Evening Star Newspaper, February 7, 1937, Page 29

Editorial Page Special Articles Part 2—10 Pages BRITISH LEADER SOUNDS| U.S.ONNEUTRALITY STAND Runciman Leaves Washington Con- vinced Raw Materials May Be Bought During War, Observer Says. BY CONSTANTINE BROWN. ALTER RUNCIMAN, the British secretary of com- merce, spent a pleasant holiday in Washington. He saw more of the President than most foreigners who have visited our shores in recent years, and had long talks with ‘“everybody who is any- body” in Washington. When he left the National Capital he had vague and general ideas about the possibil- ity of a reciprocal trade agreement some time in the more or less distant future, and the certitude that in the event of a conflagration the Ameri- can markets will not be closed to Great Britain. In the long hours of conversation Runciman convinced the President and the Secretary of State of two things: That the British government considers the European situation to be far more critical than in July, 1914, and that an American embargo on raw materials in the event of war will have as pernicious an effect on the United States as on the democ- racies of Europe which still are in a position to purchase in this country. The fireside chats between Runci- man and Roosevelt were longer and more exhaustive than the talks be- tween the President and Ramsey Mac- Donald in 1933. Runciman came here as a private individual—a dis- tinguished guest—hence he did not have to worry about carefully worded | communiques to be issued to the press. | He had ample opportunity to pour out his soul to Mr. Roosevelt and to take him “into his confidence” re- garding the sad plight of the British national defense and its effects on world peace. Delay in Air Program. The President heard how much the British cabinet was worried over the unfortunate delay in the air program. The air program established in 1935 provided for 71 additional air cquad- rons by March 31, 1937, bringing the total available by then to 1,500 first line aircraft. Up to December 14, 1936, only 32 squadrons were built. This meant that within the next three and a half months the British aircraft factories would have to produce not less than 39 squadrons. In other words, the rate of progress hitherto maintained would have to be accelerated eightfold in order to complete the program by the end of March. And this, in Mr. Runciman’s mind, is out of the ques- tion. In the British addition to this, president of the Board of Trade, pointed out that while the land re- armament is progressing satisfactorily, the British government is encounter- ing serious difficulties with the re- eruiting problem. The navy is in good shape, but the work on the new units which have been laid down is slower than in the German and Italian navy yards. Nevertheless the military and naval situation is not considered so tragic as the delay in the air program, be- cause sn inadequate air force makes Great, Britain the target of the su- perior continental aviations. In a roundabout manner, Mr. Runciman sought to find out from the adminis- * tration what it might consider doing in the eventuality that Great Britain found itself in a tight spot. He did not, of course, ask outright, “What can you Americans do for us?” he tried .to get an answer to his un- spoken question from Messrs. Roose- velt and Hull. The answer, he dis- covered, by implication, was “nothing much.” All the same, the day Mr. Runciman sailed for Southampton the administration came out with a statement that it was behind the Pittman neutrality bill. Pittman Measure. ‘The Pittman bill is a kind of cock- tail, prepared by that old hand in congressional politics, Assistant Sec- retary of State R. Walton Moore. It contains the elements put forward by every Senator who has his pet ideas about neutrality and would rather filibuster than acknowledge defeat. The Pittman bill satisfies those who demand a mandatory law by main- taining the present provisions of the neutrality act whereby the export of arms and ammunitions must be pro- hibited as soon as the President de- clares that a state of war exists be- tween two or more nations. It satisfies Senator Vanderberg and his followers by accepting the prin- ciple of cash and® carry. It provides that raw materials can be exported provided they cease to be the property of American citizens when they leave the ports of this country. The bill satisfies the regional inter- ests of the cotton growers, copper and oil producers, etc., by the provision that these raw materials will not be banned except by presidential decree. And finally, it is highly acceptable to the White House and the State De- But | partment because it gives discretionary powers to the President to declare an embargo on raw materials, when, if and where Mr. Roosevelt and his ad- visers decide it is necessary. The new formula naturally pleases the British. It means that the