FOUR SPEECHES

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 20907, 6 October 1942, Page 3

FOUR SPEECHES

GERMAN LEADERS REM ARKS~AN ALY SED EVIDENCE OF CONCERN (By Teiegrapn—Press Assn. —Copyright.) (Special Correspondent.! (Noon) LONDON, Oct. 5. Considerable interest is taken in Marshal Goering’s speech, which is the fourth delivered by German leaders recently, the others being by Herr Hitler, Herr von R'ibbentrop and Dr Goebbels. It is interesting to observe what both Herr Hitler and Marshal Goering did and did not say about America. Herr Hitler made a contemptuous reference, while Marshal Goering talked sheer nonsense, for example, “The facade of America is glittering, but if you look behind it you see it on the verge of breaking down. This, Roosevelt himself knows.” He also said: “The Americans probably are quite gallant soldiers, but thus far their ambitions have been in other fields.” Thus, both Herr Hitler and Marshal Goering betray the extent to which fears, about American armament capacity are instilled in the minds of the German people. For men who are telling their country things will be better, it is an interesting insight into their minds that they should make such puerile references to one of the strongest enemies. It amounts to the fact that the Germans do not like to hear the truth about the United Nations’ mounting power. Pride in Plunder

Another interesting point was Marshal Goering’s naked pride in the plunder of Russia and gains to be derived from there —oil for the fat ration “from the vast areas of the Kuban and Don, with their miles and miles of sunflower fields which give an even better "yield of oil than our home-grown rape seed.” He referred also to iron and coal. “It so happens,” he said, “that both food and raw materials are lying together in the territory we have taken from the Bolsheviks.” Thus Germany, with all Europe under her heel, must even so draw on her Russian conquests. One inference drawn from the speech is that Germany’s food reserves are running low. There is untold potential suffering for Europe in the phrase “I do not want to see the populations of the occupied territories suffer hunger and privation, but if, through enemy measures, privation is unavoidable, it will in no circumstances affect the German workers. The German agricultural labourer will be fed better than any others.” Having previously declared that Germany could not be blockaded, it is a matter for speculation as to what he regards as enemy measures, and the inference is that the people of the occupied countries will go short of food anyway.