Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1943-12-05
SHUTS Thinks Out Loud

The speech by Jan Christian
SHUTS, Prime Minister of the Union
OF South Africa and member of
Britain's war cabinet, before the
United Kingdom branch OF the EN-
pire Parliamentary Association has
made an international sensation and
has raised controversial echoes in
many quarters. Comment in this
country should naturally be tenn
pered by the fact that the COM
plete text has not been available
on this side of the water. The brief
reports cabled from London nat
urally stress those points which have
the greatest news value; in other
words, those with controversial and
sensational implications. The quieter
or qualifying portions OF an address
covering a wide field and many
aspects were, of course, not so fea-
tured.
When all this is borne in mind,
however, the tenor of General Shuts
address is, to use his own characteri-
cation, "explosive" The veteran Boer
leader, widely deemed the outstand-
ing elder statesman" of the British
Empire, certainly threw out some
ideas bound to provoke heated de-
bate. 1t is interesting to note that
the general spoke privately before
a select and limited audience. His
remarks seem to have been essen
TALLY extemporaneous. It certainly
was not a prepared address destined
for the general public. The proba-
bilities are that he considered his
informal talk to be what we Ameri-
cans call "off the record" Never
theless, so great was the interest
evoked among his hearers that, after
more than a weeks interval, the
text was given to the press.
General Shuts outstanding sug-
gestion is that Britain strengthen
her postwar position by cultivating
close relations with the nations of
Western Europe lest she become a
weak and unequal partner in the
great trinity of powers"-B Britain,
Russia and the United States
which will emerge from the present
conflict. He suggested that the war
and its consequences would in
evitably denote France, Germany
and Italy to second rank, while in
the Far East, Japan would be
similarly eliminated as a first-class
power. This would leave no counter
poise in either Europe or Asia to
Soviet Russia, which would bestride
both continents as "a new colossus"
The war would likewise leave the
United States, the other great
world power, with enormous assets,
with health, resources and potenti-
alities of power beyond measure"
AS against those two giants. Britain
would emerge from the war with
a glory and an honor and a prestige
such as perhaps no nation ever en-.
joyed," but economically Empower
lshed'-an unequal partnership, I
am afraid" -..'..
General SHUTS did not suggest an
attempt to redress the UNEQUAL
balance within the triumvirate by
veering either toward the United
States or Soviet Russia. Instead, he
proposed combined policy of en-
plre Indignation and attracting the
nations of Western Europe into what
may be described as the British
imperial orbit by stressing mutual
interests and ideologies. This idea
is being criticized as tending to re-
vive the balance of power" con-
cept which has been the traditional
basis OF British foreign policy. Cen
eral SHUTS is likewise being taken
to task by Frenchmen who resent
his assumption that France is. as
he bluntly put it, gone" as a great
power for at least a generation.
1t has been noted also that he did
not so much as mention China in
his list OF postwar primary factors
in world affairs.
1t thus becomes evident that the
doughty general gave the world
plenty to talk about. Nevertheless.
there can be no doubt that he said
openly and frankly what many per-
sons are voicing more discreetly
At any rate, General SHUTS has in
dicated some of the problems that
await US in the difficult postwar
period.