Second Quarter 1990 • Number 67

INTERNATIONAL CHURCHILL SOCIETIES • AUSTRALIA • CANADA • NEW ZEALAND • UK • USATHE RT. HON. SIR WINSTON SPENCER CHURCHILL SOCIETY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

NO. 67 • SECOND QUARTER 1990 • ISSN 0882-3715

Published quarterly by The International Churchill Societies and The Rt. Hon. Sir Winston Spencer Churchill Society of B.C.

ARTICLES

"His Truth Goes Marching On" 8Reflections on the Fiftieth Anniversary of DunkirkLondon Dinner of ICS United Kingdomby David Porter and Richard Langworth

Churchill and Lloyd's 12An Enduring Relationship, Fondly Rememberedby David Boler

English-Speaking Agenda: Britain and Europe 16Country Without A Homeby Anthony Lejeune

Churchill Tour V: Australia '91 18Once in your life you deserve a trip you'll never forget

Winston Churchill and the Navy 20Flaws and All, One of the Greatest Leadersby Derek Lukin Johnston

Great Contemporaries: Sir William Stephenson 24"This One is Dear to My Heart"by Ron Cynewulf Robbins

DEPARTMENTS ~

Editorial/3 International Datelines/4 Churchill in Stamps/14 BookReviews/26 New Book Service/31 Trivia/32 Reviewing Churchill/32Woods Corner/33 Despatch Box/35 Immortal Words/40"ACTION THIS DAY" is omitted for reasons of space. It will return as adouble entry in the next issue.

COVER

Finest Hour celebrates publication by ICS of Douglas Russell's new book,"The Orders, Decorations and Medals of Sir Winston Churchill," withthe sash badge (Lesser George) and breast star of Churchill's highesthonor, the Most Noble Order of the Garter.

FINEST HOUR

Editor: Richard M. Langworth (tel. 603-746-4433 days)Post Office Box 385, Contoocook, New Hampshire 03229 USA

Senior Editors: John G. Plumpton (tel. 416-497-5349 eves)130 Collingsbrook Blvd, Agincourt, Ontario, Canada M1W 1M7

H. Ashley Redburn, OBE (tel. 0705 479575)7 Auriol Dr., Bedhampton, Hampshire PO9 3LR, England

Cuttings Editor: John Frost (tel. 081-440-3159)8 Monks Ave, New Barnet, Herts., EN5 1D8, England

Contributors:George Richard, 7 Channel Hwy, Taroona, Tasmania, Australia 7006Stanley E. Smith, 9 Beech Drive, Littleton, MA 01460 USADerek L. Johnston, Box 33859 Stn D, Vancouver, BC, Canada V6J 4L6

Produced by Dragonwyck Publishing Inc.

THE INTERNATIONAL CHURCHILL SOCIETIES

Founded in 1968, the Society consists of three independent, not-for-profit charitable organisations in Canada, the United Kingdom and theUnited States, plus branch offices in Australia and New Zealand, whichwork together to promote interest in and education on the life, times,thought and work of Sir Winston Churchill, and to preserve his memory.The independent Societies are certified charities under the separate lawsof Canada, the UK and USA, and are affiliated with similar organisa-tions such as the Winston S. Churchill Societies of Western Canada.Finest Hour is provided free to Members or Friends of ICS, which offersseveral levels of support in various currencies. Membership applicationsand changes of address should be sent to the National Offices listed op-posite. Editorial correspondence: PO Box 385, Contoocook, NH 03229USA, fax (603) 746-4260, telephone 746-4433. Permission to mail at non-profit rates in the United States granted by the US Postal Service. Pro-duced by Dragonwyck Publishing Inc. Copyright © 1990. All rightsreserved.

SIR WINSTON SPENCER CHURCHILL SOCIETY

Founded in 1964, the Society works to ensure that Sir Winston's idealsand achievements are never forgotten by succeeding generations. Allmembers of the B.C. Branch are automatic ICS members, while ICSmembership is optional to members of the Edmonton and CalgaryBranches. Activities include banquets for outstanding people connectedwith aspects of Sir Winston's career; public speaking and debating com-petitions for High School students, scholarships in Honours History, andother activities, including scholarships for study at Churchill College,Cambridge. Write: 2756 Pilot Dr., Port Coquitlam, BC V3C 2T4.

PATRON OF THE SOCIETIES

The Lady Soames, DBE

ICS HONORARY MEMBERS

The Marquess of BathWinston S. Churchill, MPMartin Gilbert, CBEGrace Hamblin, OBERobert Hardy, CBEPamela C. HarrimanJames Calhoun HumesMary Coyne Jackman, BA,

YousufKarsh, OCThe Duke of Marlborough, DL, JP

Sir John Martin, KCMG, CB, CVOAnthony Montague Browne, CBE, DFC

The Lady Soames, DBEWendy Russell Reves

Hon. Caspar W. Weinberger, GBED.Litt.S.

In Memoriam:The Baroness Clementine Spencer-Churchill of Chartwell, 1977

Randolph S. Churchill, 1968 Harold Macmillan, Lord Stockton, 1986The Earl Mountbatten of Burma, 1979 W. Averell Harriman, 1986Dalton Newfield, 1982 The Lord Soames, 1987Oscar Nemon, 1985 Sir John Colville, 1987

INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL OF CHURCHILL SOCIETIES

Australia: Peter M. JenkinsCanada: George E. Temple, Ronald W. Downey, Celwyn P. Ball,

Murray W. Milne, Frank Smyth, John G. Plumptonhlew Zealand: R. Barry Collins

United Kingdom: Geoffrey J. Wheeler, Richard G. G. Haslam-HopwoodDavid Merritt

United States: Merry N. Alberigi, Derek Brownleader, William C. Ives,Wallace H. Johnson, George A. Lewis, Richard H. Knight, Jr.,

David A. Sampson

D I R E C T O R Y

INTERNATIONAL COUNCILWallace H. Johnson, Chairman Pro-Tern

1650 Farnam St., Omaha, NE 68102 USATelephone (402) 346-6000 • Fax (402) 346-1148

NATIONAL SOCIETY SECRETARIESAustralia: Peter M. Jenkins, (03) 700-1277

8 Regnans Av., Endeavour Hills, Vic. 3802

Canada: Celwyn P. Ball, (506) 387-73471079 Coverdale Rd RR2, Moncton, NB E1C 8J6

New Zealand: R. Barry Collins5 Hexham Street, Warkworth

UK: David Merritt (0342) 32775424 The Dell, E. Grinstead, W.Sx. RH19 3XP

United States: Derek Brownleader, (504) 292-33131847 Stonewood Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70816

CHURCHILL SOCIETY OF B.C.Frank Smyth, President

2756 Pilot DrivePort Coquitlam, BC, Canada V3C 2T4

ICS CHAPTERSMerry Alberigi, Coordinator

21 Bahama Reef, Novato CA 94949 USATelephone (415) 883-9076

Alaska: James W. Muller1518 Airport Hts Dr., Anchorage AK 99508

Arizona: Marianne Almquist2423 E. Marshall Ave., Phoenix AZ 85016

California: Merry Alberigi21 Bahama Reef, Novato CA 94949

Chicago: William C. Ives8300 Sears Tower, Chicago IL 60606

Illinois: Amb. Paul H. Robinson Jr.135 S. LaSalle St., Chicago, IL 60603

Nashville: Richard H. Knight, Jr.167 Charleston Park, Nashville, TN 37205

New Brunswick: Celwyn P. Ball1079 Coverdale Rd RR2, Moncton, NB E1C 8J6

New Mexico: Cdr. Larry M. Kryske, USN3416 La Sala del Este NE, Albuquerque, NM 87111

New York City: Alfred J. Lurie450 E. 63rd St, Apt 8A, New York, NY 10021

Northern New England: Barbara LangworthRt 1, Box 682, Hopkinton, NH 03229

North Texas: Jean Smalling10307 Bernardin, Dallas, TX 75243

Toronto: The Other Club. Murray Milne33 Weldrick Rd., E., Ph #9

Richmond Hill, Ontario L4C 8W4

SPECIAL OFFICERSBibliography: Ronald I. Cohen

4755 Grosvenor, Montreal PQ Canada H3W 2L9

Commemorative Covers: Dave Marcus221 Pewter La, Silver Spring, MD 20904 USA

ICS Stores: Sue Ellen Truax25 Easton La, Chagrin Falls, OH 44022 USA

NO HANDBOOK SUPPLEMENT THIS ISSUEWE HAVE NOT LEFT OUT your handbook supplement! (We refer to the buffpaper insert supplied with most issues, presently involving the new Red-burn Bibliography of works about Churchill.) The work of preparing twonew publications (see below) precluded the usual supplement.

TWO MORE "TARGET '90" GOALS REALIZEDBy now, Friends of the Societies (an exotic new term for what we used

to call members!) should have received the Proceedings of the ChurchillSocieties 1988-1989, containing papers from the Bretton Woods ChurchillSymposium (Professors, Schoenfeld, Wilson, Callahan and Wert) andspeeches to ICS or the Sir Winston S. Churchill Society by AlistairCooke, Lord Blake, Enoch Powell, Lady Soames, Maurice Ashley andMartin Gilbert. This is double the size of the last Proceedings and pub-lished on behalf of all the independent Churchill Societies and the SirWinston S. Churchill Society of Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver,Canada.

"Target '90" donations from Australia, Canada and the United Statesalso financed Douglas Russell's new book, The Orders, Decorations andMedals of Sir Winston Churchill, illustrating all thirty-seven and many infull color, which was published in mid-August. Members of thoseSocieties will receive copies automatically. ICS United Kingdom did nottake part in this fund appeal but copies are available to UK members atUS $15 surface post or US $20 airmail. (ICS/UK has been offered copiesat cost for any purpose they require, and we have also donated supplies toChartwell and the Churchill Memorial in Fulton, Missouri.)

Douglas Russell's 104-page work is the most thorough description ofthe circumstances, dates and wording of Sir Winston's orders, decora-tions and medals — the product of massive research with embassies andmedallic archives from Washington to Kathmandu. We are extremelygrateful to Doug for his effort, and to all those who supported "Target'90," who enabled us to publish this outstanding book.

Still to come: a final "Target '90" publication, the Sherlock Holmespastiche The Boer Conspiracy, by John Woods. Not part of "Target '90,"but financed and printed by ICS/Canada, is the 1991 ChurchillCalendar, recalling the events of 1941 fifty years later.

REORGANIZING THE SEPARATE SOCIETIESThanks to rapid growth over the past several years, ICS has blossomed

into four separate Societies in the United States, United Kingdom,Canada and Australia, each with its own officers, the first three registeredunder the charitable association laws of their respective countries, withseparate trustees and committees. Finest Hour, the Churchill Handbookand the Proceedings remain joint publications, financed proportionally,and the International Churchill Conference will be rotated annuallyamong the several Societies. All other aspects, including local and na-tional meetings, are left to the individual Societies and their officers. Theposition of international executive director (mine!) has been abolished.

To make decisions on joint publications and Conferences, the old in-ternational board of directors has given way to a "Council of ChurchillSocieties," in which each Society is represented in approximate propor-tion to its membership. This includes the independent Sir Winston S.Churchill Society of Vancouver, all of whose members are automaticmembers of ICS/Canada. In addition, we have invited representatives ofthe Edmonton and Calgary branches of the SWSCS, many of whosemembers belong individually to ICS/Canada, to participate in theminutes and discussions of the Council. Celwyn P. Ball of Canada hasbeen nominated as chairman of the Council.

- RICHARD M. LANGWORTH, EDITOR

INTERNA TIONAL DA TELINESPARAPHRASE OF THE DAY

If Saddam Hussein invaded Hell, wemust at least make a favorable referenceto the Devil.

ERRATAThe artwork on the cover of Finest

Hour no. 64 (Third Quarter 1989) isbased on a photograph of Churchill inthe garden at Chartwell, not No. Ten.

NO. 10 CELEBRATES MAY 10LONDON, MAY 9TH - Prime MinisterMargaret Thatcher held a moving dinnerfor surviving members of the ChurchillCoalition, and the Churchill family, onthe eve of the fiftieth anniversary of SirWinston's first premiership — a movingand memorable event for all.

Winston S. Churchill, MP, grandsonof Sir Winston, recalled for the gather-ing an incident related by his mother,Pamela Churchill Harriman (who wasalso in attendance), after the fall ofFrance. " 'If the Huns come, I am rely-ing on each of you to take at least oneGerman with you,' " his grandsonrelated. " 'But Papa,' replied mymother, 'I do not have a gun, and Iwould not know how to use one.'

" 'My dear,' rejoined the primeminister, seizing a knife from the tableand holding it high above his head,'You can use a carving knife.' "

NEW ISSUES:MARSHALL ISLANDSMAJURO, MARSHALL IS., MAY 10TH — O n e

country, anyway, remembered philateli-cally the 50th Anniversary of Chur-chill's first premiership. The MarshallIslands have issued a colorful 45c stampwhich incidentally also depicts Clemen-tine Churchill (from a WW2 photo atNumber Ten), who is scarce on stamps.Official first day covers are availablefor US $5.95 postpaid from Ross Wet-reich, PO Box 1300, Valley Stream NY11582 USA. Interestingly, the painting

is cropped differently on the cover andthe stamp, each showing portions of theoriginal painting not on the other. Anote on Churchill's Masonic career(brief) is rubber-stamped to the covers,apparently by Wetreich.

WSC FEEDING ROTA, W W 2

SHIPWRECKEDSELSEY, SUSSEX, UK, APRIL IST - OliverGraham-Jones, the vet who cared forSir Winston's pet lion Rota, was thrownfrom his bed when a 300-ton freightercrashed through the sea wall in front ofhis bungalow and almost ended up in hisbedroom. "Dad is so shocked he's goneaway to recover," said his son.

It was Graham-Jones, now 71, whohad the unenviable task of telling Chur-chill of the need to put down Rota be-cause of the lion's infirmity. "Churchillwas in the bath and it took some time toconvince him the lion should be humanelydestroyed," he recalls. Finally WSCsank back into his tub: "Then let himdie a noble beast's death," he said.

Editor's note: Rota acquired notorietyby being kept in a back garden in Pin-ner, Middlesex. His owner presentedhim to WSC; the London Zoo handledhousing.

DAVID IRVING DEFENDS WSC!LONDON, APRIL 12TH - Muckrakingbiographer David Irving (Churchill'sWar, FH 57, page 5) appears in theunlikely role of a Churchill defender,writing the Daily Telegraph to correct areporter on Churchill's wartime popu-larity: "To the standard Gallup ques-tion, 'In general, do you approve ordisapprove of Mr. Churchill as PrimeMinister?,' 91 percent said yes afterMontgomery's victory at El Alamein(News Chronicle, 27Nov42). Pre-viously, his popularity had touched 89

percent in October 1940 . . . Even at itslowest point — the fall of Tobruk —Churchill's popularity rating was still68 percent."

Two observations: (1) We have seenthe Berlin Wall torn down; now DavidIrving writes letters supporting Chur-chill's popularity — what next? (2) Howinteresting that Churchill, who toldpeople what he thought they ought toknow, equalled or exceeded in popu-larity, during a war, more recentpoliticians who court the polls by tellingpeople what they think they want tohear.

- R M L

FREEDOM TO SNEERLONDON, APRIL 29TH - Here comesanother: Clive Pointing, the ex-civilservant tried under the Official SecretsAct in 1985, has written a sour newbook belittling Churchill's wartime roleduring the Second World War and deni-grating the heroes of the Battle ofBritain (Myth and Reality, HamishHamilton, £16). Even if some of hisindividual claims and charges are true,Pointing's sneering, gloating, anti-British tone will incense millions. Heseems to forget that it was only the im-mense courage and sacrifices of ourforefathers fifty years ago that pre-served his freedom to write a book likethis.

- GRAHAM LORD, SUNDAY EXPRESS

Note: Anent the subject of hindsightsneering, see David Porter's speech tothe ICS/UK 2nd June meeting on page11. -Ed.

BBC BARES ALLLONDON, AUGUST 1989 - A documentary,"The Conspiracy of Silence," aired byBBC Radio a year ago, says the BBCdeliberately misled the public during the1939-45 war by favoring Chamberlain'sappeasement policy and censoringChurchill's criticisms. Denys Blakeway,who made the documentary, said theBBC did not respect its principle of in-dependence as early as 1933. LordReith (first BBC director who cordiallyhated WSC), despite publicly defendingthe BBC's independence, suppressedprograms hostile to Hitler, or to theGovernment's foreign policy.

CONTRACT COPY FOUNDTORONTO, JUNE 21ST - A member of theICS has acquired the typed 1900 con-tract governing terms of Winston Chur-chill's lecture tour of North America,

signed by Churchill and Stuart Houston,representing lecture agent James B.Pond (WSC: "a vulgar yankee im-pressario") on 31 December 1900. "Itappears to be a file or extra copy, prob-ably from the office of the lawyersBlake, Lash and Cassels," writes theowner. "Whether or not there was afully executed copy I don't know.Perhaps James Pond never signed — heappears to have been a fast mover!''

The contract committed Churchill toappear wherever Pond booked him.WSC complained to his mother that heoften played to half-empty houses andwas sometimes even hired out to privateparties where he had to perform, "like aconjurer." Still, either party could "ter-minate this agreement at will," andWinston did not terminate it; he cameback to England with a nest egg of£10,000, which was almost enough toretire on in those days. As it happens hedecided not to retire . . .

"IRON CURTAIN" ORIGINSLONDON, APRIL 2IST - Sculptress EdwinaSandys, granddaughter of Sir Winston,is sculpting a chunk of the former BerlinWall into a monument to freedom,which will be erected at the ChurchillMemorial, Fulton, Missouri. This hasgiven rise to speculation of whooriginated Churchill's famous term inhis 1946 Fulton Speech. The Mailcredits Churchill, but others havepointed out that Nazi propagandist JosefGoebbels had used it c.1942 to predictwhat would happen if the Soviets won— for once we can't argue with HerrGoebbels.

In fact, the earliest use of "Iron Cur-tain" was in the 1920s, by two ladyauthors writing about their tour ofBolshevik Russia, according to a sourcewhich we remember, but cannot ref-erence specifically. Can anyone help?

WINSTON TIES KINNOCK,BEATS EUROPEANCOMMUNITY 2-1BRITAIN, APRIL IOTH - In a survey of 700British school children, 30% knew whoWinston Churchill was, compared toonly 17% for the European EconomicCommunity (see "Country Without aHome" in this issue). Churchill'srecognition factor equalled that ofLabour party leader Neil Kinnock andwas two-thirds that of Mikhail Gor-bachev. But some students confusedWSC with a character of the same firstname from "Ghostbusters," while

Visited by ICS in 1983, 1985 and

others thought he was "the man whofound that the earth was round." Toprecognitions went to rock singer KylieMonogue (98%) and the term "FastForward" (91%) — which says a lotmore about the quality of moderneducation than it does Churchill.

LULLENDEN MISREPRESENTEDEAST GRINSTEAD, SUSSEX, UK, MAY 15TH -

Newspaper property columns andCountry Life are full of adverts for andarticles about Lullenden, the part-Elizabethan Manor House owned by theChurchills from 1917 to 1919, being of-fered by Savills for £2 million. Unfor-tunately, the reports have extendedWSC's ownership to 1922, apparentlythrough an error in an early issue ofFinest Hour\ (We blush, briefly.) Chur-chill sold Lullenden to his friend Gen.Sir Ian Hamilton in 1919. LullendenManor includes a Grade II half-timbered Tudor manor house, a con-verted barn residence, staff cottage,pool, garages and outbuildings plus 100acres with views over the AshdownForest.

Among the correct facts: Lullenden iscloser to Lingfield than East Grinstead;Prime Minister Lloyd George, whosecountry house Danny Park was nearbyat Hassocks, was a frequent visitor;Harold Macmillan's estate, Birch Grove,is also nearby; a mature copper beech inthe garden was planted in 1918 by Chur-chill and can be seen as a sapling inthree paintings he made of Lullendenwhich are now at Chartwell; Hamiltonsold the house in 1929; it was bought in1946 by Major Idesbald Floor, a much-decorated member of the Belgian Re-sistance, whose family has occupied itever since.

Articles mention Lady Churchill'shappiness with Lullenden (much more

1989, Lullenden dates to Tudor times.

than Chartwell) and her isolation thereduring the war (ponycart transportonly), but are silent — as is every othersource we've seen — on just why sheand Winston sold it.

Readers Please Note: Lullenden wasfeatured in a 1927 issue of Town andCountry. We will gladly cover the costof that issue, or the postage to borrowit, so that we may reprint the article. Wedo not know the month. Can readershelp?

SINATRA BOMBS ATMONTE CARLOLONDON — Frank Sinatra's biggesthumiliation was when he introducedhimself to Churchill and WSC didn'tknow who he was, said Leo Fuchs,producer of numerous films (in a15-year-old cutting recently supplied byJohn Frost.) Sinatra and Fuchs wereseated in the Casino bar near Churchilland his bodyguard (Det. Sgt. EdmundMurray) when Sinatra told Fuchs, "I 'mgoing to do something I've alwayswanted to do — shake Churchill'shand."

Sinatra strutted over to Churchill'stable, stuck out his hand and said,"Good evening, sir, my name is FrankSinatra." Churchill gave Frank a per-plexed look and Murray repeated whathe had said. "Then the Prime Ministersaid, 'Oh, how are you, son? Are youwinning?' Churchill didn't show a signof recognition, and Frank was crest-fallen. He said, 'Uh, yes sir — areyou?' Churchill grunted something andFrank returned to the bar." (This eventwas corroborated in Sgt. Murray's re-cent book, / Was Churchill's Body-guard.)

