Evening Star Newspaper, February 21, 1932, Page 25

l—{:XDIO FORUM IS HEARD FROM ARCTIC TO TROPICS| In Icebound Villages, Far Away Islands, Lonely Mountains, Program Awaited Eve HEN it's 10 o'clock Monday night in Washington— N It's just 5 o'clock in the efternoon in far away alnska. But in a little ice- Dound village on the fringe of the retic circie, there's a radio set tuned c) a program originating in the Wash- ington studios of the National Broad- casting Co.—the National Radio Forum, arranged by The Washington Star. At the same time a little family, solated in the snow capped Rockies, 40 miles from civilization's nearest outpost, gathers around a crackling log fire, and tunes a radio set to the Washington program. Even in the tropic-warmed Virgin Islands the hour of 10 Monday night in Washington automatically signals adjustment of a radio set for the radic forum from the Nation's Capital. In countless other homes. too, not so remote perhaps, not so distant. but scattered from one border to the other, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific— | everywhere that programs of an exten- sive transcontinental network of N. B. C. stations might penetrate—there’s a radio forum audience. Cross Section of Life. And what a polyglot audience it is that sets its dials for this popular weckly discussion of national and in national affairs. very often by either a statesman or cabinet officer, who Self figured prominently in the eveni College professors—students of national and international affairs—a roadside gasoline vendor—a factory worker—an immigrant who has just learned to stutter a few words of English atrociously, but anxious to n Indeed, a cross section of American life is represented in this far flung audience. Such is can be painted from corre- the picture that the voluminous spondence that descends on The Star. | like an avalanche, every week following a new forum broadcast. Mail by the bagful from the big cities, the little towns and villages—each letter ex- tolling the virtues of The tional Radic Forum for its value, the impetus it gives to renewed thinking and. moreover, the avenue provides through which the people of the country may hear directly from their own leaders. Each succeeding forum stirs up in- creased interest, if the steadily volume of mail can be used as a cr terion. The recent prohibition debate between Senator Howell of Nebras and Representative Beck of Pennsy vania inspired the letter writers among the forum's radio audience. The brc cast by Senator J. Hamilton Lewis of Il- linois on the Sino-Japanese situation, coming at a time when the war clouds in the Far East seemed to be drifting across the Pacific. likewise struck a Tesponsive chord Lewis Highly Praised. Hundreds of letters. and even grams. poured into The Star Senator Lewis' speech. virtually one of them complimenting this fa- mous figure on the ciear and maste ful presentation of the situation. Oth- ers wrote for copies of the address to study or to pass on to friends who nicsed the inspiring speech Culled 2t random from { radio “fan mail,” these ram is the foundation of new era of expression. Nobody ever heard of a >4-station net- work fc h a program at 10 o'clock at nigit the most desirable night of the week, except a commercial offering. Because of the excellence of your pro- gram and vour genius for Keeping it tied-in_with the big controversial is- ues of the day. I think vou will hold this vast number of stations and may :\o;rauld a few more. " You are doing eat job."—R. D. H, Washing- e Washing: “The National Radio Forum will be considered a signal achievement by the people of our country. It is also an outstanding accomplishment for Journalism. You deserve the gratitude grn;he Nation."—J. H M., New York “Monday I listened to the talks give over the forum by four of our outs standing citizens. Everybody interest- ed in national progress welcomes these educational efforts."—B. S o . Ogden, the vast are such ex- an entirely College Freshman Writes, “I want to thank you for the inau- guration of the National Radio Forum. 1 ifeel that you deserve great' com mendation for this service to our coun- try. I am a freshman at the College of Puget Sound. If your radio forum proves to be what it promises to be, no greater aid could be given to new ;J;;gscmcned voters. I shall be listen- -in every Monday evening.™ J.. Tacoma, Wash, =~ 8 = “Your initial broadcast on N. B. C. came to us this evening. We are send- ing this note to thank ycu for the pleasure Wwe derived from it and to express our appreciation of the serv- ive you are rendering in putting on such programs."—R. G. K. Helena Mont. 3 “Congratulations and thanks most heartily extended you for the enlight- ening broadcast given the people of | the United States through your good | offices.”—F. C. K.. Chester, Ill. | “It was with greatest interest that 1 listened last night to the initiation | of & new kind of broadcast. With | such broadeasts, the common people at home will know that their repre- sentatives are at least trying."—J. M. | G. Fort Harrison, Mont. = “The Washington Evening Star is trying to give the people all latest news through the radio as well s in the newspaper, and T can assure Yyou that this is appreciated very much | by the millions”of people in the United States. T must congratulate your news- paper for taking such a stand.”—D. B, Atlantic City, N. J. Entire Family Listens. “This household listened in on the Pacific Coast last night at 7 o'clock to the National Radio Forum with delight- ful satisfaction, hearing every word of speaker perfectly. Our 1if. | Alaska time. 5:30 o'clock, and your program over radio finished. We want to congratulate you on your broadcast- ing and want you to know how much it means to us. We will look forward to next Monday evening with great pleasure.”—Mrs. P. K., Sitka, Alaska. “We up in Uncle Sam's attic hear your radio programs every Monday night. As Washington is my home and the Sunday Star is being sent to me weekly, I was especially interested in be hearing your broadcast. Hydaburg is populated by the Haida Indians and four white persons. Quite a few of the na- tives have radio sets and have been interested in hearing a program from the Nation's Capital."