Evening star., 1945-07-01

Francisco Charter will not be known in
detail Many of the matters presented
so far to the public through official press
releases seem still beclouded because
of last-minute changes. Some of the
delegates of the smaller nations who in
public statements in this country have
supported the Charter, are expressing
certain doubts when speaking to their
own people "off the record"
The principal concern of all the dele
gates who have toiled for two months to
bring the Dumbarton Oaks go per
cent" agreement into full 100 per cent
treaty seems to have been to get the
whole business over as soon as prac-
ticable and hope for the best. The ma
tions of the world have pledged them
selves many times in the past to main
tain order and security and to outlaw
wars as an instrument of national
policy. They all failed because the sig
natories kept their fingers crossed and
sacrificed world peace to what they
considered national interests.
Whether the new world which our
leaders are now attempting to create
after years of unimaginable horrors
and hardships will be better remains to
be seen. Whether the San Francisco
Charter is just another document" like
the Kellogg BRAND pact, the League Of
Nations covenant and the Atlantic
Charter, depends on the willingness of
the powers, and particularly the Big
Three, to see that it is kept faithfully
with justice and good will toward all
the nations, big and small.
No Novel Thought.
The nations which are being de-
scribed as peace loving"-those which
have participated in the war all through
it or at the 18th hour-are placing their
destinies in the hands of the Big Three
because they are the only ones with
sufficient military power to crack down
on any peace breaker. This is not a
novel thought
King Francis I of France fought for
years for the domination of Europe
against his rival, Emperor Charles "
In the end he was defeated at the bat
tie of Pavia, taken into captivity and
after a year spent as the prisoner of his
rival, he signed an onerous treaty of
peace in Madrid. After this sad ex-
perience he devoted his life to organiz-
ing balance of power in Europe. The
Catholic King took as his allies tht
Turks, the German Lutherans and par
ticularly the hereto" King Henry VIII
of England.
When he sent emissaries to the Eng.
lish King to organize the then restrictes
world in such way that peace should
no longer be disturbed, Henry answered
that not only was he in favor of such
an organization, but he was willing tt
fight any nation which was prepared tc
break the peace The treaty of Ardres
was signed in 1916, but resulted in littlt
more than heavy letter Of credit the
British monarch drew on the French
treasury.
Better Understanding Needed.
Pacts and agreements mean little un.
less they are backed by genuine ano
strong decision of all the signatories-ol
at least the most powerful ones-to see
that they are being applied and en-
forced honestly. This requires better
understanding of each other than exists
at present.
Since the end of the war in Europe
there has been an increased tendency
between some of the Allies to mistrust
each other. This is particularly true in
respect to Russia. which is known to the
people of the United States only as q
great military nation and the exponent
of what used to be considered here
tic social system, Communism. The re-
ports about Russia's conduct in the
countries liberated by her armies led
many observers who do not fear Com
munism as social and economic doc
trine to believe that Russia has changed
and has become totalitarian imperial
istic nation. Unless this suspicion can
be dispelled, the chances of real sin
cere and united collaboration are slim.
We hear in this country reports about
the high-handed methods applied by the
Russian Armies in the Balkans. We are
told, sometimes from the highest official
quarters available, about tens of thou
sands OF persons in Bulgaria, Romania
and Poland being deported to Siberia or
other Russian republics behind the
Urals as slave laborers because they are
considered opponents of Russia's domi-
nation of the liberated countries. We
are told and there are no indications
that these reports are fabrications-
that Russia has installed her puppet
regimes in all the liberated countries
and that she intends to expand her zone
of influence all over Europe, just asNthe
French, Spanish and German rulers did
in past centuries
known BY Hearsay Only.
If we are to believe the hushed reports
from unbiased sources, even the Polish
settlement did not live up to the spirit
of the Yalta agreement since the major
jobs in the new Warsaw government are
in the hands of men handpicked by
Moscow We hear reports that there still
are mass executions in Yugoslavia and
Bulgaria. People who are earmarked as
strong potential opponents of the new
puppet regimes are Immediately de-
scribed as collaborationists or "Fascists'
and sent before execution squads.
Many of these reports find their way
into the American press which the Mos
COW official organs take pleasure in fre-
quently describing as pro-Fascist. In
some Of the Russian broadcasts the
United States, or large section of it, is
pictured as the last remaining hotbed OF
Fascism in the world.
These attacks on the United States
and other countries where unfavorable