GERMANY'S DEMAND

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21279, 5 September 1932, Page 9

GERMANY'S DEMAND

arms equality POWERS' CONSIDERATION SOME TIME NEEDED GENEVA CONFERENCE BERLIN MAY BOYCOTT JBy Telegraph—Press Association— Copyright (Received September -1. 6.5 p.m.) LONDON, Sept. 3 The position aa regards Germany's demand f<?r arms equality is now as follows; —The French Cabinet has fully examined the question and decided to ti end a formal acknowledgment. In tho meantime the French Government is consulting the signatories to the European consultative pact recently initiated, under which the Governments concerned gave a pledge to keep one another informed on matters affecting their mutual interests and exchange views on lhem candour. These consultations probably will occupy gome time, owing to Ministers of various countries being on holiday or otherwise engaged./ Tho Prime Minister of Italy, Signer Mussolini, received a copy of tho aide memoire from the German Ambassador at Rome and had a long conversation with him. Tho /British Cabinet will fully review the matter on the return of the Foreign Secretary, Sir John Simon, from Balmoral, where he.is visiting the King. The Government has the document under consideration and is watching developments with close interest. It is understood that Germany will not r>end a representative to the meeting of the Budget Committee of tho Disarmament Conference on September 12. This would be the first practical application of Germany's threat to boycott the conference ' unless her equality demand is

granted. The editor of the Observer, Mr. J. L. Garvin, says: "The Treaty of Versailles did not envisage a Germany held in everlasting subjection. It set forth among other aims..'a general limitation of the arms 'of all nations.' Yet, after 13 years of peace, the armament of non-German Europe is far heavier than in 1914. "Between now and the resumption of the Disarmament Conference- the world will want to know whether there is any prospect of relief from that burden or whether .the moral obligation of the Versailles Treaty is taken seriously by politicians; also whether the latter are so infatuated as to imagine that a nation like Germany can be kept under, the perpetual stigma of inferiority." — I STEEL HELMETS GOVERNMENT RECOGNITION j PARTY'S MILITARIST AIMS (Received September 4, 5.5 p.m.), / BERLIN, Sept. 3 Members of the Reich and Prussian Governments attended the Steel Helmets organisation's annual meeting. Fifteejp thousand members of the Steel Helmets cheered the organiser, Major Stefani, when he announced: " This is the first time for 13 years that the Reich and ' Prussian Governments have been officially represented at our convention." The ex-Crown Prince and many generals, who fought in the war, headed by General Mackensen, were also present. Herr Seldte, 'leader of the organisation, declared that the rule of inferior spirits had been broken and the time of the soldier had come. The next step would be the reintroduction of compulsory military service. He also urged the abolition of the Versailles Treaty and the Weimar Constitution. •HITLEK'S TEUCULENCE ATTACK ON PRESIDENT DEFINITE CLAIM TO GOVERN BERLIN, Sept, 2 The leader of the Nazis, Herr Hitler, rousing an audience of 12,000 people to a state of frenzy, fiercely attacked the Chancellor, Herr von Papen, and "his cliqu'o of noblemen in their vain attempts to turn the clock back." Herr Hitler said: "President Hindenburg may dissolve the lleichstag 10 or 100 times for all we care. We shall emerge victorious." Raising his voice the Nazi leader thundered: "I have one advantage over my adversary. He is 85 and I am 43." He proceeded to scoff at the idea of joining the Cabinet on sufferance and declared: "We claim government as ours by right." CONDEMNED NAZIS SENTENCES COMMUTED IMPRISONMENT FOR LIFE BERLIN, Sept. 2 The Prussian Government has commuted the death sentences imposed on five Nazis at Beuthen for tha murder of -a Communist to hard labour for life on the ground that accused had no knowledge of the decree imposing the extreme penalty for acts of political terrorism.