Evening star., 1955-01-30
The Dust Is Settling

1HG DUS& ~ SCtbUsS
One clear fact emerges from the For
mosa matter-we have come to a Arm, and
possibly fateful, decision with respect to
Communist China. We are no longer watt
ing for the dust to settle. We are no longer
committed to police action" policy of
trying to resist aggression without risking
about war. We have resolved at long last
to fight war with Red China, If necessary,
in order to secure the Pescadores and For
mosa.
We cannot know how great, or how
small, the risk may be. Certainly, the
trllmpetings that continue to come from
Peiping, reiterating Communist determina-
ton to "liberate" Formosa and to meet
force with force, will not be reassuring to
those who shrink from the hazards involved.
The policy set out In the Presidents mes
sage and indorsed with truly impressive
show Of unity in the Congress is policy
designed to preserve peace, not to provoke
war; To this end, the United Nations Sc
curity Council will meet tomorrow to ex-
plore the possibilities Of ending hostilitieS
in the Formosa area.
In all of this, however, there Is no
guarantee that we shall not have to fight,
and 1t is the declaration, however soft the
words may be, of our readiness to fight II
necessary which stands out as truly sig
nificant in this latest statement of Amer
ican policy.
The minority Senators we're quite right
In saying that this resolution could be
commitment to war. Senator Morse's use
OF the term preventive war;" in the light
of it's implications, was unfortunate and
unwise. The resolution does not contem-
plate any preventive war in the sense in
which that term has been used in the past.
In another sense, however, the Oregonian
was right. Congress has authorized the
President, in his discretion, to use American
armed forces in advance of an actual attack
by the Communists on Formosa proper.
The important thing is that an almost
unanimous Congress, knowing what the res
olution meant, nevertheless agreed to it. It
was the distinguished Senator George who
made the argument to which, really, there
was no answer. The chairman Of the For
eign Relations Committee, expressing his
confidence in President Eisenhower as a
prudent" man dedicated to peace" told
the Senate:
God keep us out of war, but If war
must come let us not draw line and say
that beyond that line is sanctuary which
the enemy may occupy and beyond which
he may retreat. Let us say that wherever
the enemy Is we will strike. II we have
right because of our vital interest in the
free world facing the Pacific. east and west.
to defend FornoSa In order to prevent its
falling into the hands Of an unfriendly
power, we have right to make an effective
defense. =. We would be the laughing
stock of mankind If we said we would not
interfere until we saw the enemy actually
putting his foot on the shore Of Formosa.
There is a1esSon of sort in this for
those who are inclined toward hasty polit-
ical judgments. In 1888, Franklin Roose-
velt tried unsuccessfully to purge the Geor-
gian from the Senate. Senator George, the
President said, was "dyed-in-th wool
conservative. in my judgment" the Presi-
dent told Georgia audience, che cannot
possibly be classified as belonging to the
liberal school of thought"
But the world moved on Franklin
Roosevelt soon was leader in the desperate
struggle against the Axis tyranny, a sue
cessful struggle to push America out of its
isolation, but one which undoubtedly short
ened the Presidents life. Now, II years
later the dyed -in-the- wool" conservative
from Georgia emerges as the strong right
arm Of another President in joint effort to
prod America into assuming responsibilities
that were undreamed of In 1888.
What the final result of all this will be,
no one can say. AS minimum proposition,
however, those who have read Senator
Georges speech will agree that, in these
dangerous times, 1t is good that we still
have him in the Senate. And perhaps they
can further agree certainly Franklin
Roosevelt would concur - that the real
gauge of public official today is not
whether he is a conservative" or Glib
eral," but whether he Is capable Of facing
up to the obligations which the expanding
shadow Of communism imposes on us.
Ashes on the Ruu