—Miss L. N, Hydaburg, Alaska. “I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to you for your splendid weekly broadcasting of Washington af- | fairs. You simply cannot understand what this means to a person living where I do, and also hundreds of others, all vitally interested in our country’s problems and vet so far from the great center of national affairs. This little village is the international boundary post. We couldn't live a yard farther north and be in our own country. Not only myself. but my friends and neigh- bors recognize a deep gratitude to you for our weekly touch with Washing- ton."—Mrs. V. A. P, Derby Line, Vt. 40 Miles From Town. “Congratulations and thanks for the most needed, most worthwhile program nearty Bpitis sngratulations. G, C. W Alamads, British | ry Ménday Night. for me to express the approval I feel for ydur idea."—M. D. N,, Colorado Springs, Colo. “Congratulations from a citizen who looks forward to your educational and worthwhile program ou the radio forum. Success to your undertaking."—E. C. M., Philadelphia. “Would you be interested in know- ing that this evening, high in the mountains in California, 40 miles from the nearest town, we sat before the fire and listened to your radio forum with the greatest of interest and pleasure? It is really refreshing and marvelous that through your kindness and trouble we should be afforded the opportunity to come into closer touch Wwith the affairs in our National Capital. We are looking forward with Geep Interest to next Monday's discussion.”—Mrs. F. R. F.. Round Mountain, Calif. “May forum? I am a constant reader of The Star—couldn't do withoui it—and am particularly interested m national poli- tics. I am glad that I have the op- portunity not only of reading your edi- torial page, which is most enlightening, | but of hearing of even:s at first hand | from the prominent speaxers you give us over the radio."—Mrs. E. P. P, Edison, Ga. May God bless you, one and all, in effort better to enlighten our people.”—Mis. E. R, Pitts- vou American burgn, Pa njoyed by Merchant. “As one of possibly a million or more American citizens wno listened in tonight on vour program, I want to express my personal, sincere apprecia- tion for this highly inteilectual broad- cast. To me, just an ordinary small- town merchant, it was a real treat to hear the distinguished statesmen of our country express their personal views in their own words.”—H. W. S., Marfa, Tex. “I am a college graduate and have had the privilege of studying under as distinguished men as it is possible to find in our universities, but I have never before had an opportunity which seemed to me so valuabie as the oppor- tunity. you are offering through the forum."—M. L. H.. Montclair, N. J. “It is not only an education for us all to listen to these men who are in- trusted to take charge of affairs, but our duty to know just what is being done. I for one will not miss a broad- cast if I can help it."—Mrs. D. S. P., Portland, Me. “Your National Radio Forum over the N. B. C. hook-up Monday evening is to be highly praised. You are to be congratulated."—W. K. P, Fort Sill, Okla i “Keep up this great work and assist us in learning the facts of all national questions and issues.”—J. S. H., New York Cit; Writes From St. Croi “It will interest you slightly and will at least give me opportunity to express my appreciation to have me say that on a short-wave receiving set I had almost perfect results in connection with your initial forum broadcast. The voices were as clear and full-volumed as if I were in the very presence of the speak- ers. I assure you I shall always be at attention on forum nights.”—J. F. H, Christiansted. St. Croix. Virgin Islands. “At 9 o'clock Monday night I heard on the forum program Senators Wat- son and Robinson, Representative | Rainey, Secretary of War Hurley and others, all_of whom were wonderful speakers. Fifty vears ago I learned to speak the English language when I was peddling in various parts of Maryland Occasionally I used to take a boat on the Potomac to Washington and I would walk through the city with a pack on my back. I am inclosing & little card, showing what an immigrant boy can do in this great country. No other country makes such accomplish- ment possible.”—S. L., Madison, Wis. | Gets Clearer Understanding. “I want to say that I think your forum is of great importance in bring- ing the ideas from men in Washington to the people at large. It makes a 4 clearer understanding.”—M. J. A., Pitts- ford. Mich. “'Congratulations and thanks for the most needed, most worthwhile program on the air. N., Colorado Springs, Colo. ““Congratulations on arranging such splendid programs and may we continue to have them in the future as in the past."—H. W. G.. Cape Girardeau, Mo. “Your radio forum program came in very clear over the N. B. C. network. Keep up the good work. Best wishes for your success.”—C. W., Nenanci, Alaska. “May I be permitted to compliment you on the fine programs in your radio forum. ~ We look worward to them every Monday with great pleasure.’— M. C.. Pocatello, Idaho. Additional columns could be employed to reproduce similar expressions of in- terest and appreciation from practically | every State in the Union. |Liquor Agency Sought If Law Is Repealed | KINGSTON, Jamaica.