Ameri- can markets for raw materials will be open to the British Empire and her allies as long as the good will of the administration can be preserved. And although thé new neutrality bill can- not be ascribed in any way directly to British influence, there is no doubt that the British government has some powerful arguments as to why raw materials should be maintained on & free list at the President's pleasure. First of all, during the conversations between Mr. Runciman and Mr. Hull, the British cabinet officer pointed out that while Great Britain is dependent, indeed, upon American markets for many raw materials, American in- dustry also depends on the British markets for three leading staples— rubber, nickel (from Canada) and tin. ‘With all the necessary diplomatic pre- cautions, Mr. Runciman hinted that unless the American markets for raw materials were kept open to Great Britain, in the event of another con- flagration, the American manufacturer could go and whistle for these three important raw materials. It may have been this hint which made some of the members of the administration admit that it will take some time be- fore any trade agreement can be reached with the ultra-Tory govern- ment of Great Britain. And while the British government was making these points as plain as possible in Washington, British emis- saries have been endeavoring to rouse an appetite for war profits among the | producers of raw materials necessary for the prosecution of a war in Europe. People are being told that current rumors of European nations having no more money to make important purchases in the United States grossly exaggerate the real situation. These unofficial spokesmen of the British government point out that there is in America no less than $3,- | 500,000,000 of British and French in- | vestments which could be turned into | | cold cash whenever necgssary to pay for any eventual purchases. And they add it would be a pity if the American farmer or miner were to forfeit such | a handsome sum.’ ! Consequently neither Mr. Runciman | nor the British foreign office was alto- | | gether surprised on learning that the administration supported the Pittman neutrality bill which will enable those nations with a powerful navy and a fair reserve of gold or dollars to satisfy their needs in the United States in the eventuality of another world conflict. It was with equal satisfaction that Mr. Runciman was able to tip off his government that the Congress of the United States and the administration need not be expected to advocate a cut-and-dried neutrality policy, al- though a number of Senators and an important section of public opinion in this country had demanded it a few weeks ago during the height of the Spanish crisis. Intent of Runciman. If the President is so anxious to be given discretionary powers, the reason is that he wants to keep the rest of the world guessing as to what we may do in the event of another world war. Not that anybody in the administra- tion has the slightest intention or de- | sire to get the United States entan- gled in a compromise with certain European nations, or groups of na- tions. But Runciman thought he could gather from his talks with the Presi- dent and Secretary 'Hull that the United States, with important in- terests all over the world, is reluctant to show its hand by a definite an- nouncement that whatever may hap- pen this country will remain neutral. Runciman has been as candid with the members of the administratien in Washington as any British politician can be. He re-emphasized Great Britain’s desire for peace and played second fiddle to Secretary Hull's pet theory that international trade agree- ments are the only solution toward the resettlement of the world on a per- manent peace basis. Theoretically, of course, he said, there is nothing like restoration of inernational trade to take the minds of the people off wars and conquests. But in the particular case of a trade agreement between this country and Great Britain, it would be better to give the matter more thorough consideration. And when Runciman left Washing- ton—leaving the impression that he was about the only liberal-minded member of an ultra-Tory administra- tion—he had the satisfaction of know- ing that should Great Britain become involved in an international conflict, the British government can count on the vast resources of raw materials 1n the United States—as long as her cash holds out. (Copyright, 1937.) Split in Britain’s Ranks of Labor Prevents Party’s Return to Power BY A. G. GARDINER. ONDON.