Evening star., 1939-12-01
Roosevelt
Continued From First Page.)

him not only from attending the
Army Navy football game at Phila-
delphia tomorrow, but also from
going to Hyde Park, N. Y. later.
He plans to discuss the situation
not only with State Department ad-,
visers, he indicated today, but also
with congressional leaders. Chair
man Pittman of the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee called at the
| White House today.
! Addressed to the two governments
last night after an hours conference
at the White House among Mr.
Roosevelt. Secretary of State Hull
and Hjalmar Procope, Finnish Min
lister to the United States. the plea
against unrestricted war from the
air was worded almost identically
with that dispatched to five other
European nations last September /.
To Moscow and Helsinki. Presi-
dent Roosevelt cabled as follows last
night:
THE ruthless bombing from the
air of civilians in unfortified centers
of population during the course of
hostilities which have ragged in vari-
GUS quarters of the earth during the
past ew years-which has resulted
in the manning and in the death
of thousands of defenseless men,
women and children-has sickened
the hearts of every civilized man and
woman and has profoundly shocked
the conscience of humanity.
IF resort is had to this form of
inhuman barbarism during the pc
riod of the tragic conflagration with
which the world is now confronted,
hundreds 0. thousands of innocent
human beings who are not even re-
motely participating in hostilities,
will lose their lives.
II am, therefore, addressing this
appeal to the Soviet government
diminish government in the message
of HelsinkD, as I have to govern
ments which have been engaged in
general hostilities publicly to affirm
its determination that its armed
forces shall in no event, and under
no circumstances, undertake the
bombardment from the air of ci-
william populations or of unfortified
cities, upon the understanding that
these same rules of warfare will be
scrupulously observed by all of their
opponents.
II request an immediate reply"
Reply May Be Delayed.
With Finland possessed of no more
than 100 or 200 fighting planes at
best, little doubt was felt that
she would acquiesce to any re-
quested restriction on her aerial
tactics. Reports that the Finnish
cabinet had resigned and that
new government is being formed
might delay the formal reply, how
ever.
AS for Russia, on whom the real
burden of the appeal falls, frequent
reports already had been received
that Soviet planes had dropped
bombs on unfortif1ed and undefend-
ed Finnish communities.
In fact, while Mr.. Roosevelt's ap-
peal was being made public here,
the State Department was re-
ceiving from Minister H. F.
Arthur Schoenfeld report that Is
Russian planes had raided Helsinki
in the immediate vicinity of the
American Legation about pm. yes
terday, Finnish time. Reporting
that buildings were af1re within
three blocks of the legation, Mr..
Schoenfeld said he was setting up
emergency headquarters at the
Badgrankulla Hotel, about 10 miles
out of the apital city, and that the
legation personnel had suffered no
casualties.
With an estimated strength Of
some 1000 planes, the Russian air
force obviously would meet little re-
ssstance to any determined cam
paign for destruction of Finnish
cities.
Thus far, no formal state Of
| war has been declared by either