COFFEE FOR REICH

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 81, 2 October 1940, Page 10

COFFEE FOR REICH

EUROPE'S "COMMERCIAL

'CO-OPERATION"-

'(British. Official Wireless.) ; RUGBY, September 30

Students who mine in :the extensive and tortuous shafts of Nazi propaganda are occasionally rewarded; for .-■ their barren toil on masses.of crude material by striking a rich vein of "irony., A3 recently as September 26, Deutschlandsender (radio station) had this piece of welcome intelligence for Hie Germans,, who have had. to goforlong without their favourite ' beverage;: "Commercial co-operation of the Continental States, which during this- war has still further increased, has -made it possible ■ forr large amounts of coffee to be delivered to Germany." , \ That "commercial" co-operation which "increased" as tlie, Germanarmies spread devastation and „as .th-e German occupation oppressed^ and plundered trade'fhanufacturers of the territories Germany has attacked and seized is -a' sufficiently uproarious example of sly humour, but its quality is improved when it is put in juxta? position with earlier broadcasts which contained an explanation of how the new "commercial co-operation" works. On September? Radio Paris had a rather different announcement for the delectation of French listeners: "A new chapter has been opened in 'the history of coffee in France."According to a decree in the official journal, grocers, will only be able to sell 'riexv mixture' coffee, one-third of which-will be pure coffee- and two-thirds .certain sweet products."- ■ . " . ' The Danes learnt of their part in the co-operative effort on September 18, when it was broadcast that "..he Press I sacr6tariat of the" Ministries announced that from October 1 the monthly^coffee ration will be decreased from 250 grammes, to 125 grammes" , .. Four days. later, from. Oslo came, a . notice to the Norwegians: "The ~ Administrative Council has decided to decrease the coffee, ration on ordinary coupons from 80 to 60 grammes/; -