Evening star., 1950-06-03
An American Speaks Out

Not IN long time, in either house OF Con-
gresS, has there been a finer or more pertinent
address than the one just delivered by Republican
Senator Margaret Chase Smith of Maine. Speak
ing with the voice of sanity and authentic
Americanism, she has said things which many
Of >uS-legislators officials in the Executive
Branch, and members of the public at large
seem to have forgotten in recent months, but
which none of us, if we really cherish our free
way of life, can ever afford to forget.
For Mrs Smith-in her splendid speech and
in her accompanying Declaration of Conscience"
which Republican Senators Tobey, Aiken, Morse,
Ives, Thye and Hendrickson have formally sub
scribed to-has demonstrated clearly enough,
with simple but striking eloquence, that this
Nation cannot retain its greatness either at home
or abroad If it keeps on violating its own most
basic principles and traditions. The evil she has
addressed herself to- the evil she would exercise
from our American society, is the wild faction
alism, the reckless demagoguery and the literally
sinful personality smears that have lately been
poisoning our relationships one with another
and generating confusion and division through
out the length and breadth of our land.
Although she has not mentioned it by name,
Mrs Smith has spoken out particularly against
the thing that has been stirred up by the grossly
intemperate tactics of Senator Mccarthy and
his shril devotees. This thing, as she has said,
is alien to our free country. Though some of its
more active participants have been shouting the
loudeSt about AmericaniSm, 1t has been doing
violence to many of our most fundamental con-
stitutional principles, including the right to
criticize, the right to hold unpopular beliefs and
the right of independent thought Beyond that,
because of it, the United States Senate-"the
greatest deliberative body in the world"-has
been in danger of being debased into "a forum
of hate and character assassination sheltered by
the shield of congressional immunity"
Worst of ALL this evil-making the American
people "sick and tired of being afraid to speak
their minds lest they be politically Smeared
as Communists or 'Fascists' has been threat
ening the Nation with a psychological division
that would f1t in very neatly with the Soviet
formula of confuse, divide and conquer" Dis
sociating herself from any Republican engaged
in this dangerous business, Mrs. Smith has made
an impassioned plea for quick end to it, making
clear at the same tinne-with great cogency-
that the Democratic administration is highly
vulnerable on a wide variety of issues Gncluding
the mishandling or possible "whitewash' of GER
tain loyalty cases. on which her party can take
a vote winning stand without STOPPING to tactics
harmful not merely to itself but to the whole
country.
All this comes as much-needed breath of
fresh air in the fetid and essentially American
atmosphere that has been created by irrespon-
sible people galloping around in the Senate and
elsewhere on what Mrs. Smith has described as
"the four horsemen of calumny-fear, ignorance,
bigotry and smear" Her timely and moving
words-words rejecting the finest of our tradi-
tions-Should be taken to heart by every one of
us. If they are, then this Nation will recapture
the full measure of strength and unity that it
must have in these days of danger.