Sir Winston, though hospitabletoward his fans, nevertheless insisted ondoing it his way . . .

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NOSE DOWN IF YOU AREA CHARTWELL BERRYLONDON, 1954 - A West End restaura-teur, complimented on his strawberries,said they were among the best in thecountry and came from Chartwell.Churchill sent up a limited crop for salethrough various Covent Garden mer-chants, who were particular about howthe berries are packed. Early in theseason: noses down. Later in theseason: flat, noses up. That is thought toprevent bruising. But Sir Winston wasalso particular. From his garden camethe edict: Chartwell strawberries will bepacked noses down throughout theseason! And noses down they came.

- SUNDAY EXPRESS COURTESY JOHN FROST

SIR WINSTON HESELTINE?LONDON - Michael Heseltine, out-of-favour Tory MP sometimes mooted asthe PM's eventual successor "hasburdened himself with a number ofChurchill mannerisms," says a gossipcolumn in the Evening Standard. "Theparallel is not ideal. While Churchillwarned the Government about Germanaspirations, arguably the most impor-tant piece of political prescience thiscentury, Mr. Heseltine walked out of aTory Cabinet in a quickly-forgotten rowabout helicopters.

"Yet it is clear that Mr. Heseltinedoes see himself as the reincarnation ofChurchill. He has taken to speaking in alow, measured, apocalyptic drawl. Hehas shorn his hair and affects half-moonglasses. [He talks about] how Winstonhad come back to lead his party. [SeeFH 43, back cover, for Churchill Ad-

MICHAEL HESELTINE, MP

miralty furniture installed in Heseltine'soffice when he was Minister ofDefence.]

"Will Mr. Heseltine as Churchillwash?, "asks "Mr. Pepys" of the news-paper. "Perhaps it will. But a high-placed Tory cynic says: 'Not Winston.Michael playing Robert Hardy playingWinston.' "

WINKLE UP!HASTINGS, SUSSEX, UK - Sir Winston andLord Montgomery were members of theHastings Winkle Club, an exclusivemen-only charity whose badge ofmembership is a replica winkle shell. If,on the command, "Winkle Up!," anymember fails to whip out his winkle, hemust shell out a "fine" which goes tocharity. Prince Philip is a longtimemember — but now a winkle has beenbestowed on Kelvin MacKenzie, editorof a tabloid, The Sun, which hasengendered very long looks indeed fromthe Establishment. Club president JohnBurton says, "Kelvin only has a wax-filled winkle. One day he may get a goldone like the Duke [and Churchill]." Wesay, not bloomin' likely.

AND IF THAT'S NOT ENOUGH. . .LONDON - Get a haircut from SirWinston's barber? Gordon Chapman,barber to WSC, Prince Philip, PrinceCharles, Montgomery, Bernard Levin,etc., was made redundant last year bythe Mayfair firm of Truefitt & Hill. Soshocked were clients such as Lt.-Gen.Sir Steuart Pringle that they havethreatened no longer to patronizeTruefitt's. They won't have to, sinceMr. Chapman has set up his own gentle-man's hairdressing establishment, nowsaid to be "the smartest in London."(Phew — that was close!) WSC's wordsto his barber when asked how he wantedhis hair cut: "A man of my limitedresources can't be choosy."

VANCOUVER SOCIETYVANCOUVER, B.C., MARCH - As I began mysecond year as president of the SirWinston S. Churchill Society, B.C.Branch, I look back at an eventful year.We had a most enjoyable visit by LadySoames, and although our banquetwasn't as well attended as we wouldhave liked, what we lacked in quantitywe made up for in quality. Later in theyear we had a visit from and talk byElizabeth Nel {Mr. Churchill's Secre-tary, 1958), who was most interestingand a delightful lady. Then, at our An-nual General Meeting, British ConsulGeneral Brian Watkins gave an ex-cellent talk on Churchill as Statesmanand Diplomat.

Important developments occurred atthe AGM luncheon, with overwhelmingapproval of two resolutions: (1) Tolower membership age to 17 years,enabling some of the young debaters tojoin (approved 55-1); (2) That any per-son (including ladies) may now becomemembers of the B.C. Chapter (approved54-2). In the last few weeks we haveenrolled seven new members, three ofthem women; it is my hope to enroll 100new members this year.

To accomplish this we plan radio andTV interviews, articles in professionaland association publications, and I amgiving the first of what I hope will bemany talks to civic groups, commencingwith a Businessmen's Breakfast. We arealso planning presentations to VeteransOrganizations, Monarchists Leagues,and seminars for teachers of history andEnglish. I have recently been appointedto our Library Board and have arrangedfor a display in the libraries in this areaand others.

- FRANK SMYTH, PRESIDENT SWSCS/BC

ALASKA CHAPTERANCHORAGE, MAY IOTH - A dinner washeld at the Hotel Captain Cook to installthe ' 'Farthest North and Farthest West''Chapter of ICS United States. Lookingout over Cook Inlet and the ChugachMountains as the long Alaskan eveningfell, twenty-two Churchillophiles en-joyed beef and Yorkshire pudding onthe fiftieth anniversary of the nightChurchill became Prime Minister.

Will Jacobs, professor of politicalscience and history at the University ofAlaska, Anchorage, delivered an ad-dress, "From the Admiralty to Down-ing Street," recalling the events whichled to the resignation of Neville Chamber-lain. Attorney Walter Featherly de-livered Churchill's "Blood, Toil,Tears and Sweat" speech of 13th May1940, and Churchill's own rendition of"Be Ye Men of Valour" (19th May)was played. James Muller, professor ofpolitical science, gave a talk entitled"The Lion Roars," considering theroots of Churchill's oratory. (Talks byProfessors Jacobs and Muller will bepublished in FH or the next Proceedings-Ed.)

Each guest signed a copy of thedinner program, which was sent to ourPatron, Lady Soames. Half a dozen newmembers were enrolled includingWalter Featherly, Craig Goodrich, LaryHoule, Michael Paden, Paul Ubl, andDonald F. Behrend. Dr. Behrend,Chancellor of the University of Alaska,Anchorage, won the door prize: a cigarof Churchillian proportions which, witha snifter of brandy, had graced theempty place at the table. -JM

NORTH TEXAS CHAPTERDALLAS, AUGUST 8TH - The Chapter con-vened at the Farmer's Branch Libraryfor a tea and a talk by chairman DavidSampson, whose comments and slidescovered the Sampsons' recent trip toSouth Africa. They visited major citiesand tribal areas, traveled on the famousBlue Train, experienced a camping-safari through Kruger National Park(encountering not-so-friendly elephantsand prowling lions). Referring to Chur-chill's London to Lady smith ViaPretoria, David spoke of Churchill'sthoughts on the Boer War, his captureand subsequent escape.

At San Francisco: Brigadier Ingall (1),Malcolm Witter-Elaine Oldham-Matt Don-nelly-Shirley Graves; Danny Mander (r).

At the first Churchill Society meeting in Alaska: Craig Goodrich with chairman Jim Muller, left;Professor Will Jacobs ("From the Admiralty to Downing Street") with Mrs. George Mohr.

The Sampsons interviewed peoplefrom all walks of life in order to betterunderstand the present political prob-lems. The talk elicited many interestingquestions from the audience, andknowledgeable responses from Mr.Sampson. Later, members pored overtwo tables of Churchill Memorabiliaprovided by members, and four newmembers joined.

If you live in the Dallas-Ft. Wortharea and wish to join the North TexasChapter, please contact Jean Smalling,10307 Bernardin, Dallas TX 75243, tel.(214)235-8511. -JS.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIASAN FRANCISCO, MARCH IOTH - The non-commissioned officers club of the SanFrancisco Presidio was an apt settingfor a meeting attended by 65 membersand friends of the Society. Surroundedby Churchill's books, photographs andpaintings, we enjoyed a three-courselunch and reviewed plans for the inter-national Churchill conference August17th-20th. Representatives fromBritish-American and CommonwealthSocieties in the Bay Area joined ICS forthe day, sharing information on theirgoals and activities.

We had the pleasure of welcomingDanny Mander, director of the BritishAmerican Club of Northern California.While working security with the BritishArmy in 1942-43, he was responsiblefor Churchill's safety during theTeheran and Moscow conferences. Alsoattending was Brigadier Francis H.B.Ingall, founder and president of theQueen's Club, who signed copies of hisbook, Last of the Bengal Landers.

SEND NEWS OF EVENTS. . . to the editor, please. Finest Hourwishes to cover all local events spon-sored by ICS or the SWSCS. One ortwo good photos (no slides please), cap-tioned to identify all people are alsowelcome, and will be returned.

BRITISH AIRWAYSBURBERRY'S

ALFRED DUNHILLHORNBLOWER DINING YACHTS

ROBERT MONDAVI WINERYSTANFORD COURT HOTEL

The International Churchill Societywishes to acknowledge the sponsors ofthe 1990 International Churchill Con-ference in San Francisco. Theirgenerous contributions in support of theSociety are deeply appreciated. •

His Truth Goes Marching On"Reflections on the Fiftieth Anniversary of Dunkirk

London Dinner, I.C.S. of the United KingdomThe House of Commons, 2 June 1990

BY DAVID PORTER & RICHARD LANGWORTH

ADDRESS BY DAVID J. PORTER, CHAIRMAN OFTHE INTERNATIONAL CHURCHILL SOCIETY/U.K.

AT THE HOUSE OF COMMONS DINNER,LONDON, 2 JUNE 1990

I now know what it is to give a maiden speech in the Houseof Commons. If I had followed my initial inclinations andtaken up a political career, I wonder whether I would everhave achieved the position in which I am placed this evening.However, whereas in the Chamber my speech would betotally controversial, this evening's is the exact opposite, atleast at the outset, because it is my pleasant task to proposethe toast to our guests.

The Lady Soames D.B.E., daughter of Sir Winston Chur-chill, has been a tower of strength to the International Chur-chill Society, both as a Patron and a Trustee, and I am in-debted personally to her for her support and encouragementin our revitalisation of ICS in the United Kingdom.

Dame Vera Lynn D.B.E. holds a place in the hearts of somany of us, particularly those who have heard her wartimerecordings. They in their way are equal to the speeches of SirWinston. They are an immediate and vivid reminder of thosedifficult but inspiring years ago. You were and still are thesweetheart of so many, myself included, and we aredelighted that you are able to join us here this evening withyour husband.

The International Churchill Societies of the UnitedKingdom, the United States and the old Commonwealth willall be delighted when they hear that the Hon. CasparWeinberger was able to join us at dinner, together with hiswife. Your distinguished career as Secretary of Defence ofthe United States is already legendary and your support of theUnited Kingdom, particularly during the Falklands War, wasthe hand of support and friendship we urgently needed. Yourclose association with Great Britain was recognised by HerMajesty the Queen in 1988 when she made you an honoraryKnight of the British Empire. I know that we all are lookingforward keenly to reading your new book "Fighting forPeace — Seven Critical Years in The Pentagon." Sir, we areprivileged to have you with us here this evening.

Tonight in addition to celebrating the 50th Anniversary ofWinston Churchill's appointment as Prime Minister in May1940 we are celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Battle ofBritain, the most important battle to have taken place in therecent history of mankind. The courage, determination andvalour of the pilots, the Ground Crew and the Women's Aux-iliary Air Force, are represented here this evening by AirVice Marshal Bird-Wilson, CBE, DSO, DFC, AFC and hiswife. But perhaps to me just as important he is a member ofthe Guinea Pig Club — without doubt one of the most ex-

clusive clubs with a membership application that is thehardest to complete: receiving severe burns and disfigure-ment as aircrew. As I am sure you all know, the Guinea PigClub is very close to my heart and I have been associatedwith it now for more years than I would care to remember.But I have been inspired by the fortitude its members haveshown, and anybody who comes into contact with these menand the one woman member are humbled by the problemswhich we may have to cope with in our everyday lives. AirVice Marshal Bird-Wilson was, like so many others, a Fly-ing Officer in the Battle of Britain. He served with 17Squadron and his record of kills and probables is substantial.We are delighted, sir, to have you with us here this eveningtogether with your wife, and trust you are enjoying an activeretirement after 38 years with the R.A.F.

We are gathered here this evening in this fine room with itsterrace overlooking the River Thames through the good of-fices of Mr. Mark Wolf son, M.P. for Sevenoaks. Mark and Ihave now known each other for a number of years and ourreasonably regular discussions have always been pleasurableoccasions, not only because of Mark's success but alsobecause he has happily joined in the family happenings thathave been going on at the same time. Mark, we are delightedthat you are joining us here this evening with your wife,Edna, and we all thank you most sincerely.

To all of you Mr. Richard Langworth, Executive Directorof ICS/USA, who is to speak to you later, is so well-knownthat I do not need to extol his virtues at length. His literaryoutput is outstanding and we have an enormous debt ofgratitude to offer for the work he puts into producing ' 'FinestHour." We are also delighted that you have been able to joinyour fellow countryman, Caspar Weinberger, on this occa-sion and I know from some of the guests who are here with usthis evening, the United States is certainly well represented.

Amongst our distinguished guests this evening it is withgreat pleasure that we welcome Jean Broome and her hus-band. Jean, who is the administrator for the National Trust atChartwell, has in her care not only one of the most importantand most visited houses in England, but the living shrine ofSir Winston Churchill, and the skill she shows in administer-ing her charge is deeply appreciated by us all.

I am delighted to say that Bomber Command is alsorepresented here this evening by Squadron Leader PilPilgrim and his wife. Pil was awarded the Distinguished Fly-ing Cross. He is Vice Chairman of the Bomber CommandAssociation and also a member of ICS. He completes ourrepresentation of two illustrious commands of the Royal AirForce of World War II: Fighter Command and BomberCommand.

Mr. Ed Murray, who had a notable wartime career with theFrench Foreign Legion, and his wife Beryl, both members ofthe International Churchill Society are most welcome here

this evening. Ed's book "I was Churchill's Bodyguard"makes fascinating reading and Beryl's work with theResistance during the War on the Swiss/French border placesher in a distinguished class of her own.

The final guest of whom I would like to make special men-tion this evening is a dear friend and neighbour, Mrs. JosieHayles, holder of the R.R.C. Josie had a highly distinguishedcareer for 35 years in the Queen Alexandra's Royal ArmyNursing Corps and was Deputy Matron-in-chief of theCorps, holding the office of Matron of the QueenAlexandra's Military Hospital in Millbank, London, duringthe War, and also Matron of the British Military Hospital inHong Kong. If I may be permitted to reverse the roles, weare delighted that you are joined here this evening by yourhusband, Arthur Hayles, who also served as a Captain in the1st Army in North Africa and Italy.

To conclude my remarks, I would like to place on recordonce and for all the correct facts concerning misinterpreta-tions of Winston Churchill's loyalty to Sir Hugh Dowding,the leader of Fighter Command, before and during the Battleof Britain. Recent television programmes have attempted toprove that there was discord between Dowding and Churchillin the Spring and Summer of 1940 and that Churchill wantedDowding replaced. The present Lord Dowding of BentleyPriory — a Fighter Pilot during the Battle of Britain — know-ing of my position in the International Churchill Society, hashanded me copies of letters that have only recently beenreleased on a restricted basis, from Winston Churchill to SirArchibald Sinclair, Secretary of State for Air in 1940. Theletters are written from 10 Downing Street and the first isdated 10th July 1940. It reads as follows:

My dear Archie,I was very much taken aback the other night when you told

me you had been considering removing Sir Hugh Dowding atthe expiration of his present appointment, but that you hadcome to the conclusion that he might be allowed to stay on foranother four months. Personally, I think he is one of the verybest men you have got, and I say this after having been in con-tact with him for about two years. I have greatly admired thewhole of his work in the Fighter Command, and especially inresisting the clamour for numerous air raid warnings, and theimmense pressure to dissipate the Fighter strength during thegreat French battle. In fact he has my full confidence. I thinkit is a pity for an officer so gifted and so trusted to be workingon such a short tenure as four months, and I hope you willconsider whether it is not in the public interest that his ap-pointment should be indefinitely prolonged while the warlasts. This would not of course exclude his being moved to ahigher position, if that were thought necessary. I am howevermuch averse from making changes and putting in new menwho will have to learn the work all over again, except whenthere is some proved failure or inadequacy.

Yours always,W

The second is dated 10th August at the height of the Battle ofBritain:

My dear Archie,I certainly understood from our conversation a month ago

that you were going to give Dowding an indefinite wartimeextension, and were going to do it at once. I cannot under-stand how any contrary impression could have arisen in your

mind about my wishes. Let me however remove it at once,and urge you to take the step I have so long desired. It is en-tirely wrong to keep an officer in the position of Commander-in-Chief, conducting hazardous operations from day to day,when he is dangling at the end of an expiring appointment.Such a situation is not fair to anyone, least of all to the nation.I can never be a party to it.

I do hope you will be able to set my mind at rest.Yours ever,

W

Added to this, which I do not propose to read now, is aletter from Buckingham Palace signed by the King in thesame vein, also to Sir Archibald Sinclair.

In these present times it is fashionable for writers, pro-ducers and directors of the media, drawing often on verydubious sources, to distort historical facts and undermine theresolve that existed with the majority of the British nationunder Winston Churchill. Today there are still many millionsof men and women who experienced the Second World Warfirsthand. There is no substitute for personal experience andthose in today's media who wield considerable powerthrough television, only demean their medium by acting as ifthey can recreate the mood and feelings of their forebears,convincing us that what we know to be true was not. Thosewho lived through the war years are in a special position topass criticism of our leaders, if it is called for. Hindsight ofwhat should or could have been done has little bearing if youforget that in the heat of battle your decisions must be madeon the information and the options that are available to you.

Similarly, it takes a pretty distorted mind to bring intoquestion the authenticity of the speeches given by WinstonChurchill. Those of us who have heard his words firsthandhave never and will never be in any doubt as to his leadershipand oratory. He was the finest, the greatest, the most loyaland caring citizen of the United Kingdom of the 20th cen-tury.

One is left wondering: do these people attempt to takesolace for a form of envy, of not having lived in the 1940sand experienced the camaraderie and underlying single-mindedness of the British people by attempting to drawparallels with today? If that is so, they prove only their im-maturity. History cannot be transposed. Let me give you aquotation by an anonymous member of the Royal Air Force:

ResponsibilitiesHow much human potential died with the men andwomen of the Armed Services of Great Britain, theUnited States, the Commonwealth and the Allies whoperished in the Second World War — an immeasurablequantity. It is therefore our responsibility to strive andachieve the maximum fulfillment of our ideas and ambi-tions to show our gratitude for the opportunity theygave us — for we are their representatives and thecustodians of everything they lived and died for. Theygave us a free world in which our children and ourchildren's children could live, and we who knew themmust never forget them and the human potential theyleft in our care.

I suggest those in the media who hold the power to distort thefacts consider the meaning behind those words very care-fully. •

ADDRESS BY RICHARD M. LANGWORTH AT THEHOUSE OF COMMONS DINNER

The first thing I must say is how honored I am to be askedto speak within these walls, something I could have neverhave imagined, and for which I am truly grateful to you all.

I am aware that such honors are fleeting, remembering thetime Churchill was shooting pheasants on the estate of the oldDuke of Westminster.

"How many did you shoot?" the Duke asked him."Four," he replied."Indeed," said the Duke, "then you've shot enough, and I

will have your carriage ordered for tomorrow morning."So before my carriage is summoned, I would like to share

with you the excitement that has engulfed the InternationalChurchill Societies during this memorable anniversary year.

There are so many anniversaries to remember. Consultingthe Churchill Calendar produced by ICS/Canada (and I amhappy to say they are working on another) I found thattonight marks the fiftieth anniversary of the final evacuationsat Dunkirk. Fifty years ago at 3AM tomorrow morning,General Alexander was the last soldier to leave, havingcruised the beaches to be sure there were none left behind.

I think that "Alex" as Churchill called him was one of thegreat generals of the war. Who can forget the famous ex-change between the Prime Minister and Alexander as thelatter prepared to take command in North Africa?

"Your prime & main duty," Churchill told him, "will beto take or destroy at the earliest opportunity the German-Italian Army commanded by Field Marshal Rommel,together with all its supplies and establishments in Egypt &Libya.

"2 . You will discharge, or cause to be discharged, suchother duties as pertain to your command without prejudice tothe task described in paragraph 1."

That order in Churchill's own hand was given Alexanderon 10th August 1942. And do you remember Alexander'sreply in February 1943?

"Sir: The orders you gave me on August 10th, 1942 havebeen fulfilled. His Majesty's enemies, together with their im-pedimenta, have been completely eliminated from Egypt,Cyrenaica, Libya and Tripolitania. I now await your furtherinstructions."

It was typical of Alexander, a man of few words, who in acalm, orderly and unflashy way simply got the job done.

I would like to think that the Field Marshal would approveof the similar way the various Churchill Societies have gottheir jobs done over the past year. We have as you knowevolved to four separate Societies in Britain, Canada, theStates and Australia, the first three independently registeredas not-for-profit charitable or educational organisationsunder the laws of their respective countries. To advancework of joint interest to all — our journal FINEST HOUR,our other publications and the rotating international conven-tions — we are forming an international council of ChurchillSocieties, which I am pleased to say will also includerepresentatives of the three fine Churchill Societies in Van-couver, Alberta and Edmonton, Canada.

