The Bag of Plenty Beacon Published Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Friday, September 6th, 1940. IN PERSPECTIVE.

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 3, Issue 209, 6 September 1940, Page 4

The Bag of Plenty Beacon Published Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Friday, September 6th, 1940. IN PERSPECTIVE.

Dictators and Scouting. "It is significane that one of the first things Hitler and Mussolini did when they came into power was to stamp out the Boy Scout movement," said Mr A. W, Cooksey, Ccm missioner of Boy Scout Training in New Zealand, in an address to the Hamilton Rotary Club. "They realised that it was a force against their doctrines and that they could not succeed while its moral principles remained. They have, however, retained: the technical training side of the movement, for they know that if they want unity for a national movement they must have the enthusiasm of youth behind them."

THE temper and venom in the most recent of Hitler's hysterical outbursts have left Britons the world over, unmoved. The complete absence of any exercise of control by the German leader is characteristic of the "littleman" he is when satiated with a wealth of material success. The tirade however brings us to realities again and stresses the fact that the British bulwark is the only barrier between civilisation and the spectre of world domination, by a temperamental maniac whose avarice and mad ambition knows no law. A stocktaking of the world at the present time provides interesting study and though it would be folly to attempt to forecast in the face of the amazing turn of events during the past twelve months, it is nevertheless an educational process which enables the whole picture to be kept in perspective. The European upheaval has crystalised into a series of arial hammerblows between the two major opponents,, with the (Royal Air Force gaining a definite ascendancy. In the face of a triumphant Hitler whose armies straddle the whole of the continent, the air power of Britain has slowly but surely turned the tables on all-conquering power of Germania and with the fleet still the undisputed master on sea, the war has developed into a sparring match which precludes the inevitable clinch. From the German angle an offensive appears hopeless and it is'far more probable that the next round will see a change in the initiative. The rumbling of a possible British offensive has been persistently included in the official broadcast reviews of late, and it is patent to all that the British count-er-blow will fall when the time is ripe and preparations are complete. But this remarkable war has many facets, and the situation in the Balkans, in the far East, in Spain, in Russia, in Afriaa, in India and even in the U.S.A. may yet change the course of the whole campaign. The turmoil is too embracing to follow a set course. It is not merely a struggle between one nation and another, or one group of nations against another group; it is a world in arms against or for forces which can be applied to all peoples. In simple language it is nothing) more nor less than the armies of freedom versus those, of dictatorial bondage. The position in the turbulent Balkans savours of a coming clash between Aryan and Muscovite. The guarantee from the totalitarian states can only be interpreted as a flout to the U.S.S.R. and the consequences may be dire. In fact the whole of the major fighting may change fronts. In the Mediterranean the southern dictator pursues a pin-pricking of little consequence and until his campaign develops into the threatened invasion of Egypt world opinion will not focus upon the Italian sideshow. There is more probability however that the Indo-China-Japanese argument will bear martial fruit. Japan's demands present but a flimsy screen to cover her long cherished hope of possession, and after French Indo-China, the Dutdh East Indies and the French Pacific possessions would follow as speedy victims. The de cision of the French authorities to dispute the right-of-way to China makes welcome news, but your high-spirited Japanese with his undying belief in the divine origin of the Children of the Sun is not likely to yield' easily. The China incident has already reached annoying dimensions, and a .quick thrust through Indo-China with possible strategic repercussions to the favour of Nippon's expansionist programme in future cannot be dismissed too readily. Yet, Singapore'is bristling with men a,nd guns and there are very real rumours of a tacit understanding between Great Britain and the U.S.A. with special reference to the employment of the American fleet as a proctective power to lands in the Southern Pacific. In this respect" we shall live and learn and either condemn our own Government for its lack of foresight, or commend it on its failure to arm and train an effective garrison during the scare years, thus saving the public and posterity a little of the expense which must inevitably bankrupt the world, or create a new and simpler money system. The picture would not be complete without a local reference, and today's "Beacon"; announces the departure of the volunteers for the Fourth Reinforcements. From this town and district will march a further batch of its finest and fittest. With them will go our heartfelt good wishes. And with their departure too will arise the determination now that we have set our hands to the task, to continue the fight to the bitter end, when freedom and> peace shall breathe again.

I To-morrow's Football. The only game to be played tomorrow under the control of the Whakatane Rugby Sub-Union will be the Bracken Cup final bet\veen Ahuwhenua and Whakatane Star at the Domain. The game is scheduled for 2.30 p.m. Beginning of Summer Time. In response to inquiries as to the date on which summer time begins the Summer Time Amendment Act, 1933, is quoted as follows: "The period of summer time beginning in the year 1934 or in any subsequent year shall begin on the last Sunday in September in each year." Summer. time this year will therefore begin on September 29.