Evening star., 1938-09-26
America Speaks.

America Speaks.
sonal appeal for peace to Chancellor
a, Hitler. President Benes and the gov
ernments of Great Britain and France,
President Roosevelt has beyond all
shadow of doubt given expression to the
ardent longings of the American people
for bloodless solution of the crisis with
which Nazi aggression threatens Europe
- and the world. The appeal having been
issued at three o'clock this morning, it is
apparent that the President took his
dramatic action almost instantly after
word was flashed to Washington that
both the Czechs and France had rejected
= Hitler's final terms, including the re-
duction of Czechoslovakia to q third of
It's original size.
Prayers in the United States and else
where will be earnest that the plea does
not come too late. On Saturday there
was the startling announcement that
Hitler's "last word" to the Czechs, con-
veyed through his final interview with
Chamberlain, is that they are given
until October l to accept Germanys
conditions for the cession of the Sudeten
provinces. If the terms are rejected, the
implication is that the Nazi Army will
invade Czechoslovakia and force sub
mission upon its government.
, Mr.. Roosevelt seeks, on the eve of this
critical possibility, to stave off fate that
would be no less than annihilating for the
gallant little republic which came into
existence under American godfatherhood
at Versailles nineteen years ago. The
Presidents stirring remonstrance against
the horrors of modern war and his ad-
monition that no nation can escape
some measure of the consequences of
such a world CATASTROPHE are in line
not only with previous utterances of his
own on that subject-notably the Chi
cago quarantine" speech of October S.
1937-but they also correspond to the
fervid declarations which have emanated
at more recent intervals from Secretary
Hull. 1t was only a fortnight ago, on
the eve of the Czech crisis, that Mr. Hull,
In accepting Perus invitation to the
eighth Pan American Conference at
Lima, voiced the view that no nation
can avoid the fundamental issues raised
by such emergencies as have tangled
the worlds nerves for the past two weeks.
Because "the fabric of peace on the
continent Of Europe, if not throughout
the rest of the world, is in immediate
danger" President Roosevelt's message
states, "the consequences of its rupture
are incalculable." He points out that
while "the United States has no political
entanglements, and is caught in no mesh
Of hatred the traditional policy
of this country has been the furtherance
of international disputes by pacific
means" He registers his conviction
that all peoples under the threat of war
today pray that peace may be made
before, rather than after, war"
The President recalls the attention of
all concerned to 'the solemn obligation
voluntarily assumed by every civilized
nation of the world under the Kellogg
BRAND pact of 1928 to solve controversies
only by pacific methods" Mr. Roosevelt
informs embattled and embittered Europe
that in his judgment whatever may be
the differences in the controversy at
issue and however difficult of pacific
settlement they may be, there is no
problem so difficult or so pressing for
solution that it cannot be justly solved
by the resort to reason rather than by
the resort to force"
In particularly moving and signif1-
cant closing passage, the President, "on
behalf of the 100 millions of people
of the United States, and for the sake
Of humanity everywhere, most earnestly
appeals to you not to break of negotia-
tions looking to peaceful, fair and
constructive settlement of the questions
at issue. And force produces no solution
for the future good Of humanity"
1t is possible to read into Mr.. Roose-
velt's message an implication of his
readiness to lend the influence of the
United States and that of himself per-
sonally, to a plan for composing the
Czech-German imbroglio by arbitration.
The Benes government, after being con-
fronted with Hitler's first and somewhat
less harsh conditions, suggested some
form of international arbitrament. The
Nazi rejoinder to that and to the Czechs'
other proposals was the sitter terms
which der Fuehrer on Friday mid
night intrusted to the British Prime
Minister for transmission to Prague.
Should the German government reject
the Presidents plea for protraction of
negotiations beyond the invasion dead
line set for October l, it does not seem
remote from the realm of the thinkable
that the Washington government might
be impelled to resort to an additional
desperate attempt to preserve peace. It
might-and, in the Judgment of a good