This council will determine the international budget, itsproportional funding and, perforce, what it will buy. By far

the largest amounts are expended on FINEST HOUR, whichas you know has lately grown to as many as 44 pages plus in-serts and supplements of up to 34 more pages.

There are in addition a number of separate publicationscoming up. Next month: The PROCEEDINGS OF THECHURCHILL SOCIETIES 1988-1989, including thememorable speeches by Alistair Cooke, J. Enoch Powell,Maurice Ashley, Lord Blake, Lady Soames and MartinGilbert, to ICS and the Western Canada Societies, and thepapers delivered at the first Churchill Symposium at BrettonWoods, New Hampshire.

In August: THE ORDERS, DECORATIONS ANDMEDALS OF SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL, a fine newpiece of research by Mr Douglas Russell, which will be thefirst completely documented reference to Churchill's decora-tions, both British and foreign, illustrated in color and blackand white.

In December: THE BOER CONSPIRACY, a bit of fun buta contribution, I think, to literature — a pastische involvingHolmes, Watson and young Winston in a plot to assasinateChurchill during the 1900 Oldham election.

These last two projects were funded by a successful cam-paign for support in Australia, the U.S. and Canada. ICS ofthe UK, which was reorganizing at the time, did not par-ticipate, but I hope whilst I am here to sell them a share of theprojects. . .

As Churchill said to the American Congress in 1952: "Ihave not come here to ask you for money . . . for myself!''

I am also delighted to report to you that as of last week, wehad confirmation from Martin Gilbert that he would deliverthe text of the first of ten new companion or documentvolumes of the official biography covering the years1940-1965, to William Heinemann, on or before 30 June1991, in accordance with the campaign by ICS to see intoprint these hitherto unscheduled volumes, which we com-pletely funded thanks to hundreds of donations worldwide,and a very large one from Wendy Reves.

Finally, of course, there is the 1990 international conven-tion which ICS/USA has the honor to host in San FranciscoAugust 17-20th. Our guests of honour are Lady Soames andRobert Hardy. We hope also to welcome actress LeeRemick, whom we should like to recognise at last for hergreat role in the television documentary on Lady RandolphChurchill. Chairman Merry Alberigi has planned an out-standing array of events ranging from scholarly panel discus-sions and exhibits to a cruise on San Francisco Bay and a visitto Napa Valley, and headquartered at the renowned StanfordCourt Hotel.

Merry has had a tremendous response not only from ICS,but from the scores of British-American organisations in theBay Area from the English-Speaking Union to the Daughtersof the British Empire, and she expects the dinners will sellout at about 450. David Merritt is handling all ICS/UK book-ings, and I hope some of you will be able to join us. (Theonly thing that bothers me about San Francisco is that it willbe such a hard act to follow.)

I have spoken of international projects; now let me relatebriefly the various national ones. ICS/Australia, if all goeswell, will host the 1991 convention in Melbourne, togetherwith the second Churchill symposium, We hope to bringmembers from North America and Britain to Australia, inOctober or November 1991, on a tour culminating in thismeeting. ICS/Australia has also taken on a publication, ten-tatively entitled the Traveler's Guide to Churchill Worldwide

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— listing and describing every shrine, memorial, bust andtotem known to exist anywhere in the world.

ICS/Canada has again engaged the services of schoolchildren to help prepare another calendar, listing all theChurchill-related events of 1941 which, like the present one,will be distributed free to teachers, schools, libraries, and toChartwell where they are sold to benefit the work of theNational Trust.

I.C.S. U.K. has taken considerable strides since last year.David Porter, your Chairman and also now a UK Trustee,has gathered about him an excellent team to support him.

These are headed by the Honorary Secretary, David Mer-ritt, who had also been appointed a UK Trustee. David's ex-pertise and enthusiasm in providing the members with theprinting facilities of his Company, which has enabled theproduction of the new bi-monthly I.C.S. U.K. magazineChurchill Tales, and the hours he has been setting aside todeal with correspondence, assisted by his fiancee PaulineKing, deserve our gratitude. The first edition has alreadybeen circulated to all the members. Issue No. 2, which willbe double the size, is now in the course of preparation and ar-ticles are flooding in.

The souvenir menu which is before each place this eveningwas compiled by David Porter, David Merritt, and DavidBoler — a member of the Dinner Committee — and they areto be congratulated on their efforts. Your acknowledgementof the work of these three gentlemen as the prime movers onthe Committee for tonight's gathering I feel would be ap-propriate.

Today I.C.S. in the U.K. moves forward from a firm foun-dation, humble in the knowledge that it bears the name ofChurchill.

I should like to add one more welcome to a guest I am verypleased to see: Mr. Arthur Simon of Hoe Farm, nearGodalming, Surrey. Arthur has been our host now on threevisits to Hoe Farm, a special place to all Churchillians. It washere in 1915 that Churchill, deep in depression over the Dar-danelles fiasco, began to paint, and painting became hissolace for almost 40 years. We are so very grateful to Arthurfor his many kindnesses on our visits.

ICS of the United States, taking a leaf from the UK book,is forming a board of trustees to oversee all purely Americanaffairs. The most important of these is tremendously ex-citing.

We are now very close to a collegiate Centre for ChurchillStudies in the United States, at a most distinguished Univer-sity within easy reach of the nation's capital. This Centre willinvolve a professorial chair, develop curricula which relatesthe Churchill experience to modern teaching of history andpolitical science, and work to further international under-standing among the English-Speaking Democracies throughseminars and symposia. It will house a standard library of allSir Winston's works in all languages and in Braille. And itwill develop, if all goes as we hope, a computer index toevery word Churchill wrote and spoke, using compact diskor CD-Rom technology.

So as you can see we — and I — have much on our plate.The challenges are enormous. The prizes are worth the ef-fort. And our job is obvious. As Churchill told a Britishdiplomat who wrote to ask how to handle the new danger ofJapan in 1941: "Continue to pester, nag and bite."

We have an advantage, in that the subject of all our work isquite plainly the most quoted and most revered in history,religious figures excepted. Of those who rose to prominence

in the war, the enemy said nothing anyone wants toremember. Roosevelt was a great speaker, but wrote nomemorable books and is seldom quoted. Yet Churchill re-mains not merely a nostalgic symbol of the war we wagedtogether, but of culture, humor, principle, faith, optimism,pride in country — and by far not least one of the greatwriters this century. And in that century's waning years noone — English, American, and certainly not Russian — canchallenge his stature.

I am always amazed at the numbers of young people whojoin us, who have so soon come to know him either throughhis writings or by the endless stories about him. One of these,only 18 years of age, told me recently what first got him in-terested. (So many of these stories are apocryphal; perhapsLady Soames will tell us if it's true.)

A schoolboy surreptitiously darted into Chartwell and,eluding all security, found himself in Sir Winston'sbedroom, the occupant propped up, riffling through themorning papers and smoking an enormous cigar.

"My dad says you're the greatest man in the world,"offered the boy. "Is it true?"

Sir Winston peered at him over his spectacles and said,"Of course — now buzz off."

Now I am told that in fact he used a rather more earthyphrase than that. But in deference to my surroundings I havedone a little editing. P.S.: Lady Soames tells me it's true.

He certainly was the greatest man in the world for thelongest time, and his truth, in the words of the Americanhymn he loved, goes marching on. •

11

'*i*;l

Churchill

andLloyd's

An Enduring

Relationship,

Fondly Remembered

""C"f "';^" *./

BY DAVID BOLER

The Egerton Cooper portrait, courtesy Lloyd's of London

SIR Winston Churchill had well known connec-tions with many British institutions, but per-haps one that has received little attention has

been his association with Lloyd's of London, thethree hundred year old insurance market situated inLeadenhall Street in the heart of the City of Lon-don. By coincidence, this association indirectlybegan in the year of his birth, 1874, for it was atthis time that Clementine Hozier's father, ColonelSir Henry Hozier, became Secretary of Lloyd's — apost he held with distinction until 1906.

Nevertheless, it would have been Churchill's ap-pointment as First Lord of the Admiralty in 1911that brought him into a clear awareness of Lloyd'sand its historical relationship with the Admiralty. Itis worth describing briefly the background to thislink with Britain's Navy.

Towards the end of the 17th Century, EdwardLloyd established one of the then many fashionablecoffee houses close to the pool of London. The prox-imity to the River Thames, to the busy Londondocks, and to the emerging financial centre of theCity of London, attracted ship captains and shipowners, merchants and traders; as a consequence, amarket for insurance was established.

To further the attraction of this establishment

against the many competitors in the area, EdwardLloyd introduced various facilities for the developingUnderwriters and traders, including his ownnewspaper, Lloyd's News, reporting mainly on ship-ping movements. This became Lloyd's List, estab-lished in 1734 and considered to be Britain's oldestnational newspaper.

The key to the continued success and growth ofthe fledgling market was "Intelligence," partlycatered for by Lloyd's List. As a place for sea cap-tains to congregate, Lloyd's was a source of informa-tion for vast amounts of naval intelligence, much ofwhich was passed by Lloyd's to the Admiralty intimes of war to assist their intelligence-gathering net-work.

The relationship proved particularly valuable dur-ing the Napoleonic Wars, when Lloyd's (insuringboth British vessels and ships of neutral nationstrading with the enemy — France and Spain)would receive information concerning thewhereabouts of Napoleon's men-of-war from return-ing merchant ships. This data complemented theRoyal Navy's own reporting service. So began a

David Boler, an executive with Lloyd's and a Committee member ofICS/UK, lives in Seal, Sevenoaks, Kent.

12

close association with the Admiralty, though the ad-vent of shipborne wireless lessened Lloyd's value onintelligence to the Admiralty.

By the early 1900's the British Empire dominatedworld trade, Britain had the biggest shipbuilding in-dustry and largest merchant fleet. This maritime ex-pansion was sustained by insurance provided byLloyd's for ventures associated with British tradeand commerce.

Unlike its competitors, Lloyd's had always pro-vided insurance cover against war risks. This servicewas sorely tested first by the U-boat perils of 1916and 1917 and, to a greater extent, during thedarkest times of the Battle of the Atlantic in theSecond World War. (Among the more unusualforms of coverage offered was that for "flying bomb"damage. Between June 1944 and February 1945, 400such claims were paid by Lloyd's underwriters.)

As First Lord of the Admiralty in both WorldWars, Churchill would certainly have had thisbackground knowledge of the close Lloyd's relation-ship. Thus it became interesting to me to researchhis personal encounters with the famous firm ofunderwriters.

The first visit to Lloyds by Churchill that thiswriter can trace occurred in 1936, although it ismore than possible that he visited the marketearlier. According to Lloyd's List he was entertainedat luncheon by the Chairman, Mr. Neville Dixey,and afterwards made a tour of the UnderwritingRoom, the Library and the Nelson Collection: "Themany documents and other objects illustrating thecareer of the great sea commander naturally at-tracted the close attention of one who filled the of-fice of First Lord of the Admiralty during perhapsthe most critical period of our naval history."

Members of Lloyd's happy to pay tribute for hisWorld War I leadership soon had another reason tothank Churchill: the victory of the Allied Navies inthe Battle of the Atlantic during World War II. Thecost of defeat would have been ruin — and thedeath of Lloyd's. Perhaps it was also for this reason(and her relationship to Col. Hozier) that the com-munity in Lloyd's responded so generously toClementine Churchill's "Aid to Russia" fund appealduring the war, contributing over £18,000 in 1940smoney.

In 1944 Lloyd's showed its gratitude by electingChurchill an honorary Member of their Society. Hewas only the fifth man unconnected with Lloyd's sohonoured. He was in illustrious company, hispredecessors being Marconi, his old friend AdmiralBeatty, Lord Haig, and Admiral Sturdee.

In 1954 several paintings were commissioned tocommemorate Churchill's 80th birthday. It isLloyd's good fortune that they were responsible forsponsoring one that he actually liked. UnlikeSutherland's work, this painting survives and is

HE LIKES THIS ONEAnother portrait of Sir Winston Churchill has beenpainted: and this is one that he likes. It has beenpresented to Lloyd's by the Lloyd's InsuranceBrokers' Association.

Mr. Egerton Cooper painted the portrait, and wehave it on his authority that Churchill approves."Sir Winston said he liked the picture very much,"says Mr. Cooper.

At present the portrait is on view to members ofLloyd's in the library there. It is leaning against awall When their new building is completed a specialplace will be prepared to hang it.

Sir Winston is depicted sitting beneath an oak treeat Chartwell, his home in Kent. Mr. Cooper began itsix years ago. He finished the head at the time; therest of the picture has been filled in later. Churchillhas a cigar in his left hand.

Mr. Cooper made sketches and drawings from lifeat Chartwell, then painted the portrait in hisChelsea studio.

It is a little over five feet tall and four feet wide.Cooper — "I am well over 60" — has painted many

famous men. This is his third portrait of Churchill:one hangs in the Carlton Club, another in theJunior Carlton. Mr. Cooper painted King George VItwice.

— Lloyd's List

proudly hung in the New Lloyd's Building. It is theinspiration behind this article. The artist was AlfredEgerton Cooper, whose painting depicts Sir Winstonsitting under an oak tree at Chartwell. For manyyears it dominated the famous "Captains Room" atLloyd's.

Earlier in this article we mentioned Lloyd's List,and this newspaper has its own piece of history toadd to this story. As is well known, there was aLondon newspaper strike at the time Sir Winstonannounced his retirement as Prime Minister and,consequently, none of the Fleet Street papers carriedthis story on the morning of 6 April 1955. Thestrike began on March 25th, and did not end untilApril 21st. However, and in company with the Man-chester Guardian, Lloyd's List appeared daily in spiteof the strike and alone among London newspaperscarried the momentous news on the morning follow-ing his resignation — Wednesday, 6 April 1955.

The day following Sir Winston's death, on Mon-day, 25 January 1965, Lloyd's rang the famousLutine Bell, as a mark of respect for their illustriousHonorary Member. This bell, salvaged from aFrench sailing frigate, "La Lutine," has traditionallybeen rung once for bad news, and twice for good. Inthe years following the war, it had only been rungon ceremonious occasions, except for the deaths ofSir Winston Churchill and the man who conferredon him honorary citizenship of the United States ofAmerica — President John F. Kennedy. •

13

Churchill in StampsPAGES 127-132: RETURN TO THE ADMIRALTY

Here is an interesting mix of Churchill commemoratives andChurchill-related (C-R) stamps. Stamp catalogue numbers areScott (#) and Stanley Gibbons (sg). A slash (/) means a Churchill-related (C-R) set from which any stamp may be used.

127. Winding up coverage of a German invasion of Poland is amini-sheet of the German Occupation, transferred from achildhood "general" collection. This shows how easy it is toadapt "C-R" stamps from old collections to a philatelicbiography. The stamp is #NB27. issued in the 4(KJth anniversaryof the death of Copernicus, a Pole the Nazis claimed was Ger-man.

128. I chanced across Netherlands #B81 (sg 451) by accident butfound it ideal for illustrating Churchill's chilling remarks aboutthe air war. The souvenir sheet showing WSC c. 1940 and in 1951is Seychelles #322a (sg MS333).

129. Congenial in both design and colors (orange, blue andblack), these two mini-sheets arc Cameroun #C56a (sg 382-83)and Gibraltar #317a (sg MS339). Both show a c. 1940 Churchillwith backdrops of Naval vessels. Among many stamps ap-propriate for this purpose, they perfectly complement the famousNaval signal of 3 September 1939: "Winston is Back."

130. "Here I am in the same post as 25 years ago," Churchillbroadcast from the Admiralty on 1 October 1939 — illustrated byNicaragua #C585 (sg 1557) and #C588 (sg 1560). The two 1974Churchill commemoratives from Togo, #892 (sg 1047) and#C240 (sg 1049) show Churchill with a frigate 1 have not iden-tified. (Reader assistance needed.) Finally, since HMS Belfasthelped sink the German battle cruiser Scharnhorst in 1943,1 usedthe only "stamp" picturing Belfast, a Davaar Island local fromthe 1960s. Actually this should appear later.

131. The great victory for Churchill's Admiralty was the sinkingof Graf Spee off Montevideo (pronounced "mounty-video" byWSC, whose Spanish was no better than his French!) on 13December 1939 by HMS Exeter, HMS Ajax and HMNZSAchilles. Uruguay 891 provides a map of Montevideo harborwhile 489/493 depict the Congress of Montevideo. The tineFalkland Islands set from 1974, #237-240 (sg 307-310) illustratethe four ships involved. Last year, the Falkland Islands issuedanother set of stamps commemorating this battle and itspredecessor in 1914. Remarkably, Churchill was First Lord bothtimes.

132. Not everyone realizes that Churchill's great wartimespeeches began well before he became Prime Minister. One ofthe memorable clarion calls came at the nadir of the "PhoneyWar," when concern and patriotism had lagged and voices sug-gested the war should be terminated by a quiet deal with Hitler.Like all the great speeches to follow, this appears in a unique dou-ble spaced full-width format. Illustrating the words are Nicaragua#2361, sg 1913 ("Come then let us to the task"), Khor Fakkan#71 ("rule the air, strangle the U-boats"). Bhutan Minkus 470("to the battle, to the toil"), British Virgin Islands #278, sg 322("guard the streets"), Russia #1804 ("succour the wounded" —actually these are birdcatchers, a mistake!) and Turks & Caicos#298, sg 431 ("honour the brave").

To be continued

127

Tri" -JeTiria:! 'erm f o r Occupied Poland s tood f o r a t o t a l p e r m u t a t i o no'S r-az1 L'lo-.l:: i n t o t h e P o l i s h f a b r i c . As sub-humans, S l a v i cpeople; . ex i sTcc only L:> :"?rve '.rii1 3l'-'--'cr 5: *»i? 1»r~-iri 7 e l - l i .•-V." ul-iv • hil t i . i ; r:T "o:v.r! ' J J - Ion "-:• mi!r.'i:i F r ^ r e . -, pn-J - :»:l-ln-j1 hi; expo- •." : r: .::i.-ire In 1 :•:? c c r . . ' r : c . Ion o"' h l ' l p r 1 - r.ewcr- jer Ir. Europe .

Exemplary o:' !.i:e uttlr.ud-.- t^wari hftr new .iul..1 cf t.: :>yGermany is, a 19"? miniature ::n*";z or -or-mcmori' lve:;hoi-.orlnt: t.hc t̂OCLh nnniver; nr.v of T.n<* dea-.h o'" ' Des-Deu::v:r.er. iVtronorcpn Mkolaur- KopcrriiKu-:"—even"•.houfth Copernicus wi.-. a Pole, and never .7-udlerJ or

pri-. tl:'^d In f-ieriT..*iiiy.

EVi.:-Y 3-JND «AE PElISii"

I:i -he ::e..ond World *HT every bor;-. oo"woen min -Tnporl i .h. . . ^i> hldoou- pro-:*:--! o:" !:unh?rdlii« op?n . i;tir f on:."? .-••vflr!.-;i r-y "the Gcnmr.f, wa. repHi--i '.wen^ever rco'intir.»; E»o-*vr o:' ".he Allli^r., ami :*ounJ i ~r. ---.he u:e or *.ho'n-.otl: oonb, <ht-h oi-li" ora'.eJ ".hi-Hlro:-r.im:t 'ir.O Na^a.akl.

^ G

rcfln wa:- f.i.li-.-. irom :..i"Vold by thelT-ln itlon in:^i. ' .- 01"

^ o:':f.T.told where'.he enesrywould =. • rl-tcwlLh !.h»!rfleir..- ofbomber.':,Churchill an:!hl> -rolleat-'up.-were for.-eJ r-oremain r l l en ' ,or lore '.hrlrlntelllgen-'eadvan'.a^e.Thi..' resultedin the deaJlybombing 0!'Coventry,from Luf'-wai'febnses In ;.helow Countriesan-1 rVar.ce.

ASCENDANCY ASCENDANCY

RETURN TO THE ADMIRALTY

Cn September 3rd, 1939, after expiration of its ultimatum toGermany, Great Britain declared war. At 6 o'clock that evening,Churchill reported to his old seat as First Lord of the Admiralty,from which he had departed in disgrace 2U years ago.

VICTORY AT THE PLATE

An early success for Churchill's Admiralty was the successfulhunting of the German pocket battleship "Admiral Graf Spee",named for the man Churchill's World War I Admiralty had huntedin the same area. Off Montevideo, a plethora of British forcesaw the "Spee" scuttled, rather than fight huge odds.

129

He had nosoonerarrivedwhen asignal wasI'lashed toships atsea:

"WinstonisBack"

CHURCHILLCENTENARY

131

MontevideoHarbor,Uruguay,and a stampnoting theCongress ofMontevideo.

AdmiralGrafSpee,1939

HMS"Exeter,""Achilles,"and "Ajax."

So ""'!

130

ASCENDANCY

BROADCAST FROM THE ADMIRALTY

It is not widely known that Churchill took to the airwaves wellbefore he became Prime Minister. On 1 October 1939, speakincfrom the Admiralty, he introduced himself: "Here I am in thesame post as 25 years ago. The Royal Navy provided the one lovof a cheerless winter in 1940 by destroying the pocket battle-ship 'Graf Spec1 off Montivideo, Uruguay.

HMS 'Belfast,'c ommi s slone dthe year WSCrejoined theadmiralty,convoyed shipsto Russia in1943 and helpedsink the Germanbattle cruiser'Scharnhorst.'She has beenpreserved andlies today inthe Thamesopposite theTower ofLondon.

