Evening star., 1939-09-29

Ol IIelT kuOWu
Charles G. Ross. sympathies for
England and France, are not so
stanch against American involve
ment in the war as they should be.
Not to put too fine point upon it,
the administration is the object Of
distrust on the part of a great many
sincere people-people who, in many
cases, have been firmly with it on
domestic issues.
Unthlnkable though it is that Mr..
Roosevelt wants the United States
TO get into the war. there has un-
fortunately been enough of the
saber-rattling quality in certain Of
his acts and utterances, as we'll as in
those of some of his subordinates,
to give some color of justification to
the uneasiness in the present crisis.
Stand Against Dictators.
Mr.. Roosevelt has preferred to
take, from the beginning, a firm
stand against the relationships, be-
Ieving that such a stand was the
only one compatible with the dignity
and the conscience of this Nation
and the one, moreover best calcu-
lated to keep the United States out
Of trouble in the future. In this
belief he has had the support of Q
great part of the American public.
The proper quarrel with him, If
any, is on the ground that he has
been at times unduly impulsive and
dramatic. His recent proclamation
of a state of limited emergency is
a case in point. The effect of this
was only to heighten the jittery
feeling in the country.
Whether or not there are more
substantial grounds for distrust Of
Mr.. Roosevelt at this time, the fact
is that distrust exists; and this
fact must be reckoned with in the
current fight over neutrality.
Before me as I write is letter
from a thoughtful citizen of St.
Louis, Roosevelt adherent, who
has been disturbed by letter from
one Of the Washington agencies
which purport to give business men
inside information" on what is
going on at the Capital. This same
tipster letter is also the basis of
an article in the September 80 is
sue of the Socialist Call, the Of
flcial organ of the Socialist party
in the United States. The article
is headed with a banner line across
the top of the first page, War Is
Close, Business Is Told!" It says,
referring to the September is out
giving of the agency referred to,
that American business men have
received word through their usual
reliable sources that the adminis-
tration expects to take the country
into war very soon, perhaps by
January"
Solemn Talks Prevalent.
The Socialist Calls paraphrase
overstates in some degree-but not
by much-what the agency said,
but what it said was certainly cal
culated to alarm anybody not
thoroughly familiar with the back.
ground of events at Washington.
The agency said, as quoted by the
| Call and by my correspondent, that
in high official circles there was
solemn talk of the possibility" Of
our being at war by January. It
went on to expatiate on this pos
sibility in way that led the CORE.
| spondent to say that "either this
agency is misrepresenting the ad-
ministration or the administration
is misrepresenting itself to the pub
lie. One or the other should be
smoked out"
Now it is doubtless true that
around the date in question there
was in high official quarters solemn
| talk" about the possibility of our
being in the war by January. There
was solemn talk to the same effect
in high business quarters, in barber
shops and in country stores. The
information that high officials were
talking about the possibility of our
early involvement in war could have
been read in any daily newspaper.
OF course some were talking about it.
Others could have been quoted as
saying We were not going into the
war. Smoked out" the agency could
easily establish the accuracy Of its
information. AS for the implications
which the agency suggests are
Observation-Disclosures one takes any
stock in them or not must depend
on ones belief or disbelief in the
good faith of the administration.
Must Prove No War Party
The point of this discussion IS
that suspicion exists. It is beside
the point that much of it rests on
grounds no more tangible than those
| the tipster service was able to cite.
In the fight over neutrality legis-
lation, the administration is con-
fronted with the task of proving to
the country, insofar as possible
that II there is a war party" in its
ranks, 1t is party without influence
on the conduct Of our foreign re-
lations.
That the administration leaders
see the importance of this task is
evident. 1t is significant that Mr..
Roosevelt has announced the early
dissolution of the War Industries
Board; that in the feud in the War
Department between Secretary
Woodring and Assistant Secretary
johnson he seems to be inchning to-
ward Mr.. Woodring, or at least
away from Mr.. Johnson; that he has
shown himself willing to accept a
drastic curtailment of the tradi-
tional powers Of the executive in
foreign affairs.
In his speech to Congress opening
the special session and in all his
subsequent acts bearing on the neu-
trality issue, the President has pro-
vided evidence that he is conscious
of the distrust of him in some quar-
ters and is determined to wipe it out.
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