Evening star., 1941-05-18
By Richard L. Stokes.

-W Tue w OTLu ffIOLO,
night, in his JOY at discovering an Amer
lean portable radio. he danced before
guests in the drawing room with the
receiving set slung round his neck. And
there, during an editorial conference, he
began absently to cast off his clothes, till
the discussion ended with his promenad-
ing the sunny garden in state of nature.
A hypochondriac, he has made his
asthma notorious in two hemispheres.
barber has instruction to turn up
every three weeks and give him a hair
cut, wherever he may be. His lordship
affects custom made shoes at $40 pair
but Indignantly refuses to pay more than
$50 each for his department store suits
He scandalized international society at
Cannes, on the Riviera, by drawing back
the sleeves of his full-dress coat to show
that he used safety pins for cuff links.
Stonewal Jackson His Hero.
Legend had it that his Office in the
Aircraft Production Ministry was sup
piled with flunkies dressed as admirals
and generals. When a caller was to be
impressed the Minister punched a bell
for one of them and roared Get a
weeks pay; you're fred" Then he would
turn to the visitor and remark calmly:
You see? That's the way I run this
Office. No red tape"
But the medal has a reverse, austere
and somber, which camera and public
are seldom allowed to witness On days
of toll and thought. the droll grimaces
of pixy harden into a mask of bronze,
remote, silent and brooding, with only
the profound eyes smoldering alive. Such
is the Beaverbrook whose military hero
is Stonewall Jackson, not simply be-
cause the Virginia chieftain was bold
and sagacious, but also because he was
a covenanter, given to prayer. 1t is
the Beaverbrook who chriStened his pri-
vate plane John Knox and htters his
houses with portraits of the dour states
man and theologian who braved Mary
Stuart on her throne, established the
Church of Scotland and was driven
by a passion for great practical af-
fairs.
Since the job would need despotism
tinctured with cajolery, Churchill last
May possibly had in mind both Beaver
brooks, crusader and kobold, when he
founded the post of aircraft production
czar especially for his friend, to whom he
pledged a free hand and absolute sup
port. The new Minister had never been
connected with plane construction So
he proceeded first to master the in
dustry by dint of three-day inspec-
ton tour. Establishments were then
postponed, while he launched a series
of thunderbolts.
Boards of Directors Suspended.
The Royal Air Force was notified
that its fussiness in constantly changing
designs would be tolerated no longer
Efforts must be concentrated on a few
standard types, he declared. Against
their protest, he merged two of the
largest airplane plants in England, Nuf-
field and Vickers Supermarine, under
one management. Labor was told that
work in shifts would be compulsory
round the clock, "a hours a day and
seven days week.
Proprietors were shocked by a ukase
ordering that boards of directors be
suspended for the duration of the war.
A clean sweep was made of company
executives and shop foremen, who were
replaced with technicians responsible not
to stockholders, but government. Owners
and managers, Lord Beaverbrook had
convinced himself, were so indelibly sat
urated with notions of profit and loss
as to be incapable of thinking in terms
of national defense.
Overnight he ordained revolution in
the aviation industry which was de-
nounced, as verging on state socialism.
But initial outcries became mute in the
face Of results The Minister had to
work in nation the genius of which
has always been stoutly resistant to the
assembly belt. He encountered a lag
gard system of plane production under
the Chamberlain government, with rep
resentatives of ownership in charge and
the slogan, Business as usual" When
he took command, England's output was
about 80 machines day. Estimates pur-
port to show it has more than trebled
in year, to present total of approx
mately 5000 month.
. Covered War for Canadians.
At the outbreak of World War I,
Aitken donned khaki and the rank of
lieutenant colonel as record officer and
Official eyewitness Of the Canadian Ex-
peditionary Force. His account Of the
second battle Of Ypres, Ia which the