Evening Star Newspaper, March 31, 1935, Page 39

Civic Editorial Page Activities Part 2—12 Pages GERMANY PLAYS TRAGIC, FUTILE, DIPLOMATIC GAME Nazi Aim Often Based on Right, But ; Blunders Align Nations ' Against Reich. masses that she means to disturb the peace. Already, however, Britain is beginning to accumulate arms and make preparations—she is going to be ready now when the hour of de- cision comes. What is almost fantastic is the ex- tent to which the Germans play into the hands of their enemies. After two years National Socialist Germany has not a single friend in Europe save Poland and that friendship is hardly popular in many quarters of Polish public opinion. The fact that the German press, completely controlled as it is, already begins to agitate the question of Danzig and assail the posi- tion of the Polish minority, suggests that perhaps a slight mistake may raise up another prospective foe. It was only the desertion of France by Poland which prevented the complete encirclement and isolation of the Reich. If you accept the statements of in- formed military experts that Germany will not be ready to fight for three to five years, then these years must in- evitably be occupied with one of the most spectacular diplomatic struggles in history. If Germany cannot get allies the situation in conflict must be dubious, if she has to reckon with Britain as a foe it is hopeless. But to | acquire allies she would have to calm the fears she has raised everywhere | and to placate Britain she would have to revolutionize her diplomacy. Nazi Policy One of Force, But Nazi-like Hohenzollern diplo- macy is based upon the assumption that the cheapest way to get results is to scare your prospective opponents with death. Within limits, too, the method often does work, particularly if the people who are to be scared are desperately eager to avoid war and ready to make almost any sacrifice rather than be dragged into battle. But the day these people perceive that long-suffering insures not peace but perpetually recurring threats, then of a sudden they stop yielding. That was precisely what happened | in the crisis of Agadir in 1911. In 1905 in the Tangier episode and in 1908 in the Bosnian episode Germany | had prevailed by an undisguised threat of war. In 1911, too, the Kaiser had sent the Panther to Agadir to put Europe on notice of Germany's pur- pose to recognize French supremacy in Morocco only at the price of com- pensation elsewhere. But this time England took a hand, and Lloyd George in a sensational speech an- nounced that if England’s volceku ignored and English interests disre- garded the consequence would be Brit- ish action. The result was that although Ger- many collected compensation in the shape of some swamps on the Ubangi and the Sanga she suffered.a diplo- matic defeat of incalculable magni- tude. From the crisis, therefore, she emerged poorer in prestige than at any moment since 1870 and her dis- aster at Agadir proved the preface of her defeat in 1914, when Britain, joining with France and Italy, aban- doned her alliance with Germany. What the Germans had failed to per- ceive was that the dominant desire of other peoples to avoid war was not the proof of an inherent cowardice which would make them surrender whenever the table was pounded or the saber rattled. Austria Paid a Price. The danger reappears now. Hitler has gotten away with his withdrawal from the League and although his at- tack upon Austrian liberty was checked, the costs were paid by the unhappy Austrians. He now seems likely to get away with this rearma- ment. But when he accompanies his proclamation of the purpose to arm with air raids and military parades in Berlin, the moral effect of the latter performances invest the former with a sinister significance for all Europe. Always when Germany sets out to press claims which are, in themselves by no means lacking in justice, she winds up by being indicted for dis- turbing the peace. No informed observer can fail to see that during the last four years and particularly during the last two Europe has been moving steadily and rapidly toward war. And concomitantly Ger- man leadership has been creating in the world the conviction that the re- sponsibility for the next war will rest upon German shoulders. The result has been a growing isolation of the Reich, an increasing development of coalitions against it and a gradual extinction of the sympathy for Ger- many’s obvious wrongs alike in Great Britain and the United States. Thus what the Germans have to look forward to is not merely another war, but a war which will again take on the form of a crusade, and precise- ly the same moral isolation will fall to their lot. Today the stake which the Germans and their prospective opponents are playing for is Great Britain, just as it was between 