Finland's wiry old peasant President, Kyosti Kallio—73 years old and full of sisu (courage)—last week thought up a new scheme to get supplies for his country. To the New York Times's Correspondent Harold Denny he said:
"We are deeply grateful for the help America has extended us with humanitarian materials, but such help must be altered if the Finnish population is not to be massacred. ... If our civilians—our old men and women and children—are to be killed in their houses, as is happening every day in our cities, towns and villages, they will have no need for food and clothing.†
"Why could not all prosperous American cities decide each to take care of one city in Finland—or each one of your 49 States** adopt a Finnish town?"
Object of the adoption would be to provide airplanes and anti-aircraft guns. President Kallio was ready to promise that the planes would not operate beyond Finnish borders or against planes or troops engaged in genuine military operations. Said he: "Every attack in which Finns shoot down Russian planes strengthens Finnish sisu."
Threat
Last week the Moscow radio broadcast a threat : unless the Finns give back the weapons they stole from the Russians in the battle of Suomussalmi, Russia will declare war on Finland.
† Finnish estimates of last fortnight's air raids (worst of the war): localities bombed, 42; hospitals bombed, three; bombs dropped, 2,000; people killed, 18; wounded, 93.
** President Kallio included the District of Columbia.