Plebiscite

Dictator Benito Mussolini answered last week and Fiihrer Adolf Hitler prepared to reply this week to President Roosevelt's recent suggestion that the two Fascist rulers, who share the modern world's record for treaty-breaking, sign up for a ten-year span of peace (see p. 77).

Standing in front of a statue of the great Julius, Rome's modern Caesar tossed off his answer with Latin casualness before a group of dignitaries responsible for the Olympiad of Civilization, an Italian world's fair which II Duce, events permitting, will open in 1942. Surely, said II Duce, if he were planning a big-scale war he would not be dedicating himself to such a big fair. But he quickly added: "Absurd is the proposal of reciprocal guarantees lasting ten years which do not take into account the pyramidal errors of geography."

Fiihrer Hitler's reply, to be delivered this week in a full-dress session of the Reichstag, was prepared with Teutonic thoroughness. He held a plebiscite modeled more or less on the foolproof Nazi methods he has used in German elections before, except that the voters, instead of being people, were most of the nations which President Roosevelt had asked the Axis powers to promise not to attack. Poland, the Soviet Union, France, Great Britain were disenfranchised in the Hitler poll.

The Fiihrer's ballot read:

"1) Do you consider yourself menaced by Germany?

"2) Did you ask President Roosevelt's intercession or know in advance of his plea for a minimum of ten years of assured non-aggression?"

With German troops in readiness at virtually every border last week, most of the small nations did not need to be told to answer "No" right down the line. Almost all of them did. Rumania, however, was spunkier, came back with this devastatingly frank statement: "We do not know how anyone can feel secure in Europe at the present time."

Switzerland split the ticket: "The Federal Council has confidence in the respect for Swiss neutrality which the Confederation will defend. ..." The Netherlands scratched the ballot: "In case of a European war The Netherlands must be prepared to face every possibility." Belgium slickly pointed out that her independence was guaranteed not only by Germany but by France and Britain.

Hot & Cold. While all Europe waited and wondered what use the Fiihrer was going to make of these replies in his Reichstag speech, Britain's Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain announced that although Britain has no alliances with The Netherlands, Switzerland and Denmark, His Majesty's Government had a decided interest in the preservation of their independence. A more appeasing if less consequential action was the return to Germany of Sir Nevile Henderson, the British Ambassador, who was withdrawn after the Hitler seizure of Czecho-Slovakia.-

A stanch supporter of Appeaser Chamberlain, Sir Nevile's return led to rumors that the British Government was again turning tail and was preparing to lead Ally France into another Munich settlement. From Foreign Office spokesmen in London, however, came the assurance that Sir Nevile took back to Berlin a message from the Chamberlain Government which: 1) advised Fuehrer Hitler not to reject flatly President Roosevelt's appeal, 2) warned that Britain might answer further German aggression with peacetime conscription.

Axis Victory. Rumanian Foreign Minister Grigore Gafencu, fresh from talking with Dictator Hitler, went to London to put the finishing touches to the Rumanian-British-French-Polish alliance. Conversely, at Bucharest arrived a group of British financial experts to plan an extension of trade between the two countries. In a week full of diplomatic soundings, however, the Axis powers scored the most important victory.

At Venice, Italian Foreign Minister Count Ciano met Alexander Cinca-Markovitch, Foreign Minister of Yugoslavia. Result: Yugoslavia agreed to "deepen the faithful collaboration" with Germany and Italy, will probably soon join the Rome-Berlin -Tokyo -Budapest anti - Comintern Pact. A former Little Entente ally of France and signer of the Balkan Pact, Yugoslavia became last week a dead loss to the "Peace Front" of Britain and France.

* French Ambassador Robert Coulondre was also expected to return soon, and Washington let it be known that U. S. Ambassador Hugh Wilson would be shipped back if Hitler's speech is "conciliatory."

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