Evening Star Newspaper, May 15, 1940, Page 11

Unity in Peril May Scrap Social Laws Stepup in Output Seen as End of Wage-Hour Limit By DAVID LAWRENCE. ‘The drift into & war psychology has come with astonishing rapidity since last Friday. Though the in- vasion of Holland and Belgium is less than a week old, the seeming § inevitability of American par- ticipation in some form has * seized public opinion and re- flected itself in & nervous, Jit- David Lawrence. are already interpreting current events in terms of their own selfish ambitions, little realizing that if America’s unity in the face of na- tional peril is to be achieved, it will have to be by eradication of class conflict and much of the so-called social legislation which has been put on the statute books. For one thing, the wage and hour law will have to be scrapped in the larger industries, at least, as the demand grows for speedier produc- tion and overtime shifts. Technical quibbling by means of such conflict- provoking institutions as the pres- ent Labor Board will have to be summarily ended. Business will not be able to reach higher production levels unless output per man can + be materially increased. France found the 40-hour week was the main reason for her delay in getting armament, and England had to abandon the shorter work week. Regulation of Profit. On the side of management and capital there will doubtless be limi- tation and sharp regulation of prof- * its. But unless a collectivist system 1s to be accepted—and its introduc- tion will mean a long period of dis- unity—the only way to get higher and higher production is by an ex- pansion of the present economic system operated by the present managers of private business. The third-term debate comes into the problem very directly. If Mr. Roosevelt is to be accepted as third-term candidate, he must rid the Government of the radical ele- ments which are really interested in imposing a collectivist system. Unless the President can give busi- nessmen the assurance that he will play ball with them and not use the war to allow more Government own- ership and more delegation of power in the hands of collectivists, there will be a tragic area of disunity. Undoubtedly Herr Hitler is count- ing en American incapacity to unite in a crisis. He counted heavily on the bickerings inside the British and French democracies, and he Judged the two countries well. Unparalleled Apprehension. The plight of the allies has brought the beginnings of a period of unparalleled apprehension. Con- fidence in the ability of the allies to hold on until the United States can bring help is being impaired by the news bulletins from abroad. If the British and French have a well-prepared plan of defense and are in a position to hold off their enemy until next spring, then Amer- ican ald may be expected to be forthcoming, but the Nazi war march is a form of propaganda that is beginning to do on this side of the Atlantic what it has done to all neutrals in Europe—paralyze peo- ples into inaction. ‘What can America do to help? No longer is there much talk of what is neutral or unneutral. The simplest approach to the problem would seem to be to build in the United States a huge war laboratory with tens of thousands of planes in production and with a war machine designed for our own use, but giving its immediate output to the allies at low cost. The re- vision of the Johnson Act and other laws might take considerable time and produce more cleavages inside the United States. But there is no law to prevent sales of surplus property or war materials if carried away by foreign governments. In- stead of credits to the allies, the American Government might buy the output of all airplane factories and stimulate, through the R. F. C. capital loans, the building of more and more plants. Appropriations Are Flexible. . Federal appropriations !o; ‘wu‘ urposes are usually phrased in a gexlhle ‘way, and if purchases by the American Government were cen- tralized and planes sold to foreign governments direct through foreign purchasing commissions working in close co-operation with the Ameri- THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, WEDNESDAY, MAY 15, 1940, The Capital Parade Grave Danger Is Seen That Events in Europe Will Make U. S. Foreign Policy Out of Date By JOSEPH ALSOP AND ROBERT KINTNER. There is grave danger that within a few months the President’s Ioreicnpoucywmbououtofdluuthapolwyolthaexmmm- tionists became on the outbreak of war. The President’s policy is founded on two assumptions: That & German victory would be disastrous to the United States, but that the allies can hold out long enough to organize the industrial