Evening star., 1939-02-04
President Asked
10 LET Senators
Tell Of Farley
Bridges Demands
They Be Free to Give
Version of Talk
Ey the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
President Roosevelts denial that
he looked on the Rhine as Americas
frontier brought a Republican de-
mand today that he let Senators tell
their version of what he said at
secret conference on foreign affairs
last Tuesday.
Senator Bridges. Republican, of
New Hampshire, one of the Military
Affairs Committee members who at
tended the conference and pledged
secrecy, made the demand after the
President had disputed some ac-
counts of the meeting and had
accused some legislative and news
paper owner agitators of misrepre-
senting his point of view.
Immediately after the conference,
word leaked out that MI. Roosevelt
had told the Senators America was
selling military airplanes to France
because helping the democratic ma
tions of the world was part of the
present American foreign policy. One
Senator said he understood the Pres
ident to have said Americas frontier
was now the Rhine. but some others
denied he had made such a state
ment.
German-Italian Press Bitter.
The press in Germany and Italy
reacted furiously to the first re-
ports of Tuesdays meeting, Italian
papers making such bitter personal
attacks on the President that the
United States Embassy in Rome
asked the Italian government yester-
day for an explanation. And con-
gressional critics cried out that the
President was leading the country
along the road to war.
At his press conference yesterday,
Mr.. Roosevelt stamped as "delib-
crate lie" the report that he had
talked of the Rhine as this coun-
try's frontier, and he dictated a
terse foreign policy statement which
began:
I'VE are against any entangling
alliances, obviously
Talking with reporters later, Sem
ator Bridges declared:
"As long as the President has
stated his views of what took place
there, think that it is only fair
that the members of the commit
tee be permitted to state their
views. This is question that may
involve the destiny of America and
millions of Americans"
Pittman Sees No Danger.
Chairman Pittman Of the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee, who
attended the White House press
conference yesterday, contended the
statement there should absolutely
remove any fear that our President
is going down the road to war"
The Nazi-controlled press in Ger
many refused to accept Mr.. Roose-
velt's explanation that the report
he had said this countrys frontier
was on the Rhine was lie.
"Intrinsically, it is of small i'm
portance whether the President
actually used those words" said
Lokal-Anzeiger. He must have
meant something like it or else
American papers could hardly have
been so unanimous on the subject y
National Zeitung of Essen, the
mouthpiece of Hermann Wilhelm
Goering, said the President OBJ
viously had received a bad fright
from the reaction to the reports.
In London, one diplomat COM
mented that Mr.. Roosevelt'S out
spoken sympathy for democracies is
enough at present to put brake
on the aggressive policies of Ger
many and Italy
Planes Leave for Britain.
Meanwhile, one of the controver-
sial plane sales TO the European
democracies-an order of 200 bomb
ing planes for the British govern
ment-reached the stage of first
shipments from New York.
At his press conference yesterday
Mr.. Roosevelt declared there had
been no change in traditional Amer
ican foreign policy and there was
not going to be any change.
He gave the press representatives
this statement of policy:
Il. We are against any entangling
alliances, obviously.
%. We are in favor of the main
tenance of world trade for every
body--all MISUNDERSTANDING our
selves.
"3. We are in complete sympathy
(See FOREIGN, Page A-10)