—The storm that has burst in the British Labor party and threatens to send the extremists out into the wilderness has long been gathering. ‘The disruption is the outcome of the decision of the Socialist League, led by Sir Stafford Cripps; the Inde- pendent Labor- party, led by Mr. Maxton, and the Communist party, led by Mr. Pollitt, to join forces, create a popular front and challenge the Par- liamentary Labor party by the issue of & manifesto on revolutionary lines. This attempt of the Communist tail to swing the Labor dog into line ‘with the Moscow gospel is, in effect, an appeal to the Labor electorate to rebel against the parliamentary lead- ers of the party and transfer the machine to the hands of the left The driving force in this policy is Sir Stafford Cripps, who held legal office in the last Labor government and formed. the Socialist League to put ginger into the Parliamentary Labor party. But the more he ap- plied the ginger in his torrent of revolutionary speeches, the more the » Parliamentary party shifted toward the center and insisted on the evolu- tionary principle of Labor's Socialism. They did this for two reasons. The backbone of the Parliamentary Labor party is the trade union movement. It is from this source that it draws both its main voting strength and its financial resources. And the trade union movement, still less the co- operative movement, with which it is associated, is not revolutionary. It is concerned primarily with questions of wages, labor conditions and social betterment, and it is content to work for these ends through the existing parliamentary institution. It wants neither revolution nor the catastrophe which revolution implies. The second reason is that the Labor party wants the prospect of returning to power, and the leaders know that association with communism would scare away that vast body of miod- erate opinion whose support can alone give it victory at the polld. For this reason it has done its best to musle Sir - Stafford, whose revolutionary speeches in the country are stamping labor with the brand of Moscow. Bu! Sir Stafford will not be silenced, and 3 ‘ Ll t | the parties of « he Snday Shae WASHINGTON, D. C., SUNDAY MORNING, FEBRUARY 7, 1937. Latin Americans Now Jumpy Handshakes and Smiles of Buenos Aires Give Way to Wrangling—TU. S. Trade May Be Injured WHEN PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT, IN OPENING BUENOS AIRES CONFERENCE, APPARENTLY CEMENTED FRI LATIN AMERICA—BUT NOW THERE'S SKEPTICISM. BY CARLOS J. VIDELA. RESIDENT ROOSEVELT'S voy- P age to Buenos Aires, to preside over the inauguration of the Pan-American Conference for the Consolidation of Peace, gave rise to brotherly effusions among the Latin American delegations. Mr. Roosevelt was hugged by two Presidents, was loudly called “Mi Amigo,” and his trip was hailed as an epoch-making event in the annals of this hemisphere. Thenceforward peace was to reign, disputes would be settled amicably and good will would descend upon the mountains and plains of the Americas. Mr. Roosevelt returned to Wash- ington, leaving American prestige in South America at its highest level. Never before has the United States enjoyed the position it now has vis-a- vis the South Americans. But has this really “consolidated™” peace? ‘The answer is yes ahd no. If by peace is understood “general order and tranquility,” as Webster says, then peace in the Western Hemisphere is still marking time at the same spot where Mr. Roosevelt found it when debarking from the U. 8. S. Indianap- olis at Buenos Aires. If by peace is understood the absence of interna- tional war, then it is, at the moment, a blessing extending from Hudson Bay to Cape Horn. No sooner had Mr. Roosevelt trned his back and boarded the Indianapolis | for his voyage home when handsome Sputh American smiles and ardent handshakes gave way to frowns and | | suspicions of wide skullduggery. This time it is not international conflict, such as the Chaco War, that makes officials jumpy, but rather their own internal wrangling behind the scenes. Argentina’s Fixed Elections. In Argentina, the reigning “dicta- torship” of Gen. Augustin P. Justo may be blown sky-high if a few more “elections” are fixed the way the last ones have been. The Argentine rad- ical party (not “radical” at all in the English sense of the word), undoubt- edly the majority group, is feeling aggrieved at the pra of being deprived of the fruits of electoral vic- tory. In Chile, President Alessandri took advantage of a railroad strike to tighten up his control over the coun- try. Peru has been under what amounts to martial law for some time. the question of expelling him from the parliamentary party became ur- gent. The first step was to get con- trol of the Labor paper, the Daily Herald, which had become the voice of Sir Stafford and. the Socialist League. This was done through the action of Sir Walter Citrine, the sec- retary of the Trade Union Council, and Ernest Bevin, the most influen- tial of the trade union leaders, and the Herald is now definitely anti- Communist. Now Sir Stafford has raised the flag of rebellion openly. In linking the Socialist League up with the I. L. P. and the Communist party, he has de- clared war on the Parliamentary La- bor party, which has disowned