War Games

Preparing for her autumn maneuvers Germany sent invitations fortnight ago to the military attaches of Britain, Italy, the U. S. to act as official observers. France, Belgium, Poland were not invited. Already spluttering in outraged pride over the outspoken William Randolph Hearst (see p. 32) the French fumed again over this "unprovoked insult to the people of France." Rumbled La Libert:

"By neglecting to invite France, Belgium or Poland to her military maneuvers, Germany already designates her adversaries of tomorrow."

Dust hung heavy over white roads last week as, in every part of Europe, battalion after battalion tramped back and forth on maneuvers that only the officers understood. Gun crews sweated and strained in cow pastures, farmers' boys and heifers stared open-eyed at new and intricate engines of death. Half of Europe was under arms. The problems that staff officers were set to solve brought out into the open the fears of European statesmen.

Great Britain. Having proved to her own melancholy satisfaction that the latest type of fast bombing plane could be over London ten minutes after it passes the English coast and that there are no fighting planes now in existence that can be counted on to defeat them (TIME, Aug. 25), British divisions were concentrating at Aldershot, Hampshire, on Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire and in Sussex last week. Painstakingly the War office explained that all this marching and countermarching was not "Maneuvers" but merely "Divisional Exercises."

At Charlton and East Dean, over the hills and gullies back of Goodwood Racecourse the aristocratic 4th Guards Brigade practiced organized frightfulness against mythical tribesmen's villages under the command of Col. Cecil P. Heywood, who left early last week for the Indian North West Frontier to put his lessons into effect.

France. In Lorraine, on the edge of the Saar basin, old stamping ground of the French army, 50,000 troops were under arms last week repelling a theoretical German invasion. General Mittelhauser, military commander of Alsace-Lorraine, assisted by General Brecard, Bright Boy of the Supreme War Council, was directing operations under the fatherly eye of Marshal Petain (Verdun).

On the low lying Belgian frontier engineer officers and sappers assisted by Belgian staff officers paid a heavily secret inspection tour of Minister of War Andre Maginot's pet project. This is a series of concrete floodgates to "mobilize the sea." Another invasion of France through Belgium could be met by flooding hundreds of miles of coast land.

French maneuvers against Germany are an old story in Europe. What kept editors on the edge of their chairs last week was occurring in the south. For the first time in years 55,000 French troops were climbing about high in the Maurienne Alps on the Italian frontier. Alpine Chasseurs, Spahis from Algeria, cavalry, artillery, and black shock troops from Senegal were combining to repel a theoretical Italian army advancing from Turin. Exhibited for the first time was the pride of the French tank corps, a fleet of six light mountain climbing tanks equipped with machine guns and howitzers, which were promptly ordered to show their mettle by scaling the Cel de I'Iseron, 9,300-ft. peak. They made the grade but returned to their base red hot, with every member of their crews black and blue.

A question that every French editor asked was "Where is Weygand?" Sparse, slit-eyed General Max Weygand, faith ful shadow of the late great Marshal Foch, is the real commander of the French Army. It was he who planned the maneuvers on the Italian frontier, he who has ordered every member of the French General Staff to walk over every mile of the French Italian frontier in the course of the summer, he who has spent most of the time since April poking his keen fox-terrier nose into every gun emplacement in this crucial district. But last week when maneuvers were actually under way there was no word of Weygand. Truth is that with the anti-Italian maneuvers actually under way, French authorities suddenly became frightened at the possible consequences. Orders were issued to the French press to print no more anti-Italian articles for a month. Minister of War Maginot purposely refrained from visiting the war games until the final day. General Wey gand, actually directing military opera tions, kept himself prudently concealed in the shadow of the Military Governor of Lyons.

Germany. Slightly embarrassed by recent French statements that the 100,000 troops of the Reichswehr were once again the most efficient fighting force in Europe, Germany's troops arte assembling this week for their war games, to be held far inland on the boundary of Bavaria and Thuringia. Because Germany cannot afford the expense of mobilizing even half her army, the games will be played with a skeleton force of only 16,000 men (two divisions) but with the staffs of all ten of Germany's divisions taking turns in directing operations.

Italy. Officially, Italy's maneuvers were over last week, but in Paris rumors would not be denied that at least 20,000 troops including Facist militia were just over the Alps from the French army, watchfully waiting.

Spain. Four naval divisions (15,000 men) were concentrated off Bilbao and Santander in battle practice last week with Prince Jaime, King Alfonso's second son, engaging in his first maneuvers as a naval lieutenant. Maneuvers were temporarily suspended when a giant Dornier Wai flying bomber crashed near El Ferrol, killed seven men.

Austria. Austrian troops maneuvring among picnickers in the pleasant Wienerwald were not allowed by their conservative officers to accept an invitation from Vienna's Socialist Mayor Karl Seitz to a free week-end banquet in the Rathaus, free rides on street cars, free tickets to the Opera, cinema.

Mexico. In the course of air maneuvers from Mexico's famed Valbuena Airport last week, a cardboard village was erected as a target for bombers. Mexican aviators mistook the town of Ixtapalapa for the target, blew up the ranch "El Arenal," the Ixtapalapa Light and Power Co., killed one, wounded two.

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