NO ENIGMA

Wairarapa Times-Age, 6 January 1940, Page 3

NO ENIGMA

| BEHIND THE NAZI VEIL. While German military' action is suspended, the outer world asks what is behind “the veil." Only’ details—which, of course, may be important—are shrouded in secrecy, writes Mr J. L. Garvin. There is no enigma. The pause is intelligible for military reasons and need not be attributed to any other. There is no more characteristic principle of German war-doctrine than that which insists on maximum preparation before any great undertaking. In former cases months have been employed on the final elaboration of lesser schemes than the biggest direct attempt that was ever made on the life of Britain. What has happened is not surprising but normal. After the Polish campaign there had to be a fundamental reconsideration of all plans. Apart from some minimum requirements for reconnaissance on land and experiment at sea, Germany cannot afcord to waste machines and petrol on subsidiary enterprises. In a word, we■ may depend upon it absolutely that Marshall Goering has been using the interval to drive his factories at full blast. The military object of the delay is to increase the power of attack by all means general and special, and to work out the plan of operations in full detail. No one among us should doubt for a moment the drastic realism o' this analysis.