The First Lordbroadcastingfrom theAdmiralty,1 October 1939.

ASCENDANCY

THE UNFORGETTABLE SPEECHES BEGIN

"Come then, let us to the task, to the battle, to the toil,

"Each to our part, each to our station: Fill the armies,

1 3 2 Tule t h e a l r> P ° u r o u t t n e munitions, strangle the U-boats,

sweep the mines, plough the land, build the ships, guard the

streets, succour the wounded, uplift the downcast, and honour

the brave...

"Let us go forward together in all parts of the Empire,

in all parts of the Island. There is not a week, nor a day,

nor an hour to lose."

—Free Trade Hall, Manchester, 27 January 19^

ENGLISH-SPEAKING A GENOA

Country Without a Home"The Prime Minister wished to make two points:'Man is spirit,' and 'Never be separated from the Americans'

- CHURCHILL'S FINAL WORDS TO HIS NON-CABINET MINISTERS, 1955VISCOUNT DE L'ISLE TO MARTIN GILBERT, OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY VOL VIII

BY ANTHONY LEJEUNE

LONDON — Even before the kaleidoscope ofEastern and Central Europe was shaken so

^ spectacularly, Europe had become Britain'smost important foreign-policy problem. Elections arerarely determined by questions of foreign policy, butthe European issue was, and is, dangerously divisivewithin Margaret Thatcher's Conservative Party. As1992, the target year for Western European economicunification, approaches, the web of regulations prom-ulgated, and powers taken, by the European Com-munity's bureaucrats in Brussels has been steadilythickening. To the significant number of Britons wholoathe the whole process, it recalls the lamentable fateof a poor fellow who, some years ago, while cleaningthe big clock outside London's Law Courts, found hisclothes caught in the mechanism and was pulledrelentlessly to his doom.

Precisely what 1992 portends no one is sure. A singlemonetary system and a uniform social policy, mainlyaffecting conditions at work, are being urged more orless immediately. But what's the goal? Complete in-tegration? A federal constitution? Whatever the en-thusiasts for a new Europe may be planning or hoping,it is certainly much more than was originally adver-tised when Britain was cajoled into the CommonMarket.

The name itself has changed. The Common Marketbecame the European Economic Community, theEEC; then the middle "E" was dropped: it becamesimply the EC, The European Community. When didthis happen? Nobody seems to know. The British elec-torate was never informed at the time (or since), letalone asked.

Future historians may well be astonished that suchfar-reaching constitutional developments could bepushed through without even a pretense of obtainingthe electors' approval. At no juncture were the Britishpeople consulted — except in one, heavily biased,retrospective referendum — nor were the implicationshonestly explained to them. Had the question ofwhether Britain should or should not join Europebeen put straightforwardly to the electorate, there canbe very little doubt that the answer would have beenno; which is why it was never put — by politicians who

thought themselves best qualified ("representatives ofthe people, not delegates") to make the decision.

Every opinion poll continues to show the Britishnotably unenthusiastic about Europe, despite an over-whelming flood of propaganda aimed at making them"Community-minded." The intellectual and politicalestablishment, chronically snobbish about Americaand reluctant therefore to depend on the Atlantic rela-tionship, has always tended to prefer Europe. Thebusiness community is interested in the CommonMarket as a market. And the media, followingfashion, have moved almost unanimously into theEurophile camp.

JENNIFER LAWSON

Most ominously, the Labour Party, which used tobe suspicious of a capitalist Common Market, has sud-denly discovered that the new Europe, with its cen-tralist assumptions and eagerness for regulation, maybe a way of getting socialist principles back intoThatcherite Britain.

Yet the ordinary Englishman remains sturdily unin-terested. He may accept, when confronted with thequestion, that disentangling Britain from Europewould not now be practicable: but he still thinks thatit hasn't much to do with him. When the formerlyanti-European Daily Express said that young Britons"feel European," no evidence was adduced. Theirchoice of clothes, entertainment, vocabulary, andholiday travel suggest that, if anything, they feelAmerican.

16

Margaret Thatcher, not for the first time, is closerthan her colleagues to the populist feeling. Even shehas to be presented as keenly pro-European and shedid sign, whether blinkered by her officials or in a fit ofabsentmindedness, the insidious Single European Act:but she stands out firmly against the centralization ofexcessive power in Brussels. As she said in hercelebrated speech to the College of Europe at Bruges,"We have not successfully rolled back the frontiers ofthe state in Britain, only to see them reimposed at aEuropean level." To the disgust of the Europhiles, thiscautious attitude often isolates Britain among themembers of the Community.

General de Gaulle kept Britain out of the CommonMarket because he thought her natural Atlantic af-filiation would always prevent her from being trulyEuropean. The Europhiles are trying to dispose of thisobjection by deliberately wrenching apart, or subvert-ing, the Anglo-American link. The special relation-ship is dead, they say, so Britain must look elsewhere:conversely, Americans have been told that, since Bri-tain is now more interested in Europe than in preserv-ing the old relationship, Washington should concen-trate on the new centers of money and power in Bonnand Brussels. These complementary arguments,bounced back and forth across the Atlantic, reinforceeach other and, if not checked, may prove self-fulfilling; a prospect which suits, not only anti-Americanism in Britain and anti-British sentiment inAmerica, but a currently influential faction of YoungTurks in the State Department. Their latest line, dulyreflected in the British press, is that, being so fond ofBritain, they would hate to see her excluded from theburgeoning joys of Europe by Mrs. Thatcher.

Pushing Britain into Europe has always been UnitedStates State Department policy, based on a hazy inter-nationalist view of how the new Europe was likely todevelop. The view today can only be hazier than

ever.With events in Eastern and Central Europe moving

so fast, should the Western European Community in-tegrate as quickly as possible — or wait until mattersbecome clearer? Can a potentially reunited andeconomically dominant Germany be bound firmly tothe West — or will Germany have to be neutralized asthe price of reunification? Will the newly liberatedcountries from behind the crumbling Iron Curtainrecover their European identity — or will there be anexplosive return to antagonistic nationalism? What arethe odds on Gorbachev's survival — fifty-fifty?

These questions are being asked and cannot beanswered. There is a general assumption in Europethat, barring a cataclysm, America's military presencesoon will be reduced. This would be quite welcome incertain circles on both sides of the Atlantic: but themore prudent European leaders, and especially Mrs.Thatcher, are most anxious that nothing should bedone precipitately.

In general, however, America and American policy

have been pushed, in the past few months, to themargin of European consciousness. The Europeans aretoo absorbed in themselves. Again Britain is the excep-tion. The British, like American television viewers,have watched the unfolding drama of Eastern Europewith satisfaction but also with a certain detachment.And Britain was alone in supporting America's inva-sion of Panama.

When empires collapse, as seems to be happening tothe Soviet empire, the only certainty is of confusionand peril. Now more than ever, according to theprivately expressed opinion of one elder statesman,Britain should remember Churchill's final advice tohis last Cabinet: "Never be separated from theAmericans." But all the chatter of politicians and jour-nalists is about Europe.

©1990 by National Review,'Inc., 150 East 35th Street,New York NY 10016. Reprint by permission.

COMMENT BY ROY FAIERS, EDITOR,THIS ENGLAND

Mr. Lejeune speaks my thoughts entirely. While theyounger generation can be expected to espouse newcauses with wild enthusiasm on the grounds of im-maturity, no such excuse can be granted to the mediain Britain who have failed miserably to examine thedeep-rooted fears now beginning to surface over heretowards the concept of a United States of Europe.

Mr. Lejeune's telling article points out somethingwhich I had only just discovered as a result of our own"Don't Let Europe Rule Britannia" campaign; namely,that the Press is curiously quiet on an issue which willclearly be the great debate of the decade — the reten-tion or relinquishment of Britain's national indepen-dence, parliamentary sovereignty, and treasured Mon-archy. Pro-Europeans deny that these are at risk andcharge people like Mr. Lejeune (and Mrs. Thatcher) asbeing, in the words of ex-Prime Minister EdwardHeath, "narrow little nationalists." I believe, giventime, that such a tag will become as proud a label asthe word "vermin" did when used by the arch-Socialist Aneurin Bevan against Mr. Churchill andhis colleagues in the House of Commons during the1950s.

The pro-Europeans are heavily outnumbered amongthe British population as a whole but they have col-lared the high ground in the Press and, though stillsparse in the main corridors of power, can be found inthe side aisles where opportunists always abound. LikeAnthony Lejeune and others, I ask myself— when willthe bulldog awake to the danger lurking at the gate?

Editor's note: Mr. Faiers sent the several ChurchillSocieties reprints of This England's campaign articles,"Don't Let Europe Rule Britannia." These reprints will beinserted with copies of this issue of Finest Hour or madeavailable by the various membership offices, at the discre-tion of the individual Churchill Societies. •

17

Churchill Tour V: Australia '91Feed a koala, snorkel a reef, ride a camel — and a great train,

Spectacular Tasmania, Alice Springs and the Outback, AboriginalKakadu, The Great Barrier Reef — Adelaide, Darwin, Cairns,Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart — await you on Churchill Tour V:a fabulous blend of old and new, from cities to mining camps,

jumbucks to wineries, on the ICS Tour of Australia by air, road,sea and rail: October 1991.

ONCE IN A LIFETIME YOUDESERVE A TRIP YOU'LLNEVER FORGET.

Twenty ICS members and friendshave expressed serious interest in ourproposed tour to Australia, and advicecontinues to pour in from fair dinkummates Down Under. ICS/Australia hasset the date for the 1991 InternationalChurchill Conference: Melbourne, 19October 1991. All we need is you!

We now have a wide ranging itinerarythat will give you more than "a taste ofAustralia." As one Aussie says, "it's afull course meal!" Nevertheless it willbe affordable — and an adventure youwill never forget.

WHAT THE TOUR COVERSBecause of the enormous distances,

not only to and from California butaround Australia itself, transportationcosts comprise nearly half the total cost.The tour price will include all of these,plus transfers, porterage, admissionsand associated taxes as forseen (there isa 12.5% goods and sales service tax).

FLEXIBLE EXPENSESTo compensate for the heavy trans-

port costs, we have altered our pasttradition of full-course group dinners,breakfasts and lunches. Whereverpossible, you will control your diningcosts from a variety of attractivechoices. Of course, there will be severalincluded group dinners, lunches andbreakfasts when they are part of a day'splanned activities. The object is to offeras varied a level of total expense as wecan, to suit a variety of budgets.

THE TENTATIVE ITINERARY:CAN YOU IMAGINEMISSING THIS?

Friday 4 October 1991: Depart eitherSan Francisco or Los Angeles about8PM, non-stop to Sydney.

Sunday 5 Oct: Arrive Sydney earlyAM for connecting flight to Adelaide.Relax in the afternoon, and join awelcoming banquet this evening.

Mon 6 Oct: Several interestingAdelaide-based activities are available,including close-up acquaintance withthe local fauna; details will be availablelater. Depart 5PM for Alice Springs onone of the world's great trains, TheGhan, with first class sleeper accom-modation including showers en suite (22hours). Dinner, breakfast and lunch areincluded. The route is through a silo-studded wheat belt, the scenic FlindersRange to Port Augusta, then north intothe Outback from Tarcoola through theMacDonnell Ranges.

Tuesday 8 Oct: Arrive Alice Springslate morning. This famous Outback

18

town, built on red soil where millions ofcolorful wildflowers grow, is sur-rounded by mountains and desert.Afternoon: travel through the moun-tains to Ross River Homestead, setamong ochre-colored hills and red gumtrees, for a traditional Outback dinner.

Wednesday 9 Oct: Take a camel tobreakfast (optional): soft morning lightand cool, clean air make an early morn-ing camel ride along the Todd River anda hearty breakfast at Frontier CamelFarm a special way to start the day. Latemorning: fly to Darwin at the top of thecontinent, population 68,000. Once asleepy tropical outpost, Darwin hasemerged as a modern commercial centerwith unique architecture, fine dining indiverse restaurants, clubs, luxury hotelsand casino.

Thursday 10 Oct: Travel via the WestAlligator River and Wildman deep intoKakadu National Park. Join the ObiriRock tour and see aboriginal art. Lunchby the East Alligator River. Return toKakadu via the modern mining town ofJabiru (overnight at Kakadu).

Friday 11 Oct: The rock art andarcheological sites of Kakadu representsome of Australia's great culturaltreasures. We will take a two-hourYellow Waters luncheon cruise, then goon to Nourlangie Rock to viewaboriginal paintings. Evening return toDarwin.

Saturday 12 Oct: Fly to Cairns,tropical gateway to the Barrier Reef.

Sunday 13 Oct: Cruise the Great Bar-rier Reef aboard the yacht Quicksilver.Included is lunch and there are manyoptional extras: diving, snorkeling,helicopter flights.

. • • : < • , • * • ' . . -

Kununurrs,

; Klmbertey

; • Broome

• Port Hedland

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Nullarbor Plain

CAIRNS

TOWNSVILLE• Mt Iso

Proserpine •

Allc ipringsQUEENSLAN

• AyAs Rock # Birelsvllla

SOUTH

PERTH• Kalgoorlie

• Coolgardle

Sturt Desert

USTRALIA

Monday 14 Oct: Fly Cairns toSydney. Optional: dinner and a perfor-mance at Sydney Opera House.

Tuesday 15 Oct: A guided tour ofSydney and its stunning harbor.

Wednesday 16 Oct: Australia WineCountry: all day at Hunter Valley, withlunch at Windham Estates, producers ofsome of the best cabernets; returningvia historic Wollombi and over theWatagan Mountains.

Thursday 17 October: Fly Sydney toMelbourne, "Grand Dame" ofAustralia, a blend of old and new, withthe world's largest concentration ofVictorian architecture. An afternoontour aboard the Colonial Tramcar willend in a Pullman style "white linen ser-vice" dinner.

Friday 18 Oct: Travel to Ballarat, 67miles NW of Melbourne, site of thegreat 1850s Gold Rush. Visit restoredSovereign Hill and see the diggings,with blacksmiths and local craftsmen atwork. Try panning for gold in RedGully Creek and visit the site of theEureka Stockade, scene of Australia'sCivil War.

Saturday 19 Oct: The 1991 Interna-tional Churchill Conference, hosted byICS Australia, with the traditional blendof informal socializing, scholarly sym-posiums, informative panels and ban-quet (not black tie), speeches and na-tional anthems.

Sunday — Thursday: Tasmania! Anoptional four day visit to spectacularTasmania, the island-state across BassStrait from Melbourne. Expect rollingcountryside, picturesque coastline vary-ing from rugged rocks to smooth

beaches, cosmopolitan Hobart (thecapital) blending with quaint Victorianvillages and a friendly people. We arestill working on this part of the trip.

The Tasmanian tour includes allmeals, transport and accommodationand air or sea transport, cost $850 all in.

THE DIFFERENCE IS QUALITY"We've never taken a tour before but

we were told the 'Churchill' is different— and it is!" That is the most frequentcomment of first-time participants in thefour ICS tours to date (and we've hadmany repeaters).

We are not tour agents. Like you,we're there for the pleasure, and we runonly one per year. We go out of our wayto personalize your journey, we don'tskimp, and we always have a congenialgroup of people of all ages with much incommon besides Churchill. This is ourassurance to you that the Churchill Tourwill offer — as always — far more forthe money than any comparable com-mercial agency.

INTERESTED? ACT NOW:Write Barbara Langworth at PO Box

385, Contoocook NH 03229 USA,telephone (603) 746-4433 or fax (603)746-4260 to be kept fully informed.This does not commit you to anythingbut we need to know precisely howmany to plan for. The price is $4950from west coast USA by Qantas; theairline will offer certain credits towardflights to the departure point fromvarious North American cities. Britishresidents wishing to come should con-tact us for details on their least expen-sive routing to Sydney, which may bedifferent. •

Auuve: Paim-p^ngea lrtmty Beach intropical Cairns, Queensland. Above right:Camel train ride at Alice Springs follows theTodd River in the cool of the morning, endswith a hearty cooked breakfast with fruitjuices and billy tea.

Transportation with a flair includesfirst class bedrooms with showers en suite

and all meals on the famous "Ghan" fromAdelaide to Alice Springs (22 hours)

— one of the great railroad jour-neys of the world. Out of Agincourt

near Cairns, the speedy MV Quicksilvertakes us to the Great Barrier Reef for

diving, snorkeling, swimming, sightseeing.

19

Winston Churchill and the NavyFlaws and All, One of the Greatest

Civilian Leaders of any ServiceBY DEREK LUKIN JOHNSTON

A speech to the Naval Officers' Association of British Colum-bia on Surrender Night, November 1987. Mr. Johnston is amember of ICS and the Sir Winston S. Churchill Society, B.C.

In October 1911 Churchill, then Home Secretary inAs"quith's Liberal Government, was appointed FirstLord at the early age of 37. He immediately set aboutinforming himself fully on all aspects of the Naval Ser-vice. The new First Lord went everywhere: Battle-ships, cruisers, destroyers, submarines, dockyards,manoeuvres, night firings, the lot. Everywhere he hadquestions, questions, questions, the answers to whichwere stored away in his incomparable memory. At firsthe was regarded with suspicion, especially by the of-ficers of a service that was traditionally and politicallyconservative, who took a dim view of this Tory son ofa Tory father who had deserted to the Liberals in1904. But gradually his keen interest in naval affairsbegan to win over the hearts of all ranks.

Admiral Sir William James, in 1912 gunnery lieu-tenant of the Home Fleet Flagship, recounted thatafter watching a night firing exercise, the new FirstLord came down (on James' invitation) to the ward-room, where there was only a sprinkling of officers:"We sat down by the fire and Churchill began topepper me with questions about our systems of controland what steps we were taking to improve the per-formance of the guns and searchlights. The wardroomgradually filled, and soon a large circle of officers waslistening intently to the discussion, into which Chur-chill soon drew many of those who had hithertoavoided him. One elderly officer even got out of bedand dressed when he heard that the First Lord was inthe wardroom!"

In this, his first tenure at the Admiralty, Churchillwas not happy with two successive First Sea Lords; buthe then developed a more harmonious relationshipwith Prince Louis of Battenberg. In late July 1914, itwas the two of them who ordered the Grand Fleet notto disperse, nor to release reservists at the end of itsannual exercises. This led even Lord Kitchener, nofriend of Churchill, to say to him after he was dis-missed in 1915: "Well, one thing they cannot takeaway from you — the Fleet was ready."

During this period Churchill had been correspond-ing with Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher, the con-troversial First Sea Lord, now retired, with whom hehad become friendly in 1907. Fisher sprinkled his

missives with exclamation marks, whole sentences incapital letters, and frequently ended them with "NOWBURN THIS!!!" As one biographer has drily re-marked, fortunately for posterity, most of his cor-respondents did not heed these incendiary admoni-tions.

Much of Fisher's advice was sound: improvements inpay and conditions for the lower deck, better oppor-tunities for ratings to achieve commissioned rank, ap-pointment of Sir John Jellicoe to posts so that he couldsucceed to the command of the Grand Fleet if warbroke out, and — most important of all — the change-over from coal- to oil-burning. Churchill obtainedCabinet approval for a vital agreement securing sup-plies of oil from the then Anglo-Persian Oil Company.

But some of the advice to Churchill was not sound —notably that of sacrificing armour to speed in theDreadnought class of battlecruisers. Herein lay theseed of disaster at Jutland, where not only two olderships Indefatigable and Invincible, but the new QueenMary were sunk by German shells piercing the too-thin armour of their gun turrets and blowing up theirmagazines. (The same fate awaited that splendid shipHMS Hood, launched in August 1918, and blown upby Bismarck in May, 1941.)

In August 1914 came war, in which Churchill was inhis element — this time not as a subaltern in the armybut as the powerful leader of Britain's Senior Service.He had learnt a great deal about naval warfare, but itmust be remembered that he was learning from the topdown, and this is not the best way to master theessence of a highly complex profession. In particular,he took to drafting (and in some cases sending, with-out the concurrence of his First Sea Lord) signalswhich sometimes lacked that precision so necessary forinstructions to commanding officers on the high seashundreds or thousands of miles away. In reviewing (forthe "Dog Watch") the escape of the German battle-cruiser Goeben through the Mediterranean to Turkeyin early August 1914, I wrote of this unfortunateevent, "Admiralty instructions were far from clear."In fact the first crucial signal to the C-in-C Mediter-ranean bears the unmistakable signs of Churchill'sdrafting.

Though the responsibility for the disastrous defeatoff Coronel, Chile on 1 November, 1914, when Ad-miral Cradock with two cruisers went down under thegun-fire of Admiral von Spee's Pacific Squadron, mustbe shared by many shoulders (including, sadly, those

20

"You Made Me Love You": Tories approve WSC's Naval Estimates, Punch, HJan 14.

of Cradock himself), Churchill cannot escape blamefor what a meticulous historian has called, "The Ad-miralty's confused, unrealistic, and consequentlymisleading instructions." Just at this time Prince Louisof Battenberg had resigned, in the face of newspapercriticism of his German ancestral background. Chur-chill took the fateful step of summoning back 73-year-old Lord Fisher to be his First Sea Lord.

At first this was a strong combination, and the twocollaborated in immediate arrangements to achievethe destruction of von Spee by the despatch of two fastbattlecruisers to the South Atlantic. Annoyed by thedockyard Admiral's signal that he could not have theships "ready in all respects for sea" until the 13th ofNovember ("Friday the 13th," exclaimed Fisher,"What a day to choose!") Churchill drafted, withminor amendments by Fisher, a peremptory sign_alordering the ships to sail by 11 November. Sail theydid, just in time to catch von Spee near the FalklandIslands on 8 December, and sink him and all his shipssave one small cruiser, which was hunted down anddestroyed three months later.

