Show weekly news Allia analysis lysis axis adopts confusion confusions 9 plan to force more concessions by joseph W la bine EDITORS NOTE ahm W ben opinions s are pressed expressed in tissi these columns they jr a t those host ol of the sews news analyst md and not cot necessarily of thi europe almost forgotten tor gotten by war mad europe this month has been little albania whose conquest by italy really started the cauldron cauldren caul dron boiling while benito mussolini quietly made the tiny balkan state part of king victor Em manuels monarchy europe became a frantic checkerboard ol of moves and countermoves counter moves in which harried h tried france and britain seemed badly outmaneuvered biggest news came from rom the balkans where democracies concentrated on grecian friendship while premier john job n metaxas quavered under threats ol of axis invasion it if he continued hob bobbing with britain finally al X p 4 METAXAS britain wai tins nice italy even eien nicer though british prime minister chamberlain offered a weak guarantee of protection to greece and italy premier metaxas took pains to proclaim joyfully that italy promised to respect the greek frontier this he said symbolized a new period of italian greek relations but it was merely symbolic of how lesser european states one by one are bowing to the axis rather than accept doubtful protection from france and britain by mid april the post albanian crisis had subsided but another was plainly in the offing newly strengthened italy and germany are expected to lab jab soon at any of 20 possible points confusing the democracies so badly that all dictator demands will be granted among possible attack pointy point sL spain the civil war is aver over but italian troops are still arriving in defiance of tife the italo british mediterranean crinean pact the excuse is a ivic vie tory parade on may 2 but shrewd old id field marshal henri petain 1 whom france named its first envoy t B burgos urgos h has as r returned to in disgust v explain that h at he was snubbed and treated insolently and that general franco is a tool tor for the axis it if this is true italy or germany could attack frances southern border british gibraltar or french algeria from bases in spain mediterranean gaining nothing by howling for or french tunisia to in northern africa italy has changed her tactics reverting to silence but several german troop trains have passed through italy bound for italian libya potential operations base for a tunisian campaign balkans italo german thrusts converge here focused on R rumania um ania greece and turkey docile tools of the reich hungary and bulgaria have massed troops on Ru manias manlas border threatening to strike it if king carol gets too friendly with britain yugoslavia is neutralized surround ed by hungary bulgaria and albania from the latter point and from rhodes and other islands of the Dode canese group italy cc could uld strike at either greece or turkey northeast europe poland fearful earful of invasion yet jealous of her independence pen dence risks german invasion from north and west as the price ce tor for a military pact with britain also to the north ard are lithuania latvia and estonia tools of the reich and potential points of invasion into poland likely sources of trouble here are danzig which seeks annexation by germany and the polish corridor where germany wants to build a highway from its mainland to isolated east prussia western europe mysterious german troop movements have brought reinforcements on both sides of belgian swiss dutch and danish frontiers any of which might be crossed in a brisk german coup less likely Is a strike against france which would precipitate a general war result though forced by public opinion to stiffen mr chamberlains government still hopes to woo italy from the axis and make peace by appeasement mr chamberlain will not declare war which is the only alternative to a stronger foreign policy it if the government would remain in hi power this tailing falling parliament has become so hostile that anthony eden ex foreign minister is an excellent bet to succeed mr chamberlain when the next crisis arrives arrive domestic in new york marine underwriters boosted war risk insurance the treasury announced in gold fled to the U S in march while more arrived in two mid april days alone at rome mussolini mouthpiece virgillo Virg inlo gayda wrote in a caustic editorial for his Glor Gi ornale nile ditalia dl dI talia talla the united states should heed timely advice before those european nations italy and germany which have been chosen as targets by america are forced to occupy themselves in the same spirit with american internal affairs back in washington from rom warm springs where he had promised to return next tall fau if we dont have a war president roosevelt heard two cabinet 0 officers fal cers hull and warn that a european war is likely unless effect effective j ve curbs are placed on nazi fascist threats to the world economic structure what his seemingly casual remark intended the president later explained was that we meant n not ot v V VIRGINIO VIRGIN 10 GAYDA he fie offered advice to the V U S the U S but western civilization it also gave positive direction to public thinking on the european situation while a gallup poll was reporting that 65 per cent of the U S population favored boycotting german made goods congress was busy creating a foreign trade program that would fight the reich with its own weapon namely barter its gist the U S would trade wheat and cotton surpluses for such strategic materials as tin and rubber since neither italy nor germany can furnish tin and rubber the U S would be joining the stop hitler bloc economically no by dealing primarily with br britain tain and the netherlands moreover 0 er the move