THIS IS OUR FIGHT

Wairarapa Times-Age, 26 April 1941, Page 5

THIS IS OUR FIGHT

“This is our fight. The American people have recognised the catastrophic quality of a totalitarian victory, and by an overwhelming majority have endorsed every step along the progress we have made to our present posture. "Proclaiming as we do our faith in the ultimate victory of good over 1 evil, our devotion to the cause of human liberty, our century and a half of pursuit of justice between men on terms of equality, we can no longer occupy the immoral and craven position of asking others to make all the sacrifices for this victory, which we recognise is so essential to us. Our manhood, our self-respect demand that we shall assume our part of the burden.

“What we all see is an America gradually becoming encircled by military Powers, whose ideals, institutions and methods are all irreconcilably antagonistic to our ideals, institutions and methods. These same Powers have also openly and repeatedly proclaimed themselves our enemies, and these openly avowed enemies have joined themselves together in a pact which they do not hesitate to say is aimed at us and at us alone. ■‘The only reason this hostile pact admittedly aimed at us has not resulted in open warfare upon us has been because it does not suit the present purpose of these Powers to engage in war with us.”

“Whenever in the judgment .of the Axis Powers it better suits their purpose to begin hostilities, hostilities will begin, and nothing we can do, save prostrating ourselves in abject surrender, will change this. “There is no retracing our steps. We have committed ourselves in this world struggle. If we should attempt to back down now, England would go down to a catastrophic defeat, and we would face a world-wide victorious Germany and allies, whom we should have to fight alone. "We have declared that aggressor nations must ncft.be permitted to win. We have irrevocably committed ourselves to see that this is prevented. We have acknowledged that our destiny. just as much as the destiny of the British Empire, and the ultimate destiny of the conquered peoples, the Low Countries. Scandinavia, the Balkans, and France, is at stake. "The latest link in the chain of encirclement being forged is the recentlyannounced agreement between Russia and Japan. This pact is certain to strengthen the hand of the war party in Japan. Summed up in military terms, the Russian-Japanese agreement makes Japan more secure, as she pursues her dream of domination of all eastern Asia, and leaves Russia no stronger in the event of the Nazis attempting to seize the Ukraine. "Thus everywhere pressure on us grows, and most vital of all. across the broad north Atlantic from German bases in Norway and France, and to Greenland. "How long." Colonel Knox asked, “shall we remain bemused and stupefied, while the Axis Powers press their plans for our isolation and ultimate defeat?" ATTACK ON BRITAIN BY COLONEL LINDBERGH. RIOTING AT MEETING. NEW YORK April 24. Colonel Lindbergh in an address lo an America First meeting, said it was now obvious that England was losing the Avar, and. when she asked the United States to enter the war she was considering her own future and Empire. Rioting broke out at the meeting. Men and women were beaten and kicked, several unconscious, while the pro-Lindbergh crowd attacked pickets bearing posters denouncing Lindbergh. Mounted police were required to halt the disturbances. An overflow crowd of 10.000 heard the address through loudspeakers outside, while another 10.000 wore in an adjacent street.