The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1945-08-11
Promethedn Role
BY ANNE o'HARE MCCORMICK
Thousands upon thousands of words ha

THOUSANDS upon thousands OF WOfQS nave
been and will be uttered about the atomic
bomb. 1t has caused an explosion in men S
minds as SCATTERING as the obliteration of Hiro-
shima. Compared to the change in the very
desien and balance of force foreshadowed in
this new release of energy, the revolution Of
Marx and Lenin, the speed-up of the Power
Age, are like mere shifting of the gears Of
uroeress From the dawn of creation until the
turn of this century the atom was the indivis-
IDLE unit of matter. The inhabitants Of this
planet rested, so to speak, upon a floor Of
so1id narticles. unaware that these infinitesmal
having blocks were dynamite, waiting to be
blown up
This week has changed all that. The earth
;s no LONGER solid Out Of the forces that hold
it together human genius has summoned forces
that tear 1t apart The bomb that burst over
Japan contained destructive energy enough to
destroy a great city. 1t was an ultimatum to
end all ultimatums because 1t was only
small sample of what lies hidden in the labora-
tory where soldiers joined with scientists to
produce In record time the deadlest weapon
in the history of war.
But the ultimatum was not only to Japan
The first reaction Of the Allied world to this
literally earth shaking event was relief that
this engine of inmeasureable destruction was
not in the hands of the enemy, as it might
have been If the Germans had been able to
no elation; it was mixed with wonder, fear
and deep misgiving. for every man knows in
his heart that the bomb that harnesses the
fire of the SUN and the sleeping forces of the
earth itself to the business Of war is an ulti-
maturn to the human race Make peace, it
says or perish.
The words spoken by the detonator make
everything said about it sound hollow. Yet the
statements of the President, the Secretary Of
It
who described the tests in New Mexico are
solemn and weighty pronouncements They are
the utterances Of men profoundly conscious Of
the gravity Of the decision they took in approv-
ing the use of this last weapon to end the
war. It is a weapon developed by the scientific
brains of democratic nations, with the decisive
help of great German pioneer research workers
like DR.. Albert Einstein, DR.. Lise Neither and
others whom Hitler rejected because they were
"non-Ayran." 1t was launched under the aegis
Of democratic powers, the United States, Great
Britain and Canada. Not even Russia shares
the knowledge of the formula and the process
by which natures most potent secret has been
put at the service of man.
1t was not launched lightly. The words Of
the democratic leaders express the solemn
sense of responsibility. They fear for the use
of the most thrilling and the most terrifying
discovery of our time They know that it de-
peIluS vi ulem WHETHER IL DeCOI1eS a IeTIlDle
boomerang or the ultimate force that will
revolutionize international life. 1t depends On
the democratic peoples. 1t is impossible to
imagine any government spending S. 900 000,-
GOO on laboratory or any other experiment
that would bring peace to the world. II nations
used their brains and their wealth prodiga1ly
to win peace as they do to win wars, the
story Of the twentieth century the most
scientifically advanced and the bloodiest in
hlstory-might be different.
But perhaps the money, the teamwork Of
scientists of many nations and the zeal that
went into the almost godlike task of splitting
the atom will turn out to be an investment
In peace. 1t is recognized by everybody that
the bomb must be one thing or another an
instrument of life or an instrument of death
1t will not remain long the secret possession
OF the nations that invented it, but for the
present, for the crucial interval when the world
must be organized as an entity or divide into
spheres OF power, it is controlled by three
democratic nations. Although many may de-
plore that it was used first by the United
States, this fact underlines that in special if
not exclusive sense it is controlled by u.s. It is
another sign and instrument of our power to
shape the future of the world.
1t is hard to foresee the consequences of the
new force we have released 1t changes the
conception of armies, navies and air forces,
that if it is to continue to be weapon when
this war is over, whoever uses 1t first will
be the winner But the winner will preside
over a dustheap.
Developed to its capacity, the atomic bomb
makes peace imperative by making war i'm
possible. Even if it is never used again, it
must shorten the fight with Japan. Even if it
is never used again as carrier of death, it is
the most unanswerable argument yet advanced
for community of nations leagued together
for sef-protection in the pursuit and mainte-
nance OF peace The atomic bomb can turn
the world into graveyard or a garden, and
the United States the Prometheus who has
dared the heavens to invoke this power has
assumed the first responsibility for deciding
which it shall be-
In the words of Mr. Churchill:
'This revelation of the secrets of nature
long mercifully withheld from man should
arouse the most solemn reflections in the mind
and conscience of every human being capable
| of comprehension. We must indeed pray that
these awful agencies will be made to conduce
to peace among the nations and that instead
of wreaking measureless havoc upon the en-
| tire globe, they may become perennial toun-
dation Of world prosperity. New York Times
QUOTATIONS