This same battle offers me the opportunity to men-tion Churchill's mastery of the English language, byquoting the review by prominent historian PhilipGuedalla of The World Crisis, a personal history aboutwhich Sir Samuel Hoare said, "Winston has writtenan enormous book all about himself and called it theWorld Crisis":

One can hardly be too grateful for Mr. Churchill'slively presentation of the dreary minutiae of navalhistory. Gunnery grows wildly thrilling under histouch; Lord Jellicoe becomes almost interesting; andthere is nothing better in dramatic writing than vonSpee's discovery of the battle cruisers at the Falkland

Islands: "A few minutes later a terrible apparitionbroke upon German eyes. Rising from behind thepromontory, sharply visible in the clear air, were apair of tripod masts of a Dreadnought. One glancewas enough. They meant certain death. The day wasbeautifully fine, and from the tops the horizon ex-tended thirty or forty miles in every direction. Therewas no hope for victory. There was no chance ofescape. A month before, another Admiral and hissailors had suffered a similar experience.

Churchill did have many flashes of full, even attimes brilliant, understanding of naval strategy andtactics. One such instance occurred in mid-September1914 when, reading the Fleet's dispositions off theDogger Bank in the North Sea, he minuted that threeold cruisers, Aboukir, Hogue and Cressy, "ought not tocontinue on this beat. The risk . . . is not justified byany service they can render." Alas, the order tooktime to put into effect, and only three days later thethree ships were sunk by U-9. (If I may digress for amoment: at the reunion of U-Boat veterans that I at-tended seven years ago, I was introduced to a red-faced, rather jolly old man who told me that his olderbrother had been serving in U-9 on that occasion. Hesaid that the three cruisers were "wehrlose zielen",which may be freely translated as "sitting ducks.")

I must now touch on the sad story of the Dar-danelles expedition. I do not propose to dwell on thistragedy, which in addition to disastrous losses of bravesailors' and soldiers' lives as well as ships, brought to anend Churchill's tenure of the Admiralty. The distin-guished British historian A.J.P. Taylor has writtenthat "as a skilfully handled joint enterprise, the opera-tion might have shortened the war and saved millionsof lives." But it was not skilfully handled, and Taylorgoes on to say that some considerable share of theblame must rest on Churchill.

However, there were other well-meaning villains inthe piece: a vacillating Cabinet; Kitchener, whofavoured the proposal but refused to supply troops,making inevitable an unsupported naval attack whichproved abortive, then agreed to the use of the im-mortal 29th Division, but sent out General Sir IanHamilton with confused instructions and a totally in-adequate staff unprovided with intelligence; thegenerals in the field, who ordered frontal attackswhere the Turks were strongest and failed to order ad-vances where the enemy was demonstrably weak; andlastly Lord Fisher, who blew hot and then cold on theexpedition. Fisher was much less than straightforwardin his dealings with Churchill and the Cabinet. Hefinally destroyed the First Lord by resigning, andsecretly communicating that fact to Churchill's Toryenemies in opposition, which brought about hisdownfall. I will not say more on this lamentable tale oflost opportunities; so many memoirs, biographies, andwhole books have dealt with every detail of the cam-paign that most if not all are familiar with the topic.

21

Let me move to Jutland, in which of course Chur-chill had no part, save for two curious postscripts.After the battle, the Admiralty issued a brief and mostineptly drafted communique which mentioned all thefactual British losses and almost only the surmised andlesser German casualties. Coupled with the trium-phant German propaganda of the "Victory of theSkagerrak" (their name for it), and their flamingnewspaper headlines such as "TRAFALGAR WIPEDOUT," this caused a storm of protest from naval andother sources. Churchill was invited to look over thereports of naval proceedings and make a statement tothe Press, and this gave a much more truthful andfavourable account. As we know, the German HighSeas Fleet never again seriously challenged the GrandFleet, and the naval war ended with the German sur-render of their fleet to Admiral Beatty and the GrandFleet at Scapa Flow 69 years ago, still commemoratedon this our Surrender Night Dinner.

The other postscript was in Churchill's account ofJutland, included in the third volume of The WorldCrisis. Churchill discussed the famous controversy asto whether Jellicoe should have deployed his twenty-four battleships, moving in six columns abreast of fourships each in line, on the port or starboard wing inorder to cross the "T" of the High Seas Fleet. On thatgrey, misty afternoon, Jellicoe took the safer option ofdeploying in line ahead on the port wing because,although it took his ships further away from theenemy, it avoided the danger of having his "T" crossedby the High Seas Fleet.

I think the consensus of historical opinion now isthat, in the light of the little and misleading informa-tion he had (the signalling at Jutland was terrible)Jellicoe's decision was correct. But Churchill, ten yearsafter the battle, propounded a totally different solu-tion: to signal "Follow Me" which meant the deploy-ment of the battleships in line following Jellicoe'sflagship at the head of one of the centre columns.

Now this signal was a very old one, and the exercisehad not been practised for years; Churchill dismissesthis with an airy wave of the hand, and says it "wouldhave been instantly comprehended." As a formersignal officer, who spent many hours tramping aroundthe parade ground at Naval Signal School at St.Hyacinthe, our group armed with small flags represent-ing ships carrying out fleet manoeuvres, I call tell youthat this was nonsense. Can one imagine signal of-ficers in twenty-four battleships, moving at sometwenty-five knots, anxiously consulting their FleetSignal Books with their admirals and captains breath-ing down their necks saying, "For God's Sake, Flags,which way do we turn!" Consider the spectacle of thismass of battleships jockeying for position. It wouldhave been chaos.

Now may I run briefly over Churchill's activities vis-a-vis the Navy in World War II? I say briefly, as I amrunning out of time, and I have concentrated rather

heavily on World War I because I thought that youmight be less well versed in his first tenure as FirstLord than in his second. So many of us served in thatwar, and have undoubtedly read many of the hun-dreds of books that have since been published, that itseems wiser to summarise.

First the bad news: (1) Churchill accepted as FirstSea Lord an aging Admiral, Sir Dudley Pound, whowas not in good health from the start, certainly in nocondition to counter the formidable debating powersof a First Lord with vast experience and self-confidence. Not until Pound resigned when mortallyill, and was succeeded by the famous "ABC," SirAndrew B. Cunningham, in late 1943, did Churchillhave a First Sea Lord who was willing and able tostand up to his bullying and interference in profes-sional matters. (2) He must — and I say this with con-siderable pain, as a great admirer of Sir Winston —accept a large share of the blame for the botch-up ofthe Norwegian campaign. He made rash command ap-pointments; he communicated directly and secretly,behind Pound's back, with Admirals; he sent orderswithout adequate knowledge of the local conditionsand became furious when the commanders on the spotadvised they were impossible to carry out; he jumpedto wrong conclusions about the intentions of the Ger-mans; and he used the weight of his authority to in-terfere in the conduct of the campaign.

Of course there were plenty of others who mademistakes, but Churchill cannot escape much of theresponsibility for a disaster that was redeemed onlypartially by the sinking of a large percentage of theGermans' relatively small surface fleet. (3) As PrimeMinister, with a not-too-strong-willed First Lord,A.V. Alexander, he interfered not only with navaloperations but also with senior command appoint-ments, always looking for "offensive-minded" Ad-mirals — woe betide the career of one deemed to be"defensive-minded" or worse still, opposed to Chur-chill's ideas!

One could go on, but it seems pointless to do sowhen the pluses demonstrably outweigh the minuses.While Churchill may have caused some Admirals tognash their teeth, he was an inspiration to the vastmajority of the many thousands in the Service. He wasconstantly enquiring after their welfare, frequentlyvisiting the Home Ports and Scapa Flow where, in thatmost boring of harbours, he initiated the fitting-out ofa theatre and cimena ship for recreation purposes. Ad-miral Sir William James (earlier quoted in 1914) hasrecorded that his visits to Portsmouth "were of in-calculable benefit. His energy was remarkable, heseemed quite tireless . . . He left us all, sailors anddockyardmen, more than ever determined not toflag." On one inspection at Scapa Flow, he pointed toa merchant ship that had been painstakingly disguisedas a large warship. "That's a fake," he growled.Someone replied, "But she's not even been spotted by

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Cheered by Royal Navy ratings, Churchill disembarks atStaten Island, New York, for a wartime visit withRoosevelt, having graduated from First Lord to PM.

our own reconnaissance, sir!" "Then they need spec-tacles." "How so, sir?" "No gulls about her, man . . .bow and stern of all the dummies. Feed the gulls andfool the Germans!" And they did.

He took an intense personal interest in all kinds ofmatters, from plans of higher strategy to small but im-portant details; and once again, always questions,questions, questions, so often ending with the words"Pray look into this at once" or "Pray let a scheme onthese lines be put forward." Thus they became knownas "The Old Man's Prayers." He has said that he was a"prod"; and indeed he prodded people into thinking,arguing, and acting.

Nothing caused him more anxiety than the Battle ofthe Atlantic which, he himself has written, "was thedominating factor all through the war. Never for onemoment could we forget that everything happeningelsewhere, on land, at sea, or in the air, dependedultimately on its outcome, and amid all other cares weviewed its changing fortunes day by day with hope orapprehension."

His own contributions in this area were immenseand far-sighted. His persuasion of Roosevelt to loanfifty old destroyers in exchange for bases in New-foundland and the Caribbean, in August 1940 whendestroyer losses had mounted to an alarming figure,was a coup of the first magnitude. As early asNovember 1939 he had urged the construction of largenumbers of small escort ships of 500/600 tons, with

simplified armament and equipment to enable rapidmass production. These little ships, of course, becamethe backbone of our own Corvette Navy. (In hisminute on this subject, he said, "These will be deemedthe 'Cheap and Nasties' — cheap to us, nasty to theU-Boats!") In that same month he recommended thecreation of "an independent flotilla which could worklike a cavalry division on the approaches, withoutworrying about the traffic or U-Boat sinkings, butcould systematically search large areas over a widefront." These, later in the war, became the successfulhunter-killer groups, of which that commanded byCaptain Walker, R.N. was the most famous. Furthertypical examples of his far-ranging thoughts are thefollowing:

First Lord to Admiral Somerville and Controller23.IX.39

Let me have at your earliest convenience the pro-gramme of installation of R.D.F.* in H.M. ships,showing what has been done up to date, and aforecast of further installations, with dates.Thereafter, let me have a monthly return show-ing progress. The first monthly return can beNovember 1.

(*Radio Direction Finding — later known asRadar)

First Lord to First Sea Lord and others 24.IX.39

A lot of our destroyers and small craft are bumpinginto one another under the present hard conditions ofservice. We must be very careful not to damp the ar-dour of officers in the flotillas by making heavyweather of occasional accidents. They should be en-couraged to use their ships with war-time freedom,and should feel they will not be considered guilty ofunprofessional conduct, if they have done their best,and something or other happens. I am sure this isalready the spirit and your view, but am anxious itshould be further inculcated by the Admiralty. Thereshould be no general rule obliging a court martial inevery case of damage. The Board should use theirpower to dispense with this, so long as no negligenceor crass stupidity is shown. Errors towards the enemy(i.e. to fight) should be most leniently viewed, even ifthe consequences are not pleasant.

Let me end with one last minute to the Second SeaLord in October 1939: "Will you kindly explain tome the reasons which debar individuals in certainbranches from rising by merit to commissioned rank?If a cook may rise, or a steward, why not an electricalartificer or an ordnance rating or a shipwright? If atelegraphist may rise, why not a painter? Apparentlythere is no difficulty about painters rising inGermany!"

In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen, I hope I havepersuaded some of you at least that, for all his flaws,Winston Churchill was one of the greatest, if not thegreatest, civilian leader of any Navy that the world hasknown. •

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Great Contemporaries:Sir William Stephenson"This One is Dear to My Heart"BY RON CYNEWULF ROBBINS

WILLIAM SAMUEL STEPHENSON, one of Canada'smost courageous sons, was a bold friend of freedom.Churchill, recommending him for a knighthood in1945, wrote: "This one is dear to my heart."

Sir William died in Bermuda in January 1989. Hewas 93. At once, prominent detractors denounced himvociferously for laying claim to accomplishments theythought belonged to others. Not all were hurrying toheap opprobrium on his coffin and reputation. A fewundoubtedly believed they were being friendly in say-ing senility had betrayed him and lured him intohyperbole. But the headlines that raced around theglobe did not exculpate him.

If "Old Men Forget," it seems that — like young men— they may also lie. Sir William had the misfortune tonod or acquiesce too readily in the presence of over-zealous or opportunistic journalists. But the para-mount point is that his memory lapses were precededby a stroke, and only his immense stamina enabledhim to survive for so many years. It takes no great leapof the imagination to postulate that Churchill, everloyal to his friends, would not have condoned theunseemly, even shameful, attacks made on Stephen-son after ill-health had rendered his recollectionfaulty. The damage to Sir William's reputation in theworld at large is deplorable, but the diminishing of hisesteem in the eyes of Canadians robs him of true na-tional honour and homage.

Embedded in the Canadian psyche is a distate forshowiness. There are only about 26 million Cana-dians. If one of them wins a place in the internationalarena, the last instrument he is expected to play is hisown trumpet. It was Robert Sherwood, the Americanplaywright and biographer, who bestowed onStephenson the title of " . . . a quiet Canadian." Thepeople of Canada found this much to their liking. Butthe longer Stephenson lived, the louder became thecontroversy surrounding him.

He lacks a worthy monument in his native land. Astatue of Churchill stands in Toronto civic square, yetno one is suggesting that nearby is ample room for astatue of the man who was close to Churchill's lionheart. Time and historians will view Stephenson moredispassionately and less enviously than some of hiscontemporaries in wartime espionage have done.Meanwhile no harm, and perhaps a little justice, mayresult from reviewing those of his achievements whichare beyond dispute.

His birthplace was Point Douglas, near Winnipeg,Manitoba. He attended high school in Winnipeg, leftat the outbreak of the First World War, and wasalmost 19 when he served in the trenches. After hewas gassed by the Germans, he displayed the utmostcourage in learning to fly during the period when hewas recuperating. Then he transferred from the armyto the Royal Flying Corps. His exploits earned him theMilitary Cross, the Distinguished Flying Cross andother decorations which I saw arrayed on his studywall in the manner favoured by many veterans.

Equally enterprising in peace, he used the decadefollowing the First World War to become a wealthy in-dustrialist whose business acumen was matched by hisinventiveness. He married an American, Mary FrenchSimmons, of Springfield, Tennessee. Her grace andbeauty are captivatingly evident in photographs. Itwas a picture of her that he chose to send first over thedevice he produced for transmitting photographs viaradio.

In 1987, I was invited to preside at a ceremony inVictoria, British Columbia, to introduce Canada'sfirst home visual telephone. I was seized with the ideaof sending a photograph of Sir William over the

Ron Cynevuulf Robbins of Victoria, B.C., is a former director ofthe Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's National TelevisionNews, a member of 1CS and the Churchill Society of B.C. Hisfirst contribution to Finest Hour, on Brendan Bracken, appearedin issue #63.

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phone, which is also equipped to transmit and receivephotographs. In granting permission for me to do this,Stephenson telexed: "Nostalgia inspired me to reviewagain photographs of 1924 captioned, 'CanadianScientist Marries Tennessee Girl in London.' Thephotos are of my wife which were the first to betransmitted by radio across the Atlantic and appearedin various U.S. newspapers, including The BostonAdvertiser, September 21, 1924, and The New YorkTimes, Sunday, August 31, 1924."

Such was the mettle and audacity of Stephensonthat not long before the Second World War (when hehad become linked with Churchill) he volunteered toshoot Hitler. Colonel F.N. Mason-Macfarlane, Britishmilitary attache in Berlin, also volunteered for the mis-sion which was turned down by Lord Halifax, thenBritish Foreign Secretary.

Small wonder that Churchill launched Stephensonon his spymaster career by appointing him to head theBritish Security Co-ordination Service in New Yorkbefore the United States had entered the SecondWorld War.

Stephenson embarked with enthusiasm and daring(and also without remuneration) on the gigantic taskof running a centre for counter-intelligence in theWestern Hemisphere. He played a major role until theAllies triumphed. From Britain came his knighthood,from America the Medal for Merit. Up to that time hewas the only non-American to gain the award.

It cannot be overlooked that there was mutual an-tipathy between Sir Stewart Menzies, head of Britishintelligence, and Stephenson. Churchill gave Stephen-son the New York appointment over the objections ofMenzies. But Churchill had a knack of putting theright men in posts where they would be of crucialvalue in encompassing the destruction of the enemy.Stephenson (code name: Intrepid) was preeminentlythe right man for the job he was given. His businesstravels had allowed him to organize private intelli-gence contacts who served Churchill admirably in pre-war days when, out of government office, he neededbackstage help to gather convincing information ofHitler's perfidy.

Genuine concern must arise about the motives ofthose who attempt to diminish Stephenson's reputa-tion by claiming he did not meet Chruchill. Theirclaim in no logical way lessens Stephenson's provenaccomplishments. However, it is judicious to recallthat it had been said a trout in the milk is convincingcircumstantial evidence! Is it feasible that Churchillwould have described Stephenson as "dear to myheart" if he had not met him? It is relevant to take intoaccount what has been written by H. MontgomeryHyde and Anthony Cave Brown. Montgomery Hydehas described how, in April 1936, Stephenson gaveChurchill conclusive information that Germany wascloaking military expenditures totalling eight hundredmillion pounds sterling. Churchill seized on the infor-mation to frame a devastating question in Parliament

to the discomfiture of Neville Chamberlain, thenChancellor of the Exchequer. This cannot be dis-missed with a shrug unless carpers wish to face acharge of bias.

Cave Brown has written that Churchill andStephenson were "close friends." He plainly states thatStephenson was in Churchill's "political circle" in the1930s. He is just as clear about Stephenson demon-strating "his value" to Churchill in the United Stateslate in the Spring of 1940. He also mentions thatbefore the summer was over, Roosevelt entertainedStephenson at his Hyde Park estate. The topic: thedangerous dubiety of Joseph Kennedy, United StatesAmbassador in London, regarding Britain's deter-mination to stand up to the Germans. Significantly,Kennedy resigned in November 1940. It distortsreason to try to persuade us that Stephenson couldmeet with Roosevelt, but not with Churchill. Neitheris it likely that Churchill's legendary skills woulddesert him to the extent that he would send Stephen-son to so vital a post in New York without ever havingseen him.

How many trout do the doubters want in the milk?M.D.R. Foot, an author who combines probity with

ability, has outlined the warm relationship betweenStephenson and the formidable "Wild Bill" Donovan,appointed by Roosvelt in July 1941, to head overseasintelligence. Foot credits the Donovan-Stephensonfriendship with inducing Roosevelt, in the autumn of1940, to bring about the famous deal which resulted inthe United States handing over to Britain destroyersin exchange for bases. It has been explained by Footthat Donovan and Stephenson had no difficulty ingetting along "excellently at their exalted level: not sotheir underlings." Not so indeed, if a few underlings re-main embittered enough to hack at a Canadian herodecorated in two world wars. (The fault, dear Brutus, isnot in our stars, but in ourselves, that we are underlings.)

Americans, never afflicted with meanness of spirit,have not applauded assassins of Stephenson'scharacter. When Stephenson was nearing 90, about800 people gathered in New York to honour him; hewas presented with the William Donovan Award toacknowledge unique contributions to freedom.

Stephenson's New York appointment irritated thehierarchy of the British secret service. I believe it con-tinues to upset some of those who attacked him.Although fully aware that a stroke had marred his oldage, they stamped on his grave.

Perceptive historians have a sure indication of theirinsensitivity. They have defeated not Stephenson, butthemselves. Posterity is the crucible from which goldemerges. "Intrepid's" friends can count on that. So canhis foes. Churchill's high assessment of his comrade-in-arms will be confirmed. And it will prevail.

Sources:The Quiet Canadian — The Secret Service Story of Sir

William Stephenson by H. Montgomery Hyde. Pub-

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StephenSOn, continuedlished in London, 1962. The author had access to SirWilliam's private papers and his book rings withauthenticity.

"C" The Secret Life of Sir Stewart Menzies, Spymasterto Winston Churchill by Anthony Cave Brown. Pub-lished in New York, 1987. This book lights up manypreviously dark corners.

The Royal Gazette, Bermuda, 27 February 1989.The Regina Leader-Post, Saskatchewan, 3 March 1989.Maclean's, Canada's Weekly Magazine, 3 July 1989.

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Columbia UniversityPress, 1950 edition.

Conversations with Dr. L.I. Barber, the Canadianacademic. His personal contact with Sir Williamprompted him to speak out publicly against the critics.

Conversations, and an exchange of messages, whichthe writer had with Sir William.

M.D.R. Foot, an author whose qualifications are asimpeccable as his prose and research, refers toStephenson in his book, Resistance: European Resistanceto Nazism 1940-1945. (London, 1976) •

Books: Old Titles Come BackSeveral early works are back in print.So are some fine Churchill speeches,

but they deserve a better editor.BY JOE MYSAK & NAOMI BLTVEN

IS hiring a sympathetic editor too much to ask of apublisher who has to get out a volume of diaries, orspeeches, or letters, or collected works? One has to

wonder after a season in which several houses broughtout books whose editors damn their subjects.

