Evening star., 1940-01-04

should be the
inter ational DAVID Lawrence.
policy of the United States in q
time Of world war.
The communication was hardly
neutral in spirit because it was a
plain statement of the belief OF
many Americans that the Nazi
government has been the aggressor
In the war. Likewise, it was a
denunciation of the totalitarian
type of government, with the COM
ment that America could not be
unaffected by the existence IN the
world at the same time of such
despotism.
Mr.. Roosevelt took pains to in
dicate that he does not believe the
United States should send troops
overseas or become entangled IN
foreign alliances but his words were
so carefully chosen that foreign
observers will not fail to infer that
he thinks America some day might
do everything except participate in
military way to aid the cause OF
democracy.
A Passage for Attention.
Perhaps the President did not
intend his remarks to be so con-
strued, but there is one passage,
which will attract wide attention IN
this respect. 1t reads:
81 can understand the feelings OF
those who warn the Nation that
they will never again consent TO the
sending of American youth to fight
on the soil Of Europe. But, as l
remember, nobody has asked them
to consent-for nobody expects such
an undertaking.
THE overwhelming majority OF
our fellow citizens do not abandon
In the slightest their hope and ex-
pectation that the United States
will not become involved in military
participation"
But will America become involved
in any other kind of participation?
In a sense every nation which con-
tinues to trade with the belllgerents
Is involved in the war But in re-
cent months British and French OBJ
servers have said again and again
that they did not expect, no matter
how badly their fortunes turned in
the war, to see America come to their
rescue with troops. There has. on
the other hand, been recognition
abroad of the possibility that the
United States might come to the
financial aid of the allies or extend
credits.
This is a problem of the future,
however, which nobody can foresee
at the moment, especially since the
allies are by no means on the losing
side of the game so far as the war
to date is concerned and their po-
tential resources are admittedly
greater than those of the Germans.
Hints Moral Support.
What Mr.. Roosevelt's message
does. however is to express in an
implicit rather than in an explicit
sense the belief that the President
has concerning the overwhelming
moral support which the American
people in his judgment have for
the allied cause.
The fact that so much of the mes
sage was devoted to denunciatlon
of the philosophy of force which
brought on the war, and that en-
phasis was placed on the need for
worldwide recognition of freedom
of speech and of the press and of
religious worship served to confirm
the evident purpose of the Presi-
dent to make the German people
realize, if they ever see the message,
that Americas sympathies are with
democracy as against autocracy.
Again and again there are refer
ences in Mr.. Roosevelt's message to
the negotiations for peace which in
evitably must come some day. The
statement that the United States
may become healing force and help
Tighten the troubles of the world, y
or that America may take her role
as "a potent and active factor in
seeking the re-establishment OF
peace" will be regarded as an ex-
preston of what Mr. Roosevelt may
yet hope to accomplish before the
ending of his career in public serv-
ice
Certain Freedoms Essential"
Would the allies as condition of
peace take their cue from Mr.
Roosevelt's message? He stated q
possible war aim thus:
"Of course, the peoples of other
nations have the right to choose
their own form of government. But
we in this Nation still believe that
such choice should be predicated on
certain freedoms which we think
are essential everywhere. We know
that we ourselves will never be
wholly safe at home unless other
governments recognize such free
doms."
If Britain and France should re-
quire as prerequisite to peace that
the peoples of Central Europe be
emancipated from dictatorship. they
will be able to point to Mr.. Roose-
velt's message of January 3, 1910 as
. historic precedent for their con-
tentions concerning a true basis for
peace. For Mr.. Roosevelt has said
in another way what President Will
son said in 1917, namely, that the
world must be made safe for democ-
racy by the concerted action of de-
Ynocracies everywhere.