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Front No. 2. From there down past Teruel, rocky hills and easily defended passes make actual trenches unnecessary, but the strong points here are well built, well defended, so much so that neutral observers agree that Generalissimo Franco's old scheme, to drive a wedge from Teruel to the sea thus breaking Valencia's communications with Madrid, is no longer practicable. Conversely, Teruel itself is immune to direct Leftist attack. West of Teruel to the Guadarrama Mountains is one of the two sectors in the entire line where no formal fortifications exist. In this barren rocky country such fighting as takes place consists of open guerrilla raids. Many scrubby villages do not know for weeks at a time in whose territory they are.
Front No. 3. From the Guadarramas, scene of the great Italian rout of March, round Madrid and down to Toledo are the strongest, finest fortifications in the entire line, works of which any World War engineer might be proud. Once again last week Rightist troops were assembling for still another attack on Madrid, urged on by German staff officers with the knowledge that few of their own men would be engaged.
Front No. 4. Below Toledo, for a full 150 mi. along the rolling hills of Estremadura to Mérida, again no formal line exists, but there is no unofficial truce here as in the similar sector to the north. Cavalry raids and guerrilla fighting are an almost daily occurrence. Only a shortage of men on both sides prevents Rightists from consolidating their line properly, keeps Leftists from a forceful drive through to Badajoz and the Portuguese frontier which would break Rightist communications between Franco's capital at Salamanca and the important southern strongholds of Seville and Cordoba.
Front No. 5, Córdoba itself is protected by formal lines of trenches almost as strong as those at Madrid, quiescent for many weeks, and this silence extends over the high peaks of the Sierra Nevadas to the sea, where there has been no effective action since the capture of Málaga seven months ago. All this line is under control of el Caudillo Franco's most colorful subordinate, hoarse-voiced bombastic General Queipo de Llano, the "radio general."
Twice last week General Queipo de Llano was in the news. From Valencia came word that his sister Rosario, a Leftist hostage since immediately after the beginning of the war, had finally been released from jail in an exchange of prisoners. From his headquarters at Seville came a story of an attempt to kidnap the radio general himself. Weeks ago General Queipo de Llano set out on an inspection trip of the lines north of Córdoba. Entranced by his ceaseless flow of conversation, staff officers did not notice until almost too late that the chauffeur had put on a sudden burst of speed, was heading straight for the Leftist lines. A quick revolver shot in the back killed the chauffeur, ended the attempt. The party drove back to headquarters quietly.
Valencia last week had excitement of a different sort. For the first time in many months, the Spanish Cortes (parliament) met, for the first time in history it did not sit in the traditional semicircle, divided physically as well as spiritually into Left. Centre and Right, but in an ordinary auditorium set up on the trading floor of Valencia's silk exchange, the Lonja de la Seda.