| Show s Bruckart's Washington Digest People of Farms and Small Towns Will Lead ea Way a to o Sane ane Thinking un Less ess Affected b by hy Y Se Selfishness and Mass l Emotion Than rhan City Folks P President resident Puts Re Republicans In on on Spot Embargo Faces Long Debate in Senate a By WILLIAM BRUCKART Service National Press Washington D. D C. C The WASHINGTON The late Lord Balfour one of the really seeing far British statesmen of two dec decades ago once uttered an nn observation to present conditions During the early days of 1917 before American force had bad begun to weigh heavily in inthe inthe inthe the balance of world hostilities Lord Balfour said to a group of American newspaper editors and publishers The central powers will be der de dc- r in this war but the test will r r come after peace pence has hns been enforced I. I by arms The test will be whether K the peace we have thus gained willi will 3 i be worth whether having having whether we can preserve liberty and democracy I c I believe w we will be able to sustain I that peace and preserve that freedom free tree freedom I dom and I believe moreover that it will be the people of rural Amera America Amer- Amer a 7 ica of lea of the farms and the small towns towns that that will lead the world back to sane thinking With the congress giving consideration consid- consid c J. J oration to President Roosevelt's urgent urgent ur ur- gent request for repeal of the arms embargo as a means of preserving x our neutrality in the present European European European Euro Euro- conflict but with propaganda stirring up emotions on all sides there seems seems to be a need for that sane thinking that Lord Balfour mentioned And as I said above it is made to appear that the people i of the farms arms and the small towns are going to have to lead the way again they have that responsibility i because they obviously will will be be less affected by selfishness racial interest inter inter- est cst foreign influence and mass emolion emotion emo emo emo- lion tion that upsets thought on issues of this kind Whether we are able acle to stay out of this war or whether we get into it it the individualist thatis that thatis is the resident of the small town or the farm has the job of preserving preserving ing our traditions and our tio tion Having made such a sweeping statement concerning these responsibilities responsibilities I will att attempt to show what the f facts are what has been going on in Washington and elsewhere elsewhere elsewhere else else- where that has a bearing on the point Embargo Debate May Clarify Issues In Public Mind President Roosevelt's appeal for repeal of the arms embargo was predicated upon his conviction that such action will help us to stay out of the conflict He argued that there was no reason for the sale sole of cotton and a an embargo on a processed product like gun cotton that it was wassilly silly to permit the sale of aluminum and f forbid the sale of airplanes made from aluminum and so on It would be more nearly true neutrality neu neu- neutrality he asserted if we said to any and all all belligerents that they 1 could come here bere and buy anything they want want provided provided only that they I pay cash cashon on the and haul their purchases away in their own I ships I But while the President was making making making mak mak- ing a good case for his position he also waded into rather muddy ground by calling attention to the fact that much additional employment employment employment employ employ- ment will be created here by war purchases ses of unlimited variety His thread of thought therefore can hardly be described as ns a plan to take the profit out of war It may be sec secondary to the great human buman desire for peace but the profit phase surely was evident Be that as it may may the senate is determined to debate the proposal at great length It faces a long long out drawn-out struggle and the value of that will be as many senators have stated to clarify the issues in the public mind That is to say there will be a crystallization of sentiment brought about by the debate Mr Roosevelt called in congressional congressional leaders both Democratic and Republican Republican- for a White House discussion discussion dis of the plan He explained publicly and to the members of the c conference that party politics should be adjourned t. that adjourned that at this was no notime notime notime time for politics Reaction to Conference Is Favorable rable to President The gener general l reaction to the conference conference con con- ference with congressional leaders appears to o have been very favorable to the President The public thought on inclusion of former Governor Landon of Kansas and arid CoL Frank Knox of Illinois Republican nominees nominees nominees nom nom- for Jor the presidency and vice presidency in 1936 1938 however was v quite different Mr Roosevelt advertised advertised ad ad- the thc invitation to these gentlemen gen gen- gentlemen to the conference as as evi- evi evidence evidence evi l. dence of his desire poli oli- oli I tics That ballyhoo did not take hold very well Many observers wondered how bow the President figured that Landon and Knox could I have anything to say about national policy W which ich is the exclusive responsibility re re- of c congress They were defeated discredited as leaders by bythe bythe bythe the voters in 1936 Thus critics suggested suggest d that Mr