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Show WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS By Edward C. Wayne Nazi Troops Are Massed in Balkans For Thrust at Greece to Aid Italians; Major Far East Crisis Approaches As Japanese-British Tension Grows (EDITOR'S NOTE When opinions are expressed In these columns, they are those of the news analyst and not necessarily of this newspaper.) (Released by Western Newspaper Union.) IDES OF MARCH: Hitler Again In March, 1933, Adolf Hitler Incorporated In-corporated the rich Saar Valley into the Reich. In March, 1936, he occupied occu-pied the Rhineland. In March, 1938, German troops moved southward and annexed Austria, In March, 1939, breaking the pledge of Munich der fuehrer moved into Moravia and Bohemia and made the Czechoslovakia Czecho-slovakia provinces German protectorates. protec-torates. In March, 1940, he got set for his moves into Norway and Denmark. Den-mark. March, 1941, arrives. If Hitler wins any success this year, he will thank his lucky stars. For Hitler is a believer in astrology and is declared to consult astrologers astrolo-gers before he makes any major moves. The Balkans Even before the first of March, Hitler had gained the success he planned In the Balkans. The final moves may come in March, but the path of the army was paved by earlier ear-lier diplomatic moves. Rumania was the highway and Josef Stalin fired the starting gun. Deserted by its protectors, Bulgaria Bul-garia gave way to the Germans who had placed 600.000 soldiers on her border with Rumania. Bulgaria had been promised the help of Turkey, pro-British ally. And Turkey based its security on the promises of help from Russia. But Russia collapsed again. It notified Bulgaria to expect no help from Soviet troops and it Influenced Turkey also to withdraw its promises to Bulgaria. Jugoslavia, Jugo-slavia, surrounded on all sides, saw its ministers called to Munich and receive orders. All this to get to plucky Greece. Greece, despite its army's victories over the Italians, saw its neighbors fall before the Nazi threat. It had a choice of making a futile effort to fight Germany alone, or to capitulate capit-ulate like all the rest. Greece was given little time to decide. de-cide. A German ultimatum was drafted. Resistance means that the nation would be the battleground of German and British armies provided provid-ed the British could, in sufficient time, extract troops from the African Afri-can front and convoy them to the Balkans. The Far East Meanwhile In Asia the other Axis partner, Japan, was growing more and more belligerent. Troops and naval concentrations were moved into Thailand (Siam) and close to French Indo-China. Threatened principally was the British naval base at Singapore. But threatened as well were the Malay peninsula, rich in rubber and tin; the Dutch East Indies, wealthy In the same &." ' J i I ' ' ' - " I r - 1 I A " (,'-- . , 1 r - i h -A J tit 14 . ;,' Here Li an Australian toldier, typical typi-cal of the large contingent juit arrived ar-rived in Singapore to protect British empire interests there. He is pictured boarding a troop ship with a number of hLi "tough, hardened' companions. products. And between these two spots stood two other potcntinlly valuable val-uable colonics that long have boon the apple of Japan's eyes Australia Austra-lia and the Philippines. The question was what would Britain Brit-ain and the United States do in the face of this hostile action. The question was not long In being answered. an-swered. Britain sent' convoy after convoy of totifih, hardened Australian Austra-lian troops to Singapore men who were ready and anxious to fltfht for their homeland. The United States' reply was less spectacular but Just as defiant. It sent home the wives and children of all army and navy men In the Far East. Other U. S. citizens were told to get out as quiojdy afl possible. possi-ble. The U. S. Pacific fleet sailed off, no one knew where. To a Japanese declaration that it was the most misunderHtood nation Imaginable, and was willing to negotiate ne-gotiate for peace anywhere at any trrne, undersecretary of state made an answer. "We are more Interested," Inter-ested," he said, "In (lords than In words." MORE SOLDIERS: U. S. Defense Surveys have begun In the war department with a view of expanding expand-ing the army to more than 3,000,000 men in case of emergency. It is hoped to be able to be accomplished the next year if necessary. Sites for additional camps are now being quietly surveyed all over the country. Production plans are being revised to reach this end and congress con-gress has been asked for some of the preliminary funds. What the army hopes to realize is the ability to put 55 divisions into the field instead of the 27 which will be in camps on June 1 of this year. To reach this it is possible that the present National Guard units will be held in the federal army for another year and that many of the selectees now going to camps also will be retained. The latter go on reserve immediately upon completion of their training and can be recalled as needed to fill the requirements of the standing armed forces. In the near future President Roosevelt likely will present to congress con-gress a $3,000,000,000 program toward to-ward this end. Equipment Meanwhile the first flow of supplies sup-plies are beginning to reach the armed forces. The army air corps x K- ' i I if -On CHARLESTON, S. C.The V. S. naiy destroyer "lnnmluimn pictured sliding dnun the uays after its christening. chris-tening. Thus, America adds another link to her first line of defense, as its shipbuilding program goes far ahead of schedule. units expect to receive in March the first