1905 and 1914. Once more, too, the British government believes war with Ger- many likely, but can only begin to act upon that conviction when German actions shall have satisfied the British public that there can be no peace 7 BY FRANK H. SIMONDS, NLY those whose memories and experiences go back to the days between 1904 and 1914 can possibly realize the extent to which contemporary events are repeating the pattern of those of a quarter of a century ago. During that critical decade a form of madness almost defying diagnosis seemed to seize all those responsible | for German policy. It was not that the policy itself was uniquely evil; on | the contrary, the claims Germany pressed had at least as good legal and moral basis as those other nations more successfully pushed. Nevertheless what the Kaiser and | Prince Buelow did, with the secret aid of Holstein, lost the World War before | the first shot was fired. Today it is| customary to say that Germany lost | the war at the Marne, but that is a | mistake. Actually before German | statesmanship turned the job over to| the German high command the strug- | gle was lost beyond the skill of the general or the sacrifice of the soldier | to redeem. It was, in fact, lost in the | diplomatic battles of Tangier, Bosnia and Agadir. [ By 1914 even the British people had | been convinced by German manners that German purposes were a perma- nent peril to European peace. As for the French, they had come to that conclusion after Agadir in 1911 and the rulers of Russia had made up their minds after the Bosnian episode of 1908. Even the Italian people, al- though allies of Germany, refused to march in 1914 to the aid of their partner and in 1915 marched against her. When the snowstorm of declara- tions of war of August, 1914, had ceased the Germans suddenly saw a whole world united in condemnation of German policy and begging to unite in a common military effort to defeat that policy. German Sacrifices Great. During the war years the Germans fought as bravely as any people in his- tory against incredible odds. What the masses suffered, their sacrifices in blood and treasure can hardly be ex- | aggerated. And yet from the war the | Germans emerged to discover them- | selves treated—with fatal folly, be it agreed—as an outcast people, com- pelled to subscribe to a confession setting forth their own moral inferi- ority. Incidentally, after Napoleon was overthrown no one ever thought of treating the French as pariahs. | Now the thing is beginning all over | again. Step by step, the Berlin “blood bath” in June, the Austrian putsch in July, the armament row now in March, each of these piesodes is having abroad precisely the effect of ‘Tangier, Agadir and Bosnia. And for Germany the effect is at once cumu- lative and catastrophic. Outwardly, for example, it would seem that the Tory government is disclosing weak- ness and hesitancy and this perform- ance seems to be encouraging the Ger- mans. But any one who knows Eng- land knows that the Tory government is waiting until what it already be- lieves about German policy sinks into the popular mind. It is, ‘moreover, well nigh incredi- ble to note the extent to which the Germans are again playing into the hands of their opponents. Almost every one in England believes that the Germans ought to have been permit- ted to have parity in military forces long ago. But on the other hand, every Englishman is uneasy about German air forces. So, at the moment Germany tears up the treaty of Ver- sailles with a gesture of impressive violence, she proceeds to stage an air raid over Berlin. And about the same time she pull: off a review of Ger- man regiments at Tempelhof. The consequences, of course, is that Paris and London have an identical emotion at the same moment. What the French, the Italians, the Soviets &re now counting on is that German diplomacy and statesmanship will perform the miracle of 1914 once more. They look forward to the years of truce that remain before the war they now regard as certain as a time dedicated to the effort of Germany to make a belligerent of England again. The dance itself has not be- gun, but the search for partners is well under way. Soviets and Czechs Fearful. Every one knows that France and Italy will not resort to war immedi- ately because they are certain that to march now would be to insure British neutrality. That irritates the Soviets and perhaps the Czechs, who are fearful that Germany will obtain a free hand in the regions which con- cern these Slav people. But the ex- perience of 1905-14 remains fixed in French and Italian minds. Again the English are going to “wait and see” and once more the Germans are putting on the show for the British audience. Hitler is doing things the way the Kaiser used to say them and Holstein plan them. As the situation