resources of this country, and thus to defeat the Germans in the end with American material, Already, gloomy doubts of the soundness of the second assumption are to be heard from the more realistic men around the President. It needs no expert to see that if the German Army breaks through to the sea in Holland and Belgium, or even in Holland alone, the British Isles Wwill be vulnerable to devastating air attacks. As yet there has been no real test of the protection against such air attacks afforded by home-based pursuit planes and anti-aircraft guns. If the.protection is inade- mfifi:%@ quate, as it may well be, the allied (ro resistance will certainly be broken. It was disclosed in this space some time ago that the most as- tonishing German claim to Sumner Welles was that they would achieve a decisive victory by July. When the President’s special emissary re- turned from Europe, the best Amer- ican authorities still considered such n # & claim mere boastfulness. Now, however, after spending several days in the War Department, your correspondents can only report that no re- sponsible man puts the chances against a decisive German victory this summer at much better than even, and that in some quarters the odds were quoted as 5 to 3 against the allies. Huge Costs Obviously, there revised estimates of the progress of the war touch the President’s foreign policy in its most vital part. As to the truth of the President’s first assumption, of the disastrousness of a German triumph, there is now little doubt. The immediate cost is all too apparent. To build a second Navy to hold the Atlantic, we should have to spend in the neighborhood of $7,000,000,000. In capital outlay for an Army merely adequate to protect this hemisphere from Canada down to the bulge of South America, we should have to spend another $3,000,000,000, And the upkeep for such an Army and such a Navy would be at least $3,000,000,000 annually above the present appropriations. Thus, in the long period necessary to achieve preparedness, national defense would cost around $5,000,000,000 annually in capital outlay and maintenance combined. As Germany, in the time before the war, spent half her national income for warlike purposes, this figure ought not to be staggering. But it is. And in addition to the immediate cost of & German victory, there are other matters to be considered, such as the desperate panic which will certainly come if the allies lay down their arms, and the subsequent disorganization of our economy. But while the President’s first assumption cannot be challenged, his second, that the allies will win in the end with American aid by “methods short of war,” now has an even chance of proving without foundation. To meet the immediate threat of German victory this summer, there are only three things we can do: we can brace ourselves for the possible shock; we can reassert our intention to aid the allies with even greater emphasis, in the hope of keeping Italy and Japan quiet, and we can start at once on a great preparedness program. Then if the allies do get through the sum- mexl:i we shall be ready sooner with the war material they so desperately need. National Unity Prompt, intelligent and daring action is now at a cruel premium, con= sidering how difficult prompt action commonly is in our Government. Yet if the President will only take a firm lead, there are some encouraging signs that prompt action will not be refused by Congress. The first of these is the com- plete reversal of the thinking of many congressional leaders on the subject of national defense. Where they were talking at the beginning of the session of taking cash for the farmers out of the hides of the Army and Navy, they now seem completely ready to hear a request from the President for additional pre- paredness appropriations. Such a request is expected. It will probably total about $500,000,000, and the only danger is it will be too small. The other encouraging signs come from outside Washington. One was the important front-page editorial published in the Chicago Daily News by Col. Frank Knox, declaring that the country was now ready to aid the allies, and that steps should be taken at once to extend the needed aid. The other was the recent speech of Wendell Willkie, whose Repub- lican candidacy is daily growing more importan:, attacking the kind of talk indulged in by Thomas E. Dewey when he flip-flopped to extreme isolationism in Wisconsin. These suggest that when the time comes to act, we may be able to act in national unity and without partisanship. (Released by the North American Newspaper Alliance, Inc.)