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Show Merry-Go-Round BvJPRgyy PEARSON and RQBCTTJ.A1XEI WASHINGTON Confidential dispatches placed on tha president's desk indicate that the real works in Europe will break between March 20 and 28. Whether or not this is correct, certainly cer-tainly no one on this side of the Atlantic can tell, but It has the state department and the White House worried. "The real works" is going to be more important im-portant than another squeeze play against a defenseless de-fenseless country in central Europe though this may be part of it It is going to be the drive Jo partition Africa. And the squeeze plsy this time will be against Great Britain and France. The march into Czecho-Slovakis was merely the curtain-raiser. Thst march had two main things behind it: 1. To cleer the road to the oil. wheat and minerals of 'Hungary, Jugoslavia and particularly particu-larly Rumania. 2. To make it absolutely clesr to these countries coun-tries that they could not depend on France and Britain, that they must come under the wing of Germany. Balkan Warehouse During the World war, the Germans fought for two years to penetrate to the raw materials of Rumania. This time they went those mate-risls mate-risls even before they start fighting. And sine last Tuesday they hsve them. Immediately after Munich, the smaller nations na-tions of Europe adopted the motto, "You can't trust the democracies." But more recently. King Carol of Rumania has been flirting with Britain, while the Jugoslavs have been getting worried about Hitler. Even the Poles, with a 10-year German pact, are afraid that Hitler might turn on them. Since the torpedoing of Czecho-Slovakhv they know that even if Hitler does turn on them they will have to take it For the big lesson of last week wss that although the French and British had guaranteed Czecho-Slovakia's borders, bor-ders, when Hitler crossed her border they didn't bat an eyelash-Diplomatic eyelash-Diplomatic strategists are convinced that on motive for Hitler's action last week was to rub French and British feces in the dirt, show thst their pledges meant nothing. Outcome of it all undoubtedly will be that the Balkans and tha remainder of central Europe will go the whole bog for Germany. e Showdown With France Hitler is now in a far stronger position to force a showdown with France and Britain. He can now throw almost his entire army through Switzerland and Holland two countries which hsd a good look at the weak knees of democracies democra-cies last week, and are not likely to trust Franc and Britain in tha future. The conquest of Czecho-Slovakia also gave Germany immediate use of one of the world's largest munitions factories, Skoda (formerly owned by French capital), plus 35 fully equipped Czech divisions and 1400 airplanes. In contrast Britain has only 18 divisions available for war in Europe. Both Hitler and Mussolini are preparing to put the screws on France from north, south and southwest and Hitler may be demanding Alsace-Lorraine before it is all over. . V. S,-8oviet Barter , Back stag conversations are under way with Soviet Russia by which Henry Wallace hopes to unload a little more of his surplus wheat while the war department expects to get a reserve stock of manganese to be used in a war emergency. If the deal goes through it will be the most important barter transaction ever negotiated nego-tiated by the United States. Chief stumbling block, so far, is that Russia Rus-sia does not particularly need wheat However, Secretary Wallace, who has become public salesman sales-man No. 1 when it comes to getting rid of his surplus wheat thinks that Stalin ought to take a little of it eay about 20,000,000 bushels to store up for a war emergency. Thus far the Russians have been more anxious anx-ious to sell their manganese for cash than to trade for wheat They point out that tha Soviet trade balance is already 300 per cent favorable to the United States, and that the extra purchase of manganese might balance things up. But the Soviet is willing to pledge continued heavy purchases pur-chases of American machinery and tools if the maganese sale goes through. Meanwhile the war department wants the deal to go through either for cash or for barter. It points out that in wartime supplies of manganese, man-ganese, absolutely essential for the manufacture of steel, largely would be cut off from the United States. Amerieaa Minister With the disappearance of Czecho-Slovakia, American Minister Wilbur J. Carr is expected to return horn. Sixty-nine years old, Carr was sent to Prague when it was relatively quiet because be-cause th stat department wanted to put him on the shelf. Instead, he has been on the hottest spot in Europe. Carr has don several things which have not reached the public eye. On occurred shortly, after Munich, when the big Czech shoe companies, com-panies, in response to nazi bidding, war about to discharge their Jewish employes. Carr served notice on them that if they discriminated against Jews, he would report that fact to the United States; and that Czech shoes, wmeh are widely sold here, doubtless would be included in the snti-nari boycott Carr used such vigorous language that tha Czech shoe manufacturers held up their discharge dis-charge order. No Jews were fired until after Hitler Hit-ler marched across the border. Copyright, 1838, by United Feature Syndicate, Inc. i |