PERU CONTINUES TO FIGHT ECUADOR

This map shows where the Western Hemisphere's only war has been going on during the past fortnight--in defiance of an armistice agreement and unknown to the rest of the world. The Peruvians entered the Gulf of Guayaquil with several ships and planes. Just twelve Peruvian parachutists took Machala and seven took Puerto Bolivar. They kept banging away at the town as they floated down, but stopped when there was no Ecuadorian counter fire. Peruvian troops moved easily across the flat land between the coast and Piedras. In a miniature Blitz they burned farms, confiscated crops, looted houses even of radio sets and bric-a-brac. Several thousand Ecuadorian refugees fled northward to Guayaquil and other cities by foot, mule, boat, boxcar--many went through muddy, snake-infested jungle strips along the coast.

Last month Good Neighborliness supposedly prevailed all over the Western Hemisphere. Peru and Ecuador had theoretically declared a truce, were waiting for mediation of their ancient border dispute (TIME, Aug. 4) by Argentina, Brazil, the U. S. No newsmen were around to keep tabs on the truce. Not until last week did word get through that Peru had been improving the "truce" by going after Ecuador like a next-door bully all the time.

Ecuador, a natural victim, has few planes, no tanks or heavy artillery, one small warship, little ammunition, or money with which to buy it. The Ecuadorians are angry with the U. S. for not lease -lending them arms.

The Peruvians headed for Portovelo, where the Ecuadorian Government runs a gold mine without which it would probably collapse. Last week it seemed unlikely that Ecuador could stop the advance. Unless theoretical Good Neighbors of both did something about it fast, the bigger of these Bad Neighbors might solve the boundary dispute by swallowing the smaller fellow next door. And that might start grabbing all over South America, to the detriment of hemisphere solidarity.

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