SPAIN AND THE WAR

Press, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23111, 29 August 1940, Page 10

SPAIN AND THE WAR

' TO THE EDITOB OE THE PRESS. Sir, —l am constrained to refute “ProFranco’s” remarks in reference to the Dean of Canterbury. In an age when we are. apt to classify as failures those professions having a bearing on world: organisation, here at least in the personality of the Dean we have an outstanding example of the synthetic mind and social sense and vision. With his. writings I would contrast .the following desire, for spiritual, tacit participation' in the spoils of - Fascist victory. Last month -.Mussolini, received a telegram from 30 'ltalian! bishops urging him to crown “the unfailing- victory of our army’’* by t planting; the Italian flag

over Jerusalem. In commenting on this, • the “Manchester Guardian reported that the Axis powers .plan to turn Palestine over to the jurisdiction of the Vatican, and transport Palestine’s Jewish population to Ethiopia. Under this plan the Pope will care for the holy places in Palestine and let Italy run the country. May I also point nut to your correspondent'that Mussolini was pushed by; Hitler into Abyssinia’ and Spain, so much so that back in 1937 the‘ Duce was far.more dependent on the Rome•Berlin axis than the Fuehrer. The strings, nay ropes,’ are intact, Spain owes millions of pounds to Italy and as the-coming September promises to be as historic as the last, your correspendent’s hero may -be forced to be as frank as he is Franco. —Yours, etc., G.B.S. August 28. 1940. [Subject to the right of reply l of “Anti-Fascist” this correspondence is now closed. —Ed., “The Press.”]