stands Germany is already faced by the fact that if she starts anything beyond the Rhine she will have to reckon with British as well as French forces. She knows that if she makes trouble on the Danube, France, Italy and the little entente will march. If, moreover, she risks a counter-offensive in the west the British are unlikely to stand aside and let her seize Belgium or occupy Northern France, whereas the French can occupy the Rhineland with immunity, since that carries no threat to British security. What is left for the Germans now, if they have to act, is only some ad- venture in the East, probably in part- nership with Poland and possibly with Japan. In such an affair there is no certainty that France would participate and a safe calculation that Britain and Italy would stay out. But if France went in and came to grief the same question of British se- curity would arise. For never can England be safe if Germany is at Calais and Boulogne. That is why it is almost axiomatic thlt;n l!'i moe and Germany fight, Britai ve to back the French in the interests of their own security. Britain Wants Neutrality, At the present moment, however, the British public still believes that even if .another war cannot be prevented British neutrality can be preserved. As a result the hands of a Tory gov- ernment which visibly believes other- wise are tied. And they will remain tied until Germany has made enough m‘lmku to convince the British with the present masters of the Reich. Once the British public mind is satis- fied of that fact, however, the govern- ment can and will act as swiftly and decisively as it did in August, 1914, Impossible Task Faces Army. Unless all present signs fail, there- fore, the new German army is having prepared for it the same impossible task, which was handed over to the old army by a statesmanship equally blind and a diplomacy similarly in- ept. And by the time Germany is re- armed to the point at which war will become possible for her she will be confronted by a continent in arms backed by a world public opinion con- vinced that resistance to German pur- pose has become necessary to exist- ence. Certainly no people were ever born to such a tragic destiny as were the Germans, whose diplomatic meth- ods and manners invariably compro- mise their material interests even when these are based upon indubitable rights, ‘Today, when & new war is patently preparing in , French diplo- Europe, macy with all of its pre-war skill is winning world opinion by precisely the same display of restraint and metic- ulous regard for the sensibilities of other. countries that it displayed in 1914, while Germany is to an- other whirlwind like that which burst | EDITORIAL SECTION he Sunday Star WASHINGTON, D. C, BY ARTHUR CHAPMAN. EVENTY-FIVE years ago—on April 3, 1860, to be exact—the Pony Express was put in oper- ation between the Missouri River and California, thus completing the first transcontinental fast mail, The Pony Express was not a Government institution. Not until its closing weeks, when it was already doomed hy the rapid strides of the transcontinental telegraph, did it have any semblance of Government sup- rt. It was a private enterprise, launched in the hope of securing mail subsidies which were not forthcoming. It car- ried on for almost 18 months in the face of untold discouragements, in- cluding storm-blocked trails, Indian uprisings and finally the Civil War. The “Pony,” as it was lovingly called, broke its financial backers, but it was a glorious failure. It fulfilled every promise that was made in its behalf. It took many days off the time in sending press dispatches and important commercial letters to and from California; it proved the feasi- bility of thc central overland route to California as against the round- about route through the Southwest which previously had been favored by official Washington. 2,000 Miles of Leather. From & picturesque standpoint, there had been nothing like the “Pony” since the days when the relay riders of Genghs Khan dashed across the plains of Tartary with official messages. Daring and tireless horse- men, mounted on the fleetest animals that could be secured, rode back and forth along the 2,000-mile trail be- tween St. Joseph, Mo, and Sacra- mento, Calif. Fresh horses were held at relay stations from 10 to 15 miles apart. Two minutes wes the outside time allowec for changing horses. The Pony Express riders were spe- cially chosen from the rugged men of the frontier for their skill and endur- ance in the saddle. They faced snow- storms in the Rockies and the Sierras, the blistering heat of the desert in Utah and Nevada and the dangers of Indian ambush all along the way. Not, the least of the dangers faced by riders east of the Rockies was riding into herds of buffaloes at night and being caught in a stampede