The Powers and Spain Mr. Chamberlain's arrival was, however, preceded
by an envoy from General Franco to Signor Mussolini. He is reported to have carried an answer to the question whether the insurgents could now afford to dispense with their Italian troops; the answer would seem to be—No. There are other signs of the international significance of the Spanish struggle. The French Government, with the approval, it seems, even of M. Bonnet, has sent 45,000 tons of flour to Barcelona, where the food situation is increasingly serious. Its action might well be imitated by the British Government. Again, the Belgian Prime Minister, M. Spank, has declared that in its present form non-intervention (that is, intervention by Italy and Germany) is intolerable and can no longer command the support of the Belgian Government. It appears that, after the loss of Czecho-Slovakia, the Western Powers have arrived at a more accurate appreciation of the dangers of German and Italian ambitions in Spain. This week it may be said that their interests are being defended on three fronts, in Estremadura, in Catalonia and, it is to be hoped, in Rome.
