Evening star., 1942-03-06
Successor to Churchill?

Successor to Churchill?
The dispatch by Drew Middleton
from London to the effect that Win
ston Churchill soon may be replaced
as Britain'S Prime Minister by Sir
Stafford Cripps can hardly be dis
missed as mere dope" story.
Mr.. Middleton, an Associated Press
war correspondent, is an experienced
and thoroughly competent reporter.
When he attributes his information
to an extremely reliable and we'll
informed political source" it is safe
to assume that he is not dealing in
rumor or idle speculation. And yet,
granting this, it will be difficult for
most Americans to believe that Mr..
Churchill is on the way out.
There can be no doubt that the
Prime Minister is faced with a diff
cult political situation, a current of
unrest in Britain which has been
abated but not stilled by his recent
cabinet changes. Britons, according
to MIR. Middleton's informant, are fed
up with policy of preparing for
future offensives," and would prefer
dangerous effort which might help
end the war this year. There Is, it
must be admitted, certain plausi-
bility to this as source of dissatis-
faction with Mr.. Churchill, for he has
repeatedly announced his opposition
to rash and premature attacks in
which the possible gains are out
weighed by the probable losses and
the known risks. This was the posi-
tion that Mr.. Churchill took last year,
when important sections. Of British
opinion were clamoring for the open
ing of second front" on the con-
tinent, and If this demand for "ac-
tion" has now reached the point
where it may force the Prime Min
lister out Of Office or influence British
military policy, then the outlook is
indeed disquieting. 1t should be
noted that the Prime Minister'S
opposition, according to Mr.. Middle
ton, recommends f1ve- minute talk
with the average enlisted man, taxi
cab driver or dock worker for evil
dence of British popular opinion on
this score However indicative these
sources may be of the trend of public
opinion in Britain, it is hardly to be
supposed that they have the slightest
qualification for appraising British
capacity for an offensive war, and it
is difficult to believe that Mr..
Churchill, Sir Stafford or any other
responsible official would subordinate
professional military judgment to
this sort Of popular strategy.
1t Is also difficult to reconcile the
main thesis Of the dispatch with Mr..
Middleton's statement that his in
formant says Britons remember the
Churchill-suggested Gallipoli cam
paign in the First World War and
are not very strong for civilians over
riding the opinions of military men.
If there is any valid complaint
against Mr. Churchill in connection
with the Gallipoli campaign, it is that
it was too daring, too aggressive.
But Mr.. Churchill, also according to
the dispatch, is in political danger
today because he Is too cautious, too
slow to lash out at the enemy. And
again, the dispatch stresses British
distrust Of civilians who override
military judgments, while also citing
civilian discomfort with the military
conduct of the war as a prime reason
for Mr.. Churchill's anticipated
downfall.
Somehow, the story does not quite
hang together. If Mr.. Churchill, the
dynamic leader who has pulled the
British people through their darkest
hour by sheer force of personality, is
replaced by the as yet improved Sir
Stafford Cripps in the immediate
future, a new and certainly not a
reassuring chapter will have been
added to the record of the capricious-
ness of public opinion in a demo-
cratic state.