| WAITING FOR THE can Government, the allied nx'mlesl would be assured of a tremendous supply of bombers and defense planes. Modification of the so-called neutrality laws would doubtless be made later, but the problem of mak- ing Government loans now would be avoided altogether. war plants to take risks in starting airplane production on a vast scale and a level of low prices to the allies. This would be justified on the basis that the allies are helping us build our defense machine, avoid- ing obsolescence and constructing a war plant capable of winning this war or the next one. Some method of helping the allies | win the war without making Gov- ernment loans seems to be in pros- pect. It may involve subsidizing * i) SAVE UP TO 40% Zleven years ago Star Carpet presented to Washingtenlan est Quality Rug Cleaning 8 & great saving. You can't get better service at any price. 31 .50 Sleansd, $9.75 Washed ..... ORIENTAL RUGS (Reproduction Rights Reserved.) xI2 Oomestis Cleaned ...... L {1 * Washed and Repaired by Exports ALL RUGS FULLY INSURED FIREPROOF STORAGE : STAR CARPET WORKS 2 3316-3318 P Sireet W ¥§ We've a ‘Family Aco_t at EISEMAN’S “Bill buys all his clothing at Eiseman’s . .. I duy all my feminine apparel there also. One account serves us both. And it doesn’t cost a penny extra to charge it.” Charge accounts opened at time of purchase . . . no delays extra cost. no red tape . .. no Pay only the regular cash prices, but charge it on weekly, semi-monthly, or monthly terms spread over ¢ months. Come in . . . you're welcome to open an account. Men’s and Women’s Apparel EISEMAN'’S F STREET at Tth 0N o SR A e T q’Hl opinions of the writers on this page are their own, not necessarily The Star's. Such opinions are presented in The Star’s eflort to all sides readers %uhwah“;:ch opinions mi themselves and directly opposed to of questions of interest to its be_contradictory among 'he Star's. it Washington Observations Events in Europe Bring Healthy Revival Of Nation-Wide Interest in Preparedness By FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. Forty-eight hours ago this space was devoted to discussion of the first effect upon the United States of the German invasion of Holland and Belgium— namely, intensi- fication of the Roosevelt third- term movement. Today it is pos- | ... sible to deal with § the second—and more important —effect. ~ That is the sudden, far-flung reali- zation that the war is no longer as remote from us, our interests and our shores as we thought it Frederie William Wile. was. There are innumerable signs of these blitzkrieg results over here. Foremost is a healthy re- vival of Nation-wide interest in pre- paredness. It engulfs isolationists and “interventionists” alike. Unready and Unarmed. Less gratifying is the revelation that, despite the billions we have lavished on our Army, Navy and air force, we are still lamentably unready for war with & power like Germany or any combiration of powers. In an emergency spurt to make up for lost time—in a spirit savoring of locking-the-stable-door- after-the-horse-1s-stolen —President Roosevelt is about to ask Congress to authorize a $500,000,000 “extraor- dinary national defense program.” Some authorities term even that tidy item a mere fleabite, under the circumstances which evoke it. Nor is it reassuring to hear that not only are we seriouszly underarmed, but that our industrigl equipment does not begin to measure up to the de- mands of the military, naval and alr expansion that is called for. Congress may appropriate for a whole fleet of 45,000-ton battleships and a “two-ocean navy,” for 50,000 planes and for 50,000 tanks, but all the gold at Fort Knox can't pro- duce those armaments if there aren’t the plants, the skilled personne) and the. raw materials at hand with which to manufacture them. Au- thorities seem agreed that as of to- day the United States possesses none of these in anything like re- quired degree. And it lacks a co- ordinated organization for getting them. L The Bright Side., There’s a bright side to all this. It's distinctly salutary in uature. It consists of the reluctant recog- nition that things are going badly for the allles, tha: German victory is something which must now be visualized. Americans who have imagined that the Nazis are no match “for the vastly superior re- sources of the combined British and French Empires” have over- night been brought to realize this just isn’t so. Germany is prov- ing more than a match for Anglo- French resources—especially in dia- bolical brain power. Even the allies’ ability Lo date to draw un- limitedly upon American war sin- ews hasn't enabled them to catch up with Hitler's 90,000,000,000-mark war machine. Vanished, since