New Disorder
Last week Adolf Hitler's little conquered peoples kept bravely bucking his "new order" in Europe.
In The Netherlands strikes and riots led to the killing of six civilians in a clash between the police and what Nazis called "disturbers of the peace." So violent was the atmosphere that the Amsterdam area was put under martial law by blond, chisel-featured Nazi General Friedrich Christiansen, former darling of Hermann Göring's Air Force. He ordered strikers back to work the next day, prohibited public assembly, political-party activity and insignia, threatened general penalties of 15 years, execution for the sabotage of war work. Quiet was restored as the Nazis claimed that a Jewish cabal had been exposed, leaders of nightly at tacks on the police had been captured. Later Nazis also blamed hypothetical British agents landed from parachutes or small boats. But the Nazis fined the whole city 15,000,000 guilders ($8,000,000).
Dutchmen faithful to the House of Orange have recently worn orange flowers concealing razor blades. If Nazis snatched at the flowers, they got their fingers sliced. Last week many Dutchmen paused before traffic lights until they turned orange—meaning WAIT—then cheered the royal tint and went on their way.
In Norway many streets are named after Nazi-exiled King Haakon VII. Norwegian street car conductors, approaching these streets do not merely drone "King Haakon Street" but instead cry out "His Majesty King Haakon Street!" The Nazis try futilely to stop the house-to-house distribution of crude little newspapers—one called The Illegal Times—telling of British victories. School children's strikes and Nazi-baiting have been constant. On their lapels Norwegians have worn paper clips and safety pins ("keep together"), matches ("burn with hate"). Often in small towns the electric current fails just before Nazi broadcasts. From the town of Drammen it was recently reported that a popular revue singer, Sven Erik Rolf, son of the late Scandinavian Theatrical Producer Ernst Rolf, began a pro-Nazi speech, shouted: "I am your master now!" When his listeners attacked him he begged for mercy, was beaten to death.
In Belgium restaurant crowds toast Winston Churchill, sing God Save The King, the Marseillaise, and the Belgian anthem La Brabançonne. Among the commonest chalk marks on Belgian pavements are the letters "R. A. F."
From Czecho-Slovakia it was reported last week that after the Nazis officially announced the expatriation of onetime President Eduard Benes and other Czech leaders, lampposts around Nazi headquarters were marked zadano—"reserved."