Show FRANCE UNDER THE SWASTIKA SWASTIKA- r- r J laval Potting Plotting to Use Nazi Army To Set Up fascist Government Editors Editor J Noi Thu U is the second lerond fee f a series of f exclusive articles b by Kenneth nee are foreign correspond f rot ent nt ho recently rec toured occupied d and unoccupied 1 France ranee These are uncensored I By KENNETH DOWNS LISBON April 17 INS INS From From the moment you cross the closely guarded line of demarcation from unoccupied into occupied France you run into an endless green tide of German troops They are everywhere in in the trains in the streets the stations the fields No village is is too small or remote to have its komman- komman and quota of nazi soldiers You scarcely would imagine there were so many German soldiers Inthe in inthe inthe the world Paris is of course packed with them The city seems about as much German as French Every large hotel in the city is completely complete complete- ly requisitioned by the nazis and most of the small hotels are filled with them I telephoned the Royal-Mon- Royal hotel where I once lived and arid had to hang up when I found the German telephone girl spoke no French I found the komman- komman of the town is living in my former house in Rambouillet Army Holds Answers You dont don't have to spend much time in occupied France before you begin to understand things that you didn't understand amid all the talk double-talk at Vichy You soon realize that the most important political fact in in France today is the presence of this enormous enormous enormous enor enor- German army All things political begin and end there All other considerations brave intent t ons hatred of the conquerors Marshal Petain everything everything everything every every- thing else are dwarfed by com corn parison And sitting there in in Paris darkly with anger and and hungering for revenge is one of the toughest tough tough- I est and shrewdest of Frenchmen who is well aware of this fact He is is Pierre Laval He knows nothing else counts as long as the German army is in m France Sees Public Opposition I realize the public is solidly against me mc Laval told a friend recently But I dont don't give a damn je men fous As long as the German army is here I dont don't care if I dont don't even have one per cent of the public behind me Then you plan to USe use the Ger Ger- man army as Hitler used the the Brown Shirts is that it he was asked Well WeB yes yes yes-if if you want to put putt i it t that way said Laval Laval is certain of his return t to o power he is just waiting for forthe forthe forthe the right moment If he can arrange with his German supporters supporters sup sup- porters for the release of some of the French prisoners or orthe orthe orthe the betterment of their condition conditions conditions condi condi- tion he may even return with p popularity But he has blood in his eye He Hem Henu m nu makes kes no secret of the fact heads will fall when he reassumes power pow pow- er He has the names of those who aided in his ousting December December De Do- cember 13 and he has sworn to have the hide of every everyone one of them Admits Physical Danger He realizes these rough games work both ways He fr frankly ad admits admits ad- ad admits mits he is as good as dead if the British win and that he may be assassinated before either side wins But whatever else may be said about Laval Lava he be cannot be accused of of being a physical cow cow- ard It is an on odds-on bet around Vichy that he will be assassinated I personally have heard men Vow that he wont won't come back to Vichy and live Laval heartily reciprocates Marshal Petain's hatred for him He speaks scornfully of his old chief as a doddering ancient whose mental faculties s have grown dim This is his story to a friend of what happened on the fateful night of December 13 when Pet Petain i tl demanded demanded his J nation I was furious I r demanded to t speak to the marshal privately and find out what it was al all about We went into his study and there he complained that I I had not been frank with him that ii iiI I had withheld information from him I hotly denied this I told him that I had always reported all my actions and plans to him Memoranda Demanded j Yes but I forget w what at you you- say you should write memoranda memoranda- for me mc the marshal saidI saidI saidI said I angrily told him I would do dono do dono no such thing first because I Vasi vas too busy secondly because I didn't trust the men around him He replied that if I wrote memoranda he could have them locked up in hi his strong box I Then you would forget wh vho 5 I had the key I said Ah you do me an injustice j the marshal said indignantly 5 All right then who has th the l I key to your strongbox at this very veri I moment I demanded He didn't know |