Now The Vultures

New Zealand Listener, Volume 2, Issue 52, 21 June 1940, Page 12

Now The Vultures

T has seldom happened in the history of war that a nation has brought on itself in a single night the loathing and contempt of the world. But it happened last week. Italy sank low enough in Abyssinia, and did nothing to recover the world’s respect by her entirely safe piece of brigandage in Albania. But even brigands may have friends and virtues. Italy has no friend on earth to-day, and no possibility. of making one. To call Germany her friend is to insult even Ribbentrop. Germany despises her and uses her; openly threatens and unblushingly bribes her; and when she has ceased to be useful will show her as much respect as a thug shows to the harlot who has shared his bed and his board. But none of this must blind us to the fact that this loathsome enemy has men, guns, and ships. How efficient its army is nobody knows. It has not been tried. But in numbers it can be very little short of two million. It must be well trained theoretically, and there is evidence that it is admirably equipped. It has strong support in the air and in the sea, and we must suppose that it will be assisted, where assistance is required, by the mechanical and tactical talent of the German staff. To expect it to collapse at the first. impact with the Allied armies would be ignorant and dangerous folly. But if the first step to disaster is to underrate the enemy, the second is to be shaken by his bluster. It was interesting to note that the pathetic little King was compelled to say that he would win with the help of his hereditary foe. The rest of the story is that he remains by the grace of that foe, and will dance to that foe’s tune. He says what he must and does what he may; but neither the pity the world feels for a King so miserably placed, nor the sympathy it would in other circumstances feel for his friendly people, does now or can in the future conceal the fact that they were too cowardly to attack when France was strong, and pounced like vultures when they saw her fall bleeding.