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Show ' Bruckart' a Washington Digest Paradox of Peace Songs Coupled With War Plans Prompt Inquiry Debates In Senate All Stress Theme 'We Must Keep Out of European Mess'; Then Why Is Alarmist Point of View Propagated From Capital? By WILLIAM BRUCKART WNU Service, National Press Bldg., Washington, D. C. WASHINGTON. While the senators sena-tors continue drooling out thousands of words concerning the proposed repeal of the arms embargo, any observer can hardly fail to note the same theme song in all of the speeches: we must keep out of Europe's Eu-rope's war. The senators, and the representatives, too, seize upon every ev-ery opportunity to tell the nation either from the capitol or any other rostrum that it is a war on the other oth-er side of the Atlantic and that we must remain out of it. President Roosevelt's every statement, state-ment, and they have been coming with the frequency of rain in the tropics, projects the same command. com-mand. He says he hates war and wants to keep the country at peace. His subordinates throughout the government gov-ernment every one with a title sufficient suf-ficient to draw a crowd to a banquet or to a camp meeting are causing the doves of peace to coo with their softest tones. Beyond Washington, also, the theme song is being picked up and repeated by every individual who can gain access to a radio microphone mi-crophone or gather a dozen listeners in one room. It's a wonderful thing to live in a country where everyone loves peace. But the same observer rambling around Washington and hearing the theme song of peace cannot fail to note also a war psychology, an alarmist point of view. It is a view that is being propagated from Washington, Wash-ington, and there can be no mistake about it. And, so, I rise to ask why all of these war plans are coupled with the theme song of peace? For in every section of the national government gov-ernment those plans are going forward for-ward as though we were going to have a declaration of war just ahead of the newly fixed Thanksgiving day of November 23. Why All These War Plans When Nation Is for Peace? No mature person can ignore the dangers of war; nor ought any person per-son make light of serious consideration considera-tion of war plans. I certainly do not intend to treat the matter in a humorous vein, but I repeat the question: why all of these war plans when the nation is 99.44 per cent in favor of peace? Let me set down some of the things that have happened around here and maybe it will clear why I have become puzzled: The other day I was in the navy department. There, hanging in a most conspicuous place, was a sign which read: "Beware of Female Spies," and some other warning notes. It struck me that female spies are no more dangerous now than at any time in the last 50 years, and I observed to a navy officer that if foreigners wanted to know our military secrets, they would not wait until now to try to find out about them. President Roosevelt announced a few days ago that he intended to add something like 75,000 men to the army, in accordance with discretionary discre-tionary authority granted by the last congress, and that during 1940 he expected to increase the army to its full authorized strength of 250,000 men. Shortly after making known this decision, the President issued orders or-ders to the war department, directing direct-ing construction of a series of new barracks and cantonments. These are to house the new army personnel. person-nel. But congress has given no authority au-thority for that, nor has it appropriated appropri-ated money to be expended for that construction. Mr. Roosevelt called attention to this lack of authority, and explained that he believed there was no intention on the part of congress con-gress not to provide living quarters for the new soldiers. So, he is going go-ing ahead without that authority. He will ask congress to legalize his action ac-tion when it meets in regular session ses-sion next January. Before making known his intention to proceed, however, how-ever, the President discussed the question with Comptroller General Brown, and the Comptroller General suggested that he be not requested to give a "formal opinion" on the President's Pres-ident's right to carry out the program. pro-gram. Navy yards throughout the country coun-try have been closed to visitors. For the first time in years, the capitol building is under police regulations reg-ulations as rigid as war time. Again, Why the Paradox of Peace Songs and War Plans? You will recall how on several occasions oc-casions the President has made public pub-lic statements about war dangers near our shores. First, he told his press conference one day that two submarines had been sighted, one off the Atlantic coast and the other off the shores of the state of Washington. Wash-ington. There was that announcement announce-ment also about the German gunboat gun-boat that was meandering around somewhere in the Caribbean sea. Finally, Stephen Early, the Presi dent's press secretary, disclosed that the head of the German navy had sent a warning that an American Ameri-can ship the Iroquois, was to be sunk. The German word, according accord-ing to Mr. Early, was that the British Brit-ish were going to sink that ship which was loaded with American refugees from the war zone; and then they would blame the Germans for doing it. The purpose of all of this was to inflame American public opinion against the Nazis, so it was officially stated. Now, I would have no way of knowing whether the U-boats were actually sighted and whether they were German or British or our own. Nor would I now anything about the German man-o-war that was reportedly re-portedly cruising around not too far from American waters. Likewise, the Iroquois warning was something I could not know about. But these things, among many others, have prompted the general discussion and the inquiry as to the paradox of peace songs and war plans. Dismissal of Mobilization Board Causes Speculation Now, I can see some sound judgment judg-ment in the decision to withhold from publication the report by the newly established industrial mobilization mobili-zation board which was headed by Edward R. Stettinius, one of the powers in the United States Steel corporation. That group of men, who surely could be trusted to be in favor of preserving the United States if anyone can be trusted to be patriotic, patriot-ic, had made a careful analysis of all of the resources of the country that could be used for war purposes. pur-poses. It is presumed that the board drafted general plans and revised, or at least reviewed, many of the war department programs for war supplies. sup-plies. But Mr. Roosevelt deemed it best not to make the board's findings find-ings public. With that, surely, no one can disagree. There is quite a difference between be-tween the sort of findings that represent rep-resent such conclusions as those informed in-formed men could contribute and the sort of information that is obtainable ob-tainable every day concerning the mechanics of ships and guns and airplanes and there is a difference, too, between that and alarmist announcements an-nouncements about U-boats. Just here the facts of the mobilization mobiliza-tion board's dismissal ought to be chronicled. The members of the board, or some of them with whom I had talked, believed they had been asked by the President to do a continuing con-tinuing job. They felt that they were something of a permanent agency, available at the call of the President. Whatever their belief was, however, it turned out that they were wrong. Those industrialists, working without pay and paying their own expenses, had been known as conservatives. Any conservative thinker is a dangerous individual to such men as the Corcoran-Cohen group of presidential advisers. No sooner had they started work, than it was bruited about in various quarters quar-ters that these men were going to scuttle the New Deal. The "inner circle," a gang that came from oblivion ob-livion into power and will eventually go back to oblivion, did not overlook over-look a bet in spreading their gospel that the industrialists were out to wreck everything for which Mr. Roosevelt stood. Can Easily Get Into War if Psychology of War Continues The rumors concerning the activities activi-ties of the members of the mobilization mobiliza-tion board spread rapidly and grew in number. It is made to appear that the sponsors got to Mr. Roosevelt Roose-velt with their propaganda. In any event, something happened with the suddenness of a rabbit jumping from a lair of weeds. Mr. Roosevelt announced an-nounced in his press conference one afternoon that the. mobilization board would make its report and would be dissolved. That would not have been a startling announcement except that none of the members of the board, nor the general staff officers offi-cers of the war department who were working with the board, had any previous knowledge that their work was ended. I have not attempted in this discussion dis-cussion to report all of the little incidents in-cidents that have come along to excite ex-cite curiosity. It is not to be forgotten forgot-ten that the congress was called into extraordinary session to act on the President's request for repeal of the arms embargo. Many persons saw no need for the extra session. And the passage of three weeks of debate on the question whether to keep the embargo against export of arms or repeal it has shown, as far as I am concerned, that it really does notmat-ter notmat-ter which side wins. The United States is not going to get into war any moie quickly by keeping the embargo than it will by repealing that mooted section. But it can get into war very easily, embargo or no embargo, if this psychology of war is continued from Washington. |