OCR Text |
Show Aj ORB W PEARSON Washington, D. C. SIGNIFICANCE OF RUSSIAN BLAST Members of the diplomatic corps who have lived beside Russia and dealt with her diplomats for years point to some significant things about the Pravda report which set the world on its ear about the British Brit-ish negotiating a separate peace with Nazi Foreign Minister Ribben-trop. In the first place, diplomats point out that, had the report been published pub-lished in Izvestia, it would have been much more serious. Izvestia is the organ of the Soviet government, and Anything appearing therein can be considered the. gospel views of the Kremlin itself. However, Pravda, organ of the Communist party, is one 'step removed, re-moved, and anything published in it can be interpreted as close to but not necessarily representing the views of Stalin. Thus, it was Pravda which dropped a ton of editorial bricks on the unsuspecting, well-intentioned head of Wendell Willkie, hitherto considered Russia's best friend. That editorial rebuke came after Willkie had discussed the Polish boundary question in a manner quite sympathetic to Russia. However, the Russians chose to rebuke their best friend as a warning warn-ing to President Roosevelt and Secretary Sec-retary Hull that they did not want the Polish question discussed at all not evert by their friends. They could not very well come out and rebuke Hull and Roosevelt, so they chose a prominent American, one step removed, figuring Hull and Roosevelt would take the hint. Therefore, remembering that Russian Rus-sian diplomatic moves are usually aimed obliquely at something on the other side of the billiard table, here is the diplomatic cores' explanation of the latest Pravda thrust against the British. For about two years, it has been no secret that the British have hung back regarding a second front in western Europe. It is also no secret se-cret that, right down to the Teheran conference, Churchill pulled for a Balkan front or almost any other front except a western front. PUTTING BRITISH ON SPOT Stalin is a man who never forgets for-gets and, even if no friction had occurred at Teheran, he would have continued to be suspicious about British intentions of a second front, in view of the two years of second front debate. And on top of Teheran, Tehe-ran, plus Churchill's long stay in Africa, Stalin's suspicions may be boiling again. Therefore, point out the diplomats, what could be more adroit than to put the British squarely on the spot by subtly accusing-them of talking to the Nazis about a separate peace? In other words, after the Pravda article, the British now have to prove they want no separate peace by pushing ahead with the second front. If they delay it, then the Russians can point to the suspicion no matter how untrue that perhaps per-haps the British were talking to Ribbentrop after all which, of course, they weren't. The Pravda publication fits in, especially at this time, when there actually have been some hints in official circles that the Russians are doing so well that the Nazis will surrender soon, then we wouldn't need a second front. It's complicated, but the Russian mind is complicated, and Russian diplomacy even more so. SOFTENING CASUALTY MESSAGES The war department has received many letters recently from ministers minis-ters and private families, suggest-, ing that, instead of sending casualty casu-alty messages by telegram to bereaved be-reaved families, they be sent to a i committee of pastors in each community, com-munity, one of whom would then deliver ' the message and seek to soften the blow of the tragic news. So far, however, the war department depart-ment has taken the position that it should continue delivery of the casualty casu-alty messages by Western Union messenger boy. Army officials argue ar-gue that delivery by a clergyman would cause confusion and delay, and that a clergyman might not be available at the time, or he might I lack proper and immediate transportation. transpor-tation. Also, the army argues that a casualty casu-alty message has a high priority, ' which means that its transmission is expedited, and this might be offset by delay at the receiving end if the message had to pass through the hands of a clergyman. CAPITAL CHAFF ' C. When diplomats run out of liquor, that's a story. Carlos Campbell of the Chilean embassy burst into the office of Chilean Ambassador Mich-els, Mich-els, saying, "Don Rodolfo, please lend me a case of wine for tonight; I'm having a party!" "I can't do it," replied the ambassador. "I have no wine myself!" C. In the Library of Congress, back numbers of Esquire are kept in the Delta Collection, a special collection of sex books and other erotica available avail-able to adults, not to adolescents. i |