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Show Another Triple Alliance TWO weeks ago Frederic Sondern, noted observer ob-server of foreign affairs, sent a wireless dispatch dis-patch to the McClure Newspaper syndicate saying that the week before foreign diplomats stationed in Berlin had flashed reports to their home governments gov-ernments that Hitler was preparing for eventualities even-tualities in south-central Europe, that his first move was sending a large land force to guard hit southern frontier in protest against the Danubian coalition recently accomplished. In a personal decree he directed all economic agencies to concentrate on replenishing the grain reserve asked by the general staff. This was a forerunner of Thursday's dis-j dis-j r-nt-hTf frrn Bttt-t r-rt London Tha tme may be interpreted as-having a possible relationship with each other. From Rome announcement was that Saturday Germany, Italy and Japan would effectuate an anticommunism compact, non-military in character and following generally the Germano-Japanese agreement signed last year. Mention of the "non-military" character of the) new treaty may be passed over as ambiguous, am-biguous, if not meaningless. Any such compact com-pact could be made a stepping stone to anything. any-thing. Besides, all parties have expert knowledge knowl-edge about treaties, Japan has violated three multilateral treaties In its rape of China. Italy broke faith with the powers in its African conquest con-quest Germany, to start the World war, scrapped the guarantee) of neutrality to Belgium then ths treaty that ended it. It's just little funny that the three parties can trust each other to keep faith under the compact It is significant that the agreement will not be signed until the nine-power treaty conference confer-ence opens in Brussels, on the presumption that tht fascist powers can set it up as a scarecrow before the gathering of signatories, a meet seemingly seem-ingly foredoomed to fail. It is in this respect that the possible relationship relation-ship in the two press dispatches comes in. In , London diplomatic quarters, predictions were made that Hitler was on tha verge of tearing up ths last shred of the Versailles treaty by repudiating re-pudiating tha mandate sections under which prewar German territory was divided among allied powers. It was at the Nuremberg nazi conclave two years ago that Hitler made his famous speech on what be could do if Germany possessed the resources beyond her boundaries in the Ukraine and on to the Urals. Then he spoke - to the world of his peaceful Intent then later of regaining territory lost In the war to the victors. vic-tors. Apart from losses on the continent, Ger-i Ger-i many lost Togo and Kamerun in German Southwest South-west Africa and German East Africa, Kiaochow . in Asia and German New Guianea, Kaiser Wil-i Wil-i helm's land, Bismarck archipelago, Caroline, Palau, Marianne, Solomon, Marshall and two Samoan islands in the Pacific. These losses totaled 1,207,800 square miles of territory rich in resources and with a population of nearly 14,000,000 a very fair number of customers for German industry. The density of population In that time reached a dangerous 310 souls per square mile. Germany's home population has increased 1,000,- 000 in round figures, raising' the density figure fig-ure to 360.7 per square mile at present Her territorial losses on the continent included in-cluded Alsace and Lorraine, Eupen and Mal-medy, Mal-medy, part of eastern and upper Silesia, MemeL the nothern gone of Schleswig a total area of 27,273 square miles. In all these are rich stores of resources badly needed. Possession of the Ukraine, Lithuania, Czechoslovakia Czecho-slovakia and Austria would bring her an immense im-mense territory and vast supplies of metals, oil, dairy products, farm produce and coal. Best informed foreign observers insist that acquisition acquisi-tion of this immense domain is part of Germany's Ger-many's expansion program realignment of almost al-most all of her northeast, east and southeast frontier. Possibility of Italian support in German adventure ad-venture in Africa looms very likely, in western U. & S. R. regions more so and in south-central Europe almost certainly if, when and as Hitler orders his armies into the field. One man's guess is as good as another's on all three points. But one day's news is disturbing, at least, if not frightening to jittery European peoples, and possibly to a degree to high government officialdom. official-dom. How can a stabilized recovery possibly be established in the world until the causes of all this unrest are removed? In view of the world situation, the United States may feel both amazed and gratified in achieving such recovery as it has even if it be spotty, and with ups and downs. |