With these resources as a basis, Czechoslovakia has been able to turn her energies to the development of her mineral wealth. The rich coal and lignite deposits of the northern frontier region and Silesia are the foundation on which much of her industrial activity has been built Total lignite production in 1935 amounted to more than 15 million inherited railway system, built when her territories were part of a larger political and economic organization which facilitated external rather than internal communication. There is only one main line of railway communication within the State which is suitable for heavy industrial traffic, This line runs from Prague through Ustin-Ostrava to Moravska-Ostrava and branches down to Brno and thence through to Bratislava. But this artery of commerce is likely to be cut by Customs frontiers at no fewer than three separate points. There is a Polish-German threat at Ustin and Moravska, and a German population near Breclav, south of Brno (whose secession would interrupt through services to Bratislava), and a Hungarian majority south and east of the latter city.
Much more might be said about the industrial and agricultural resources of Czechoslovakia, and their distribution. Even this short survey shows, however, that the secession from the Republic of vital areas, in which her industrial wealth is largely concentrated, would have far-reaching and, from her point of view, Zisastrous effects, What will be the nature of the sacrifices demanded of her will doubtless be known more clearly after Mr. Chamberlain has seen Herr Hitler today. But in the light of economic facts alone, the extreme reluctance of her statesmen to consent to the dismemberment of their country will awaken both understanding and sympathy.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.