The Wilmington morning star., 1945-10-13
Same But Different
Rv ANNE o,HARE MCCORMICK


question period was conducted without parti-
san acrimony. There was no debate on Mr..
Bevin's measured and factual report of the
Foreign Ministers Conference. Fresh from his
artists holiday on Lake Como, Mr.. Churchill,
looking beaming and blooming beside his sue.
cessor, pronounced the Bevin statement
clear and able"
It was evident that the majority on both
sides of the House approved the Foreign Sec
retary,s attitude. A deep rumble of hear,
hear greeted his declaration that disagree
ment was not on a technical matter but on
principle 'it was incumbent on me to de-
fend.'' The same characteristic British cheer
followed the assertion that on the question of
treaty with Rumania he associated himself
with the American delegate in being willing
to discuss the draft of treaty but was I'M
willing to sign it until more was known OF
the Government.
The Throne has been removed to make
place for the overflow of Labor members in
the overcroWded precincts of the House of
Lords, where the Commons will continue to
sit until the lower House is rebuilt Only a
hole in the ground remains where the House
OF Commons used to be.
Neither atmosphere nor ceremonial changes
with the change of Government. When Con-
servative member interrogated the Prime
Minister today on the attitude of the Govern.
ment toward applying modern revolutionary
techniques to British industry, Mr.. Attlee an
sWered amid general laughter we don't in,
tend to be left behind in any revolution If
he had been asked about maintaining British
tradition he might have answered as truly
that Labor would not be behind the Conserva-
tives in that respect either.
The Parliament that met today was pic
ture of Britain in the hour of victory. It's
mood was grave, for nobody pretends that this
is not heavy and troubled hour. The prob
lens the Government has to face have multi
piled and magnified in the months since the
election. Churchill and Eden have changed
places with Attlee and Bevin and many mem.
bers of the coalition Cabinet sit on the Gov
eminent benches. From the gallery thu pres.
ent assembly does not look very different
from the end of the war. Some of the Labor
Ministers speak with the accent of the East
End or the industrial Midlands, but Just as
many are products of Elton and Oxford All
are practiced debaters either in the trade
union movement or in Parliament, and only
two or three are new in public life
But the superficial view is not the true
view. There are plenty of new faces in the
House, scores Of young faces. Many of the
junior members on the Labor side would have
been Conservatives a few years ago. They
are drawn away from the political paths fol.
lowed by their fathers partly because those
who once felt safe face an uncertain future
and are impelled to take chance on some
thing new partly because many of the upper
and middle classes, formerly so STRAIT fled,
have worked in factories during the war and
have become identified with Labor in the
most literal sense.
This is particularly true of the young worn-
en-. There are twenty-five women in the new
Parliament, of whom twenty-five are Labor
members. This in itself is sign of the
change. Most of the women M. P's are sit
ting in Westminster for the first time, but
they have long been active in the Labor move
ment.
have been working for twenty-five years
for the day when Labor would have ma
Jority overwhelming enough to do something
said the member from Battersea black
haired, younglooking woman who boasts that
she is grandmother cts a difficult time
to take over,' she added. but good thing
it is for the country that we are in instead
OF the others. We can get support for hard
measures where they could not''
All Labor members speak in terms of we"
and the others, and the people in the streets
likewise tend 10 identify themselves with the
Government, referring to it as we rather
than they Labor is actually more move
ment rather than a party, and pretty in
elusive movement. supported by people as far
apart as Ernest Bevin, Harold Laski and the
big lndustrialist who voted Labor because he
ooJo he lllouSIC a SOCldllSt administration
would handle postwar strikes and "stand up
to Moscow more firmly than the Tories
Strongly supported as it is, however, the
Labor Government is definitely Government
on trial. The temper manifested in Parlia-
ment today reflects the temper of the coun-
try. There is general disposition to appreci-
ate the difficulties it has to cope with and
give it chance. 1t is only slight exag-
geration to say that this benevolence is more
marked among the Conservatives than among
the Laborites themselves, for the people are
watching hopefully but critically to see what
the new men will do to ease the strains Of
everyday life.
Relations with the United States-a little
soured at the moment-are matters of great
moment to this country. The tragedy of Eu-
rope overshadows the British in much the
same way as they were haunted by the
specter Of approaching war in 1888 But they
are still living in almost intolerable war con-
ditions, and until those are lightened their de-
mands on the Government will be primarily
domestic.-New York Times.
QUOTATIONS