Evening star., 1937-01-19
|NYE URGES Strong
NEUTRALITY Law
U. S. Must Be Willing to
Forego Profits, He Says
in Forum Talk.

port of his proposal.
Senator Nye referred to the
strengthening OF public opinion in this
country behind firm neutrality
policy and expressed qualification that
many are the voices Of leaders urg-
ing the adoption Of . strong neu-
trality policy"
Never greater" the Senator con-
tinued, "is the force OF popular de.
mand that we be unoompromising in
the writing Of q policy which will
afford the maximum of protection
against our country being coaxed.
bribed, led or goaded into more for
eign war"
Discussing the subject. Neutrality
That Is Neutrality" Senator Nye
heartily Endorsed . stay out Of war"
program which includes enactment OF
a strong neutrality policy. enactment
of laws to take the profit out of war,
the insurance that the people will
have the final say II the United States
ever goes into q foreign war again
and the confinement Of preparedness
TO delenSe against lnVASioIi.
Must Sacrifice Profits.
"If we could do these things" the
Senator declared, I'VE would anord q
fire-break of genuine merit and tre-
mendous economy" The speaker
warned, however. that certain inter-
ests would be called upon to sacrifice
their profits as the price of complete
neutrality.
"Our experience Of 20 years ago"
he said, ought to have taught US that
We cannot be in other peoples wars
in an economic way and stay out Of
them politically"
Senator Nye was introduced by
Oliver Owen Kuhn, managing editor
OF The Star.
The text of Nyes address follows
in full:
Mr.. Kuhn, I recall that Is months
ago you invited me to address the
forum on the subject Of Neutrality" ="
and what you said had been the un-
precedented response OF the public
and the requests that followed for
copies of it. We know that there
did exist that early q tremendous sup
port for proposals to prepare our Ma
tion against that day when what
Bryan called 1.-The Nations of Eternal
War" would be beckoning us to an
other war feast on soil and in water
thousands OF miles away from home.
But however large We then found
public interest in the issue of neu-
trality, the fact had to be acknowl-
edged that the woods we're full Of
critics; that public opinion was still
largely pressured by the thought that
war was an inevitable thing, and that
1t was wasteful to expend energy
looking for way for us to avoid wars
when they came to the world again.
Numbered then on few fingers were
the voices raised In public in support
Of the feasibility or promise Of sue
cessfully working out a policy of neu-
trality that might save us from recur-
renee of an unhappy. Improbable.
futile effort.
Interest In Neutrality.
How different today! Many are the
voices OF leaders urging the adoption
Of a strong neutrality policy. Ever
greater is the force Of popular de-
mand that we be uncompromising in
the writing OF q policy which will
afford the maximum Of protection
against our country being coaxed, led,
bribed or goaded into more foreign
war. Heartening indeed is the trend
of thought today upon this issue. It
would seem to be the forerunner of
great progress in congressional halls
this Winter.
But several have been my encoun-
ters with those who think they see
shape being given to carefully laid
plan to break down and destroy this
powerful public sentiment by trying
to discredit individuals and break the
confidence Of the people in their
thought that there would be strength
in a genuine neutrality policy. BY
poisoning and binding us to the
knowledge which experience has given
us As q guide, some may hope to de-
stroy . purpose that might upset
some selfish plans. Significant. in
deed. are some Of the things to be
observed in this hour.
For example: Certainly the threat
and danger of another European war
is greater today than 1t was 1t any
time prior to Sarajevo in 1914. This
threat has . natural tendency to
cause Americans to desire installation
of the fireproof doors Of neutrality
with the least possible delay. war
threatens! Let us be sure to provide
our policy Of neutrality before war
comes. lest We find ourselves In the
same predicament We were in 1914,
when We concluded that to write .
policy Of neutrality. after war had
come. was not possible without SEEM
ing to be unneutral to one side in that
war! Write the neutrality laws now
while there Is yet time. That is the
urge upon people today. Against that
attitude come the urginss Of some
that there really Is no serious danger
of war. Is 1t the intent to lull US to
StCCP, w ullVC, uS lEUll OuE COuTSc
of action to stay out Of war? One
wonders!"
Temporary Policy Failures.
Again, in evidence of q possibly
concerted program against genuine
neutrality, one finds q growing ten
dency in some quarters to discount
neutrality as an influence to prevent
trouble for our country. There are
those who would discredit such policy
as is already on the statute books,
pointing out that the law had no
effect in the recent shipping of arms
to Spain. Ineffective" say writer's
concerning the entire neutrality
policy. because Congress failed to
take in the possibility of civil war
as we'll as Of wars between nations!"
It Is sad to think that some have
listened and nodded heads In approval
Of such doctrine. when. As q matter
Of fact, none contended that the tenn
porary law of neutrality was anything
more than the beginning-albeit .
good beginning-Of a larQer policy.