the Norwegian debacle and what looks omtinously like & repetition of it in the Low Countries, is the theory of assured allied victory—slow, but certain eventually, if not now. All that the dynamic but fact-facing Prime Minister Churchill can “of- fer” Britain is “blood, toil, tears and sweat” and “many, many months of struggle and suffering.” LR Allied Defeat—Then What? Millions of Americans who once refused to harbor the horrifying ‘| idea now think and talk in terms of possible allied defeat. Their gloomy ruminations naturally pro- Jject themselves into consideration of what this might mean for us. It has long been a commonplace to picture the British fleet and the French Army as our sure shields against any German advance to- ward the Americas. But what if there is no more British fleet or French Army? What if & con- quered Britain has to hand over Newfoundland and the British West Indies to Hitler, and France to disgorge her North and South American and Caribbeari posses- sions, and the Netherlands to sur- render Curacao and the Dutch West Indies—each and every one of these territories within easy para- chute or bombing distance of the Panama Canal or the continental United States—what then? Sup- posing Japan, striking while she thinks the fron hot, thrusts at the Dutch East Indies, the Philippines or Hawaii? Supposing Mussolini found the going good and linked up with Germany and Japan? Sup- posing Red Russia, half an hour by plane from Alaska, thought it use- ful to take part in the fray? Sup- posing Mexico, with which our rela- tions right now are none too amica- ble, were invited into partnership in the grand anti-Gringo alliance? * * % x At Least Food for Thought. Let no reader run away with the lugubrious idea that this writer thinks any such menace as he has pictured is just around the corner. He remains an unterrified apostle of the “blue water school”—of the con- viction that as long as the allies command the sea, they are invin- cible. But the naval expert does not live who can forecast with cer- tainly on that score. The issue of air power versus sea power is far from determined. Nor is it to be for- gotten that the blockade is getting in its cumulatively deadly work in | Germany despite Nazi blitzkrieg suc- | cesses. The point !s, and it's worth its weight in all the gold we own, that events have at last set a com- placent, it - can't - happen - here America thinking furiously of what tomorrew, or next month, or next year, may hold for us. If from such | thinking, we proceed forthwith to do all In our power to avert disaster {=-by helping the allies to the full extent of our laws and capecity before it is too late, while girding our own loins to the limit—the alarms and anxieties of this hour will have been hlessings in disguise. ok x x Editor Danlels Drops In. Ambassador Josephus Danje's is in town from Mexico City, not to discuss ofl-strained relations, bui en route to North Carolina to attend the diamond jubilee of his news- paper, the Raleigh News and Ob- server, which he has owned since 1894. The World War Secretary of the Navy lunched at the White House with the man who was his assistant in 1913-21, and who, though now This Changing World Reports Are Heard That Part of British Royal Family Will ‘Vacation’ in Canada By CONSTANTINE BROWN. There sre unconfirmed reports, based mainly on circumstantial evi- dence, that preparations are being made for the eventual arrival of the British royal family in Canada. It 18 reported that in view of the possibility of Germany beginning the wholesale bombardment of Britain, the British government is urging Queen Elizabeth, Dowager Queen Mary, the young princesses, and other members of the royal family to take a summer vacation in Canada. There is no question of either the King or any male members of the royal family going away. They will stay with the army. There seems to be little doubt that the Germans will continue the total war prescribed by the late Gen. Ludendorff throughout the summer and will attack the British Isles in an endeavor to terrify the population and break down Britain’s industrial power, Observers Here Pessimistic ‘The success of the German air arm depends on how much punishment it takes in the present battle for possession of Belgium. Observers in Washington are deeply pessimistic about the situation. If airplanes and the mechanized forces prove to be stronger than the infantry, the German high command has ample reason to be optimistic regarding the outcome. - LU ‘There is no doubt that the Reich has about three times as many planes as the allies and the production capacity of the Germans at present is greater than that of