I speak of the Diaries of H.L. Mencken, (Finest Hour66), and this new one-volume edition of Winston S.Churchill's speeches.

Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat, is a collection of thirty-three of Churchill's greatest speeches. It is nice to havethem all under one roof, with glosses and achronology — and twenty-six pictures, including theone of him speaking before the despised GrahamSutherland portrait. What a choice assignment, towrite the introduction for such a gathering on the50th anniversary of 1940, Churchill's "most importantyear." And what damnable results.

Editor-historian David Cannadine writes that "itwas as an orator that Churchill became most fully andcompletely alive, and it was through his oratory thathis words and his phrases made their greatest andmost enduring impact."

To the styles of authors and speakers as diverse asGibbon and his own father, "Churchill added his ownpersonal ingredients: detail, humour and deliberatecommonplace," Mr. Cannadine writes. "The result, asHarold Nicolson noted, was a remarkably arresting'combination of great flights of oratory with suddenswoops into the intimate and the conversational.' "

Mr. Cannadine recounts Churchill's "remorselessdetermination, diligent application and consummateartistry," and continues: "He . . . spoke in thelanguage he did because it vividly and directly

reflected the kind of person he himself actually was.His own extraordinary character breathed throughevery grandiloquent sentence — a character at once sosimple, ardent, innocent and incapable of deception orintrigue, yet also a character larger than life, romantic,chivalrous, heroic, great-hearted and highlycoloured."

So far so good. Where so much appreciation is sogreatly protested at the start, however, there is alwaysa big BUT; so it is with Cannadine. "Despite theremarkable and transcendent qualities of Churchill'sspeeches, the fact remains that for much of his careerthey were ultimately ineffective, in that they did notenable him to achieve his supreme ambition of becom-ing Prime Minister," he writes.

Mr. Cannadine points out that Churchill's oratorywas a supreme political instrument, but then goes onto say, "Considering that he never built up a regionalpower base in the country or a personal following atWestminster, that he changed his party allegiancetwice, that his judgment was often faulty, that his ad-ministrative talents were uneven, and that hisunderstanding of ordinary people was minimal, it isarguable that oratory was, in fact, his only real instru-ment."

Then he has at the speeches themselves: They were"implausibly pessimistic and apocalyptically gloomy,"he writes. "Their greatest weakness was that they wereessentially the speeches of a man completely self-absorbed and egotistically uninterested in the opin-ions of anyone else."

Finally, for much of his career, Mr. Cannadine con-cludes, Churchill's deeds did not match his words. His

26

other criticisms can be understood, and rebutted byserious Churchillians, but this last seems a gratuitoussideswipe. Was Churchill not, in fact, "heroic" and"great-hearted"? But this may be an instance of anacademic feeling obliged, as so many do, to prove howmuch smarter he is than his subjects.

This said, Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat is filled withbracing stuff, as those familiar with the canon know. "Ihad the luck to be called upon to give the roar," Chur-chill himself said of what was widely appreciated as his"mobilization" of the English language during WorldWar II. Mr. Cannadine collects the Dunkirk speech,his "Finest Hour" and "Battle of Britain" speeches.

And he cannot but appreciate such lines as "Neverin the field of human conflict has so much been owed,by so many, to so few," and "The Government simplycannot make up their minds, or they cannot get thePrime Minister to make up his mind. So they go on instrange paradox, decided only to be undecided, re-solved to be irresolute, adamant for drift, solid forfluidity, all-powerful to be impotent." (Churchill's1936 statement on rearmament.)

Mr. Cannadine includes Churchill's three excellentorations on Neville Chamberlain, Lloyd George, andFranklin D. Roosevelt. And he includes a few thateven Churchillians may not be familiar with: hismaiden House of Commons speech of 1901, his 1915explanation of the Dardanelles disaster, and this in1919, on the Russian Revolution and its aftermath:"Of all tyrannies in history the Bolshevist tyranny isthe worst, the most destructive, and the mostdegrading . . . The miseries of the Russian peopleunder the Bolshevists far surpass anything they suf-fered even under the Tsar."

But for the introduction, which finally leaves a bitteraftertaste, Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat is a fine addi-tion to any Churchillian's library. Those unfamiliarwith the man — and I suppose there are a few who willget this book either as a present or as an acquisition —will probably wonder what all the fuss is about, if theytake the offensive introduction seriously,

•fr •& -frHow much better it is, then, to take up India, a

delightful facsimile of Churchill's 1931 collection ofspeeches on what has been called the jewel in thecrown, and with an introduction by Manfred Weid-horn. The production itself is superb, and welcome: acopy of the original, when found, commands around$1,000.

The issue of India, and how it should be governed,drove Churchill into the political wilderness duringthe 1930s. Weidhorn, who has written extensively onthe man, carefully documents the issue andChurchill's role in it.

Where Cannadine writes of Churchill's oppositionto Indian independence, "rarely can so much efforthave been expended on a cause so completely mis-judged," Weidhorn tells precisely why this is so. WhereCannadine trots out many small and small-minded,and justly forgotten, contemporaries of Churchill's tojibe at the man, Weidhorn writes, "Stanley Baldwinhas much to answer for at the bar of history, but inthis matter he was right. While Churchill carried onabout how the facts were against Indian independence,Baldwin likewise urged people to face up to the truth.The principle fact 'today,' he concluded, was that 'theunchanging East has changed.' With that one nugget,the usually pedestrian Baldwin shoots the usually elo-quent Churchill, with his romantic, Victorian, im-perial rhetoric, right out of the water."

Mr. Weidhorn notes what can be salvaged from In-dia (Churchill's remarkably prescient prophecies of theslaughter to come), and concludes that genius is not"discerning and moderate." He writes, "If responsiblevoices across the political spectrum in 1931 told Chur-chill that the imperial age in India was over, just asmany responsible voices in 1940 said that Hitler couldnot be beaten and should be negotiated with. . . . IfChurchill had been amenable to prudence in 1931, hewould have spared everyone embarrassment, but thatsame prudence would have dictated in 1940 negotia-tions with Hitler. Only the pugnacious mule of 1931could see his way through the impossibilities of 1940."

Mr. Weidhorn sums up, "If we like the way 1940turned out, we have to comprehend 1931." He adds tothis comprehension in his introduction, which is whatsuch things are supposed to do.

JOE MYSAK

Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat, edited by David Cannadine.Boston: Houghton Miftlin Co., 256 pages, $18.95.

India: Defending the Jewel in the Crown, by Winston S.Churchill. First American Edition, facsimile to the 1931 edi-tion. Hopkinton, New Hampshire: Dragonwyck PublishingInc., 168 pages, $35, deluxe leatherbound edition of 100copies, $100.

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The Early Churchill: He Doesn't Understand Surrender

Three of Winston Churchill's early books — "TheStory of the Malakand Field Force: An Episode ofFrontier War," which first appeared in 1898; "TheBoer War," combining two volumes, "London toLadysmith via Pretoria" and "Ian Hamilton's March,"that were originally issued separately in 1900; and "MyAfrican Journey," of 1908 — have recently beenrepublished. Because they originated as journalism —the first two as newspaper reporting, the third asmagazine articles — they show us the past as moderntimes, and history as current events, and because theirwriting is exceptional they have become literature.The books also introduce us to an astonishing youngman who grew up to save civilization.

There's not an awkward passage in "The Story ofthe Malakand Field Force," Churchill's first book. Hesets the exotic stage — British India's (now Pakistan's)North-West Frontier — as he moves us into the action.The field force was composed of British and IndianArmy units assembled to cope with what Churchillcalled "the great tribal upheaval of 1897" — an unex-pected assault on the Indian frontier by the tribes wholived in the valleys of the Hindu Kush. Churchill'sstory starts on the night of July 26th, when thousandsof warriors attacked an Army camp in the MalakandPass and a small (two-hundred-man) garrison in thevillage of Chakdara. Throughout August, a successionof other tribes, in other valleys, when to war withequal suddenness.

Churchill elbowed his way into the Malakand FieldForce, seeking military, not literary, distinction. Hewas a twenty-two-year-old subaltern in the 4thHussars, a regiment stationed in Bangalore, far to thesouth. He was poor. His father, who died in 1895 aftera short, flashy political career and a long illness, hadleft an estate just equal to his debts, and Winston'sArmy pay came to fourteen shillings a day. After twoyears as a soldier, the young man was bored. His fatherhad thought Winston was only bright enough forSandhurst, where he had done well because he en-joyed riding. Despite his mania for polo and a programof serious reading (Plato, Gibbon, Adam Smith,Macaulay, and twenty-seven volumes of the AnnualRegister), Churchill was restless in the peacetimecavalry. When the frontier tribes attacked, he wiredthe Malakand Field Force commander, Sir BindonBlood, whom he had met socially, proposing to spendhis leave at war. (Cavalry officers were allowed asmuch as five months' leave a year.) Sir Bindon, whohad filled all his slots for junior officers, allowedWinston to come along as a war correspondent.

The pattern of the campaign was dictated by theregion's melodramatic topography. Churchill de-scribes the Bengal Lancers, under fire, trying to swimtheir horses through a gorge of the swift-flowing Swat

River, and he also describes the artillerymen walkingtheir mules over a swinging bridge across the PanjkoraRiver while the current below battered the bodies ofdead camels against the rocks. The tribes fought forfun, for loot, and for Islam; one mullah had promisedthat they would be invulnerable to the bullets of theinfidel, and another that they would go to heaven ifthey were killed. Since they didn't coordinate astrategy, the frontier campaign was a series of separateactions, some consecutive, others simultaneous. Chur-chill sees to it that the reader is never confused; wealways know where a particular brigade is and what itis trying to do. Though Churchill the writer was atleast as green as Churchill the soldier, he knew that itwas best to describe little things (for example, that abullet missing you makes "a curious sucking noise" inthe air) and let the reader discover the big things — thesteadiness of the outnumbered imperial forces, thecultural misunderstandings that pervaded the frontier— for himself.

The following year, Churchill wangled his way intothe 21st Lancers, a regiment in the Anglo-Egyptianforce that went up the Nile from Egypt under the com-mand of Sir Herbert (not yet Lord) Kitchener. Theiraim was to retake the Sudan from the dervishes who,in 1885, had captured Khartoum and killed GeneralGordon. Though Churchill worked as a correspon-dent, he also saw action at the Battle of Omdurman.In early November, 1899, his dispatches were pub-lished, under the title "The River War"; by then, hehad already resigned from the Army, lost his firstParliamentary election, and landed at Cape Town as ajournalist reporting the Boer War.

Churchill's books about the Boer War aren't a com-plete history; they're accounts of two campaigns. Thefirst campaign is Sir Redvers Buller's relief ofLadysmith, in Natal. The second is the fighting marchof Ian Hamilton's mounted division from Bloemfon-tein to Johannesburg (Churchill biked into the city aday ahead of the Army) and on to Pretoria.

Churchill's war started badly. Two weeks after helanded, he was a prisoner of the Boers, who attackedan armored train on which he was riding. Churchillreveals that he took charge of efforts to clear the track,and that when the British had filled the engineer's cabwith wounded and it began to steam away he jumpedoff, hoping to rally British soldiers who were stillfighting. Yet he immediately petitioned the Boers forrelease, claiming non-combatant status. The Boers ig-nored his plea, so one night in December he climbedover the wall of the prison, and, by the new year, wasback on the British front line.

He had made use of his time in captivity. The mo-ment he was taken, he began interviewing Boers, sothat, right in the middle of the war, he was able to pre-

28

sent English readers with speaking portraits of theenemy. He was honest and sensitive, and reported theBoers' humanity and human diversity — brave andbright, sullen and stupid, fire-eaters and reluctant war-riors.

The Boer War was the most "modern" war thatChurchill (or anyone else in the British Army) hadfought. It was much bigger than any of the earlier co-lonial wars: Hamilton, commanding the smaller of twoparallel columns, led eleven thousand men; a thou-sand had cleared a valley in the Hindu Kush. TheBoers had plenty of up-to-date materiel, and the effec-tiveness of their artillery gave Churchill uneasy, pres-cient thoughts about a future European war. Chur-chill's dispatches are rarely overtly critical of theBritish command, even when he's writing about ageneral like Buller, whom most historians deplore.

Thomas Pakenham, in his history of the Boer War,describes a frontal assault by the Gordon Highlanderson a ridge filled with well-entrenched Boers. RecallingChurchill's account of that engagement and its after-math of Scottish corpses, Pakenham asks rhetoricallywhy Churchill didn't question Hamilton's orders tothe Highlanders. My impression is that Churchill,besides not wanting to dishearten readers and/or getshipped back by an irate general, was reluctant to passjudgment because he wasn't sure he understood thenew problems of this kind of war. And, of course,Pakenham knows that eighteen Highlanders "lay deadin a row" and that "their faces were covered withblankets, but their grey stockinged feet — for the bootshad been removed — looked very pitiful" only becauseChurchill told him so.

Churchill came home from South Africa and waselected to Parliament as a Conservative. In May 1904,he joined the Liberals, because he thought the Torieswere about to abandon free trade. The Liberals camein at the end of 1905, and he was appointed Under-secretary of State for the Colonies. There was no par-ticular reason for the Under-Secretary to travel to theEast Africa Protectorate (now Kenya) and Uganda(then another protectorate) in 1907, but Parliamentwas in recess and Churchill was footloose. So he went,and his trip became the subject of "My AfricanJourney." He landed at Mombasa in October, rode therailway through Kenya, and took a steamboat acrossLake Victoria to Uganda. He returned by way of theNile, sailing where the waters were navigable and hik-ing where they weren't, and reached Khartoum fromthe south in December.

Across thousands of miles of Africa, the Pax Britan-nica assured his safety; he comments that he could nothave travelled down the Nile a decade earlier, whenthe dervishes' "devastating barbarism" ruled in theSudan. By 1907, the only creatures that threatenedthe lives of travellers were ticks (fever), mosquitoes(malaria), and tsetse flies (sleeping sickness).Churchill's impressions of Kenya anticipate the

memoirs of Elspeth Huxley and Isak Dinesen, withtheir evocations of breathtaking landscapes andlimitless wildlife. Like these writers, Churchill admiredand shot. Churchill predicted that "modern science"would rid Kenya of the pestilences that were afflictinglivestock and people, but he didn't take to most of thewhite settlers, who, despite his efforts at ministerialtact, appear snobbish and exploitive, lacking any senseof the rights of the African natives. Even though sleep-ing sickness had depopulated vast areas of Uganda, hewas more enthusiastic about that region's future,partly because he didn't expect whites to settle there.

it ft •&In all three books, Churchill reads like a writer —

someone with special literary gifts, not just an in-telligent man with a good vocabulary. He was highlyintelligent — in these books you are impressed by howquickly he learns — but he also had something more.Byron FarwelPs "Queen Victoria's Little Wars" has aquotation from Churchill's friend Ian Hamiltondescribing a cavalry pursuit in the Second (1878-80)Afghan War. Hamilton's intelligent language explainswhat happened without engaging the reader. By con-trast, a paragraph by Churchill describing his ride intoLadysmith just ahead of the English forces picks up theacceleration and exhilaration of a triumphant gallopand takes the reader along. The reader also feels Chur-chill's humiliation when he is marched from the trainto the prison through the streets of Pretoria, crowdedwith Boer civilians who have turned out to jeer at thecolumn of dishevelled British prisoners. Movies andtelevision have familiarized us with many imagesfound in these books — men in khaki picking theirway around boulders, a river full of water lilies andsubmerged hippopotamuses — yet Churchill'slanguage makes them fresh. His writing here is neverelaborate or rhetorical, and its restraint generatesenergy.

Could a reader guess from these books that Chur-chill would later lead England to defy Hitler? Perhapsin 1908 no one in England could have imagined Hitler;the Kaiser seemed as troublesome as any Germancould be. But an attentive reader might find clues toChurchill's greatness, paradoxically, in his imaginativelimitations. The range of his appreciations is wideenough to include many classes of things — butterflies,bicycles, ironies. But he can't really empathize with, oremotionally grasp, race hatred.

All over the Empire he meets its assorted racial,ethnic, religious, linguistic, and national groups, and isaware that some of them dislike others, and, by 1907,that those antipathies cause problems of governance.

Story of the Malakand Field Force, 234 pages, $18.95; TheBoer War, 404 pages, $19.95; M} African Journey, 134pages illustrated, $17.95; all by Winston S. Churchill. NewYork: Norton and London: Leo Cooper (£14.95 each).

29

But when, for example, he encounters the Boers' all-out racism, he transcribes what they say as if he werequoting madmen. Churchill emphatically believed inthe superiority of British political institutions. He didnot, however, believe in the innate superiority of thewhite race: "In sport, in courage, and in the sight ofheaven, all men meet on equal terms."

Churchill doesn't fuss a great deal about courage,

which he finds "not only common, but cosmopolitan."He's certainly unemphatic about his own; his panacheis mater-of-fact. What he doesn't understand at all isthe opposite of courage. He cannot imagine cowardice,losing heart, or giving up. He is repelled andbewildered when he's forced to mention that in thecourse of the Boer War British soldiers have raised awhite flag. He doesn't understand surrender.

—NAOMI BLIVEN

"Winston and Clementine:" A New Gathering Storm?

CUDGELS are raised over ICS member RichardHough's latest foray into Churchilliana, albeit far re-moved from the naval field in which he won fame.

Without, I hope, boring readers, let us consider the crux ofthe case, for those not already glued to the London SundayTe [graph.

In a waspish review on 22 April, Alastair Forbes claimedto feel about Hough's book "much as had Clemmie andWinston about the charming Graham Sutherland's literallyjaundiced portrait," accusing Hough of inconsistency,carelessness and hagiography. Forbes also disputed theparentage of both Clementine Hozier and Winston's brotherJack, repeating those long-running canards: that JohnStrange Spencer-Churchill was named for his "true" father,John Strange Jocelyn, later Lord Roden; that Clemmie'sfather could have been X, Y or maybe Z, but certainly wasnot Col. Hozier.

"In matters of sex generally . . . Hough indeed seems allat sea," wrote Forbes, astonished over Hough's claim thatLady Randolph was not promiscuous. He then repeated theold myth that Lord Randolph died of syphilis.

All of which was too much for author Hough andPeregrine Churchill, Jack's younger son, whose letters ran29 April. Peregrine demanded an apology for Forbes'remarks on his father's parentage, and for suggesting that hisgrandmother, "then a young girl, was seduced by a man thesame age as the Duke, her father-in-law." He referred tofamily records of the Rodens, proving that Jocelyn was inEngland when Jack Churchill was conceived (in Ireland);and to an American author he'd taken to court for startingthis falsehood: "In consequence, several thousand bookswere destroyed and I obtained a signed agreement by theauthor never to publish that story again."

Richard Hough wrote that Forbes "possesses in full themale conceit that beautiful women are incapable of friend-ship without sexual indulgence." Lord Randolph's"syphilis," he added, was invented by the muckrakerFrank Harris, who wrote numerous filthy stories regularlyrejected by publishers, although his lie about Lord Randolphstuck.

Why did it stick? Peregrine Churchill says that "SirWinston, in the early 1920s, was out of favour with both theLiberals and Conservatives . . . The party propagandamachines wanted to keep him out and the Frank Harris story,among others, was pertinent." He recalled the taunt of aschoolmate, the son of an MP: "My daddy says all youChurchills are mad and have horrible diseases."

Mr. Forbes replied May 6th. Lord Randolph's syphilis, hesaid, was casually accepted by all Winston's children,

notably Mary, who so stated in her 1982 book, FamilyAlbum. Furthermore, Lord Randolph looked like he had it!Of his claims about Clementine's parentage and Lady Ran-dolph's promiscuity, Forbes offered neither apology norsubstantiation. Regarding Jocelyn as progenitor of JackChurchill, he claimed the word had come not from FrankHarris but from "Johnny" Churchill, Peregrine's brother.His only gaffe, Forbes said, had been calling Hough'sreference to Winston's pet name "Pug" an "absurdity"(having by then apparently glanced at Volume II of the of-ficial biography).

CLEMENTINE AND WINSTON,BY OSCAR NEMON

All of which strikes this writer as a rather slim defensebased on haphazard research: (1) Family members cannot beexpected to know every fact about their relatives, and are aslikely to hear slander as anybody else, perhaps more likely;(2) painstaking research by Robert Rhodes James in hisdefinitive Lord Randolph Churchill (1959) uncovered noevidence of syphilis other than the statements of FrankHarris.

The writer Peregrine Churchill took to court must havebeen Ralph Martin, who implied that Jocelyn/Roden wasJack Churchill's father in Volume I of Jennie (1969). In-terestingly, another biography of the same date and title, byAnita Leslie, describes baby Jack as "blue-eyed and fair-haired like Winston" and Jocelyn/Roden as "an unusuallyreligious man, very happily married [who] complained thatthe atmosphere in gloomy Blenheim was frivolous andworldly . . . "

This is the man who fathered Jack Churchill?Mr. Forbes makes much of his close relationship with

Winston and Clementine, and even quotes from a friendlyletter Winston wrote him in 1938. This caused me to look up

30

BUDGET DAY, WITH CSC & SARAH, 1920S

IELECTION DAY, OCTOBER 1951

all the Forbes-Churchill correspondence (OfficialBiography, Companion Volume V Part 3), thereby learning athing or two.

