Evening star., 1936-12-04
BY ROGER d. GREENE,
Associated Press Staff Writer.

for Mrs. Wallis Simpson.
BY ROGER d. GREENE,
Associated Press Stan Writer.
NEW YORK, December 4-The con-
flict between King Edward VIII and
Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin, now
fiaring wide open to precipitate Brit
aims gravest constitutional crisis since
the reign of Charles II, has long
smoldered beneath the surface.
Its roots lie in the basic difference
between the old regime and the new
the staid post Victorian era Of George
v and the swift, Altra-modern tempo
set by the young man who gained the
soubriquet of the worlds Prince
Charming" before he came to the
throne.
It's roots lie far deeper than today's
climatic controversy over his friend
ship for the American-born Mrs.
Wallis Warfield Simpson.
Through all the whirlwind years OF
Edwards apprenticeship, as Prince OF
Wales, far-sighted obServers foresaw
the inevitable day when Edward as
monarch would reach showdown"
with Baldwin or any other old
regime minister who attempted to in
terfere with his private life.
II Shall Be King"
"When I am King, shall be King"
Edward once said, significantly, after
q reported run-in with Baldwin.
As long as he was Prince, not King.
he obeyed the dictates Of answering
loyalty to the throne of his father
and the dictate Of his own motto As
Prince of Wales: "Ich dien-I serve"
Sometimes stubbornly, but always
faithfully, he yielded to the pressure
Of his fathers ministers. At Bald
wins insistence he gave up steeple-
chase and point-to-point racing.
With Q wry grin, he embarked on
far-hung cruises to foreign lands in
the service of empire" as they were
oficially called-but to many behind
the scenes it was known that several
Of these wearying junkets were subtly
calculated to remove Edward from the
influence Of overly gay Mayfair COM
panions.
Edward bided his time. Until he
was Al years old, he submitted to
the ministerial remonstrances OF
Britain's elder statesmen. In way
he never reached his majority until
the death of his father reversed the
roles and placed him suddenly as
supreme and lone ruler Of his destiny,
Skaters .Precedents.
Then swiftly, with series of prece-
dent-smashing incidents, he made it
clear that, now that he was King,
he intended to "be" King in more
than name.
Baldwin might have seen the hand
writing on the wall in almost daily
London newspaper headlines. i
King flies to London-first Brit
lsh monarch to see nation from air"
Edward breaks another precedent
travels by ordinary railway coach"
His majesty orders clocks set back
10 correct time at Sandringnam-
granfather's orders reversed"
Again and again the new monarch
displayed his modernity, his i'm
patience with cob-webbed traditions of
the past. And in doing 50 he brought
to the surface q steel will which he
had long been forced to restrain.
Baldwin Forces Hand.
It was strangely appropriate that
the now-famous affair Simpson"
should have bfought into the open
the differences between Edward and
Baldwin, for it was Baldwin who had
repeatedly brought pressure to bear
on him as Prince Of Wales to get mar
ried and settle down"
In that one thing Edward rebelled.
He would not be forced into . loveless
marriage of state" and he en-
phatically said so on more than one
occasion.
Twelve hours out Of the day I do
my work-and mean work." he said
once. What I do the remaining IL
hours is my own affair. My private life
Is my own"
Baldwin and the other elder states
men differed with Edward. When the
new King came to the throne they
wanted Q monarch such as King
George had been-a kindly figure
head" to serve as . symbol Of SOW
sreignty, perhaps, rather than .
strong-willed ruler.
Personal Inspection Trip.
Edward had other ideas. His re-
cent tour of the drab, poverty
stricken valleys Of sorrow" in the
Welsh coal mining area, showed that
he was determined to see things for
himself-end, If possible, act-instead
Of reading carefully "sugared" reports
Of his ministers.
In q word, Edwards whole attitude
since he came to the throne has been
q though to say:
Away with sham! Let's have the
truth: Let's be frank"
In the opinion Of many, Edward
probably would have been content to
carry on his friendship with Mrs.
Simpson on its previous basis.
But. his adherents say, his hand was
forced, and the "old regime" chal-
lenged his sovereignty. until 1t became
at last necessary for him to take UP
the gauntlet and declare: