War in Spain

Manawatu Times, Volume 62, Issue 21, 26 January 1937, Page 6

War in Spain

REBEL ADVANCE CHECKED. DEATH ROLL AT BARCELONA. United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright. LONDON, Jan. 23. Eight unemployed British subjects who volunteered to serve the Bpanish Government and left Folkestone on January 23, were sent back to England by the French authorities. A message from Valencia says the Government claims to have checked the insurgent advance on Malaga. A Madrid message says it is computed that the rebel air raids and artillery fire killed and wounded 2082 civilians in the course of the siege. A Barcelona message says the Divorce Court is busy grunting decrees to women anxious to retain their posts in the underground railways by conforming to the executive's decision that all female employees must be unmarried. ITALIANS AND GERMANS DON’T HIT IT. TROUBLE LIKELY FOR FRANCE. Received Monday, 11.30 p.m. LONDON, Jan. 25. Serious disputes between Italian and German volunteers in Spain are indicated by Captain John McNamara, who was a member of the British Parliamentary delegation to Madrid, in an article in the Morning Post. 1 * General Franco is increasingly replying to soldiers from Italy and Germany. I estimate that about ten thousand Italians and between twenty and thirty thousand Germans are in Franco's territory," writes Captain McNamara. “Italian and German soldiers do not seem to hit it. The Germans laugh at the Italians and call i them macaronis and the Italians resent the jibes intensely. The general impression is that the Italians are the better soldiers. This may be explained because the Italians are genuine volunteers whereas the Germans are compel led to volunteer. “Time is on the Government side. The Government have all the men they require whose fighting quality has proved good. The Government volunteers from abroad are true volunteers and therefore popular. On the contrary, the presence of foreign soldiers on Franco's side will be increasingly resented as time passes. Also, support for Franco's cause is less wholehearted and for this reason, more reliance will bo placed on foreigners who are not over keen to risk death and therefore we may find them seeking an easy way out of the trouble."