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hardly go on without regulation, insists upon the
 
right to arm to the limit - when the majorities of
 
peoples are concentrated in vast cities, inviting
 
air attacks. One of our aircraft firms recently
 
made a deal here for selling, through a German firm,
 
100 up-to-date war planes in Italy, the man coming
 
to me and talking as if no such thing were thought 
 
of. Last evening an eminent German connected with 
 
the old regime said: "Now that old men are twice as
 
numerous as before the war and young men being limited
 
more and more in all the greater countries, we are
 
about to start another war. Think of killing off all
 
the young men."
 
 
This started again the urge of unofficial
 
Germany against Mussolini. I believe two-thirds of
 
the German peple (in spite of army popularity) are
 
now entirely in sympathy with the reported United
 
States oil boycott of Italy - and hopeful that this 
 
would limit Hitler's crazy war activity. Perhaps this
 
is enough; but we cannot overlook the fact that our
 
country has immense moral influence all over the 
 
world. But can anybody convince Congressmen, who
 
always think of their district's advantage, of the
 
real significance of things? We think permanent 
 
propsperity is coming when the machine age needs
 
fewer workers every year. We believe a hundred bil-
 
lion dollars of "watered securities" can be made valid
 
when population is relatively declining, and apt to
 
cease increasing altogether about 1960, when few
 
people are willing to earn their livings in the nor-
 
mal way. Thus war, armaments, trade barriers and 
 
decling populations mean nothing to many govern-
 
ments and less to vast industrial corporations.
 
 
I hope you may be able to arouse our people
 
to the dangers that lie ahead - next year perhaps
 
a decisive year in many parts of the world.
 
 
Sincerely yours,
 
William E. Dodd