Evening star., 1941-08-15
BY MAI. GEORGE FIELDING
ELIOT,

ELIOT.
The meeting of President Roose-
velt and Prime Minister ChurchiN
Is an event of truly historic i'm
portance. That Importance trans
cendS the details of what was said,
what was done, what was con-
certed. 1t lies primarily in the fact
that the free peoples have at long
last taken the offensive; they have
wrested the initiative from the
enemy; they have done something
which Hitler and Toxic did not
expect, upon which these aggrcssors
could not have calculated, the re-
suits Of which may well upset long
laid and well-oriented plans.
In total war, as in all war, in the
political field as in the military
field, the advantages of the often
slve are well attested by experience.
To compel your enemy to conform
to your move rather than Supinely
waiting his; to seize upon an op-
portunity and exploit it to your
gain, rather than to gather re-
your enemy from whatever quarter
1t may come: to make time serve
your purposes rather than allow
time to be the ally of your foe
these are the keys to victory, these
are the only means by which that
elusive goddess may be wooed and
won.
Hitler Had Two Aims.
Hitler has had a two-point pro-
gram for this year. Compelled to
start late, due to the Balkan COM
plications forced upon him by
Churchill, he has sought Cd to de-
feat Russia and relieve himself
of the threat of the Red Army; CD
to launch a mighty peace offensive
and relieve himself of the threat
OF American rearmament. The one
contributes to the other-that Is.
the Russian war contributes to
American confusion of thought and
so paves the way for the peace of
fensive, which is intended to check
the progress of the American arms
program, cut the ground from under
the British and secure Hitler a
breathing space in which to absorb
and organize Russian resources.
Unless the peace offensive is sue
cessful, however, the defeat of the
Russian armies will be of little
avail to Germany which must, in
the spring, face superior armament
In the west and which can hardly
now hope to complete the Russian
conquest and still have enough
good fighting weather left this year
to attempt the all-out attack on
Britain which would mean final
victory indeed.
1t is against the second part of
the German plan that the two lead
ers Of the English speaking free
peoples have struck a shrewd and
probably deadly blow. Consider
their statement of principles; they
seek no aggrandizement, territorial
or other. But they desire no ter
rltorlal changes that do not accord
with the freely expressed wishes of
the people concerned.
Germany Must DiSgorge Spoils.
In other words, if Germany wants
peace she must disgorge her spoils.
Sovereign rights and self-govern-
ment must be restored to those
forclbly deprived of them. 1t is not
for Germany to pick and choose.
TO say that this country she will set
free, and that she will continue to
enslave.
Trade and raw materials must be
equally accessible to all. No more
controlled commerce serving pohti-
cal ends; no more autarchy. To
agree to this would undermine the
foundation of the Nazi state.
Full collaboration between all
nations to improve economic con-
dltions, social standards, the posi-
ton of labor-Nazi-ism cannot live
In such an atmosphere.
Indeed the destruction of the Nazi
tyranny is specifically mentioned as
prerequisite to world of secur-
ity' and ominous to German ears
must be the clause about the free
dom OF the seas-for the sea is pri-
marily highway, and from time
lmmemorial, no highway maritime
or terrestrial has been free unless
adequately policed.
Use of Force Must End.
But the final clause is the real
heart OF the whole declaration. The
use OF force as a means of self
aggranoizement must end, Pending
better arrangements. we mean to
see that 1t does end. In other words
the world must be free of the threat
Of war for its spiritual good, but also
In the material field civilization
must put an end to wars of conquest
lest the genius of man be turned to
the destruction Of all that it has
built up through centuries of strug-
giles.
The vast power and resources of
the Engl1sh-speaking peoples, and
notably their command of the sea,
will therefore be used to repress the
immediate danger, to disarm the
sggressors, and to preserve order in
the world until the peoples can find
coiilC llCdllo VI "OI
problem of living together peaceably
on this planet.
And that is the end of the Ger
man peace offensive. Roughly speak
ing, Hitler had hoped for peace on
terms which would mean his with
drawal from western Europe, but
his continued grip on Eastern
Europe and the Balkans with
restoration of his lost colonies and
special privileges in the Mediter-
ranean area. He could then have
returned to his policy of piecemeal
aggression while preparing his vastly
increased resources for dealing with
the first sign of renewed resistance