The Wilmington morning star., 1946-03-08
Churchill Speaks
By ANNE o'HARE MCCORMICK

BY ANNE O'HARE MCCORMICK
Winston Churchilrs Missouri speech was
made at the urging and in the presence Of a
faithful Missourian-the President of the
United States. A fortnight ago the former
Prime Minister made a trip to Washington to
talk over what he meant to say; SO it is not
to be supposed that the Missourian made
any objection to the Brlhsher's appeal Tor
"fraternal association of the English speak
ing movers that included such concrete article
of partnership as the common use of sea and
air bases. Joint war plans, interchange OF
weapons and of students in military schools
Mr. Churchill did not go as lar IN advo-
eating common citizenship as he did lew
Years ago at Harvard. That was in time OF
war. Now. in time Of peace, the accent IS
all on military cooperation. Noth1ng couio
have given such weight to the dark WORDS
in which he described this time-'anx1ous ana
baffling,'' "sad and GREATNESS or resls'e.
ed so sharply the drop from the clear conll-
dence of the Allied governments in the war
wears to the heavy mood of the present. Be
cause Churchill was the embodiment ana
voice of that confidence, he gives the meas
ure of how surer we were OF victory IMAM
we are Of peace.
He spoke in Missouri, to other Missourians
Churchill chose, and the President chose'
Of the same background as Mr.. truman
that a wellweighed and deeply felt argu-
ment for the &sest form OF aIhance oet"eeh
the United Stares and the British Common
wealth should be delivered in the heart OF
America. Nothing could be more typical OF
this country than the little college towns that
dot the Midwestern states as thickly as ralslns
IN pound cake. Mostly UNCONVENTIONAL IN
origin, the universities of farmers and rural
communities, they represent the attachment
to religion and the desire for learning that
were carried across the wide rivers and wide
prairies of this continent with the waves OF
westward migration. It was great day in
Fulton. From a radius of fifty miles and more
the country folk drove into town to have
look at the man whose voice is as familiar in
Missouri as it is in Yorkshire. They serenaded
him down Main street with 1.-THE Missouri
Waltz" The ladies of the Methodist church
prepared the supper for the visitors.
All this is of the very essence of America,
and of that peculiar form of democracy
a way of life more than a system OF govern
ment-which we must find another name for
to distinguish it from the different articles
sold under the same trademark. It is not
easy any more to say what is democracy
and what is not, but it is not hard, as Mr..
Churchill pointed out. to differentiate freedom
from tyranny. Freedom has still certain marks
by which it may be known, and you would
never doubt that it resides In places like Full
ton, No. or Emporia, Kan. Mr.. Churchill was
not wrong when he decided to deliver in the
gymnasium of Missouri college as important
an eloquent an address as he ever gave in
the Westminster whence 1t took its name.
Fulton liked Churchill and Churchill liked
Fulton. It Is evident in the reports that good
time was had by all. But from this heart
not tell how the Middle West will react to
the grave implications and proposals Of the
speech The residuum Of isolationisn In this
part of the country is the effect Of geography
rather than conviction. But the idea of close
ties with other nations is still little frighten-
ing While "fraternal association will be
more acceptable than alliance, a permanent
military partnership with Britain is likely
to be repugnant to many who agree that the
military partnership of thy last six years
was inevitable.
Yet if the country favors Senator Vanden-
berg's suggestion of an alliance with Russia
it will hardly balk at a similar arrangement
with Great Britain. Mr.. Churchill argued that
if the English-speaking people stood together
as firmly as he advocates 'they could reach
now, in 1916, a good understanding on all
points with Russia" This, as all his hearers
recognized is the motive behind his eloquence,
He is more urgent than he was in the black
est hour of the war because he sees the
shadow Of new dangers on the horizon. Speak
ing in his own name, an elder statesman
without private ambitions he sounds a
stronger alarm Of the drift into another war
than any of the Americans who have spoken in
the same sense during the past week.
This is portentous message If the danger
is as imminent as Mr. Churchill indicates,
the course he advocates is the only safe
brake against disaster But even those who
press for the firmest kind of policy on the
part of the United States and the closest kind
of cooperation with Britain, to the end that
the kind of freedom we both value above
everything shall not perish by weakness or de-
fault, must still believe that the Soviet Union
does not and cannot intend to light the fuse
that will blow up the world.
If this were before the deluge, state
newly conscious of its strength might be
tempted to fatal risks. But it is after the de-
luge, and the storm has battered Russia
more than her allies; 1t is uncomfortable
that leader as shrewd and foresighted as
Stain would draw a people yearning for
peace into a new war. Until it is proved I'M
tenable this is the assumption on which a
firm policy must be firmly based. At the
apex of our power American policy cannot
be based on fear-New York Times.