March 10.
With the passage of the Lend-lease But through the U.S. Senate on Saturday all that now remains {o be done before the measure becomes law, is for the House of Representatives to consider the amendments which the Senate has made to the BIll, and, if It accepts, them, President Roosevelt's signature will be all that is required. "It is suggested that the amendments which have been made are not such as to meet with the disapproval of the lower House, and the chances are that their consideration will be more in the! na~ ture of a fofinudity, -Copsequantly...withia few days the vast resources of the United States will be added to those of the. British Empire in defence of that democracy for which both stand, Nothing more formidable could be presented for consideration by the Axis Powers short of an out and out alliance, and Great Britain, sure of her sources of supply, can now get about the task of finally beat~ ing the enemy.
While the passage of the Bill through Con~ gress has been irritatingly slow to all those who realize how important a factor in. this present struggle time is, with public opinion strongly behind the Administration in its determination to give Britain all possible aid, there. was little doubt that Congress: would translate into action the very manifest desires of the overwhelming majority of the people fof the United States. If dt was feared that the isolationists would seek to prevent passage of the Bill by means of a filibuster, that fear has now been obliterated, and what ap~ pears to have been the course of action of those opposed to the measure was to Justify themselves in the eyes of their constituent cies,—or possibly important sections of them,—in order to make sure of their future sup= port, It is one of the disadvantages of democracy that vast external issues on which they themselves depend for continued existence can at times be subordinated to domestic politics, but it is a disadvantage which is completely offset by the many ad~ vantages which the totalitarian regimes do not. possess.
It will be noted from the records of the voting on the. various amendments that the Senate did not vote on party Ines, for mem~ bers of both the Democratic and Republican parties registered their suffrages for and against the measure, The fact that in the ultimate result 60 senators polled for the Bill and but 81 against, a ratio which was con fidently expected by expert observers, can be taken as more or less indicative of popular feeling throughout the country, though various polls which have been taken suggest that amongst the masses support for the Bill was even greater. Right on top of the Senate's decision comes a message from President Roosevelt o American farmers to bring satisfaction to the yar granaries are full of stores of food and fibre adequate to meet our own needs, and the needs of our friends in other lands who are now fighting for their existence—fighting in behalf of all democra~ tie forms of Government, fighting against world control by dictatorships."
In a comparatively short space of time the preparations which have been made in the United States to give the greatest ald pos~ sible to Britain, will be nearing full fruition. Already substantial quantities of war material have been going forward to the British Isles and elsewhere for British use, Within the next six months it will reach maximum pro= portions, which not all the endeavours of Germany and Italy in their own Tands and those under German domination can hope in any way to match. If renewed confidence "were required to continue this struggle, which is not the case, the action of the United States Senate would undoubtedly give it, Tt will have one effect which is completely desirable. It is a message to those nations, under the brutal domination of the Nazis, that the struggle. for their salvation will go on and that Great Britain, with the valuable assistance of the people of the United States, will energetically prosecute this war to that victory which means the restoration of their freedom,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.