which meant death. How did such a madly picturesque enterprise develop, and what could its sponsors hope to gain from & service which seemed to have a thousand chances to one against it from the start? Storms and Stampedes. The answer is that politics played its part in the development of Cali- fornia mail service from the days of '49. With thousands of indi- viduals suddenly transplanted from the Eastern seaboard to the isolation of ,California, there was a demand for mail service which the Govern- ment could not meet satisfactorily. Sending mail around the Horn was too slow; via the Isthmus of Panama was not much better. The remaining alternative was to search out the safest, shortest trail between the Mis- souri River and California. John Butterfield, New York State’s genius of stage transportation, estab- lished a line extending from St. Louls, through Fort Smith, Ark., and thence to Gainesville, Tex., and Fort Yuma, where it connected with the old San Diego trail, taking the traveler to Los Angeles and San Francisco. Owing to its roundabout nature, this was known as “the great ox-bow route,” but Butterfield had secured a heavy mail subsidy from the Bu- chanan administration. The most direct route lay north of this trail followed by Butterfleld. It remark about scraps of paper. What is almost incredible, too, is that the|try old maxim of the Quai d'Orsay— “Wait for Germany to make the first mistake”—is proving as sound now as three decades ago. By contrast, the equally well knnwnmleo{wuhelm; ““We Germans fear only God' was doing his Bosnian turn, for even more than the Divinity, the Germans ‘have to fear themselves. (Copyrishs. 1835.) » SUNDAY MORNING, MARCH 31, Pony Express Cut Mail Time was known as the Central Overland route and extended from Placerville, California’s eastern gateway, to Salt Lake and thence to the Missouri River. Various contractors had come to grief on this line, owing to storms, Indian depredations and the diffi- culties inspired by mountain passes. The Central Overland stage line had come under control of Russell, Ma- Jjors & Waddell, & successful freight- ing firm established by Alexander Majors. The company put on new coaches, established more stations and improved the line generally, but it was imperative to secure more ald “Glorious Failure” of 75 Years Ago Carried on in Face of Storms and Indian Ambushes. 1935. from the Government in the way of mail subsidies. W. M. Russell, Majors’ chief part- ner, was a man of many enterprises and of Napoleonic ambitions. He had gone into the stage business “on his own,” but his line out of Denver had proved a faflure. He was so deeply in debt to Russell, Majors & Waddell that the firm had to take over the stage coach lne. . The only “out” financially seemed to be to make the Central Overland recognized as the chief carrier of passengers and mail between the Pacific Coast and the Missouri River. BY GASTON NERVAL. F. ONLY a few years back, students | of inter-American relations had | been told that in 1935 the United { States would be championing a | revision of high tariffs and other | restrictions to international trade, they would have been reluctant to believe the prediction. If they had been told, moreover, that in 1935 Argentina would be ruling to bar the discussion of high customs duties from the agenda of a Pan-American com- mercial conference, their skepticism | would have been more than justified. Until not long ago, the picture was Jjust the opposite. As a result of the excessively protective policies in vogue in this country, the United States Government was regarded everywhere as the stanchest advocate of high tariff walls. And, in so far as Latin America was concerned, Argentina had taken the leadership in denounc- ing the exaggeratedly high customs duties maintained by the United States. For a number of years the Argentine government and the Ar- gentine press not only had criticized what they considered the “prohibitive” tariffs of the Northern Republic, but they had pointed to them as the main barrier in the way of a closer and more sincere Pan-American understanding. Ambassador Resigned Post. No one acquainted with the problem has forgotten the vigorous attitude of the Argentine delegation to the Sixth Pan-American Conference at Havana and the excitement that it provoked. The head of the delegation, Senor Pueyrredon, who as Ambassador to Washington had distinguished himself for his constant efforts on behalf of a revision of tariffs, did all in his power to make this the outstanding issue of the conference, and, failing in the attempt, dramatically with- drew for the conference and resigned his ambassadorial post. He did so, however, only after impressing upon his colleagues his firm conviction that as long as the statesmen of the West- ern Hemisphere were afraid