Evening star., 1935-04-28

the sixth Earl of Warwick. The War
Wicks we're linked through marriage to
the Beckett family, powerful in bank
ing and politics. And he was about to
marry Sir GervaSe Beckett's daughter
Helen.
He won the electoral battle on the
Warwick field, married, moved into
the larger field of parliamentary poll
tics. This was 1928, and he was 26.
In the same year a comic-opera poll
tician named Adolf Hitler staged an
absurd bierhall "putsch" in Munich
and was properly jailed for it, and
rough, obscure Communist party sec
retaHy in Moscow began an obviously
stupid intrigue to pull down the great
and celebrated leaders of Red Russia.
Doubtless our young Englishman.
taking his seat in Parliament. failed
even TO glimpse the truth about the
obscure movement in Moscow and
Munich, still less TO sense the implica-
ton of these men and these move
ments upon his own destiny and
fortunes.
Anyway, he could wait; and while
less patient young men in British
politics lost their heads, he kept his
He got his nose in when he became
Austen Chamberlain's parliamentary
private secretary. When the national
coalition swept the polls. Anthony
cd 70
He might have made nothing of the
job earlier on British minister after
British minister had grated and nego-
tiated and produced resounding peace
plans. and put Britains name to
pacts: and still peace refused to be
captured in clever legal formulae. and
the war tide rose steadily higher. The
time, in fact, was not ripe.
Wars for Peace.
But Britain needed-and needs
peace. She is slowly recovering from
her greatest war; her empire covers a
fourth of the earth and contains a
fourth Of its inhabitants. Her power
is founded on trade and finance She
does not fear military defeat in an
other European war. But she fears
bankruptcy in one-bankruptcy and
disruption of the national and i'm
perial forces. She wants peace: she
will range Europe and hold pow-wows
with Stain in Moscow, if necessary,
to attain her purpose.
She thought that a concentration
of the national energies would help
her, and to some extent it has No
foreign power can now play of Liberal
against Tory, or vice versa. But the
machinery has been humping over the
cogs. The eXigencies of politics put
the Liberal leader, Simon. into sthe
foreign ofice-a politico-lawyer. cold,
able. cautious. and. besides. a pacifist.
Bear in mind that the national coali-
ton is camouflaged Conservative
government, the three Labor repre-
sentatives being disowned by their
party zone has accepted a viscountcy;
another-the premier-is in line for
an earldom) and the Liberals being a
tiny fraction squeezed between Right
and Left.
Thus you have the stage set for the
elevation of Anthony Eden. Made
special envoy in charge of disarma-
ment negotiations, he subsequently
was made semi independent minister
to work in harness with the foreign
minister to pull peace chestnuts out
of the European fire No Johnson
Richberg feud possibilities here. Simon
will retire with a peerage when this
coalition breaks up. and Eden will be
the next Conservative foreign min
ister. Hence Eden is the white-headed
boy even to the chief upon whose
preserves he appears-but only ap-
pearS-tO have muscled in.
Son Of CoIorfuI Father.
He rides, plays tennis paints. His
athleticism and his estheticism he gets
from his late father Sir William Eden
was a character as richly colored as a
Shakespeare portrait, and as unre-
strained and passionate as his son
Anthony is discreet and disciplined; /;
and atheist who hated drink and to-
bacco, a huntsman who loved flowers.
1t is recorded of him that when his
horse broke down near the end of one
terrific hunt, his language reached the
ear Of the farmer quarter mile away.
and grass has never grown in that
field since.
It also is recorded of him that one
evening. riding home under a gray
sky, he suddenly feared that he might
grow like the hunting men he knew
their tastes limited to horses. whisky,
cigars and occasionally pretty
woman, and on reaching home he
wrote out his resignation as master of
the hunt. retired abroad and inter-
ested himself in horticulture.
It is possibly to Sir williams sense
of form also that Anthony owes his
fair for clothes. He is known in for
eign centers as England's best dressed
man. England's best-dressed men
think him a trifie too dressy.
Legends have grown up around hir.,.
As ne has been photographed walking
from airplane to customs house i'll a
gale, with head held high and Lat
unmoved at its customary Jaunty
angle, 1t is said that he CLUES his
headgear on. As he always emerges
from transcontinental expresses and
airplanes with pants unwrinkled and
unbagged by long sitting. it is runored
that he carries an extra pair and
changes into them just before the
train stops or the airplane lands,
thereby upholding Britains prestige.
One day he summoned a foreign
official. The official, sportsman who
had overstayed his week end, came in
feeling guilty "Sit down. my dear
fellow" said Mr. Eden genially. You've
shot elk in Sweden, I'm told. Now,
I'm Just off on q mission to Stock
holm. Tell me, what Is the correct
attire for shooting elk with the Swed-
ish government"