both the I. L. P. and the Communists. He has challenged the Labor party either to expel him or to surrender to him and his Communist colleagues. - Hav- ing failed to stampede labor into communism from within the ranks, he has set himself to mobilize the working classes against the old guard and capture the machine from it. The adventure is mnot hopeless. Cripps is much the ahlest parlia- | happin mentarian in the labor movement, and he has behind him all the intel- lectual extremists of the new states- man school—Laski, Bertrand Russell, Cole, Brailsford, Haldane, Naomi Mitchison, Maxton and the rest. But the Labor party has the organization, the money and the votes, and, so long as the trade unions are loyal to the present leaders, there is no prospect of Cripps getting control of the ma- chine. But whatever the ultimate issue, the split destroys any possibility of an early return of labor to power. It will leave the party torn into two warring and irreconcilable factions, with Maj. Attlee in the role of Keren- sky and Bir Stafford Cripps in that of Lenin, and until the issue between the rival pink and red policies is settled the government of the country will continue to be in the hands of the right. (Copyrisht, 1937.) —A. P. PHOTO. Ecuador is exiling “Reds”—a conven- | other, after a truce sugpended the | States directly in this situation is jent designation for oppositionists throughout South America—to the Galapagos Islands. In Venezuela, President Lopez Contreras has just imprisoned 16 leaders of the Left. Mexico seems,to be all set for new | trouble. Brazil is still trying the | would-be leaders of a military con- | | spiracy. Bolivia and Paraguay have not yet stopped making faces at each !slnughur in the Chaeo front. And so it goes. Meanwhile additions are being made lto their armies, navies ard air fleets | | by several South American nations. Argentina, for instance, has quite a few naval units building in European shipyards. Chile is increasing her air | force. So is Brazil. | One thing that concerns the United BUENOS AIRES AGREEMENT IS NEW PEACE DOCTRINE | Treaty Inspired by BY GASTON NERVAL. AS A result of the recent Inter- A American Conference for the Maintenance of Peace, the American republics are, for the first time, bound to regard an attack upon the independence cf any one of them by a non-Ame°rican power as the join concern of all. Contrary to the current impression spread here by superficial cable re- ports from the conference and a mis- taken idea of what the original Mon- roe Doctrine really was, the “sél- idarity declaratic signed unani- mously at Buenos Aires was not the continentalization of the Monroe Doctrine, but the enactment of an entirely new doctrine. This gew doc- trine is more in agreement with the theories of Bolivar and other early Latin American Jeaders than with those which promnted the Monroe Doctrine, their dissimilarity, and, in fact, their incompatibility, having been demonstrated at the very birth of the Monroe Doctrine, more than a hundred years ago. Roosevelt-Hull Doctrine. If a name is wanted for the new one, it may be designated as the Roosevelt-Hull doctrine, or as the first step in the direction of the ideal Bolivarian doctrine, though it lacks the compulsory features of the latter. Without going to the extent of specifying ways and means, the Buenos Aires agreerent is, neverthe- less, a pledge of mutual defense against non-American aggression, something which the Monroe Doc= trine never was, and, in spite of a popular misconception prevalent both here and in Latin America, never was intended to be. The new doctrine is to the effect that “every act susceptible of disturb- ing the peace of America affects each and every one of them” and will justify the initiation of the consulta- tive procedure provided for in the collective security convention, also signed at Buenos Aires. No one who has taken the trouble to go into the origins of the Monroe Doctrine can fail to see the vast dif- ference, indeed the contrast, between this joint commitment and the one- sided declaration of 1823. It is al- ready an established historical fact that it was the safety and interests of the United States which President Monroe and his advisers had in mind when they drafted the famous mes- sage of December 2, 1823. The in- sistence with which the message speaks of “the rights and interests of the United States,” “our defense,” “our ess,” “our peace afd safety,” “our political system,” should suffice to prove that the framers of the Mon- foe Doctrine were, above everything else, directed by their country’s in- terests. Moreover, this is abundantly corroborated by numerous official and private documents of the time: Diplo- matic correspondence with Great Britain, France, Russia, declarations of the founders and early statesmen of the United States, contemporary interpretations of the Monroe Doc- trine, etc. o Not Pledge