Evening star., 1939-12-20
(Thirty-Fourth of a Series. }
By w. l.. WHITE

| dELoINhl, dec. IA (By RadlO).
If we Americans want only to stay
out Of Europe's quarrels, govern our
selves, work In peace and freedom,
then Finland is the 49th American
State in all but language. Finland
I find as democratic as the Ameri-
can Midwest, with even fewer con-
trasts between. the rich and the
poor.
The last bombing of Helsinki was
week ago. Since then gray, low
hanging Arctic clouds have pro-
tected the area from sky death.
The city has been almost COM
pletely evacuated, however, in ex-
pectation of further bombing, which
might reduce Helsinki to a smolder-
ing gravel heap like Warsaw.
Helsinki's afraid blackout makes
Berlin's look like Coney Island on
Fourth of July night, as result
OF the magnificent voluntary and
democratic discipline of this tiny
united nation.
Finland is almost the only Euro
pean country today where no "black
bourse" operates. Prosperous Firms
have scorned suggestions that they
put their wealth into foreign cur
rency or remove it abroad. From
what I've seen, get the impression
that all classes of Firms would
really prefer to die fighting rather
than surrender, since they live
closest to Europe's great slave States
and know what freedom means.
Russia is Finland's closest neigh
Dor, OF course, but the most tangible
result before the present invasion
had been that the Finnish Com
munist party was laughed almost
out of existence years ago, and the
same thing has been true of Fascism
and Fascist parties.
I find Finland very like Mime
sofa in race as we'll as in physical
characteristics. The lakes and the
dense pine forests remind me of
nowhere so much as our Northwest.
The seat of the Finnish government
looks like any American statehouse
Helsinki itself is like any modern
sized American city of a hundred
thousand population.
Finlands little army of 100000
(little as European armies go, that
Isl is as democratic as Americas S
National Guard, and magnificently
trained to the Daniel Boone style of
fighting, except that it seems doubt
full if our Daniel Boone wore skis.
The soldiers make stands behind
huge barricades Of felled pines,
slowly falling back (when they do
fall back) from tree trunk to tree
trunk until the next barricade is
reached and another longer stand
| is made.
Each Finn in this way has, thus
far in the actual fighting, account
ed for at least so Russians, with
special attention being paid, of
course, to Bolshevik political COM
missars.
I would advise you to accept at
some discount, however, Finnish
stories of Russians locked up in
side their tanks. or killing dogs for
food, although it is undoubtedly
true that the Finnish army is better
fed, clad and trained for defensive
fighting than Russia, which has
only its 100000 reserves to make
up for that lack. Even without
help it appears that the Firms can
probably fight on until spring
making Stain pay a terrific price
in man power and materials for
victory.
Finland's chief danger appears to
lie in Russian mass bombing raids,
which may completely destroy rail
centers, important towns and prac-
tically wipe out organized civiliZa-
ton, making it impossible to keep
an adequate flow of food and NUM-
tions to Finland's little army.
Finland's greatest need is for more
anti-aircraft guns to knock the Rus
sian bombers out of the sky, about
500 pursuit planes to chase them
back to Russia and perhaps a few
bombers for raids on nearby Rus
sian rail and military centers.'
Landings by Russian naval par
ties on Finnish coast would be
surprising feat and is not expected,
since the Finnish coast defense
guns have been rated as probably
the best in the world But help
must come from the remainder of
the democratic world outside if Fin
land is to be protected against death
from the skies. In fact, it must
come if this 49th American State,
so like Michigan or Kansas or Mis-
souri, or Minnesota, can stand up
permanently to Stain and trade
punches with his 180,000,000 Rus
slams.
W D A in InIlieiana