Page 2 University Daily Kansan Wednesday, Feb. 27, 1952 Interpretive Articles
B
"Somehow, Emily, we don't seem to be as close as we used to be."
Editorials
Armed Forces Of U.S. Must Be Well Balanced
(Ed. Note—The guest editorial today is from the Feb. 7 issue of the Iowa State Daily. We think it still is appropriate.)
"To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace."
—George Washington
"Let him who desires peace prepare for war."
The Secretary of Defense has been called upon the carpet to clarify foggy issues concerning the air war in Korea. One of the big questions was whether the United States or the enemy has superior jets.
The Secretary said this country has done little since World War II to bolster its air power, and that not only has it diminished in numbers, but the planes have lacked modern design.
For example, the Secretary of Defense said the Korean MIG was by far superior to our jets in climbing speed.
It is too bad that Uncle Sam has not been on his toes in the aircraft field. With a program of Universal Military Training before Congress, it is more than important to stress the necessity of being prepared, not just in one field of warfare, but in all.
Congress is expected to enact into law the system of permanent peace-time conscription proposed by the UMT National Security Training Commission.
Such a plan would give the military a chance to grab men during an emergency, after they had received 6 months basic training. All men in UMT would be reservists and subject to call any time during the following $7 \frac{1}{2}$ years.
We realize that it is imperative that such a law be passed. It's certain that few young men feel kindly about giving a portion of their lives to the military. Even with this in mind, there is nothing to do but approve such legislative action. This country must be prepared for any sort of national emergency.
In the event of another world conflict, this country would not be given time to mobilize, without internal injury by long-range bombers, as it was during the last two world wars.
It's useless to guess how the next war will start or what military tactics the enemy may employ in the first few days. However, one can be certain that the nation which is prepared, equipped with a trained, mobilized army and an adequate air force, will hold the advantage.
If this country had been prepared in 1941, the war would have been much shorter, and perhaps less costly in lives. The long trek back to the hearts of the lands of our enemies might also have been shorter.
With the UMT program in operation, we will at least have an army on hand, an army of men learned and practiced in the ways of war. But we'll need the airplanes, tanks and munitions that it takes to support a strong fighting force.
UMT is a good thing. Being partially prepared isn't good enough these days.—muhm.
Mail subscription rates: $3 a semester or $4.50 a year add $1 a semester if in Lawrence. Published in Lawrence, Kan., every afternoon during the University year except holidays and Sundays. University holidays and examination periods. Entered as second class matter Sept. 17, 1910, at Lawrence, Kan., Post Office under act of March 3, 1879.
Aneurin Bevan Might Disrupt NATO Plans If He Became Britain's Prime Minister
When Winston Churchill returned to England recently after his fund-raising campaign in Washington, he was greeted with 10,000 cheers and one audacious ieer.
"Audacious" is the word generally ascribed to Aneurin Bevan, the confirmed and constant member of her majesty's royal opposition. His needling criticism of current British policy destines him to become either the loneliest man in the world or the prime minister of England.
There is reason to suspect he covets the latter position. In fact, as early as 1830, then Prime Minister Lloyd George predicted that eventually Bevan would succeed to the post.
A militant Yankeephobe, "Nye" Bevan distrusts American-sponsored rearmament of Europe, contending that the economies of Continental countries will founder under the double burden of rearmament and reconstruction.
Bevan considers Russia a weak sister whose only hope of gaining ascendancy is by exploiting the weak economies of Europe and the poverty of Asia. He would cut down on arms production and channel the money to social welfare projects.
Because he controls almost one-fourth of the labor vote, Bevan's strength is to be reckoned with in a period of unstable British politics. He is a shrewd politician, a brilliant debater, and a competent executive.
Bevan was born in Southern Wales. He descended into the coal mines at the age of 13 and four years later became a union steward. His youth was spent in the black, grimy streets of a mining town. Through his life he has carried the
emotional scars of resentment and revenge, denouncing and vilifying the middle and upper classes of England.
Now, at 55, he is a comparatively young man on the English political scene even with his 23 consecutive years in parliament. Representing the Ebbw Vale district, he has never lost an election.
His unmaired record might have been his reason for ditching Clement Attlee last April. Some quarters believe Bevan resigned his cabinet post in anticipation of the Tory victory. He wanted no identification with the administration that increased medical costs on glasses and false teeth to raise taxes for guns.
The United States has this to consider: should Bevan ever come to the forefront as prime minister, it would break up the unity of NATO and disrupt our whole concept of Western defense. On the surface, this might seem remote. However Bevan has the vigor and ambition to regenerate the crumbling Labor party. Should he get control, it would be only one election step to the entrance of 10 Downing street.