—Judging from inquiries now being made in Jamaica by American business men, the opinion prevails in the United States that the | repeal or modification of the prohibi- | tion law is not far off, For example, the head of one of the |largest business houses dealing in rum in Jamaica has received a letter from a business man in the United States sking him for the agency of a par- | ticular brand of rum in case the bill i‘(] repeal the prohibition law is suc- the | cessful. Jarrett Davis Byrnes. featufe editor and moving picture critic of the Provi- dence Journal of Providence, R. I, who is visiting the West Indies, in an in- U | terview gives his opinion that there is wonderful | a “clear indication that prohibition in | America has begun to break up, and |that it would not be surprising if, in the near future, spirits the importation of into America would not be Dominions Discuss Trade Amity HONOLULU, Ha waii—Honolulu, “‘crossroads of the Pacific,” was the seat for an unusual meeting recently, when representatives of the Dominion of Can- ada and of New Zealand met here for a conference on matters of joint national interest. They discussedq trade and customs matters and worked out a bet- ter plan of reciprocal trade relations otween them than now exist. From Canada came H. H. Stevens, minister of trade and commerce; his secretary. Karl Chamberlain; Dr. O. P. Kelton, Dr. William Gilchrist and B. A. McKelvie, managing editor of the Vic- toria Colonist. From New Zealand the representatives were W. Downie Stew- art, minister of customs; Dr. G. Craig, T. R. Aickin, M. Martir, C. Croft. Sev- eral members of the delegations were accompanied by wives or other family members. Will They Last That Long? From the Omaha Evening World-Herald. Shoes are $50 a pair in Moscow. The five-year plan is the length of time it takes to pay for them. e . Can Make Big Noise. From the Salt Lake City Deseret News. It is said the Japanese delegation is & most_conspicuous figure at the Interna- tional Peace Conference. So i th ©on the air. It would be quite impossible delegation at Shanghai, THE SUNDAY I I tell you how I enjoy your | STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, Blue Sultan of Africa FEBRUARY 21 19;2—PAET TWO. Behind the Storms Brewing at Northern End of Continent Stands Serious Threat Against European Sovereignty. BY WYNDHAM LEWIS. ORTH MOROCCO today is by no means violently overrun by American and British tour- ists; I saw only two in Fez during a stay of five days, and they had quarreled and were not speak- ing to each other, so they were voiceless, But in the south. or “Sous.” there are none at all. Roughly one may say that the north of Morocco is a part of the Mediterranean world, whereas the south is part of the African world. This southern, and specifically Berber world —the true “Barbary’—exhibits ever where the Saharan and Soudanese cul- ture. Black blood is the rule. not the exception You are outside the zone of the Arab conquest. If. however. “the Sous” is “distant and mysterious,” the Rio de Oro, which lies just to the south of Morocco, is 100 times more so. In addition to being one of the most interesting. it is also one of the most romantically inacces- sible places on the earth This desert that begns just south of the Oued Sous is several times the size of Morocco. It has never been properly penetrated or explored by Europeans. It is inhabited b’ what are certainly among the most savage ple on earth THE RETURN FROM A RAID ON THE DESERT. | —the Mauretanian nomads. | section of it is occupied by what is tech- | | nically (and strictly, on the map) a | gpnnish possession, called the Rio de | ro. | The Rio de Oro proper is an absolute desert. It is sand and steppe, and | nothing else. It is an almost complete | terra incognita, as are the other deserts in which it merges upon all hands. | Prof. E. F. Gautier. one of the great French experts on the Sahara, says of | it: “There is not. in all the Sahara— the Libyan Desert included—a section about which less is known than the Rio | ce Oro.” | Upon this desert coast the English established themselves in a place called Cap Juby in the 70s of the last century. They were driven out (with- | out regret. I should imagine) The Spaniards now have a fort there, which is also (or was until recently) a penal colony. Besides that (and this is the most important thing about it) is a station of the French Aeropostal Serv- | ice. All that we know of the Rio de Oro has been learned from the aviators of the Aeropostal Service. And occa- sonal Spanish airmen who have ven- tured down there have the same story | 1o tell | | Airmen (French or Spanish) who And a big | for one reason or another fly too low | hand facts. are fired on—that is invariable. If they are forced to land. they are either killed (should they be so foolish as to resist) or held for ransom. There is no exception. Airmen who have landed in the Rio de Oro and come back to tell the tale (and usually an airman is not killed, because the ransom is substantial) al- ways remark how, though they descend in a completely empty desert, within 10 minutes or so “los Moros™ are there on the scene—a sudden dust cloud and there are Yhe wild horsemen, their rifles pointing at the intruder: or perhaps they come up on foot, seeming to rise out of the earth One French airman who was held prisoner for some weeks came back with his nails worn to the quick. He had been forced to dig and scrape in the rocky soil with his bare hands each night to make the hole for the camp fire of his nomad captors. He suffered greatly from hunger and thirst—some drops of warm water and some hard crusts were given him. nothing else. Until his release his status was that of a slave among the band that had cap- tured him An airman pilot, stationed at Cap Juby for a year, gave me many first | ‘The Mauretanian, he told me, is a very ugly customer, a bandit and religionist in one. The Maure- tanians are the famous Blue People, or Blue Men, whose Blue trail stretches | through the history of Morocco. Numbers of them come to the Spanish fort to trade, or to receive presents. The Spaniards (who are said to be ex- tremely afraid of them) give them pres- nothing to 4 he pted fiercely as a tribute, without thanks, or with loud Islamic curses if Mauretanians do not think much of them. These big. ring- letted bandits allow the Spaniards to remain at the fort—on nce. Con- temptuously the nomad remarks that the Spaniards give him and his no trouble, My French rmant told me that the Spaniards so terrified by their Mauretanian “subjects” that the officers will not move m than a few yards outside the fortress walls. It is in- credible, according to his view of the matter, how abjectly they are the pris- oners, in this small and mournful fort- hads outside it If you go outside the walls (as the braver of the inhabitants of this strange (Continued on Fourth Page.) SOUTH AMERICA MATCHES KING’S EXEMPLARY LIFE REVIVING U. S. OPTIMISM Hopeful Signs From Across Rio Grande Coincide With New Confidence Felt in This Country. BY GASTON VERVAL. LMOST at the same time that business experts in this country report the first rays of opti- mism breaking through the clouds of depression the cable brings the first encouraging news of an economic nature that has come in a long while from the other side of the Rio Grande. For the last two years the list of bank failures, stock depreciations. price cuts, growing unemployment and gen- | eral business upheavals throughout the country has been constantly matched | in the newspapers by reports of similar occurrences in Latin America—plus po- litical complications precipitated there by economic conditions. Now that the vigorous anti-depression campaign, started by governmental and private forces in this country, appears to be bringing about a return of public confidence. this happy augury is also supplemented by optimistic news from the rest of the continent. _ Whether the end of the depression is really here, or whether this is only a “false alarm.” and greater calamities are still due, the fact that good news from the Southern Hemisphere should | follow on the heels of good news at home. just as bad news from that part of the world added to the gloomy mood of the people in this country at the beginning of the crisis, is a coincidence | at least worth mentioning. Interdependence Shown. One of the great lessons of this de- pression—and we all know there have been many—has been to show the uni- versality of economic interdependence. That conditions in the farthest civil- ized corners of the globe must finally, and necessarily, have a bearing on the economic situation at home, is today admitted by even the most militant “anti-internationalist” in the United States. The depression has served to show this country the contingencies and re- sponsibilities of being the world's larg- est_economic power, the world's banker, and one of the world's largest traders. As a consequence, conditions abroad are now watched more carefully, and a greater emphasis is laid upon the principle of economic among nations. This will probably add to the significance of the encouraging news which the cable brought last week from Latin America. In the order in which I saw them in last week's newspapers, herewith is a brief summary of those which I ven- ture to call optimistic reports from some of the Latin republics to the south. Before mentioning them, however, it seems proper to warn the reader not to overestimate their value to the ex- tent of interpreting them as indicating the end of hard times in that part of the continent. They are far from that. Their only significance lies, precisely, in the fact that they are the first re- ports which depart from the gloomy. | disheartening mood of the last two years. But as for the economic de- pression itself it still reigns at large in Latin America, as it does here, and probably will reign for some time to come. ‘The_first encouraging dispatch comes from Buenos Aires and states that the Argentine Republic emerged from the critical year just ended with “one of the most creditable financial records of any nation,” and enjoying the distinc- tion of being the only country of eco- nomic importance to show higher ex- port values in 1931 as compared with 1930. ‘The total value of Argentine exports amounted last year to nearly 380 mil- lions of dollars, as against 362 millions in 1930. Argentina sold in 1931 one million and a half more tons of wheat, five million tons more of corn, 800.000 tons more of linseed and 200,000 more of oats than in 1930. These figures gave the great southern nation a fa- vorable trade balance of more than 70 eir million dollars, instead of the adverse balance of 73 million dollars of 1930. dependence | | ‘The dispatch adds. laconically, that the foreign debt services, due on Janu- ary 1, were “duly met.” notwithstand- ing several heavy payments made in settling short-term indebtedness, which is almost “front-page” news in a period when most of the Latin republics have been forted to defer payment on their foreign obligations. | Another message from Buenos Aires reports that a new source of income for the national government—and an im- portant one—has just been opened with the enactment of income tax legisla- | tion, which is a definite break with old | traditions and fiscal practice. The | change is said to be one of great social | and financial transcendency. for. apart | from the fact that broadening the in- | cidence of taxation means the priv- | ileged class formerly in control is losing pewer, new sources of revenue create possibilities of quicker adjustment of budget deficits and loan problems. at the same time making for greater flexi- v in tariff matters. ‘The major significance of that change is that it is characteristic of a tendency which is gaining weight in other parts of Latin America. Until recently taxes in Latin America were largely restricted | to export and import levies and special | excise duties. This spared personal in- comes and left untouched a field of great possibilities from the standpoint of the state, while placing the national treasury in a particularly vulnerable position, since income had to be drawn from two or three sources subject to wide fluctuation. The new tax practice, as the message points out. is one of the most hopeful signs of the times, because “it means the recognition of political change for the better and it will greatly strengthen national finances.” In Colombia, one of the most im- pertant South American republics, sim- ilar methods to those used in the United States