would jibe with cash and carry neutrality being debated simultaneously in the senate because the barter plan would give nations which have control of the seas access to american supplies as provided by the controversial pittman resolution britain and france are those nations peo people p le dropped at his own request thomas R ache former progressive tes wisconsin congressman from consideration as a mem member berlof of the interstate commerce commission reason congressional reticence over confirmation sentenced in new york federal court for smuggling mrs edgar N lauer laner wife of a new york state supreme court justice SC chosen hosen as american mother for 1939 mrs ellas elias compton of wooster ohio mother of nobel prize winnet winner dr arthur holly compton massachusetts institute of technology pres karl taylor compton lawyer wilson martindale compton and mrs C herbert albe missionary and wife of the principal of a college in india taxation time was when the ambitious U S mother wanted her son to be ii banker but nowadays the hand that counts money keeps keep afar far less ot of it ambitious mother should tutor her son I 1 or daughter to enter the motion picture industry at washington the holise bouse ways and means committee received its an nual dual list of top flight U S wage earners anath ir salaries tor for 1837 1937 disclosing that movie magnate louis B mayor Mayer led the pack with 1296 1161 53 as production executive for loews inc as vice president i of metro goldwyn mayor mayer second place went to loew tP president resident J robert rubin third publisher william wiliam randolph H hearst e a r a fourth lo 10 loews ew 8 N M schenck of 63 sa salaries iop top ping 2 an even 40 were reported by movie work louis 8 ers era highest paid mayer cinema star greta garbo ap highest paid radio star maj ed ward bowes highest paid industrialist international business machines pres thomas J watson one consolation lot loi bread and but ter workers is that the more a man makes the more he pays the government sample more than of louis mayors mayers probably a bly went out in federal taxes on net incomes ot of the government gets per cent or on it gets 67 9 per cent or often heaped atop this levy is a state income tax like new yorks which ranges from 2 per cent of the first 1000 taxable taxably income to 7 per cent of all taxable income aver over 9 pan america in late march Ar argentine gentille officials official reputedly discovered that nazi a gents agents were under undermining miring their country pape unexpectedly printed a facsimile of the letter germanys germanas Germ anys buenos aires embassy had written to the berlin foreign office saying we are able to annex patagonia hardly willing to surrender a rich unworked section comprising one third of argentinas Argen tinas territory police dug tor for dirt soon discovering a well orga organized nihed chain of nazi centers directing the work of german agents throughout the nation alfredo muller chief agent was arrested and charged with plotting against the states security more raids inland disclosed more nazi communities n and after three weeks probing it became evident germany had probably committed a blundering tactical mistake reasoning alone among the larger south american nations argentina has favored german batter barter commerce the rest of other america has eschewed it knowing that nazi political and military agents work hand in hand with nazi tradesmen having discovered a nazi threat to its security argentina is already clamping down on german imports ready to join her neighbors in in a solidarity declaration thus the patagonian Pata goman incident fits perfectly with president Roosevel ts often experienced dreams of pan american unity meanwhile several thousand miles away ecuador is worrying over the chance that germany may seize the strategic galapagos islands which he 1000 miles southwest of panama and which call cali fornias rep edward V izak recently wanted the U S to purchase asa as a naval base aviation some miles southwest of san francisco and miles northeast ot of australla australia just south of the equator are canton and enderbury is lands the former named for a massachusetts whaler wrecked there in 1854 both islands went oracia officially lly unclaimed until march 1938 when president roosevelt e it be saw w th them e M 8 as a a vital link in U S defense and a logical base for transpacific trans pacific aviation when great britain disputed the claim it was announced last august that both countries would use the islands for commercial aviation but not until recently was a formal treaty signed its 50 year provisions U S and british administrators will reside there exercising powers to be determined by consultation american interests will build an airport to be used by british aircraft in return tor for a fee pacific aviation is boomed by the pact for canton and enderbury lie he only 1850 miles from hawaii directly on the route a ship would take to sydney australia canton boasts a quiet lagoon nine miles long and three miles wide ideal for planes but aviation to the contrary m many any a congressman was dubious when asked to ratify the treaty reason it if britain were involved in war an attack on british property in the pacific might force the U S to defend the islands thereby getting its own feekin feet in the international puddle miscellany at memphis tenn juvenile court authorities played host to a 16 year old id mississippi farm girl who said she 1 had never seen an electric light 2 had never talked over a telephone 3 know frank un tin roosevelt was president 4 had never seen a christmas tree 5 had never e eaten aten an ice cream cone 6 had never seen a motion picture 7 had never been higher than the second floor of a building and never heard of an elevator |