The Pahiatua Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING WEDNESDAY, FEB. 12, 1936. EYES ON AUSTRIA.

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 13180, 12 February 1936, Page 4

The Pahiatua Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING WEDNESDAY, FEB. 12, 1936. EYES ON AUSTRIA.

Of late we have seen much mention of the return of the house of Hapsburg to the throne of Austria, and just a day or so back Otto, the Archduke of Austria, made a visit to Paris which greatly upset Prince von Starhemberg, the vice-chancellor, and leader of what might be called the .Fascist group, which together with the clerical bloc under Chancellor Schuschnigg, forms the principal factor in the Austrian political field. Von Starhemberg is a comparatively young man who no one in Austria thought of much account, politically, but last October he engineered a remarkable coup d’etat in. politics, and succeeded in displacing Major Fe;y (who was accused in some quarters of having been privy to the fate of Hr. Hollfuss, and was present with the latter when he was assassinated), and other stormy petrels on the Government. side, whose support the chancellor had never been able to rely on. Starhemberg’s movements m France while Otto was in Paris created wide conjecture, and in many quarters it was hinted that he hat had conversations with the supplanted Haps burg head, presumably on the question, of the return of the monarchy. It must be admitted that Starhemberg is a true Austrian patriot, but. behind it all, he is a believer in Mussolini, and he seems convinced that the Fascist regjme is the only way for both Italy and Austria, and when he made his great political coup in October it was directed against the activities of a profs azi group, and since then he cast Ms_lot in with Italy against the imposition of sanctions and thereby risked the displeasure of the League. And now that The possibility of an understanding between Hitler and Mussolini has been mooted where does Starhemberg stand? He may be loth to scrap fit's ideals embodied in Fascism, wLereby Austria, might he the means of uniting countries like Germany, Italy and Hungary, and should such an eventuality come to pass, the peace of Europe will be greatly endangered. On the other hand if the* monarchy is restored to Austria, through the return of the Hapsburgs, this, with the backing of a united parliament, would be some sort of safeguard of a European peace, which cannot be possible while any regime that is compelled to take a line of least resistance in the face of exorable circumstances as confront Austria to-day, will be a source of constant danger to the harmony and peace of Europe. While Starhemberg denies that Austria, is pro-Nazi lie admits that men between the ages of 26 and 35 have Nazi sympathies, which, he said, were acquired during the early stages of the Austrian republic. This represents a very powerful section of the country despite the vice-chancellor’s apparent unconcern, and ho may find them a force to be reckoned with before long.