With the flight of four Republican leaders from Spain including the President of the Republic, all idea of anything like organized resistance in the remaining portion of Catalonia has been abandoned. it has been obvious for some days past that this was inevitable, and the latest reports indicate that the morale of the Republican army in Catalonia has been reduced to one of sauve qui peut. In the circumstances it was a wise and merciful decision on the part of the French authorities to permit the Republican soldiers, having laid down their arms, to be interned within French territory for a continuance of the useless slaughter which has been seen in the final stages of the fight for Catalonia would have shocked the world, even accustomed as it is to stories of the hideous. And so Catalonia follows the fate of the Basques and the Asturias, and the last of the regional enclaves which have existed for a considerable time in Spain has been practically wiped out. The next task for General Franco is to conquer the remaining portion of the couniry. The reason for the collapse of the government armies in north-eastern Spain is clearly indicated by the reported statement of a high Catalan who remarked "After losing Lalonia, there is nothing lett for us to defend any longer," and it is expected that even if the Republican army can be evacuated to defend central Spain many of its Catalan members will refuse to go with it. It is claimed that throughout the whole civil war the re-fo solve, considerably handicapping its resistance. If the Catalans, the Basques and the Asturians had early in the war abandoned their rigid regionalism it is still open to question whether it would have had maioli effect upon the course of the struggle, but the fact that they adhered to it so closely weakened ihe Government's hand, and robbed its forces of a mobility which was of essential importance.
Whether the complete subjugation of Catalonia will bring about an early termination of the war remains to be seen. It is still a war of ideologies, and, if a recent report that General Franco contemplates cringing some hundreds of thousands of Republicans to trial for one alleged offence or another upon the completion of victory, is true then there is all the more reason for continued resistance on the part of the Republicans. Obviously so many of them nave nothing to lose except, perhaps, their lives, and they may very well decide to make che loss of those as expensive as possible to the enemy.. It is a counsel of desperation; but then the situation for them is already desperate enough. The flight of Senor Azana, President of the Republic into France, together with some other leaders is reported to indicate a difference of opinion with Senor Juan Negrin and his policy of continued resistance to General Franco, probably may be taken as proof that there is an important section amongst the Republicans who realize the remoteness of any chance of er defeating the insurgent leader, and the wanton futility of sacrificing further lives in a struggle which can now only result in defeat. Those-advocates of peace would have iheir hands considerably strengthened if General Franco would again broadcast his cerms, and at the same time make an announcement removing any apprehensions that the advent of peace would be followed by an era of political persecution. The precedents set in the establishment of authoritarianism se where must strengthen the fears of those who view. the sequel to peace with alarm as o their own fates, and if General Franco could announce that he was not following those examples there would in all probability be a stronger inclination on the part of Republican Spain to yield. Indeed it would do more. It would reinforce the influence nf those in the republican area who have never been of that shade of political opinion. Enough has already been done during this hours and 9 minute lengthy campaign to endow Spain with a heritage of hate, and if anything can be done mitigate that unfortunate legacy, even now it should be done.
The Havas report that a British mission is already preparing to go to Burgos with an offer of a loan to General Franco is noteworthy. If correct, it represents a very realistic view of the whole situation, a view which does not contemplate the future recovery of the Republicans. The strings which it is reported are tied to the offer are interesting. It is alleged that they include a cledge to withdraw and repatriate all foreign volunteers and a confirmation of British possession of Gibraltar, guarantee of the loan by customs receipts, and a pledge to conpensate British shipowners whose vessels have been damaged or destroyed in Spanish ports. The move is a significant one, if the report is correct. General Franco when he is able to establish a government controlling the whole of Spain will be in urgent need of money. The task of rehabilitation after over two years
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.