15 NOVEMBER 1940

Page 1

BERLIN AND MOSCOW

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A THATEVER the invitation extended to M. Molotoff to visit Berlin may denote, it is quite certainly not an evidence of satisfaction with the military, or indeed the diplo-...

Page 2

Mr. Eden's Rearm

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It is likely to prove invaluable to the Government to have Mr. Eden's first-hand experience gained by his visits to so many theatres of war in the Near and Middle East. In these...

NEWS OF THE WEEK

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M HE sustained failure of the Italian attack on Greece is, of course, primarily a testimony to the courage and morale of the Greek troops and to the signal efficiency of the...

A Free French Victory

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The capture of Libreville, the capital of the French colony of Gabon,,by General de Gaulle's forces has some military, and more political and psychological, importance. Gabon...

The Czecho - Polish Pact The agreement concluded between the Polish Government

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and the provisional Czecho-Slovak Government, both at present domiciled in London, is a docuthent of both immediate and potential importance. It contains two clauses, one...

The Rumanian Earthquake

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One result of the severe earthquake which Rumania ex- perienced on Sunday was an extensive and distressing loss of life; another was extensive and less distressing damage to the...

Page 3

* * Mr. Butler tried to persuade the House of

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Commons to vote £2,500 to the British Association for International Under- standing. This excellent body, closely connected with the dis- tinguished name of Mr. G. M. Young...

Parliament is growing more and more active ; its vitality

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is being restored by events. There have been two personal attacks, a large number of questions, assertions of independent views on minor Bills, legitimate concern about Press...

A short debate on school camps was attended by less

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than a score of members, there being no great personal questions in- volved. There are now thirty-one camps in existence. Until the whole conduct of these new educational...

Ge - :eral Hertzog and the Nationalists Gmeral Hertzog's resignation of the

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party leadership after a stormy meeting of the Re-united Nationalist Party of the Free State at Bloemfontein closes a period of some fourteen months in which he was associated...

Subscription 305. a year to any part of the world

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Postage on this issue: Inland lid., Foreign and Imperial rd., Canada ad.

Is Vt ar Production Behindhand ?

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In asking for patience from those who wonder why we are not yet taking the offensive against the enemy Mr. Churchill reminded them hit Saturday that whilst the Germans have long...

The Week in Parliament

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Our Parliamentary Correspondent writes: It would be diffi- cult to improve on the tribute passed by the Prime Minister to Mr. Neville Chamberlain. Mr. Ramsay MacDonald and Mr....

The Spectator will publish next week a Christmas Literary Number

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in which, while not maintaining the scale of Christmas Numbers of pre-war years, we hope to include special articles by Sir Max Beerbohm, Lord Davil Cecil, Sir Alfred Zimmem and...

Page 4

THE NEW ORDERS

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COW E still unite, we still strive mightily," said President Roosevelt in his Armistice Day speech, "to preserve intact that New Order of the ages founded by the fathers of...

Page 5

A day or two ago I came across a curious

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sentence in a letter written by Mr. Neville Chamberlain to his brother Sir Austen and reproduced in Sir Charles Petrie's life of the latter. It was at the time when Sir Austen...

A SPECTATOR'S NOTEBOOK

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H OW far the average German believes his own newspapers is a question there is no means of answering. It is not u nimportant, because national morale in Germany must depend to...

Malta's astonishing immunity from serious air-raid damage is one of

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the surprises of this war. If anything was generally taken for granted eighteen months ago it was that if Italy declared war against us Malta would inevitably be untenable. Then...

When the total of air-raid deaths in September was returned

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at close on 7,000-6,954, to be precise—there seemed every likelihood that the October figures would show an increase, for not only is there one more day in October than in...

Mr. Joseph Kennedy may or may not be returning to

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Lon- don as American Ambassador, but things have undeniably been made rather difficult for him in both his own country and this by the observations attributed to him by the...

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, I read, "combines the brilliance of Balliol

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with the wisdom of the East." Trinity, Cambridge, where Mr. Nehru was educated, has always specialised in Balliol brilliance.

* * * * Notice in Piccadilly: MEN WORKING OVERHEAD.

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Page 6

THE WAR SURVEYED: THE NEXT STEP

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By STRATEGICUS W E are passing through what may be the most difficult phase of the war. While we were in the early stages we were living from hand to mouth, and the immediate...

Page 7

MR. CHAMBERLAIN

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By WILSON HARRIS EVILLE CHAMBERLAIN has died before the dust of 01 controversy that his Premiership stirred up has begun to settle. He has been the object of bitter criticism,...

Page 8

PEACE BY ECONOMICS

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By BALBUS* M OST people would agree that absolute national sovereignty has become an anachronism, at any rate in overcrowded Europe, and must in some way be restricted if we are...

Page 9

THE CHALLENGE OF LONDON

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By KENNETH LINDSAY, M.P. S IX weeks ago I pleaded in these columns that the London Region should have its own democratic dictator and that the name of Mr. Morrison would...

Page 10

A NATIONAL ATLAS

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By PROF. E. G. R. TAYLOR* H OW many of us have actually handled a Government Blue Book, or read one? The Census of Population, for example, or of Occupations, the Returns of...

Page 11

THE CINEMA

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" Lucky Partners." At the Gaumont. THERE are indications, including indeed an opening title, which suggest that this film is based on Sacha Guitry's Bonne Chance— in itself not...

ART

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The London Group Da so many things,' the London Group (holding its thirty- e ighth exhibition at the Cooling Galleries) shows less daring now t a n in the wicked 'twenties and...