to stimulate the return of public corfidence are being adopted to prevent bank failures. A United Press dispatch from Bogota advises that President Olaya Herrera, formerly a Minister to Washington, who | has consistently tried to adapt Ameri- can methods to his administration, has decided to establish an organization to | be known as the Colombian Credit Cor- poration, formed here by President Hoover. Organized to Aid Banks. ‘The Colombian corporation, with a capital of nearly $10,000,000, will en- deavor to stave off bank failures by paying cash for frozen commercial pa- per of banks in a precarious condition. The measure, as the cable reports, will greatly help to relieve financial condi- tions in Colombia, and thus it may per- mit the President to carry out his de- termination to avoid the declaration of a general moratorium on the country’s foreign debt, which seemed imminent a few weeks ago. Only last week the President ar- ranged with the holders of depart- mental (provincial) and municipal bonds to make the required payments in script bearing 6 per cent interest and maturing in 10 years. Another report from Bogota adds that the Colombian government is also con- templating the calling of a national economic conference attended by rep- resentatives of all provinces, commer- cial and mortgage banks and treasury officials, to devise means to start a re- construction pr m. A brief dispatch from Mexico City stresses the significance of the large road construction plan being carried out | by the government of the neighboring | republic. Aside from the relief to local unemployment that this represents, the- | dispatch points out the benefits to be derived in terms of tourist trade when | some of such roads, now under way, are | completed. Particular mention is made of the it along the lines of the one|, projected highway from Mexico City to the Texas border, which is scheduled to h&“fi%’w (Continued on Page.) IN SPIRES JUGOSLAVIA National Unity Replaces Feud Among Three Elements of Kingdom Born of Great War. BY LEONID I. STRAKHOVSKY. N the great number of interna- tional events which have crammed recent months. the recent develop- ments in the Balkans seem to have been overlooked. That part of Europe which for a long time was, and perhaps still is. considered by en- lightened statesmen as the key to peace or war in the world is under- going considerable change. Of the countries that are situated on the Bal- kan peninsula, Jugoslavia is certainly the_pivot. The old kingdom of Serbia has van- ished since the end of the World War, but its spirit, molded during cen- turles of stfuggle against the Turks. is still alive. However, Serbia is now only one composite part of the new kingdom of Jugoslavia which unites all the Southern Slavs. That unity is, at present, an accomplished fact. But took a number of years, patient work and skillful direction to form a new nation out of the three dis- parate elements of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. Undoubtedly, the credit for this accomplishment must go to Alexander Karageorgievic. The son of Peter, Alexander was born on December 8, 1888, in Cetinje. His mother, Zorka, daughter of Prince Nicholas of Monte- negro, died soon after his birth, and young Alexander had to share with his father exile life in Geneva. be-| cause at the time the throne of Serbia | was occupied by the rival family of ‘Obrenovic. | As Alexander Obrenovic was then definitely under Austrian influence, Alexander's father decided it wise to seek the support of Austria’s rival in the Balkans—Russia. So in 1899, ' Peter took his son to St. Petersburg and | used the influence of his two sisters- | in-law, both married to members of | the imperial family, in order to help the career of the future King of Serbia. Young Alexander was warmly received by Emperor Nicholas II, and in 1904 was admitted by imperial command as | a student in the Corps des Pages, that, privileged military _institution which trained young noblemen for service in the guards. Commission as Officer. After receiving his commission as an officer in the Russian Imperial Army, Alexander returned to Serbia, where great changes had taken place, bringing his father to the throne of that old kingdom as the result of a military conspiracy which cost the lives | of the King and his Queen. Being the second son, Alexander apparently had no chance ever to become the ruler of his country, but in March, 1909, after his older brother, George, was | forced to renounce his rights to the throne, Alexander was officially recog- nized heir-apparent. Since then he interested himself in | the reorganizing and in the modern- | izing of the Serbian Army, thus put- ting into practice the training which | he had received in Russia. When the first Balkan war of 1912 started Alexander commanded the 1si army and distinguished himself in battles against the Turks and later against the Bulgarians. He won his first military decoration for personal bravery at the battle of Kumanovo. Though commanding an army, Alexan- der was more often found in the trenches and in the first line of his gressed. Alexander was called to take his place at the steering wheel of the Serbian state. On June 24, 1914, he was officially proclaimed Prince-Regert of Serl His brave and noble action during the crisis that precipitated the World War will never be forgotten, ‘not only by his own people but also bv all those who remember those tragic d As soon as the war broke out he took personal command of the Ser- bian Army and participated in all the major battles that took place in the first two vears of the war. When the | Serbian Army retreated to the Adriatic and almost the entire kingdom was overrun by the enemy. Alexander was offered a chance to leave the country on an Italian warship. Remains With Soldiers. Notwithstanding the fact that he was suffering from an acute attack of malaria. he declined the offer and pre- ferred to remain with his soldiers. By means of a most hazardous march | through the mountains of