the British and the French. There are two new factors which might tend to maintain the air supremacy of the Reich. One is the likelihood that Italy will enter the war shortly. Then the allies would have to contend with some 8,000 more planes. Probably these would be active on other fronts, but they would draw allied fighting machines from the western front, The Second Factor ‘The other factor is the possibility that German aviators will bombard systematically the British and French industrial centers which are pro- ducing planes, motors and other war implements. The Germans have constructed a number of their factories under ground. Many of their airfields also are subterranean. The French and British, who started preparing themselves for war so many years after Germany, have only a few such underground factories and airplane sheds. LY Should the Germans succeed in damaging the French and the British war industries, the position of the troops manning the Maginot Lines will become precarious. It is true that there are important stores of arms ammuntions and food in that line, but these must be replenished from the rear. And the German strategy is believed to be to prevent com- munications between the interior and the lines which defend France from & German frontal attack. %% Italy is giving every one a severe headache these days. It was be- lieved at first that Mussolini’s bellicose attitude and the demonstrations against the British in Rome and other Italian cities were just a part of the war of nerves Il Duce had undertaken to help his colleague, Hitler. But, according to recent reports, if the Germans prove victorious in the battle which is taking place now on the Liege Charleroi Louvain-Antwerp front, Mussolini is determined to throw Italy into the war immediately. Expected to Attack in Egypt ] According to well informed observers, I1 Duce plans to attack the allies in Egypt by a pincher attack against Egypt from Ethiopia and Cyrenaica. Field Marshal Balbo has received substantial reinforcements recently and the Italians proved, in the last Ethiopian campaign, to be excellent organizers. The desert has no terrors for them. Their supply columns and mechanized units are built purposedly for a war in the desert. The British, of course, have an adequate force in Egypt and fortifica- tions have been built on the Italo-Ecyptian frontier since the last war- scare when Anthony Eden enforced sanctions against Italy. These fortifications have been improved in recent months and guns of heavier caliber have been placed behind thick concrete walls. In certain diplomatic quarters there is a belief that the Italians, if they decide to throw their lot in with the Reich, might attack at the most unlikely and unexpected point, namely, in Switzerland. This attack, it is said, would almost cinch a German victory, since France would be invaded from her most undefended frontier. Military experts, however, doubt the possibility of such an attack. Besides the formidable natural barrier which defends Switzerland from her neighbors, the Swiss Army is by no means a negligible quantity. It is one of the best in Europe and has excellent equipment. From the mountains which dominate the valleys through which any invader must penetrate, the Swiss artillerymen and machine-gunners could make such an attempt a costly adventure. President of the United States, still insists on addressing his old boss as “Chief.” V.F. W.Opens Poppy Campaign Tomorrow The District of Columbia Veterans of Foreign Wars will launch tomor- row their 19th annual three-day poppy campaign to raise funds for destitute ex-service men and widows and orphans of American war veterans. during the drive, according to Ro- land F. Kay, chairman. Approxi- mately 1,100 veterans as well as 400 members of the ladies’ auxiliary of the V: F. W. will participate in the campaign, he said. “We expect to sell more popples this year than in any previous cam- paign,” Mr. Kay declared. The poppies are made by ex- service men in hospitals, he ex- plained, and sold to the various branches of the V. F. W. throughout the country. The drive has been in- dorsed by President Roosevelt and More than 80,000 poppies are ex- by the District Commissioners, he pected to be sold in the District said. FACTS talk louder than claims! HERE ARE THE REASONS 1. SMARTNESS that wins beauty-seekers 2. PERFORMANCE that thrills action-lovers 3. BIG CAR SIZE that provides roominess 4. RIDING COMFORT that tops the field 5. LOW UPKEEP that pleases the thrifty 6. PLUS—a*“good deal” that s a**good deal” « « « always a Packard policy 24th ot N St PACKARD WASHINGTON MOTOR CAR CO. (o 2. Sales Branch, Dupont Circle