Thursday, October 26, 1939 - Frank to head General Government

Bootie

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In Berlin... Hans Frank, former Reich Minister of Justice and a high-ranking Nazi official, is designated to become governor of the General Government region of former Poland. His administrative capital is to be located in Cracow.

In Moscow... The Soviet government denies the British claim to have a right to stop Soviet merchant ships bound for Germany.

In the United States... On the eve of the Senate vote on amending the Neutrality Act, President Roosevelt delivers a fireside chat: "In and out of Congress we have heard orators and commentators and others beating their breasts proclaiming against sending the boys of American mothers to fight on the battlefields of Europe. That I do not hesitate to label as one of the worst fakes in current history. It is a deliberate setup of an imaginary bogy."

In Britain... The Auxiliary Military Pioneer Corps is formed.

In London... Chamberlain responds to claims made by the Nazi Foreign Minister Ribbentrop that Britain sought and plotted for war with Germany. He says "the whole world knows that this is not true."

On the Western Front... Wintry conditions prevail with much rain and snow. Minor encounters between patrols and artillery fire from both sides is reported.
 
The Naval, Military and Air situation up to 12 noon on October 26, 1939, as reported to the War Cabinet, inter alia, the following:

German Army.

Morale.

The following notes have been made from a French General Staff report on German morale obtained by questioning prisoners of war. The statements of these prisoners, all of whom came from the Maine -Wiesbaden district, may to some extent have been made in order to get better treatment, and should therefore not be taken as the general attitude of the German soldier on the Western front: -

Food.
Insufficient in quantity, of poor quality, monotonous; little meat. Brought up in a mobile cooker every 24 hours at about noon, or, in the case of advanced elements, at night by fatigue parties. The food arrives cold and unappetising.

Clothing
Each man has spare underclothing and boots, a great coat and a bivouac tent. No blankets. Men have to sleep in the pill boxes on the ground, using their greatcoats and bivouac tents as covering. Prisoners complained of intense cold at night.

Officers and N.C.O.s
Very strict with men. Unpopular.

Propaganda.
Soldiers do not read newspapers. What is the use? They all repeat the same thing and nobody believes them!

State of morale.
In Germany many things are unobtainable, chocolate, for example. Everybody is afraid of his neighbour; concentration camps are the lot of those who complain. That is why the country appears to follow its rulers.
 
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