to tackle the tariff problem the ideals of Pan- Americanism would remain doomed to failure. No one has forgotten, either, the emphatic declaration of another Ar- gentine Ambassador, Senor Malbran, who even before arriving in New York had taken his “first shot” at the high tariffs resented by his predecessor. Still aboard the ship which was bringing him to his new post, Ambas- sador Malbran stated in an inter- view, radioed to the New York Times, that it was unfair to expect his coun- to be & good customer of the United States, or & believer in Pan- Americanism, while Argentine prod- ucts were being kept out of American ports by prohibitive customs duties. After presenting his credentials at the White House, Ambassador Mal- bran renewed, time and again, his frank denunciation of high tariffs, until, speaking before the Foreign Trade Council in New York, he used servers attributed to it ARGENTINA BARS TARIFF TALKS DESIRED BY U. S. Nations Are Reversed on Stand of a Few Years Ago—Hull Believes U. S. Should Initiate Trend. quent transfer to the embassy in London. It is no wonder, then, that surprise and disappointment have followed the announcement from Buenos Aires that the forthcoming Pan-Americaa Com- mercial Conference, which is to meet in May in the Argentine capital, will not be allowed to discuss possible re- ductions of customs duties. The dis- patch which reports the decision ex- plains that such reductions had been included in the original agenda, drawn up at the Montevideo conference. hut that the preparatory commission of the Commercial Conference, under the direction of the Argentine foreign minister, has ruled that what the original agenda had in mind was not “customs duties,” but “other customs house charges.” But, if the former position of Ar- gentina has changed, that. of the United States has changed even more completely. Ever since the advent of the New Deal the Secretary of State of the United States has been the most conspicuous advocate of a revision of high tariffs and a revival of international trade. At a time when the statesmen of nearly all lands have embarked in an open pol- icy of protectionism and even eco- nomic self-sufficiency, Secretary Hull has been conducting a, single-handed but undismaying fight for the re- moval of tiade restrictions, which he calls one of the chief obstacles to the progress of civilization, and for the restoration of the normal flow of in- ternational commerce. Thus, only a few days ago, while the decision of the Buenos Aires com- mission to bar customs duties from the Pan-American Conference was being commented upon, we heard Sec- retary Hull broadcast from New York another of his ardent pleas for the return of the world to unhampered commercial relationships and a sane economic interdependence. Secretary Hull used no mince words. The effect of prevailing re- strictive measures, he stated, has been to canalize trade into abnormal channels and to inflict upon nations serious and lasting injuries affecting the well-being of peoples, the stability of government and the march of civ- ilization itself It is for this reason, he added, that the present adminis- tration is basing its melln:emen:.s ogram upon the principle of equal- 5‘; of treatment or non-discrimina- tion in oppesition to special bargain- ing and preferential arrangements. But the Secretary did not stop at diagnosing the situation. With char- acteristic frankness he admitted that it was up to the United States to initiate the trend. He said:" “It is urgent in the interest of American trade and world recovery to exert a determined leadership in the direction of liberal commercial policies in order to restore the equality of treatment upon which alone our foreign com- merce can thrive. The United States stands at the crossways. Of all the countries in the world, it is-in the langua; tspoken that b- |, freest position to assume a world atixiby m“-ynb:.- (Continued on Page 3, Column 2.5 | Majors . Russell fell under the spell of Sena- tor W. M. Gwin of California, who suggested that a fast mail service by pony carrier would be the best way of advertising the superior advantages of the Central Overland route. Majors ‘was dubious of the scheme, but Ras- sell told him that the firm had been committed in its favor. Accordingly, Majors agreed to “go along,” and in March, 1860, advertisements were put in newspapers in Washington, New York and California, saying that a fast mail service would be put in effect from the Missouri River to California. Danger at $100 a Month. Eighty riders were hired, the pay being $100 a month. They were to be 21 years old or over and weigh not more than 125 pounds. Special light-weight saddles were made. The mail was not carried in sacks, but in four leather boxes, or “cantinas,” one in each corner of a “mochila,” or