Bldg., Open Nights and Sundays. ShreTa T ais L, © *REpublic 0123 L X Pension Bill Moves Along Despite Debt House Hears Call of Veterans’ Lobby and Election Year By CHARLES G. ROSS. ‘The Government is running s deficit this year of around four billion dollars. ‘The public debt crowds the statue tory limit of 45 billion dollars. National de- fense needs, it | satisfled, will re- quire shortly . either that this limit be in- creased or that new taxes be imposed. Yet the House this week, under pressure from the veterans’ lobby, passed a new pension bill Charles G. Ross. that would cost the country in its first year of oper= ation from $24,000,000 to $48,000,= ; in its second year, $51,000,000; in its fifth year, $60,000,000. And the cost would go up year by year until, in the estimate of Represene tative Costello (Democrat) of Cali« fornia, who fought the measure, “it is quite likely that these figures may reach a trifling sum in excess of a cold billion dollars.” ‘The bill would provide pensions for the dependent widows and ore phans of World War veterans, and, introducing a brand new principle into such legislation, pensions for the dependent parents of deceased veterans. It would make no differ- ence whether or not the veteran died from a service-connected dis- ability. The only requirement would be 90 days’ service on the part of the veteran, at home or abroad. Fade-out for Economy. This is an election year. The bill was demanded by the American Legion and the Veterans of For- eign Wars of the United States. So the House passed it by a vote of 247 to 31 and sent it along to the Senate. There was no roll call— only a “division” that enabled mem- bers to vote without going on record. A complete fade-out of the “economy bloc” marked the debate and the vote. The proceedings showed the House at its irresponsible worst, a condition into which it is likely to fall—along with the Senate—when- ever the veterans’ lobby really turns on the heat. It isn't always the much-maligned bureaucracy that's to blame for prodigal shelling out of the people's money. Sometimes it's Congress, strictly on its own. In the expene sive matter of pension legislation, whatever restraint is exercised comes from the Executive. Only Part of the Story. The fact that a new pension bill is halfway through Congress is only & part of the story. The rest and more significant part is that gradu- ally the barriers in the way of a general service pension—a pension for all World War veterans based on the simple fact of service, of whatever duration beyond 90 days, whether, at home in a training camp or on the firing line in Europe, whether the veteran is well or i, rich or poor—are being broken down. One of the barriers crumbled this week in the House when the dis- tinction between service-connected and non-service-connected disabilie ties was discarded in the bill per- taining to widows, orphans and parents. As old Reed Smoot foresaw, the way toward the general service pension is being smoothed, year by year. In trying to get the House to leave dependent parents out of the bill and thus save around $3,500,000 the first year, Mr. Costello summed up the prospect: Only the Starting Point. “This legislation is only the start- ing point, and every succeeding Congress, at least in election years, is going to have to do something to show the veterans that this Con- gress is just as anxious to serve them and obtain their votes as was the preceding Congress. At least, gentlemen, you do not have to ex- pand the precedents in trying to follow them. You can at least elime inate the parents from this bill.” But the motion to strike out pare ents was shouted down and a prece- dent created that undoubtedly will be used, if the bill goes through, to get commensurate benefits for the surviving parents of the soldiers of earlier wars. As Mr. Costello put it: “Almost without exception each bill brings some new provision, creates some new inequaiity, and as a re sult we are forced to pass ad tional legislation in order to remove those inequalities.” On a special roll of honor should be entered the names of two leads ers of the fight against the bill— Representatives Miller, Republicen, of Connecticut, who lost both legs 88 an aviator in the World War, and Kean, of New Jersey, a second division veteran and winner of a raedal for gallantry. Sald Mr. Miller from his wheel chair: “This legislation is ill-ade vised, ill-considered and ill-timed, 1 cazn see no justification for penale izing the already overburdened tax~ p{tyu' for the benefit of families 5 Sidwell Estate Trustee Sues for Tax Refund A gult to recover $11,865 with in- terest was on file today in Distriet