PEACE EFFORTS

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 55, 29 November 1937, Page 11

PEACE EFFORTS

United States Will Not Act Alone

NO IMMEDIATE MOVE Radical Labour’s Attitude To President By Telegraph.—Press. Assu.—Copyright. (Received November 28, 7.30 p.m.) New York, November 26. The Washington correspondent of the "New York Times” reports that President Roosevelt at a Press conference reiterated the United States’ intention to continue their efforts toward peace and the facilitation of the cessation of the Chinese and Japanese conflict, if and when circumstances were propitious, but no immediate move was contemplated upon the conclusion of the conference at Brussels, and in any event it would only be in conjunction with the other Powers.

Considerable significance is seen in the intention of the United States delegate, Mr. Norman Davies, to return to the United States instead of going to London for further discussions. It is felt nothing would be served by going, whereas it might be misinterpreted, not only in China and Japan, but in Congress. There is no special desire for conversations in London to touch off a debate on foreign affairs in Congress on the assumption that important steps in which the United States might take a leading part were impending.

Radical Labour’s attitude toward President Roosevelt at the present time is indicated by Mr. G. L. Lewis, head of the Committee for Industrial Organisation, who said: “When the history of President Roosevelt’s Administration is written it will go down as one of the most idealistic of all time, one which tried to do the most for the average man. For this I gave President Roosevelt my support, and he still has it, but the greatest tragedy of the New Deal is that it waged such heroic battles, and having won the victory in such agonising struggles it nevertheless has declined in prestige because of just one thing, namely, a lack of competent and co-ordinated leadership from the N.R.A. to the present housing schemes.” Mr. Lewis expressed great perturbation at reports that President Roosevelt was planning a tremendous naval building programme, dismissing any good that might accrue therefrom to Labour. “I cannot help wondering why all this rush is going on about war,” he said. “If enough people in high places adopt a war psychology, eventually we are going to get the country thinking that way. This is something that concerns me very much because if there is a war it is Labour that has to do most of tho dying.” BISHOPS’ APPEAL Christian Attitude To Social Problems

(Received November 28, 9.30 p.m.)

Washington, November 27.

The bishops composing the administrative board of the National Catholic Welfare Conference have issued a statement urging that a Christian attitude be adopted toward social problems and warning workers against Communism. “After the war social injustice embittered the jobless and the poor throughout the world are being roused to a spirit of defiance and revolt,” says the statement. “It is deplorable that unrest should be further increased by designing agitators whose immediate interest is the creation of turmoil and bitterness and class conflict.”

Referring to the committee for Industrial Organisation and the American Federation of Labour, the statement deplored the internecine warfare going on and urged that peace be established between them as the only means to avert increased suffering and hardship.