Roosevelt with Roosevelt with politics politics' adjourned adjourned had had played an exceedingly smart brand of politics I I I and Landon and Knox swallowed the bait in the fashion of amateurs The President has bas put the whole Republican party on the spot with the assistance of its members members members mem mem- bers and there arc signs that a 1 I Republican effort will be made to offset the move I INow Now there is another r thing cropping crop ping up Beneath shouts of patriotism patriotism patriot ism and declarations that we must avoid getting into the raging madness madness madness mad mad- ness overseas there is a feeling that congress ought to remain on ont t the e job straight through the winter The determination of the President and his spokesmen in congress is to limit action in the extra session to the subject of repeal of the arms embargo If that is all aU the actual work york that is accomplished it would require only a short time On the theother theother theother other hand there seems to be a feeling that Mr Roosevelt should not be left with all of at the responsibility responsibility responsibility of of- ofa a war threat hanging over h head ad Since the entire membership membership mem- mem has been called back here the he observation has hns been frequent that the they ought to stay on until the regular session begins in January to o be of ot help to the President as like lightning lightning like changes tal take e place inthe inthe in inthe the situation abroad One hears a great deal of discussion discussion dis dis- dis among senators and representatives representatives about our nations nation's financial finan cial and economic condition They suddenly have realized the fact that there exists a n national debt of more than han almost alm almost st 20 OO- OO more than the total of the debt when the World war ended Its It ItIs ItIs Is s not a pleasant thought but it must be faced Turn to Rural America to Lead ead Way to Sane Thinking And as to the thc government itself attention lately has been called to the fact that there are now persons on the government payroll Contrast that with which was the greatest number employed by y the government at any time during dur dur- during ing the World war The military and naval forces are not included Inthe in he the figures given ghen These facts were mentioned to me at nt the Capitol theother the theother I Iother other day because some members were vere looking to conditions after another another an an- other war It was explained that there here was very little contraction atthe of at the he governments government's size after the World war and that was more than offset by expansions in the last six years In other words a war will vill place an additional drain upon the he government which is the peole peo peo- pie le that will become a permanent thing Thus we see that minor minor- matters as asell well ell as ns major questions are haying hav hay ing ng an effect upon the thinking of the country While they are not so intended all of the many governmental governmental govI gov gov- changes and plans n and d conditions turn conversations to the subject of war So we come back to the original nal statement From a long period of observation of people it seems to tome tome tome me that those folks who form the backbone of America are arc likely to tobe tobe be less influenced by the various things I have mentioned than is the he case case se with the folks in the cities Th The part of rural America which will provide the balance of power in a decision to stay out of war or go in will be able to think clearly Isms and Insane Ideologies Have Their Origin In Cities To ref refer r again to Lord Balfour's statement it can be said that he foresaw exactly what has bas happened in the United States It is necessary necessary necessary sary only to recall that all of the Isms and insane ideologies through which we have passed since the World war have had th their ir origin in cities Movements for this and that and the other program or plan came from hotbeds in thickly populated populated areas It is to be admitted that they gained much more headway head bead way than any one thought possible They are again on the way out however vever because such things h have lve no appeal for the type of f citizens I to which Lord Balfour referred When the situation in Was Washington ington up as of this time therefore therefore there there- fore one can properly ask sk whether er it makes any difference what congress does about lt the arms em em- bargo The things about which we must worry make up a a a. combination combination tion package They are little things when taken separately Together Together To To- gether they constitute national pol pol- icy If U. each of these little things tends to Involve the United States j lust just st n a little bit more each time then we are going to got into differences differences dif dif- with the belligerent na na- na- na While all aU of this is happening happen ing however none of us can escape es es escape cape the thought that it is up to the United States to preserve civilization civilization tion as we now know it it and our job Is cut out for Cor us when the European European European Euro Euro- war is over It Is not peace only for the sake of 01 peace but a B policy designed to help save something something something some some- thing out of or the European ruins for Cor benefit of at all |
