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Show Kathleen Norris Says: Why Enemies at All, Ever? (Bell Syndicate WNXJ Service.) Anything like conferences, concessions, understandings, plans, maps never enters the heads 0 European leaders. Arms are still the only arguments, on tnt other side oj the water. By KATHLEEN NORRIS YEARS ago when a small brother of mine received re-ceived as a birthday present what seemed to him a dazzlingly complete set of tools, he went out to speak to the fine old Portuguese who puttered about as a general carpenter and gardener and handy man on my father's farm. "I've been thinking about our tools, Joe," said eight-year-old Fred, "and I think the best rule for us now is no WHY WAR? Kathleen Norris makes a bold and revealing study of this important impor-tant question. In her opinion, war is natural in Europe. Miss Norris points out that for centuries the only "legitimate" way for a nation to increase in wealth or siz has been seizure. She finds that nations cry "Peace!" only when they have their arms full of booty which some other nation might try to steal back. ter thing has been put into small hearts and minds. And war has ruled the world for a long, long time. Go 'Moral' to Protect Booty. But now, partly because of the modern educators of newspapers, news reels, telegraph, radio, suddenly sud-denly great countries begin to be a little ashamed of their long histories his-tories of violence and conquest. They begin to hold up shocked hands at those bad countries that try to steal what they need, instead of just politely po-litely asking for it. They are horrified horri-fied that anyone is still so old-fashioned and stupid as to think that guns are arguments. Having for hundreds of years forced the most brutal possible terms upon their enemies, en-emies, they are pained and surprised sur-prised that any country is still talking talk-ing of reprisals and impositions. "Why must you go on fussing more borrowing and no more lending!" As often happens, the phrase of a child fits a much larger situation than a child's mind can grasp. The idea of stopping all lending and borrowing, bor-rowing, as soon as one has reached the point where one need no longer borrow, is applicable to the state of affairs in Europe today. The legitimate way for any nation na-tion to enlarge its wealth and extend ex-tend its borders has always been by violence and seizure. For 2,000 years the battle has been to the stronir: churches, philosophers, ed- ucators, politicians and the great mass of peoples have all agreed that if any nation COULD take a thing by force, that nation was legally le-gally entitled to it until a more forceful nation came along. Victories Victo-ries have been shaky things, trembling trem-bling along for a few years until the vanquished could gather strength enough to turn them into defeats. Age-old resentments have smouldered between countries ever since history began; the conquered country only awaiting its hour to rise and struggle again. about what we stole from you? they ask plaintively. "We are rich and comfortable and satisfied, and it's becoming extremely old-fashioned to go on fighting this way. If you haven't enough oil wells or wheat fields or seaports forget itl We're using all we need, and we mean to hold several we don't need, and that's all there Is to it!" Anything like conferences, concessions, conces-sions, understandings, plans, maps anything like sympathy with your neighbors, friendly talks, payments, apparently never enters the heads of European leaders. When they become frightened over the weakness weak-ness of their positions then they begin be-gin feverishly to arm. Arms are still the only arguments, on the other oth-er side of the water. To the Strong. One country pushes great business busi-ness ventures into another. The invaded in-vaded country protests; its currency curren-cy stands at a ruinous value, the richer country, pouring its merchants mer-chants in. carrying off treasure in Its ships, is draining it of its wealth, year after year. So an uprising takes place, and an "episode" occurs, oc-curs, and then the richer, distant country has an excuse for sending men and guns, and smashing down an unarmed people's pride and power pow-er and holding military and mandatory manda-tory rights in that country henceforth. hence-forth. Perhaps the ruler who gives those powers has no right to do so; perhaps there Is open treachery on both sides. That doesn't matter. The better armed country has won. It can now bleed the other country white, garrison it, take every advantage of its poverty, lis helplessness. A Vioious Cycle. It would be a silly waste of time to enumerate the repetition of this endless process. It has for 19 hundred hun-dred years been considered tne right process. Armies of Invasion have been formally blessed; prayers pray-ers have been fervently offered that they may be successful in murdering murder-ing on a larger scale than their enemies. Territories seized, in our lifetime, by successful troops, have been serenely occupied and claimed bv the triumphant countries. Cry 'Peace' With Pockets FuIL Oh, of course they SAY "peace!" But they say it as robbers might, leaving your house with his arms full of your possessions. They say it as a rich sleepy old lady might to a noisy outburst from beggar children. "Do go away and stop bothering me. If you haven't any bread, try eclairsl" They never say it in honest hon-est generosity; they never say, "We'll forgive, we'll forget, we give back this and help you buy that" Never. But one great nation has done something in her short history to start a new fashion. America has always been shy about taking war spoils. After the great war she innocently in-nocently protested against the com- j placent partition and theft that was going on so gaily among the allies. It wasn't her way to rob a fallen enemy, even under the dignified disguise dis-guise of a "treaty." She would hare none of it. The American Way. Earlier, she made the Louisiana purchase and paid for it and France has never questioned her claims to it nor hated ber for having it America, to a chorus of derisive laughter from Europe, paid for the Philippines. When she wanted Alaska, she bought it: Europe couldn't get over the joke! A great nation, with an army, buying a place that was undefended, almost unoccupied, and that could have been taken at the cost of only a few American and Russian lives! But America made a friend and not an enemy of Russia, and that isn't so bad an investment. This was the old way. Let's not be too hasty, therefore, in condemning condemn-ing those nations that still cling to it as the right way. For the sur-prising sur-prising and wonderful thing is no that men still have faith in war. but that ANY nation begins to feel-and some nations are beginning so to teel-that there is something wrong with it War is the natural thing. Children are born fighters: might rules in the nursery until some bet- |