Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-04-18
Britons View Churchill
As Eden Board Chairman
BY CROSBY S. MOVES

BY CROSBY S. MOVES
European Correspondent Of The Star
PARISHES Winston Church.
Ill really retired?
Britain has a new prime min
lister. The red brick building at
No. 10 Downing street has q
new occupant and the venerable
old statesman is busy summing
himself at his Sicilian retreat
And yet. in the minds of many
the question remains an open
one.
When last in London, this re-
porter asked a number of usually
well-informed Englishmen what
they thought about it. At the
time, there was a strong current
of feeling that Sir Winston could
never retire in the sense that an
ordinary man could. However
convincing and final his public
withdrawal might be. the Old
Man would still be around. 1t
was said. And he would still
play an important part in world
affairs.
Since then, this talk has con-
tinued. His presence on the back
bench of the House Of Commons
would amount to a wholly new
element in British politics. When
he spoke, the attention Of Brit
ain and the world would auto
matically focus on him. rather
than on the government. His
private contact with Prime Min
lister Eden would certainly con-
tinue, and with it. a powerful
influence on British policy, both
foreign and domestic.
Role in Election Seen
There has been considerable
speculation that Sir Winston
might accept a leading role in
the coming British election. lend
ing the weight of his prestige to
the Conservative cause. Above
all, most Englishmen expect that
Sir Winston will continue to play
his part on the world stage. If
a full-dress meeting of world
leaders should be held-that
conference at the summit"
which the former Prime Minister
talked of so hopefully-it seems
almost unthinkable that he
should be left out.
This notion of Sir Winston as
q sort of chairman of the board"
goes we'll beyond the role nor
mally allotted to elder statesmen.
It is a tribute to the degree that
he has come to represent the
British government in the minds
of Englishmen and the mind Of
the world. It is proof, if any
were needed, that Sir Winston
is a political force in his own
right-above party and above
the need for formal political
Office. The burdens may be
passed on to younger men. but
greatness, and the duty it i'm
poses, cannot be laid down.
Admitting that Sir Winston is
still in a position to play a major
role is not, however. the same as
saying that he will choose to do
it. On the contrary, there is
every indication that the intends.
for the time being at least. to
avoid the limeligl1t as much as
possible.
If it were only . question of
loyalty and affection for his sue
cessor. that in itself would be
reason enough. Sir Anthony
can be expected to have a hard
enough time trying to fill Sir
Winston's shoes without having
the job complicated by the con-
spicuous presence Of his prede-
cessor The most basic demands
Of sportsmanship-to say moth
ing of friendship-require that
Sir Winston should stay out of
the picture at least until his
protege has achieved a firm
grasp on his new job.
Could Be a Liability
So far as the elections are
concerned, a good many of the
younger Tories have long felt
that Sir Winston is more a liza
bility than an asset. The idea
could we'll be proven wrong. And
yet, having waited so long to
show what they could do on
their own, it seems that only
the unlikely prospect of po-
itical disaster at the polls would
make the conservative leaders
turn for help to the Old Man.
There remains the part that
Sir Winston could play at a
meeting Of world leaders. 1t is
true enough that the prospect
Of the sort Of Olympian meeting
of minds to settle cold-war prob
lens has receded lately. Sir
Winston himself has admitted