of Protection. It may be argued that, even though only incidentally concerned with Latin American independence, the United States was actually interested in pre- venting the establishment of new European colonies on the American continent, and that, therefore, the Monroe Doctrine might have been lum as & pledge of mutual protec- tion and defense by the young rebub- Hes to the South. v Seen Toward Ideal Boli- varian Plan. Roosevelt and Hull As a mater of fact, some of the Latin American leaders of the time did take or, as they found later, mis- take the original Monroe Docfrine trade. With the European markets gradually closing through the aid of | quotas, prohibitions and monetary restrictions, American industrialists turned their eyes to the South, where a truly rich market awaits their goods. The hitch is that this potential trade depends on a large measure on re- ciprocal agreements that Secretary of State Hull is trying to get Congress | to approve. Auto Trade Large. Take automobiles, for instance. Ar- gentina alone bought nearly 30,000 American cars last year, and could | buy many more if customs duties were not as high as they are. But the Argentines want to sell their beef here, and they cannot do it because of sanitary restrictions they think une justified. Mr. Hull seems to favor the idea of a two-way letdown of of- ficial barriers to reciprocal trade. However, the American Live Stock Association, assembled at E1 Paso re- cently, warmly disapproves. “South America is the only fly in the cow- man's ointment,” said the associa- tion's president. “This Argentine bus- iness is Secretary Hull's idea to pro- for just such a pledge, and that was | the ‘cause of many a disappointment | they experienced. In the first two | vears following its announcement four : different Latin American governments, | those of Colombia, Brazil, Buenos | Aires and Mexico, approached the | United States with a view to making | | contractual and continent-wide the | guarantee of mutual defense which | they thought the Monroe Doctrine | meant. All four of them were courteously, but most emphatically .told that no such guarantee had been given and that the Monroe Doctrine was not a pledge of mutual protection, but a unilateral policy of the United States, which the United States alone could interpret or aply at its will. ‘Thus, at the very outset, even the original Monroe Doctrine—not to mention the later and much dis- torted versions of it—conflicted with the Latin American aspiration for a general pledge of mutual defense. This conflict was even more clearly in evidence when the United States re- fused to participate in discussions for forming a continental alliance at the Congress of Panama, in 1826, its re- fusal serving to underline the clash of two widely different political philos- ophies. Suspicions of Alliances. On the one hand, was that of the Latin Americans, Simon Bolivar and the the other founders of the Southern republics, who dreamed of alliances among the nations of the New World and of a continental union “unlimited in power and splendor.” Theirs was & romantic vision of a united America standing before the world to protect its own existence independent from any force withgut, and to consolidate its newly acquired institutions. With such a goal in mind, Bolivar had Con- voked this congress, which was only the climax of a series of suggestions for continental union advanced by himseif and other Latin American liberators. With such a goal in mind, the Congress was to discuss topics far ahead of the times; leagues of nations, anti-war pacts, international citizen- ship, international armies, territorial guarantees, etc. With such a goal in mind, the United States, even then the most powerful nation on the continent, had been invited to attend and had been advised that among the subjects of consultation at Panama “the means of making effectual the principles an- nounced by President Monroe” were to receive paramount consideration. In open conflict with this was the cold, self-interested and more practical philosophy of Monroe, Adams, Clay and’ the other Northern ‘statesmen. They were not thinking in continental terms. They were suspicious of alli- ances. They doubted the benefits of any permament links with neighboring states. They had the safety and inter- ests of the United States to consider, and these alone they considered. So long as it was in the interest of the United States to remove the dangers arising from European ® colonization and interference they had been against the imperialistic designs of the holy alliance, even though such designs had already been thwarted by England. So long as it was to their advantage to have free, in- dependent republics as neighbors, | mote peace and world markets. He is | & high-class gentleman, but he is mak- ing & mistake.” And on Thursday Mr. | Hull was assailed in the House as “a | mystic and a dreamer” for