Hitler Seeking Way to Turn

Manawatu Times, Volume 64, Issue 306, 28 December 1939, Page 2

Hitler Seeking Way to Turn

EXPANSION OF RUSSIA LONDON, Dec, 12. When a British military spokesman was asked during the first days of Hit- j ler’a hesitancy after the Allied declara- 1 tion of war whether Hitler was turning hia eyea to the west, he replied: “Yes, bat his eyes are going in all directions, seeking a way out of an impasse. ’ ’ This is equally true to-day, but the weather docs not favour a typical German offensive. The best Allied military brains, while preparing for almost anything from Germany, even an early attack through Belgium, Holland or Luxembourg, consider that any gigantic move on the Western Front is not likely before the spring Clash of Armies Accepted. They are convinced, however, that the Allies will be compelled to meet Germany’s powerful army—which has been built up at enormous cost at the expense of peaceful economy. The opinion in certain quarters is that Germany is more likely to occupy Denmark as an answer to Russia’s exclusion and domination of the Baltic. Allied intelligence officers believe that a cracking of German morale should not be hoped for until the German Army has suffered a decisive reverse. Operations in Finland may bo protracted. In the meantime the anxiety of Sweden and Norway has become intensified. They do not know whether Russia will refrain from further aggression after the conquest of Finland, occupy northern Norwegian ice-free ports, or decide to overrun Sweden and Norway. Need of Raw Materials. Germany coverts Swedish iron ore, knowing that it is necessary to obtain more raw material if she hopes to maintain hnge forces in the field indefinitely, but probably Russia will get in first. Germany’s uneasiness about Russia’s increasing prestige in the Baltic is not diminishing. t It is reported that the Commander in Chief of the German Navy, GrnndAdmiral Racder, recommended thai the raiding pocket battleships should be brought back to strengthen the Baltic Fleet. The Chief of the High Command of the German Armed Forces, General Keitel, considers that Germany’s northern flank is not covered from the sea, and that her eastern land frontier is insufficiently garrisoned. He urges the formation of 40 new divisions. Even these would not permit Germany to fight both in the east and in the west. For this purpose Germany would probably require a total of 200 divisions, which could not be provided before the summer. Longest muscle in the human body is the sartorius, which runs from the . hip to the knee.