Where Premier Mossadegh thinks he is leading Iran we have no way of knowing, but we do know that the methods being employed there are such as could get out of hand. Some of the latest actions of the premier amount, as another has said, “to the introduction of government-sponsored terrorism.”

The premier’s regime and terroristic elements to the population have just caused what has been labeled a “subservient rump parliament and a captive Shah” to acquiesce in the pardon and release from prison of the assassin of former Premier Razmara, who sought an amicable oil settlement with Britain and is now being denounced as a traitor for doing so. [Ali Razmara, who opposed oil nationalization, was shot March 7, 1951 by Khalil Tahmassebi] These same elements have dissolved the Iranian Supreme court and placed a new subservient court in its place.

If such moves are to continue only terrorism can follow. Probably Mossadegh believes he can keep things under control, but, when things begin to get out of hand, control of the forces involved is more apt to be lost than retained.

If control is lost, what will Russia do? There are diplomats close to events in Iran who, believe that conditions are worsening to the point where a Russian coup is likely.

There are those who think that the only way to halt the deterioration of Iran’s affairs is to get production of oil under way again. Certainly the lack of oil production has played havoc with Iran’s economy. The situation of today, of course, is being used to the utmost by the terrorist elements—it is the sort of thing that terrorism feeds on.

It is very well to say that the way to halt terrorism is to get oil in production again, but how is that to be done when the government refuses all suggestions to that end?