Evening star., 1938-09-18

7 ONDON.--Should England fiit from
one frerzy Of war filters to another
or lean back and believe that all is
sweetness and light?
Press lords are hurting paper bombs at
each other.
Beaverbrook is Peter Pan" and "PanR-
loss"
Rothermere Is "a menace"
Camrose is "a pawn Of government pol
ICY"
Lord Astor and GeotIrey Dawson play
Whitehall's chips"
London's great newspapers are facing
both ways to the world crisis. The man on
the street is pulled in opposite directions
daily
Beaverbrook's powerful Express plumps
for isolation ard exudes confidence with
every edition.
Lord Camrose's solid Telegraph urges
caution and cooperation
Lord Rothermere's Daily Mail rails at the
czechs and declares Britain never will pop
cap over the European muss.
The Express says the News Chronicle
paints the news black. The News Chronicle
says the Express is too optimistic.
Labors Daily Herald chides both schools
and declares I'VE don't ogle our readers with
talk OF abounding prosperity when 5000 900
men, women and children in our midst
are living on unemployment pay and We
don't make their flesh creep unless there
are good. hard reasons for it."
The flash tabloids play up any scare that
makes a headline
Public Temper Cools.
August IS vas the day talked about in
whispers as the zero hour But August IS
has come and gone. The public temper over
the German maneuvers has cooled. The
school Of talk-more-peace less war is GAIN
ing converts daily, despite the most recent
scare fare-up.
vivid late chapter has been written be-
tween Lord Rothermere and Wickham
Steed, former editor of the Times.
steed charged that the burly, bulky, DO
tent brother OF the late Lord Northcliffe is
aiding to bring on war by his attitude to-
ward Czechoslovakia.
In an editorial appearing in the Daily
Mail under the caption How Long Shall
the Czechs Imperil Peace?" Rothermere
said:
If the question of the Czech minorities
were not settled to the complete satisfac-
tion of Germany by the end OF September
no astute observer of European affairs
would consider Czech independence to be
worth three months purchase.
THE Czechs have been the petty bullies
Of Central Europe long enough-the Czech
government will have rude awakening
if 1t imagines that Great Britain will even
Lift finger to save Czechoslovakia.
Steeds Analysis.
Steed, virile, 81 years old, white -goateed
free lance. who roved Europe for years as
star correspondent for "the Thunderer," ,"
said Rothermere was encouraging Germany
to attack Czechoslovakia.
Hitler must swallow the Czechs before
the Nazis can turn for a final reckoning
with Great Britain in their quest for
world mastery, Steed argued.
Here is the core of Steeds analysis:
Either we stand with France and other
friends against German domination of
Europe, while there is still time to avert
that domination and while we still have
friends, or We shall presently be con-
fronted with choice between abject sur
render to German mistress of the greater
part Of Europe and q desperate, friendless
fight for existence in which the odds would
be heavily against US"
Truculent Rothermere, 10 years old,
whose financial genius is credited with
much Of the Northclif1e eminence in jour-
nalism; did not pull his punch.
He reminded Steed that Great Britain,
instead Of being largely invulnerable as
she was In 1914, is. owing to the develop
ment of aircraft, the most vulnerable coun-
try in Europe"
And his last shell exploded this:
Il should like to impress it upon you
that the day Great Britain goes to war
in pursuit of some aim or design in Gen.
tral Europe, two or three Of our most i'm
portant dominions will declare their neu-
trality and by doing so will bring an i'm
mediate end to the British Empire"
0~CO COuAoCA.ottdCAcu Dy OcClAIlQ8 the
dominions would fight Ito resist an attack
upon the defenses of Great Britain and
upon the essentials of British freedom"
He reminded Rothermere that Great
Britains defensive frontier now Is not along
the Rhine. but on the C7echoslovakian
border.
Tomorrow it may be elsewhere" he said
"and the surest way to save ourselves from
having to defend it in arms anywhere Is to
have firm and strong purpose Of peace
and to dare to make it known"
Curly, Rothermere rejoined:
IT you or any one else are so foolish as
to. believe that Great Britain and her
dominions win fight for the Moscow-owned
Prague government you are laboring under
some strange delusion. Why should the
people of London and Manchester be
bombed to perpetuate the tyranny Of the
Czechs?"
With a personal jibe at each others
cerebral equipment the letter writing bar
rage lifted.