Evening star., 1940-06-17

Cne u n I DAVID Lawrence.
States Senate and House of Repre-
sentatives, openly attacks Britain
and France in a news release issued
today on the subject of war debts
of the last European war, but sig
nificantly refrains from attacking
Germany for having failed to pay
her war debts either to the United
States or the Allies.
1t may not be generally realized,
but Germany repudiated her debt
to the United States growing out
of costs assessed against her by a
treaty she signed. The debt agree
ments which were defaulted by
England and France were no more
international agreements than were
those of the German government.
But it will seem odd to many
Americans that a group formally
proclaimed as Make Europe Pay
Her War Debts Committee" should
be operating at this time, issuing
statements and carrying on an at
tack against the Allies. There were
times when the subject of war debts
was before the American people for
consideration, but it would hardly
seem to be reflection of the way
the American people feel today for
q committee drawing on members
of the House and Senate to be
harassing the Allies before the court
of American opinion in the midst
of battle abroad for the life of
democracy itself.
Called Shylock Role.
When France and Britain are
fighting with their backs to the
wall, when hundreds of thousands
of lives have been lost and sacri-
fees far beyond any possibility of
material compensation are being
made, why should any one who has
been elected to the Office of Senator
or Representative put the United
States in the role of Shylock de-
manding his pound of flesh?
There is only one charitable ex-
planation. The professional organ
izers of such groups may be using
the names of members of Congress
without the latter being alert to the
uses made thereof.
The danger in such organizations
Is not the harm they themselves do
because American opinion today is
preponderantly sympathetic with the
Allies and certainly not with Hitler
or Hitlerism, but that antagonisms
are aroused which bring forth ex-
treme measures. In England and
France Fascist or Communist SYM
pathlzers in the Parliaments have
been imprisoned or removed from
office. In each case public opinion
would permit no break inside the
ranks. Democracy allows freedom
OF speech and expression except
when war is on. Even in America,
In the last Wer, extreme measures
were taken which were regretted
afterwards, but the provocation to
such measures was to be found in
the arrogant disregard of national
policy by hyphenated Americans and
native-born Americans who had SYM
pathies with the enemies of the
United States.
EXdctIy Wnat NaZ1S want.
All moves being made today to
harass England and France and to
make American public opinion un-
friendly to the Allies are exactly
what the Nazis want America to do.
What is puzzling is that conscien-
tious Americans who have been
elected to Congress would not see
they are being used as pawns in
program leveled at the Allied gov
ernments and their peoples.
To all this the answer is made
by the anti-Ally members of Congress
that British propaganda is being
used to drag America into the war
as if America cannot see her own
relation to world in which British
sea power is defeated. The truth is
American military unpreparedness
today is directly traceable to those
in the American Government who
pooh-poohed all war preparations
or the chances even of war breaking
out in Europe and thus kept America
from building up her own defenses.
Were these men innocent tools of
the Nazis? They certainly were not
directly or indirectly inspired to
their views by any foreign govern
ment or agents. The usual tech
nique of the Nazis may not be
generally realized. The Nazis find
Intermediates two and three times
removed from governmental officials
or legislators, and thus in our own
case Americans with American
names and American background
but who themselves are British
or anti-French. These persons keep
the agitation going and bring influ-