DANZIG AND REICH

Greymouth Evening Star, 25 August 1939, Page 7

DANZIG AND REICH

SENATE PROCLAMATION • RE-ANNEXATION REPORTED [.by CABLE —PRESS. ASSN.—COPYRIGHT.] ’.' LONDON, August 24. The British' United,Press Paris correspondent has reported .that the Official German. News Agency has announced that the Datfzift Senate has proclaimed the of the Free City to Germany. ’

The # Foerster as State Preside'iftk'ofy DSanzig is announced. It, became effective from yesterday. It is interpreted by the German Government spokesman as the establishment of -an d.hthbritarian regime : under Herr Hitler. LARGE-SCALE ARRESTS. LONDON. August 24. The first? determined Nazi move to oust the Poles from Danzig is indicated by a Warsaw communique which reports that at Danzig,, secret police have arrested a number of Polish railway officials during the past 24 hours. The secret police have also begun large-scale arrests of Polish civilians in Danzig. The Danzig police, firstly superseded the Polish customs officers in Zoppot and in Oliva, who were examining passports and baggage. The police ignored the fact that the Danzig railways are legally under the control of Poland. When the Polish officials ..protested the Nazis touched their revolvers, and they replied: “We act by right!” The Customs officers report that the Poles have closed the Polish-Danzig border, so as to stop food consignments going to Danzig. An Official News. Agency message from Danzig says that the authorities are closing the Danzig border, as a counter-measure to the Polish closure. CUSTOMS TALKS CEASE. DANZIG, August. 24. Negotiations between Poland and Germany that wdre designed to settle the Customs problems at Danzig have been broken off. A decree places the Danzig Gestapo under the directioi^of '.the Danzig Senate President, whereby the Gestapo becomes a separate organisation. GERMANS ARREST COURIER. LONDON, August 24. The Berlin correspondent of the “Daily Express” says: Polish diplomats allege that. police detained a Polish diplomatic bag yesterday and confiscated a. parcel therein. The Poles claim a Polish courier, who was en route to Poland was arrested at Rawicz, on the frontier. Neither the courier nor the bag has been released. ‘ ' ENCIRCLEMENT ALLEGED. (Received August 2b,.10 a.m.) BERLIN,- August ■ 24. The Official German News Agency states that Polish forces,., at war strength, have encircled' Danzig, -,and great danger- is imminent of a coup d’etat. Mr. Chamberlain’s speech has increased the tension, and caused hope to fade that European problems can be solved bloodlessly. NAVAL VESSEL EXPECTED. DANZIG, August 24.

It is officially announced that the German navy’s training-ship, Schleswig Holstein, will anchor at Danzig to-morrow, at 8 a.m.

POLISH CABINET MEETS. . .MORE' TROOPS CALLED UP. X LONDON, August 24. Th© Warsa.w cori'Ospcindent of the “Daily Express” say’s an emergency meeting of the Polish Cabinet was called for 1 a.m. It was decided to call up 500,000 more men in the next 24 hours. No general mobilisation decree has so far been issued. The total now under arms is 1,500,000. The Polish Military General Staff is sitting early this morning. Poland is speeding up her defence measures. This has led to serious delays of the passenger trains that are engaged in the evacuation of civilians from the Polish frontier districts. This has caused the German Press to predict a Polish coup d’etat in Danzig. PATROL CROSSES FRONTIER. (Reed. August 25. 1 p.iu.) WARSAW, August. 24. A German patrol crossed the Polish East Prussian border, near Ilawa, and occupied a landed, estate at: Bagno. one kilometre within Polish territory.,. .. Telephone communication between Gdynia and Danzig has been cut off. British ships are reported to have left Danzig, taking members of the British colony. Three additional classes of .Polish reserves have been called up. The appointment of Fl err Foerster to the Danzig Presidency is officially confirmed at Berlin, where it is interpreted as the establishment of an authoritarian regime, <&ld,er Herr Hitler. It is officially■ the appointment of Herr Foerster is a violation of the Danzig the'execution of which is guaranteed by .the League’s Three-Power • Committee (England, France, and Sweden). The Danzig “Vorposten” says that police confiscated •. freight van, containing munitions, steel-helmets. gasmasks. land-mknes, and i machinc-g'su parts, and arrested several men. charged with smuggling arms for the Polish minority. ", : GERMAN PROTECTION SOUGHT ' LONDON. August 24. The Berlin correspondent of the Associated Press of Great Britain sir. It is rumoured in high..circles that Colonel Beck might, go to Berlin, to place Poland under Germany’s protection.

A similar rumour is current in London.