Evening star., 1939-12-02
HeIsinki
Continued From First Page)

6eISInkI
Continued From First Page)
whole country is ready to fulfill its
duty unto death.
This war is nothing but the con.
tinuance and the final act in our
war for liberty. We fight for our
homes, creed and fatherland."
Won't Surrender, Says Premier.
Baron Mannerheim's appeal for
the confidence of the nations armed
forces came after the head of Fin
lands new government, established
yesterday to replace the regime
which Russia bitterly accused of pro-
voking the undeclared war, had an
nounced the nation was ready to
negotiate for peace, but never would
surrender its independence.
Ominous quiet enveloped the cap
ital after two days of bombing and
Firms feared it was only lull be-
fore new attacks.
Firemen and police fought fires in
the city and searched for bodies in
the twisted wreckage of apartment
buildings. Government spokesmen
said many students of the wrecked
Helsinki Institute of Technology
were missing and feared more bodies
would be recovered from the four
block area of ruins.
Two professors were known to
have been killed when the institute
was destroyed by Russian bombs.
Business was almost at a standstill
in Helsinki. Only few stores were
operating. =
An air raid alarm was sounded
this morning but no planes appeared
over the city and an all clear signal
quickly followed.
Willing to Negotiate.
In a speech broadcast to the
United States while his country
stoically counted its dead from re-
peated Russian air raids, Premier
Risto Ryti declared:
"We are willing to negotiate re-
garding every issue that may arise
between two neighboring nations,
but we will not consent to barter
away our independence, nor our
right to decide our own affairs"
Ryti, whose speech was read by
an assistant, asserted, ours is a
struggle of peace-loving people for
everything that they hold dear in
life.
THE whole world is our witness
that this defensive struggle is JUS
titled and is in keeping with every
law that governs the existence of
nation. For this reason, the
people fight with a pure conscience"
were appealing to justice and
The Finnish people, he declared,
humanity" to demand for them
selves the right to continue in peace
and complete political independence
to labor for the welfare of
their country"
They are aware" he continued,
that they are defending the same
values which inspire all the civilized
nations of the world"
THE Finnish people are bound by
unbreakable ties to the nations
which have made up what we know
as Western culture" he said.
Wants Friendly Cooperation.
He added then that Finland want
ed mo more than friendly co-opera-
ton" and that even though "all
the values on which our lives are
based are imperiled,' the people
considered the maintenance of their
independence duty toward the
whole of mankind"
1--WE are not complaining; from
one standpoint, we are proud of our
position. The Finnish people have
dwelt for IS centuries in their beau
tiful country, cleared its soil for
cultivation and created in close CO.
operation with all other civilized ma
tions of the world a culture that is
only now giving Finland her
place among the company Of
nations
"You in America" Ryti said in the
beginning, have never lived under
this distress, for which God be
thanked.
THE experiences we are undergo
ing now are such that they make me
hope that you will never undergo
them. -" Our people recoil in hor-
ror from the scenes - but are not
afraid, because their conscience is
clear.
I'VE, as you know, belong to
the nations which most value
peace ="
Insist Terijoki Still Held.
A proclamation from Moscow. an
nouncing a new Finnish peoples
government" had been established
at Terijoki under leadership of Left
ist Leaders Otto Kuusinen and
Mauri Rosenberg brought from
official HelsinN circles the statement
Finnish troops still were in posses
sion of Terijoki.
Finland will try to reach an agree
ment with Soviet Russia "if possible"
the new Finnish foreign minister,
Vaino Tanner, said last night, but,
he added firmly, "our aim is to de-
fend our independence and our
safety"
II can understand II you are
astonished that the government