There is some consolation in the fact that Bevan is a staunch anti-Communist. If it ever came to a showdown, the paunchy leftist undoubtedly would stick to traditional policy of friendship with the United States.
Our State department would do well to consider this eventuality. Any powerful group in the North Atlantic neighborhood lukewarm to the principle of positive collective security is a soft spot in the overall plan. Nye Bevan is representative of such a group. —Chuck Zuegner.
Letters:
Reader Submits Reasonable Ideas
To the Editor:
In regard to your editorial of Feb. 21, I would like to submit a few "reasonable" grounds for the language requirement. If you don't agree with the "mental discipline," "culture," and "grammar" advocates, try looking at the situation as an American citizen and prospective voter. Disregard the culture and grammar for a minute and think of the people who live in these countries in question.
People wonder why the government's foreign policy is in such a mess; one chief reason is the lack of understanding among nations—or should I say, lack of understanding on the part of the United States. Perhaps you didn't know about our chaotic foreign policy; if not, you should consult John Ise. The best way to "get acquainted" with other countries in the world is to study their language, learn their customs, and see another side to the American attitude of "What's in it for me?"
I must admit that an elementary language course can be very dull; however, so can fundamentals of economics, geography, and psychology. New terms must be learned to understand any elementary course. However, the literature and history of these countries which is studied in advanced courses is very interesting and informing.
However, we can't take the advanced courses without first passing those "dull" elementary courses. Give the teacher half a chance and he'll make the class interesting; on the other hand, if the instructor has to waste the period trying to help "bored" Jack, the-class will drag, little will be accomplished, and everyone (including the teacher) will heave a sigh of relief when the whistle blows. Remember-you get out of a class just what you put into it!
Elizabeth Hollis
Senior, Spanish education.
More Talk About Foreign Language
Dear Editor:
Lest previous replies to the Kansan's stand on the foreign language requirement be dismissed as self-serving, the observations of a ten-hour man are in order. For most of us, our interests lie without the field of languages, yet in them we find the stuff of which our native tongue is made. Ours is a synthetic language, a debtor to all others.
In Pollock and Maitland's "The History of English Law," after enumerating many common legal terms derived from French, the authors conclude, "One must go to the gallows to find an English institution." Shakespeare, Christopher Fry and their readers are indebted to all peoples for our language of beauty and utility. A knowledge of its background is essential to enjoying it, to comprehending it and using it. I do not ignore the benefits of the study of comparative grammar, but I am not much moved by the beauteous difference between a noun and a verb. It irritates me, however, when a speaker cannot link plural nouns with plural verbs. A speaker fails when his bad grammar upstages his good ideas.
The source of controversy may be the fact that the foreign language courses are not geared to the needs of most of us. I have long thought that a course like Greek-in-English should be offered which would include not only Greek but also Latin, French and German.
The foreign languages teach us the fundamentals of our own. Whatever else the student may gain in amity and in expanding intellect is net profit. Hasn't the editor noted the relish with which we ordinary students display our rudimentary knowledge of a foreign language? How often has he heard in casual conversations the words, "Parle vous Franceise?" or "Gesundheit!".
Richard W. Stavely Second year law.
'Beloved Country' Also An Operetta
Dear Sirs:
Since an entire editorial (Feb. 25) was devoted to the topic it is perhaps not presumptuous on my part to believe that a few more jobs could be added profitably to complement the previous discussion on the novel "Cry, the Beloved Country," by Alan Paton.
Besides appearing in book form and now on celluloid "Cry" was converted by Maxwell Anderson (who should need no descriptive adjectives) into a Broadway operetta called "Lost in the Stars." The adaptation from book to play was nicely done, some of Paton's prose fitting without change into the blank verse by Anderson, and the drama with Todd Duncan in the leading role was a successful presentation of the 1949-50 season.
The title for the play was taken from the lyrics of one of the songs in the operetta which plaintively suggested that although God promised to take special care of our "one little star" that . . .
I've been walking through
night and the day
Till my eyes get weary and my head turns gray,
And sometimes it seems maybe God's gone away,
Forgetting the promise that we heard him say—
And we're lost out here in the stars—
Little stars, big stars
Blowing through the night,
And we're lost out here in the stars.
In addition to "Cry" the pen of Paton, leaving the field of the novel, has produced "Religious Faith and World Culture" which appeared on the scene only last month.
Richard Scott College junior
Rats eat about 200,000,000 bushels of grain each year in the United States, the National Geographic society reports.