The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-04-06

a damned good writer. You, Wh(
remember him when he first ap'
peared in Golfers to now, viii
agree with me on that. And some
of you will recall little wistfuIy
Quentin'S fiction in the days efort
the war, when he had time for thu
writing of stories that were only
make-believe. Quentin hasn't time
for that sort of writing any more.
Back only a short while from
several fighting fronts, Quentin
recently published a book the best
seller. The Curtain Rises" descrip-
tive of what he had seen in front
lines of action, and behind those lines
Fascinating reading it was. Anc
now he has penned an article which
appears in the April 8 issue Of
Golfers entitled Invasion. In "1n-
vasion'' he gives closeup Of what
great invasion is really like. It Is
an article to make men think.
recommend it to all except Escap-
lists for whom, Of course, hope has
fed.
"This is no cold dissertation,
Golfers Weekly says of Quention's
article. g. no Reynolds piece ever
is. For Quent is emotional about
the things he believes in, and oul
Army is one of those things. Rey-
nolds, in New York between trips
says that the African and italian
campaigns transformed our soldiers
from amateur to professional status
&c In the beginning, they were
playing war for souvenirs Quent
says. They wanted to bring home
a Nazi helmet to hang on the wall
actually saw them throw away
stuff they needed so they could
carry bits of shell and other junk
Now they know they're playing fol
keeps
You'd think Quent would be
toughened to the horrors Of wal
after all he's seen as foreign cor
respondent for Collier'S-the fall Of
France, the London blitz, the mis-
cries of Russia-but when American
casualties started coming in, he
softened up all over again. Tive
seen lots of dead Germans and II
didn't bother me- he says, but the
sight of one dead American would
make me sick for a week
"Quent means it really made him
physically sick. For a such big
tough guy-he's more than six feet
tall, weights more than 200, was
heavyweight boxing champion at
Brown University-he has remark
ably delicate sensibilities. Yet he
has flirted with Shellfire enough to
get wounded, and one bomb dropped
so close it loosened the filings of
his teeth.
He is sentimental about his fam
lily, vigorous tribe of Irish meri-
cans who live in Brooklyn. Neither
they, nor his wife, the former Vir-
GINA Peine, actress, can accuse him
of forgetting birthdays and ami
versaries. He always remembers.
His overlooking friendliness extends
to all the world-from the phony
who touches him for $50 because
we used to work together in Dali
las (Quent never worked in Dallas
to the King of England, who is,
he says, a great guy"
That's Quentin Reynolds whose
Report to the Nation" I listened to
last Tuesday night. I listened be-
cause I like everything about Rey-
nolds. But last Tuesday night I had
an extra reason. For that evening
Quent was scheduled to interview
Major George Fielding Eliot, whom
I suppose you have often heard
yourself over WABC.
Major Eliot is regarded as one OF
the nations keenest and most far
seeing of military observers. His ar
ticles appear daily in the New York
Herald Tribune and in other
places. He is possibly the most
praised and damned writer on mar
tial affairs as there is In the world.
Back in 1888 he wrote a signi-
ficant book about the problems OF
American national defense entitled
THE Ramparts We Watch" This
was widely read, and widely dis
cuSSed. Since that time, and with
the onset of the war, he has as
sumed more and more the position
Of one of Americas leading military
and political analysts. Recently an
other book appeared from his type
writer, THE Hour OF Triumph,
(Reynall and Hitchcock, Inc, $3.50
and this has been equally well re-
ceived. But it is controversial
book, for everyone has his own
ideas about what should be accom-
pliShed when that longed-for-day
OF peace comes at last. And there
are Some-or many for all I know
who will not agree with Major
Eiot's views. Personally I'm ready
to string along with him. After all
he has made study of his subject,
which is more than many Of his ad-
verse critics can say.
He urges the immediate estab-
lishment of United Nations Coun-
Gil to implement orderly making
and keeping of the peace after the
present war.
Mapping the possible course Of
the war to its finish, he analyses
the myriad problems that will con-
front the United States, Great Bri-
tain, Russia and China in forming
world order designed to keep the
peace.
To prevent Germany and Japat
from ever rising again to military
power, he advises strict watchful-
ness over the former nation, with
complete prohibition on the manu-
facture Of planes and ships. Fol-
Japan. which he considers the worst
offender, he recommends that 1t bt
stripped of all machinery needed
to make tools, arms, ships and
planes: that the Japanese be re-