Evening star., 1944-09-29
Churchill and owl
Statements Linked
Writer Suggests Pronouncements
Made in Light of Election
By David Laurence.

By David Laurence.
1t may be purely q coincidence, but
within the same "A hours that the
Owl announced that the war against
Japan would not be won any sooner
than one and half to two years after
the defeat of Germany, Prime Minister
Churhill also was announcing to the
House Of Commons that the war in
Europe might 60 into the winter or
even into 1945.
These predictions q few weeks ago
would have been classed as exceedingly
pessimistic and irrelevant. The White
House has consistently avoided predic-
tions as to the time of the wars end.
The significance Is rather in the is
suance OF these two predictions at this
time. 1t raises q number Of questions
The British Prime Minister, for
example, told the House of Commons
in the same address that there was an
election going on in the United States
and not to be disturbed by stories OF
one kind or another that might
emanate from America at this time.
What Mr.. Churchill said by way OF
warning to his colleagues was not so
important as the fact that he seems
to have the American election on his
mind.
Effect Of Statements.
Nobody in the political arena has
SAID anything here in America about
Great Britain that could be by any
stretch OF the imagination distorted
into campaign issue. So it is puzzine
to know what Mr.. Churchill Is thinking
about, unless, of course, he is appre-
hensive that the whole subject of
global strategy and lease-lend for which
he and President Roosevelt are respon-
slbie may come under review. This
Is hardly likely, as it appears that
Gov. Dewey is not going to try to make
an issue out of the conduct of the
| war.
But the net effect of the two pro-
nouncements-namely. by the OWL and
Prime Minister Churchill-is to per-
suade the public that the war is likely
to occupy a considerable part of the
next administration.
Gov. Dewey has been emphasizing
that the next. President will be inaugu-
rated on January 20, 1945, and that the
coming four years will be mostly peace
years. But the owl and Prime Min
lister Churchill now appear to upset
that observation and emphasize that
We have good deal of war ahead of us.
This kind of comment is exactly what
the Democrats would like to have the
people OF America told at this time be-
cause they look upon 1t as another
argument for the retention of Mr..
Roosevelt in office.
One wonders why it was necessary
to moke predictions, for the British
Prime Minister has always refrained
from using dates as to the time of victory
and the Owl has never made a specific
forecast giving the exact length of time
the European war would last, as it has
Just done with respect to the Pacific war.
Campaign Ammunition.
Unquestionably, the Owls statement
is good ammunition for the Democratic
campaign especially as it fits in with
President Roosevelt's recent trip TO the
Pacific and the evident effort of the
administration to emphasize that Presi-
dent Roosevelt, as Commander in Chief,
is indispensable to the winning OF vic
tory in the Pacific
The Owl is supposed to report what
has happened and to use its best efforts
to procure the publication of the facts
concerning the war effort 1t never was
conceived Of as an agency that would
engage in star gazing or speculation
concerning future events The Owl
itself has in it many non political per-
sons but only few days ago the man
who had occupied an important posi-
ton in charge of the foreign propa :
ganda OF Owl resigned in order to assist
the President in the 1914 political cam
paign as he did in 1910.
When the personnel OF an agency
presumably devoted to factual data on
the war and supposedly disinterested is
composed of persons with political back
grounds and political interests, it is not
unnatural for the public to suspect tina
the Owl is not just an office of war in
formation altogether, but perhaps has
its eye also on political trends and ways
and means of assisting the present ad-
ministration to remain in power.
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