Khrushchev himself is reported to be concerned by the surge of animosity he has aroused, yet our own nuclear statesmen seem intent on following compulsively in his footsteps. When one powerful nation strives to emulate the success of another, it is only natural. Thus, when the Russians sent up their first sputnik, American chagrin was human enough, and American determination to put American satellites into orbit was perfectly understandable. But to imitate an opponent when he has made the mistake of his life would be a new high in statesmanlike folly.

When East Germans fled to the West by the thousands, paeans of joy rose from the throats of Western publicists. They are less vocal now, when it is the West Berliners who are migrating. The flood is not as great -- only 700 a week according to one apparently conservative account -- but it is symptomatic. West Berlin morale is low and, in age distribution, the situation is unfavorable. Nearly 18 per cent of West Berlin's 2200000 residents are sixty-five or older, only 12.8 per cent are under fifteen.

R. H. S. Crossman, M.P., writing in The Manchester Guardian, states that departures from West Berlin are now running at the rate not of 700, but of 1700 a week, and applications to leave have risen to 1900 a week. The official statistics show that 60 per cent are employed workers or independent professional people. Whole families are moving and removal firms are booked for months ahead. The weekly loss is partly counterbalanced by 500 arrivals each week from West Germany, but the hard truth, says Crossman, is that ``The closing off of East Berlin without interference from the West and with the use only of East German, as distinct from Russian, troops was a major Communist victory, which dealt West Berlin a deadly, possibly a fatal, blow. The gallant half city is dying on its feet.''