Evening star., 1941-04-04
Urges Conveys to
Help Democrocies
Writer Says Americans
Ought Not to Fear
TotuIituriuns

| To the Editor Of The Star:
The time has arrived when the Amer
ican people, the great dictator on this
side of the Atlantic, must decide whether
or not to use part of our Navy to convoy
British or American vessels to the en-
battled democracies to make effective the
| terms of the Lease-Lend Act. Our poffcy
Of aid to Britain and her Allies now is
| fixed, and 1t is only problem of how to
make that policy most ef1icacious. We
are engaged in turning the vast produc-
tive machinery of the Western world
into an armament factory for democracy,
and 1t is our duty to see that our products
are placed where they can best be used
against our avowed enemies. However,
to pass a measure like the lease-lend bill,
transform our plants and factories for
armament production and then go about
our business as if the job were done
is not enough.
We have termed this war war of
production" of armament. That is a
mistaken term. 1t is war Of produc-
ton, delivery and use of armament,
and unless the implements of warfare
which we manufacture are delivered
where and when most needed the whole
venture will be failure. But In this we
cannot afford to fail. We expect Britain,
China and Greece to fly our planes, drive
our tanks and fire our guns upon the field
of battle, and the peoples of these nations
fully expect to do this for their own
salvation as we'll as for the preservation
of the way of life which both they and
we are resolved to maintain. But unless
the men Of those armies have the tools
in their hands when their use Is de-
manded, our production no matter how
vast, is a vain and meaningless thing.
Even $1,000 100000 worth of supplies is
useless on the bottom of the Atlantic
Ocean.
We know and appreciate this fact. The
American people could not be so foolish
as to fail to perceive such obvious truth.
There is only one thing which makes us
hesitate to take the necessary step and
that is the thing which has kept us
paralyzed for almost a year. What is
1t? 1t is fear, nothing more, nothing
less. We fear that to convoy our ships
or those Of Britain will be taken to be
an act of war But whom do we fear?
Surely not Mussolini, who, though he
kept the world, ourselves included,
shaking at the knees for a decade by
his continual sword-rattling, now is SO
busy retreating on the Albanian front
and in Africa that he has no further
time for balcony exhibitions. Surely not
the japanese in the Pacific, who have
retired into bewlldered silence since we
called their bluff after the signing of the
Rome Berlin-Tokio alliance. With the
aid Of the British fleet at Singapore, we
could slap them down at one blow should
they desire to regard what we are doing
an act of war In fact, two or three
good embargoes, which should have been
in effect a year or more ago, would put
Nippon wellnigh out of business.
Whom, then, do we fear? Well, to be
frank Hitler is the man. DR.. Goebbels
has so thoroughly propagandized the
world with the terror-inspiring attributes
of his chief that even the American
people are afraid to act. In fact, the
campaign OF terror which Hitler has
waged has been almost 100 per cent
effective so far. Almost. but not quite.
England has not succumbed to it, and
she will not do so, lease-lend or no lease
lend. And now even little Yugoslavia,
right under the iron heel of the German
Army, raises her hands to resist Further
more, if Hitler does decide that con-
voying our vessels across the waters is
an act of war there Is very little he
can do about it. He cannot get at us
as long as there is a British soldier
under arms on the continent of Europe
or in the British Isles True. he has
threatened to torpedo any ship which
we may send across the Atlantic, but
what will we be doing while his sub
marines and mosquito boats are clearing
for action? Perhaps our battleships, now
the mightiest in the world, could do
little cunning on their own account.
II we hesitate on account of fear let
us be assured that fear Is not alto
gether confined to the American people
Fear is q universal emotion and exists
to some degree in all mankind. Perhaps
even now while the hum of our industry
rises to 2. mighty cadence, the noise of 1t
reachs Eitler's ears and brings pallor to
his cheeks. FOLGER TOWNSEND.
Lenoir, N. C.