The Wilmington morning star., 1946-06-05
Fair Enough
BY W%EsTBROOK PEGLER
Copyright, By King Features Syndicate Inc.

Copyright, By King Features Syndicate Inc. J
NEW YORk-One convenience that Joseph
Stain and I enjoy together, although I wouldn'
nave you think we chllm around to any ex.
tent, is that we make up our foreign policy
from day to day. You may recall that he found
himself SO nicely at ease with Mussolini FOR :
long time that he had a commercial treaty
with the bum of buns and agreed so well
with HitJerisnn, which at the time had left nc
doubt OF its savagery toward the Jews of Ger
many, that they threw in together to start the
big war and whack up Poland and the Baltic
countries.
Just so, there was a time when I had a
pretty harsh opinion of General Franco, Of
Spain, based on his great unkindness to his
enemies In the civil war, but now I take the
view that, the war being over long ago, and
considering the advantages to be derived, we
ought to help him hold Spain steady until
they can run their election and ease her out
Of the dictatorship into some less ~coercive
kind of government. MY idea here is that if
Franco were kicked out by violence the peo-
pie Of Spain would be i1resistibly sicked onto
one another and against the will Of most of
them in a repetition of the awful war they
fought among themselves as the curtain raiser
to the main event.
Nobody can convince me that the majority
of the Spanish people find this prospect any
more appetizing than we Americans would be-
cause that means indiscriminate killing and
s~elective personal knitting and sniping in settle
ment of old grudges, followed by organized
slaughter and, at the end, dictatorship still,
whoever wins.
L the communists should win, Stain would
pick the dictator and if Frances side should
make II two in a row, which would be I'M
likely, the Spaniards would be sure to get
more Of the same from him or his heir.I
figure, however, that Stalln's side would take
this one and, on past and current perform
ances, such as those Of the Red Quisling in
Poland. the Franco team and most of those
who should be unfortunate enough to take his
side, whether by force or circumstances or bad
guessing, and who should live through the new
civil war, would be enslaved and otherwise
abused for the next 20 years or so. Moreover,
that would be a tremendous moral and politi-
cal victory for the communist movement in
Latin America which would be very bad news
for the United States because it would give
Stain a whole group of new branch stores in
our half OF the world.
The Spanish people have an ancient priev-
ance against us Americans, anyway, along of
the Spanish American war, and it would be
silly to think they love or admire us for letting
the communists recruit their Lincoln brigades
in our country for service on Stalin's side
against Hitler and d Bum, even the COM
munists among them owe us no respect for
that because, in principle, we were no more
decent or courageous about that assistance to
the Reds than the Axis was in its mon parti-
%cipation' on the side of Franco. In fact we
were less SO because, after all, those Italians
and Germans on Francois side couldn't have
gone there without official permission of their
respective dictators and the world, thus, knew
that Hitler and Mussolini were committed. We
made 40 commitment but connived at a mill
tary recruitment and organization in a war
that was no more our affair than our Civil
war was Britain's party.
AS matters stand in Spain now, Francois
government is just as legitimate as that of
Stain in Russia or our own in this country.
both of which came into existence as the re.
suit of armed revolution.
Thus, to interfere, actively or on the sneak.
would be to invite the same sort of intrusion
in our W country by Stalin's agents via
Latin-America, and to justify all his intrusion
in our politics and breach of our peace which
he formally promised to cease and desist from
in return for our recognition and which con-
tlnues. nevertheless today, in the strikes in
the telegraph, automobile and maritime indus
tries.
IL WoO1G De IOOlSn Oh OuI peOple W en-
dorse a civil war against Franco just because
he was hospitable to Nazis and fascists and
continues to hide some of them. He had every
reason to treat them well and they had every
reason to expect much better treatment. That,
as far as we know, he did give them because
after all, they helped him and we, ourselves,
would be dirty ingrates If we didn't show
nice appreciation to foreigners who helped us
in our wars. What for do we celebrate Kos
ciusko day in some parts Of our country? What
for do we call streets and theatres and schools
LAFAYETTE? And should we be ashamed of our
selves had we complied with any demand hv
anvone to turn over for trial and execution ~
war criminals men who fought, Or otherwido
he1ned. tor whatever motives, in the war foe
our Independence?
The communists in the United States .ro !.
culating strong propaganda, in the nana =.
the prote slant divisions of the Cbristisn roE -
gion. against the religious closed shon in $50
I don't believe in any closed shop. but 7 d a. :
with equal conviction that any n11mhsr ~
Americans think we ought to promote = o;n u
war and the slaughter OF, saw half - nniI1ion
spaniards to establish the open shon ~ II
country which to the extent that if Is ~ ra,; d
gious at all is not and never was nrotestsnt
And then too an absolutely anti-comnuni.t