his spom- | sorship of an extension of the recipro- | | cal trade agreements act. Obviously political unrest and the realization that fireworks may start | when least expected do not help trade. | Without trade, there can be no pros- perity to speak.of.. And prosperity, in the words of Mr. Hull, is not different from peace. So, if the achievements of the pan- American conference for the ‘consoli- dation of peace are carefully strained, the only things that now remain are the brilliant oratory and the written and verbal pacts, which make neither peace nor war any more remote than they were in the first place. " (Copyright, 1937, by the North American Newspaper Alliance, Inc.) Former Head Hunter Now Peaceful Citizen MANILA—The “wild man Borneo,” the savage head hunter whose tribal law once commanded him to produce the head of an enemy as & proof of manhood, has been transformed into a peaceful citizen. Head hunting has been forbidden by the government and, strangely enough, the tribes are conforming to the law without protest. The government has realized the importance of the head, which was not only a war trophy, but an addition to ‘the household; for the native believed that the size of his family was increased by each new eapture. Some substitute, therefore, had to be found for the custom, which claimed & yearly sacrifice of thousands of lives. A new ceremony was finally invented by an ingenious settler, at which, after elaborate and lengthy ritual, old skulls, which are kept numbered and registered by the government, are brought out as symbols. Massacres are thus tactfully averted and every one is happy. Yor the cause of Latin American lib- eration. But now that the danger to the United States—or what was mis- taken for a real danger—had disap- peared; now that the Latin Americans endeavored to obtain permanent, ob- ligatory commitments of mutual as- sistance and protéction from the ap- parently altruistic pledge of President Monroe, the practical-minded states- men of the North cautiously stepped backward. They were not dreaming, like their colleagues down at the isth- mus. They had their eyes wide open to sense the realities around them, to take the road which offered most se- curity and least obligations for the future and to keep their hands free for the time when their own expan- sionist plans were ripe. Once this original conflict of views has been grasped it is easy to realize what a stretching of the imagination and of historical facts is required to call the multilateral pledge of con- sultation and mutual assistance signed rather than large and danger- ous colonies, they had not hesitated to express their sympathies } at Buenos Alres a “continentalization” of the Monroe 3 <Copyrisht, 1837.) A 1 3 | of | Part Two | Travel — Resorts WILL STALIN’S SUCCESSOR ADHERE TO NATIONALISM? Commentator Thinks Next “Man of Steel” May Be Forced to Accept Dic- tates of Strong BY C. PATRICK THOMPSON. AR beneath his top-booted feet the red god lay entombed; a shrunken little man who had spent most of his life in murky lodgings in cities outside his home- land, dreaming, with the ferocious zest of the one-idea’d, of a world proletarian order, a brotherhood of man, rising glorious and triumphant from the smoking ruins of what men, imprisoned in capitalist ideology, call “modern civilization.” His successor had him nicely em- balmed, clapped a saluting base atop his granite tomb; and there he now stood, a tall, vigorous-looking man in plain khaki uniform and peaked military cap, undisputed lord of 170,- 000,000 people comprising 150 nation- alities contained in an area two and a half times the size of the United States: the eternal realist conquering —at least in this earthly life—the eternal dreamer. The Kremlin sprawled hugely at his back. Around him on the high perch grouped the red oligarchs— thick-set, strong men, in civilian clothes. On the lower dais were the leaders of the fighting forces. Massed bayonets glinted and glittered in the cold sunlight. Gray, immensely wide columns of soldiers marched and wheeled on the floor of Red Square. Overhead zoomed flight after flight of giant high-winged metal mono- planes, bombers and parachute troop carriers. Surveying the scene, one ceased to wonder why, all night long for days windows of the headquarters building, where the gentlemen of the Ogpu come and go, popping in and out of fast black cars, followed by soldier escorts with that distinguishing green band in their hats that so disconcerts the Soviet citizen who opens his door to an abrupt knocking at 1 o'clock in the morning. There was Russia, the red empire— a dozen men lined up against the Moscow skyline. Kerensky to Stalin, Then— After the Romanoff, Kerensky, the bourgeoise talker. Lenin, the world revolutional farthest left of all the bolsheviki, in previous, lights had glowed in the | After Kerensky, | Army Leaders. bulky man, Stalin’s Man