The exchange began when Forbes, 20, an ardent anti-appeaser, wrote Churchill a waspish (there's that adjectiveagain!) letter following WSC's refusal to support a non-Conservative candidate. Winston, claimed by so manynowadays to have been inconsiderate and unfeeling, repliedmildly and kindly, noting the political imperatives and sayingthat after all it was his decision to make. Forbes thenapologised for saying "thoughtless and unreasonable things"and showing "lamentable disrespect . . . I deserve a kick,in fact, from the feet at which I have sat for so long." Also,he was sorry he had used Mary to get his point across. Nowhere he is 52 years later, saying thoughtless and unreasonablethings, showing lamentable disrespect and using Mary to gethis point across. At least this time he has received his Chur-chillian kick.

What then are we to make of Winston and Clementine!About, I think, what Rhodes James made of it in his morebalanced and fairer assessment in the London Evening Stan-dard: It is very long, taking 160 pages just to reach Clemen-tine's appearance. "It is good in parts . . . and appalling inothers. [Hough's] tactic in adding zest to the narrative by in-venting conversations and episodes [Hough compared this tothe license allowed script-writers] should be held up to allauthors and publishers as an example of a ghastly innovationthat invites only ridicule and disbelief. There are some ex-cellent passages and some shrewd and objective analyses ofthe strengths and weaknesses of this outstanding couple. Thisis certainly no panegyric to either of them, but it is an indif-ferent and superficial biography of Winston Churchill withoccasional appearances by his wife — to whom, unless I ammistaken, Hough has taken a keen dislike. Both of themdeserve better than this and in Mary Soames's book [FamilyAlbum] they have."

Rhodes James with his usual acuity singles out the rightdocument to summarize this marriage: Winston's letter toClemmie "to be opened in the event of my death " written in1915: _

"Do not grieve for me too much. I am a spirit confident ofmy rights. Death is only an incident, and not the most impor-

Winston and Clementine: the Triumph of the Churchills, byRichard Hough, London: Bantam Books 590 pages£16.95. ' v B '

tant wh happens to us in this state of being. On the whole,especially since I met you my darling one I have been happy,& you have taught me how noble a woman's heart can be. Ifthere is anywhere else I shall be on the look-out for you.Meanwhile look forward, feel free, rejoice in life, cherishthe children, guard my memory. God bless you. Good-bye.W."

Hough, says Rhodes James, should have quoted that letterand understood it. I am astonished that he did not. It is not allthat difficult to find the unifying bond, the secret to success,of Winston and Clementine: their marriage was based onsimple and abiding mutual respect. Without which, mostmarriages falter.

—RICHARD M. LANGWORTH

ICS NEW BOOK SERVICE: DISCOUNT PRICESReviewed Above:

1008. BLOOD, TOIL, TEARS & SWEAT (Reg $19). ICS price $171001. INDIA (Regular price $35). ICS price $28

INDIA Deluxe Leather Edn (Reg $100). ICS $85MALAKAND FIELD FORCE. (Reg. $19). ICS price $17THE BOER WAR. (Reg $20). ICS price $18MY AFRICAN JOURNEY. (Reg $18). ICS price $15WINSTON AND CLEMENTINE. (Reg £17). ICS price $34

Other New Books Available:MY EARLY LIFE, Churchill, illus. British Edition, 372pages. Imported. (Reg £15). ICS price $30CHURCHILL/IMAGES OF GREATNESS (reviewedFH64), 208pp softbound. (Reg $30). ICS price $20CHURCHILL/AN ILLUSTRATED BIOGRAPHY (re-viewed FH66), recommended, 224pp. (Reg $20). ICS price$14CHURCHILL 1874-1922, Birkenhead (reviewed FH66),552pp, illus. (Reg. £20). ICS price $40WINSTON S. CHURCHILL ON EMPIRE, Emmert(reviewed FH66), 158pp. (Reg $20). ICS price $18

1012. WINSTON CHURCHILL: UNBREAKABLE SPIRIT (goodjuvenile), 128pp illus. (Reg $12). ICS price $10

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To Order:Add for shipping: $3 first book, $1 each additional book. Prices inUS dollars; please mark Canadian cheques "US funds." Send toChurchillbooks, Burrage Road, Contoocook NH 03229 USA.

Please note:The New Book Service is maintained on a cost basis in order to passalong savings to members and friends of ICS. Members only, andone of each title per customer, please.

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31

CHURCHILL TRIVIAEDITED BY BARBARA LANGWORTH

TEST your skill and knowledge! Virtually allquestions can be answered in back issues ofFinest Hour (but it's not really cricket tocheck). Twenty-four questions appear ineach issue, the answers in the followingissue.

Questions fall into six categories: Contem-poraries (C), Literary (L), Miscellaneous(M), Personal (P), Statesmanship (S), andWar(W).

193. Sir Winston S. Churchill is often con-fused with this American author one ofwhose novels is entitled "The Crisis." (C)

194. ". . . the very repository of the mostvirulent hatreds that have ever darkened andcorroded the human breast" was written byWSC about whom? (L)

195. Churchill had envisioned a hydro-electric dam at Owens Falls on the Nilewhen on his African journey in 1907. Whenwas one finally built? (M)

196. Who or what was High Hat? (P)

197. When, and at what age, did WSCmake his final visit to the U.S.? (S)

198. What was Churchill's particularwarning to Britain about Germany in the lateThirties? (W)

199. Name the title, author and date of thefirst biography of Churchill. (C)

200. The American Civil War was origi-nally part of what work by Churchill? (L)

201. Churchill would say that "a day spentaway from [where?] was a day wasted." (M)

202. What years did Churchill deem "thehappiest of my life"? (P)

203. Churchill was Prime Minister from10 May 1940 until when? (S)

204. Churchill was aware of Hitler'shistory of broken promises. How many canyou name? (W)

205. Who, in The World Crisis, was "theonly man on either side who could lose theWar in an afternoon"? (C)

206. WSC's speeches from 1936-38 werepublished in the U.S. as "While EnglandSlept." What was the British title? (L)

207. What was the name of the Beaver-brook's Riviera home where WSC winteredin his later years? (M)

208. Churchill was past 40 when he beganwhich of his many hobbies? (P)

209. Because of his dominating person-ality, refusal to delegate and irregular workhabits, WSC was relieved of what positionby Chamberlain? (S)

210. "We are waiting for the long-promised invasion. So are the fishes." Thiswas broadcast in 1940 to whom? (W)

211. Winston was refering to whom whenhe wrote to Clementine "the little man wasdressed up to the nines in the Balmoral tar-tan with dagger and jabot"? (C)

212. What was the American title ofWSC's book, Into Battle! (L)

213. When was the House of Commonsrebuilt (according to WSC's specifications)?(M)

214. "If there be any who rejoice that I[WSC] live, to that dear and excellentwoman their gratitude is due," refers towhom? (P)

215. "The foundations of . . . peace arestrengthening among . . . civilised countries. . . but [name the country] is incalculable,aloof and malignant." (1931) (S)

216. According to researchers, how manytimes did WSC actually sleep in the CabinetWar Rooms? (W)

ANSWERS TO LAST TRIVIA169. Neville Chamberlain170. The River War (1900)171. Napier172. Randolph, Diana, Sarah, Mary and

(Marigold d. 1921)173. USA, Luxembourg, Cuba174. German invasion of France175. W. Averell Harriman176. Ian Hamilton's March (1900)177. Stamps produced mainly to sell collec-

tors by the Arab Trucial States.178. "Oranges and Lemons" (1958)179. Harvard, 6 September 1943180. Nazi and Soviet invasions181. Churchill's flying ability182. London to Lady smith via Pretoria

(1900)183. 1922, Major Campbell Colquhoun184. Three185. Women196. Czechoslovakia187. Lord Rosebery188. Macaulay's Lays of Ancient Rome189. The Pinafore Room at the Hotel Savoy,

London190. The Churchill's London home (from

1945)191. The Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm192. Order of the Elephant

REVIEWING CHURCHILLThe World Crisis: The Eastern Front by TheRight Hon. Winston S. Churchill, (London:Thornton Butterworth, New York: Scribners,Toronto: Macmillan, 1931)Punch, Vol. CLXXXI, 1931.

One of the most vivacious of all profes-sional historians of the war, Mr. Winston S.Churchill, a writer whom future generationsno doubt will recollect as having himselfmixed in statesmanship, has added to hisnarrative-series and his reputation yetanother triumphant achievement.

With brilliant restraint he has refrainedfrom any but the rarest use of the first personsingular, and as its occasional appearance isalways associated with the rolling away ofclouds of doubt and indecision, no one willgrudge the introduction. His study, the sway-ing of the fighting-line that ringed CentralEurope from the Baltic to the Adriatic, isgrim and tragic to an uttermost degree. Ifone were able to divide this sum-total ofmisery into detail of human beings the storywould be insupportable, and wisely Mr.Churchill is content to speak mainly in termsof variously shaded caterpillar-lines on a

map, that twist and siddle and attempt to curlround one another, or break to fragments anddisappear in accordance with the strategicplay of a mobile front.

The book is great in its clarity, masterfulin its analysis, decorated with effective in-dividual character-studies, but truly terriblein its moments of intensity.

The New Statesman and Nation, 7Nov. 1931.

One may not agree with Mr. Churchill'sviews on finance or India or any otherpolitical questions, but all must admire hiscourage and energy. What courage it re-quired to attack such a subject as this! Whatenergy to carry through so vast and dismal anundertaking! Even students of the war aretempted to turn aside from the contemplationof the Russian front. But the results of Mr.Churchill's daring is one of the finest andmost needed volumes on the Great War.

It is an appalling vision of human miseryand slaughter that he calls up. We are showna region hardly known to anyone in this

continued on page 38

32

WOODS CORNER

Addenda and corrigenda to theBibliography of the Works of SirWinston Churchill, by Frederick Woods(2nd rev. edition 1975).

When I last contributed to "WoodsCorner" and commented on the newChurchill Bibliography I hoped to write,the manuscript was not 100 pages long.It is now 650 pages single spaced and,as NASA would say, counting. SectionA (works wholly or substantially byChurchill), Section B (works by otherswith contributions by Churchill in firstvolume appearance) and Section C(Churchill contributions to periodicals)have taken shape.

Additional (and new) projected sec-tions are: first appearance materialpublished in catalogues — almostalways letters (Section D); interviewsand conversations quoted in books orpamphlets (E); quotations from Chur-chill on dust jackets of works by otherauthors (F); translations of worksoriginally published in English (G).Those works published for the first timein another language appear, as ex-pected, in Section A (e.g. Taler I Dan-mark, the 1950 volume of Churchill ad-dresses given during his Danish trip, notindividually published in English).

As you know, Woods' Section A lists143 items. The new Bibliography con-tains 221 main entries, treating everyedition and impression, and comprises300 manuscript pages. Section B (whosescope is much larger than Woods) con-tains 227 main entries. Woods' SectionC has 527 main entries; the new SectionC lists 951 in 200 manuscript pages, anddocuments all the component parts ofevery serialisation. For example,Volume I of The World Crisis, serial-ised as Mr. Churchill's Book in TheTimes in February 1923, consists of 16parts including subtitles, publicationdates and pagination.

The foreign translations are also com-pelling. I have personally examined andtaken detailed notes on twenty-five Sec-tion A titles translated into fourteenother languages in ninety-five differenteditions: Czech, Danish, Finnish,French, German, Hebrew, Hungarian,Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Serbo-Croation (both Cyrillic and Romanalphabets), Slovene, Swedish and

Turkish. The Section includes theforeign titles (including individualvolumes of multi-volume works,publishers, translators, dates, cities,and so on. To accomplish this I havevisited forty libraries in twenty-fourcities in sixteen countries, plus privatecollections.

In sum, I have been busy with Chur-chill, though admittedly uncom-municative. Beginning this year, I hopeto change that. —RonaldI. Cohen

JACKETS AND PROOFS

DUST JACKETS and proof copies are rarely seenand neither ever discussed, at least in print.No information on them is found in Woods.

In broaching these areas, I have two goals:first, to provide readers with new informa-tion; and, second, to solicit from readers in-formation which will be useful in the com-pletion of the Bibliography (see sidebar).

Most collectors and dealers, even the mostserious and advanced among us, have notseen dust jackets earlier than those wrappingthe individual war speech volumes, alongwith Marlborough.

Lack of familiarity with jackets may re-sult partly from the fact that Woods did nottreat the subject at all. It is also true that thedesirability of dust jackets on significantworks of Twentieth Century Literature is arelatively recent phenomenon and, when theWoods Bibliography first appeared (1963)little attention was probably paid to jackets.This omission will be corrected in the forth-coming Bibliography, in which I expect toprovide information as detailed as that pro-vided for title pages, information which willalso permit users of the work to distinguishthe jackets used on subsequent impressionsfrom those used on the First Editions.

It is true that jackets on Step by Step, GreatContemporaries, Arms and the Covenant,Thoughts and Adventures and My Early Lifeappear from time to time but they are admit-tedly scarce (whether on the British,American or Canadian editions). Many of usmay also have seen them on individualvolumes of The World Crisis but, untilrecently, I, for one, had not seen jacketedfull sets offered for sale. But we never sawor heard of jackets on the earlier material.Thus many have assumed that the workspublished before 1923 were in fact soldwithout jackets. This is not the case. I am, infact, prepared to assert that there is probablynot a single one of Churchill's cloth-boundworks which was not originally published ina dust jacket.

The first cracks in my wall of ignorance

33

11 iu RIVER

WARTHE RIVF.R WAR

The extremely rare River War dust jackets,recently discovered on a two-volume set.

came with Lord Randolph Churchill. I firstsaw the one-volume edition of 1907 with ajacket. I have now examined three or foursuch copies but they are all anomalous in thatthe rear wrap contains a reference to Vol. IIof Sir Sidney Lee's Biography, King EdwardVII, to be published in the Autumn of 1925.Accordingly, even upon seeing these jackets,I was not yet convinced that the 1907-published copy of the work was so wrapped.Then I saw a set of the two-volume LordRandolph with a jacket on the secondvolume. And that could only mean 1906!(Both the 1906 and 1907 jackets wereremarkably uninteresting: words only; no il-lustrative material.)

Shortly after that, I came acrossLiberalism and the Social Problem with halfthe jacket. Only the top wrap, or "front,"and the front flap remained; it was curiousthat such a small piece had not been dis-carded. This was at least more interestingthan the Lord Randolph jacket — it carried aphoto of the young Cabinet Minister. Subse-quently I have seen the entire Liberalismjacket and, while the rest of it was not moreinteresting than the half, there can be no de-nying the satisfaction in owning the entirewrapper, a very rare item in any form.

An unspecialized (in Churchilliana) dealerthen reported to me that he had held and ex-amined a 1900 copy of Savrola in a jacket. Iwas scarcely able to believe him although Isaw little reason for him to be lying. Thevalue of this tale does not seem to me to riseto the level of a fish story. After all, abookseller has a greater need to sell a bookthan to report that he has seen it. His storydid seem to be substantiated, however, bymy later discovery that jacketed copies ofSavrola had been reported in two othercatalogues, one of these being the well-known Mortlake catalogue of c. 1970.

I then located the 1915 Hodder &Stoughton Sevenpenny Library edition ofSavrola, which is found in a very attractive,even garish, jacket, with a full-colour rendi-

Cohen, continued

tion of the frontispiece picture of Savrolastanding over the body of the slain Molara.

The most exciting revelations were, how-ever, to come: jackets on " A l , " and "A2 . "Admittedly, the Malakand and The RiverWar were the little Thomas Nelson editions(1916 and 1915 respectively) but they werethose works. And, by any standards, theywere early jackets. They were also il-lustrated and bicolored. But the greatest sur-prise was yet to come.

The First Edition of The River War wasdefinitely issued in jackets, and this in 1899.I have now personally examined them. Likethe Liberalism, The River War jackets are il-lustrated. The jackets are essentially iden-tical to the cloth boards, except that they areprinted dark on light, which does, in a way,make them more striking.

I am totally unaware of the existence ofjackets on London to Ladysmith, IanHamilton's March, My African Journey andthe cloth-bound People's Rights. This doesnot, however, alter my underlying assump-tion that all of the cloth-bound works wereoriginally issued in dust jackets.

Having taken you through my learningprocess, let me raise a few specific points.

THE DUST JACKETSLord Randolph Churchill: I do not believethat I have yet seen the dust jacket whichwrapped the First One-Volume Edition.Such a jacket would undoubtedly not havethe 1925 date on the rear. I must conclude,insofar as the volume is concerned, that extraunbound sheets laid around for many yearsafter 1907 (not an unusual state of affairsat the time) and were bound and sold asneeded. This is also supported by thepresence of several binding varieties of thevolume, recognized principally by the widthof the publisher's name on the spine and thegilding (or not) of the top edge of the pages.

The World Crisis: The jackets vary fromprinting to printing. Details of these willultimately be provided in the Bibliographybut you must assume in general that thereshould not be any reviewer's comments ornotices, relating to the volume, wrapped onthe jacket wrapping it if you are looking for afirst edition dust jacket. This, of course, isno longer the case in the modern publishingera, in which such comments are sought bythe publishers before trade publication. TheKeystone Library Unknown War is distinc-tive, similar in design to the Keystone EarlyLife (see below).

My Early Life: jackets are so rarely seenthat I am unable to provide any advice withrespect to the different printings; however, itwas the Thornton Butterworth edition (andnot the Scribner edition, as one would ex-pect) of the work which was sold in Canadaby Thos. Nelson. The Canadian issue waswrapped in a Nelson jacket distinguishableby the presence of the Canadian publisher's

name (in addition to Butterworth's) and theprice of the book in dollars, notSterling. Also Keystone Library (English)Editions carry jackets distinct fromThornton-Butterworth's, even thoughKeystone was a Butterworth imprint.

Thoughts and Adventures and Great Con-temporaries: There are differences in thejackets wrapping most, if not all, of theprintings of the First Editions. I will nottake the time to detail these here except tomake a couple of observations. First, in thecase of Thoughts, the Keystone Library Edi-tion used a unique jacket different from theFirst Edition with the expected addition ofthe Keystone Library logo. This is also thecase with the Keystone Editions of otherThornton Butterworth publications.

The Revised, Enlarged Edition of GreatContemporaries is bound in a new, pop-ularized and cheaper format. No longer thefamiliar black on orange print, it is blue onwhite with a well-known photograph ofChurchill on the front. This pattern is alsofollowed on the final 1940 Thornton-Butterworth issue, aka the "new edition."

Thoughts and Adventures first edition jackets (I)and Amid These Storms (US edition) jackets (r)are scarce; Odhams (center) are common.

Marlborough: additional informationrelating to the printing of the volume may befound at the lower right corner of the frontflap (often unfortunately clipped off since itwas also the location of the price). There isalso the self-styled Harrap "Limited Presen-tation Edition" of 1939. The cloth binding isnew and the jackets are re-designed. Thelater Two-Volume Editions also have re-designed jackets.

Step by Step: while uncommon, this jacketis seen from time to time. I have not re-marked that there is any difference betweenthe different printings.

Arms and the Covenant is a differentmatter. The jacket usually seen is the darkblue on light blue version. There is, how-ever, a completely different red on yellowjacket which, I believe, is to be found on theearliest copies, perhaps used for travellers'(salesmen's) purposes. It is simpler, ifcrude.

AMERICAN DUST JACKETSSomething should also be said of the

American jackets. I have not been luckyenough to set eyes upon the jackets of anyAmerican Editions prior to 1923.

The World Crisis: The jackets of thevarious printings do not seem to changesignificantly; however, the 1916-1918 two-volume work was published in a box, which

is why the flaps and rear of the jacketswrapping the volumes are blank. The jacketfor The Unknown War was, however, com-pletely different in design from the earliervolumes, printed in red and black on greypaper.

Marlborough is a particular case. Origi-nally issued in green on white jackets, plainexcept for lettered spines and a green coat ofarms on the fronts, volumes 1 and 2 wereboxed together, as were volumes 3 and 4.Volume 5 was first issued in a red and blackjacket and volume 6 in the more familiar blueand gold. The entire set was then re-issued inthe blue and gold jackets, and sold at least insome cases in a dark green six-volume slip-case.

A Roving Commission went through manyAmerican editions and printings and thejackets changed with regularity in the pro-cess. Amid These Storms did not go throughsuch transmogrifications and is only knownin a single jacket. Jackets on the Firsts ofboth works are scarce.

Putnam then took over from Scribners andthe jackets for Great Contemporaries, WhileEngland Slept and Step by Step axe, uniformlydesigned (although in different bold colours)with a photograph of Churchill on the front.The different printings of each of thevolumes have correspondingly modifiedjackets (distinguished not by alternations ofthe fronts but rather the rears and flaps).

As I have indicated above, there still re-main gaps in our knowledge of jackets forworks published prior to 1923, even if I amconfident that they were all so issued. Ac-cordingly, I earnestly solicit informationfrom readers anywhere in the world regard-ing early dust jackets. I would be grateful tohave photographs or copies of any or even tolearn of collectors whose jacketed works Icould examine on even a brief visit. Mybusiness finds me traveling widely through-out the world.

THE PROOFSIn a not dissimilar vein, I have been at-

tempting to locate proof material of theworks published in volume form. Here, theage of the work does not pose a greater orlesser problem. Simply put, with the excep-tion of the History of the English-SpeakingPeoples, there seem to be no commonproofs. It is also my intention to cover thesein the new Bibliography.

For the information of readers, I have ex-amined proofs of Into Battle and TheUnrelenting Struggle but no other speechvolumes. One hears of the individualMarlborough volumes in proof form; how-ever, I only know of the location of (andhave examined) two complete sets. I am onlyfamiliar with a single set of the World Crisisproofs. I have seen My Early Life (a later im-pression only) and Thoughts and Adventuresin this form, as well as Great Contempo-raries. I have also had the good fortune to beable to examine a cloth-bound (unusual thus)proof of Liberalism and the Social Problem.

