Evening star., 1927-10-20
LONDON ENGLAND

! LONDON, England.
What a difference there is in the at.
mosphere of different countries. Not
alone does Sunny France" differ
from London fog. but also from arid
| Italy, and most Of all from the LA nd
Of the Brave and the Home of the
| Free" The difference does not lie
mainly in ,the weather, but more in
| the atmosphere" of society and pub
liz administration. On the railroad
train in America there was overheard
the almost typical grumbling of the
| Man in the Smoker" against the re.
| striction laws of the United States,
| where, we are told, there are more
| petty laws" forced through by ia
natical minorities" - whatever that
may Macmillan in any other coun-
/ try.
| Not even In Italy, under Dictator
Mussolini. are there laws forbidding
| intoxicantS, but there are laws forbid
ding freedom of the press and of
speech. President Butler of Columbia
| University. lectures on 1.-The Lost Art
of Thinking in America, but what
| would happen II he delivered that in
the land where every man drinks ut
| will. provided he does not think
amiss about "Fascism"? There, IL one
! is even suspected Of thinking awry, he
| is in peril of visitation from the po.
lice or the Black Shirts and hailed be-
| fore police tribunal, where, without
| jury trial or even the right to call
witnesses of defense. he may be rail
| roaded" to the Island" under sen.
tence of 20 or more years. for the
safety Of the state" Yet in Italy
Communism has been suppressed, even
where FIVE years ago 1t terroriZed the
nation.
1r France there is more liberty Of
thought and action, but following the
Sacco-Vanzetti riots 5000 alien Com
munists were exiled and thousands
more who were natives of France
were imprisoned. There were no Sac
co-VanZetti demonstrations in Italy,
where the murderers had been born,
! for MuSsolini did not permit such agi-
tation. The first indication toward 1t
met with prison sentences or exile to
the "Island."
Here in England. despite the serious
disturbances OF the peace by Com.
munist agitation, there are hundreds
Of orators, with free license, rending
the air by day and night, denouncing
not only the government, but all insti.
no interference by the police. Even
into the pulpit of a. famous church go
hecklers. standing alongside Of an
archbishop in the pulpit. in order to
denounce him to his own congrega ton
as derelict Of the church because he
accepts Darwin as against a literal
acceptance Of Genesis. That is
tolerated in England. Would it be
possible in the United States without
police interference?
Another phase of social order marks
the differences in nations. In neither
Paris nor Rome Is much drunkenness
to be seen, though the cafes are cater
ing to the public with wines and cog
mac; but walk the streets of London
in the evenings and one must be alert
to avoid collision with drunken men,
| women and girls. arm in arm, stag
gering and singing or talking in ribald
! tones.
England is half slave and half
free" in the matter Of it's intoXicants
At only certain hours OF the day can
| liquor be bought--less than half the
day or night--but there appears no re-
straint during those hours. Commu.
nism. boring from within. is disturbing
England more seriously than the out
side world has realized.
X
What of the United States upon
these lines? There are metropolitan
cities where the officials openly declare
notification of Federal laws and an.
nounce that they refuse to attempt to
enforce them. There are schools main.
tained for the purpose of teaching
Communism to our children. In Eng
land recently the venerable Bishop
Of London declared in a sermon that
American schools were teaching chill
dren to hate England. The declara-
tion amazed American Legionnaires
sitting in the congregation. How
many Americans would not be amazed
to discover what Is really being taught
TO some of our children?
The Roman Catholic Church works
upon the principle most practically
that give 1t the frst six or eight