BERLIN -- Adolf Hitler sent troops into the de-militarized Rhineland zone today and thereby tore to shreds the last repressive clauses of the Versailles treaty.
Coincidentally he announced the Locarno treaty which guarantees the frontiers of Germany, France and Belgium and the Rhineland zone had ceased to exist because of France a new military alliance with Russia.
But in this final defiance of the World war allies, Hitler offered all Germany's neighbors a program he said would bring a real lasting peace and friendship to nations.
Then he called an election for a new reichstag to be held March 29, so that he might get a vote of approval from his countrymen.
Hitler made his momentous opening of a new chapter in Europe's post-war history, in a memorandum to foreign envoys and a speech at a special reichstag meet ing, called to hear him. It was a speech that matched any in his silver-voiced career.
His voice fell in appeal, rose in determination, flashed in anger at injustices he alleged had been declarations, which must mark the piled upon German as he faced the Nazi-uniformed reichstag deputies.
He reviewed Germany's hardships, spoke of Its rights and its powers, and at the end read to the deputies the memorandum handed to foreign envoys, embracing his momentous pronouncements,
These were:
1 -- Germany at noon today, when the reichtag met, sent into the Rhineland zone a symbolic force of troops, a few battalions only, in token of the decision that Locarno is dead and that Germany has the right to militarize It despite the specific ban of tho Versailles treaty.
2 -- Now that Germany is on full equal terms with all other great nations, re-armed and free, she Is ready to re-enter the League of Nations from which she resigned Oct. 14, 1933, because she believed she was not being treated as an equal at the world disarmament conference.
3 -- Germany is ready to conclude a 25-year non-aggression pact with France and Belgium, whose frontier the Locarno treaty protected.
4 -- Germany is ready to negotiate a non-aggression pact or pacts with all her neighbors, east and west, including Lithuania.
5 -- Germany Is ready to establish with France and Belgium mutual de-militarized zones as deep as those countries wish.
6 -- Germany urges the negotiation of tho long-projected western European air defense treaty, by which the principal powers would pool their air forces to blast the territory of any aggressor with bombs.
Before Hitler had finished sneaking, hardly before his battalions had grounded arms in the Rhineland. news of his defiance and his offer had reached every chancellory in Europe.
All over Europe statesmen met to talk over the situation. Telephone and telegraph 'vires and cables flashed diplomatic dispatches. Diplomatic couriers were started on a race through Europe by train, motor car and airplane.
The diplomats had before them the material for a war or for peace, for a new effort to end the jealousies, fears and hates that have endured for more than 17 years since the World war ended or for months or years more of bickering.
Goes Before Reich
After he handed the diplomats of the Locarno powers copies of memoranda, and gave other en voys copies through the foreign office. Hitler drove to the Reichstag meeting in the Kroll Opera house. President Hermann Goering called the Reichstag to order.
Hitler rose. He started quiet ly by saying the Reichstag had been convened to give deputies an opportunity to hear a government declaration "which I am sure you and the whole nation will consider important, and which may de decisive."
He went back to the dark days of 1918 and said:
"Germany more than other nations felt the wisdom of Wood-row Wilson's policy. Germany had the misfortune to be defeated. Wilson's articles (the 14 points for a just peace) were Germany's last hope in her despair."
"Today everywhere guns roar, where peace bells should be ringing.
"History will show that the earth went through a crisis after the war such as has visited humankind only once in a thousand years."
Germany, Hitler said, was bled white by the huge post-war political debts of Versailles.
"Crisis Due to Unreason"
"The present European crisis," he said, "Is due to the glaring unreason with which the vital Interests of people were Ignored. I would like the German people to learn from this unreason that it is insupportable to allow a discrepancy between realities and the vital Interests of people.
"All European nations are members of a family, though they may quarrel. Their fate is Inseparably united, culturally and economically. Statesmen who are unaware of this fact, who refuse to adjust differences by compromise, will cause an explosion.
"Many people talk today of the 'German question.' With that Is connected the 'German regime,' 'rearmament,' 'the German nation's lust for war,' or 'Germany's Intention to attack.'
"No, gentlemen! The German question Is different. We are a densely populated nation of lib persons per square kilometre.
(That is, 524 persons per square mile. In the United States there are 41. -- Ed)
"We are not less industrious not less intelligent, than other people. We also are not less loving of our honor."
Here the deputies cheered vigorously.
"Our campaign for equality has not harmed the French nation," continued Hitler. "Bolshevist chaos in Germany would have harmed it. The German move to attain equality does not mean raising European controversy, but settling It. History will admit that in struggling for Germany I never for a moment forgot my responsibility toward common European civilization.
"Germany has not interest In seeing France suffer. France could gain no advantage by tier-many 's misfortune.
Scores Soviet Part.
"But ratification of the French-Russian military pact compels me to consider the German situation nd draw the consequences of It, no matter now severe they may be."
"The French-Russian pact contradicts Locarno.
"As long as our sacrifices are understood I am ready to make sacrifices. But as soon as it is clear that sacrifices are not appreciated, I must proceed to end an Intolerable discrimination."
Here Hitler made again the declaration that he has made before, and which he made specifically when the Saar was returned to Germany a year ago:
"We have no territorial claims In Europe."
Then he read his seven-point memorandum. Soon the meeting was adjourned and the stock market closed firmly with knowledge of his declarations. Stocks and bonds were in demand and gained an average of one to two points.