leather covering which was thrown over the saddle. At first the riders wore red shirts, blue trousers and fancy boots, but as the grind pro- ceeded all uniform effects were aban- doned. Each rider carried a horn which he sounded on approaching a relay station. This was done so the attendants could have a horse saddled and waiting. “Home” stations were established from 50 to 75 miles apart. These marked the end of the rider’s rum, where he would receive the mail from the other direction and turn back. Five hundred horses were bought for the service. Crossing the Missouri River at St. Joseph, the Pony Express rider took a northwest course through a corner of Kansas into Nebraska, whence he followed the Overland Trail through Fort Kearney $o Julesburg, Colo., thence up Lodge Pole Creek and the sweetwater, past Fort Laramie to South Pass, southwest to Fort Bridger and Salt Lake. From Salt Lake the route followed the general emigrant trail through Ruby, Cold Springs and Carson City to Placerville and Sacra- mento. $5 a Half-Ounce Postage. At first the service was to be weekly, but it was soon changed to semi- weekly. No newspapers or other bulky mail could be carried, Charges for carrying letters and telegraphic dis- patches were fixed at $5 & half ounce. The start of the Pony Express was made a day of celebration at St. Joseph and San Francisco. Alex- ander Majors was present at “St. Joe” with his partner, Russell. Both made speeches, as did the mayor, Jeff Thompson, anc other officials. In California, on the same date, affairs were not less confused. The celebration was held at San Fran- cisco. According to the Alta Cali- fornia one James Randall, on a wiry little horse dressed with flags, was escorted to the Sacramento boat and was loudly cheered by a big crowd. The first eastbound mail consisted of 85 letters. Whether Randall or, as others claim, Harry Roff made the ride on the boat to Sacramento, neither made the start from Pony Express headquarters at Sacramento. The real start was made by William Hamilton, .. sturdy young Californian who has been given no credit for his share in the “Pony” opening until late years, when Harry C. Peterson, curator at Sutter’s Fort Museum, Sacramento, unearthed records which invalidated other claims. From then on the “Pony” operated with marvelous fidelity and regular- ity. Schedules were necessarily slower in Winter, but far ahead of those maintained by stage. The hardest blow sustained by the Pony Express was the Pah Ute Indian uprising in Nevada. Several stations were destroyed and the station keep- ers and riders lost their lives. In many instances riders went through, never knowing at what moment they might be ambushed. Many of them per- formed almost incredible deeds of en- durance in the saddle, “carrying on” for riders who had been wounded. ‘Though the Pony Express was get- | Oregon ting deeper and deeper involved finan- cially, it continued to function with remarkable regularity. $33,000 a month to maintain the service and the returns were negligi- It was costing | by » gy B Autos—Aviation D. C. Organizations EUROPE SEEN IN TURMOIL AS PROBLEMS BREED WAR Situation Prior to Great Conflict of 3 1914 Held Rosey Compared to Present Qutlook. BY ALBIN E. JOHNSON. ENEVA—Conditions in Europe, instead of getting better as Winter nears an end, are getting distinctly worse, politically, econom- ically, socially and financially. To describe the situation on the Conti- nent—from the English Channel to the Black Sea—in a single word would be to characterize it as chaotic. Not in three decades has the po- litical situation been more muddled. The days immediately preceding the World War were bright and sunny compared with the present moment. Crises, such as precipitated the strug- gle in 1914, arise and are liquidated almost every week nowadays. No one can say, however, when one of the situations may go off with a terrific explosion rather than fizzle out, as they have done ever since the assassination of King Alexander startled the world. There are at least a dozen un- liquidate@ “crises” in the European picture at this writing, which may, or jmay not, flame afresh before they are permanently disposed of. Yanka Putza Not Settled. The Hungaro-Yugoslav quarrel over Yanka Putza and the activities of the Croat emigres has been taken off the fire for the moment and set aside to cool. But there is every reason to believe the Hungarians are unrepentant and that the Italians, who in reality played a larger role in the intriguing of Ante Pavelic and his “Oustachi,” have not settled their differences with the petite entente. The status quo—namely, the exist- ence of a strong Yugoslav state, facing Italy on the Adriatic—remains the same as it has been since the Ver- sailles treaty. More pressing prob- lems have diverted attention