the Adriatic Coast. he managed to save the remains of the Serbian army from annihilation. | Then when his handful of Serbians was | transported to the island of Corfu and, | with the help of the allies, the reor- | ganization of the Serbian army was | started, Alexander. accompanied by his | prime minister, Pasic, visited Paris and | London. Both in France and in Eng- land he was magnificently received and acclaimed by the population. not only as the head of an allied state fighting for a common cause. but also and mainly as a brave man. _ During this journey. Alexander def- initely identified his dynasty with the cause of unification of the Southern Slavs. He declared his intention to work for this unity, when on April 5, 1916, he received a deputation of his British admirers, led by such dis- tinguished men as the Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Mayor of London, Lord Milner and Sir Edward Carson. Returning to his army, Alexander led it to victory during the successful ad- vance of the Autumn of 1918. When the armistice was signed a national council of Southern Slavs convened in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. And on December 1 of the same year dele- gates of this council formally recog- nized him as prince regent of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. The first step toward the unification of the Southern Slavs was accomplished. But it was to take 13 long and dreary years before that unification became a reality. The three elements of the Jugoslav kingdom, ttough belonging to the same racial stock, represent considerable na- tional and cultural difference. The old Serbs, the most sturdy stock of the Southern Slavs, are less refined, less influenced by Western culture than their brethren of Croatia and Slovenia. However, they naturally took the lead in the formation of the new tri-partite kingdom, trying to make the old Serb element the dominating factor in the life of the new state because they deemed it their right won by four years of war. Serb Attitude Resented. Such an assumption irritated the Croatians and the Slovenes, who, since 1878, constantly and gradually became westernized under the influence and rule of Austria-Hungary and who were unwilling to submit to the domination of the less cultured Serbian element. The Croatians especially resented the advancing troops than far behind the front at army headquarters. He en-| deared himself with his soldlers be- | cause he shared with them all the | hardships of the campaign as one of | them. He emerged out of the Balkan | war not only an able military leader | but & soldier in the full sense of the word. This explains his extraordinary popularity with the Serbian Army and, through the medium of the army, with e he Tatdy yoms of 1914 advanced, year lvan illness and the of King Peter pro- attitude of the old Serbs. Thus right at the beginning there grew up seem- ingly insurmountable barriers dividing the three elements of the new Jugoslav state. The very name of that state, “Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slo- venes,” indicated the lack of national unity. Trouble brewed and it was not surprising to find that foreign influences exerted themselves among the extrem- ists of the new kingdom. On June 29, 1921, an attempt was made on the life of Alexander, which, (Continued on Fourth Page. MILLIONS ARE AFFECTED BY CHURCH UNITY MOVE Forming of Religious Groups Over Many Years Gigantic Trend Costing Enor- mous Sums and Sacrifice in World. BY WAYNE PARRISH. O gigantic has been the movement toward unity in the Protestant churches of the world in the last 10 years that the average church- goer is scarcely aware of the far- reaching effects organic union of de- nominations, world conferences, and the establishment of closer relations between communions will have on the life of the churches in the next two decades. From the Eastern Orthodox Church at one extreme to the Society of Friends at the other there has been a marked increase in closer relationships. Not since the Reformation have the Protestant churches as a whole experi- enced such a vital movement for change on wide fronts. The Reforma- ticn brought liberty at the expense of unity. Now the objective is a com- bination of liberty and unity. The churches have been split and resplit. Now there are indications on many sides of a desire for reunion. These movements have been so scattered, so gradual, that their true significance is often lost in the maze of world events. Generally speaking, the movement in this generation embraces virtually every Protestant communion. One finds everywhere among Protestant leaders and circles the problem of unity. Church periodicals in this country mention minor angles of the subject frequently. Hundreds of commissions are at work disentangling denominational differences that have aricen since the Reformation. The movement of union and reunion is felt in every part of the world. tends church every Sunday is for the | most part unaware of the vast aspects of this historic change. Two Large Units Predicted. A few far-sighted observers of trends in religious movements have gone so far as to see eventually two large units in the Christian Church where now there are many. One will be the Roman Catholic Church, and the other will be composed of the Protestant, Anglican and Eastern Orthodox Com- munions. Ultimately church leaders dream for one united Christlan Church, but no one would be so optimistic as even to estimate a time far in the future for the fruition of such a dream Even the uniting of the Protestant, Anglican and Eastern Orthodox Com- munions is far in the future, and the vast majority of the Evangelical Prot- estants in the United States would gasp at the suggestion that the Eastern Orthodox Church would some day be an affiliated part of their communions. However surprised many church peo- would be to have themselves classed clesiastically with church people of quite different religious practice, the trends toward unity and actual