 1917 shattered that hope bope America put hundreds of destroyers on the theseas theseas theseas seas and gave protection to merchant merchant merchant mer mer- chant shipping and Admiral Harris' Harris plan of putting down a mines barage across the North sea from England to Norway Norway Norway Nor Nor- way finally kept German submarines submarines submarines rines from entering the Atlantic at all Must Have Bases Her air raids upon London and Paris merely stiffened resistance aroused the stubbornness of outraged outraged outraged out out- raged indignation and quickened the pace of the allies in attack Germany saw the war lost through her inability to move freely treely across the oceans ne win not nor ix II soc can help it find herself in that position in the future and in orden order order or or- der den to avoid it she must have bases far from her own boundaries even as France England Japan and the United States have And all this not for war perhaps perhaps perhaps per per- haps but for trade expansion and sufficient prestige to protect her minorities everywhere Ships seem to give checkmate checkmate checkmate check check- mate in that problem ships at sea and ships in the air and with not too great a distance between the ships and their bases of sup sup- ply The is is' is a highly strategic piece in Germanys Germany's game She bids fair shortly to have enormously increased possibilities of trade and a plethora of goods awaiting large markets Those markets lie to the south of the United States but a long long longway longway longway way from us nor have we as yet sufficient naval or air forces to tomake tomake tomake make a Monroe Doctrine anything but a romantic phrase of merely sentimental import Germany knows what the future holds She thinks and plans realistically seeking what she really wants in inthe inthe inthe the long run rather than being governed by an emotional and temporary satisfaction It is long long- range planning and much of it wa was done prior to 1914 Colonies Bosh Bases is the word and the objective There shE ehe is and has been building building build build- ing up her German minorities and how thoroughly and staunchly German they are Germans are like ourselves their presence everywhere is accepted and substantial substantial substantial sub sub- increases in their numbers numbers numbers num num- bers can take place unnoticed and cause neither alarm nor objection But if they remain German minorities minorities mi mi- mi- mi they become part of the new Germany The rest of the world must awake to that fact and meet her ultimately with what With fire and sword or with respect understanding and anda a share in the brotherhood of nations nations nations na na- na- na Germanys Germany's own course in the he hevery very near future will have much to do with the answer to that Copyright 19 8 for The Telegram |