in other directions, but behind the scenes the “definite policies” of Italy are not being forgotten. The announcement that Milan Radio and other Fascist stations are shortly inaugurating tri- weekly programs in the Bulgarian language is significant. The Italo-Abyssinian incident is another straw which indicates the way the wind is blowing. Foreseeing France and Britain occupied with Germany for the next few months, and with the Austrian problem shelved until the Nazis have had a breathing spell, the Italians are following Ja- pan’s example in Africa. The Wal frontier dispute may be settled A is expansion in the Red Sea Littoral. The stake in Somaliland and Eretria is far greater tham a few hundred square miles of desert sand and a | few water holes. The nation which dominates Abyssinia will command the waters of Lake Tsana and the sources of the blue Nile. The blue Nile will some day irrigate the Sudan and the Sudan is the world potential cotton producing region. Balkans Rival Italy. The Greek revolt dovetails in with the general European jig-saw puzzle, too, particularly in respect to Italy's realistic diplomacy. No one develop- ment of the past two years has so enraged Rome as the Balkan entente —the combination of Turkey, Greece and Yugoslavia. The Balkan entente, as evidenced by their action after the assassination of King Alexander, meld with the petite entente—Czecho- slovakia, Rumania and Yugoslavia. The five countries all have com- mon grievances against the Fascists. Turkey fears Italian expansion in the Near East and has not fergotten Rome’s ambitions to annex Smyrna and to get a foothold in Adalia and the Mersina district. Italy’s occupa- tion of the former Greek islands off the Anatolian coast also irks the Turks. The Yugoslavs can never be con- vinced that Italy, eventually, will not seek to control both sides of the Adriatic, or at least make it an Italian sea. The absorption of Albania— which has been going on quietly but effectively for a decade—is the most immediate menace. In the recent revolt—led by Eleu- therius Venizelos, who at heart is anti-Turk if not pro-Italian—had ramifications in both Bulgaria and Italy. Venizelos is opposed to the Balkan Entente because of his bitter hatred for the Turks. He is said to have offered the Bulgarians territorial readjustments (an outlet to the Aegean via Dedeagatch or Saloniki) in return for assistance. To the Italians he is said to have promised additional naval base facilities in the Aegean. The Turkish mobilization on the Bulgar front, as & counter-threat should the Bulgars become allied with the Venizelists, is an evidence of the Balkan pact’s ramifications. Main- tenance of the territorial integrity of the mations subscribing to the treaty is the most important provision. Fight Hapsburg Control. Czechoslovakia is a “silent partner” to the Petite-Entente-Balkan-Group combination. Her immediate political interest lies in maintaining the inde- pendence of Austria and blocking restoration of the Hapsburg dynasty, and also in keeping Hungary isolated. loss, aggravated by Indian troubles along the eastern half of the trail. Finally, in May, 1861, the entire busi- ness between the Missouri River and Salt Lake City was turned over to Benjamin F. Holliday to satisfy in- debtedness. The doom of the “Pony” had been’ spelled, however, when the trans- continental telegraph was launched. Pony Express runs were shortened as the construction of the telegraph line proceeded. On October 28, 1861, the “Pony” made its last run. It was in opera- tion a trifle more than one year and seven months. The exact losses it incurred were never made known, but in all probability they were in excess of $500,000. Many of the old Pony Express sta- tion sites have been marked by the A. “Pony” rider on the trail. Soon these markers will be the sole reminders of one of the most romantically pic- turesque institutions of the frontier - bly, but Italy's major program | Furthermore, “Skoda” of Czechoslo~ vakia is the munitions maker of the Balkans and Prague’s ability to fur- nish almost unlimited war material is important. Since Italy desires to dominate the Danubian region through the Austro- Hungarian-Albano-Italian set-up, the Czechs naturally find their interests |ranging with those of Yugoslavia. Rumania is concerned chiefly over | Bulgaria and Hungary, both of which | have territorial ambitions which can | be satisfied only at Rumania’s ex- pense. Hungary claims Transylvania should be returned to her and Bul- garia has never forgiven the Ru- manians for the stab in the back, and the subsequent rape of Dobrudja, after the second Balkan War. The Rumanians, like the Yugo- slavs and Czechoslavs, are unalterably opposed to the return of Otto to the Austrian, and perhaps Austro-Hun- garian throne. Italy is one of the greatest