The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1940-07-25
COMMENT ON WORLD
EVENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.


ing a huge national defense program
because the production of weapons OF
death and destruction gives them any
joy; they are pushing the program be-
cause they are convinced they must
arm strongly to survive in world
menaced by ruthless and unprincipled
power.
The very fact that the nation has
set itself to do distasteful job indi-
Gates a determination, state of mind
that will see the thing through; that
will insist that the program be finished
regardless of the cost.
These were thoughts inspiring a rec
ent radio address of Senator James M.
Mead of New York, long staunch
friend of organized labor Mead has
no love of militarism and what goes
with it but he recognizes facts when
he sees them and he pointed them out
in his speech, which undoubtedly re-
fleets the opinion of the overwhelming
mass of Americans.
X X x
Senator Mead's speech could be
studied with profit in Berlin, Rome,
Moscow and Tokyo. A better compre-
hension in the capitals of the totali-
tartan nations of the present temper
of the United States would result from
the study.
The defense program, Mead said, is
an unhappy one for the American
people. Building tanks and guns, as
sembling gas masks and fighting
planes and anti-aircraft guns, are re-
pulsive to the peaceful mind" he added.
Then he went on to say:
owe are now embarking upon such
a program. This is not our way Of
life, but it is the necessary way of
life under the code of force and ag-
gression which afficts the civilized
world today.
"We are going to keep Europe out
of America; we are going to say to
those who are unfriendly to our sys-
tenn Of government, that this will be a
most unwelcome country to visit if
they come here with aggression or
sabotage in their hearts.
"When peace returns, our democra-
cy, with it's social standards; it's eco
nomic opportunities; its freedom of
speech, of the press, and of religion,
must prove the guide and example for
other nations to follow"
X X
With the cessation of practically all
imports to Denmark following the
Nazi occupation, the question of how
to obtain sufficient fuel for the COM
ing winter has become acute. Den
marks normal coal consumption is g.
100000 tons per year. Most of this
coal was imported from Great Britain
"a source which is now, of course,
completely cut off.
However, the Danes, in their own
resourceful way, have set about solv-
ing the pressing problem; one of the
many under the German occupation,
Experience gathered from the last war
has shown the Danes that, in an emer-
gency, their own peat bogs which are
scattered over different parts of the
country, can be utilized to produce
peat as a substitute for coal. A GER
tain amount, running up to about 500,-
600 tons, is produced in Denmark an
nually under normal conditions. But
this summer the production of peat
has been speeded up to such an extent
that it will, according to reports, reach
100000 tons before the end of the
summer. Cutting of the peat can only
take place in the warm summer months
when weather permits of the drying
process which often requires several
days and even longer if the weather
is damp. The peat is used mainly as
fuel in private homes where, even now,
fuel is strictly rationed.