accom- plishments draw them much closer than they probably realize. Roughly speaking, in these few dec- ades the religious lives of a roughly estimated number of 300.000,000 per- sons are being changed. This includes 5.000.000 Eastern Orthodox adherents and 185,000,000 Protestants. Actually these figures mean very little, for it is only in the superstructure of organized religion that unity means much. It means nothing, for instance, to the peasant in a small village of Rumania who attends worship every morning in an Eastern Orthodox Church. that closer relations are being established between the Anglican Communion and the Eastern Orthodox Church. Unity and closer relationships are a slow process. affecting the structure more than the individual, although the process of change is very definitely present. Links for Communions. Perhape the greatest span for unity is the closer relationship between the Eastern Orthodox Church and the An- glican Communion, of which the Arch- bishop of Canterbury is the head and of which the Protestant Episcopal Church in America is a part. These two communions were brought much closer in 1930 by the Lambeth Confer- ence. and there is little doubt that the relations will become more intimate in the future 3 This span reaches from the ritualistic practices of the “high church” Ortho- dox Communion to the “low church” evangelicals of the Protestant Episcopal Church in this country which resist strongly today any infiltration of ritu- alism and “Catholic practices” into their churches. And if the Eastern churches are included in this picture s0 must also be included the Old Cath. olics, who only within the last few weeks have come into intercommunion with the Church of England. But the span does not stop here, for the Protestant Episcopal Church has an Interdenominational Committee meet- ing at intervals to discuss organic unity with the Methodist Episcopal Church and the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America. Only last October at its General Convention the Episcopal Church ordered its committee to meet with the Lutheran Church to discuss closer relationships. From the Methodist and Presbyterian churches to the Eastern Orthodox and Old Catholic churches is a very long step ecclesiasti- cally. And yet the inference of unity overtures is undeniable. There is a djstinction that should be made here, however, to answer those critics who would immediately cry out that the extensive span of unity above pictured is fantastic. Relationship of Churches ‘This distinction is concerned with the relationship of the Protestant Episcopal Church with the Church of England. The American branch of the Anglican Communion is independent in all mat- ters of legislation. Although the com- munion is essentially the same, and American bishops obtained their Epis- copal orders from the Church of Eng- land, no overture of unity made by the Church of England has an automatic effect in America. It must be legis- lated on here. Nevertheless, any action by the Church of England is of great import here, and there are not a few Episcopalian leaders of the high church leanings who go so far as to assume that the two bodies are closely allied in_everything. There are certain Protestant bodies who have remained isolationists in all of the unity movements. The Missouri Synod of the Lutheran Church will be among the last to join hands with other Christians, although that group is working closely with other Lutherans in social service work. The Society Lof Friends would be expected to re- main apart organically, but the Friends (Quakers) were represented at the last world conference on faith and order and co-operate willingly and extensively in social service work in this country. There has been a few voices raised against unity movements. The Baptists for instance, seem quite satisfied to be parted by north and south and many Baptist leaders believe the Northern and Southern Baptist Con- ventions are already so large as to be unwieldly. They ask what can be gained by joining together. Only re- cently, the Rev. Dr. Wiliam Norman Guthrie, outspoken Episcopalian indi- vidualist, said in an article in “The Churchman” that unity is “nonsense;” that schism had many benefits, and that standardization of religious prac- tices would mean doom to the church. There have been other critics, but in the main the talk and conversation has flowed sweepingly on for unity. A high official of the Lutheran Church once told this writer that he thought the Protestant Episcopal Church and the Lutherans would unite before the Episcopaians and the Metho- dists and Presbyterians. His reason ‘was the close proximity to practices and e ereatent for unity in the cause United Stetes todsy is the Federal But the layman who at- | Council of the Churches or Christ in | America, composed of 27 Prowesrant de= nominations (including two denomina=- tions as consultative bodies). The coune cil was brought into being in 1908 and has fostered the church federation movement in cities and States, organs ized upited appeals, and indulged in research. The Rev. Dr. Samuel Mc- Crea Cavert, general secretary of the council, who is an able spokesman for Christian unity, said in the last annual report of the council: “If we leave out of account the di- vision between Catholic and Protestant there is hardly a single denominational group that today has any distinctive point of view not widely accepted by others, or any monopoly of the values which it originally emphasized. Pres- ent-day Methodists gladly admit that Episcopalians are not devoid of a con- cern for a first-hand experience of reli- gion as John Wesley appealed for. and Songregationalists do not think of them- selves as the only group that has a genuine passion for freedom. “The truth is that the major com- munions today are conscious of being heirs of the whole Christian heritage, not a mere fraction of it. This is not to deny that there are vital differences in doctrines and outlook upon the work and worship of the church: the chief | differences, however, cut straight across | denominational lines so that nearly | every large group finds within itself | most of the divergencies which once | would have caused groupings into sepas rate_denominations. “No group (excepting the Roman | Catholic) is presumptuous enough to asume that it holds a body of truth or experience that is complete and full= orbed apart from the truth and experi- ence of others. No group that looks out thoughtfully on life today can fail to recognize that the things which are of supreme concern to the world are precisely the things which it holds in common with others. All share toe gether the one priceless possession in comparison with which evervthing else is peripheral and secondary, the per- sonality of Jesus Christ.” Advocates Fellowship Action. “What stands in the way, in addition to sheer inertia and the deadening ef. | fect of long-established arrangement: | he continues. “is a deep-seated misgiv ing that in union some rightful meas- | ure of liberty or some treasured inheri~ tance might be lost. The strategy of the | situation. then demands that without | waiting for any formal merger there be |a clear-cut plan which, while obviously | safeguarding freedom, will secure now | the practical benefits of united action and minister steadily to an enlarging fellowship. | “Roughly speaking. it is a true gen- eralization to say that the Church had unity at the expense of liberty for @ thousand years before the Reformati |and that for the 400 years after t! | Reformation, there was liberty at the expense of unity. The acute problem of our day is to secure the right come bination of liberty and unity. “From the effort to do this in_the | United States has resulted the Fed- eral Council of the Churches of Christ in America, a federation of twenty- | seven denominations, brought into be: |ing in 1908 by their own responsib] |action and governed by the official representatives named by those dee nominations. Its central objective is to secure the spirit of an inclusive fele lowship and the practice of actually working together in an ever enlarging | number of tasks, while at the same time preserving all the freedom and the diversity of our historic heritage. Style In Protestantism. “The rise of the Federal Council meant that a new stage in Protestant- ism had been reached. There came a period of toleration, when a denomina- tion felt that although it possessed a vital truth, other bodies had vital | truths.” What has been achieved in the United States toward unity? The an- |swer is that more has been accom= plished than most people realize. A notable instance of progress is the United Lutheran Church. It is a result of a merger of three Lutheran bodies in 1918. The National Lutheran Coun- cil of seven co-operating Lutheran bodies has been formed. The United Lutheran Synod of New York was formed out of several divisions and per- fected into one strong unit. Other Lutheran bodies (there were many in this country because of the many na- tionalities represented) have moved toward merger. ‘The Evangelical Church represents the union of two denominations which, though springing from the same source, had been entirely apart. Of longer standing is the merger of the Free Baptist Churches with the Northern Baptist Convention. The most recent large merger was that of the Congregational and Chris- tian Churches in 1931 with the con- trol vested in the National Council of the Congregational and Christian Churches. Among the Methodist churches there has been much activity. The merger of the Methodist Episcopal Church and the Methodist Episcopal Church South is distant, but negotiations have been proceeding through joint commissions on interdenominational relations The Rev. Harry E. Woolever, secretary of the commission, informed this writer that much progress has been made for a merger of the Methodist Protestant |Church and the Methodist Episcopal Church. Commissions of these two groups will meet in Washington in March to take up again the merger pro- posal. and it is probable that a plan will be submitted to the general conventions of the churches this Summer. Other Progress Reported. ‘The commissions of the Methodist Episcopal Church and the Presbyterian Church of the United States of America are also making progress, Mr. Woolever reported. In_quite another quarter union of the Presbyterian Church of the United States of America and the United Pres- byterian Church of North America seems to be certain in the near future. A proposed plan of union was a nounced on January 9, and consummas- tion of the union is expected in 1934 after formalities have been negotiat The name of the new church will the Presbyterian Church of America. Unitarian a2d Universalist commise sions have been meeting at intervals to discuss organic union or closer relae tions, with feeling being that organio union of these two lberal groups 18 more or less inevitable. A recent meet- ing was held in Providence and another meeting will be held soon, time and place to be announced. The Rev. Dr. John Howland Lathrop of Brooklyn, a leading Unitarian minister, is one of the clergymen fostering this project. A plan of union drafted two years ago, designed to merge the Reformed Church in the United States, the Church of the United Brethren in Christ and the Evangelical Synod of North America has already come be- fore the highest governing bodies of those denominations. The project will come up in 1933 for probable final acw tion. Meanwhile a commission has been studying complicated aspects of the proposal. Several proposals of union are in various stages of fruition with the Pres- byterian and Reformed Churches. These include the Presbyterian Church of ths United _States (Southern) and the United Presbyterian Church, the South- ern Presbyterian Church and the As- sociate Reformed Presbyterian Church |and the Presbyterian Church of the United States of America and the Re- formed Church in America “and other Presbyterisn _and Reformed Church (Continued on Pourth Page.)