supporters of Prince Otto. With his return and with the influence of the Catholic Church and Otto's pos- | sible marriage with an Italian princess to forge a dynastic link with Rome, the Italians see Austria's hegemony |guaranteed and a Germano-Italian common frontier averted. A close | Austro-Italian union also would serve Rome well in its dealings with the Petite Entente. The other side of the Greek picture | 1s represented by the anti-Italian and pro-French faction in Athenian poli- tics. Since Mussolini ordered the | bombardment of Corfu the Greek Re- publicans have had suspicions of Rome's friendly intentions. They also have seen the hand of the Fascists in the Greek-Albanian controversy, which, while it pertains to relatively unimportant matters, such as schools and church rights, nevertheless is an irritant that can be inflated into racial and national importance. Austria Danger Spot. By far the most dangerous spot on the continent continues to be Austria. No European chancellery—Paris, Rome, London or Warsaw—has been lulled into a feeling of security be- cause of the outward disbanding of the Austrian Nazis. The Berlin Nazis have merely changed their form of attack. They are profiting by the lesson learned in the Saar—an old les- son which the Russian Communists taught the world back in war days— that peaceful propaganda and pene- tration is far more effective than force. Italy and France can counter forcible invasion in Austria with even greater military force. But they can- not combat nationalistic propaganda. In respect to Austria the European powers are between the devil and the | deep sea. To maintain Austrian po- | litical and national integrity indefi- nitely means establishment of the Hapsburg monarchy. France might possibly agree to such a step and sup- port Italy were it not for two things. First, it would give Rome the whip hand in Vienna and secondly, it would mean a break with the Petite Entente. And enthronement of Prince Otto, without the approval of the Petite | Entente, would inescapably mean war. On the other hand the alternative to allied support of Chancellor Schuschnigg—who is an out-and-out | Royalist—is to leave Austria open to German Nazi infiltration. There are no longer any illusions about the aims of the Nazis. The return of the Saar to Germany has not, as Hitler re- peatedly declared it would, solve the major differences between 'Germany and her former enemies. If anything, it has made Berlin harder to deal with. Great Britain has reluctantly been driven to accept the Franco-Rus- sian policy of iron-hand in dealing with the Nazis. And that policy this | year will cost British taxpayers $50,- | 000,000 for additional armaments. i Warsaw Favors France. Of almost as great importance as the Balkan situation is the Baltic problem. There are evidences that Warsaw is returning belatedly to the Franco-British orbit after flirting with Berlin for two years. Poland turned to Germany because of her fear, or rather inherent dislike, of the Rus- sians. When ex-Foreign Minister Ba! thou—the most realistic and hard- boiled statesman that has appeared in Europe since the days of Poincare and Clemenceau—{rankly concluded & deal with Moscow, the Poles turned away from France. No effort has been made by Paris to bring them back to date. Now Warsaw rather shame- facedly admits the errors of her way. Thus far the Poles have not warmed up toward France, but they have become distinctly colder toward Berlin. Domestically there are several nice little revolutions brewing in Europe. Overthrow of King Boris and estab- lishment of a Bulgarian republic would not surprise informed circles. Nor would an attempt at restoration of the monarchy in Spain, and actual restor- ation of the monarchy in Greece. Portugal is constantly on the edge of revolt, although Dictator Salazar, who is the real power while Gen. Carmona holds the presidency, has a strong grip on affairs of state. In Albania, too, the rule of King Zogu is precarious, especially since he has again turned toward Rome, which advanced several million gold francs of the old subsidy. Financial stringency had caused the Fascists to renege on their promise un- til Tirana started flirting with Bel- grade and the Balkan Entente. Even stolid Switzerland is restless with the Socialist government of the Canton of Geneva openly defying the Federal government by refusing to buy gas masks and construct anti-aircraft shelters for its population. The Free City of Danzig, an objective of Ger- man Nazi propagands, and Memel also are primed for fireworks sooner or (Continued on Page 10, Column 2.) Guide for Readers. Part Two Editorial .. ..Page 2 Civic Affairs. .Page 4 Organizations ..Page § Automobiles Page 6 Short Story Page 6 Aviation .. ..Page 7 Serial Story . .Page 7 Service Orgl::uauom. .Page 8