Evening star., 1937-11-11
Fascism Discovers America.


With what prescience President Roose-
velt month ago depicted the perils
with which Eurasian Fascism threatens
this side of the world is vividly demon
strated by today's news from Rio de
Janeiro. On Wednesday constitution
was promulgated, which turns Brazil into
q corporate state of almost the precise
model patented by Mussolini and Hitler
Thus, for the first time, Fascism plants
Its hideous roots in American soil. Let
no man imagine" warned Mr.. Roosevelt
at Chicago, discussing "the technique
of homicide endangering every precious
thing the world over" that America
will escape, that it may expect mercy,
that this Western Hemisphere will not
be attacked, and that it will continue
TRANQUILITY and peacefully to carry on
the ethics and the arts of civilization"
Events in Brazil clothe the President
with claim to the rank of a major
prophet Seldom has any public utter
ance from a high quarter so promptly
proved to be such intelligent anticipation
The great Amazon Republic hitherto
q citadel of democracy. henceforth will
live under constitution which abolishes
representative government as completely
as it has been destroyed in Rome and
Berlin, or in Moscow, where 1t never
existed. National, state and local legis-
lative bodies are wiped out The new
constitution" vests administrative pow
ers in a President with indeterminate
tenure of Office. All lawmaking peroga-
tive is reposed in a corporate as
sembly." Certain powers of opinion"
are given to council of experts or
elders" While there will be an execu-
tive cabinet partially responsible to
the Congress. its chief would be picked
by the President and its functions thus
controlled by him.
President Getulio Vargas, in short,
Is caparisoned with dictatorial authority
which II Duce and Der Fuehrer in
person may well envy. Eight or ten
Latin-American States-among them
Cuba, Peru, Uruguay. Venezuela, Guate-
mala. Honduras, Nicaragua and the
Dominican Republic-have for some
time been under varying forms of
autocratic rule. but the measures Just
proclaimed at Rio confer powers un-
equaled anywhere between the Rio
Grande and Cape Horn at this time
1t is the thin edge of the totalitarian
wedge that now manifests itself in the
land of the Dom Pedros.
The Vargas coup smacks of Italian
design, but conditions in Brazil sug-
gest Nazi instigation. German influence
has been perniciously active there
throughout the Hitler era Even the
Fatherland of the Kaiser had its
covetous eye on the fertile provinces
Of Santa Catharina, Rio Grande do Sui
and Sac Paulo. German emigration
was steered in their direction and the
pre-war German Colonial Society is
sued propaganda maps of South America,
on which Brazil's Teutonic-populated
regions were described as German
colonies" Since 1888 efforts to Nazify
not only all Germans in Brazil, but the
rest of the population, especially the
youth, have been in brazen progress.
Now that Italy and Japan are in
alliance with Germany, the Nazis have
blazed a trail in Latin-America which
they and their theological comrades
may be encouraged to pursue in other
countries on this side of the Atlantic.
The alleged necessity Of waging holy
war against Communism would, doubt
less, be the alleged justification. More
than one self-seeking Latin American
government in recent years has dragged
forth literally red herring as an alibi
for usurpation and despotism.
Much Of all this was foreSeen at
Buenos Aires last winter. Why Presi-
dent Roosevelt, Secretary Hull and
Latin-America. statesmen emphatically
acclaimed the virtues of democracy in
the Americas, and stressed the mem
aces TO it is now clear. Brazil is a
grim signal that Nazi-Fascist tentacles
have at last spanned the Atlantic. No
nation has greater urge TO thwart
their spread than the sponsor and
guardian Of the Monroe Doctrine.