The Wilmington morning star., 1943-09-16
HULL'S SPEECH
LACKED OUTLINE
CONTINUED From Page One)


to define clearly, and in accord
with the good principles Mr.. Hull
holds, his nations interests: he
will construct policy of ways
and means which serve honorably
those interests, and he will, in
democracy, tell as frankly as he
can why he is doing what he is
doing, and how he proposes to do
it.
The Immediate practical objec-
ton to Mr.. Hul's speech is that it
ignores the very real and substan-
tial foreign policy which the Unit
ed States is in fact now following.
His speech conveys the impress
sion that our foreign policy today
is what it was when he took office
10 years ago, namely that we have
no specific relationship with par
ticular nations but only general
relations with all of them In fact,
there has been a specific evolution
of policy under the stress of war
which the President has now rec
ognized but which Mr.. Hull scarce
ly adverts to at all. We h v e
evolved working partnership
with Britain through which we are
waging war and preparing to come
to terms with our other allies in
the settlement Of the war and the
maintenance of peace.
That is our real foreign policy
today. But the Secretary's gen
eral principles. if they are taken
seriously by other nations, lead
away from and not toward this
policy. Mr.. Hull gives them such
high moral ground on which to
oppose it. For an international
system based on featureless gen
eralities, in which every one sub
scribes to universal principles and
no one defines his specific rela-
tionships and obliga tons, is SIM
ply the old-fashioned kind of col
lective security which is so col
lective that it provides no security.
The State Department has re-
Gently been given, and quite prop
er1y, the control of all our foreign
civil operations. There can be no
two serious opinions, it seems to
me, that the State Department
should have i, direction and the
last word in the foreign relations
of the Treasury, Governor Leh-
mans relief organization, the Of
flee of Economic Warfare, lend
lease and foreign propaganda
But if its policy is to dominate
these activities the Secretary must
define the policy. Otherwise he
will seem merely to be reaching
out for power in a spasm of bu-
reaucratic jealousy.
More precisely, Mr.. Hull must
define our foreign policy not in
generalities that imply some sort
OF vaguely universal association
of identical natio: but in tn e
reasonably specific terms of our
actual working relationships with
particular nations. If the global
generalities truly reflect our for
eign policy, he will reach very
different practical solution of the
problem of relief, rehabilitation
and reconstruction, of the restora-
ton CT finance and commerce. of
the future of shipping, civil avi-
alton and raw materials than if
the State Department adopts the
specific foreign policy which is ac-
tuaDy IN force today
The address indicates that Mr.
Hull is concerned that our close
association with Britain shall not
become exclusive, and thus cause
antagonism and jealousy else
where. But the way to broaden
that association is not to dissolve
1t in generalities but to find the
specific common ground for as
sociating other nations with it.
That too, is the concern of MANY
other responsible men, and a
fundamental reason for their
criticism of the governments pol
icy toward France. For it is their
view that the adhesion of France
to the British-American partner
ship is the key to the good will
OF occupied Europe.
Mr.. Hull continues to misunder-
stand the criticism of his treat
ment of France by dwelling upon
the criticism which is easily an
swered, and ignoring the criticism
which events have justified. The
main argument is not about the
fact that we dealt with Vichy or
with Admiral Darlan. Both of
these actions have always seemed
to me and to many other critics
expedient and necessary. The
criticism which seems to me valid
now as it was months ago is that
Mr.. Hull, as the Presidents prin-
cipal adviser on foreign affairs,
did not foresee and prepare for
the day when we had finished with
Vichy and would need an honor
able fighting French authority to
deal with in French affairs.
That capital fault of our diplo-