Friday. Mbolotov presides over the Council of Commissars, has been a Bolshevik for 34 years. An industrious man, who knows all the moves; but not forceful; not the leader type. We next have Kaganovich, the transport boss, an able and energetic man, one of the younger oligarchs, but not an heir for Stalin. Ordzhoni« kidze is higher up the line: An old- guard Bolshevik who joined the party back in 1903, worked under Lenin, led the revolution in the Caucasus, and now is heavy industry boss. A man with fighting spirit, but without Sta- lin's brains and political flair. Maxim Litvinoff cuts a figure in Europe, but not in Russia. He has only lately become known in Bolshe- vik-land, through inspired press re- leases. He (is a time-server, soft- fleshed, adrof, careful to satisfy his masters, keep clear of intrigue and avoid suspicion of personal ambitions. He has no ‘nfluence in Russia. He is not one of the oligarchs. On the other hand, Bluecher, little known outside Russia, at the last all- Russian Congress got cheers which lasted 67 seconds longer than those which greeted Stalin. That was be- cause he commands Russia’s prize in- stitution, the Army of the Far East, 250,000 strong, with 400 airplanes, 450 tanks and 5,000 field guns. The oli- garchs have made that force practi- cally self-tustaining in its area. It is the shield against Japan. And Voroshilov, boss of the whole war machine and defense organiza- tion, is so popular that Stalin now is rarely photographed without him, or he without Stalin alongside. The fame and influence of Voroshilov have risen on the war tide. Forty years ago he was a peasant youth going to his first city job in a steel mill. He in- haled the early revolutionary gas with ardor. At 23 he became a Bolshevik. He was a useful organizer of street riots, but did not mix with the master minds. ‘The Bolshevik plot which overthrew the Kerensky government was planned | 1 nthe military section of the bolshevik party, Voroshilov participated, with- out being a leader. He rose steadily in | the hierarchy of the Red guard. He sympathetic emotional tune with the masses in the greatest revolutionary movement in history. After Lenin, Stalin, the social patriot, nationalist defender of the fatherland. Thus far, a logical succession. But | after Stalin—what? Discussion on this subject grows in all the capitals, from Berlin to Bucha- rest, and from Paris to Prague, Angora and Tokio, as Russia, under the deep- ening shadow of a two-front war and the necessity for finding allies among the armed democracies, proceeds to elect its first Parliament and take its first step along the road away from dictatorship and toward democracy. Discretion, however, is advisable. It is, for instance, unwise to stroll along the banks of the Moscow River audibly dis- cussing the riddle of what happens if unhappily fate decides that Joseph Stalin, whom God preserve, dies out of bed and with his boots on. People was joined with Buddeniy to organize | the Red cavalry, but Boddeniy got the fame. He commanded the Red armies in the Causasus, but Ordzho- nikidze was the official Red boss of the area. Voroshilov Rises to Power. Thus Voroshilov rose, dependable, uncomplaining, obedient, loyal. steady, energetic and uninterested in party politics. Lenin died. The oligarchs quarreled over the succession. Right and left wings clashed. And out went Trotzky on his neck. It is the sad, inevitable fate of left-wingers in all revolutions. If they are not shot or exiled, they get retired to the boards of big business. Trotzky, brilliant, offensive, impe- rious individualist spell-binder, had no machine, few friends, and many ene- mies. However, Stalin never takes | risks. He needed dependable men to take care of the army. Voroshilov have done this and had serious trou- bl: with the police before finding themselves put over the frontier. You may, of course, inquire in an official way in any authoritarian state what happens if the dictator dies. But you won't get beyond formalities or behind facades. I found this out first in Rome. I went down, some years ago, to ask what happened if the Duce | died. The question was quite welcome. | Interviews were willingly arranged with all the head men, who talked frankly, and with the unanimity of a tap-dance chorus executing a well-practiced step. The King would simply invite the next Fascist in line to form a government. The show would go on without pause or hitch. I knew, and they knew that I knew, that as soon as Mussolini was with- drawn there would be a clash of small- er personalities. But to raise this sub- ject in the cordial presence of Fascist ministers, as they chatted in their sanctums beneath signed portraits of | the Duce, would have been out of the question. Badoglio May Seize Power. It was then that I discovered Ba- doglio. I innocently mentioned the general’s name in the Excelsior restau- rant and my host turned pale and changed