CORNISH ACRES

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Tons is the field that looks to the south: No words come to my mouth To signify my dread Of this field of the dead. This is that field where on a time Hope died in me, Even as...

IMPORTANT NOTICE Readers are again reminded of the necessity of

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ordering "The Spectator" regularly, since newsagents can no longer be supplied on sale-or-return terms.

Page 12

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR [In view of the paper shortage

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it is essential that letters on these pages should be brief. We are anxious not to reduce the number of letters, but unless they are shorter they must be fewer. Writers are...

SIR,—Miss Glynn Grylls' suggestion that Wren's plan for the rebuilding

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of the City should be put into effect is an interesting one. In many respects the plan looks as though it should still work admirably, although the increased number of bridges...

ON SLEEPING IN BED

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Sta,—Every day one hears of fresh amenities to brighten public shelters (tube and other)—canteens, hot drinks, buns, bunks, concerts, libraries, &c. Before long they will be...

LORD REITH'S CHANCE

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Sta,—I read with very great interest and pleasure Mr. Clough Williams-Ellis' article in your issue of October t5th, "Sir John Reith's Chance as Our National Builder." In this...

Page 13

AIR RAID WARDENS' CLAIMS

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Sin,—Lady Violet Bonham Carter's article drawing attention to the claims of Air Raid Wardens in London prompts me to write to you concerning their colleagues in rural areas....

HOME GUARD AND A.R.P.

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Sts,—As a Home Guard volunteer I think I can give the real answer to Lady Violet Bonham Carter's suggestion that the London Home Guard co-operate with the A.R.P. services. It...

THE B.B.C. AND PACIFISM

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Sta,—About a fortnight ago I found out that certain well-known people, whose voices had come to be looked forward to by con- siderable sections of the Radio public who listen to...

SHOULD ROME BE BOMBED?

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Sfit,—I would like to express my disagreement with " Janus " when he talks about Rome. There may be excellent humane and even strategical reasons why we should not bomb Rome,...

SIR,—In connexion with the replanning of London and other cities

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to be done by Lord Reith, Mr. George -Cadbury, in your issue of October 25th, states that public ownership of the land is the only real solution for securing both a proper...

Page 14

COUNTRY LIFE

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Country Market The war has robbed many country markets, especially i n the south, of their clap-trap. The sight of a country labourer buying a suit of reach-me-downs from...

FROM WARSAW TO DUNKIRK

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Sta,—Alas, I have to admit that in trying not to make the mistake of calling General Douhet "French," I did that very thing. He was an Italian ; but when I said this in a public...

GREAT DOG OF WEIMAR

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Sut,—In his efforts to flog the absurdities of spiritualism, Mr. Graham Greene himself falls into absurdities of more dangerous application. Arnold, contrasting the "tone of the...

Country Canteen To civilian town-dwellers it may seem an exaggeration

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to say that the rural canteen is, to the average soldier billeted in the country, about the most important thing in life. Thousands of soldiers are now quartered at out-lying...

The Local Nursery Nurserymen generally are not finding times easy.

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The small local nursery, with a trade at the mercy of a fluctuating popu- lation, faces the winter with hard prospects. How many other- wise keen gardeners, who spend hours over...

Rural Salvage The farce of country salvage schemes goes on.

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Collections of paper are made once in two or three months, if at all; collections of small scrap iron and glass only when appeal upon appeal has been made; bones lie mouldering...

Page 16

Pacifism Examined

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The Case against Pacifism. By John Lewis. (Allen and TJnwin. ss.) A C.RITIC.AL examination of the arguments for the pacifist position was long overdue, and Mr. Lewis is to be...

Books of the Day

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Genius and Greatness IF one is asked who is the greatest living novelist—and I find that the passion for hierarchies is such that people are always asking the question—it is...

Page 18

The Church in the World

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The Betrayal of Christ by the Churches. By J. Middleton Murry. (Andrew Dakers. is.) THIS book contains several theses twisted together without any genuine connexion The...

Page 20

. Fiction

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Ask Me Tomorrow comes rather daringly, with its evocation of a period most of us knew, lived through and thought little of, but which—since it was our youth—we still hold in...

Looking Backward

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Rhymed Ruminations. By Siegfried Sassoon. (Faber and Faber. 5s. ) A RULE-OF-THUMB survey of Mr. Sassoon's work would show that his literary personality has two sources of...

Page 22

THIS is another of Mr. Newman's amiable travelogues, true descen-

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dants of that minor Edwardian classic, Round the World on a Wheel. Mr. Newman travels by bicycle for five shillings a day, usually choosing for his excursions countries under...

Shorter Notices

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THIS twopence-coloured biography skims brightly over the sur- face of Knox's life. There is plenty of chat about Mistress Elizabeth and Mistress Anne, about dances at Holyrood...

FINANCE AND INVESTMENT

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By CUSTOS INVESTMENT markets are in an interesting phase. For the moment the emphasis has shifted fro:n gilt-edged to equities, not because of any widespread inflation fears...

Page 23

THE SPECTATOR" CROSSWORD No. 88

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1,4 prize of a Book Token for one guinea will be given to the sender of the first con-act solution of this week's crossword puzzle to be ,pmed. Envelopes should be marked with...

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No. 86 PLEASE NOTE ALTERATIONS IN REGULATIONS

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The winner of Crossword No. 86 is Mrs. George H. Rush- brooke, to, The Manor, Willenhall.