November 15, 1939; Finnland's War of Nerves:

THIS WAS REPORTED TODAY, NOVEMBER 15, 1939:

HELSINGFORS, Nov. 15. (INS) — Drawing repeated gun fire, Soviet aircraft flew continuously over Finnish Karelia today as Finland prepared to resist Soviet pressure aimed forcing compliance with the rejected Soviet demands.

War of Nerves
The Russian aerial demonstrations were carried out as the Moscow negotiators. Dr. Juho Paasikivi and Finance Minister V. A. Tanner, returned to Helsingfors from the Soviet capital.

With all signs pointing to a long “war of nerves” between tiny Finland and huge Russia, authorities made it clear that Finland is ready to maintain her defense measures and other precautions for months rather than give in to Soviet demands for naval and air bases on Finnish coast.

Tanner, however, in an interview given at the Soviet-Finnish boarder before reaching Helsingfors, indicated that the Soviet farewell to the Finnish negotiators was friendly despite the breakdown in the talks.

But Risto Ryti, chief of the bank of Finland indicated that the nation is prepared to hold out for a long time against Russian pressure.

“The Russians," he declared, “are too optimistic if they think Finland cannot maintain its present defense economy for more than four to seven months.

Defense Costs

"According to the Moscow newspaper Pravda, our defense costa are between 30,000,000 and 090,000 marks a day. This is not true. Even 80,000,000 marks is many times too high a sum.

“The Russian press says there has been a run on Finnish banks. That is not true. The Finnish state has not borrowed even one mark from the bank of Finland.

"Note circulation some time ago was higher because of the evacuation of 100,000 persons from danger areas and the need of some money reserves, but this is all normal now.

(E.T.s note: Finland was the only country to pay it's World War 1 debt to the U.S.)

 

American Voters Believe Majority of Nazis

In Germany Are Opposed to Adolf Hitler

By DR. GEORGE GALLUP

Director, American Institute of Public Opinion
PRINCETON, N. J., Nov, 15.— Despite the best efforts of the German propaganda machine, a nation-wide fact-finding survey by the American institute of Public Opinion indicates, the average American remains unconvinced on one of the most elementary issues in the whole German case—namely, that the people of Germany willingly support Adolf Hitler.

Despite the German propaganda efforts, of which Chancellor Hitler himself has boasted, and regardless of the imposing results of various Nazi plebiscites since 1933, approximately two persons in every three in the Institute survey say they believe a majority of Germans are opposed to the fuehrer.

Cross-Section Selected
To explore the American attitude on this question, the institute asked a carefully selected cross section of men and women in all states and all walks of life: "Do you think the people of Germany are in favor of Hitler?”

The replies show that about two-thirds of the voters with opinions consider the bulk of the German people victims rather than collaborators in the Nazi dictatorship.:

Believe Majority

Favor Hitler ................... 34%
Believe Majority
Oppose Hitler .................66%
Approximately one person in six (17%) said he had no opinion on the question.
Of special interest in the vote of first and second generation  German-Americans. Only 36 percent of those interviewed in the survey  said they thought Hitler had majority support in Germany while 64 per cent thought he was holding his present authority against majority wishes.

The significance of the American attitude is clear: Whether these beliefs are correct or incorrect, the German case begins at an original disadvantage. Every German appeal to the sentiments of the United States, it appears from the survey, will be examined by millions of Americans in the light of this fundamental skepticism.

The latest German “case” has grown out of the bombing of Munich’s Buergerbraeu hall a few moments after the departure of Chancellor Hitler. German sources have laid the bombing to the British secret service, but from the evidence available in today's survey it seems likely that Americans will be more disposed to credit the action to dissatisfied elements within the German reich—the theory put forward in allied circles.

Believe Regime Based on Force
The majority doubt Hitler really represents the German nation, the comments show, because they have mental pictures of an entire regime based on force and suppression.

Many say they doubt that the German people approve of the persecution of Jews, Catholics, labor leaders and other dissenters, which have marked the Nazi regime.

“If the people were for him, Hitler would not need to follow strong arm methods.'’ is the way many a voter expresses his opinion.