Though the "battle for London" fils the headlines of the newspapers, the electoral Vattle of Willkie and Roosevelt occupies 2 considerable amount of attention so. far the man in the street Is concerned. That earnest discussion in the corner of the resfaurant or in the smoking room of the Pullman is as likely as not, if you get near enough to eavesdrop, concerned with the chances of Roosevelt's defeat rather than with the possibilities of British victory. It is not that the vital seriousness of the present phases of the war are ignored, in fact, there is probably now a greater realization than ever before of the very immediate stake which America has in Great Britain's powers of continued resistance. Talk of the elections forms a welcome relief from talk of the war.
The elections are, in other words, fulfilling some of the function of an "escape literature."
So far as foreign policy is concerned, both candidates stand for very much the same things. In his acceptance speech Mr. Willkie was in some respects even more forthright than President Roosevelt, "The loss of the British fleet....would be a calamity for us," he said flatly, which is a stronger expression of opinion than any which President Roose-volt had yet made. Mr. Willkie also quoted the President's pledge made on June 10 at Charlottesville that the United States would extend to the opponents of force "the material resources of the nation" and, declared that as a private citizen, he would give such a policy his "whole-hearted support." By thus removing the question of aiding the Allies from the realm of party polities, the President's hand has been enormously streng-
Mr. Willkie also supported conscription and thus once more rebuffed the isolationists his party who had hoped to collect a few cheap voles by opposing the President this question. His only criticism of the President's foreign policy was directed back~ ward rather than forward. The President had, Mr. Willkie charged, used threatening Innguage towards the dictators when he had neither the means nor the intention of backing up those threats and ie had also misled European Democracies into expecting more aid from the: United States than the country was able to give. He had reversed Theodore Roosevelt's doctrine of talking softly and carrying a big stick and had take ed loudly, while the stick was still on order.
Mr, Willkie's speech was made at Elwood, Indiana. He knew well that his audience was overwhelmingly isolationist. He knew that nearly everybody in Indiana from the Republican state leaders down to the dirt farmers in their blue overalls regarded the menace of Hitler as remote and were alarmed est material aid for Britain would involve the United States in war, He knew too that organized labour, whose votes he needs badly in the industrial areas where the Democratic party machines are strongest, was opposed to conscription. Tt therefore required certain amount of courage to defy political expediency and express"his convielions on these matters.
'When you talk to supporters of President Roosevelt, they argue that all English people should hope for a Roosevelt victory. Mr. Willkie, they point oni, is associated with big business, and big' business, thinking chiefly of profits, is fundamentally appease ment-minded and anxious to resume trade with a Hitler-dominated Europe. When you talk with supporters of Wendell Willkie, they: argue that businessmen are so afraid 0 Roosevelt using the war as an excuse for adopting semi-totalitarian measures in the: United States that they hesitate to give full rein to their pro-Allied sentiments. With Mr. Willkie as President, they could support fullest possible aid to the Allies without any qualms.
President Roosevelt has the support of the city machines, grown fat on eight years' patronage; he has the relief vote, the vote and the Solid South, Mr. Willkie can count on the business community and the small independent trader as well as. all those Sand their number is hard to estimate—who feel that they want a change without quite knowing why. The farm vote is divided and may determine the final result. Many me dependent voters are expected 10 be swayed by their dislike of a third term and by their fear that the arguments which justify it might equally well justify a fourth, fifth or even a permanent dictatorship.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.