Evening star., 1945-04-13

BEGINNING OF A BUSY Err
President-elect Roosevelt as tn
Roosevelt was to take his first
there had been trouble with Ger
many over attacks on American
ships helping to move supplies to
Great Britain. The President had
ordered the Navy to shoot at Axis
submarines on sight in what he
called American defense" waters.
Mr.. Roosevelt was outspoken in
his friendship for Britain, and some
of his critics declared that his utter
ances and actions had compromised
the Nation. Organizations sprang
up in opposition to his attitude
Some men of his own political faith
in Congress differed with his course
Prior to Germanys attack on
Poland that precipitated World War
II, the President urged conference
settlement of international prob
lens. But his personal intervention
with Adolf Hitler and Benito Mus
solini brought only cold rebukes
from the German and Italian die
tatorS.
In the midst of all his preparations
for emergency, the President had
to Congress his famed
-four freedoms freedom Of speech
and religion, freedom from want and
fear-aS fundamental to perpetual
among nations.
In part, those concepts formed the
basis for that doctrine Of peace aims
the Atlantic Charter" drafted by
the President and Prime Minister
Churchill in their first meeting in
l94l, off the Newfoundland
coast.
From that original meeting in the
Atlantic there developed, between
Mr.. Roosevelt and Mr. Churchill, q
profound affection and confidence
by mutual respect and unity
of purpose and by series of addi-
tional conferences at fairly regular
intervals.
Against a backdrop of Allied re-
verses on fronts around the world
a second Roosevelt Churchill meet
ing in Washington took place in
June, 1912 Russia, reeling from a
midyear Nazi offensive, had been
clamoring for a second front to
siphon Nazi soldiers from Soviet
backgrounds.
The President and Prime Min
lister completed plans and logiStics
for the invasion of North Africa
which Russia insisted was no sec
ond front at all. But it marked a
definite turning point in Anglo
fortunes of war, for the
Allies swept the enemy off the the
continent and from Sicily
and finally, in Italy, carried war
fare to Europe itself.
Unconditional Surrender
Mr.. Churchill gave the American
President credit for being the au-
thor of this mighty undertaking" in
North Africa, an undertaking which
first brought Gen. Eisenhower to
the forefront of the Allied military
command.
BY January, 1943, the enemy had
been cleaned out Of Africa suf-
ficiently for Mr.. Roosevelt to fly to
Casablanca, Morocco. for another
get-together with Mr.. Churchill
this time in a glistening villa.
1t was an epochal trip. For the
first time during a war an American
Chief Executive had gone to foreign
soil Not since the days of Abraham
Lincoln. who did not have to leave
the District of Columbia, had a
President been in a combat zone.
For 10 days the President and
Prime Minister had their heads to-
gether. Then they called in wal
to tell them they
had decreed unconditional sur
render" for the Axis and had
reached complete agreement" on
war plans for 1943.
Situation Is Bright.
Premier Stain had been invited
to the conference but couldn't make
it. He was too busy with fighting
But he and Generalissimo Chang
Kai-shek were advised Of the de-
cision calling for the mopping up
of resistance in Tunisla and the
conquest of Sicily.
Pacific War Mapped.
An official statement said, how
ever, that complete agreement
had been attained ION future op-
erations in all theaters of the war;
The Pacific came in for a large
share of attention ut still another
war conference in Quebec later
Lord Louis Mountbatten, who hac
led Britain's famed Commands, wa.
appointed supreme commander ir
Southeast Asia.
Another Quebec meeting between
Mr.. Roosevelt and Mr.. Churchill wa.
held in September of 1914. Theil
war maps proclaimed that Ger.
many's fate was settled and they
were able to perfect plans for shift,
ing the tremendous weight of British
and American arms from Europe tt
the Pacific and for new, crushing
blows at Japan. They pledged de.
struction of the barbarians in tn.
Pacific" just as soon as Europ.
could be pulled from under "tht
corroding heel of the Hun"
In between war conferences thu
Chief Executive found time to dea
with acute economic problems which
plagued his administration as they
had done in its nonwar years ane
to take couple Of lengthy swing.
around the country to see now wal
plants, military establishments ane
the people were getting along undel
wartime difficulties.
Finds America In Stride.
The first trip, in September, 1912
took him across the northern tier o.
States, down the West Coast, acros!