Show The War Today Fear of Allied Retribution Makes Axis Treat Prisoners Better By DeWitt Mackenzie 1 Associated Press War Analyst Anal St Tracy Strong secretary of th the prisoners' prisoners aid ald committee committed of the thi international division of th the theY Y YM YMCA t 1 C A reports that Germany i is adhering to the rules of the Geneva Geneva Geneva Ge Ge- neva convention in its treatment of war prisoners and that th the Japanese are arc improving in thi this respect Well maybe one ole shouldn't look loola looka a II welcome horse gift-horse like that ii Inthe in inthe the mouth because fairness f at t t th the hands of the or Japanese is one of those these things you hope for foi but dont don't expect Still one cant can't help thinking of Rabelais' Rabelais wIsecrack wisecrack wisecrack wise wIse- crack that the Devil was sick sick sick- th the Devil a II monk would be bej th the Devil WAS Ws well the well the d devil vil a monk was he Modern warfare among so called civilized nations has produced nothing approaching the atrocities perpetrated In the present global conflict by the nazis Japs when things were going well with them Indeed the barbarities have continued right up to the present for German savagery against Italian ItalIan Ital Ital- ian civilians ns is appalling and recently r re me- there was the horrible beheading beheading beheading be be- heading of f an allied airman prisoner prisoner pris pris- oner by the Japanese Not Change of Heart HeartSo So it ft strikes me inc that decent treatment of allied prisoners doesn't indicate any change of heart on the p part rt of the enemy It means that Berlin and Tokyo are trying to insure against As defeat has plIed piled up against i ithem them the Germans German have been getting getting getting get get- ting it drummed into their ears by our leaders leader that there is to be full punishment war guilt and atrocities s Also as r remarked mark d in inthis inthis inthis this column the other day my information is that the Russians are methodically compiling det details Us of all G German atrocities in soviet territory and are logging l down downa a huge hug blacklist of names of those whO ar are to pay the penalty as soon as the Muscovites can tan lay hands handson on them Hitler r knows that h heads adwill ads ad will roll when the red armies sw sweep p Into Int Germany Dread ery Very Real Heal Dread of this must be very real In the fuehrer's camp these dark days dayL The Tho red through break of the tha Germ German n right wing On the great greM bend of ot the per threatens threatens threaten threat threat- ens en the th nazis with one of the worst disasters of the war Some half million nazi troops are S said id to b be involved in the f moving fast Russian en encircling movement Into which Moscow h has s thrown reinforcements reinforcements reinforcements rein rein- in including luding veterans of the historic battle of Stalingrad d where Hitler broke his back nut But ut that's only part of the story If the Russi Russians ns can develop their present advant advantage ge the whole nazi position in eastern Europe will win be beIn bein bein in jeopardy The great line from the Sea Of f clear north to the region legion of Leningrad will haVe to be pulled back under conditions which might easily produce pro pro- duce dute du e a debacle Nazi retreat in the south will bring the onrushing reds close to Rumania Rumania gateway gateway Into the Bal Sal kans The little satellite states in this cockpit of ot southeastern Europe Eu Eu- Eu- Eu rope rope Hungary Hungary Rumania and Bulgaria Bul Bul- garia already garia-already already are trying to es escape escape escape es- es cape Hitler's grasp and nazi disaster disaster disaster dis dis- dis- dis aster on the might also mean nazi disaster in the Balkans All in iii all it looks as though the nazis and the Japs had better treat allied prisoners we well II |