Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1943-01-03

1941, Secretary Hull is shown ,
and japanese Ambassador XII
dent Roosevelt.
available" will help the American
people Ito clearer understanding
of the problems and tasks which
have confronted us, Of those which
confront us now, and Of those which
will confront us in the crucial days
ahead"
Unity Of Purpose.
Calling for unity of purpose and
common effort" in winning the war
and establishing peace, he empha-
sized that the eternal principles of
law, justice, fair dealing and moral
ity which we have constantly pro-
claimed and sought to apply" must
underlie any practicable program Of
peaceful international collaboration
in the future.
Much was accomplished in the
face of immense difficulties" in the
effort to promote those principles
during the past decade, the Secre-
tary declared.
An associate of Mr.. Hull, antici-
pating criticism of such claim Of
accomplishment in view OF the fail
ure to avert war, pointed to the
universal trust and respect" with
which the United States is regarded
by peoples throughout the world
as one worthwhile result of the
policy followed by this Government.
Most Of the previously secret doc
uments quoted in the White Paper"
serve to give forceful meaning In
retrospect to the warnings of war
danger sounded by the President
and Secretary Hull in speeches dur
ing the 1930s, which sounded like
vague generalities to many Ameri-
cans at the time.
Secrecy Explained.
Asked why some Of this specific
information, which might have
helped the Nation as a whole to a
better understanding of the dan
gers as they arose and perhaps have
enabled the administration to gain
support for more effective policy,
was not made public as it reached
the Government instead of being
kept secret until now, a respon-
sible official said:
LAS long as there was a bare
hope Of maintaining peace, we nat
urally did not want to slap some
BODY in the face"
He pointed out that immediate
publication Of reports from Amer
lean diplomats, which minced no
words in telling why we could not
trust Japan, Germany and Italy
during the years of precarious
peace, might have precipitated the
very war this Government was
striving to prevent.
The documents selected for pub
LEGATION even now admittedly are not
all-inclusive. They were chosen in
what was described as an effort to
give an authoritative outline Of our
policy and its background in the
years during which the question of
peace or war was being decided.
Much information that might still
embarrass our foreign relations or
prosecution of the war itself
as that concerning Russia's role up
to the time she was attacked by
Germany, and details of Undersec-
rotary of State Welles' trip to Euro
pean war capitals in the spring Of
l940-still is kept secret.
Record of Aggression.
However, the material made pub
lie was said to go further than any
Government ever has gone in giving
comprehensive picture of its for
eign relations so near to the time Of
the actual events dealt with. Or
dinarily, there is a lapse Of many
years in publication Of the State
Department confidential papers.
Only this month the Department
made public a volume Of documents
pertaining to preparations for the
peace conference Of 1919.
The records made public last
night deal most comprehensively
with development of Japanese ag-
erosion eliminating in the Pearl
Harbor attack, though there is en-
phasis on the consistently close
connection between Japan, Ger
many and Italy in the pre-war pic
ture as we'll as now.
The white Paper" opens with the
statement that the 1914 decade
began and ended with acts of vio-
lence by Japan"-her invasion of
Manchuria and her attack on Pearl
Harbor - and points out that the
period was marked by the ruthless
development of a determined policy
of world domination on the part
of Japan. Germany and Italy"
Public Opinion Recalled.
1t also recalls that during a large
part of the decade much Of public
opinion in this country did not
accept the thesis that a European
war could vitality affect the security
of the United States or that an
attack on the United States by any
Of the Axis powers was possible"
Although the President and Mr..
Hull were convinced differently -.
that Axis policies were directed to-
ward an ultimate attack on the
United states"-they had to keep