5 AUGUST 1938, Page 3

At the commencement of Mr. Chamberlain's reign Mr. Churchill definitely

appeared as a friend. He proposed Mr. Chamberlain as leader of the Conservative Party, and his speeches in the House were full of benevolence and help- fulness. Now his attitude appears to have changed, and in recent debates the shafts he has aimed at the Government have been barbed, almost as they were in the days of the Baldwin regime. His entourage at the moment is not large. But, even if he were entirely alone, he would still be a great force in Parliamentary debate. On the various aspects of national defence he has, during the present session, delivered a series of speeches of such sustained brilliance that it would probably be necessary to go back to the time of Gladstone to find a comparable achievement.