Evening star., 1951-10-03
Tories Voice Delight
AT Unexpected Show
OF Bevan' S Strength
BY the Assoeiafed Press

LONDON, Oct. 3.-Parliament
gathers tomorrow for formal dis
solution and Britain's intensive
election campaign gets under way.
The battle trends were clear today.
But the British man-in-the-
street was asking today: How deep
| is the patched-up rift in Labor
ranks? Will the seams hold until
after the voting date, October 25?
LeftiSt Aneurin Bevan's unex-
pected show of power at the Labor
Party's Scarsborough conference
puzzled the rank and file and
some leaders, and 1t brought glee
Ito Conservative ranks.
Claims of Harmony Challenged.
Conservative papers this morn
ing charged that the Labor Party's
moderate-leftist split was wide
open again despite claims Of the
Labor Party leaders that all is
harmony in the face Of the Tory
ELECTION attacks.
Liberal Party quarters indicated
they thought Mr.. Bevan's victory
in forcing Defense Minister Eman-
uel Shinwell from the Labor Party
Executive Committee and winning
four of the seven contested seats
for Bevanites on the committee
presaged bitter open warfare in
the party after the election.
The Conservative press also
hailed Winston Churchilrs cam
Epaign-opening speech before 5000
cheering supporters at Liverpool
last night.
Mr.. Churchill promised a
'broadly-based" government If
his party wins and a five-year
political truce to carry on "a toll
Grant. non-partisan, non-doc-
Itrinaire system Of policy"
Bid for Coalition Seen.
Many here interpreted that as
a guarded bid for a coalition cab
Iinet with leaders of all parties
Joining under Conservative lead
|ership.
The Daily Telegraph called the
speech "a call to patriotism and
unity in sober contrast to the rau-
cous partisanship of the Socialist
campaign" but there were no i'm
mediate appraisals of the coalition
angle.
The comments were freer on the
upsurge that gave Mr.. Bevan's
group about $4,000 of the avail
able 1,147,000 votes involved in
lplacing them in the four seats of
the political division of the execu-
tive committee.
One moderate Socialist leader
at the party meeting said last
night: eve had it. The floating
vote will wonder is we really mean
to rearm and will also wonder if
we are reunited"
"Laths and Pasteboard."
| Lord Beaverbrook's Daily Ex-
press said editiorially, ''the whole
1imsy film-set of Socialist unity
is reduced to mess of laths and
pasteboard."
The Telegraph declared, "there
is no longer any room for pretense
that Bevan and his friends are a
politically insignificant ginger
group within the Socialist Party"
(The British say ginger" where
Americans say "red"-as a gin
ger haired person.
The Labor Party's own news
paper. the Herald, avoided any
editorial comment.
But next to its news story it
ran a cartoon by David Low show
ing Mr.. Bevan in winged fight
and carrying Mrs. Barbara Castle
and Tom Driberg. two Of his sue
cessful candidates. under his arms.
The caption: Barbara Castle,
Nye, and Driberg Ascending on
the Left Wing"
u. S. Reaction a Question.
Some of the questions Labor
supporters were asking them
lSelves:
| Will wavering Liberals and
some Laborites be scared into the
conservative columns on voting
Iday by the fear that Mr.. Bevan's S
leftist star is rising within the
Labor Party?
| Will the Tories try to capitalize
lon Mr.. Shinwell's route, interpret
ling it as evidence Labor is turn
ing away from a rearmament
policy toward the Bevan view that
rearmament must be held down in
line with development of social
services and other welfare state
programs?
| What will the United States
think? Will Mr.. Shinwell's defeat
be interpreted in the United
Estates as evidence Of British cool
Iing-off toward all-out rearma-
lment?
| Mr.. Churchill assailed the
Abadan oil refinery evacuation as
evidence of a broken promise by
Prime Minister Attlee. But he
ibid not make any move toward
Igetting a parliament debate on it
before its scheduled dissolution.
Liberals Bid for Votes
As Moderoting Force
| LONDON, Oct. 3 (P.-The Lib
eral Sarty asked Britain's voters
today for enough seats in Com
mons to provide a moderating
force on the Conservatives and
Laborites.
In a 2,000-word manifesto, the
Liberals pledged themselves to
support "the more reasonable ele-
ments" in the two major parties.
The Liberals ran ATS candidates