Salt Lake Telegram | 1939-12-18 | Page 6 | Sounds Bad for the Swedes

lion men- were added to Finland's courageous force. It would be something for Russia to reckon with. Their combined navies would be nothing for Russia to laugh at, and If Britain, Italy and America supplied them with airplanes, a Swedish-Finnish alliance might easily stop Russia cold and save not only themselves and an of Scandinavia, but a good deal of the rest of the world as well, from the threat of enforced communism under the domination of the red . flag of the U. S. S. R. True, it would be a bold step for Sweden to take. Bui; In these unpredictable days of blitx-krelgs blitx-krelgs and sudden strokes, the odds seem to be with the audacious nation which strikes boldly. And the Swedes have never been a nation or a people to fear danger or to blench at bold adventures. Sounds Bad for the Swedes RUSSIAN radio stations In Moscow are re-sported re-sported in news dispatches to have launched vitriolic attack! against Sweden, branding the powerful social democratic party of Sweden as "slaves and hirelings of capitalists and Imperial-Jatie Imperial-Jatie Interests." Hmmmmm. That sounds familiar. Where did we hear that kind of language from Russia before? Oh. yes, about Poland Just before the I Red army moved In, and about Finland Just be-, be-, fore the Red army started ita invasion. Sounds bad for the Swedes. If the same pat-, pat-, tern is followed, it won't be long now until soviet , Russia starts to "defend" herself against these "imperialistic, menacing" Swedes. That Is. It - won't be long if Russia can Just push that stubborn stub-born little Finnish army out of the way and get In a position from which she can begin to "defend" "de-fend" herself against Sweden. Now there's an Idea. If Russia Is all set to follow op a conquest of Finland with a crackdown crack-down on Sweden, wouldn't It be a lot,betler for Sweden to accept battle now. while Finland's atill in there fighting and while the war can be carried on on Finnish soil, than to wait in the xond hope that Stalin and his butchers are going to have a change of heart? After all. Sweden shouldn't be too afraid of Russia. Through the centuries the Swedes have many time! fought Russia and earned an enviable reputation as first class fighting men. Several centuries ago Sweden was one of the great military powers of the world. Her armies were victorious over the Russians, the Germans, the Polei and the Danes. Her conquered territory terri-tory Included Finland, a large part of western Russia, and land along the eastern and southern Baltic coasts. At one time Sweden controlled what is the present site of Leningrad (or St Petersburg) and her army once occupied Moscow. During the seventeenth century Sweden again and again Invaded Russian territory, with the Russians Rus-sians coming off second best Many times in the eighteenth and early part of the nineteenth centuries, cen-turies, Sweden and Russia tangled, with varying vary-ing success. Russia finally recovering all of the territory Sweden had once taken from her. But in any event, Russia should not terrorize the Swedes. v The Red army haa already proved itself not half as good as it was cracked up to be. And if. Sweden's well-trained army of close to a mil-