Evening star., 1947-05-16
on The Record
ItoIion Peace Treaty
Held Cruel and Stupid
Pact Awaiting Action BY Senate
Seen Violating Promises
By Dorothy ThofnpsoH

BIZ Dorothy Thompso.
practical people" want the Senate Inn
mediately to ratify the italian peace" treaty.
None Of its apoIogists thinks it good or even
decent treaty. They merely argue that It was
the best We could get" that italy win be
better OF with Il than hanging ire. that until
It is signed We cannot enter into peaceful
intercourse with Italy
Why not? After the last war we made peace
with Germany. but we did not sign the Treaty
q Versailles
II our Senate has to accept this treaty. what
IS the good Of giving its members constitutional
power to accept or reject? The logical end
Of the argument Is that once q Secretary Of
Stats has negotiated" treaty, the Senate
must r,lbber-stamp it. What then becomes Of
the constitutional system?
Since the middle Of the war, the American
people have been understanding few
men have decided between them matters affect
ing the lives Of millions They have not even
found 1t necessary to explain their acts nor
Justify them IN reason or morality. and We
are already seeing the terrible results Of those
bargains"
Don't Our Leaders Listen?
All Of them consist Of giving away other
peoples property, rights, and lives. This
wretched document takes from italy territory
culturally Italian from the dawn Of history.
agrees to the evacuation Of the Italian-speak-
ing population, rewards Yugoslavia's dictator
with essential italian resources, creates an
"internationalzed" Trieste cut of from rail
communications, electric power and its agri-
cultural hinterland. We are pledged to defend
this city, in which Titos agents are actively
conspiring. while We renounce defending Italy
herself.
The same newspapers which announce State
Department urgings to ratify quote the State
Department as warning Americans against
visiting Yugoslayia because 1t is not safe. Ths
inhabitants Of Venezia Giulia are, however.
to be permanently turned over without any
safeguards to this same Yugoslavia.9 Don't
our leaders listen even to themselves? Why
must We aid and defend Greece against the
same regime to which we open italy? Is it
because the government OF Greece is more
democratic than that Of today's Italy? II
we pass this treaty, there will not long be q
government either democratic or friendly to
us in Italy.
We are told that If we do not ratify the
Italian treaty, the Soviets will reject the Hun
garian and Romanian. They will not leave
Austria nor come to terms about Germany.
But we have been unable to get an Austrian
agreement; Russian troops guard the COM
municaton lines in Hungary and Romania,
and their presence aids local agents to nqui-
date tho opposition. Does any one doubt they
will remain until they accomplish their
purpose?
Unjust, Stupid and Cruel.
would be against the italian treaty even II
there were q democratic and humane regime
in Yugoslavia because the treaty is unjust,
stupid, cruel, dangerous and In violation Of
solemn promises.
OF one thing we can be certain. This Is
no way to stop communism. Communism is
the final haven for those who have lost all
faith in God and freedom and turn to anony-
nous bitter collective force. We shall not
stop communism by thinking we can buy of
human despairs with less than. the cost Of q
bomber fleet or restore human faith without
sacrifice. 4H
Communism can be halted only by alleviating
human despairs Of soul and body, through
the vision and practice of moral order. The
people not only have to eat. They have to
believe there Is such = thing IN the world ~
Righteousness and love.
AL this is not practical" but with the world
as It Is, after practical men have 80 made It,
there is no reason whatever for thinking they
are right.
fReJess ed nv Rail avndyeats me-,