Italian Boasts But Madrid Says War Will Continue To Last Man

Northern Advocate, 28 January 1939, Page 9

Italian Boasts But Madrid Says War Will Continue To Last Man

(Received 2 p.m.) LONDON, January 27. XTEWSPAPERS IN ROME ARE OMINOUSLY FOLLOWING UP THE FALL OF BARCELONA WITH A UNANIMOUS DECLARATION THAT ITALY HAS SUCCEEDED IN ESTABLISHING ANOTHER FRONTIER FOR FRANCE. “II Tevere” says that: “Now, thanks to the Italian navy, not a single French ship or soldier is able to cross the Mediterranean.”

At the same time, a communique issued in Madrid says the war is not nearing its end, and will continue as long as necessary to make Spain safe for Spaniards. The civil governor of Madrid declares that calm prevails and the workers resumed their jobs after registering for mobilisation. Food reserves are available. * The situation on the Estremadura front is unchanged. The “Daily Telegraph’ 1 Perpignan correspondent says that Valencia and Madrid are so well fortified that they are unlikely to be taken by assault, but will be untenable without arms and ammunition, of which there is a tgrave shortage.

No further serious resistance is expected from the Loyalist armies in Catalonia, owing to lack of guns and munitions, and semi-starvation. Massed Influx to Prance. A massed influx of civilian refugees to France will begin at Perpignan on Saturday, but restrictions are being applied against troops. In view of General Franco’s opposition, England and France have dropped the idea of a neutral zone on the frontier, where refugees could be interned, but English and French relief organisations have agreed to co-oper-ate in feeding and accommodating them.

The French Government is contemplating camps near the Pyrenees, and also in North Africa, M. Bonnet has asked Russia to accept as many as possible. Pitiless Air Attacks.

The stream of refugees stretches for 70 miles along the road to the frontier. Panic-stricken and half-starved women and children are struggling on under pitiless bombings. At least 200 were killed at the roadside today. Frontier towns are crammed with hundreds living in snow without blankets, and subsisting on bread c*ncx water.

The “Daily Telegraph” says that the problem of Spanish refugees is becoming more acute daily. 300,000 on Border. Nearly 300,000 have massed south of the Pyrenees. Trains are waiti'ng. at Cerbere and Boulou in order to evacuate as many as possible to France, where concentration camps have been prepared. Six thousand French troops are at Perpignan, Montpelier and Carcasonne, ready to reinforce the frontier police. Others are moving up from inland garrisons.