the conversation. Eventually, however, I learned about him. Badoglio headed the royalist faction. If Mussolini went, and the inner ring split, this faction would hold the bal- ance of power, and might even seize the governmental reins. Mussolini-had promoted the dangerous chief of staff -to a grand advisory post, whence Ba- doglio could not issue executive orders; and with his own militia holding all key communication points, and men- tion of Badoglio’s name banned, Mus- solini felt safe. The answer at that time—the Fall of 1928—therefore seemed to be: Balbo or Badoglio, or both. But Russia has no royalist party left. Royalty, without a warrior caste, aris- tocrat class or great middle class to back it, has no root in any national organism. Even if the red republic were smashed in war, a Romanoff could not sustain himself on a restored throne. The bolsheviki have been too thorough in killing off former ruling- class folk; and Russia never developed a buffer class between aristocrat top and peasant-proletariat bottom. Officially, nobody could succeed Stalin anyway. As dictator, he has no official existence. You won't find him in the new constitution. Hitler is President and chancellor of Nazi Ger- many, which lacks a king. Mussolini is premier of Italy, which has a King. Ataturk is President of Turkey, with his fellow general, Ismet Pasha, as premier. The late Alexander of Yugo- slavia was King as well as dictator. But Stalin holds no government post or state title. He is just the party secretary: Boss because he controls all nominations, appointments, pa- tronage. ‘There is a President of the republic. He is Kalinin, bearded, l, old-guard Bolshevik, who worked with Lenin from 1903, when the chiet Bol- shevik split the Social-Democratic party between the rival advocates of evolution and revolution, and headed the latter group. ‘We have a premier, Molotov, & calm, L stood out as a safe man. He was put in | command of the Moscow district. i With Frunze, Voroshilov then purged the army of Trotzky men: and when Frunze passed, Voroshilov became war | commissar. | That was 11 years ago. He has | filled out since. Desk work has let | flesh accumulate under his chin and around his middle. But he has de- veloped. He is full of vigor. He looks 10 years younger than his 55 years. In the trial of the 16 conspirators of the Kemenev-Zinoview group before the military collegium last Summer, his name kept recurring with Stalin’s. “Get Stalin and Voroshilov—and other leaders,” ran instructions to gunmen. The pick of names has significance. Of equal significance is the vast growth of the war machine. There are nearly 6,000 centers of instruction for the army, which approximates 700,000 regulars, 300,000 militia, with 200,000 Ogpu and special troops. The air fleet is the world's biggest, with 3,000 ma- chines, and a naval air arm quad- rupled since 1933. There are 8,000 pilots trained annually, and a drive is on to get 100,000 men with flying li- censes. Orlov, the navy chief, has under his hand a force which during the last three years has tripled its battleship strength and increased its submarine strength five itmes. Must Side With Army. All this means an immense and closely integrated professional organi- zation, the growth of a powerful vested interest, the rise of a new esprit de corps, and new loyalities. Stalin has swung over to the national war machine and away from the ma- chine for world conquest through rev- olution. No successor to Stalin could sustain himself against the hostility of the armed forces. But that is not altogether the point. ‘The point is, would Russian resistance to German-Japanese pressures slide out like the core of an apple under the corer if Stalin disappeared? Many folk think so. The last batch to entertain the opinion tried to test it by a trial- and-error experiment. It failed, and the would-be experimenters were “liqe uidated.” But suppose the experiment had succeeded? The supposition sheds light on the dark Russian scene. Take & glance at it from the historian’s angle: “As 1936 drew to its close, the dele- gates to the All-Russian Congress of Soviets assembled in the Kremlin throne room. Their business was to vote themselves out of existence as the governing body of the red realm. They were turning over in 1937 to a two-house Parliament, directly elect= ed, under a constitution granting se- cret ballot, freedom of religious wee- ship, independent judiciary, respese for the secrecy of correspondend, loyal protection for personai ownere ship of income from work, legal se- curity for the right of inheritance and other rights common to the de- mocracies of those days, but peculiar in a dictatorship. “The chief bolsheviks occupied & raised dais. The war commissar was missing; Voroshilov had been shot some weeks previously. Sergei Kirov, Leningrad boss, would have been there, too, but he had been assassie (Continued on Third Page.), e