Evening star., 1940-10-23
Peace Pledge
ACrueI
Deception
No Candidate
Can Promise for
Other Nations
BY JAY FRANKLIN.

BY JAY. FRANKLIN.
For any political candidate to say,
IF I'm elected, I shall never lead
my country into war" is cruel de-
ception. For any political candidate
to charge that his opponent is "a
man of war" is irresponsible.
War is no formal contract between
nations. 1t takes two to keep the
peace, but only one to start war.
Poland did not want war in 1899.
Neither Norway nor Finland, Hol-
land nor Belgium wanted war. War
came to them just the same, as war
is coming to the Balkans and the
Near East War may come to Amer
lea and may come in the twinkling
of an eye, regardless of what the
American people, the Congress,
President Roosevelt or Mr.. Willkie
may desire. Can Mr.. Willkie prom
ise for Japan, Italy or Germany?
Can President Roosevelt guarantee
that things will not happen which
will lead our people to demand war?
Can we be sure of the good will of
others? Can we vouch for our own
self-restraint if things of value to
us are attacked or menaced?
1t is equally futile to condemn a
man for his relative experience of
war. Only brave handful of those
who served in the recent struggle in
/ Spain. only those Americans who
have volunteered to serve with the
. British know modern war.
Willkie No War Expert.
Mr.. Willkie served as an officer,
not as a private, in the last war. He
never reached high rank and did
not see action-and in cases the
military tactics of the last war are
as obsolete as the arquebus and the
man-at-arms. Since then he has
had no chance to study military
science and his most conspicuous
/ public activity prior to his nominal
ton was his opposition to the Ma
tion's No. ! defense project in the
Tennessee Valley. He has probably
learned a good deal since then. but
he cannot qualify as an expert on
war.
/ President Roosevelt was Assistant
/ Secretary of the Navy during the
last war. He organized supplies so
we'll that President Wilson had to
force him to release material signed
up for the Navy. He is credited with
the pushing through the North Sea
mine barrage after the British ad-
miralty had said it was impossible,
and with instituting the convoy sys-
tenn. He actually saw action with
naval artillery on the Western
Front but could not qualify as an
expert. However, it is a fact that
he found the Navy neglected in 1888
and built it up as rapidly as Con-
/ gress would allot funds for that
/ purpose. He is accused of failing
! to Mechanic our Army at the same
time, but it seems clear that mech
alized equipment built in 1888 would
Rave become obsolete or worn out
by 1910 and would not have been
replaced, since Congress celebrated
the advent of the blitzkrieg this
spring by reducing naval appropria-
tions.
Defense Funds Gain Steadily.
Under Mr.. Roosevelt and despite
resistance in Congress, defense ap-
preparations have risen steadily from
s633 900, 900 in 1888 to s875, 900 900
in 1887 and then skyrocketed to the
gigantic figures Of the present multi
billion dollar total defense" pro-
gram.
Mr.. Roosevelt continually warned
the country of the growing dangers
from abroad. Mr.. WILKES party
steadily denied the existence of the
danger and showed by their votes
in Congress that they did not be-
lieve it existed. A majority of the
G. o. P. members in both House
and Senate voted against the 1898
bill to increase the Navy by 20 per
cent, against revision of the Neutral
ity Act, against the National Service
Act, while a majority of the Repub-
licans in the House voted in favor
of the Ludlow constitutional amend
ment for national plebescite before
America could legally wage war.
This proposal did not reach the
Senate but it just goes to show the
utter lack of realism on the part
of Mr.. Wilkes party toward the
spllt-second timing and undeclared
wars of the present totalitarian sys-
tenn in the Eastern hemisphere.
Mr.. Willkie himself knows better
and he is well vouched for as a stu
dent of history under the tuition of
his friends, Irita Van Doen and
Dorothy Thompson of the New York
Herald-Tribune. President Roose-
welt is also student of history, par
ticularly of American naval history,
and is one of the few Americans of
whom it can truthfully be said that
he really understands the nature
and meaning of sea power.
The purpose of our policy toward
this present war is not only to de-
fend ourselves from attack and our
land from invasion. 1t is to preserve
the value of the world as a whole,
of the oceans as highways between
continental economic areas and
markets and to use all appropriate
and efficient methods to prevent the
oceans from becoming the bars of
a North American prison or the ap-
proaches for hostile force.
Until we understand this and until
we understand that it is folly to
await invasion or to scorn the aid
of allies who may save us the trouble
and pain of fighting with our own
forces on our own soil, American
public opinion will be shamefully
confused and shamelessly misled on