Evening star., 1939-09-01
Wunton War

War has broken out. Warsaw, Kra-
COW and other Polish cities were
bombed during the night and early
today by German aircraft, and pre-
sumably other hostilities are now in
progress. In a speech to his puppet
Reichstag this forenoon Chancellor
Hitler made what amounts to a
declaration of war.
The fat is at length irrevocably in
the fire. The Reich has assumed re-
sponsibility for plunging Europe
perhaps the whole world-into bath
of blood and tears. No man alive to-
day can remotely predict the end
It will be one of the miracles of all
time If the German rulers escape a
verdict Of history that will eternally
condemn them to obloquy.
That verdict will be the more COM
plete because the Nazi air terror was
unleashed at the very moment diplo-
matte negotiations for settlement of
the German-P Polish dispute were sup
posed still to be in progress. Only
yesterday Hitler had made public
sixteen-point program which, on its
face, purported to be an eleventh.
hour expression Of German willing
ness to find bloodless solution. 1t
called for the outright cession Of
Danzig and a plebiscite for the Cor
ridor. Exactly what diplomatic ac-
ton then ensued is momentarily not
clear, but, learning that Britain,
France and Poland found unac-
ceptable a settlement" which auto
matically gave Germany what she
mainly wanted, Hitler appears with
out further ado to have decided to
resort to arms. The Reichstag was
summoned after the guns had begun
to thunder and to it today Der Fueh-
rer stated the Reich's alleged justi-
f1cation for going to war.
The Chancellor Illuminated in IA
miliar tone, pitched primarily in the
key that Poland, not Germany, had
precipitated the final crisis by mobi-
lization and other acts of hostile in
tent. Germany, therefore, Hitler
said, was meeting force with force"
after having tried by every peace
full means to avert the catastrophe
of war. Danzig and the Corridor are
German" he declaimed; that the
several proposals he put forth ami
cably to restore them to their right
full place" within the Reich had been
rejected" Poland had first proved
obstinate and then brought pressure
on Danzig. Matters, against the
Reich's will, had reached point at
which only resort to force would sat
isfy German honor and preserve vital
German interests. Meanwhile, Goer-
ing's guns began to bark over Poland,
beginning the new world war amid
conditions, which, unless checked,
threaten to turn it into the most
terrible armed conflict in history.
To prevent hostilities from becom-
Ing converted into such an inhuman
holocaust, the President of the
United States has acted with COM
mendable promptness and appropri-
ate energy. Having heard by long
distance telephone from Ambassador
Bullitt at Paris that Warsaw, Kracow
and other Polish communities were
being bombed, Mr.. Roosevelt at four
thirty o'clock this morning directed
the State Department to address, in
his name, a moving appeal to the
governments of Germany, Italy, Po-
land, Great Britain and France to
refrain from aerial bombardment of
civilian communities within any of
the countries now involved in the
horror that has overtaken Europe.
The President emphasized the
ruthless bombing from the air of
civilians" who are helpless against
such attack. That type of warfare,
WAAASAA Aioo bSCll Wd5Co III val lOuS
quarters of the earth during the past
few years Gin Spain and China), he
said, had resulted "in the manning
and in the death of thousands of
defenseless men, women and chill
dren," had "sickened the hearts of
every civilized man and woman" and
profoundly shocked the conscience
of humanity"
The President voices the ardent
expectation that "if resort is had to
this form of inhuman barbarism
during the period of the tragic con-
Migration with which the world is
now confronted hundreds of thou
sands OF innocent human beings who
have no responsibility for, and who
are not even remotely participating
IN the hostilities which have now
broken out, will lose their lives"
Mr.. Roosevelt's ringing message,
which, it goes without saying, speaks
the mind of the whole American
people at this cataclysmic moment,
ends with request for an imme-
diate reply"
Hitler has chosen. He has ven