new fighting planes embodying embody-ing features developed in European warfare. Deliveries already have started on a limited number of Bell P-39 pursuit ships whose armament includes a 37-mm cannon fired through the propeller. Also scheduled for early delivery are medium and light bombers, which, like fighting planes, are equipped with leakproof fuel tanks, armor protection and heavier Are power. Many will go to the Panama Pan-ama Canal Zone and others to Puerto Rico. SPIES AND OIL: In Latin America Usually informed circles In Mexico Mex-ico City discussed a sensational report re-port of a Nazi Fifth Column ring which was said to be operating from the Canadian border to the Cape of Good Hope. The ring was declared to be directed from Philadelphia. Phila-delphia. Mexican circles, describing the alleged al-leged conspiracy, said It was a preliminary pre-liminary step in Nazi aTorts to gain economic control of the Western hemisphere. The plot wns said also to engage Communists and Spanish Falnngistas as well as Japanese agents, and the objective to be sabotaging sabo-taging of U. S. old to Britnln, blocking block-ing the American defense plans and antagonism against the United States In some of the Latin American Ameri-can countries. For weeks there has been evidence evi-dence of increased pro-Axis activity In Mexico. Several pro-Nazi publications publi-cations have appeared. Ships arriving ar-riving from Japan have unloaded numerous Germans. Propaganda has been aimed at creating suspicion suspi-cion on the United States' good neighbor policy, and at a whispering campaign that tho U. S. would dra Mexico Into war. ('resident Mnnuel Avila Caniacho often has expressed his friendship for the United States and his dislike dis-like for totalitarian policies. Just a few clays beforo news of the alleged ring was made public he submitted to n special session of the Mexican congress a bill which would reopen the rich Mexican oil resources to private exploitation. Tho till! apparently ap-parently would clear the way for reninnpllon of operations by U, S , British and Dutch companies cxpro. prlatcd In l!t:ill. The government, however, would participate In the control. TRAVELERS: Home Again Wendell L. Willkie and Harry Hopkins, former secretary of commerce, com-merce, came home from war-torn Britain to make reports to the President Pres-ident and congress. Hopkins data were secret, Willkie spoke to congress. con-gress. But Willkie's suggestion that the United States make available to Britain 5 to 10 destroyers a month met with opposition. First objection objec-tion came from Naval Secretary Knox who said the United States could not spare any more ships without with-out unbalancing the fleet There was t Indication, however, that Willkie's proposal would be given more than casual consideration once the provisions pro-visions of the lend-lease bill are under un-der way. Meanwhile Willkie revealed he may make another journey of inspection. in-spection. This time he may go to the war front in Asia, visiting Gen. Chiang Kai-shek in China. Two other American representatives representa-tives were waiting for the opportune oppor-tune moment to fly to Britain. They are John C. Winant, the newly appointed ap-pointed ambassador, and C. Avrell Harriman, who was named by the President to the task of co-ordinating the British aid-program. Harriman Harri-man is the son of E. H. Harriman, one of the nation's greatest railroad builders. MIGRATION: Men at Work For the first time In more than a decade unemployment in the United States has virtually been wiped out. William T. Livingston, economist of the Alexander Hamilton institute, reported after a nation-wide survey. Livingston estimated the total employment em-ployment now nears 50,000.000, a record high, more than 4,000,000 above the 1929 peak. By comparing census figures, social so-cial security records and relief to-itils. to-itils. he estimated that there are now but 1.669.000 men without jobs. He pointed out, however, there always al-ways is a number of persons who are temporarily out of work as the result of changing jobs, and seasonal factors. New Problem High officials of the American Federation of Labor, however, expressed ex-pressed concern over another problem prob-lem tiie thousands of men who have been shifted around the country coun-try to meet defense needs. They feared many of these might soon again find themselves unemployed and far away from home. More than 300,000 of these men are engaged in the building trades, erecting cantonments. Much of this work may be finished by early March. Concentrations of men in many of these communities has also Increased In-creased the health hazard, since the small communities around camps and defense industries are unable to furnish homes and adequate food supplies. MISCELLANY: Arrested Harry H. Bridges, West coast C. I. O. leader, was arrested again on an order to deport hfm to his nntivc Australia. Til war rant was Issued by Attorney General Gen-eral Jackson who said Bridges was a Communist. Similar proceedings by Secretary Perkins last year brought about an acquittal report from Dean James M. I.andij of the Harvard law school, the trial e.tnm-incr. e.tnm-incr. Romance Mr. and Mrs. George I. Senrle, of Des Moines, Iowa, who were divorced 33 years ago, have changed their minds. They remarried. remar-ried. I'iimlly Busy The entire family of former Gov. John G. Winant of New Hampshire gut Into the newspapers news-papers within a week. First the governor was named U. S. ambassador ambas-sador to London; then Constance, his 20-year-old daughter, eloped with a I'cuvlan. Finally Mrs. Winunt scored. One of her pets won a blue ribbon ut the New York dog show. |
