Detroit evening times., 1945-08-03
WESTBROOK
PEGLER
Fair
Enough
OUR British cousins seem to

visible government and bacI -
stairs bossism that the late Mr..
Roosevelt gave us in the heyday
Of Felix Frankfurter.
Hardly had the election re-
turns became known whereby
their so-called labor party took
over the government with
Clement Attlee as prime minis
ter, when Harold j. Laski, the
chairman of the party's exec
utive committee, began telling
the world what Britain was
going to do about Spain and
other nations which he calls
plague spots"
The British people elected
LaSki TO no office and we may
doubt that if he should offer
himself and 90 forth preaching
his revolution which calls for
such bloodshed as might be nec-
essary, he would be any more
successful than Frankfurter
would be here.
But he is one OF those bump
tious and devious deniZens OF
the smoke filed room whose
power in the party may be
likened to that of Sidney Hill
man in the New Deal until the
death of his patron and agent.
\ ND it was not surprising
"a that, with the election won,
he emerged from the under
ground assuming authority 10
speak for the British people and
demanding. in their name, that
the government OF Spain be al
teped 10 his liking. wh ch is
something on the order OF the
Russian system.
I'VE cannot leave plague
spots In Europe" he said. "Ws
intend te~use our influence To
erase those plague spots. absve
all the plague spot represented
by the Franco regime"
The same dispatch from Lc
don said III was indicated thJV
the victory of Laski's party
was extremely bad news for
the right-wing government of
Portugal as well as that OF
Greece.
The effrontery Of this man IL
no less interesting than his in
tentions
His associates here have been
the man who calls himself
David X. Niles, one of the
White House haunts during
Rnosevelt,S time, FraHkfrter.
our New Deal ambassador 10
London, Mr. Ninant, and Harry
Hopkins.
Indeed he was one OF Mr..
RooscveltS counSellorS of revo-
luton and called on him during
his visits 10 the United States
10 lecture at Harvard. Columbia
and other sources of the dicta-
torial experiments which, in the
last three months, President
Truman has been rcpudistiHg
day by day
TliE question Is not pertinent
here whether the Franco
government is good or bad from
our point Of view or that OF the
British people or Laski.
The fact is that II happens n
be the government OF Spain
which is presumed 10 be an in
dependent nation with a right
10 conduct its own affairs.
Laski, Of course. would play
an absentee role in the actual
erasure but. like Charlie Chap
lin, when he was demanding
second front on the beaches OF
Normandy from his refuge in
Beverly Hills. his spirit would
march with the brave lads and
his heart undoubtedly would
bleed for their families
This method Of reScuing a M II
tien from a government that
offensive 10 the rcScuers was
the same that Adolf Hitler
adopted in the Sudctenland of
Czcno-SlovakIa and in Norway.
il Is the same that Moscow
used IN YuCoSlaVia Rumania
and Greece and II is very rcp-
reheneiblr wheneit is used by
the FaScists but noble when
the EaskiS of-thc Rcd rcvoiu-
ton are in charge Of opera
tiOnS.
Thus. a QuiSfing is a QuiSling
only If he happens 10 be on the
wrong side but patriot" II
in the behalf Of the other ter
ror, he betrays his people and
his country into slavery under
armed terrorists and secret
police.
MEANWHILE, 1t may be OBJ
vi served, Laski has seen no
plague in Bucharest, for ex-
ampi where the Russians EMU
lated Hitler's way in Oslo. so
there is a temptation 10 believe
that, on behalf of the British
people but with no authority
for them. he has committed
Britain in favor of Communist
dic'atorShips and 10 the de-
struction by war. IL necessary,
OF others.
On the basis Of our knowl-
edge OF the British we may an
iicipaje that. given few more
outbreaks OF this kind and a
few years Of failure in the tra-
dtion OF so-called labor govern
mSntS. they will smash LaSkis
hat over his ears and repudiate
him utterly.