Show ECONOMIC highlights sentiment in this country is largely in favor of finland in her military dispute with gigantic russia but sentiment in favor of the proposed U S loan to the bc be league red little northern nation is nowhere near so strong A considerable segment of opinion including that of public officials publicists and others who are as eager as anyone to see finland saved from being absorbed by the communists feels that financial aid to any warring country should be extended through private sources such as a s herbert hoovers finnish relief committee and not by the government they dont feel that way for reasons of economy but tor for reasons of policy A loan to a warring nation they argue gives the U S a direct financial interest in the outcome of the war and the next logical step beyond financial intervention they continue is military intervention if we let our sentiments entice us into helping finland or any other country they warn we are immensely increasing the chances of 0 f being drawn into wars which are none of our concern and which we w should stay out of on the other side of the fence the advocates of government financial aid t 0 finland regard these arguments to use mr roose belts phrase as unadulterated twaddle the president made a strong case for this position in his talk to the youth congress in which he argued that the chance of russia declaring war on us if we help finland is too ridiculous to be worth considering and the partisans of government help to the finns have some precedent on their side more than a year ago we loaned china to help her in her undeclared war with japan and the japanese make an issue of it under the terms of another pending bill which has been pretty much obscured in the press because of the th concentration of interest on europe we would give the chinese another sizable loan through the import export exhort bank at any rate irrespective of what side of this controversy history finally proves right there will be some debate when the finnish loan proposal comes to the floor of congress the odds now favor its passing two more events of considerable importance in the light they cast on our foreign policy recently occurred first of these was the presidents appointment of undersecretary of state welles on a special mission to tour Eu ropes chancel lories and talk with the heads of governments about the chances for peace this is not regarded as a prelude to a definite move for an early peace but as groundwork for the future when the chance of effecting a peace seems brighter it is extremely dark now with british and french spokesmen saying they will not stop until nazi germany is destroyed st mr welles weiles will go to rome berlin london and paris it is significant that he goes first to rome it is felt certain that mussolini must be an important and perhaps the most important factor in any peace negotiations the appointment of mr welles was generally well received he is an able career diplomat of long experience fitted to meet Eu ropes wily statesmen on an even footing second event was the presidents denunciation of the soviet union in his youth congress talk it was couched in terms which were startlingly strong coming from the head of a theoretically friendly nation mr roosevelt said russia was an absolute dictatorship which had bad failed to live up to its early principles of liberating a people who have lived for centuries as serfs of the czars azars times have certainly changed since russia was regarded as a major ally of the democratic powers big question now is just how much farther this country will go in mixing itself up in Eu ropes troubles the isolationists say we have gone too far already the internationalists ter nationalists say we must go much farther it does docs seem apparent that the administration firmly believes that we must be in a position to exert a powerful guiding 0 hand in determining the terms of the peace that some day will follow this war |