Evening star., 1948-04-11

with me when he feels he is obligee
to do so because of their i'm.
portance. Troubles! You dom
know what they are"
Third Term Decision
The Roosevelt optimism led the
President to be hopeful of disarm.
ament and peace demonstrations
as late as 1887. 1t was Hull, the
man from shooting country In
Tennessee, who pointed out to him
that it was wrong to lull the de-
with talk Of peace when
there were three powers whose arm
ament was increasing not for de-
Tense but for attack. According to
Hull it was not until the shock OF
Hitler's breakthrough to the west
In 1910 that the real planning for
Hitler's defeat began.
"Of one point the President and
had not the slightest doubt" he
wrote, namely, that an Allied VIC
tory was essential to the security
Of the United States. -
1T was also evident to the Pres
ident and me that the enormous
OF the German Army
revealed by the lightning occupa-
ton Of Holland and the break
through at Sedan required the re-
vising Of all our estimates for the
rearming of the United States
Hull says he was the one who
suggested the figure Of $4,000 planes
q year In the Presidents message
the figure that was finally doubled
It was the fall of France, &C.
cording to the Hull account, that
led the President to decide on the
third term and until that time he
had always indicated "his expecta-
ton and wish that I should be his
successor"
Stimson's book, "On Active Serv-
Ice in Peace and War;" to be pub
lished this week, is written in the
third person and in q reflective vein
like "The Education of Henry
Adams" 1t is a gift to history and
biography for the evaluation of
Roosevelt. the strategist.
Bluff Never Tried
The story of TORCH (the North
African landings versus BOLERO
(the early term for the cross-Chan-
ael attack which later became
ovERLoRD) has been told before.
The Army's plan from the first
was the cross Channel attack. In
March, 1912, Stimson was disap-
pointed and staggered to find Presi-
dent Roosevelt toying with the Mid
lie East and the Mediterranean.
That was what Churchill wanted
and Churchill was soon to make a
second visit. Stimson and Marshall
n argument brought the President
back to the North Atlantic and held
him there. He held that position
firmly through Churchill's visit in
June.
Churchill returned to England and
IN July there came a cable indicat-
ing the British were going back on
the Channel plan. Marshall
and Stimson decided on a show
the British won't 60
through with what they agreed to,
we will turn our backs on them and
take up the war with Japan"
Roosevelt objected. He said it
was like taking up your dishes
Ind going away" The Stimson ac-
count says: "Stimson in retrospect
was not altogether pleased with
his part in it. Mr.. Roosevelt
vas not persuaded and the bluff
vas never tried. 1t never would
nave worked in any case, for there
vas no real intention of carrying it
'ut, and Stimson supposed that the
British knew this as well as he did. :"
Hopkins, Marshall and King went
% London and the decision was
although it was realized
that they were putting of the
cross s-Channel attack a year.
"Stimson always considered d
TORCH the lucKiest Allied opera
lion of the war;" the account con-
sinues, "but he was prepared to
admit that those who had advo-
Gated the operation could not be
expected to see it in that light; the
had won his bet"
Firm on Channel Plan
North African success led to Sicily
and Italy, and Churchill was con-
stantly advocating Balkan landings,
but Roosevelt was firm in not let
Ting anything further interfere with
the cross Channel plan.
Stimson writes: "One of the post
war conclusions reached by some
writers was that the Brit
ish opposition to OvERLORD was
mainly guided by desire tor block
Soviet Russia by an invasion fur
ther east. This view seemed to
Stimson to be wholly erroneous
Never In any of his long and frank
with the British leaders
was any such argument advanced,
and he saw no need whatever to
assume any such grounds for the
British position"
Stimson tells how Roosevelt was
never able to appreciate St!lwell's
tactics in the China Burma India
theater OF making the Chinese q