The opposition of the War Department to the Palestine resolution is not due to the protests which the Arab states have sent to the U.S. Government, it was reliably Learned here today.
It was revealed that Secretary of War Henry L. Stinson addressed his letter on the resolution to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee exactly a month ago, on February 7, long before it became known that the Arab governments intend to make representations to the United States, Zionist leaders were informed of this letter on February 17.
Similarly, it was learned here today that General George C. Mershall, Chief of Staff of the Army, who testified before a closed session of the Senate Foreign Relations Comittee with regard to the resolution, appeared there on February 23, prior to any protests by the Arab countries.
Acting Secretary of Stats Edsard L. Stettinius today revealed that Wallses Marray, deputy director of the Near Eastern Division of the State Department, who has the reputation of being anti-Zionist, will be one of the State Department officials to accompany him to London for the Anglo-American parley there at which the problem of Palestine is expected to come up for discussion.
ARAB PROTESTS MUST BE RESISTED, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES IS TOLD
On the floor of the House of Representatives today, Congressman Ranulf Compton, co-sponsor of the Palestine resolution, charged that the War Department wishes to appease the Arabs “even though such appeasement presents a challenge to our national honor.”
“I want to emphasize,” Compton said, “that every member has been put under warning that he may not be given an opportunity for open debate on repudiation of an international treaty which involves national honor because a few healthy Arabs under British domination in Palestine, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Egypt have indicated their displeasure with the Palestine resolution now pending before this Congress.
“I think it fair to ask who inspires this pressure for appeasement from our war leaders? Presumptuous dictation from foreign legislators should be resisted and resisted unanimously. This country is honor-bound by its own signed convent to prevent the British from closing Palestine to the suffering Jews in Europe as they now plan on March 31. I urge you to inform yourself of this by reading the convention we signed with Great Britain in 1935. We can be a good neighbor and a staunch ally without submitting to dictation from 10 Downing Street.”
(The Zionist Emergency Council today announced that a mass-meeting will be held in the Madison Square Gorden in New York on March 21 for the purpose of rallying support for the abrogation of the Palestine White Paper, which is slated to go into affect the end of this month, for free Jewish immigration into Palestine and for establishment of a Jewish Commonwealth there. Frincipel speakers will be Senators Wagner, Taft and Herkley.)
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