Evening star., 1947-12-19
WAR Experiences Led
Ito Gulf Between Him,
Father, Windsor Says
BY the Assoeiafsd Press

NEW YORK, Dec. 19.-The Duke
Of Windsor. describing his life as
Prince of Wales in World War I,
said yesterday his education was
completed in the war by living un-
der all kinds Of conditions with all
sorts OF men"
Discussing his efforts to get into
combat in the last OF q series Of
photographed articles published
in Life Magazine, the duke wrote:
AS Prince OF Wales and next in line
Of succession to the throne, was to
discover that my trophy value ex-
ceeded my military usefulness"
The articles recounted his life
through World War I and q few
years Immediately following the war.
No mention was made of his days as
King, his abdication or Of his pres
ent life.
Shelled by Own Artillery.
II have no desire to emphasize my
obscure and no doubt superduous
role in q great war" he said, yet in
q manner of speaking my education
was completed in war. If not exactly
as my tutors intended. 1t was
completed not by book or theory but
through the experience Of living
under all kinds Of conditions with all
sorts Of men,"
During his service on all fronts his
repeated efforts to become q combat
officer was frustrated by the Army
command, he said. Nevertheless, he
said he had typical soldering expe-
riences of being bracketed by enemy
shellfire, of being shelled by his own
artillery and, needless to say, got
my first lesson in crap-shooting from
the Americans"
AS a result of his war experience,
the Duke of Windsor said, there
grew between his father, King
George, and himself a divergence Of
our viewpoints"
Derby vs.. Top Hat Dispute.
"To the end we were the best Of
friends" he said. This gulf there
fore was not of the heart but of gen..
erations. The ideas and notionS
that divided us then would, if were
to repeat them, seem of little conse-
quence now, for was certainly no
cosmic thinker, with blueprint for
remaking Britain"
When he returned from the war
and assumed the duties of heir ap-
parent to the throne, the Duke said
he preferred wearing a derby to pub
lie functions instead of the tradi-
tional top hat his father deemed
necessary.
Now I would just as soon have
gone around wearing gold crown
as shiny top hat" he said. adding
that in defending his "bowlder" be-
fore his father he did in fact ex-
hibit certain sagacity in what we
nowadays call public relations.
my point was that since the
political cartoonists had, rightly or
wrongly, made the top hat a uni
versal symbol of the bloated, preda-
tory capitalist, the male members
of the royal family would be well
advised not to wear one during times
of social tension"
Fears What Father Feared.
Today-now SO, the same age as
his father at the end of World War
1.-The Duke of Windsor said Il
have come to understand my IA
ther better. What fear, and
what now realize my father always
feared, was violent change: change
that would sweep away fundamental
and hard-bought things"
With the aid Of Lloyd George,
then Prime Minister, the Duke said
he came to view his purpose as fol-
lows:
Firstly, I should try to bring
the monarchy nearer to the people
Of Britain who. though emotionally
loyal to the monarchical tradition,
had become less inclined than in
the past to take it all for granted.
Secondly, should travel around
the world, reviving or selling the
idea Of empire to the waverers
within the British dominions and
colonies while meanwhile fostering
good relations with foreign coun-
tries"
The Netherlands has reopened
direct telephone service to the East
rvy