Evening star., 1937-10-06

at BuenoS Aires,
defending the principles of democracy
and international good will, which this
correspondent termed the best he had
ever delivered, has there been an ad
dress of such great international sig
nificance.
There will be people who will be ap-
prehensive lest the speech might have
to be backed up by physical force some
day to make good its declarations, but
there are also people who have felt
for years that the moral forces of the
world in the cause of peace have never
been mobilized effectively and that
some day such mobilization by
spokesman who was fearless would
awaken the conscience of all civilized
nations.
Japan has done a barbaric thing
Mr.. Roosevelt has not used such exact
words. but he has conveyed the same
thought Italy and Germany have
despoiled Spain and violated the ter
ritorial integrity of that country Mr.
Roosevelt didn't mention Germany or
Italy. but his speech plainly condemned
them just the same.
Much Pondering Evident.
There is evidence from a reading of
the speech that Mr.. Roosevelt pom
dered long time before he decided
to do it. He had no doubt, been urged
to speak the mind of the American
people on the horrors of the Far East
ern raids on innocent people. In this
space month ago reference was
made in a critical vein to the fact that
the United States Government had
talked a lot about withdrawing her
nationals from war areas and staying
in China at their own risk, but had not
expressed in forceful tones a real
protest against the barbarism of the
air raids.
But the Presidents speech is even
more than the believers in the world
protest idea dared to hope. 1t was
thought Mr.. Roosevelt would hesitate
to speak boldly and that he would
deal with the subject in rather abstract
fashion. He has come out plainly and
bluntly.
The words Of Mr.. Roosevelt, how
ever, come with refreshing vigor to a
world which had begun to despair Of
any leadership. Britain and France
should be invigorated by the Chicago
address. The League of Nations
Assembly meeting in Geneva should
be encouraged by it, too. 1t is by
far the most useful and constructive
utterance on international affairs
since the late President Wilson'S
speeches to the allied powers during
the European war.
Here are two paragraphs from Mr..
Roosevelt's speech which will echo
around the world:
Without q declaration of war, and
without warning or justification of
any kind, civilians, including women
and children, are being ruthlessly
murdereI with bombs from the air.
In times of so-called peace, ships are
being attacked and sunk by SUBJ
marines without cause or notice. Ma
tions are fomenting and taking sides
in civil warfare In nations that have
never done them any harm. Nations
claiming freedom for themselves deny
1t to others.
Innocent peoples and nations are
power and supremacy which is devoid
of all sense of justice and humane
consideration"
What can be done about it? This
Is a practical question which will be
asked by millions of persons in Amer
ica who have read the Roosevelt
address. The key is to be found in
the speech itself:
THE peace-loving nations must
make a concerted effort in opposition
to these violations Of treaties and these
ignorings of humane instincts which
today are creating a state of inter-
national anarchy and instability from
which there is no escape through mere
isolation or neutrality"
Not Physical Force.
Does this mean war and physical
force to back up threats of concerted
effort? Not bit of it. There are
influences on some occasions more
powerful than cannon, more devastat-
ing than mobilization of armies and
navies, influences which imprint on
the relationships and autocratic gov
ernments of mankind the label of bar
barism. In the intercourse of nations,
the stigma of barbarism hurts. When
peace-loving peoples come to ostracize
from their midst the governments
which do violence to all humane
principles, there is put into motion
the forces that ultimately shame
nations into change of policy. If
the democracies of the world stick
together and put moral quarantine"
on the leper governments of the world,
there will be sudden realization on
the part Of the peoples living under
those governments that world trade,
world intercourse and world opinion
shuns them as the enemies of man
kind.
There are remedies. They come out
OF the spontaneous action of peoples
in democratic governments who wish
to make their protests effective. A
great start has been made. The Presi-
dent of the United States has made
vocal the feelings of an outraged
humanity. No government can live
long in the modern world with the
United States, Great Britain and
France when working closely together
and using not physical force or threats
OF force but quiet and far-reaching
moral forces which have again and
again in world history brought civili-
zation to its senses through concerted
expression, concerted voice and con-
certed pressure for the sanctity oi
treaties and for peace.
(Copyrisht. 1879