34

DESPA TCH BOX

k V-l

I I ' - III , ,, • ( ( , . . . | l | > 1.1.- IM . >!•• ' •

I i ' ) I I • I '

I I . - . ! ' ' . • "

* ; . ; | • • • • • • . • : • ' '

SOVIET REMEMBRANCESIn March I spent four days at Yalta

visiting various Churchill-related sites,and would like to assure Stanley Win-field (Despatch Box, FH65) that sincehis own visit things have certainlychanged.

As well as an exhibition of photo-graphs and documents at the LivadiaPalace, there is a plaque at the entranceto the Palace commemorating the Stalin-Churchill-Roosevelt meeting, and nameplaces on the conference table itself,showing where each of them sat. I en-close two photographs, one of theplaque and one of Churchill's nameplace, which you may perhaps be able toreproduce.

MARTIN GILBERT, CBE, LONDON

HONORARY MEMBERSThank you so very much for sending

me the certificate of honorary member-ship in the International ChurchillSocieties. I am both pleased and de-lighted with it! The Societies do so verymany useful things and I am happy tohave had a role in helping with the Con-gressional passage of the "ChurchillWeek" resolution.

PAMELA C. HARRIMAN, WASHINGTON

I was deeply pleased and honored toreceive the certificate of honorarymembership, with your bright sugges-tion to add it to the walls of "LaPausa." It has been done!

WENDY REVES, CAP MARTIN, FRANCE

ADVICE TO THE HATELORNI do think that FH is first class. Re

letter 3A of Number 65: It is, of course,ludicrous for Mr. Daniel Lazare toclaim that Winston Churchill was anti-semitic. The contrary evidence is mas-sive. To take just a few examples: theBalfour Delcaration; the refusal to meetHitler in the 1930s because of his anti-semitism; WSC's lifelong, numerousand prominent Jewish friends fromChaim Weizmann to Bernard Baruch;the high regard shown to him in Israel;Ben-Gurion's deeply respectful visit tohim in his old age; WSC's numerousreferences to the Jewish people in hisspeeches — all these add to the case.

What is true is that WSC was not anuncritical friend. I have in mind parti-cularly the cowardly murder of so manyof our soldiers and colonial administra-tors in the last days of the PalestineMandate, the blowing up of the KingDavid Hotel, the hanging in cold bloodof two British sergeants and the subse-quent booby-trapping of their bodies.These were the very people who hadsaved the Jewish population from exter-mination by Hitler via the Britishdeclaration of war on Germany in 1939(not an involuntary entry into the war inDecember 1941, Mr. Lazare).

Against these vile acts Churchill ex-ploded, "These were deeds of black in-gratitude which will never be for-gotten."

What Mr. Lazare apparently wants isunmitigated praise and support un-tempered by any breath of criticism.(As John Steinbeck is alleged to havesaid of literary critics, "Unconditionalpraise or ignore the bastards.") Thatapproach Churchill accorded to no one,and no cause: happily for us all.

ANTHONY MONTAGUE BROWNE, LONDON

FINEST HOUR 65Thank you very much for the issue

featuring the ICS visit to Epernay. It im-mediately brought back to my mindsome memorable hours.

CHRISTIAN POL-ROGER, EPERNAY, FRANCE

My appreciation to all concernedbecause I find FH always so full of in-terest, issue 65 more so with the reporton the visit here. I am afraid the hur-ricane, followed by extreme heat and

35

Sir Winston ChurchillScholarship Foundation

In issue 64, Finest Hour inadvertentlypublished an earlier account of theScholarship Foundation established bythe Sir Winston S. Churchill Society ofEdmonton, Alberta by Dr. HarveyHebb: The following addendum bringsthe story up to date and is publishedwith apologies to the author. — Editor.

Since 1978 three graduate studentsfrom the University of Alberta haveeach completed three years at ChurchillCollege and have received Ph.D.degrees. A fourth will soon join them.

With the assistance of funds from theProvincial Government of Alberta, thecapital sum has reached more than a halfmillion dollars. This enables thescholarship foundation to grant an an-nual scholarship which is now valued at$20,000.

It was Sir Winston's wish that Chur-chill College should occupy a place inGreat Britain similar to that of theMassachusetts Institute of Technology.We have been fortunate in securingFaculty of Engineering students to sendto Churchill College who have been acredit both to it and the University ofAlberta. We look forward to the con-tinuation of this link with the Universityof Alberta and Churchill College bothfor the benefit of students and as atribute to the memory of Sir WinstonChurchill.

draught, left the wood and garden inrather a sorrowful state, but for me itwas all a great pleasure as everyoneseemed so appreciative, thanks largelyto being so affably incited by the tourhosts.

ARTHUR SIMON, HOE FARM, SURREY, UK

It is always a delight when FinestHour comes. I am a Churchill devoteefrom May 10th 1940 and he was Chan-cellor of the University [Bristol -Ed.]from which I graduated. May you con-tinue forever. [We hope! -Ed.]DR. ANTHONY LEE, SUDBURY, ON, CANADA

CHARTWELL BULLETINSMany thanks for the very exciting

canvas bag containing your fine gift ofChartwell Bulletins. We really aredelighted and quite a few have alreadybeen snapped up by members of thestaff. The balance we intend to sell in

Despatch BOX, continued

the gift shop. The calendars we are sell-ing for a nominal amount and the Pro-ceedings we are keeping for the real en-thusiasts.

We are an incredible 4000 visitorsup on the same time (29 May) last yearand you may remember that last yearwas the second highest number ever.Our special event on 8-9 June [advertlast issue] was fully booked for theSaturday night and filled nicely for theFriday. All good wishes,

JEAN BROOME, CHARTWELL, KENT

The Chartwell Bulletins are magnifi-cent. I like the way they were assembledand the appropriate accompanyingphotos [all thanks to Lady Soames-Ed.] Scholarly publications like thismust surely attract new members. It hasalways been a source of great pride tobe associated with the ICS. After seeingthis regal booklet I feel very proud ofour work.CDR LARRY KRYSKE, ALBUQUERQUE, NM, USA

Just glanced through the ChartwellBulletins. It's a lovely volume and yourexcellent foreword sets the mood for anexcellent read. Thanks so much.

GERALD LECHTER, FT. LEE, NJ, USA

Very many thanks to all the memberswho so kindly wrote about the"Bulletins, " and to Harvey Greisman

for distributing them to the press andbook reviewers. RML

NOTES TO TOM THOMASI was amused to note that the

"Savrola" letter {FH 63, p5) was fromEms worth, Hants. Churchill is not theonly member of The Other Club to beconnected with Ems worth. Sir PelhamGrenville Wodehouse, who was amember from the 1930s until his deathforty years later, took the name andgave it to Clarence, Ninth Earl ofEms worth, owner of The Empress ofBlandings, one of Wodehouse's mostsumptuous leading ladies.

JAMES H. HEINEMAN, NEW YORK

Ho-ho-ho . . . Empress of Blandingswas the preeminent Black Berkshire pigwho, through a series of nine novels anda short story, won the 87th, 88th and89th Fattest Pig award at the ShropshireAg Show.

CHURCHILL HERE AND THERE"Churchill's" is on Winston Chur-

chill Avenue, Portsmouth and wevisited it the other day. It contains manygood photos of WSC and other wartimememorabilia — well worth a visit andserves excellent food. If you're this waywe'll pay it a visit.

L. L. THOMAS, EMSWORTH, HANTS, UK

You 're on; the ICS tour was in Ports-mouth last year and missed it.

I have been a Churchill fan for sometime. You will note our company logois a profile of WSC. This is also on ourhighway tractors and trailers.

L. A. ALLEN, PRES. SCOTT-WINSTON

TRANSPORT. SAULT STE. MARIE, ON, CANADA

Readers of FH who travel to Scan-dinavia will be interested to learn that"Churchills Bar" has recently openedin the centre of Oslo, Norway in FritjofNansens Plass (opposite City Hall). TheEnglish-style "pub" features many pic-tures of the great man as well as severalframed, signed letters to members of hisfamily, and other memorabilia. I canrecommend a visit to this pub with its

WtM-

THE OSLO STATUE, DRAMMENSVEIEN

well-created Churchillian decor and am-bience; followed, of course, by a walkto Drammensveien to see the fine statueof Sir Winston, which no visitor to Osloshould miss.

DAVID BOLER, SEVENOAKS, KENT, UK

APPENDIX REQUIREDIn November 1922 Winston Churchill

underwent an appendectomy (appen-dicectomy in English English) in a nurs-ing home in Dorset Square, London. Iam an anesthesiologist (anaesthetist)and am writing the story of Churchill'smany episodes of, and contacts with,surgery and anaesthesia. I would bemost grateful if any readers have infor-mation about the Dorset Square nursinghome, the technical and medical detailsof the anaesthetic, the operation and hisrecovery, and the names of the surgeonand anaesthetist. Any other pertinent in-formation will be thankfully receivedand acknowledged.

GERALD L. ZEITLIN, MD, LAHEY CLINIC,

41 MALL RD, BURLINGTON MA 01805 USA

NEW REPUBLIC IGNORANCELIVES ON

In case you've missed it [yes . . .-Ed.] I call your attention to Blood,Class and Nostalgia by ChristopherHitchens, published by Farrar, Straussand Giroux this year. In a chapterheaded "The Churchill Cult" theauthor writes the following: " . . . TheChurchill Society, a group of buffs whomeet for weekends of patriotic oratory. . . among recent participants wereJohn Lehmen [sic] and Sam Nunn . . . "

AL LURIE, NEW YORK

Doubtless this originated with theinept "New Republic" article on ICS,see FH 58. Senator Nunn has not yetparticipated, nor has John Lehman,whose name the author misspells.

36

SOVEREIGN COVERI have been a combination-cover col-

lector for over thirty years. The en-closed is one of my favorites, depictingChurchill who served in some capacityunder six sovereigns, all of whom arealso represented. I believe this is theonly one like it.

JACK SHABER, SURFSIDE, FL USA

CANADIAN HOSPITALITYI had the happiest and most wonderful

visit to my old home in British Colum-bia last September, staying in the dearhouse where I grew up, with a child-hood friend, and subsequently to Van-couver where I was so kindly receivedand entertained by the Churchill Societyof B.C. It really was a great pleasure,and particularly pleasing to know the SirWSC Society is not lacking in new youngmembers. They gave me two beautifulinscribed volumes on B.C. and Canada,treasured possessions.

We live in interesting days, here inSouth Africa and in the world as awhole, and I can assure you that for usin S.A. to face the future as we shouldneeds a great deal of courage. But whata challenge it is, how exciting and de-manding, good to be present on thisstage at this time. We all need a littlemore WSC in us — his magnanimity aswell as his courage.

ELIZABETH NEL, PORT ELIZABETH, RSA

FINEST HOUR 66A note on Michael Richards' review

of Winston S. Churchill On Empire:The illustration on the dust jacket is"flopped," i.e., printed backwards.The headgear of the South African LightHorse Regiment was worn pinned up onthe left side, not the right, and Britishribbon bars for campaign medals arealways worn on the left breast, neverthe right.

DOUGLAS S. RUSSELL, IOWA CITY, IA USA

Just one point on Keith Suter's ad-mirable review of Australian foreignpolicy. Perhaps when they consider thatwhen America had Australia's popula-tion she was producing nothing but first-rate presidents, they would not be sosmug: where are Australia's great primeministers? Also, how timely for Finest

Hour to run a Suter piece well ahead ofa Souter's nomination to the UnitedStates Supreme Court!

JAMES MACK, FAIRFIELD, OH, USA

May I nominate Robert Menzies andJohn Curtin for possible considerationas great Aussie PMs? There is no rela-tion between the two; also, you can findKeith in Perth, but all the reporters inthe world can 'tfind the Judge, last seenin Weare, New Hampshire.

EDITORIAL APPROVALLet me congratulate you on your

splendid "Thoughts and Adventures"in issue 65 concerning, generally, theevents in Europe. I do quite agree thatthe American Secretary of State is onecold fish. I rather imagine that anyclaim about tears rolling down hischeeks is an extravagant exaggeration.But he would make it, I feel.WILLIAM HARVEY, GRAY PROFESSOR OF LAW

INDIANA UNIVERSITY, INDIANAPOLIS

/ witnessed the tears myself on thetelly, and as we all know, everythingon the telly is true . . .

EDITORIAL DISSENTMuch as I usually find myself in tune

with Finest Hour, I must take issue withyour "Thoughts and Adventures" innumber 66. The Poles and Germanswould make a grave mistake if theymade the pre-1939 frontiers the subjectof government policy. What might in1945 or 1953 have been legitimate forGermany to ask from Poland, and forPoland from the Soviets, has lost itsrelevance. Not because of who's incharge in Moscow, but by the merepassage of time. People on either side ofthe Potsdam borders have made theirhomes there and raised generations ofyoung people. Whatever other countrytheir home town used to belong to, tothem it is as much home as Warsaw is toWarsovians or Stuttgart to Stuttgarters.They are a majority now; should senti-ments of revisionism prevail over thedestinies of the millions now living inSilesia, East Prussia, Lwow, etc.? Ithink not.

Whatever one may think of the waythe present borders between Germany,Poland and the Soviet Union have comeinto being, they are ethnically, andthereby politically, more stable thanthey were prior to 1939. It is that stabi-lity that we want. Once we have a situa-tion that allows citizens of each countryunlimited access to the other countries

37

as tourists, businessmen or whatever,nobody except some of the former Ger-man Silesians — for whom my heartbleeds — will have anything to com-plain about.

Wisely, the parliaments of Bonn andEast Berlin have seen this too, and haveaccepted the Oder and the WesternNeisse as the rightful German borderwith Poland. Which to all intents andpurposes has terminated the issue. Goodriddance. Keep up the good work.

D.J. OOSTRA, EMMELOORD, HOLLAND

They accept it for now. What I findsomewhat chilling among all thiseuphoria (europhoria?) is that it somuch resembles the peacefully lightedscenes of early 1914.

Much the same reasoning for preserv-ing current boundaries has been used byGorbachev ("it is home to a millionRussians'') to justify the continued oc-cupation of the Baltic States and todeclare their moves toward indepen-dence "illegal. " On reflection, sincesuch decisions rest eminently with thePoles and Germans, I think you areright. But I do wish our mediamassagers over here would not ob-fuscate history for the sake of currentpolitical fashion.

I take great exception to your editorialin issue 65. In it you lamented the lackof quality of present leaders and speci-fically made very harsh comment aboutPresident Bush.

I do not quarrel with the latter; it isyour feeling and you are entitled to it. Iwould not go as far as you but I also amunderwhelmed by his actions to date.However, I do quarrel with the fact thatyou made it in Finest Hour.

I doubt that anyone is interested inwhether Bush is up to Churchill'sstature. It was a gratuitous comment,unrelated to WSC. I am interested inChurchill. That is what the Society andFH are all about. I do not believe thatFH should be the vehicle for privatepolitical opinion unrelated to WSC.

I agree with the idea of consideringcurrent problems in the Churchilliancontext. To that extent a comparison ofthe actions of an American presidentwith those of Churchill about hostagetaking in the Middle East, or a com-parison of the collapse of the BritishEmpire under WSC with the Sovietunder Gorbachev, would be in theproper context.

MAT FOX, CHICAGO

Despatch BOX, continued

(1) You mention a fraction of asentence in a long editorial about Chur-chill and Europe: indeed a third of itwas WSC's own words. (2) No onelamented Bush's relative stature;rather, I criticized his failure to find ap-propriate words to express over EastEurope's liberation, and named severalEnglish-speaking leaders, none rankingwith Churchill, who would have.

(3) I do not believe the world has runout of great leaders, but I think it wrongto suppose that they crop up consis-tently. Churchill said of Lord Rosebery,' 'he lived in a time of great men andsmall events. " I am afraid we live in atime of great events and one or twogreat men. And women.

(4) Our journal has contained politi-cal opinion, not always directly relatedto WSC, for 20 years, and I don't seehow an organization devoted to thestudy of a politician could avoid it. Noteveryone may agree with former Con-gressman Courier's views of strategicdefense, not three percent of which hadany relation to Churchill (1987 Pro-ceedings); but nobody disputed his rightto raise an issue that is of interest tostudents of Churchill for comparativereasons.

I believe ICS must be able to considerand debate current issues in the light ofChurchill's experience — not to suggestwhat he would say or do today, but whatlessons he taught us that might be ap-plied today. I may myself be clumsy inaddressing this goal, but I hope theauthors of our series entitled ' 'EnglishSpeaking Agenda" will assist.

We would gladly publish papers byreaders on the topics you mention.

-RML

CHURCHILLIANA

Here is a photo of a Churchill bottleopener [and we thought we'd seen it all.—Ed.] on which I need information. Iam sure it is not Danish, but would liketo know where, when and why it wasmade. The length is 9cm and the weight45g.

The other photo illustrates a ceramicissued 1979 by the Danish bankBikuben, part of a "Great Statesmen"series of money boxes. Churchill was ofcourse the first one made. The work, byDanish artist Arne Finne, is 16.5cm.3000 copies were made and the pricewas dkr. 150 of which dkr. 25 was sentto the Danish Red Cross, Sculptures

i [ I. F: •j-"JCNr H t. I J. A • i *. C r - A W

showing John F. Kennedy and MarshalTito of Jugoslavia followed in 1980-81.

HANS BUCH, HAVDRUP, DENMARK

The bottle opener is not in RonaldSmith's "Images of Greatness"; willany reader with information contact theeditor?

REVIEWING CHURCHILLcontinued from page 32

country till it was transformed into a field ofblood! To and fro across the almost unknownwilderness we see unnumbered swarms ofRussians, Germans, Austrians and Polestrampling, advancing, retreating, hungry,exhausted, submerged by whole battalions inbogs, scorched by heat, frozen to death, andall engaged upon the solemn duty ofslaughtering each other by thousands a day.

The most interesting chapters in a volumefull of interest are probably the first. For inthem, with great skill and knowledge, theauthor traces the origins of the war which hasshaken Europe's faith in civilization, religionand humanity, besides destroying the threegreatest Empires.

The causes of the war lay deep in racialhatreds, Imperialist greed, and dynastic am-bitions, but, as Mr. Churchill says, the flashwhich lighted the explosion was started bythree men: the man who committed the ac-tual murder of the Archduke and Duchess;the German Ambassador in Vienna whofalsely assured Austria of the Kaiser's sup-port; and the man who secretly launched thefatal ultimatum to Serbia in order to ensurethe fulfilment of his private desire forSerbia's destruction.

Once war was declared, nothing couldcheck the course of atrocious events. As Mr.Churchill says in his most trenchant manner:"A situation had been created where hun-dreds of officials had only to do theirprescribed duty to their respective countriesto wreck the world. They did their duty."

Most readers will be interested in the vastGerman victory at Tannenberg; for it wasthat which brought Hindenburg to his presenthigh position in Germany.

Mr. Churchill, as the originator of theDardanelles attempt, and as First Lord of theAdmiralty at the time, naturally touchesupon that gallant enterprise, and blames thefleet for not renewing its endeavour to forcethe passage. His disappointment is uttered ina cry of personal despair.

One can understand the feelings of the manwho originated the most brilliant stroke ofstrategy on our side in the war and then sawit frittered away for want of support. In thisvolume he has some revenge but it isremarkable how little he says about it.

Identification needed:circa 1900 marble (1)and unknown ceramicstatue (r). On the left-hand piece, note theresemblance of thechild to a circa 1940Churchill ("Allchildren look likeme.") The commentsof our readers would beappreciated.

38

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IMMORTAL WORDS

AMERICA AND THE BRITISH COMMONWEALTHThe future of the whole world

and the hopes of a broadening civilisation founded upon Christian ethicsdepend upon the relations between the British Commonwealth of Nations and the USA.

[It will] determine the way of life which will be open to the generations,and perhaps to the centuries,

which follow our own.If the cooperation between the United States and the British Commonwealth

in the task of extirpating the spirit and regime of totalitarian intolerancewherever it may be found were to fail,

the British Empire, rugged and embattled,might indeed hew its way through

and preserve the life and strength of our own countryfor the inevitable renewal of the conflict on worse terms,

after an uneasy truce.But the chance of setting the march of mankind

clearly and surely along the highroads of human progresswould be lost, and might never return.

Therefore we stand, all of us, upon the watch towers of history,and have offered to us the glory

of making the supreme sacrifices and exertions needed by a causewhich it may not be irreverent to call sublime.

I have always taken the view that the fortunes of mankind in its tremendous journeyare principally decided for good or ill

— but mainly for good, for the path is upward —by its greatest men and its greatest episodes.

I therefore hail it as a most fortunate occurrencethat at this awe-striking climax in world affairs

there should stand at the head of the American Republic a famous statesman,in whose heart there burns the fire of resistance to aggression and oppression

and whose sympathies and nature make him the sincere and undoubted championof justice and of freedom

and of the victims of wrongdoing wherever they may dwell.And not less —

for I may say it now that the party struggle in the United States is over —do I rejoice that this preeminent figure should newly have received

the unprecedented honour of being called for the third timeto lead the American democracies in days of stress and storm.

— PILGRIMS' SOCIETY LUNCHEON FOR LORD HALIFAX.AMBASSADOR-DESIGNATE TO THE UNITED STATES, LONDON, 9 JANUARY 1941