Evening star., 1941-09-02
President Gives Hint
OF Additional Steps
To Speed War Aid
Returns to Capitol
After PIedeine Full
Effort Against Nozis
BY JOHN G. HENRY.

clearly and irrevocably than eve,
committed America to the long ant
Rrduous task" of doing its full par
In conquering the forces of insan,
violence let loose by Hitler
upon this earth"
At the moment, this full part ap.
pears to break itself down about as
follows:
l. An unrelenting stepping up Of
production of military materiel tt
point where this Nation becomes
the greatest arsenal and storehouse
of power that the world has ever
seen.
2. The assured delivery of these
supplies to the fighting forces which
today are holding the front lines
against the AXiS-in Russia, the
Near East, the Far East and in the
Atlantic.
8. The deterrence by economic
structures, by diplomatic pressures
and even by displays of military and
naval might-of new aggressive
steps by any portion of the Axis
bloc. Currently, of course, this re-
pressive influence is being brought
to bear most heavily on Japan.
4. The building of military and
naval machine of our own, pri-
marily defensive, upon which some
day may devolve the tremendous job
of protecting the entire Western
Hemisphere and its far-f1ung ap-
proaches from Axis forces, poten-
TALLY victorious abroad.
Nation Increasingly Alert.
After two years of a world at war,
these are the salient aspects of this
Nations position and of the policies
of it's Government. Militarily speak
ing, 1t is a Nation becoming in
creasingly alert and strong but still
at peace; in many factual respects,
however, it is a Nation already at
war. with its economy being geared
to full emergency effort and its
neutrality abandoned to permit full
est assistance to the Axis foes.
The pattern has been developed
with consistency during these past
two years, with its underlying
foundation being the conviction OF
the %on that Americas S
surest defense requires defeat for
the Axis. Perhaps, typically, the
pace of implementing this pattern
has been jerky, sometimes tagging
to a point where even its direction
was in doubt; at other times moving
swiftly.
In recent days there have been
words and actions to indicate
more aggressive and effective phase,
fitting roughly into the four major
aspects listed above.
Unified Control Created.
Last Thursday, for example, the
President shook up the administra-
tive machinery, creating unified
control for priorities by which the
Nation literally is placed on war
time economic basis with all civilian
and military needs to be integrated
and every resource to be rationed If
and however necessary. The net ef-
feet should be a stimulation in vital
production and a guarantee that
Gripping shortages of essential ma
terials will be foreseen and avoided.
simultaneously the program Of
speeding material aid to forces
fighting the Axis was given shot
in the arm" by the recasting and
supplementing of the administra-
tive personnel. A supervisor of the
entire aid effort, the physically
fragile Harry Hopkins was given an
and competent admin
istrative aide in Edward r. Stetti-
MUS, jr., and w. Averell Hartman,
gaining in creating stature as a
round the world trouble shooter,
was released for the Immediately
pressing task of expediting aid to
Russia by the dispatching to London
of John D. Biggers.
In the realm of words, the Presi-
dent took occasion over the Labor
Day week end to eXhort the Nation
as a whole and its industrial COM
ponents in particular to let nothing
stand in the way Of this production
and supply job.
1--WE Cannot Equivocate."
1--WE cannot hesitate, we cannot
equivocate in the great task before
u.s." he declared in radio address
yesterday, which was broadcast not
only in English to all of the United
States and Britain, but in a half
dozen other Languages to all the
world. THE defense of Americas
freedom must take precedence over
every private aim and over every
private interest"
In particular, he added in marking
the occasion, American labor now
bears tremendous responsibility
in the winning of this most brutal,
most terrible of all wars"
1t was in this address, too, that
Mr.. Roosevelt hinted broadly of new
steps to assure the delivery of sup
plies to the fighting fronts when he
remarked that unless we step up
the total of our production and more
greatly safeguard it on its journeys
to the battlefelds, these enemies
will take heart in pushing their at
tack in old fields and new"
Although there was no White
House ampliflcatiOn of this portion
of the Presidents speech, it was
believed to constitute a double-bar-
relied serving of notice; first, upon
Japan that this Government will
not tolerate interception of Amer
lean shipping carrying aid to Russia
by way of Vladivostok and, second,
upon other Axis partners or poten-
tial partners that American naval
strength may be employed to guar
antee continued freedom of such
seas as the South and mid Atlantic
areas now being menaced by raiders
which may be based at Dakar.
Confers With Hull Today.
In the light of this Interpretation,
this remark fits into the third of
the major responsibilities now being
assumed by this Government, name
ly, deterring new Axis aggressions.
With further regard to this OBJ
tective, 1t is believed significant that
Secretary of State Hull went to